Kentucky approves $43 million tax break for Bible-themed amusement park

[marmar]

FRANKFORT — A controversial Bible-themed amusement park received approval Thursday for up to $43 million in state tax incentives over a 10-year period.

The Kentucky Tourism Development Finance Authority, which oversees tax credits for tourism and film-related projects, unanimously approved the tax credit for the Ark Encounter project, which is scheduled to break ground in August outside Williamstown in Grant County.

In addition to the tax rebate, the state may spend an estimated $11 million to improve an interchange off I-75 near the 800-acre site in Northern Kentucky.

The park has been criticized by late-night talk show hosts and those who say the state should not give tax breaks to a business that espouses a particular religious view. But Gov. Steve Beshear has defended the incentives, saying the state cannot deny the application on religious grounds. The park alone could generate as many as 600 to 700 new jobs, according to a consultant's report. That number doesn't include jobs created from construction or from new hotels or restaurants. ............(more)

The complete piece is at: http://www.kentucky.com/2011/05/20/1745988/43-million-tax-break-approved.html#ixzz1Mz9Z40xE

[Maccagirl]

1. Kentucky needs some serious intervention.

n/t

[Hassin Bin Sober]

4. We already did. It was called The Tennessee Valley Authority.

And public education.

I guess backward ignorant hicks insist on staying that way.

[Cattledog]

2. If they are all Raptured up...

who's gonna go???

:evilgrin:

[Tesha]

3. All the left-behinder fundies in Cincinatti. (NT)

[Logical]

5. Smart of the govenor. Because a bunch of right wing idiots will send money in his state! n-t

[Skidmore]

6. So how much of the state's education budget did they gut for that

monstrosity?

[slay]

7. So all together Kentucky is spending $54 million dollars on ONE religion's fantasy

we deserve all the horrible shit that is happening to us if these are truly our priorities. Where is the Buddhist theme park? man i hope this thing fails hard.

[Generic Other]

8. This is the modern version of the community building a cathedral

and stocking it with relics like the toebones of saints in order to attract pilgrims and their economic dollars.

Very bizarre.