Photo:
Jay Z's Made In America festival could wind up costing L.A. residents $170,000 in taxes.
The event, which had experienced previous successful iterations in Philadelphia, moved to the City of Angels this year. However, according to the L.A. Times, Live Nation who put on the event were required to pay $500,000 in city expenses, a sum that was far exceded by city services. Now taxpayers may have to foot the bill.
Mayor Eric Garcetti who championed the event, defended his decision on Monday, pointing towards the estimated $10 million boost in Philadelphia's local economy following the event.
“It’s not just a dollar-for-dollar comparison,” said Central City Association representative Carol Schatz. “It’s about the perception that it generates … that L.A. is really the place to do this and the place to do this is in L.A. is downtown.”
Not everyone is quite so happy, with James O’Sullivan, president of the Miracle Mile Residential Association telling the L.A. Times: “I just don’t think the city should pay a penny. How many sidewalks can that pay for? How many pipes can it fix? That crucial infrastructure is crumbling, or deteriorating, under our feet.”
The show featured Kanye West, Imagine Dragons, Kendrick Lamar, and John Mayer never actually sold-out, leading to discounted tickets closer to the event. A full financial is expected later in the year.
