Randal O’Toole on Wichita’s WaterWalk and Government Planning
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Wichita’s WaterWalk development has already spent $41 million taxpayer dollars and it isn’t the first city-planned and subsidized project to disappoint. Randal O’Toole, a noted critic of urban planning, accompanied Wichita’s Bob Weeks, who has followed this issue closely at WichitaLiberty.org, for a quick tour of city spending.
O’Toole is the author of “The Best-Laid Plans: How Government Planning Harms Your Quality of Life, Your Pocketbook, and Your Future.” He blogs as The Antiplanner and is a Cato Institute Senior Fellow working on urban growth, public land, and transportation issues.
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Posted under Breaking News, Business, Free Market, Taxes, Video.
Tags: Bob Weeks, development, Gander Mountain, Intrust Arena, Randal O'Toole, Tax Increment Financing, TIF district, urban planning, WaterWalk, Wichita
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Randal O’Toole on Wichita’s WaterWalk and government planning
[...] As part of Randal O’Toole’s visit to Wichita, he recorded some remarks in front of a few of Wichita’s monuments to government planning. Paul Soutar of Kansas Watchdog recorded video and assembled the remarks. His reporting is Randal O’Toole on Wichita’s WaterWalk and Government Planning. [...]
7:39 am on February 10th, 2010
So what did Wichita do to piss of Koch? CATO sucks up Koch money whenever they can get it. So what subsidy does Koch want now? I hope you follow up on this story. I bet there is another big business with their hand out for city cash behind this.
9:27 am on February 20th, 2010
Ah yes. The typical blame the messenger campaign. Fact is Wichita has a genius for not thinking through a decision, half heartedly supporting it, becoming disallusioned because of small unintended problems, then becoming distracted by the “NEXT SHINY NEW THING”.
Grow up and act like adults. Put needs over wants. Pay for something before you buy something new. Value quality over flash. Pay attention to the people who have to pay for your next boondoggle. Plan for the local community not try to make the community more like somewhere else. Try, I know this is difficult, but try to understand that most people live here because they like it here, faults and all. If they wanted to live in Kansas City, Austin, Santa Fe, or New York they’d more there, but they don’t,
Government should never be involved in choosing projects like “River Walk”. Local developers who know the area and are risking their own capital not our finite resources should be the ones in charge of that kind of business decisions. I know, I know government knows best………………..not in evidence here or anywhere else on this planet. Sorry socialists, it just doesn’t wash.