Headlines
Private purchasing of prisons lock in occupancy rates
IN: Indy parking revenues fall short
IL: Chicago mayor seeks private infrastructure deals
WA: Washington to auction off state-run liquor stores
CA: Report suggests operation of state parks by for-profit firms

Private purchasing of prisons lock in occupancy rates
At a time when states are struggling to reduce bloated prison populations and tight budgets, a private prison management company is offering to buy prisons in exchange for various considerations, including a controversial guarantee that the governments maintain a 90% occupancy rate for at least 20 years.  USA Today

IN: Indy parking revenues fall short
The first year of Indianapolis’ 50-year parking meter lease brought doubled rates in some areas as a tradeoff for a wholesale upgrade of equipment and the convenience of paying by credit card or smartphone. Was it worth it? New financial data provided by the city shows its share of revenue from the vendor in 2011 — nearly $1.4 million, or 30 percent — fell well short of the city’s own projection of $2.1 million. And the city didn’t end up seeing the full amount: After the vendor subtracted $286,000 in charges to compensate for the city closing metered spaces, often for RebuildIndy road construction work, the city pocketed $1.1 million.  The vendor, ParkIndy — a trio of local and national companies led by Dallas-based ACS, a Xerox company — kept more than $3.5 million. The Indianapolis Star

IL: Chicago mayor seeks private infrastructure deals
Mayor Rahm Emanuel plans to ask aldermen next week to consider giving him broad authority to try a new way to pay for big-ticket projects, even though details on how it would work remain fuzzy. Top administration officials dispatched Thursday to explain the Chicago Infrastructure Trust insisted they don’t know what public works improvements would be included and can’t guarantee that public disclosure laws would apply…The companies are interested in what amounts to a rent-to-own plan. Private firms would build new projects or replace, expand or upgrade existing ones that the city can’t afford to tackle. The city would then lease the new school, park facility or public health center, for example. “It’s similar to a long-term lease and at the end of the lease the city takes back control of the asset,” said Sonia Axter, managing director of infrastructure investments at Ullico, a union-funded financial firm that invests in urban development. “It’s different from the model of what the city of Chicago is familiar with.” Chicago Tribune

WA: Washington to auction off state-run liquor stores
Washington state begins the process of fully privatizing its alcoholic beverage business on Thursday when a public auction of state-run liquor stores opens online, marking a historic change for a state that has tightly controlled its booze since the end of Prohibition. Philadelphia Inquirer

CA: Report suggests operation of state parks by for-profit firms
…Yet some local lawmakers are wary of the idea. “Once you privatize a park, you change the essential mission of the park — it becomes about making a profit,” state Sen. Noreen Evans (D). “My own philosophy is that a state park should be owned and operated by the public. Any time you turn even a portion of a state park away from public control, you always have the problem that the park’s interest becomes inconsistent with serving the public.” Evans is one of a number of state legislators looking for other solutions that would allow parks to remain open. She has proposed two bills in recent weeks aimed at shoring up the state’s park system.  The first would require the Parks Department to analyze the economic impact of closing various state parks, something Evans asserts wasn’t studied in sufficient detail when the initial list of closures was compiled. The second would force the State Lands Commission to reassess its contracts with private firms leasing public land and start charging those companies rent at the market rate, instead of at the artificially low rates a recent audit uncovered. All additional money would fund keeping parks open.  Huffington Post