§ 6002 — Findings and declaration of policy

The General Assembly hereby finds and declares as follows:

(1) The health, safety and general welfare of the people of this Commonwealth are directly dependent upon the continual encouragement, development, growth and expansion of business, industry, commerce and tourism within this Commonwealth.

(2) Unemployment, the spread of indigency and the heavy burden of public assistance and unemployment compensation can be avoided by the promotion, attraction, stimulation, development and expansion of business, industry, commerce and tourism in this Commonwealth.

(3) Development and continuation of a major convention center is most appropriate in a city of the first class which, because of size, is capable of attracting major national conventions, and the attraction of business to this Commonwealth as a result of the development and continuation is an important factor in the continual encouragement, promotion, attraction, stimulation, development, growth and expansion of business, industry, commerce and tourism within a city of the first class, its surrounding counties and this Commonwealth as a whole.

(4) The purpose of a convention center should be the promotion, attraction, stimulation, development and expansion of business, industry, commerce and tourism in a city of the first class, its surrounding counties and this Commonwealth as a whole.

(5) The development and continuation of a convention center will provide benefits to the hotel industry throughout the entire region where the convention center is developed.

(6) The development and continuation of a convention center will also provide benefits to the restaurant and entertainment industries throughout the entire region where the convention center is located, to all other businesses and individuals benefited by the attraction of major conventions and tourists, to other individual businesses whose livelihood is dependent on the attraction of major conventions and tourists and to the general public.

(7) The need for and promotion of the type of facility which provides and will continue to provide significant benefits to the general public will require the expenditure of public money, and it is appropriate to authorize a city of the first class where the convention center is located to impose and collect a tax or continue to impose and collect a tax, applicable within the entire territorial limits of the city, to facilitate the development or continuation of a convention center and the promotion of tourism within the city of the first class and the region.

(8) To promote the development and continuation of a convention center within this Commonwealth, it is necessary to provide additional and flexible means of developing, constructing, designing, managing, financing and operating such a convention center.

(9) An important aspect of the development and continuation of a convention center should be the removal of blighted areas and the redevelopment of blighted areas.

(10) The policy of this Commonwealth is to promote the health, safety, employment, business opportunities and general welfare of the people of this Commonwealth by providing for the creation and continuation of a convention center authority, which shall exist and operate as a public instrumentality of this Commonwealth for the public purpose of promoting, attracting, stimulating, developing and expanding business, industry, commerce and tourism in this Commonwealth. This purpose is declared to be a public purpose supporting the enactment of all provisions of this chapter and for which public money may be spent, taxes may be imposed and continued and private property may be acquired by the exercise of the power of eminent domain.