Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 7, 2008

This newsletter is about the Hickory City Council meeting that I attended this past week. City council meetings are held on the first and third Tuesdays of each Month in the Council Chambers of the Julian Whitener building.

At the bottom right of this page under main information links is a Hickory, NC link. If you click on that link, it takes you to our city’s website, at the bottom of the page you will see the future dates for meetings scheduled for this year.

At the top of the page, if you click on the “Documents” link, you will find historic Agenda and Minutes links. Agendas show what is on the docket for the meeting of that date. The Minutes is an actual summary of the proceedings of the meeting of that date.

Here is a summary of the agenda of the 10/7/2008 meeting. There were a couple of important items that were discussed at this meeting and the details are listed further below.

The invocation was from the Reverend Reggie Longcrier. I may not agree with a lot of the political people that he supports, but I really do admire this man. I met Reverend Longcrier 9 years ago at my church, Mt. Olive Lutheran. His outreach program has helped a lot of people when they were down and out. The Reverend had us go to the Prison camp at Newton and read scripture with the inmates there. These people need the message of redemption and hope that spirituality brings.

If you ever get the chance to meet Reverend Longcrier, I hope that you will accept. His message is an uplifting one. He is a man that accepted the consequences of his youth, righted the wrongs, and has fought for the greater good of our community. We need more men like the Reverend that will stand up for the least of us.

Jennifer Helton of the Community Appearance Commission handed out awards for various voluntary beautification projects done throughout Hickory. Tim Cline received an award for the renovation of the arcade downtown. Bishop and Terry Jackson received an award for work done at a location on 127 north. Other projects were at Hickory High and the Salvation Army.

Phil Barringer made a presentation about the new Art Benches that have been placed around town. The council unanimously approved to allow the Public Art Commission to solicit money from the private sector to produce more of the benches. The City is not being asked for any more money.

The mayor and State Representative Ray Warren presented the Order of the Long Leaf Pine to Dr. Ed Rogers. Greg McGuiness, Mr. Rodgers long time friend and town manager of West Jefferson, asked Governor Easley to bestow North Carolina’s highest civilian honor to Dr. Rodgers. Dr. Rodgers has apparently been very instrumental in a lot of work done by the Habitat for Humanity. If anyone would like to send me a bio on Dr. Rodgers, I would very much like to post it.

The Council confirmed several projects including a couple of annexations. Recognitions were approved for National Family Day on 9/22/2008, Financial Planning Week 10/6-12/2008, and Respiratory Care Week 10/19-25/2008. The Library has been approved to have a book sale 10/9-12/2008.

Hammer Properties was awarded grants of $10,437 for landscaping and appearance improvements at 432 4th st SW. The City amended its parking lot agreement with Transportation Insight, Inc.

The city approved a lease agreement with the Hickory Downtown Development Association to Lease vacant property at 24 1st ave NE. The city is leasing the property for an annual fee of $1 for 5 years. The HDDA will be responsible for maintenance and repairs of utilities up to $1,000. The HDDA currently budgets $3,000 annually for these expenditures. The City of Hickory currently appropriates $50,000 annually to the HDDA.

In the Hounds Opinion: This is a backdoor attempt by the city to increase its investment in the Downtown Development Association. I would like to know what are we getting for our investment in this association? In my opinion, the problems with our downtown have nothing to do with the amount of money that we continuously throw at it and have everything to do with the viability of our city as a whole.

It is time that the city freezes any expenditures aimed at downtown, have these people fend for themselves, and start focusing on the greater areas of need throughout the city. Downtown will start hustling and bustling when we rectify the economic integrity of the city as a whole.

The Budget was amended to the tune of $109,750. This included $71,503 for the Clement Boulevard Extension Project. The cost is to pay Duke Power to relocate utility lines along the project.

New Business
1) The City approved an assessment to install curb and guttering along 7th ave NE.

