Apparently the other four council members have no problem with the City of Burbank:
1) Paying a six-figure inducement to some portable ice rink company to set up shop here for six weeks,
2) Pay for almost all of their ancillary needs, and then,
3) Let them keep all of their gate receipts with no cut to anyone else.
Yes, it’s a stupidly one-sided sweetheart deal for the rink company. We’re paying them a big subsidy to do business here!
And yes again, it IS city money. It was collected by the city (just like taxes) from all of the downtown merchants, most of whom pay into this fund involuntarily. They’re outvoted by the very biggest property owners in the area (such as the City of Burbank itself) who enjoy a weighted vote advantage.
And all for what? A phony holiday PR stunt. Those other four voted last night to approve this ridiculous deal, which is just irresponsible — at least make them share some of the gate receipts. If this company gets to keep them all why then PAY them to show up?
And how much do they end up making? No one ever asks or gets an answer.
No wonder outside business people just love Burbank. They give us big awards for being so “business friendly”!
Burbank, California 
Wonder who owns the ice rink company and whether any employees have favored connections?
That ice thing is just one more corrupt government scheme to wasre tax money. The ice thing is a business and should pay its own way. I don’t shop un downtown because its all corrupt with the city.
All over America parking is at a Premium at Holiday Time, except…….
in Beautiful Downtown Burbank.
The City Employee’s now move to the Parking Structure…..
displacing the shoppers and business employee’s.
The time limits allow for one skate session, then time’s UP.
NO time for dining or shopping….time for a TICKET.
And……….Pickwick is with us 365 days a year??????
Remember when “Bud” made the parking lots right next to the new movie theaters and for the new movie theaters 2-hours only?
And then — after years of visitor complaints about all of the big parking tickets that were being handed out, and only AFTER Kramer and McConkey got on the council — this same “Bud” then said, “Oh, it must have been an oversight somewhere…”
Lying asshole.
Burbank’s always been a chickenshit town. Everyone in Southern California knows it. That’s why I keep writing this blog. It’s like shooting fish in a barrel to point out all this obvious crap.
Burbank itself is an oversight. City council should be half as considerate to locals as they are to outside vendors. Sure the Burbank people have fun on the rink but, that’s not an excuse for the rink not to contribute it’s fair share.. It’s another “screw you” to the Burbank people who have been slighted, ignored, and scorned.
Until people are unfortunate enough to experience the utter “unfair politics”, they will not understand. The crowd who finally get it, is growing at a steady rate.
Semi, you may be more vociferous than most people but I think people are starting to understand your unapproachable candor.
I like being unapproachable. I’ve been forced to get lots of practice over the years.
Yes, and the really sick thing about this rink is that the majority of the merchants down there (meaning like almost all of them) absolutely hate this downtown PBID and where its money goes. But they get repeatedly outvoted by the biggest landowners and companies.
I’ve always wondered if the same crap goes on with the downtown PBID as it did in Magnolia Park. Crazy opposition to money not spent wisely and as promised. Magnolia Park was a disaster. Party, party, party and
Promises, promises, promises. Total joke!
There’s a solution to this predicament downtown but, don’t count on the city to oversee fair play. NO WAY.!!!!!!!!
It does go on there, yes.
They need to end all parking restrictions PERIOD
Maybe Hillary can speak at the Ice-rink. She is maybe better on ice than she is on solid cement surfaces. Its small so maybe she could fill it up wth supporters too. That’s it they voted for the ice-rink so Hillary can come and appear or send a double just to wave.
Dixie raises an excellent point. (INCREDIBLY!!- just kidding) How do the owners of Pickwick feel about the city laying out all this cash for a business that directly competes with Pickwick. How do Burbank residents feel about this from that vantage point?
Years ago Will Rogers asked a similar question about how Electronic City felt about the City of Burbank helping Fry’s locate at the old Unimart building.
Electronic City’s now gone.