Archive for the ‘Pyramid’ Category
The Bass Pro Signs
Thursday, February 28th, 2013
You have probably read about the four huge Bass Pro lighted signs that will adorn the Pyramid if approved by the City Administration. Here is what John Malmo, a noted marketing expert had to say about the issue.
John Malmo, Memphis advertising executive, said, “That’s one helluva sign package, but if you rent the Lincoln Memorial to a retailer and he wants to put up a huge sign to advertise autographed pictures of Jefferson Davis, he’s going to do it unless the lease forbids it.”
The Truth About The Bass Pro/Pinch Bonds
Tuesday, January 22nd, 2013January 22, 2013
The City of Memphis has decided to go ahead with the Pyramid/BassPro/Pinch project to the tune of $192 million dollars. The following is from a 2011 article in the Commercial Appeal.
While acknowledging that the project carries risks, Memphis officials and financial planners say the deal to fund The Pyramid’s transformation into a Bass Pro Shopsdestination store has been structured to provide several layers of protection fortaxpayers.
Conservative estimates regarding the major financing component — state sales tax revenues from a Tourist Development Zone covering all of Downtown and the MedicalCenter district — indicate that there should be ample funds to repay bonds issued forthe project, they say.
More on TDZs and TIFs
Tuesday, January 15th, 2013January 15, 2013
Since the future of the poor City of Memphis seems to depend on future income from TDZs (Tourist Development Zones) and TIFs (Tax Incremental Financing) I decided to investigate these schemes further at the State level. I show below an email and response from Mr. Garrett Guillory, Tennessee Department of Revenue. There is his letter response, sales tax returns on TDZs and sales tax returns on Sports Authorities. Except for the Tennessee Titans stadium in Nashville, Memphis has far more of this type of financing than any other city in the state.
Dear Mr. Saino, Thank you for returning my call and providing clarification on your public records request, which the Tennessee Department of Revenue (the “Department”) received via email dated December 12, 2012. The Department seeks to provide public records in a timely manner. Per our telephone conversation from this morning, I am sending you this follow-up email with the (more…)
The Memphis Czar
Monday, December 17th, 2012December 17, 2012
I went to a Community Redevelopment Agency meeting recently at City Hall and about 50 members of the public were present prepared to discuss and protest the Heritage Trails redevelopment proposal put forth by Robert Lipscomb. He failed to show up. You ask yourself, who is Robert Lipscomb? Good question.
Inside the Huge Pyramid Bonds
Thursday, July 26th, 2012July 26, 2012
Let’s take a look inside the engine of the bonds for this project, $197 million dollar deal. (page numbers shown are the pdf page numbers not the actual document page numbers).
Market Study (Page 4) states “There is no assurance that actual events will correspond with the assumptions on which such estimates are based. Consequently, no guarantee can be made that the estimated new TDZ (Tourist Development Zone) Revenues will (more…)
The Pyramid Lease Agreement
Monday, July 23rd, 2012July 23, 2012
The Details Of The Pyramid And Lease Development Agreement
This agreement is 157pages but it is in searchable pdf format. Still it is formidable. I will try to highlight interesting parts. (When I cite a page number, it is the pdf page number, not the actual page number).
Description of leased premises See Exhibit A (starts at page 36) and B (starts at page 42). Exhibit B gives you a better feel for the (more…)