2) Assistant City manager Andrea Surratt brought up for discussion the issue of Wayfinding. She said that this subject was first addressed at the February 2008 retreat. She thoroughly discussed the issue as a way of reducing sign clutter, projecting community image, projecting consistency, and safety.

Here is a link to a wayfinding system in New York City. http://www.ap.buffalo.edu/idea/udny/Section4-1c.htm

Ms. Surratt wants a Committee to be formed to look into this issue before hiring a consultant. This system will be unique to our community identity. The main purposes of such a system are to help people find their way around and help benefit local destinations in helping people identify and successfully find their locations.

She stated that this would be good for downtown, but also stated that this system will have to be flexible as we move forward to the future. Paraphrasing, she said that the city would have to work with the Department of Transportation on color schemes and consistency.

Mayor Wright asked what she was wanting from the council tonight. Ms. Surratt said that she was just updating the council on where the staff was in the process. (Paraphrasing) Councilor Lail said that she was making a proposal to move forward. Mayor Wright said this was a good idea. We need to sell our image…clean up sign clutter…most places do this. City Manager Mick Berry said we need to consolidate and streamline signs in the city.

The Hounds Take : I think this is an excellent idea. It may be because I am from here, but I have never had a problem getting around this city. If you have a mind that thinks mathematically, then the grid system isn't that hard to adapt to. But, if people are having trouble getting around Hickory, we need to make it more user friendly.

The only issue that gives me any apprehension about this plan, is the conspiracy theorist in me has me thinking that this is just another scheme by Downtown Special interests to point the way towards Union Square. I do believe that Downtown is an integral part of the community and they should play a big role in such a project, but they should not be the focal point of this project and it should not be done at the expense of other areas that need to be lifted up. If this project were to turn into a Downtown marketing tool, then I believe that a light should be shone on it and I would have to fight it.

On the other hand, if this project is developed in such a way to help businesses and organizations in every quadrant of our city, then I think it will be a wonderful thing. It would be a great benefit to the small businesses interspersed throughout our city. It also would collaterally help businesses near those destinations. So I really do think that this will be a great project for 21st century Hickory, if the focus is right.


3) Warren Wood was next and he gave a summary of the City’s investments during these tumultuous economic times. He stated that our investments are regulated by the North Carolina Local Government Commission.

The North Carolina Local Government Commission is a part of the North Carolina Department of State Treasurer which was created after the Great Depression to assist local North Carolina
governments in decision making involving large financing projects such as bond issues. The
commission is chaired by the North Carolina State Treasurer..

Mr. Wood stated that the city has $42.7 million basically invested 1/3 in CDs (with 60 to 90 day
maturity) and they are presently earning around 2.7% interest annually, another 1/3 is invested in US agency securities which have a 2 to 5 year maturity and these assets are earning around 4% annually, and the last 1/3 is invested in the North Carolina Capital Trust – these are the most liquid assets – which earn 2.5% interest. The trust is the most volatile of these investments.

Mr. Wood stated that the city does it’s banking with BB&T. The city keeps around $850,000 in this account. It is used for payroll and to do daily business.

The city’s finances are reviewed by North Carolina Independent Auditors twice per year. City staff report to council annually. The city’s view toward investments is that safety and liquidity are more important than yield. The city believes in taking a conservative view towards investments and projections.

The city is looking to issue bonds very soon for the upcoming water and sewer project in Northeast Hickory. Because of present circumstances, the issuance of these bonds is still up in the air. The city has a revolvong loan available from the state for $17.5 million dollars that can be utilized to buy time and get the project off and going. Mr. Wood said that the city may wait until next spring to offer the bonds. When Mr. Wood was through with his summary presentation the mayor subsequently closed the meeting.

The Hound Believes: If you have read any of this blog, then you will understand that I believe that the United States macro economy is shot. If there is one thing I can say about our Mayor (and city staff) it is that I agree with the way that they have managed our city's finances. We don't need to be taking an aggressive viewpoint as to our outlook and making investments based on overly optimistic numbers.

