I am an admirer of the work of Frank Lloyd Wright. He is a genius of the first rate, and his ideas have impact on our everyday lives in ways which make them better. His ideas influenced the design of the recently opened Monona Terrace Convention Center, which is beginning to impact our everyday lives, but not necessarily in a positive way. The convention center is built, so no amount of protest can now undo it. Now that it is completed, however, it might be useful to examine how it really did come about. A referendum on the subject of gun control was put to the voters, and special interest groups, most notably the NRA, outspent the opposition by a margin of seven to one, and won by a razor-thin margin. Paul Soglin was on the losing side, and proclaimed it a miscarriage of democracy. A year later, a referendum was put before the voters again. Those who stood to profit from the convention center outspent its detractors thirty-two to one and the margin of victory was similarly thin. Paul Soglin proclaimed it a victory. One of the benefits of having the convention center was all of the money it would generate. A new structure by such a famous architect would draw tourists, and as a convention center, it would draw business people who would spend money here. While it was built with public funds, it would be self-supporting. It wouldn't block the view of the lake from the square- no it would enhance it! Even before the doors opened, someone finally punched a few numbers into a calculator and discovered that even with 100% occupancy, the center would lose a million dollars a year. Ald. Mike Verveer assured me that it would all come from hotel taxes, so I wouldn't have to worry about property taxes going up at all. Many examples exist of the benefits which were highlighted to win our votes, but which have not been realized. It should surprise no one that the costs associated with the project are higher than its advocates advertised. It is indeed a remarkable structure, and those who can afford it appreciate the opportunity to use it. The Madison Community Orchestra has a long history of giving a free concert in the holiday season. The concert is the center of a canned food drive for charity. Traditionally, this has taken place inside the capitol rotunda, but that is impossible this year because of the renovation. In its attempt to relocate, the organizers of the event investigated the nearest public building with an open space large enough to accommodate the orchestra and audience, Monona Terrace. The orchestra was refused the free use of any space, but the staff helpfully suggested that they might use one of the smaller convention rooms - at a cost of several thousand dollars. I'm not even going to get started on doughnuts. That the Monona Terrace would be an undesirable place to hold a convention without an attached hotel was never much of a secret. The magnitude of its failure is illustrated by the difficulty in attracting an investor to build one. What greater inducement could a hotelier need than a good convention center -paid for by someone else- next door? If the idea had been a good one, the city would have its pick of several, and might even benefit by selling the rights to build a hotel near the Terrace. What does it say about the convention center when a $25,000,000 inducement isn't enough? The difference between a hazardous material and toxic waste is the price. One is very expensive to get, the other is expensive to get rid of. The only real question about public financing for a hotel near the convention center is one of damage control. The amount of financial damage to the city might be limited by financing a hotel. It could also be just throwing good money after bad. The fact that the city is having to cut back on basic services to pay for this disaster is bad. Equally depressing are the things the city council is now doing to protect its unwise investment. The loitering law just passed is a ham-fisted attempt to empower the police with broad authority to harass people who look like they're up to no good. Prior to the referendum, the convention center was described as having large areas open to the public 24 hours a day. I worried that MT would become a $66 million homeless shelter, and better ones could be built cheaper. Those areas aren't open at night, and the downtown is now safe from loiterers at the terrace, on the square, and on State Street. Whatever the advantages of Monona Terrace may be, they have come at a price of street lights, street sweeping, snow plowing, and a weakened Fourth Amendment. Increased property taxes are the least of it. Chris Ingersoll The Capital Times has written a few things about the Monona Terrace.