T he money folks announced that the planned hotel in Pine Bluff has taken a step closer to coming into existence. The hotel will take the place of the old Plaza Hotel, now obliterated but most recently known as falling apart before everyone’s eyes. That facility was built in the 1980s to be a help to the Pine Bluff Convention Center but has been headed in the wrong direction for many years, even when it was not falling apart.
That the plans for this new one is seeing some progress is a plus, and we say that while siding with those who don’t really believe the hotel will make it long term. In that sense, we hope we and the other naysayers are quite wrong.
We do, however, think it’s important not to lose sight of how the hotel came — or will come — about. As the plans were being discussed, the promise was made that no tax dollars would be part of the hotel. That was enough to get the council grumblers on board, with Council Member Glen Brown Sr. saying something to the effect of, “Well, if that’s the case, what’s not to like?”
But almost as soon as that promise was made, it was broken. Suddenly, and without warning to the council, the city raided the coffers of the Urban Renewal Agency to the tune of almost $3 million in tax proceeds. As it turned out, that amount of tax money was indeed necessary. To that, a bitter Brown said something about people lying to his face and he guessed that just happens nowadays.
Then quite a bit later, there were other shortfalls of cash, and also the need for the city to pony up a loan of another $3 million for the project.
Independent reporting for Pine Bluff & Jefferson County since 1879.
Again, the process was as transparent as dirt. Council Member Bruce Lockett said at the time that he had heard nothing about the loan until the deal was almost done. So typical.
So when one of the players, Latrece Harris, got euphoric this week about what has recently transpired, it rang hollow. “It’s pretty phenomenal we’re at this point,” she said. “And you know what? This is a project of the people because it’s their tax dollars they have invested into this hotel, so everyone played a part.”
Well, she got some of that right. Tax money is being used. But tax money wasn’t supposed to be used. And they, the public, didn’t come to some grand consensus, like an approved school millage, and vote to put their tax dollars toward the hotel. That money was taken because it was sitting there and through poor planning and foresight, the city needed it and grabbed it. The whole story needs to be told if the story is going to be told at all.