$4.5 million for Moriarty Racino Infrastructure?
According to KOAT TV:
The Albuquerque Downs are moving to Moriarty, and the city’s major hopes extra funding will come with it.
Mayor Adan Encinias is asking the state for $4.5 million to help cover infrastructure costs for the new racino. Plans for the track are complete, and this is the only issue standing in the way of breaking ground. The Downs president hopes to begin racing by the summer of 2010.
While I am completely agnostic as to whether or not the Downs should move, I find it hard to believe that Moriarty deserves $4.5 million of our tax dollars for the privilege of hosting the Downs. After all, isn’t state-sanctioned legalized gambling and horse racing supposed to be an economic boon for the area?
Rather than asking taxpayers in the rest of New Mexico to foot the bill for Moriarty’s infrastructure, perhaps they could leverage some of those future tax revenues in the form of bonds in order to pay for the needed roads etc. In the best of economic times, Moriarty’s case for $4.5 million of our tax dollars would be on shaky footing at best. In current, tough times when cutbacks are being made across the state, Moriarty should be asked to come up with something a bit more creative than fleecing the rest of us for their Racino.