“Actually, the proposed factory is NOT in Reno or Sparks or even Washoe County.”
News reports have said that Tesla has broken ground on property that’s located 8 miles east of Reno (which is most likely still in Washoe County). Further that adjacent counties (Lander and Storey) are also in on the deal because they are actually where a lot of the workers would live.
What I fail to understand is why a lot of you call what’s going on “giving away taxpayer funds.” From what I have read, all that the various government entities are doing is agreeing NOT to start taxing the plant from the get go. So there’s not money flowing to Tesla from the government. Nobody has been asked to pass a bond issue to provide money (like a lot of places do to give a sports franchise a new place to play). Now, maybe there will need to be some additional infrastructure built, but how is that any different that what happens when a developer builds a tract of homes? They never pay the true cost of all the additional infrastructure that their buildings require, and the homes don’t provide any long-term employment. In this instance, Tesla will give construction workers jobs (and I know for a fact that construction has been on it’s a$$ in Reno for years because I have relatives there who have been eking out a living there in construction), and there will be more than 6,000 permanent jobs created (with people paying income and other taxes locally. Eventually, Tesla will also be paying taxes too. So tell me, just how is this a bad deal for Northern Nevada as opposed to not having Tesla move there? This isn’t another Solyndra. No government entity is giving any money directly to Tesla to implement their technology at least insofar as Nevada is concerned.
It’s in Storey County before you get to Fernely which is Churchill County. I suppose a lot of folks are concerned due to revenue not gained over the years before they start getting taxed. Jobs are good.
You and me both. When one looks at a situation you sometimes need to put blinders on and play devil's advocate, looking at it from all viewpoints. People are raising a fuss about $1.3 billion "lost" in revenues, the "giving away taxpayer funds". As if the $1.3 billion is sitting in a box somewhere, or taxpayers are handing over funds to Tesla. As you say, there is no money flowing to Tesla from government or from taxpayers. If other companies build on the land where Tesla is building, it is highly doubtful they would generate $1.3 billion, as even Tesla would have to be wildly successful to generate that amount of taxes. I think people are complaining solely because of the name "Tesla", Elon Musk, and electric cars are anathema to them. Hating a company should not be reason enough to argue against allowing them to build and generate jobs. Better the jobs be situated here than in China.