For Sale: The State of Illinois

The latest craze in Illinois politics seems to be leasing municipality’s assets to private corporations. This all started in 2004 when the City of Chicago announced the 99 year lease of the Chicago Skyway to Spanish corporation Cintra-Macquaire for a 1.8 billion dollars upfront payment. Since then Mayor Daley and Gov. Blagojevich has proposed to lease everything from Midway Airport to State Tollway system to the State Lottery. Yesterday, Mayor Daley added the city run parking garages to the list.

The City of Chicago will be paid $550 million dollars for a 26 year lease of the parking garages under Grant and Millennium Parks. Mayor Daley plans to use half of that to payoff the remaining debt occurred in construction of the Park. The other half will be used to fund "nieghborhood projects" and improve the city's infrustructure. Mayor Daley explains, "Government isn't in the business of parking garages."

I couldn't agree with the Mayor more, government should govern and businessmen should run businesses. The problem I have is the way our government is governed! It was Daley's mismanagement of the building of Millennium Park that caused 4 years of delays and a $300 million dollar cost overrun. Now the city is hard pressed to be able to payoff the bondholder debt that remains. Leasing the garage will save Daley from that headache, but it will also give him another $250 million to fund other pet projects.

Can we trust Daley with a $250 million coffer? I think not. Already the revenue reserves that were made from the selling of the Skyway went to pay the City of Chicago's 2005 budget shortfall of $220 million dollars. At this rate, in less than 3 years, Daley would have spent what should have been 99 years of revenue. When Daley is gone what is the city going to do when it faces a revenue crisis? With all the city assets gone and all the money spent, the only recourse the future mayor will have is to raise taxes. Is it any wonder why people don’t want to run for elective office?

The same can be said about Gov. Blagojevich. After he has raided the state's employee and teacher's pension fund to make up his budget shortfalls, the only option he has in an election year is to propose the selling of the state's assets or (heaven forbid) cut spending growth. With these two running the show I can't see spending cuts happening. Luckily, Blago has to answer to the 50% of the state who live outside Cook County and the only reason why the Tollway hasn't been sold off already.