Where I differ is on the the cost-benefit analyses related to growth. If an investment doesn't create value, then let's just call it what it is, a social outlay. We can have a small percentage of our budget directed towards this, but they cannot be priorities. These are totally discretionary (and some have been frivolous) expenditures. They definitely aren't necessities. If times become hard, then this stuff is going to have to take a backseat.

We need projects that create value. If a project, that the city fosters, overtly tries to control growth, then the end result is that it will most likely stifle growth. When this happens, then we don't mature, our standard of living stagnates, and most parts of our community will fail.

There has to be accountability when it comes to our city's investments. We should not enter into any agreements that don't have checks and balances, aren't results oriented, aren't flexible towards the needs of the community, and/or don't allow the city a way out.

No matter what, we are headed towards a difficult macro economic environment. Money is going to be hard to come by from the State and Federal government. We aren't in good shape locally and it is going to take an innovative governmental system to turn the tide. We cannot copycat other communities to get ahead. We need to be at the forefront of whatever we do. We need people coming to us and not us going to them, because we will always be playing second fiddle and lucky if we get scraps under those conditions.

I hope that the Mayor and Council understand that it it is time to quit worrying about frivolities and time to take our city's role in this world seriously.

LACK OF MORAL BACKBONE ROBS US OF COMMON SENSE

Submitted by Harry Hipps II (published in the Hickory Daily Record on 10/4/2008)

After Sept. 11, we heard a lot about how we failed to connect the dots and see the danger. America is so specialized and compartmentalized that we apparently have little ability to look at our life and society as a whole.

Our politics have become corrupt and dysfunctional, corporations overpay executives and cook the books so few people really know what’s going on. Drugs, divorce, crime and incivility are so common we just tolerate them and keep on going.

I believe the root of almost all of our dilemmas stems from a severe decline, if not collapse, of our moral backbone. We removed prayer from our schools and the 10 Commandments from our courthouses. Few are well versed in the Bible or even read it. Simply mentioning the name of Jesus Christ is enough to invite cries of judgmentalism.

We suffer from poor ethics, greed, lack of compassion and a shortsightedness that focuses on what we can satisfy ourselves with right now, rather than looking out for our common good for the future.

We so completely lack any moral compass that we treat every religion, every law, every idea as equally valid when common sense and experience show that some things are right and some things are wrong, period.

We have nothing to guide us and provide the moral structure we need. The next time we see a crime, crooked politician, or corporate CEO going to jail, connect the dots. Until we get back to One Nation, Under God, we can expect more of the same.

-- Harry Hipps II

Repaving on I-40 set for approval in Wake County

From the News and Observer in Raleigh (http://www.newsobserver.com/news/growth/story/1240137.html)
RALEIGH - Interstate 40 in western Wake County is in line for a resurfacing job expected to start next spring. The state Board of Transportation is expected to approve today a $13.8 million plan to repave six miles of the eight-lane freeway from Interstate 540 to the Wade Avenue exit, plus a mile of the Wade Avenue extension.

The Hounds Take : The politicians make sure that they have a nice smooth ride to work; while they expect we peons, here in Hickory, to bump and grind our way to work through the cracks and crevices of I-40 and Hwy 70. Raleigh promised to fix these roads years ago. It sure is funny how they can find money for everyone but Catawba County. If we don't start speaking up, we will continue getting the short end.

Goldman Sachs' Treasury - The Biggest Conflict of Interest Ever

From Wikipedia : (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Goldman_Sachs)
Goldman Sachs has offices in all major world financial centers. The firm acts as a financial advisor and money manager for corporations, governments, and wealthy families around the world. Goldman offers its clients mergers & acquisitions advice, underwriting services, asset management, and engages in proprietary trading, and private equity deals. It is a primary dealer in the U.S. Treasury securities market

Hmmm, who is in charge of the U.S. Treasury securities market?

