The problem here is simple: Opponents point out that RDA's take vast amounts of tax money that could be spent on other things. This is true. Supporters of RDA's point out that the tax money wouldn't exist if the RDA's hadn't "created" it in the first place. This is also true.
The RDA process is pretty damned simple. Communities form RDA's and prime them with startup money. The RDA's use that money to initiate civic projects that raise surrounding property values and, by proxy, property tax revenues. RDA's then get to keep a percentage of the resulting new tax revenue, which is generally used on other projects.
Where I live, the impacts are already being felt as projects are being canceled and RDA funds are pulled from various construction activities.
The RDA thing is a double edged sword. On one hand, freeing up those revenues for other purposes helps to address our immediate problem. On the other hand, eliminating them promises to further reduce tax revenues in the future as blighted areas are not developed and their values decline. For every dubious park and big box store they build, I can name a dozen parks they've funded, roadways they've landscaped, bike trails they've built, and low income housing projects they've funded.
Eliminating them entirely simply ensures that we'll return to the 1930's era funding mechanism that they replaced...wealthy areas of wealthy towns will continue to have nice parks, public areas, and amenities. And the poor? Well...who the fuck cares about them anyway. If their towns don't generate the kind of tax revenue needed to support that kind of development, they can just do without. Many people seem to be assuming that cities and counties will simply keep investing their own budgets into these development projects once the money goes away. That's not going to happen. One of the primary appeals of RDA's was the fact that they allowed cities to carry out development projects with no real expense or risk to their budgets. When that goes, so will the projects.
If you're wondering, yes, I do have a stake in this. I was just informed that a park project I've been working with has now been stripped of 100% of its RDA funding, and is now effectively dead in the water. Meh, who needs grass and trees?
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