Tag: City of Paris

Residential Renewal or Stupidity?

14-Years ago, in 2008, Paris (Texas) City Council members were talking residential renewal or stupidity; talking about creating a “residential tax abatement” for new housing and/or new residential improvements, but had never said where. What the council was talking about doing meant that Enterprise Zones (later later called Redevelopment or “Opportunity” Zones) would require approval before an abatement could legally be given.

Even back then, the Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce knew that a Paris Imperative existed to forget about the intent of a law and, instead, figure out how it can be used to not do the right thing. Despite that knowledge, we urged the City of Paris to start an urban homestead program in the Enterprise Zone, which state law allowed.  Instead of giving tax relief to areas that don’t qualify and encouraging abandonment of some intercity areas and neighborhoods, we suggested that Paris do the right thing: Use the existing Enterprise Zone as a test program – to see if it does or doesn’t work.

If the test program works, then consider creating zones all over Paris – or ask the Paris Chamber how to do community development.

We also said that following the history on how things are normally done, is it likely – until the Paris Matrix can figure out how far out north or east this can be done – a decision on where will never be made.  And none were, except to forget the effort . . .

WHY, we wondered, back in 2008, will Paris not create opportunities for individuals to use their sweat equity in exchange for the opportunity to own their own homes under an urban renewal program? Not all older couples are that interested in cooling, heating, cleaning, and maintaining 3,000 to 5,000 square feet of floor space. Not when they can fix up and add a few special touches to create an modern, smaller luxury home for less money than it would take to build a new one. And many young couples, starting a life together, have the energy and know-how to improve a starter home and use what they would pay as rent to do it, given an opportunity to acquire one.

Even in 2008, we knew the residential imperative should be to get homes improved and back on the tax rolls; not subsidizing developers to build for-profit homes and income rental properties.

Some citizens (and council members) argued that an urban renewal program wouldn’t work in Paris. How they knew this, as one had (and has) never been tried in Paris, is beyond our understanding (then and now)…

Of course, it could be they didn’t want it tried in the Enterprise Zone, in the “west side”. For instance, some wanted it tried in areas that didn’t quality for tax abatement. But they were successful in getting the distressed area designation spread to over most of the town.

Today, over half of the land area inside the Paris city limits is in a designated “distressed area” – and the leadership calls it progress.

Since 1996, over the last 26 or 27-odd years (in Paris, they’re all odd), millions of tax dollars have been spent on consultant fees and for big salaries to solve our problems. Most of it has been – and is – wasted on people who talk a good game and report well, but can’t produce; and Paris has continued to deteriorate.

Now, all Paris is doing is giving property tax abatement to developers who know how to sell sugar to those who love sweet talk, but don’t know crap about actual community development.

So far, we see very little indication that the right thing is being or will be done in the right way.

But the Paris Chamber doesn’t have a thing to do with the way things are done . . . or how Paris looks.

Regretfully.

Or Thankfully.

 

 2nd Posting (2009): Investing in People 

The City of Paris owns or could/should own a lot of houses on which taxes have not been paid for years.  And there are numerous vacant, substandard houses on which huge tax bills are owed that the city will likely end up owning, also. 

Why not fix the problem by investing in people?

So now, the Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce is going to try it once more:  A city that owns housing in an Enterprise Zone can establish an urban homestead program, through which the city sells a house it owns to a private citizen for an amount not to exceed $100.

The individual buying the property must agree to live in the house for at least seven years and to renovate or remodel the residence to meet the level of maintenance stated in a written agreement between the individual and the city.  After the individual lives in the house for the seven years and satisfies the agreed upon improvements, the city deeds the house to the individual (or assigns it to a bank that may be financing the improvements for the individual).

True, not all the folks hopping on an urban homestead program will follow thru…and the city or program administrator will have to reclaim the property.  But many will follow thru, improving their lives (and the City of Paris). 

Any homes that are returned can be offered to others who will complete the terms of the homestead agreement. There will never be enough homes . . .

Last year,in 2008, the Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce has tried to point city officials to the fact that there are many individuals with the energy and strength of character who could and would use their sweat equity for an opportunity to own their own home under such a program. 

Yes, we understand that many local movers and shakers, who have no more idea of community and economic development than Oak Wilt fungus, see the Paris Chamber as an irritant to their schemes or beliefs; but they should know that business is business and a good idea is a good idea – no matter where it comes from. 

Paris talks about improving Paris.  Paris talks about the need to improve and beautify. Paris talks about substandard homes with unpaid taxes, and talks about what to do with them. But not utilizing available programs to improve a large part of Paris because it is on the west or – as many of the more ignorant state it – the wrong side of town is inexcusable! 

Sure, we understand why some want to deny incentives for businesses and new home construction in the Enterprise Zone, even if such action violates warranties that had to be made in the Contract to get the Zone approved. We find such actions wrong, ethically repulsive, and don’t agree with it, but, considering the parties involved, we understand it. 

But to deny younger couples or retirees and others who have the energy and/or resources to own their homes – while eliminating eyesores – and improving Paris – is mind-boggling!  And that we don’t understand.

Why wouldn’t we invest in our people? 

Talk about creating opportunities – 

The Paris Chamber’s recommendations are on record, and the City has a considerable payroll for key employees to keep up with such programs, so they cannot plead ignorance. 

