So lets get this straight: The Ark Park is a for-profit, theme-park attraction one day, and then a nonprofit the next and then back to being a for-profit.
And it all has to do with Ken Hams efforts to escape taxes at the expense of us Kentuckys taxpayers.
Now, we now know that the real purpose of the Ark Encounter was never religious celebration. Ken Hams true calling in constructing the countrys largest land-boat was to profit.
Of course, his business should be taxed like any other business. In particular, he should live up to the obligations of the agreement he made to receive Kentucky taxpayers support. As Kentucky barrels toward a special session to reform the states tax code, Hams tax-dodging maneuvers should provide a road map of the pitfalls lawmakers need to avoid.
What did he do?
After manipulating Kentuckys state government into helping finance the development of a 510-foot replica of the biblical Noahs Ark, snake-oil salesman Ham recently tried to slither out of paying taxes by transferring ownership of his boat to a nonprofit (he also owns) for $10. A property valued by Grant County at around $50 million, sold for $10 not even Gov. Matt Bevin would agree thats a fair market price for that property.
The Kentuckys state Tourism, Arts and Heritage Cabinet then suspended the Arks tax incentives as a result of the $10 transfer. As a result, the boat was then quickly transferred back to the for-profit company. However, if the entire development remained under ownership of a nonprofit, public charity, Ham and the Ark could have avoided paying property and other taxes worth millions of dollars.
For instance, as a nonprofit charity, the Ark would have been exempted from property taxes in the city of Williamstown. On a $50 million property, that could mean hundreds of thousands of dollars each year lost for local schools, emergency and other public services.
In June, the Williamstown mayor estimated the property tax bill to come in around $250,000. But because the Ark was financed, in part, because of a TIF or tax increment financing district the city and county can only expect to keep about $63,000. This TIF is set to last 30 years, but Ham is trying to snake out of it now.
Additionally, the park triples the population of Williamstown on weekends to 12,000 people. This strains the citys public services, and has led it to impose a safety tax. For the Ark, this means that 50 cents of every ticket sold goes to pay for additional emergency services, including police, medical and fire which could prove useful to the countrys largest timber-framed structure.
The city estimated this tax could raise an additional $700,000 to relieve pressure the theme park has put on its emergency services.
Between the property and safety taxes, thats potentially a lot of money at stake for a city and county with a relatively small budget last years Grant County budget was only about $12.5 million.
More important, the revenue from those taxes must go to public services; Whereas, if the Ark was a nonprofit, the same money would go back into either the religious land-boat or Hams pocket.
This doesnt even include the $18 million in sales tax incentives Kentucky taxpayers are providing just for building the park here.
By many accounts even from Ham himself on Twitter the Ark theme park has not lived up to expectations. The $100-million project hasnt delivered the economic boon rise in tourism, business development, job creation and tax revenue that was used to justify taxpayer involvement. But that doesnt mean Ham cant make his profit.
Even if the Ark Park goes underwater, Ham will still own a property he can sell for a good deal more than $10.
Not that this comes as much of a surprise, but Ken Ham has proven he is no different than other con men, televangelists who prey upon their worshipers for personal profit his is only different in method.
Hes worn out his welcome in Kentucky, and, similarly, so have the lawmakers who have enabled him to take Kentucky taxpayers for suckers.
This article appears in August 2, 2017.