Radio Shack's Fort Worth Boondoggle

Yesterday I verbalized my amazement at the news that the new Tarrant County College being built on the banks of the Trinity River was to be scaled way way back and instead of having college classes in the new building, the classes would take place at buildings a short distance away, that being the former Radio Shack Corporate Headquarters, which Tarrant County College bought, barely 3 years after Radio Shack finished construction on their new headquarters, which is no longer Radio Shack's Headquarters.

It is rumored that Radio Shack now operates out of a former McDonald's restaurant in east Fort Worth.

Apparently I am not alone in thinking this Radio Shack/TCC "deal" is yet one more Fort Worth boondoggle, where supposedly well intentioned tax breaks and eminent domain abuse does not have the intended result.

Below is a letter to the editor from this morning's Fort Worth Star-Telegram from one of Fort Worth's reliable voices of reason, Clyde Picht.

FOCUS ON ...Who loses in TCC deal?

Before the ink is dry on the TCC purchase of RadioShack’s downtown campus, public officials like water district board member Jim Lane and Tarrant County Administrator G. K. Maenius are touting the deal as “brilliant,” “phenomenal” and “a good decision.”

One media outlet reported the cost would be about the same as the current estimate for a campus on both sides of the river connected by a footbridge. Oh, really? Let’s review the numbers. Maybe from the public’s standpoint this isn’t so brilliant or phenomenal and just maybe it is another unjustifiable move at public expense.

Recall that by selling the Ripley Arnold housing complex to RadioShack the city housing authority had to find accommodations for the displaced residents.

The authority bought an apartment complex in Tanglewood in which 20 percent of the apartments would be subsidized. The entire complex came off the tax rolls. The authority bought prime property on Overton Ridge Boulevard for another housing development. Again, it was taken off the tax rolls. RadioShack got a 20-year tax abatement and then sold the property to foreign investors. They did still pay tax to the Fort Worth school district.

Now as TCC pays $235 million for RadioShack’s real property and adds $80 million for renovation, we already have $315 million of new expense. Add in the $42 million TCC paid for land on the river bank and a probable $200 million for continuing construction, termination penalties and the like, and we’re talking about a half billion plus. A little pricey for a junior college campus.

Now, not only will the city never get any tax revenue from the property, the school district won’t either. More and more public funds because of the Trinity Uptown project. Yes they are linked. The cost of both TCC and Uptown will easily approach $2 billion. Who pays?

— Clyde Picht, Fort Worth