The money the city has wasted (and is wasting) on know-little consultants would have more than paid for the Paris Chamber’s recommendations for improving residential areas all over Paris, through which clean-up, fix-up, paint-up materials would be exchanged for “sweat equity” labor and. . .  Oh, well.

How much longer can Paris afford to wait? 

                                                                                                     return to  The Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce

The Grand  &  the Visitor’s Tax:

Closing out 2022, the City of Paris has not completed the restoration promised for the Grand Theater over a decade ago; click the links below for verification; to see what the Paris Texas Chamber was warning about years ago . City council members, past and present, have wasted and are wasting a half-million dollars of the taxpayer’s money, creating a decade-plus long money-pit.

In the meantime,  since 2008, city leaders who have made the worst possible decisions for Paris, have downplayed and cussed the Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce for confronting  wrong decisions and actions, which have been and are detrimental to the equal economic progress of local families who want to improve their lives economically.

While the city demands perfection of others in meeting their demands, it ignores its own obligations and responsibilities. Simply because it cannot meet or carry-out its own actions and promises, it should not force others to waste decades of time and money in their efforts to restore their downtown properties: Think of the First National Bank and the Rodgers-Wade buildings.

Our local organizations, who claim to do community and economic development, refuse to consider any approach that would require a transparent examination of fairness – or their own bias. And really dislike others doing so . . .

To even try and excuse the result of this Grand Theater project should require one to examine their own bias and knowledge – and sanity.

 

If interested, here are a few links (and the years they were posted on our website):

aint_it_grand (from 2010)

 

at_the_grand (from 2012)

 

grand_things__paris_texas (from 2013)

One of the reasons why the Paris Texas Chamber of Commerce distrusts so many government bureaucrats (not workers, bureaucrats):

After years of community and economic wrong-doing by several large and small Texas’ cities, legislators gave them a sly wink that a ‘safe haven” now exist in the Chapter 380 law for any of their past, on-going or currently contemplated sins. Under the new Chapter 380 Program, anything legal or semi-legal can be economic development.

It is such a bad law that state legislators declined to determine specifically which incentives, when offered singularly or in combination, constitute a “program … to promote state or local economic development.”

There are no rules governing community and economic development anymore, except for civil injury or death.

Economic development is now anything a city council says that it is – Whether an incentive is requested or not, it gives a city control over all development efforts.

Government takes care of government; government grows government.

Taxpayers have raised such a ruckus over wasted tax-dollars that lawmakers had to do something to bail-out their brethren.

Therefore, 380 agreements serve to only memorialize economic development projects that cities create. It gives a city council the rights of management and control over anything that it designates as a 380 project, thereby setting aside the Constitutional rights of private property ownership.

If government can control it, it – or their friends or supporters or the bureaucrat administrators – can reap the rewards while you pay the taxes, which government also puts into its pockets . . . IF someone can control and manage your property, in ways that they determine, what good is your ownership of it?

Logic is not a government strong point.

The Chapter 380 law requires that a “claw-back” or “recapture” provision be in every 380-agreement. It’s a way for cities to claim that taxpayers can get the total cost of incentives and grant or loan money back – IF their economic development partner does not meet or deliver on the agreed performance.

Cities and economic development corporations now have an excuse: A guarantee that no incentive will be wasted – as every and all are recoverable.

Whoopee!

The cockroach in the coffee is that cities have always been free to have “claw back” provisions from failed goals set forth under agreement terms. Its why we’ve had agreements and contracts since 1215 (the Magna Carta signing). But moving on:

The problem for taxpayers – who pay for all incentives – is that under Section 380.001(b), the governing body may: (1) administer a 380 program by the use of municipal personnel; (2) contract with the federal government, the state, a political subdivision of the state, a nonprofit organization, or any other entity for the administration of a program.

That is a cronyism loophole large enough for the 138,600,000 supporters of “democratic socialism” to do the Boot Scootin’ Boogie in . . . (That’s the left-leaning 42% that polls are reporting of the nation’s 330-million population, if you’re wondering.)

Recently, over a cup of coffee, one of our Paris Chamber’s supporters observed that “government has replaced the Mafia as the nation’s organized crime system.” He added, “All it is anymore is a legalized system for plunder.”

He said it was his fault because he “didn’t vote for Goldwater.”

Half of those present were not even born in 1964. One of the eldest said, “Its like I’m living in a society with Alzheimer’s.“

Anyway:  Chapter 380 is to protect government, while taking care of government’s friends and insiders.

It certainly is not about achieving results, as not all projects are “economic development programs.”

An improvement or a restoration of a building, allowing new instant slums in a neighborhood, some guy cleaning up junk in his yard, some crew selling “pot” on the streets, some gal painting her navel at the Culbertson Fountain, anything that can be claimed to have a potential for “community development” or to improve Paris’ appearance, can now become “economic” in the eyes of the city or when used by the PEDC (when they want it to be).

A 380 designation gives the city total administrative control and management of an entire project – which are the basic rights of private property ownership. And don’t be fooled: Control and management far exceeds any government right of ‘reasonable’ regulation.

Paris is now trying to treat community development as a need for a Chapter 380 economic development agreement; even if no loan or grant or incentive has been made by the city.

Forget any understanding of what, why, and how a project should be done.

return to          –          Paris Texas Chamber

Links:

     The Big Myth

     Affordable Housing

    The Good Stuff, right?