“Music City Center” Passes: What It Means to You

• Some $14 million that the city relies on for police and fire overtime, MTA, and other programs will either be cut or replaced in order to pay for the MCC by dipping into the General Fund (which is what pays Metro employees' salaries and benefits).
• The MCC will have to rely on taxpayer money through a General Fund Pledge if the city's projections are off by even as little as 15%. For the record, the projections done by HVS in its feasibility study are almost always off, as evidenced by what we know about their past track record.
• Goldman Sachs has predicted that the city's bond rating will be likely be lowered because of the MCC.
• The convention industry has been in major decline for close to a decade and nobody who works in the industry can credibly say that it will return to what it once was.
• 72% of Davidson County voters wanted to see this project put up for a vote by the people. Not only did council members vote for the MCC, they voted against allowing you to cast a vote on a project which will be the most expensive single public project in Tennessee history.

Over the last few months, your Union fought hard to stop the Music City Center by helping conduct a city-wide petition drive to put the MCC up for a referendum by the voters. We urged union members to call or write their councilmember. We turned out members to the various community meetings on the MCC across the city and to speak at the Council’s public hearing. And we lobbied our elected officials. But our work was not enough. The Chamber of Commerce, once again looking to line its own pockets instead of doing what is in the best interests of the city, spent nearly a million dollars to get the MCC passed. Our strongest weapon, our members, simply did not come out in force enough to overpower the Chamber’s money.

This should be a sobering lesson as we get ready for another budget season and an election year in 2011. Metro employees simply will not get ahead until they decide to get involved through the Union to get what they want and what they deserve. That’s something to think about as Metro employees face a third straight year without a raise. As more layoffs bear down on workers to balance the budget. As General Hospital braces for another subsidy cut. And as our schools now face a $35 million budget shortfall.

SEIU will continue to fight on city employees’ behalf, but if we can’t get more members involved, our hands are tied. We ask that you pledge to do more throughout the year to help us beat back more cuts, more layoffs, and more corporate welfare.