Cross Posted from GROW.TC where we are discussing a millage request by TCAPS, and what it is that they truly want.
TCAPS has now begun to distance itself from ownership of the Performing Arts Center as a part of its planning.
Not at all surprising that as recent as September 13 in a Record Eagle Article, Stephen Cousins was still willing to discuss a $26,000,000.00 Performing Arts Center, but now it appears to be TABU for advocates to mention it. Certainly they could not be ashamed of such a ‘needed’ project, could they? And NO-ONE ever uses political gamesmanship to advance their agendas, at least not our schools, right?
Understand this, this millage is certainly about destroying perfectly good facilities like Eastern Elementary or Interlochen, so that new updated shiny facilities are ‘born’, but the PRIMARY FOCUS for this effort is one that is squarely on building a state of the art entertainment complex at Central High School.
It started as a dream. One that Stephen Cousins has even written a song about and performed. The TCAPS governing board has seen many power point presentations that have had as a part of the discussion, this facility, and it has even grown from its original inception. Just like its open support THEN, and denial NOW, things change. A February 27, 2012 look at the possibility of the Performing Arts Center Millage request (along with the renewal bond request) at the right (click on it for a larger image) shows a $17,000,000.00 price tag for the facility.
$17,000,000.00 is still too much in recessionary times, but it didn’t deter Cousins from pursuing his dream even further.
Apparently the addition of SOMETHING (perhaps a Cirque du Soleil scaffolding infrastructure) brought the price tag to $26,500,000.00 as seen in the May 22 presentation. The slide on the right demonstrates an “it’ll never be enough” mentality that taxpayers continue to be subjected to with the TCAPS board and its superintendent.
Clearly, the shark has been jumped, and the troubling financial times we face in our state and community are only starting to affect how TCAPS is marketing this boondoggle project.
They cannot un-ring the ballot bell so-to-speak, so they have to pretend it is not what it has always been.
A most magnificent waste of taxpayer resources.
