by fredo
on 5/8/2008 @ 7:42pm
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The dust has barely settled on the $65M proposal to salvage the Frank Russell Company, and now we learn that Davita is entertaining thoughts of moving, too!
Say, you don't suppose this is what economists call "opening the floodgates" do you?
Here's what this blogger thinks the Davita proposal will involve. We all know that Tacoma's B & O tax is a complete albatross and has probably caused hundreds of companies locate outside Tacoma. Nevertheless our city fathers think the B & O is the greatest thing since sliced bread so that's not going away.
I believe the city will draw a circle around the Davita building and begin referring to businesses circumscribed by that circle as the "International Health Services District." These businesses will be able to get special tax preferences including no B & O tax without making the city abandon the tax for all the other businesses.
Just imagine what this might lead to! In just a few years we'll have an "International Candy Services District" in the vacinity of the Almond Roca factory, an "International Waterfront Dining District" along Ruston Way, and perhaps even an "International Hot Dog & Beer District" on 6th Avenue. Our city fathers are so clever with these things.
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by Erik
on 5/8/2008 @ 10:07pm | Here's what this blogger thinks the Davita proposal will involve. We all know that Tacoma's B & O tax is a complete albatross and has probably caused hundreds of companies locate outside Tacoma. Nevertheless our city fathers think the B & O is the greatest thing since sliced bread so that's not going away.
Who knows. If the city got rid of the B&O tax perhaps there would not need to be so many "packages" put together. As it stands now, Fife and Federal Way getting alot of business. |
by intacoma
on 5/9/2008 @ 8:08am | I could care less if davita stays, I dont know a single person that works at Davita that likes their job |
by Heather
on 5/9/2008 @ 10:18am | Liking your job and needing to keep it are two different things.
I know a handful of people that do like their jobs at DaVita and I know at least two handfuls more that need their jobs at DaVita and are very worried about a possible move.
Downtown Tacoma likes DaVita employees. Downtown Tacoma needs DaVita employees. They get their feet on the streets every day, pay for parking, pay for lunch, pay for drinks, volunteer in the community, pay for YMCA memberships, et cetera. |
by izenmania
on 5/9/2008 @ 10:34am | Agreed. IT, the people you know who don't like their jobs at DaVita would not still be working for DaVita if they could just magically hop into another, better job. |
by intacoma
on 5/9/2008 @ 10:36am | im just saying I have no problem seeing them leave and having some other large company come in and use that space ;) |
by izenmania
on 5/9/2008 @ 11:01am | Well yes, that'll be great just as soon as we find another company that will say "Hey look at these big companies leaving here... sounds like a great place to go!" |
by intacoma
on 5/9/2008 @ 11:19am | well we are seattles armpit |
by jenyum
on 5/9/2008 @ 11:52am | Geez, intacoma, someone ate his nega-oh's this morning. |
by fredo
on 5/12/2008 @ 12:09pm | The topic under discussion was not really the DaVita company per se. They process medical payments-how exciting could that possibly be? Their employees obviously spend money just as any occupant of the old Schoenfeld's building would.
The topic is the way the Tacoma City Council likes to approach problems like the FR and DaVita departures. Rather than taking the obvious pro-active approach (and enchancing Tacoma's attractiveness to current and prospective employers) of abandoning the B & O tax, the council always takes a re-active approach, cobbling together little tax preferences, red-lining neighborhoods, underwriting LIDs and waiving property or sales taxes for particular companies as the occasion requires. This approach may pay some short term dividends but in the long run it establishes an unworkable and needless complex economic mechanism which must be revisited every time a large employer threatens to leave.
Large employers have the same social obligation to pay local taxes that small employers have. These taxes pay for police, fire, libraries, schools, emergency services and streets (OK, skip that last one) that we ALL enjoy. |