Henry Paulson, the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury. previously served as the Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Goldman Sachs.

A wikipedia entry shows that: (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_Paulson)
Paulson's three immediate predecessors as CEO of Goldman Sachs — Jon Corzine, Stephen Friedman, and Robert Rubin — each left the company to serve in government: Corzine as a U.S. Senator (later Governor of New Jersey), Friedman as chairman of the National Economic Council (later chairman of the President's Foreign Intelligence Advisory Board) under President George W. Bush, and Rubin as both chairman of the NEC and later Treasury Secretary under President Bill Clinton.[14]

From Reuters : (http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSTRE4950BS20081006)
Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson is expected to name Neel Kashkari to oversee the $700 billion program to buy distressed assets from financial institutions, The Wall Street Journal reported on Sunday.

Kashkari was Treasury assistant secretary for international affairs and the former head of Goldman Sachs information technology security investment banking practice in San Francisco.

From the NY Times : (http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/business/28melt.html?_r=1)
As the group, led by Treasury Secretary Henry M. Paulson Jr., pondered the collapse of one of America’s oldest investment banks, Lehman Brothers, a more dangerous threat emerged: American International Group, the world’s largest insurer, was teetering. A.I.G. needed billions of dollars to right itself and had suddenly begged for help.

One of the Wall Street chief executives participating in the meeting was Lloyd C. Blankfein of Goldman Sachs, Mr. Paulson’s former firm. Mr. Blankfein had particular reason for concern.
Although it was not widely known, Goldman, a Wall Street stalwart that had seemed immune to its rivals’ woes, was A.I.G.’s largest trading partner, according to six people close to the insurer who requested anonymity because of confidentiality agreements. A collapse of the insurer threatened to leave a hole of as much as $20 billion in Goldman’s side, several of these people said.

From Bloomberg - 9/22/2008 (http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601087&sid=aUj_9.k13q7s&refer=home)
Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Morgan Stanley may be among the biggest beneficiaries of the $700 billion U.S. plan to buy assets from financial companies while many banks see limited aid, according to Bank of America Corp.

From Wikipedia - (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/George_Herbert_Walker_IV)
George Herbert Walker IV (born April 1969) is a Managing Director at Lehman Brothers and is a second cousin to U.S. President George W. Bush.

Walker began his career on Wall Street when he joined Goldman Sachs in the Merger Department in 1992 and six years later, in 1998, became of one of the firm's youngest partners ever. He held several senior positions at Goldman, including co-head of the firm's Wealth Management business, and head of Alternative Investment strategies. In May 2006, Walker announced that he was resigning from Goldman Sachs to become global head of rival Lehman Brothers' Investment Management division.

From Wikipedia - (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lehman_Brothers)
Lehman Brothers - On September 15, 2008, the firm filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection; the filing marks the largest bankruptcy in U.S. history.[2] The following day, Barclays plc announced its agreement to purchase, subject to regulatory approval, Lehman's North American investment-banking and trading divisions along with its New York headquarters building.[3][4] On September 20, 2008, a revised version of that agreement was approved by Judge James Peck.[5]

The Alphabet of Leadership

A – Accountability- subject to the obligation to report, explain, or justify something; responsible; answerable. True leaders realize that actions lead to consequences whether positive or negative. This does not keep a true leader from taking action when needed.

B – Bravery - possessing or exhibiting courage or courageous endurance. Every person on this earth has fears, but it takes a special person to step forward in spite of those fears.

C – Command - to direct with specific authority or prerogative. Delegation is tough when the troops don't want to listen. Every great leader has to have power and respect for his authority. Power is not something that is annointed (or given), it has to be demanded. When the troops won't cooperate, then you have to get rid of the bad weeds to get everyone moving in the same direction.

D – Determination - the quality of being resolute; firmness of purpose. Leaders don't ever give up. It is their biggest asset and their biggest liability. You are a hero or a zero. It's easy to escape being labelled a zero by never stepping forward and taking a chance; but for society to progress, we have to have people willing to step forward.

