Peoria Taxpayers should think hard about museum tax vote

by Robert F. Renner, Peoria, IL

The supporters of the sales tax for the museum are very well organized and have mounted a massive campaign to get voters to vote yes on the tax. But Peoria County voters should be absolutely sure about several issues before they vote yes.

The first issue is that of the location. Is it the best for the museum? Would next to the Civic Center where there would be many automatic “walk by” visitors or at the present Lakeview Museum site be better? Is a museum and a Caterpillar display building the best usage of the Sears block or should it have tax-paying businesses and residences and public open spaces on it?

Another issue is the usage of the tax money if the referendum passes. The referendum does not limit the money to be used solely for the building of the museum. It could be used to help pay for operating losses likely to be incurred by the museum. It could be used to expand or renovate Belwood Nursing Home or any other public facility purpose the County decides later. Do voters want to vote for a tax when it isn’t known specifically what the money is going to be used for?

Whether public money should be used for a private facility is another question. Do taxpayers want to pay for ultra-fancy offices and meeting rooms for a non-public entity?

Taxpayers should strongly question the financial projections made by the museum supporters. The projections assume an average of 700 full-paying visitors to the museum every 365 days of the year. Is that really possible? Who pays for the deficit if it really is only 400 or 500 per day?

Will the tax really end in 20 years as stated by the museum supporters? The Civic Center supporters said the same thing when it was proposed and then a large amusement tax was added later to pay for the annual operating losses of the Civic Center.

Will this project be like the Gateway Building that is costing the taxpayers hundreds of thousands of dollars every year to pay for its losses because it did not come close to its supporters’ projections?

Does anyone really know what the cost of the building will be? The $136 million cost amount was determined a long time ago. Might it be more like $150 or $160 million or even more in 2010 and 2011 when it is built?

Is this just another example of taking the hard-working peoples’ money and put it into the hands of a few insiders to build another castle for the kings and queens that will hardly be used by those who paid for it?

Taxpayers need to think very hard about all of the issues regarding the museum and not just the ones promulgated by the supporters of it.