Tom

I don't doubt your sincerity. I also believe that you have shown that you are reasonable when shown facts that go against what you previously believed.

Let me tell you why we can't listen to Rodney King's advice ("Why can't we all get along together")

The authority and the propaganda arm have taken full advantage of the power that's available with their respective positions. For the authority that means totally ignoring the honest, reasonable request that have been made for them to be transparent and responsive to accountablitiy questions. I have made the statement many times when speaking to them, "While I am against the project, the authority should do..." and make a good-goverment-everyone-that-is-reasonable-is-going-to-agree-with-this type of statement. Many times it's fallen on deaf ears.

Stuff like not telling the public why Stevens & Lee has received almost 8 million dollars! Stuff like - if you say your going to open this thing in 18 months, why in the world hasn't Dan Logan booked a convention for the 800K that he's taken? No reasonable person believes that the authority hasn't created the hostility because of their ignorant way of dealing with the public. They spend hundreds and thousands on PR but that many is going to attack those that oppose the project, not on convincing us that the project is a good thing.

Next the propaganda arm - Lancaster Newspapers. They have shown to be very myopic with what they cover. Remeber Conestoga View. That was sold for 8 some million. Almost the same amount that Stevens and Lee has taken from us! Remember that $288,000 paid to Stevens and Lee for Conestoga View that convention center supporter Art Morris keeps fussing about? Stevens and Lee took that same amount for January-August from the convention center authority. That issue is a collective YAWN! We have ZERO idea of what they did to deserve that amount and the public is told to pound sand.

The recent Convention Center Authority meeting was a good example. I can tell you that I am considering a mandamus suit against the authority as a result of the rude, and unprofessional manner that the chairman treats members of the public. Instead of talking and having a back and forth exchanges on finance, the public is told to shut up - we don't want your input.

I am embarassed for Ted Darcus whom I know to be an upfront, forthright man. I can't for the life of me understand why he acts the way he does.

I will write my predictions of how this is going to unwind and why that's a good thing later. The bottom-line that you should know is that these board members that keep on voting the company line, are being wastful because they know they are throwing away money on something that is not going to get built as currently conceived.

rh

In many of these public/private partnerships it kind of stinks that the public is usually forced into the deal and gets the raw end as well. I wonder how many business partnerships you would enter into if you were told that you had to put the most up front, and if the venture were not to succeed you yourself would have to pay to bail out the rest of the cost, but if it does succeed your payoff is that you will be off the hook for debt while the other partner will make the profits. I am sure you might think twice about entering such a partnership.

The only thing worse would be that you are then told that it's already a done deal and you are a partner with the same stipulations whether you like it or not.

I guess I just wish the "large number" of people who support this thing would start coughing up their own cash to do it and leave the rest of us out of the "partnership" that we were given no choice about.

I would very much like to read that.

I look forward to reading your predictions. Thanks in advance.

I don't give a rip how much money we have wasted, I still believe the convention center is a going to be money pit. It makes sense to consider the reasonable objections from citizens and experts. The tranportation problem, the market, etc. etc. will keep this from operating in the black and be an albatross to the taxpayers. It is also unethical to finance the above by taxing their competition.
To revitalize Lancaster, you need to make the city attractive to live in again. Fix the schools, cap the taxes, control crime, and don't add to congestion by unloading tractor trailers in the middle of the city, grid-locking Queen Street so I can't even get to Central Market.