The populist view
To the editor:
Stakeholders – what would the “news” be without them? The stakeholders in this case are those invested in or will be invested in the Swim Center.
My first comment needs to be to those who wanted the Kismet Water Plant vs. those who want the Swim Center. We all know about the Kismet Plant.
My second comment the stakeholders can only show estimated dollars to the city or county if events come to the site, if the entire project is built. But the dollars that are really important are those that the city needs to come up with and that number is not the $22 million but more like $40 million these dollars come first before the anticipated dollars. The actual dollars are in the area of $40 plus million – $22 plus million for the center and $18-plus million for infrastructure.
Third, the stakeholders talk about jobs – building the center requires temporary low-skill jobs and no guarantee that the outside constructors will use Cape residents.
Fourth, stakeholders should put up the bonds for the center. The stakeholders repeatedly say that this project is a win-win therefore their bonds are a win-win and they have nothing to loss.
And fifth, the Cape needs all the funds they can find. There are existing debts which must be addressed i.e. the Kismet Plant for one. The Cape stakeholders are the residents – we have no extra funds.
Rich Bornfreund
Cape Coral