The IRE Resource Center is a major research library containing more than 23,250 investigative stories — both print and broadcast. These stories are searchable online or by contacting the Resource Center directly (573-882-3364 or rescntr@ire.org) where a researcher can help you pinpoint what you need. Browse or search the tipsheet section of our library below. Stories are not available for download but can be easily ordered by contacting the Resource Center:
Search results for "land leasing" ...
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Lease-to-own Mogul
A series of articles showing that a Florida business man, whose financial and real estate empire was purposely obscured, defrauded hundreds of hopeful home buyers by refusing to sell them houses leased to them under rent-to-own contracts.
Tags: real estate; Rod Khleif; rent-to-own; fraud; land deals; investment; FOIA; Better Business Bureau
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NYU's Tax Deal Costs City $8M
According to a New York Newsday investigation, "New York has lost about $8 million in tax revenues because of special exemptions granted to buildings leased by New York University and owned by Happ Land Social Club landlord Alex DiLorenzo." A state law allows New York University to maintain tax exemptions on fifteen properties in Greenwich Village along Washington Squre North. The investigation raises the question of whether or not the wealthy, nonprofit New York University should have lucrative tax exemptions while the city has to make up for the money lost.
Tags: New York University; Alex DiLorenzo; Happy Land Social Club; Washington Square Mews; net lease; New York Real Estate Board
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Public land, Private Profit
This story looks at government councils in Australia that are leasing land and buildings that were worth much more at very low rates. As the reporter found out, some of the buildings could be leased for 12 times the current rate.
Tags: Local government councils; land leasing; fraud; municipality of south Sydney; Minister of Fisheries; publicly owned land; public land
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Feed 5: Best of Show and Tell
1) Jennifer Kraus (WTVF-Nashville) This story exposes problems at the Nashville office of international charity "Feed the Children." In a four-month investigation, WTVF-TV's undercover cameras caught the charity's staff loading up their personal cars with donated items and taking the items home. 2) Deborah Sherman (WFXT - Boston) Costa Rican trips for child sex. Actually spoke with girls who used to get paid by American tourists for sex. Focuses on one area man charged with this crime. 3) Anna Werner, David Raziq (KHOU-Houston) KHOU-TV reports that "You're in physical pain. You need help. So you go to your doctor expecting needed relief and comfort. But what if in the process of treating you, you realize this healer's touch has become 'sexual?' That's what dozens of Houston women claimed happened to them when they were referred to a local health professional, a professional they claimed used their trust to molest and even rape them. His name is Shin Higashiura and he claimed to be a Master of Shiatsu, also known as acupressure, a Japanese massage therapy that promises health benefits...." 4) Jilda Unruh (WCCO-Minneapolis) An investigation reveals that automatic door sensors can't detect certain colors. The doors often close on elderly people, causing them harm. 5) Tom Merriman/Jeff Harris (WEWS-Cleveland) The story investigates how state-trained lifeguards perform on state beaches as compared to privately trained lifeguards on private beaches. Follows both teams though a simulation. The state team fails horribly and never recovers the dummy planted for them to rescue. 6) Jim Schaefer; Shellee Smith (WXYZ-Detroit) WXYZ-TV discovered that the leaders of Highland Park, a poor city surrounded by Detroit, had virtually ignored a major problem in the 911 emergency response system while continuing to enjoy the relatively expensive perks of their jobs. While claiming there was no money in the budget to fix the problem, the mayor leased a brand-new Lincoln with city cash. Undercover video found citizens at risk, fire fighters in danger and no one helping. 7) Drew Griffin (KCBS-Los Angeles) "The Real ConAir" Investigation reveals department of corrections transporting convicts on commercial flights. Passengers are not told who's sitting beside them. Planes are forced to land because of disturbances during the flight. A girl is sexually assaulted by one of these convicts. 8) Robb Leer; Maria Tomasch (KSTP-Minneapolis) Inmates can change their names on the taxpayer's dime. 9) Jeremy Rogalski; Bill Dutton; Gerry Lanosga; Kathleen Johnston (WTHR-Indianapolis) WTHR-TV reports that "a source mentioned to us that numerous DUI cases were being dismissed because police witnesses fail to appear in court... After we crunched a slice of our county's criminal justice data ... We found thousands of DUI cases - nearly one in ten - thrown out because cops didn't show..." 10) Wes Williams; C.J. Ward (KPNX-Phoenix) Security guards with criminal records have a "License to Steal." 