(Editor’s note: Opinion pieces are posted for discussion purposes only.)
A few weeks ago Darrell Jackson wrote an opinion piece that encourages Glendale not to give in to the threats made by the owner of the Coyotes, instead suggesting that we give them the boot. This past week, Carolyn Dryer brought up the point that since sports is a business they should be paying their own bills, not creating situations that the non-sports fans have to pay taxes to support them.
My husband and I have owned our own businesses. There were no government funds to help us with this, no taxpayers we could tax to give us million-dollar salaries. We finally had to leave that business behind.
My husband and I are not sports fans. I enjoy sports for the entertainment and only watch when I have tickets to a live game, but I do not like being taxed so that I can watch the games. Yes, I have been to a hockey game and I learned a lot about the game while I was there. That doesn’t mean that I want to pay for them to be in my city.
If they are of financial benefit to have them in this city, an increase in sales tax revenue, then those sales tax revenues could/should support them, not an increase in sales tax to pay for bonds or in my real estate tax.
Thank you, Carolyn (Dryer) and Darrell (Jackson) for speaking up on my behalf. You said it so much better than I did.
~ Theodora Hackenberg
