STLToday misses the point on Business Incentives
May19
This morning, I read the editorial entitled Clayton Caves. At the end of the article, the author says:
The only real solution to this city-vs.-city fleecing would be regional, and that seems unlikely. Still, it would be great if companies located where it made the most business sense, not where they found the most freebies.
I think the author missed the point. In St. Louis, the location that makes the most business sense is often the location that offers the most incentives. St. Louis has become so decentralized that quality human capital is available throughout the region. Clayton did not “cave”, it simply made a sound economic decision to bring more development into the area.
May 19th, 2008 at 11:43 am
I don’t know why any company would choose to do business in the City of St. Louis rather than the County. The population base in the County is much greater and there isn’t that pesky earnings tax. Why would a company willfully pay a 1% tax on their payroll when they could do business in Clayton which can’t be a full 2 miles from the St. Louis City limits and not pay it? Seems like that makes the most business sense to me.