Posted on 10/18/2007 9:41:25 AM PDT by Pyro7480
The Boy Scouts of America's refusal to bend its rules to permit gay scouts will cost the organization's local chapter $200,000 a year if it wishes to keep its headquarters in a city-owned building on Logan Square.
Representatives of the Boy Scouts of America's Cradle of Liberty Council were notified that to remain in their 79-year-old landmark headquarters, they needed to pay the city a "fair market" rent, Fairmount Park Commission president Robert N.C. Nix said yesterday. Currently, the rent is $1 a year....
(Excerpt) Read more at philly.com ...
Who are you really for all I know you could be a mole living in the land of the free!
Nice pot shot, bigot.
Since FR has, by far, some of the most creative people I've associated with (even though loosley), I'd like to see some of that creativity come through here. How can this ruling be turned back on Philadelphia's own head in a way that makes the scouts look good? (ala, Rush putting the letter up for auction to benefit the MLEF)
What other groups receive free rent from the city?
If there are any other such groups, I am opposed to such Welfare arrangements.
What other groups receive free rent from the city?
If there are any other such groups, I am opposed to such Welfare arrangements.
My opinion on the rent reduction, however, stands regardless of any lawsuits against the scouts. I've worked in a litigation support capacity on many multi-billion-dollar lawsuits, which private organizations face all the time. The Boy Scouts are no different. I have a neutral opinion on them, neither pro nor anti. In the end, they are either private or they're not -- they shouldn't be able to play both sides of the coin.
Just pointing out the falsity of your claim. Governments use all sorts of enticements to get people to do things the Govt wants. Free land is but one. You could consider an interest rate deduction on your mortgage a similar arrangement. Don’t make the rules, just observe them. Barter is a much older form of trade prior to the invention of a cash economy. It was not so long ago that most of America ran on a barter rather than cash economy. I don’t take the ACLU view of Govt having to be benign and equal to all points of view. It has never been that way, nor, as evidenced by this story, will it ever be that way. I prefer the real diversity, where regional and cultural differences abound. Having said that, I don’t believe men having anal sex constitutes a regional or cultural difference, rather I categorize it as a crime against nature.
The rule of thumb when I was young was that public buildings were available for use by non-profit groups when the building was not in use for its "public" purpose. That is how many churches have been permitted to use a cafeteria on Sunday mornings for services. Likewise for the use of school ball fields of "little league". My own Scout troop met in the cafeteria on the 1st and 3rd Tuesday nights during the regular school year. The building was closed during the summer, so we were hosted by a Presbyterian church a few blocks away during that time.
Thanks for your 5th grade name calling. Now, tell me where its wrong.
I own commercial property and all the improvements done to my property by a tenant becomes my property.
Even a fifth-grader could recognize your bigotry.
Reprisels against the children because of the actions of their adults. The Nazis did even do that in Liditz when they wiped a village of the map. They killed the adults but spared the children.
Reprisels against the children because of the actions of their adults. The Nazis did even do that in Liditz when they wiped a village OFF the map. They killed the adults but spared the children.
Fair enough, you got flamed pretty hard.
Maybe you can help clear up this problem. If the city leased the land with the understanding that the BSA would improve the land and then maintain it along with providing a valuable community service, what becomes of the building and the associated costs the BSA paid for over the past 80 or so years? Does the city own it, does the city pay the BSA fair market value for the building, does the city reimburse the BSA for all costs?
Like I mentioned in one of my earlier posts. The BSA was/is providing a service to the city. I call it bartering, yet others are calling it “free land”. I guess that’s the distinction.
SZ
I miss understood you I thought you pro BS but you were being sarcastic, than join the cynic!
The Scouts should demand the fair market value of the building from the city if the city is going to reneg on the agreement. The taxpayers will love that. Pay for the building and pick up the ongoing costs. They will also have to find someone willing to occupy the building and pay the appropriate rent to cover repayment of the mortgage. Doing otherwise is a "taking" of private property without just compensation.
The improvements on the grounds of Balboa Park have also been financed by the Scouts. They too are owed a fair market payment for the improvements on the property if the city decides to evict them over the shrill demands of the gays.
Well, they donated good citizenship skills to the general populace. That led to an advanced CIVILIZATION. So the city actually used to get something for nothing.
The BS, are hopelessly outnumbered by the no morals publik edjemakashun systum, that's why Philly is the shining example of whut it is today!
Oh but it is just about what two people do in the privacy of their own bedroom. /s
SNIP
According to property law, should the Boy Scouts ultimately be evicted, ownership of the land would revert back to the city of Philadelphia. But the Boy Scouts built the headquarters with its own funds, and the organization spends about $60,000 annually to maintain it, says Cradle of Liberty Council spokesperson Jeff Jubelirer. In 1994 the organization spent $2.6 million to refurbish the structure.
“I don’t know what the city’s legal rights are regarding the building itself and the land—that’s likely one of the issues that could be dealt with in a legal proceeding,” Jubelirer says.
/SNIP
They should tear down the building, if they can do so legally.
And there's a lesson here: Don't build private property on public land.
Boy, you won that one...
/s
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.