Post by on_the_edge on Apr 5, 2024 20:50:42 GMT -5
I think you are right in some cases but not most. Rarely does a team put up all the money. The owner does put up some. The reality is this is not much different than any other company wanting to have a presence in a city and promising jobs and/or a positive economic impact. When companies like Walmart or Amazon or others made a deal with the city leaders it is the local taxpayers that pick up the bill. If that comes in corporate tax breaks, selling of city land at rock bottom prices or other incentives. Just like a sports franchise there is usually no guarantee that the company will stick around for the long haul. If people are lucky there is some kind of minimum time investment tied into any deal but after that they can pull up spikes and move on. That is if there was something tied to the agreement. Otherwise, they can move any time it would be beneficial to the company. One example of how governments can be taken by companies is when Sears wanted tax breaks and money from IL state leaders to keep their world headquarters in IL and not move to IN. Shortly after the deal was made Sears announced they would be shutting down stores. State leaders told them they better not do it in IL since they just got their sweet deal. Sears said they would not and they did not close stores...then. They waited about 6 months to a year and did more closings including in IL.