To cut deficit, Arizona may sell its Capitol

[Green_Lantern]

This story is a bit old but it highlights how anti-govt. Arizona is and what Republican tax policy does to a state.


"Arizona Gov. Jan Brewer signed the bill that approves the sale of state buildings on Sept. 3. Now, the state is deciding what to sell.

Properties around the state that may be sold and leased back include the House and Senate buildings, the Arizona State Hospital, the Arizona Pioneers’ Home retirement facility (built a year before Arizona gained statehood in 1912), and Kartchner Caverns State Park.

If it sells its Capitol buildings, only employees of the state agricultural laboratory would have to pack up and leave. Others would stay where they are as the state government leases back the properties over several years, eventually resuming ownership when the arranged terms end. The state has placed a total replacement value of roughly $1 billion on all the properties.

“Although there may be problems with the symbolism surrounding this, I think that at the end of the day, it’s something that the state has to do,” Ms. Lopez says. “We don’t have any choice.”

Arizona’s official historian disagrees.

Marshall Trimble is no fan of the cramped House and Senate buildings on either side of the historical copper-domed state Capitol, which is now a museum. But state properties “belong to the people of Arizona,” he says. “I just don’t think we have a right to sell these things."





http://www.csmonitor.com/Money/2009/0908/to-cut-deficit-arizona-may-sell-its-capitol

[liberal N proud]

1. I bet republicans have a plan that will solve that crisis

And I bet it involves tax cuts for the wealthy.

[obxhead]

2. "sold and leased back"

Why does this sound more like a scheme to enrich the buyers of the property, not save the state a dime?

[notadmblnd]

5. My thinking exactly.

I've never known one instance when privatizing something actually saved any tax payer any money.

[Warpy]

10. That will be the end result

It will generate some cash at the beginning then cost the state a huge amount of money if they don't rebuild those facilities elsewhere, something else that will cost the taxpayers.

It's also selling off what the people own in common, just like selling off municipal power and other utilities was. It robs the people of their property in order to generate short term gain for the state, most of which will go to fat paychecks at the top.

[aquart]

13. Yep.

[Sen. Walter Sobchak]

12. Lease-backs are basically a fire sale

They can make financial sense depending on circumstances, but their virtually always a panic sale for quick cash.

[Donnachaidh]

3. anyone have contact numbers for the wealthy in Mexico City?

I'd LOVE it if someone from Mexico made a point to purchase the Arizona Capitol. :rofl:

[Statistical]

6. I got to admit that would be funny. This guy could afford it.

Net Worth: $60.6 billion (yes dollars not pesos).

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carlos_Slim

[Donnachaidh]

I think they should. They could set up a front group to do the initial sale

Be sure they are *white* Americans, and then transfer the titles directly to Mexican Nationals.

I'd love to see this. Really, really would love that.

[UrbScotty]

4. Well, certain lawmakers sold the state's soul - how's a building any harder to sell? (nt)

[mkultra]

7. they should make it a Hispanic community center.

[T Wolf]

8. How 'bout they sell the Grand Canyon to AMerica so we can visit it without setting foot in

the Land that Time Forgot?

[kenny blankenship]

9. It's a visible symptom of an imbalance. Puts me in mind of an old quote:

"The liberty of a democracy is not safe if the people tolerate the growth of private power to a point where it becomes stronger than the democratic state itself. That in its essence is fascism: ownership of the government by an individual, by a group or any controlling private power."

--Franklin Delano Roosevelt

[sui generis]

11. I love it when they call themselves conservative and they conserve nothing

hey maybe they should privatize police and fire too while they're at it.

[damntexdem]

14. Well why not? They already sell their governor's office and legislature ...

to special interests, when they're not too busy pandering to racists.

Hey, if they hate government, I say "make Arizona back into a territory." Oh sure, a territorial government would be necessary, but that could be imposed from the outside, so it would not be like the Arizonan RWers were participating.

;-)