Statement by Phoenix Councilman Sal DiCiccio


Phoenix is closing on the downtown Sheraton sale, remember that the real loss to taxpayers is $252 Million.
The politicians and government staff who pushed this hotel are now forcing the public to pay for their mistakes. I have submitted a public information request to the city manager demanding the names of each and every person– politicians and government staff alike– who pushed for this hotel originally. It is not fair for the public to continue to pay for the incompetence of people who were hired to serve them.
This is the final, sad chapter in an orgy of corporate welfare and insider dealing that has cost the citizens of Phoenix far more than anyone at City Hall will admit.
Inept staff who insisted on making this deal are claiming the loss is $36 Million, but the true total is much higher.
$350 million– original cost of the hotel
$255 million– sale price of the hotel
$95 million loss
But it gets worse. Taxpayers are also on the hook for:
$47 million– operational losses since hotel was built
$97 million– corporate tax giveaways
$13 million– the hotel fund that was handed over to a large corporation
$157 million in additional losses
Bringing the total loss to taxpayers up to $252 million.
Even using their numbers, anyone in the private sector who did a deal like this would get fired in a heartbeat for such a loss. Yet the politicians and city staff do it, and are never held accountable.
How many cops could $252 million have added to our force?
How many miles of paving?
How many units of low-income housing?
Those are real things our citizens will never get because of this deal.
Sal DiCiccio
City of Phoenix
Councilman, District 6
602-262-7491
council.district.6@phoenix.gov
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