COLUMBUS, Ohio — Ohio lawmakers have passed a $4.2 billion capital budget, with millions going to community projects like the Cleveland Land Bridge, Cincinnati Open Tennis Tournament and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
Wednesday is the last session before summer recess, which means the lawmakers are trying to pass as much as they can. Nearly unanimously, in both chambers, they passed the multi-billion dollar capital budget. As of 7 p.m., the marathon session is still going.
People come to Ohio to see Lake Erie, our sports teams and facilities and entertainment centers.
"Last year, we were a $56 billion industry, a record-setting number of visitor spending," said Matt MacLaren, the director of travel and tourism policy at the Ohio Chamber of Commerce. "We had over 48 million overnight visitors in Ohio."
Ohio’s new capital budget could help bring even more people to the state, MacLaren added.
"Everything from the Bedford Riverfront project to the Cincinnati Open Tennis Tournament stadium improvements to the Hall of Fame modernization and many more," he said.
Major projects getting funded include:
Northeast Ohio
- $20 million for the Cleveland landbridge
- $8 million for the Bedrock Riverfront Development
- $7 for the Rock Hall
- $7 for the Pro Football Hall of Fame
- $5 million for Cascade Plaza
- $3.5 million for the Flats River Development
- $3.2 million for the Akron-Canton Airport
- $1 million for the Cleveland Women’s Pro Soccer Stadium
Southwest Ohio
- $46 million for the Hamilton County Convention Center Development District
- $27.5 million for the Cincinnati Open Tennis Tournament improvements
- $16.75 million for the University of Cincinnati Health
- $9.75 million for Xavier University College of Osteopathic Medicine
- $8.5 million for Millikin Interchange improvements
- $8 million – Riverbend 2.0 Cincinnati
- $2.5 million for the Goshen Fire Department Station 18 Rebuild
But Greg Lawson, with the conservative think-tank the Buckeye Institute doesn’t think the state should be spending its money on arts and sports.
"These are limited resources, they are taxpayer dollars," Lawson said. "They need to go to things that government needs to do and needs to do well."
He is more supportive of the non-community projects, including:
- $600 million for school renovations
- $500 for correctional facilities
- $475 for college improvements
- $290 for parks and recreation
"It's all about prioritization, return on investment, making sure that we're doing what government should be doing and letting the private sector do what the private sector should do," Lawson said.
MacLaren argues that tourism-based projects help Ohio significantly.
"Some studies show that without visitors our residents would have to pay another $2,000 in taxes — that's the amount of tax money that the visitors are bringing to our state," he said. "We need to have these projects."
Because of the emergency clause, shovels can start going into the ground as soon as the governor signs it.
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