Analysts: Bass Pro not worth the money

BUFFALO, N.Y. (WIVB) - The Buffalo Common Council heard from researchers on Tuesday who say Bass Pro might not be such a business boon after all.

We've been talking about Bass Pro for seven years now and it is actually starting to look like it is very much on track, but a lot of the talk still centers around whether it's worth the public's money.

As construction crews lay the iron beams to shore up the earth for a new Bass Pro shop downtown, over at City Hall, the project continues to be criticized by a non-profit think tank that calls it, "a waste of money."

"We work primarily off of newspaper articles," explained one researcher.

The Public Accountability Initiative (PAI) visited some other cities who have a Bass Pro, and found that in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, the 300 jobs that were promised, only amounted to around 100. In Toledo, Ohio, the store has resulted in virtually no spin-off development.

Andrew Stecker of the PAI said, "Clearly, Bass Pro is not a surefire economic development solution. The claims that are made in relation to Bass Pro cannot be taken at face-value."

The researchers seemed to be preaching to the choir at the Common Council's community development meeting.

Common Council President David Franczyk said, "I just don't know where the endgame is. If it's coming, you should only announce it when it's signed, if it's signed, or if they sign a letter of intent or what have you."

"Whoever tells them that we're going to give you everything you want, plus some, should probably be fired, shot, whatever. This is just unbelievable," added Councilmember Joseph Golombek.

What does the President of the Harbor Development Corporation think of the criticism?

"I think a lot of it is fictitious," retorted President Thomas Dee

Dee says the only direct public subsidy for the Bass Pro store is $35 million, not the $154 million in surrounding improvements.

Dee added, "There's people that don't want things to happen. That's their prerogative, and that's really what's wrong with Buffalo. It's what we always complain about, things don't happen, things don't get done. I would just ask those guys, "Is this what's going to happen again? Things won't get done because you're going to get in the way?" Let's think about progress."

We should point out that the Common Council cannot really stop the Bass Pro project at this point.