Who needs a China Town when we have a Marriott Town?

Unfortunately, we didn’t know about the February 17th committee hearing on Proposal 35 before the City County Council. Fortunately, they opened the floor to public comment on Monday night, but it was pretty clear that all minds had been made up ahead of time.


The Council voted 23-4 in favor of the proposal that allocated $5 million of tax payer clawback money from Raytheon to Indiana Convention & Visitors Association (ICVA) and Indianapolis Economic Development, Inc. Specifically, $1.5 million was designated to ICVA and drew Councilor support because the White Family, of White Lodging (read Marriott hotels), agreed to match the $1.5 million 4 to 1.

ICVA has more than 60 employees, and the CEO’s reported salary in 2007 was $320,522 according to their IRS Form 990. According to the testimony from Deputy Mayor Nick Webber on Monday night, ICVA will use the $7.5 million to market downtown Indianapolis to draw larger conventions. This money will be on top of the tax payer dollars that already fund this non-profit corporation’s budget (Capital Improvement Board and Innkeepers tax).

This also means that White Lodging bought $1.5 million of our tax payer dollars on Monday night, to put with its own money, to increase its bottom line through marketing of downtown and its hotels. Marriott has a voice at the state level, because Bruce White is appointed to the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) by the Governor. IEDC “focuses its efforts on growing and retaining businesses in Indiana and attracting new business to the State of Indiana.” The Marriott already has a voice at the local level, hence the giant JW Marriot under construction, and the other hotels. Who needs a China Town in Indianapolis, when we have a Marriott Town already?

Cities need economic development, no doubt. But is it justified at the expense of neighborhood residents in Indianapolis who self-reportedly never use these amenities? Or the backbreaking work of hotel housekeepers who don’t earn enough to afford housing and groceries, let alone a hotel room?

Councilors Brown, Coleman, Evans and Minton-McNeill voted against the proposal.  We have a chance to impact an additional $500,000 being sought by the City.