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Thursday, November 01, 2007
The Big Pro-Jail Tax Contributors
Posted by Michael Earl Patton
Photo courtesy of here.
The Cincinnati Beacon has obtained a copy of the fund-raising report for Citizens for a Safe Community, the pro-jail tax committee running numerous ads and robo-calls. The vast majority of their fund-raising came in the form of large donations, several from companies and individuals affiliated with 3CDC. The largest single donation, $50,000, came from David Pepper’s mother, Frances Pepper.
The smallest donation was $20. The total raised through October 17 is $465,465. There were a total of 55 contributors and 56 contributions (one gave twice), meaning each contributor gave an average of $8,463.
Several companies and individuals affiliated with 3CDC made large donations. 3CDC, of course, was given a no-bid contract to remodel Fountain Square and has been given all the revenues from the parking garage beneath the Square for 40 years. Lately, there has been a strong push for the city to spend $100 million for a streetcar line will run near over 100 3CDC-owned properties in Over-the-Rhine. 3CDC is also a major player in the Banks Working Group. Both 3CDC board member Robert Castellini and 3CDC president Stephen Leeper are members of the group. Now that they have presented their recommendations to Cincinnati city council and the county commissioners, the group is expected to dissolve.
Castellini Company, $15,000
American Financial, $30,000
Neil Bortz, $1,000
Duke Energy, $30,000
Kroger, $10,000
Western and Southern Life Insurance, $30,000
Cincinnati Children’s Hospital, $15,000
Macy’s, $39,200
3CDC total: $170,200
There are a few law firms giving large donations.
Peck, Schaffer & Williams, $10,000
Vorys Sater Seymour and Pease, $7,500
Waite, Schneider, Bayless and Chesley, $10,000
Strauss and Troy, $5,000
law firm total: $32,500
Then there are several unions:
Plumbers Pipe Fitters & MES Local 392 PAC, $10,000
Asbestos Workers Local No. 8, $2,500
Greater Cincinnati Building Trades, $10,000
Local Union 212 IBEW, $10,000
union total: $32,500
Some are involved in investment properties:
Harry J. Fath (of Fath Properties), $5,000
B & J Development, $10,000
Chavez Properties, $10,000
Cincinnati Board of Realtors PAC, $15,000
Robert C. Rhein Interests (Mr. Rhein was also a member
of the Banks Working Group), $7,500
property investor total: $47,500
Some other firms which gave large donations:
Michael Schuster Associates (architectural firm, did
the Government Square transit hub), $5,000
AK Steel, $17,500
Sencorp (a fastener company), $15,000
RBC Dain Rauscher (RBC stands
for Royal Bank of Canada and the firm is an
investment firm), $25,000.
Ohio National Financial Services, $12,100
The Union Central Life Insurance Company, $18,500
Rumpke, $10,000
Frisch’s Restaurants, $12,100
There were only a handful of small donations. Judging from the list of who gave, there is very little grass-roots support for the jail tax.
(See the complete report here.)
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01 Nov 2007 at 06:49 pm | #
According to Kevin Osborne at CityBeat, Big Daddy Carl Lindner Jr. donated $100,000 to the pro-jail campaign and the date of Lindner’s contribution allowed him to avoid the reporting deadline that would have made his donation public information before Election Day: http://tinyurl.com/2jzhkt
01 Nov 2007 at 06:55 pm | #
Was there ever some type of appeal to the public to donate money for Issue 27? No, there wasn’t, thus your reasoning is flawed.
Now post the list of contributions against 27. How much did Finney’s law form donate??
01 Nov 2007 at 09:34 pm | #
Last I heard, this was still pretty much a free country & people could dispense with their funds at their own discretion.
I believe the No to the Jail contributions deserve equal time & space.
01 Nov 2007 at 09:49 pm | #
You are so very right, Jones. Please get a copy, upload it to Scribd, and post the link so everyone can see.
02 Nov 2007 at 01:03 am | #
This post only makes it more evident the broad support from so many different sectors of the safety plan.
and the media says the anti-safety crowd has the melting pot?
