Texas City Digs Deep To Offset Bass Pro Sales Shortfall

This is what you call a public-private partnership

In January, the mayor of Harlingen proclaimed the local Bass Pro shop the tops in the nation, saying "report after report shows the Harlingen store exceeding even Bass Pro's expectations and sales goals. Of the 58 stores around the nation, Harlingen is Number 1 in many different departments and categories, from T-shirts and caps to all-terrain vehicles," according to a transcript of Boswell's speech cited by the Valley Morning Star newspaper.

Today, though, comes a report that Bass Pro, a private company which was granted generous tax breaks of up to $7 million, is about $6 million light in terms of gross sales, "resulting in less money for the city and Harlingen Economic Development Corporation to pay off debt associated with the initiative," according to the Brownsville Herald. The corporation is funded with sales taxes.