As reported in The Pitch, from Kansas City, MO.

A Wal-Mart in Kansas City, Missouri, closed on January 18, 2007. A day later, a Wal-Mart opened in another section of the city. Fair to say, these two events were related, no?

Economic-development officials at the city have pretended that the two Wal-Marts had nothing to do with each other. It’s an absurd position, and it enriches a private developer at the expense of taxpayers.

The story gets a little complicated because it involves tax-increment financing (TIF), a powerful but inscrutable tool that’s been used to remake huge swaths of Kansas City. But let’s give it a go.

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