Letters: KC readers discuss downtown Royals baseball, undertaxed rich, mental health
Develop near the K
Here we go again with more talk about a downtown baseball stadium. (Sept. 20, 7A, “Poll: Stadium downtown not a big hit in KC”) While many questions will need to be answered before this becomes a reality, the truth is that there is nothing wrong with the two spectacular stadiums we already have.
The problem is neither the age of the stadiums nor the location. No, the problem is and has been the complete lack of entertainment development around the Truman Sports Complex.
After 40 years, there should be more to offer than a Denny’s, a Taco Bell and a Subway. This area should have been developed long ago and could have been comparable to the Legends area near the Kansas Speedway in Kansas City, Kansas. There are places near the stadiums that could be converted to restaurants and bars. The whole west side of Blue Ridge Cutoff is one example, as well as areas around the fringes of the parking lots.
I believe that at one time, there were discussions about converting Lot M between the stadiums into an entertainment venue like the Power & Light District downtown. And don’t forget that whatever is done stadium-wise for the Royals will also have to be done for the Chiefs.
- Tony Michaels, Kansas City
Out of the game
The Sept. 10 commentary “The lies we tell about paying income taxes” by Jared Dillian (9A) is disingenuous in that he fails to include any mention of the ultra-wealthy who are not in the income tax system and pay little income tax, if any, for the upkeep, services and blessings of liberty that we all enjoy. Elon Musk, Michael Bloomberg, Carl Icahn, George Soros and Jeff Bezos come to mind.
The wealthy employ an army of lobbyists to write the tax codes exempting themselves through loopholes such as carried interest and unrealized capital gains, as well as parking profits overseas — and Congress obliges. An estimated 40,000 business addresses are registered in one building, Ugland House, in the Cayman Islands, with Delaware considered another tax haven.
According to the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Urban Institute, the “golden age” of 1950s capitalism had corporate tax rates of 52%, which provided 33% of federal revenue (now only 7%), with many corporations such as Coca-Cola, Intel and FedEx paying nothing. According to the 501(c)(3) nonprofit Tax Foundation, the top tier for individual federal taxes under President Dwight Eisenhower was at least 90%. He was interested in providing for the future and not the few.
Any comment on the ultra-wealthy paying no income taxes, Mr. Dillian?
- Angela Schieferecke, Prairie Village
A giving story
What a special gift Paula Logan and her family gave to Kansas City and to all families struggling with mental illness as they spoke frankly about her deceased son, Chad, who suffered from bipolar mental illness. (Sept. 19, 1A, “‘There’s something terribly wrong’: His family tried to save him. They blame his downward spiral into death on his mental illness and his lawyers.”)
As members of the Cecil Van Tuyl family with admirable values and unlimited resources, the Logans had the best mental illness options available. Their experience showed what a difficult, all-consuming and often anguished journey it is for those with mental health illness and their families.
As a mother and grandmother, I share the suffering of the courageous Logan family and their precious Chad, who had so many positive and endearing traits in addition to mental health illness. I am grateful for this story that encouraged me to be more supportive, understanding and helpful to those suffering from mental illness.
- Sara Colt, Mission Hills
On our dime
Wealthy developers are asking that a substantial amount of the proposed luxury Hotel Bravo’s multimillion-dollar cost be covered using tax increment financing incentives. The developer says rooms could cost an average of $240 a night. Based on this, we at KC TIF Watch figure tax subsidies amount to an average discount of $130 a night for Kansas City’s wealthiest hotel guests. This discount lasts for 23 years.
It can be argued that guests add to the Kansas City economy through local spending. But Hotel Bravo wants a big piece of that too, because it is asking for a super-TIF and a community improvement district, which would gobble up hotel guests’ sales taxes.
- Jan Parks, KC TIF Watch, Kansas City
This story was originally published September 22, 2021 at 5:00 AM with the headline "Letters: KC readers discuss downtown Royals baseball, undertaxed rich, mental health."