The rural representative wants to establish a financial incentive for revitalizing nuisance areas. Unlike a similar bill filed last year, House Bill 82 sets limits based on population size.
The purpose of this bill is to give taxpayer money to a particular organization in Laramie: A group called "Laramie Main Street." This group claims to be a 501(c)(3) charity but in fact is a self-interested corporation. It is not transparent (it operates behind closed doors and doesn't invite the public to its meetings) and lobbies the City to influence policy - illegal for a 501(c)(3) but it does it anyway. It doesn't accept input from the downtown community and often acts against its best interests, yet wants to be funded by taxpayer money, which it intends to use to enrich itself as a for-profit landlord (again, not legal for a 501(c)(3), which isn't allowed to conduct businesses normally engaged in for profit). We should think long and hard before giving gifts to such organizations out of the public till.
The bill also conflicts with existing Wyoming law, which states that buildings must be declared to be nuisances by an Urban Renewal Agency, not by the City Council itself. And it represents a conflict of interest for Sherwood, who is employed as the executive director of the aforementioned "Laramie Main Street" organization. She's proposing a bill to give money to her own group, which is highly unethical.
The purpose of this bill is to give taxpayer money to a particular organization in Laramie: A group called "Laramie Main Street." This group claims to be a 501(c)(3) charity but in fact is a self-interested corporation. It is not transparent (it operates behind closed doors and doesn't invite the public to its meetings) and lobbies the City to influence policy - illegal for a 501(c)(3) but it does it anyway. It doesn't accept input from the downtown community and often acts against its best interests, yet wants to be funded by taxpayer money, which it intends to use to enrich itself as a for-profit landlord (again, not legal for a 501(c)(3), which isn't allowed to conduct businesses normally engaged in for profit). We should think long and hard before giving gifts to such organizations out of the public till.
The bill also conflicts with existing Wyoming law, which states that buildings must be declared to be nuisances by an Urban Renewal Agency, not by the City Council itself. And it represents a conflict of interest for Sherwood, who is employed as the executive director of the aforementioned "Laramie Main Street" organization. She's proposing a bill to give money to her own group, which is highly unethical.