E – Energetic - powerful in action or effect. Leaders keep going even when they are tired. That persistence leads to opportunity. When coupled with positive preparation, then good results will happen.

F – Faithful - true to one's word, promises, vows. If you are trustworthy, then people are more likely to voluntarily follow you.

G - Goals - the result or achievement toward which effort is directed. Having goals allows one to develop a plan, which makes it easier to achieve objectives.

H – Honor - honesty, fairness, or integrity in one's beliefs and actions. If you are fair to people, then (again) they are more likely to follow you.

I - Initiative - The power or ability to begin or to follow through energetically with a plan or task. Those that voluntarily step forward are a special breed. Yes, you risk possible embarassment, but the rewards far exceed anything negative that may happen. We all have things we are comfortable doing and when we are comfortable, then why not step forward. Everyone will benefit.

J - Justice - the quality of being just or fair. When a system is fair, then the atmosphere created is much more positive and conducive to creativity and progress. When it is not then wasted energy goes toward decension, bitterness, and anxiety.

K – Keeper - a person who assumes responsibility for another's behavior. A true leader realizes where the buck stops. When he delegates responsibilties, he isn't absolved of the end results. He and his troops learn from the mistakes and correct them. A true leader won't stifle his troops, because they make a mistake. He just asks that they don't repeat the same mistake.

L - Loyal - faithful to one's oath, commitments, or obligations. A person is more willing to cooperate with direction, when they realize that their leader will never sell them out to make himself look good at their expense. The leader realizes that he is as much a part of the team, as the lowest man on the totem pole.

M – Mastery - command or grasp, as of a subject. A great leader will obsess about the art that he is studying. If it means nights of little or no sleep, then so be it. Whatever it takes is what has to be done. How many ever repetitions to succeed in hitting the target or meeting the objective does not matter. It is all about gaining confidence in what you are trying to achieve.

N – Noble - Having or showing qualities of high moral character, such as courage, generosity, or honor. When someone follows the principles of chivalry, honor, integrity, and justice; then people will hold high thoughts of him. It may not happen until he leaves this earth, but that legacy is something to aspire to, whether you are spiritual or not.

O – Objective - not influenced by personal feelings, interpretations, or prejudice; based on facts; unbiased. When someone can set personal feelings aside and take emotions out of decisions, then the greater good can be achieved for everyone involved. The best results may not be achieved immediately, but in the long run they will be.

P – Plan - a scheme or method of acting, doing, proceeding, making, etc., developed in advance. We need a blueprint of where we are at and where we intend to be -- the objective. No plan will be perfect, but I have learned that it is better to deviate from specific methods, than to try to achieve good results through chaos.

Q – Quintessential - the most perfect embodiment of something. That is where we all want to arrive, no matter what the goal is -- Perfection. The more that we try to get to perfection (or best at a task); the closer we will get to it. If we don't try to get to perfection, then we won't get anywhere close.

R – Responsive - Readily reacting to suggestions, influences, appeals, or efforts. A true leader listens to his troops. Everyone in an organization deserves input. As they say, "Together Each Accomplishes More." The sum is greater than the parts. Allowing input is the greatest facilitator of initiative and innovation in any organization.

S – Strength - vigor of action, language, feeling, etc. When we talk about strength we talk about bravery, perserverance, poise, energy, and all that goes with it. Sometimes a leader will have to be forceful in his decision making, when his troops aren't following his explicit directions. This has to be done judiciously, but sometimes it is necessary to move forward.

T – Teacher - to impart knowledge or skill to; give instruction to. All great leaders are excellent instructors. They are good at taking their personal experiences and passing them along to their troops, so that they don't have to repeat the steps the they have already taken. A very experienced person with great communicative skills can lead his followers to achieve heights that may have been previously thought to be impossible.

