Snakes and ladders

By Zac Echola

Fargo's city commission voted, among other tax incentives, to loan about $6 million to three of the richest people in the state, at least one of whom is still referred to as a philanthropist by the local daily in stories having nothing to do with philanthropy.

Meanwhile in Omaha, Nebraska, philanthropists there raised $7 million to create a new free library of laser cutters, 3D printers, computers and meeting spaces. Do Space gives gigabit internet to anyone in the public. It teaches people new languages, new ways to express their ideas. It enables citizens to innovate and educate. It's an equalizer in the way that only libraries can be.

At some point, our city started cribbing all the bad ideas from everywhere else (think lopsided tax incentives and poutine on restaurant menus) and few of the good things many other cities have been doing (think bike lanes and bus routes that don't suck and significant arts funding).

Omaha philanthropists gave their city a place for people to learn and create for roughly the same price as Fargo will instead give to our philanthropists. Ah, what charity! We get a boutique hotel for rich people, luxury condos for multimillionaires, a parking ramp only available to the public in the middle of the night and a privately-owned town square. Who cares if longstanding community members—the people and organizations that made downtown hip in the first place—must uproot?

This is a disaster. If you don't think people are complaining, talk to a stranger in a bar without stemware. While many men and women with various degrees power have publicly congratulated themselves, the proles with little public voice grumble about the deal with literally nothing in it for them. It's worse, because the tax incentives put pressure on revenues and services elsewhere. Guess who won't get a city-backed tax incentive on their ramblers or split-levels? The ladder extended to those who never needed it will be pulled up for everyone else who might. Sweetheart deals have that tendency.

Here's a list of sunny outlooks: Seasons at Rose Creek. Moorhead's downtown (twice). The horse park. Alien Technologies. What seems like a good idea today often turns sour and we're left with more problems than legacies. Trends come and go; optimists come and go. Best we can hope for is a good deal today.

I get something out of the Fargodome. I get something out of the libraries. I get something from the zoo. I get something from flood protection. Today. I'll get nothing from million dollar condos and a parking ramp available during off-peak hours.

When city hall's tone deafness came to a head with Ponyland, Mike Williams, who will be greatly missed, has never been more right. "All growth isn't good. All infill isn't good," he said. Those words could be used here again.

I've contributed to Tony Gehrig's caricature as a broken record, but I somewhat appreciate a consistent voice on the commission. His refrain that government ought not pick winners and losers is incredibly hard to disagree with when city hall repeatedly picks people who've already won.

I know Doug Burgum has done real philanthropy. I've used equipment at NDSU's Renaissance Hall. I've enjoyed the Center for Creativity at the Plains Art Museum. The pavilion at The Stage at Island Park is nice. Ron Offut and Gary Tharaldson have contributed immeasurably to helping build a better community. Melissa Sobolik and Tim Mahoney are admirable civic and community leaders who've helped grant access to food and art and healthcare. Dave Piepkorn is a mook. (You can't win 'em all.)

On this deal everyone involved is out of touch. This building does not contribute to upward social mobility. To many, it will be a sickening reminder of entrenchment and otherness. Block 9's new tower will be as equally useful as the surface lot there to the vast majority of Fargoans who actually do pay their fair share. This was probably the least equitable way imaginable to misuse the new or expanding industry exemption. That money could be used on so many more worthy projects.

This isn't a piece about the merits of Block 9, specifically. It's an essay about priorities for our newly elected city council, generally. Government ought to break down barriers for everyone. That doesn't mean making it easier for wealthy people to build more things wealthy people like. Endeavors that extend ladders to all sorts of people are where we should place our priorities as a community.

In some ways we have excelled at this. Our libraries are beacons. Our art community. Our schools. My god, our parks. These things make the city better.

We have to be better. We have to be better to our poor, to our sick and unwell, to those who seek refuge, to those who truly need help, to those who contribute to the betterment of the whole. This is where we ought to put our money. We don't need to help three old farts who couldn't come up with a better way to spend $98 million than a monument to their lifestyle.

Relying on too few people to build a community means we'll build a community that only reflects the values of those privileged with a seat at the table. We've grown considerably and the diversity of opinions in the commission race helps prove that point. It was incredibly frustrating we could only pick two names from so many well-qualified candidates. Voting at-large for four commission members and a mayor without a runoff system consistently leads to tiny plurality wins. More people voted than ever on Tuesday, yet most of the votes went unheard. 84% of votes weren't for Tony Grindberg. 85% weren't for John Strand. The result is a makeup too white, too male, too wealthy, too conservative—too many Tonys!—to accurately reflect Fargo. Our commission is a funhouse mirror of our values.