The MBTA in Boston is considering selling its parking revenue. Hey, they need the money now. So why not sell future revenue to investors with a guaranteed return. They currently receive about 30 million a year and want to sell about 20 years of revenue for $300 million. By my count, the investors would double their take. The MBTA proposes to set a ceiling above which they would take additional revenue.
There are a lot of questions here, but consider this one. Who are the investors going to hire to ensure that the $30 million shouldn’t really be $50 million? Does anyone care if they are getting a good count. My sources tell me that the numbers from those 100 garages and lots may be a little iffy.
The MBTA might be opening a can of worms. The investors could require a full-fledged audit and may find that their estimates are low, and have been low. What board member is going to stand up and take responsibility for undercounts over the past few years, if any.
Just saying
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What’s your take on the privatization of parking meters in Chicago?