The Beacon Journal runs a long, thoroughly reported story by Kymberli Hagelberg about the negotiations to bring Bass Pro Shops to the area. The whole thing is a must read, but here are few highlights:
- Bass Pro may not be done demanding perks. The story runs through a litany of breaks and incentives they've gotten elsewhere.
- The Impact Facilities law under which the deal is being negotiated was passed specifically to bring Bass Pro to the Toledo area.
- The story calls it "Bass" instead of "Bass Pro" throughout. Redhorse gets no respect.
- When justifying the Toledo store, officials claimed it would draw visitors from Cleveland and Columbus. The source for that 50% of customers from more than 100 miles away keeps getting thinner.
- Nonetheless, under the statute the County asks the Director of the State Department of Development to certify that the facility meets the requirements. Once the Director certifies that, it can't be reversed. Once the retailer is operating, the county can ask for a ruling that the retailer isn't living up to the requirements and cut payments. The retailer can appeal.
- Locally owned outfitter Gander Mountain has hired a lobbyist to stop the legislative authorization of subsidies to national mega shops like Bass Pro and Cabela's.
5 comments:
when i lived in georgia a few years ago people thought i was a loser because i never heard of bass pro shops. there arent any here, and i dont hunt or fish, really no reason i would have known.
I would have thought it was crazy to drive 100 miles just to go to a store, but that was before I moved to Ohio and discovered the nearest Ikea was in Detroit! Somehow I doubt that 50% of my fellow shoppers had driven as far as I have. Seems like an awfully high bar.
Here's a good pro and con on the issue -- written out of Hartford, Conn., which Cabela is reeling in. (Sorry about ending with a preposition there!) www.hartfordinfo.org/issues/documents/EconomicDevelopment/htfd_courant_102706.asp
Anon2:
Thanks for the link, but it got cut off. You can read Anon's source here.
Nothing local about Gander Mountain, they are a publicly traded retailer based in MN or WI I beleive. They just happen to be the first to set up shop in the NEO market.
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