Thursday, March 5, 2009 | I read with interest, but not surprise, your latest dispatch today about City Attorney Jan Goldsmith’s legal opinion that Southeastern Economic Development Corp. and Centre City Development Corp. should be abolished. Although his legal opinion was narrow, really only addressing the issue of the city’s potential liability for possible misdeeds at the respective agencies, I believe this development (no pun intended) is yet another crack in the foundations of SEDC and CCDC.
My insider information is that, if he could, Mayor Jerry Sanders would pull the plug on the two agencies today, especially SEDC. But he understands that the potential dissolution of the two agencies is an incremental, politically mine-laden path to accomplishing the mission, as it were. Council members Tony Young and Ben Hueso would fight tooth and nail to protect SEDC. Kevin Faulconer would likely do the same for CCDC, at least in public, though he would likely cut some kind of deal behind the scenes to ensure that Mayor Sanders would agree to keep a lot of development going on downtown, including funding for things like fire stations, parks, etc.
You know my feelings about SEDC and CCDC: They would indeed be gone today, if I had the magic wand to vanquish them. So, I was pleased to read about Goldsmith’s legal opinion. I hope to read stories like this, culminating in a final report someday, that SEDC and CCDC are no more.
Thanks again for the good reporting!