Quote Originally Posted by Bham1982 View Post
Very true.

I'm happy to say that I follow the lead of economists, who actually know what they're talking about, and not brain-dead regional cheerleaders/insider cronies like George Jackson, who got us in this mess in the first place as they got rich off the people's ignorance.

But you don't have to be an economist to know that an arena construction job isn't a permanent job. If all you care about is creating temporary make-work jobs that add no permanent net economic value, you should just continually demolish and then reconstruct buildings to your heart's content.

There is no net economic benefit to relocating an arena a few blocks. It's the same economic multiplier as before. 100% of economists can't be wrong. Regional cheerleaders, who have barely made a rational urban planning decision since the 1920's, are about the last people you should consult for economic development advice. They gave us Trappers Alley, the People Mover, the Woodward/Washington "transit malls", the Millender Center, the freeways, the Corktown industrial park, the casinos, the Poletown plant, the incinerator, and other questionable taxpayer boondoggles.
No construction job is permanent, by definition. Jobs are completed and workers move to another. But increasing total construction in the city, which is happening now, would have to lead to more construction jobs, which would, in fact, positively impact the economy. It's not the one stadium job that matters, it's the combination of that plus the other construction projects underway.