Developer croonies is exactly the problem in Montgomery county. they built a 4 lane toll highway from Baltimore to 270 nobody uses! its empty. but the builders got paid .
Always do. In the small town I live in, they’re putting up a mall, movie theater, shops(somewhat high end, they say), an apartment complex otherwise Publix wouldn’t build. I guess the powers that be and their developer buddies didn’t ask the next county over what they were going to put in their mall, w/ its shops and Publix, etc. So, the consumer pool just got cut in half, at least. Quite a few For Rent signs in the town square and most of the businesses that move in don’t last very long.
But, the local politicians will make their money and the developer will make theirs and the taxpayer gets screwed