Pontiac Michigan Officials Are Selling Off Their City
PONTIAC, MI- Officials in Pontiac, Michigan are desperate to balance their budget and in an attempt to do so they are selling off various city owned properties including the police station, library, cemeteries, golf courses and even city hall among others.
The Detroit Free Press reports that the city recently slashed their budget from $58 million to $38 million while noting that they still need to ax $12 million.
The city has been tightening its control ever since an emergency planner took over its finances in 2009.
Part of the cities problem has been their bad decision making, for example in 2005 an independent company offered to purchase the now vacated Silverdome (former home of the Detroit Lions and many awesome monster truck rallies) for $20 million, the city turned down that generous offer and instead sold the stadium in 2009 for $583,000 at public auction.
The Free Press also points out that the Pontiac, MI issue could be a scary precursor for the rest of the Detroit area which is expected to cut a $1.2 billion budget by $330 million.
Unfortunately for Pontiac, Wayne State University law school professor John Mogk noted:
“Generally speaking, a municipal building probably would have little value to a developer … Unless there’s a way that the asset can generate some profit.”
Do you think Pontiac is in for a world of hurt if they truly believe selling off city buildings will solve their long term budgetary problems?
