Amanda Lehmert contradicts Sunday's News & Record Editorial on the downtown hotel deal

The council will consider paying $395,000 a year over five years on the project. Hotel investors told the N&R editorial board last week that the city would bring in $535,000 a year in tax revenue from the project -- a net gain in tax revenues.

That's true -- sort of.

The city estimates the hotel will generate in between $475,000 and $548,000 each year for Greensboro, by way of property taxes, sales taxes, business improvement district taxes and hotel taxes. (Those figures are based on the hotel having a 59 to 65 percent occupancy.)

Questionable

If you look at it that way, then the project will pay for itself.

But not all those taxes flow back into the city's general fund -- the property tax fund -- which will be paying out the incentive. Hotel taxes and BID taxes, in particular, can't be spent to, say, pay a firefighter's salary.

The city expects to earn a $1.03 million in property taxes from the project in the first five years.

If you take a wider view of "city revenue" and include sales tax into the mix, the city staff still predicts the project will be $531,000 short of paying for itself..."

http://www.news-record.com/blogs/killian_lehmert_the_inside_scoop/article_87ccd214-8d0c-11e3-9f71-0017a43b2370.html
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And then there is the Billy Jones factor on delinquent taxes;

http://greensboroperformingarts.blogspot.com/2014/02/greensboro-giving-incentives-to-tax.html