11) Tony Kovaleski; Matt Goldberg (KPRC-Houston) Ninety-eight guns were discovered in schools in 10 of Houston's largest school districts -- that works out to 5,864 students per gun. 12) Phil Williams; Chris Clark (WTVF-Nashville) WTVF-TV's investigation into the backgrounds of school teachers found more than three dozen convicted felons working in Metro Nashville-Davidson County schools. 13) Chris Halsne; Kim Albro; Dave Weed (KWTV-Oklahoma City) Voters handed Oklahoma City Schools a 93 million dollar bond in 1993 to improve schools. The money is now gone, but many projects remain unfinished. KWTV-TV's investigation found millions of dollars in waste, fraud and mismanagement. 14) Laure Quinlivan; Jeff Keene; Ken Fulk; Mark Shafer; Scott Diener; Stuart Zanger (WCPO-Cincinnati) WCPO-TV's investigation "... to monitor County officials as they began spending nearly a billion dollars of taxpayer money... earmarked to build two, new sports stadiums for our city's professional sports teams, the Bengals and Red. As (the) investigation enters its third year, work on the first stadium is two-thirds complete and ground will soon break on the second. Already, our investigation has revealed broken promises, manipulation of numbers in official reports, political cronyism in contract awards, creation of 'pass-through' companies and other questionable and possibly illegal activities...." 15) Jim Barry; John Campbell; Sam Zeff; Jennifer Snell; Denise Haley; Brad Naw (WTXF-Philadelphia) After transit union strike crippled Philadelphia's bus and subway service for forty days, WTXF-TV investigated the region's transportation agency - Southeastern Pennsylvania Transportation Authority. SEPTA is one of the largest and most expensive transit systems in the county. This investigation exposed a widespread culture of laziness and dishonest work habits that was allowing hundreds of buses with potentially dangerous problems out onto the street each day. 16)Darcy Spears; Kim Kruger (KVBC-Las Vegas) "Taken for a Ride". Taxi drivers getting kickbacks for taking clients to certain bars/stripclubs.
Tags: TAPE; Investigative reporting; computer-assisted reporting; IRE; FOI; CAR; no transcripts
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Keeping Score
When local Denverites rallied local support for tax bonds to help land a major league expansion team and pay for the new Coors Field, they didn't realize how sweet a deal they turned over to Rockies' owners. Taxpayers will pay almost the entire $215 million of stadium costs. If that weren't bad enough, now the Denver Broncos' owner Pat Bowlen is pushing for a similiar deal.
Tags: sports franchise; stadiums; civic leases; luxury boxes; taxpayers; baseball; football
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No title (id: 12733)
The Clarion Ledger uncovered how schools in Meridian, Mississippi, have continued down the path of land giveaways, giving one businessman a $48,000 lease, only to have him sell that lease for $2.8 million. Sixteenth Section land was established in Mississippi to provide property and money to the state's school districts. (Sept. 24, 1995)
Tags: Mitchell Contest entry Secretary of state Business Land deals 4 pgs.
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Farms abuse subsidies
Arizona Republic reports on the practice by farmers to subdivide their land among numerous entities to generate multiple federal subsidies for themselves; farmers charge for such things as land leases, equipment rentals and management fees.
Tags: Agriculture; farming; federal subsidies; land leases
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No title (id: 4191)
Times-Picayune (New Orleans) series reveals the hidden source of wealth of Judge Leander Perez Sr., former political boss of Plaquemines Parish in the Louisiana delta: he made millions in royalties from oil leases he arranged for himself on public lands, June 1986.
Tags: None
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No title (id: 2666)
Clarion-Ledger series investigates abuses in leasing of school trust lands originally set aside for the financial benefit of public schools; reporters use public land-lease and deed records and find that much of the valuable land was being leased for pennies an acre, sometimes to the public officials in charge of managing the land, Nov. 11 - 16, 1984.
Tags: Hoffman Haney MS
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No title (id: 682)
Tulsa Tribune series examines role of Interior Department in managing billions of dollars generated from lease of Indian lands to energy producers and mining companies, finding Native Americans are shortchanged through government mismanagement, Nov. 9 - 18, 1987.
Tags: None