Seattlest: Frank Chopp? You Mean the Guy Who Has the Really Bad Viaduct Idea?

ANONYMOUS

Thu, 03 May 2007 10:30:07 -0800

YEEHAW!!!THEM REDNECKS GONNA BE MAKING THAT DARN TRIP TO SEATTLE, UM HUM. UM THATS RIGHT. UM HUM. YEEEHAW

Myk

Wed, 04 Apr 2007 10:13:45 -0800

No one will probably read this but... 2) Nascar drivers and crews have far fewer incidents of alcohol and drug abuse and felony crimes than players in football, baseball, and basketball, all sports supported in the billions of dollars by taxpayers in Washington! Hence they are much better role models for our youth. - It makes me laugh that you can honestly take the first part of the paragraph and some how make the value judgment that ends the paragraph. Jacob: - I'm not even in support of the NASCAR track (I don't really care)...but please come up with some better arguments. You are just like the people who speak out about the Arena based on the sound bites that are created by people like Frank Chopp, who really care very little about being honest and very much about being in the newspaper all the time. Coby - The Arena deal works in a similar fashion using a tax rebate to build a finance generating infastructure. To bring up the Restaurant/Hotel Sales tax is pretty misleading since much of it is paid by people from outside the state of Washington and the restaurant tax that we pay would about to about $5 to 10 extra year depending on how much you eat out.

Jacob Metcalf

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 16:42:00 -0800

Justifying stupid development by saying that you are going to use “green construction” is like saying shooting some one but using a steel bullet so you don’t contribute lead dust to the environment. Show me one person that was able to make ends meet on minimum wage in King county because of the Seahawks.

Coby Eklund

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 16:00:14 -0800

LEED is bullshit? What do you base that on exactly? I'm sure that there are several people who would disagree. All of America is trying to go green Jacob, why are you so cynical about it? Is it that tough to believe that they care? Anyway, what the hell do you know about it Jacob? Have you ever done anything in your life besides complain? The State Treasurer is a joke. His testimony at the committee was laughable. BTW, your testimony was almost as bad. Sound bites and sentence fragments, you're giving representative democracy a bad name when you misrepresent the facts (or don't present any facts) like you did at that committee hearing. He seems to think that the only benefit that the Seahawks contribute is the rent they pay to the stadium authority. What about the jobs? What about the reveune? He came out against the 50-year bonds for the monorail and has to eat his words now that we need 50-year bonds so that we can afford our transportation infrastructure. He's not saying anything like that now is he? He's retiring and he should, he's too old and stuck in the past.

Jacob Metcalf

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 15:10:18 -0800

I agree with the State Treasurer in that there is no such thing as a true public-private partnership. Go over to TVW and listen to his testimony on HB 2062. "LEED certified green construction" is corporate eco-washing bullshit.

Coby Eklund

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 11:28:44 -0800

No you have missed the point. This isn't money that could be spent on schools in the current budget. It's a tax credit on additional revenue created by fan/visitor spending. Using a small portion of the existing taxes that would go to the state helps pay for extending infrastructure (sewer, water, etc.) to the site. The state government still makes a net gain in revenue. Remember one thing Jacob, those taxes are paid by race fans. It's their money and they deserve to have it work for them. We all do. It wouldn't be state run complex, it would be public. Are you against the County Fairgrounds now? Are you against the Kitsap Sounder stadium that Commissioners Endresen and Brown favor? This is a public-private partnership not a handout. There has never been a stadium proposal like this one in Washington State. ISC is committed to LEED certified green construction and to pay for more than half the cost of construction WITHOUT raising taxes on anyone. Both Qwest and Safeco were built by raising the tax rate for hotels and restaurants. Jacob you are either intellectually lazy or disingenuous which is it? Both?

Jacob Metcalf

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 10:12:22 -0800

Coby you are missing the point. There is NO justification or mandate in the state constitution to use public fund for a frivolous sports complex. I'm not a socialist and I don't think my taxes should be used to create a state run sports complex.

Coby Eklund

Tue, 27 Feb 2007 09:34:02 -0800

Jacob, Seaquist's comment was probably more insulting than Chopp's. Chopp definitely is getting some bad information from someone about NASCAR drivers and the fans of the sport. BTW, there is a big difference in the financing package that ISC/NASCAR is offering. No sports franchise has ever offered to pay more than half of construction, ever. And the only tax dollars that will be used will be from the extra spending generated by the track from the state portion of sales tax. Counties and cities get to keep all of the revenue from sales and the lodging taxes. They aren't raising the rate of sales tax, just getting a portion of it back. The economic impact report shows that the Speedway will be a net revenue generator for all of the local governments and the state.

Robert Adams

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 19:20:44 -0800

Three comments please; 1) chopps insulting remark about Richard Petty could not have been more thoughtless. The Petty's do not drink and do not allow advertising for alcohol on their racecars. It is frightening to know that a state leader acts so coldly without verification first! 2) Nascar drivers and crews have far fewer incidents of alcohol and drug abuse and felony crimes than players in football, baseball, and basketball, all sports supported in the billions of dollars by taxpayers in Washington! Hence they are much better role models for our youth. 3) I am against ALL taxpayer support of sports stadiums and racetracts. Financing sports is not government business. We have turned ballplayers into mulimillionaires on the peoples tax payrole.

Jacob Metcalf

Fri, 23 Feb 2007 11:35:38 -0800

I met with Frank Chopp on Monday and asked him to keep opposing HB 2062 the “Pork for NASCAR” bill. I left the meeting with the impression that the dude is quite hard core.