Ski Colorado

When things get too hot in The Land of Sunshine Mr. and Mrs. Webb like to cool off in Colorado.

Who wouldn't enjoy...

Breakfast at Paradise Bakery Cafe in Denver; lunch at Bob's Place in Avon; dinner at Gore Range Brewery in Edwards; A trail ride or rafting trip from Triple G Outfitters in Wolcott. Of course the $422.03 rental car was covered too.

The Webb's also enjoyed the ski train package back in March of 2006 too. Coincidentally or not, the American Express statement for this period is missing so we don't know what wonderful restaurants they visited on that trip.

The Iconoclast: Behind the Cowbird Curtain

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Transit Committee Looks For Money

The Morning News recently reported how an advisory board for Ozark Regional Transit is in serious need of funds.

Former Springdale Mayor Jerre Van Hoose is honorary chairman of the committee that calls itself Advocates for Public Transit.

Was the future of mass transit on anyone's mind when they decided $50 million in tax debt for a baseball stadium was a grand idea?

Perry's Presents

Perry Webb and Danny Dotson apparently thought nothing of approving the $2,538.83 check for gifts from Calvin Mitchell Leather in October 2008.

As if that wasn't enough, Webb and McFarland approved an additional $7,054.57 for more goodies from the same place just a month later.

And once again a month after that for a grand total of $14,059.99!

Perhaps they needed new monogrammed luggage for their many out of town escapades.

But hey, as long as the in-crowd had a Merry Christmas and someone else is footing the bill, who cares. Right?

Ballpark Debt Wasn't Necessary

The Chamber of Commerce graciously paid for former Springdale Mayor Jerre Van Hoose's airfare from the luxurious resort town Jackson Hole, Wyoming to Salt Lake City, Utah and back again. I hesitate to call it a kickback, but I probably wouldn't hesitate at eyebrow-raising freebie.

It is possible the Mayor later paid them back, although three years of bank deposits show nothing with Van Hoose as a depositor. I suppose it is even possible he too was a compensated volunteer earning 15% commission for Chamber membership sales like the Moore's & Mullikin's. Isn't it?

Someone at the Chamber penciled in "S.T. Initiative I" on the AmEx statement which could mean Springdale Tomorrow Initiative, but it appears Van Hoose was the only attendee.

Surely the trip didn't have anything to do with his rejection just a month earlier of an offer by a Dallas-based sports investor to privately bankroll Springdale's ballpark, thus derailing the Chamber's pet project and sparing the already overburdened taxpayers from taking on an additional $50 million in debt.

Of course the original news article is no longer available, but a snippet can be located on ballparkdigest.com.

It has been suggested that Van Hoose is married to the sister of the majority owner of the prime ballpark area real estate just waiting to be developed. That's not a conflict of interest, is it?

Gas Guzzler

The newspaper article in which Webb was quoted as saying, "I didn't know Fayetteville was paying. It's been a conscious decision that you just don't bring it up" regarding his attempt to get out of paying property taxes on the Chamber's vehicle has conveniently disappeared.

According to Washington County Assessment records, the Chamber has just one vehicle and while we can all agree a Yukon isn't best known for it's fuel efficiency, doesn't it seem a bit far-fetched it needs $120 in gas a day? That's what was spent at Family Shop 8 in Springdale on May 17, 2008 in two separate transactions. A week later, on the same page of the American Express bill, they spent another $116 at gas stations in three separate transactions on the same day. Who can tell anything for sure. This page also categorizes a payment to American Association of Notaries "TMeals".

$112 at Westide Sinclair and another $105 at Kum & Go.

Another $100 / $81.00 at Kum & Go

On this page of the AmEx bill we find $383.00 spent on gas. Was Webb filling up the rig in Russellville the same day he hosted himself to the baseball suite?

The Iconoclast: Springdale Cowbirds Have No Shame

The Morning Brew

Each Thursday morning the Springdale Chamber of Commerce chooses a dues paying business for an event they call The Morning Brew.

I find it fascinating that the hosting business foots the bill for "light breakfast refreshments" but each attendee is also asked to fork over $2 to the Chamber. A small price to pay for the newtorking opportunity and a cup o' Joe? Maybe.

But something tells me these people likely pay in cash. The Chamber probably doesn't bring a credit card machine with them and a $2 check seems kind of silly.

I wonder how many weeks it takes to save enough of these convenient little dollar bills for a trip to the Land of Sunshine?

Field of Schemes

I don't think it's a secret we think the Arvest Ballpark was a poor excuse for economic development not to mention the feeling that taxpayers were duped into paying for it. Two years later, a couple of driving ranges are the only proposals that have surfaced for the area.
Not so says Perry Webb "This area transformed from people raising chickens and a bunch of hillbillies to the forefront of the corporate world."

A bunch of hillbillies. Really?

There has been a lot of discussion all across the country about sports stadiums being touted as the key to economic development and yet study after study finds they cost far more than they return.

The New York Times recently reported that "deals that were used to persuade taxpayers to finance their construction have in many cases backfired..."

Dale Rubin, of Salem, Oregon is an attorney who specializes in public subsidy issues. He recently finished a brief for a public policy group in which his concluions of law were that municipal subsidies for sports stadiums are unconstitutional. He said 'Almost all state laws say that no public entity should be aiding private enterprise...'

Brad Humphreys, Assistant Professor of Economics at the University of Maryland says "on average, professional sports reduces inflation-adjusted income per person by a small but statistically significant amount, roughly $40 per person per year. That figure is for every person ... not just people who attended games. So professional sports do not form the basis of a viable local economic development program.

Here are a few more articles. The list goes on and on and on...

Chamber Leads Charge for Stadium

Chamber Spends $250,000 to Study Stadium Area

The Twisted Logic of Stadium Construction

Bloomberg Excited Over Money-Losing Project

Top 10 Dumbest Reasons to Build a Stadium

Ballpark Digest

How Much Should a Ballpark Cost