GLENDALE, Ariz. — A pending lawsuit is aiming to stop the City of Glendale from handing out a tax break to a large development project that's been described as the largest hotel resort in Arizona.
Worker Power, a Phoenix-based nonprofit, announced Thursday it was helping two plaintiffs to sue the city over a 25-year tax deal it intends to give to the VAI Resort, which is projected to open in 2024.
The plaintiffs are taking issue with a Government Property Lease Excise Tax, a redevelopment tool used by cities in Arizona to spur development.
The two plaintiffs are arguing that the tax break would violate Arizona's gift clause, which prohibits the government from giving financial benefits to private entities without receiving a public benefit.
“The Gift Clause was enacted to create a balance, to even the economic playing field, between financial incentives given to corporations or individuals, and the public," said Brendan Walsh, Worker Power's executive director and one of the plaintiffs. "The VAI Resorts deal goes against that. It’s not just that the public isn’t getting enough, they’re actually getting nothing at all.”
Glendale is not the first Valley city to be accused of misusing the GPLET benefit. In 2022, the Goldwater Institute filed a lawsuit against the City of Phoenix, claiming the municipality had "gifted" millions of dollars in tax breaks to developers building an apartment building near Garfield and Sixth streets.
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