Jackson Jambalaya

Would it be possible for JJ to ask MDA the criteria for granting the applications and the benefits to the State.

Figure out which rep Yates had in his pocket and then you will understand why this came to be.

I'm with 8:28. Did not even know this existed. Why would a hotel, not even built, qualify for rebates? Also, a hotel and casinos should benefit from tourism. What gives?

Gosh, as many times as I have been to Vicksburg and I didn't know the bank was a cultural attraction!!

Gosh, as many times as I have been to Vicksburg and I didn't know the bank was a cultural attraction!!

Who does the lobby work for Yates?

This is $315 million given away to millionaires and multi-billion dollar corporations while our roads and bridges fall apart and other needs are ignored.

9:12am..."lobby work"???? Is that what it is called these days? Call it what it is....illegal kickbacks and favors.

9:24, I bet you sit in your crappy world and b%$#h about your crappy world all day long!! Wake up people, we shouldn't be complaining about this, we should be encouraging more of it!! We are a broke d#$%k state because we wouldn't know innovation if it slapped us in the face. Just about everyone of these deals brings money and jobs into this god forsaken dump! And before any of you tell me to leave, shut up, there are a ton of us who are conservative and still want the state doing things like this. The private sector here needs a shot in the arm!

Corporate welfare.

So anyone who employs anybody - thus "bringing jobs" - shouldn't have to pay taxes, 10:06?

And where is the "innovation" at Renaissance? It's a mall.

The Westin is screaming failure before it even opens. Developer and contractor come out smelling like a rose. Same guys did the Iron Horse, who is giving these idiots business advice.

9:24

Yep, lobbyist for Yates for sure.

The rebates should be restricted to municipalities that are struggling, small towns with zero industry that need infrastructure improvements and can't even afford stop signs. It's become a candy jar. And the legislature allows it to continue.

@11:03 I wouldn't bet on the failure of the Westin. While it might be an overpriced project ($50 million plus for just 200 rooms), they've already got $20 million from Hinds County (spent by the developers BEFORE they even broke ground!), $9 million for the JRA/City, and $16 million in Tourism Tax Rebate! They've got the best deal going (maybe even better than Yates).

Given this kind of public subsidy, I kind of doubt the Westin is going to be a failure.

I don't know what kind of deal terms they have with Hinds County, but if they were smart enough to get the County to let them use County funds for all of the pre-development costs, then they're probably smart enough to have non-recourse debt.

It's a sweetheart of a deal. I'm just jealous I wasn't smart enough to think of something like this and get into the development business myself. Instant millionaires!

I have noted that several of the Westin developers are listed as the committee heads on that bogus "Keep Ridgeland Great" website and facebook page, along with Alderman Scott Jones' daughter.

Government Sachs.

MDA is a joke, remember the Beef Plant debacle...

11:53; It's quite possible, as you clearly illustrated, for the men behind the curtain to become millionaires while the project itself is a miserable failure. Think about it. The only times they'll sell out 200 rooms will be when the Justice Department or 100 black mayors come to town.

I have just the opposite expectation 11:53. Also, check your facts and the details on the debt.

@12:49 Correct. It may be capitalism, but this will place burden on the Kind Ed and Marriot. Those hotels are doing "ok" for now but adding this third hotel and now all will be fighting for scraps. Zero demand generators in downtown Jackistan. The convention center is laughable. The Westin developers have ZERO hotel experience. The Westin is a failure in the sense that it will never do the projected numbers compared to some BS proforma submitted to get the project green lighted. Let's see how it unfolds.

Surprised "The District" at Eastover isn't on the list.

Building more and more retail centers to compete against each other is not economic development. Phil started this thing to subsidize Yates.