Apr 22, 2008 6:52 pm US/Central
MOA Seeks Public Money To Double Its Size
(WCCO)
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The Mall wants to build on a $2 billion expansion on its north side, and it wants money from the state to pay for a $204 million parking ramp. (File)
CBS
The Mall of America is asking the state legislature for public money to help with a huge expansion. But despite promises of thousands of construction jobs by the Mall, not everyone thinks they should get the cash.
The Mall wants to build on a $2 billion expansion on its north side, and it wants money from the state to pay for a $204 million parking ramp.
It's the fund where that money could come from, that has others saying "not so fast."
Electrician Carl Madsen joined a small army of unemployed workers at the Minnesota Capitol supporting what the Mall of America calls a jobs bonanza.
Madsen is facing 18 months of unemployment and now he is number 645. It means 644 unemployed union workers before him get a call if a job comes up.
"I am proud of being an electrician, but it's tough when you're sitting at home staring at the wall and you're not working," said Madsen.
The Mall of America is hoping to double its size with the expansion, creating 7,000 construction jobs and making the state's largest tourist attraction even bigger.
"Those people visit lots of parts of this state. They go to the convention center. They go to Xcel. They go to Target. They fly on our airlines. They stay in our hotels. They eat in our restaurants, and they shop at other retail establishments," said Maureen Bausch of the Mall of America.
What's irritating to some business owners is where the public money comes from: A funding pool called "fiscal disparities". It's a pool into which all businesses pay, but the money's shared with less wealthy cities across the state.
At nearby Southdale Mall, the request for money has created the awkward effect of helping to build a parking ramp for its chief competitor, and some lawmakers just can't get their heads around that.
"For kind of our core government services here, and we are in a deficit, We are trying to find people health care and fund our schools. And for a lot of us this just doesn't seem like government's mission," said Tax Committee Chair Rep. Ann Lenczewski.
To put this in context, the $200 million the Mall of America wants is comparable to the amount of money the taxpayers have shelled out for new stadiums. The Mall is arguing it will have a far bigger return in jobs and taxes than any one of the sports facilities.
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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