Hillsborough's Bass Pro Shops Vote Passes, Passionate Views Persist
Hillsborough County Commissioners approved a measure that paves the way for a Bass Pro Shops in Brandon. Should tax dollars be used to support a private development project? That's the issue raised in passionate, and sometimes heated, debate.
The Hillsborough County Commissioners on Feb. 20 voted 6-1 to spend $6.25 million to secure road improvements necessary to bring Bass Pro Shops to Brandon, but that doesn't end the debate over the issue of using tax dollars to support a big-business development. The issue drew a heated and passionate debate, both at the meeting and in the months leading up to the vote, as articulated in the number of people who attended meetings to voice their concerns. Sporting "Say No to Bass Pro" stickers on their shirts, Vance Tice and Raymond Grace were two such opponents at the Fred B. Karl County Center on Wednesday. "They should pay their way," Raymond Grau, who works with Lee Fisher International, a sport-fishing and net-fishing outfitter, said …
George
8:20 pm on Friday, February 8, 2013
Commissioner Hagan is trying to sell the giveaway so he can claim in his next political race that he's brought business to Hillsborough. The fact of the matter is that Bass Pro had done extensive analysis and has targeted Brandon as their next site. As any major retailer would do, they're trying to squeeze whatever they can get from the local government. And Hagan being as naive as he is, will … more ›