Lawrence taxpayers should not have to pay a penny for the major street projects being planned as a result of the new hotel-retail complex being built at the convergence of 12th, Indiana, Louisiana and Oread.

“The Oread” is a privately financed project and its investors surely knew their hotel venture would require significant changes in the nearby street system. Taxpayers should not have to pick up the cost of these changes. Likewise, city officials surely realized construction of the hotel-retail building would damage the streets. Hopefully there were no behind-the-scenes agreements between the hotel investors and the city to have local taxpayers pick up the tab for all the street work and street realignment.

Likewise, who will be paying for the major new sewer lines that were installed to take care of the added demands caused by the hotel?

City officials said a 1-cent surcharge on every dollar paid for services, products or room charges at the hotel complex would be used to help finance the project’s underground garage and nearby street improvements. The project also will receive revenue from a special property tax district that the city has created for the hotel development.

Unless the hotel and its shops enjoy fantastic sales, it’s going to take a long, long time for the surcharge to pay for the project.

In addition to the actual cost of street repairs and an underground garage, consider the “cost” to area residents who have had their traffic disrupted for months and will continue to experience these inconveniences for many more months.

Hopefully, the hotel will be a fine addition to the city but city taxpayers should not be saddled with the costs to redo the streets, help make an attractive, convenient entrance area for the hotel and take care of the sewer and water works.

Now is not the time, with the city and its taxpayers facing challenging economic conditions, for the city to relieve developers of charges they should shoulder.

In addition to asking city taxpayers to take care of other charges, hotel developers also are asking for other questionable variances. Now they want four tall “flagpoles” mounted on the structure. Are these truly flagpoles or special poles designed as profitable communications towers?