Statement I am delivering to Kent County Commissioners Thursday morning: Why I oppose $100 Million of public money for the Soccer Stadium
Editor’s Note: If you are reading this, the message I am delivering will/did take place on Thursday, November 7th at 8:30am, during the Kent County Commission meeting.
On October 18th, Grand Action 2.0 sent a letter to the Chair of the Kent County Commission, Stan Stek and Grand Rapids Mayor, Rosalynn Bliss. The letter states:
In preparation for the November 7th Kent County Commission meeting, the Agenda for that meeting (which you can access here under Board of Commissioners) the Kent County Commission had already crafted a resolution that would fully support Grand Action 2.0’s request for an addition $100 million. That resolutions reads:
WHEREAS, on August 22, 2024, the Kent County Board of Commissioners approved an agreement with Grand Rapids to cover principle and interest payments on a $27.5 million bond to construct the Acrisure Amphitheater with Lodging Excise Tax revenues and also approved an amendment to the Lodging Excise Tax Ordinance, increasing the tax rate from 5% to 8% effective January 1, 2025; and
WHEREAS, Kent County has received a second funding request from Grand Action to cover the public funding gap for the soccer stadium which totals approximately $100 million; and
WHEREAS, the City of Grand Rapids and Kent County have finalized an amendment to the August 2024 agreement which would allocate revenue from three- eighths of the Lodging Excise Tax Fund (LET) (i.e., the amount captured as a result of the 3% rate increase) in the amount needed to pay the principle and interest on a $100 million bond, plus the cost of issuance, issued by the City. The payment schedule will be finalized when the bonds are issued in early 2025; and
WHEREAS, additionally, a one-time distribution from the Convention and Arena Authority will be sent through the County to the City, amounting to 1.5 times the average annual bond payment, primarily to be held in reserve and partially used for the first year of bond payments. The reserve will be held until the bonds expire at which time, assuming the CAA has been repaid for the initial funding, the funds will be returned to the County. Over the period of the bond, all interest earned on the debt reserve will also be returned to the County; and
WHEREAS, in the event that revenues from three-eighths of the LET are insufficient to entirely cover the City’s bond payment, the City will first use the bond reserve and then its general fund to fulfill its obligation to the bond holders. The City may regenerate the bond reserve and repay the City using future surpluses of three-eighths of the LET and/or funds accumulated in the LET coming from three-eighths of lodging tax revenue.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED that the Board of Commissioners approve an amendment to the agreement with the City of Grand Rapids to allocate revenue from the Lodging Excise Tax Fund to cover principle and interest payments on a $100 million bond, plus the cost of issuance, for the purposes of constructing a soccer stadium.
Commissioner ____ moved adoption of the resolution.
It would appear that such a resolution is a clear indication that the issue was a done deal, but despite the overwhelming disregard for public input, the Kent County Commission will likely adopt said resolution and make sure that “economic expansion will benefit everyone in Kent County”, which is the way that the Grand Action 2.0 letter from October 18 read.
What follows is what I am reading during public comment during the November 7th Kent County Commission meeting.
As a 45 year resident of Kent County, I am appalled that this body is willing to give $100 million, of public money, to the Grand Action 2.0 Soccer Stadium project. You already approved the hotel tax increase, and now you want to give $100 million to a project that will primarily benefit the members of Grand Action 2.0, people who are already disgustingly rich.
I am a volunteer organizer with the Grand Rapids Area Tenant Union. We hear from tenants every week who are dealing with shitty landlords and property management companies. However, the number one issue they are facing is the cost of rent. According to the National Low Income housing Coalition, people living in the Grand Rapids are need to earn $25.50 and hour just to afford the average cost of rent. The minimum wage in MI is $10.33 an hour, so how the hell do you expect people to afford rent and other basic necessities?
Also, the most recent ALICE report – ALICE stands for Asset Limited, Income Constrained, Employed – says that 41% of people living in Michigan are living paycheck to paycheck. That number goes up to 47% for people who live in Grand Rapids!
People are hurting and you want to give $100 million for Soccer Stadium? The people who run Grand Action 2.0 could easily cover that cost, since their collective wealth is roughly $10 billion. Why do elected officials always decide to use public funds for projects like these when so many people are struggling to survive?
If someone was paying $1500 a month for rent, that would be $18,000 a year. $100 million would cover the cost of rent for 5555 tenants for an entire year, which would not only provide them with a tremendous amount of relief, it would better serve the needs of people who live in Kent County. Please vote against giving $100 million of public dollars to billionaires, their friends, and the arguments they use about economic impact. We all know who will benefit from the Soccer Stadium and it won’t be the people living paycheck to paycheck. How you vote on this is a reflection of who you give your allegiance to.
For further reading on the Soccer Stadium since it was first presented, here are several GRIID articles I have written about the Grand Action 2.0 proposal.
Power Dynamics, community engagement and the Grand Action Soccer Stadium proposal
Grand Rapids Institute for Information Democracy 
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