January 14, 2008

Bredesen: My Wife Will Have Her Ballroom

Gov. Phil Bredesen says he doesn't care what people think about the ballroom he and his wife are building - with taxpayer's money* - at the Tennessee governor's mansion.

* Yes, I know, on paper it says the ballroom is being built with private funds. But if you walk the project backward you find that it is costing taxpayers more than $7 million. The Bredesens are claiming it is being funded with private money because - on paper - the Tennessee Residence Foundation transferred $4 million in privately-donated funds given for renovation of the existing mansion over to the ballroom construction project. But only on paper.

Much of that $4 million had already been spent on the mansion renovation, which is almost done. If you know anything about lengthy construction projects, you know the contractor gets paid in increments over the duration of the project, which means most of the money the Foundation raised for the renovation has already been dispersed to the various contractors.) So, how can they claim to have transferred $4 million to the ballroom when a significant amount of that cash had already been spent? Easy - on the same day that the Foundation "transferred" $4 million to the ballroom project, the state gave the Foundation a grant of more than $3.2 million, funded by bonds that will be paid off with tax dollars.

State records show that of the $4 million gift from the Foundation to the ballroom project, $2.8 million was funds that had already been promised to the mansion renovation and included in the various cost figures for the renovation approved by the State Building Commission. But on Sept. 14, 2006, the Bredesen administration shifted that cost to taxpayers - allowing the Bredesens to claim the new-construction ballroom was going to be funded by private donations.

In March 2007, the State Building Commission approved $860,000 in new funding for improvements at the mansion necessary "in support of the Conservation Hall project," according to Commission records. Four months later, on July 12, 2007, the Commission approved another $3 million for those improvements - things like a new circular driveway, elevators and other such things necessary only because of the addition of the underground ballroom.

Where did that $3.86 million come from?

The administration claims it is coming from the Tennessee Residence Foundation, implying it is private funds, but the truth is different. State Building Commission records show that the Foundation got the $3.86 million from another state grant funded by bonds that will be paid off wit tax dollars.

At that point, the total cost to taxpayers because of the ballroom had reached $7.06 million.

As the projected costs for the ballroom have continued to rise. Of the $11.1 million that taxpayers are now paying for various projects at the mansion, approximately $8 million is costs that wouldn't exist if the ballroom project was canceled.

But don't bother asking Phil to save taxpayers money by canceling the ballroom. His feeling have been hurt. He is miffed that you aren't laying palm fronds in front of his wife as she marches forward on this project. The Bredesens both consider it an insult if you question any aspect of the project. But the truth is it is the taxpayers of Tennessee who are being insulted.