In spite of the NAACP, the new safety plan will free more black men in this community than any jail bed shortage ever did
02 Nov 2007 at 05:32 pm | #
You might want to say a few words on Americans for Prosperity, the Republican group teamed with COAST that is sending out mailings opposing Issue 27. They certainly seem to have deep pockets. Who’s tracking their contributions? They are a nationwide organization of known right-wingers. Like COAST, they claim to want to reduce government but they support all the big spending Republican candidates and of course their aim is to take regulations off of business. They say as much on their website. Why are they involved in our local issue? They started an Ohio Chapter in Columbus, specifically to address Issue 27.
And COAST. Those low-down dogs have sent out mailers splattered with the current pink breast cancer colors that retailers are using implying that they have some affiliation. How dishonest can they be?
So you’ve got the FOP, COAST, Americans for Prosperity and the NAACP. What a group. And you’re bitching about Pepper’s mom?
02 Nov 2007 at 06:58 pm | #
This is a great example of the problem of allowing corporations into politics. Just because a building materials supplier (AK Steel, SENCORP) or carpenters and pipe fitters unions see fit to invest in future contracts for their services if the jail is built, doesn’t mean that building it is good for the community at large. The more these corporations or organizations profit by ‘investing wisely’ in measures like this, the more than can contribute in the future. The more they profit and contribute, the ‘louder’ their voices become.
Inquiring Minds asked if there was a public appeal for contributions. I don’t know. However, as an exercise, ask yourself why they allegedly may not have.
Does this appear to anyone else to be a clear case of a shouting match with money as the megaphone?
Anyone still recall the stadium funding that was voted on? Anyone care to recall the funding amount approved by the 51% majority? Anyone care to remind us what the final bill was? It would be interesting to match some contributors across campaigns for these potential tax payer funded construction boondoggles…
Just a guess, but I’ll wager that the voice of individuals (as $ contributions) are drowned by those who would profit from any new construction site regardless of it’s merit to the community at large. And I’ll wager that those whose voices scream loudest ($) usually get their issued carried. Some organizations exist for only one reason, to make more money. Yes, I know, it’s called capitalism, and it has no place in polictical support. If you actually believe in democracy that is…
Ready for it? Power to the people! What? POWER TO THE PEOPLE!!
Anyone think the political dollar race hasn’t already chosen your field of presidential candidates before anyone has cast a vote yet?
(Right on, Jones for mentioning equal time! Another once sacred concept that the airwaves belonged to the people perverted in favor of . . . anyone?)
02 Nov 2007 at 07:07 pm | #
I do have to wonder where the $50k Pepper’s mother donated came from…
I know that sounds cynical, but even if I was in a position to cash in on the project, my mom wouldn’t stake $50k to promote it (even if she had it to spare).
Smells a bit fishy to me…
02 Nov 2007 at 08:24 pm | #
Of course I’m so very right, Dean. However, I don’t answer to you or do your bidding. Last I looked, you weren’t signing the checks to pay the bills at this home.
You tout this site as being where divergent views collide, perhaps you might want to get Jeffre to look up the other side of this topic to give it equal time & space, seeing you don’t want to do it.
02 Nov 2007 at 08:42 pm | #
Yea, like AK Steel needs the jail to make ends meet. Derek is a conspiracy theory nutjob. Derek, next time don’t break the Prozac in half, please take the whole pill, you need it my friend.
03 Nov 2007 at 09:23 am | #
Then we have something in common, because I don’t answer to you or do your bidding, and last I looked you weren’t signing the checks to pay the bills at this home.
Divergent views are colliding, Jones. Your comments are here!
(You know, I don’t think anyone ever gets the irony in that catch-phrase, especially given the name of the site!)
03 Nov 2007 at 11:56 am | #
That was a weak rebuttal Anon. What about democracy, in theory or our present corrupted state, do you find conspiracy theory-ish? Hmm? Give it up before you try to put me down.
04 Nov 2007 at 11:30 pm | #
Hi,
Wanted to let you all know about a new non-partisan, non-profit that just launched the nation’s first National Political “do not call” registry.
More at http://www.StopPoliticalRobocalls.org/
Regards,
Shaun Dakin
05 Nov 2007 at 08:14 pm | #
This is a giant tax increase.Tax is now 6.6%. State gets 5.5%, Hamilton County gets 1% If you raise the Hamilton County tax .5% THAT IS A 50% hike! All at once! YIKES!