By Juan Montoya
Remember when everyone loudly criticized the fact that commissioners Carlos Cisneros, Charley Atkinson and Rick Longoria were all on the board of the Brownsville Community Improvement Corporation (BCIC)?
The critics said that as a result of having three city commissioners of seven board members on the BCIC board, Atkinson was able to muscle his way to funnel more than $22 million into his pet project, the Brownsville Sports Center out on Stillman Road.
All the three needed was to agree to fund any project and convince one of the others – all city commission appointees – to vote along with them and it was a done deal.
Well, guess what?
Now we have the same situation – or perhaps worse since there are only five members – happening on the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation (GBIC). The three city commissioners are Jessica Tetreau, Cesar de Leon and Deborah Portillo. They join John Cowen and David Betancourt to make up the board. They, in fact, are the majority to decide how to spend some $4.5 million in funds garnered through the one-quarter cent allotted to the GBIC from the city's sales tax income.
Now, will this board go by the way of the old BCIC in its profligate ways? Or will it scrutinize the proposals that are vetted by its parent corporation, the Brownsville Economic Development Corporation?
The history of both the BCIC and GBIC dates back to 1992 when the city formed both under the 1989 Texas that allowed for the establishment a 4A entity (BCIC) to receive half cent of the 8.25 cent sales tax collected to use for economic development.
In 2002, Brownsville split the 4A funds into a 4A and 4B. The new entity GBIC – split the one-ha;f cent with the BCIC with both entities getting one-quarter cent from each taxable dollar for "quality of life" projects. The GBIC has spent $10.3 million on those projects.The critics said that as a result of having three city commissioners of seven board members on the BCIC board, Atkinson was able to muscle his way to funnel more than $22 million into his pet project, the Brownsville Sports Center out on Stillman Road.
All the three needed was to agree to fund any project and convince one of the others – all city commission appointees – to vote along with them and it was a done deal.
Well, guess what?Now we have the same situation – or perhaps worse since there are only five members – happening on the Greater Brownsville Incentives Corporation (GBIC). The three city commissioners are Jessica Tetreau, Cesar de Leon and Deborah Portillo. They join John Cowen and David Betancourt to make up the board. They, in fact, are the majority to decide how to spend some $4.5 million in funds garnered through the one-quarter cent allotted to the GBIC from the city's sales tax income.
Now, will this board go by the way of the old BCIC in its profligate ways? Or will it scrutinize the proposals that are vetted by its parent corporation, the Brownsville Economic Development Corporation?
The history of both the BCIC and GBIC dates back to 1992 when the city formed both under the 1989 Texas that allowed for the establishment a 4A entity (BCIC) to receive half cent of the 8.25 cent sales tax collected to use for economic development.
As noted elsewhere (notably Jim Barton's Meanmisterbrownsville.blog), the purpose of diverting tax dollars into separate funds was so that economic development and quality of life projects would not be "politicized" by being under the exclusive control of elected officials who might be tempted to disperse patronage in the form of 4a and 4b projects.
So why, then, did the city commission appoint three city commissioners to give them an effective control of the five-member GBIC?
Barton thinks (wishfully, perhaps?) that since the previous board majority had been "miserably gutless rubber stamping ill-advised projects submitted by the BEDC, such as Titan Tire, the $454,592,08 for the Greater Brownsville Infrastructure & Development Plan, along with the $180,000 to Jacobs Engineering for its implementation, etc., with mealy-mouthed huckster, Jason Hilts, easily manipulating the awards," this new young batch of commissioners will hopefully put a stop to the raid on its treasury.
We join him in hoping that de Leon, Tetreau and Portillo will show a little gumption and turn down Hilts and his compadres from treating this entity as their personal ATM.
Barton thinks (wishfully, perhaps?) that since the previous board majority had been "miserably gutless rubber stamping ill-advised projects submitted by the BEDC, such as Titan Tire, the $454,592,08 for the Greater Brownsville Infrastructure & Development Plan, along with the $180,000 to Jacobs Engineering for its implementation, etc., with mealy-mouthed huckster, Jason Hilts, easily manipulating the awards," this new young batch of commissioners will hopefully put a stop to the raid on its treasury.
We join him in hoping that de Leon, Tetreau and Portillo will show a little gumption and turn down Hilts and his compadres from treating this entity as their personal ATM.
3 comments:
Just what are they going to improve? Put more money in their pockets !!
Wtfuck is David still doing there ya no mames
David Betancourt was a lousy teacher at Rivera H.S. , He is where he is because of his father's name. This guy is a totally "Bird Brain", the sorriest guy I have ever met. He is so stupit, really stupit. His own wife can't stand him anymore and his sister Laura Betancourt is the same,none will win re-election next time. I know both of them and they are really STUPIT...Candidates are lining up, their stupidity is over.
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