Hollywood Florida rejects $100,000 in incentives for Starbucks

While the city ended up saying no, according to the article "Hollywood rejects paying $100,000 to lure Starbucks to downtown," from the Ft. Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, it was a surprise. Apparently there are three independent coffee shops within a few blocks of this site. See "Hollywood proposal to lure Starbucks is causing a stir," from the day before, which has a good discussion of the kind of groupthink involved in these kinds of proposals. From the article:

City documents explaining the proposal state that the building's owner will not be able to sign a long-term lease with the Seattle-based coffee chain without that money. CRA critics, including neighborhood activists and one city commissioner, say the handout is the latest example of how officials are mismanaging public money intended to redevelop slum areas.

"The concept of paying businesses to come here is ridiculous," said City Commissioner Peter Bober, whose law office is near the proposed site. "These incentives are creating a lot of dissention among our merchants. Everyone is watching what everyone is getting. Everyone who wants to open a business here is coming with their hands out. It's becoming a corporate welfare system."

But Dr. Barry Kay, who owns Hollywood Eyes and is president of the Downtown Hollywood Business Association, said luring Starbucks is vital to bringing other big-name businesses to Hollywood. "It tells everyone that Hollywood is for real," he said. Kay said Starbucks officials told merchants during a recent workshop that they needed the incentive to make the deal work.

If the deal goes through, Starbucks would open at the corner of 20th Avenue and Harrison Street by next spring. The site is on a stretch of Harrison Street that features some of the city's most successful high-end restaurants, including Michael's Kitchen. Chicago White Sox pitcher Freddy Garcia plans to open a gelato sports bar franchise called Paciugo on the same street next month.

Index Keywords: commercial-district-revitalization; government-subsidies