RE: [CPEO-BIF] Subsidies

["Bruce-Sean Reshen" <reshen@mindspring.com>]

As always Lenny, you were ahead of your time.  The concept is sound,
though the mathematics become difficult.  Your concept assumes that
developers are able to evaluate and quantify such public benefits and
properly weigh them against the alternative of a direct subsidy which
they better understand and appreciate. 

Bruce-Sean Reshen
p. 203-259-1850
c. 917-757-5925

-----Original Message-----
From: brownfields-bounces@list.cpeo.org
[mailto:brownfields-bounces@list.cpeo.org] On Behalf Of Lenny Siegel
Sent: Wednesday, October 25, 2006 12:23 PM
To: Brownfields Internet Forum
Subject: [CPEO-BIF] Subsidies

Long before I ever heard the word Brownfields, I worked with community 
groups around the Southwestern U.S. challenging the way that their local

government were offering subsidies to high-tech companies to locate in 
their communities.

We argued that it is possible to attract investment by investing public 
resources in education, infrastructure, housing, and even environmental 
protection. Companies that have a choice where to locate need those 
investments, not only because they directly benefit, but because they 
need to recruit employees from a global workforce, and those potential 
employees look at the qualify of life in areas where they might move.

While direct funding or tax abatement may indeed be useful, it should be

viewed within the context of a full range of public investments designed

to promote economic development. The advantage of spending money on 
education, infrastructure, housing, and even environmental protection is

that it benefits existing residents, too.

Lenny


-- 
Lenny Siegel
Director, Center for Public Environmental Oversight
c/o PSC, 278-A Hope St., Mountain View, CA 94041
Voice: 650/961-8918 or 650/969-1545
Fax: 650/961-8918
http://www.cpeo.org

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