The city’s latest campaign for a sales tax, championed by many of the same downtown boosters behind the Legacy plan, failed in 2014. The $450 million plan would have funded drought-protection and water infrastructure, transit, and street maintenance, but was rejected largely because of an $80 million “job creation” fund aimed at giving cash incentives to companies, which was seen by many as a giveaway to businesses. How other area businesses and nonprofits might see an uplift from east bank development isn’t clear, but one example floated by stakeholders has been a benevolence fund. … City voters who were interviewed for this article cited several examples of past public subsidization of private businesses that have raised eyebrows, mostly notably in a $22 million local soccer stadium, a $10.2 million subsidy for Topgolf, and 1,000 no-bid contracts worth a half-billion dollars at the state level from 2011 to 2018. That wariness has led to the Riverfront Legacy Master Plan being viewed through the lens of other city projects plagued by accusations of cronyism and a lack of competition.
Source: Wichita Eagle
