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KY officials strip Ken Ham’s ‘Ark Encounter’ exhibit of its $18 million tax rebate

Yep, they got greedy and grabbed too much. The big problem with this thing was that it wasn't bringing enough revenue into the area to justify the tax incentives. Allowing the community to get a tiny bit back was not unreasonable, but I guess reasonable isn't something you can expect from the Creation Museum.
 

TalonJH

Member
They've been blaming the state for not supporting them recently and being the cause of some of their financial problems. I don't see it lasting another couple of years. It's also too far from any of the cities for "regular" tourism.
 

Ocaso

Member
If the 18 million was a one time credit and the $700,000 was ongoing, they may simply want to avoid the long term taxes. Can any tax lawyers or CPAs comment on that possibility?This seems like too big of a screw up otherwise.
 

deadlast

Member
They've been blaming the state for not supporting them recently and being the cause of some of their financial problems. I don't see it lasting another couple of years. It's also too far from any of the cities for "regular" tourism.
Once all of the super Christians go and see it once, they probably won't go back. I have a feeling that in 3 years things are going to get really weird.
 

Ocaso

Member
So they planned to keep this running for > 21 years?

I don't see why not. This was an enormous undertaking and likely conceived as something that would span generations.

I'd also assume that if the credit was 1.8 million per year, and they've only been open for one year,then they'd actually be saving money after the third year in comparison.
 

Ithil

Member
They've been blaming the state for not supporting them recently and being the cause of some of their financial problems. I don't see it lasting another couple of years. It's also too far from any of the cities for "regular" tourism.

It's always someone else's fault.
 

rjinaz

Member
I can't even imagine what sort of hell awaits all those TV evangelists

I imagine a hell where they experience the lives of the poor people that send them money even though they really couldn't afford it because they were told that's what God wanted and it would return 10 fold.

Like endless. On a loop. For eternity.
 
They've been blaming the state for not supporting them recently and being the cause of some of their financial problems. I don't see it lasting another couple of years. It's also too far from any of the cities for "regular" tourism.
Maybe God just hates their shitty fucking boat.
 
The weirdest damn thing about religion in America is how you can call yourself non-profit while operating your church openly as a business and getting rich as fuck.

A $0.50 fee per ticket amounting to $700k a year tho... are nearly 4,000 people per day really going to see this big ass boat?
 

Not

Banned
There is a God

Let's frame that this way, I have a co-worker who helped fund this attraction and he has eight kids. He has been muliple times since it opened. I can't imagine he is the only one who regularly visits this place alone or with their family.

Why did Trump happen?

Because they multiply. Dear God do they multiply.
 
I don't see why not. This was an enormous undertaking and likely conceived as something that would span generations.

I'd also assume that if the credit was 1.8 million per year, and they've only been open for one year,then they'd actually be saving money after the third year in comparison.

They actually got reduced property tax for 30 years and the city has $62 million in municipal bonds they can demand repayment on. Basically, this could be the least of Ham's problems. If the city pulls out, those tax breaks go away, etc, there's a good chance they just sent the Museum to die.
 

Wag

Member
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No feathers.
 

Fuchsdh

Member
They've been blaming the state for not supporting them recently and being the cause of some of their financial problems. I don't see it lasting another couple of years. It's also too far from any of the cities for "regular" tourism.

Yeah in retrospect I understand why the town went for it; they saw it as a lifeline. Even if I wasn't a religious person living there I could see where you could argue the deal would make sense. But a sober look at it just on a map should have had them realizing that most people were not going to get off the interstate and go to them.

I'm glad Ham has decided to be a jackass about this and precipate this standoff; it's probably best for the state and town in the long run to realize that it's not going to bring them the money they hoped and get out of a bad deal sooner rather than later.
 

Mariolee

Member
As a Christian myself, I hate what they and many other fundamentalists have been doing and am happy these assholes are getting what's coming to them.
 

Acinixys

Member
Fuck em

The ocean is free real estate

They can just airlift the ark to the coast and set it afloat

Then they can dodge all these taxes the way god intended

Plus when the ice caps melt they will have a good home
 
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