Top 5 Reasons to VOTE YES!
Chamber members are invited to attend Face the Chamber on Wednesday, March 10, from 12:00 – 1:00 p.m., at the Country Club of Lincoln. Dick Campbell will provide an update on the campaign. Campbell will be followed by perspectives on the arena given by Julie Gade, Leadership Resources, Todd Furasek, Union Bank and Trust Co., and Randall Bretz, Nelnet. Aaron Davis will serve as MC for the event and will facilitate an expanded question and answer portion of the program. Attendees are encouraged to come with questions and participate in a lively discussion on the merits of this project for Lincoln.
Cost to attend is 15 ($20 at the door). Please pre-register by Monday, March 8, to ensure your seat at the table. As a Chamber member, all of your employees are welcome to attend.
The Top 5 Reasons to Vote for the Lincoln Haymarket Arena
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IT WILL STRENGTHEN OUR ECONOMY
The Lincoln Haymarket Arena will generate $800 million in economic activity in our community during the three-year construction process. After it’s complete, Lincoln will see $260 million in annual economic activity – the equivalent of 65 home Husker football games. -
IT WILL CREATE GOOD JOBS
The Lincoln Haymarket Arena will create thousands of jobs during the three years the arena is built. These good-paying jobs during construction will be added when we need them the most - during a tough economy. In the future, the Lincoln Haymarket Arena will add more than 1,000 permanent jobs at the arena and in the surrounding retail, office and commercial area. We need to do everything we can to keep and create good paying jobs, while we continue building a bright future in our community. -
IT WON’T INCREASE PROPERTY TAXES
The ballot measure is clear: It includes language specifically guaranteeing that “APPROVAL OF THIS BOND ISSUE WILL NOT CAUSE ANY INCREASE IN THE PROPERTY TAX LEVY MILLAGE LIMIT OF THE CITY.” In addition, an economic growth analysis predicts that the Lincoln Haymarket Arena project will generate enough revenue to provide an additional $3 million in sales tax receipts to support city services. This helps ensure a stable budget for our city, reducing the likelihood of additional tax increases in the future. -
IT REFLECTS PUBLIC INPUT AND ENSURES INDEPENDENT OVERSIGHT
The Lincoln Haymarket Arena project is the result of years of public input through community meetings throughout Lincoln. The feedback received resulted in important changes to the Arena plan. The Joint Public Agency that will be responsible for the project provides transparency and oversight of the expenditures for the project. Guaranteed audits will ensure that no funds are transferred from the general fund to the Arena project. -
WE CAN’T AFFORD TO DO NOTHING
We’ve outgrown Pershing Auditorium. The building is over 50 years old and lacks the capacity, production space and infrastructure to support modern performances, concerts and sporting events. It is obsolete and costs more to keep open than it brings in. Doing nothing means we will forfeit having the Husker basketball team play at the arena and risk losing state high school tournaments – a Lincoln tradition. It also limits the possibility of new youth sports fields and other affordable family-friendly events that bring people together in Lincoln. In these times, doing nothing is not an option. The Lincoln Haymarket Arena is an opportunity we can’t afford to pass up.