U – Understanding - to grasp the significance, implications, or importance of. A great leader has a special cognitive reasoning to sense the past, present, and future of the objectives that he is studying and trying to achieve. He knows where he is coming from, as well as where he is trying to get to.

V - Versatile - capable of or adapted for turning easily from one to another of various tasks, fields of endeavor, etc. A great leader is a Jack of most trades and a delegator of the rest. He will lead by example, while not letting his ego get in the way of his weaknesses. He realizes that there are other people that can achieve better results in many areas, that he has less (or no) proficiency in.

W – Will - power of choosing one's own actions. A great leader won't let his vices consume him. He can focus and dedicate himself to the objectives he is striving to achieve. Vices, whether mental or physical, will definitely get in the way of success. This will cost any entity involved valuable progress, time, money, and energy.

X – Xenomorphic - in an unusual form; having a strange form. True leaders aren't conformists. They are revolutionaries and pioneers. This makes them seem eccentric, because they don't follow the crowd, the fads, and/or pop culture.

Y – Yes - Used to express great satisfaction, approval, or happiness. This is a word of positivity. It isn't what we want to hear, when we aren't succeeding. We need someone to tell us when things aren't working, because when people don't say 'no' at these times, then we end up off track, costing us time and money. The goal is that ultimate sweet exclamation YES!!!, when we have succeeded in our objective.

Z – Zeal - Enthusiastic devotion to a cause, ideal, or goal and tireless diligence in its furtherance. We all achieve more when we are really interested in a subject. Pick what you are good at and go for it. You see from all of the principles outlined that we can all lead in certain areas, but it takes a special person to direct an organization and bring the sum of all of those parts together. That is the reason we are having a problem with government at all levels. It will take very special and dedicated individuals to bring us out of the malaise we are in

Let's Add this up - $1.979 trillion and counting (Initially $1.439 trillion)

AIG (American International Group) - Insurance - $85 billion bailout
http://dealbook.blogs.nytimes.com/2008/09/29/behind-aigs-crisis-an-overlooked-web-of-risk/ or http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/28/business/28melt.html?_r=1&ref=business&oref=slogin

Automotive Industry - $25 billion loan guarantee
http://www.search-autoparts.com/searchautoparts/Distribution/House-approves-25-billion-automotive-bailout-loan/ArticleStandard/Article/detail/553690?contextCategoryId=41884

Bear Stearns forced sale to JP Morgan - Chase - $29 billion guarantee
Fed will fund the remaining $29 billion on a non-recourse basis to JPMorgan Chase.
http://www.jpmorgan.com/cm/Satellite?c=JPM_Content_C&cid=1159339104093&pagename=JPM_redesign%2FJPM_Content_C%2FGeneric_Detail_Page_Template

Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac - $200 billion in preferred stock
"But the eventual cost to the public purse is unknown and potentially huge. The Treasury says it could buy as much as $100 billion of preferred stock in each of the two firms, though it deems that highly unlikely." http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601109&sid=adr.czwVm3ws&refer=home or http://www.economist.com/finance/displaystory.cfm?story_id=12078933

Financial Securities and Derivatives Bailout - $800 billion (bailout + Tax Incentives)
The tax provisions added more than $100 billion to the cost of the plan. From the original three-page proposal by the Treasury Department, the bill has swelled to 451 pages.
http://www.latimes.com/business/investing/la-fi-bailout2-2008oct02,0,1307485.story

The Housing and Economic Recovery Act of 2008 - $300 billion (Congressional enactment)
(Pub.L. 110-289, 122 Stat. 2654) designed primarily to address the subprime mortgage crisis, was passed by the United States Congress on July 24, 2008
http://www.reuters.com/article/topNews/idUSN3042756820080730

Fed to Provide Up to $540 Billion to Aid Money Funds - added on 10/21/2008 - loans to help relieve pressure on money-market mutual funds beset by redemptions. http://www.bloomberg.com/apps/news?pid=20601103&sid=ajw94.nC0a5w&refer=us

The Cover Up and Encouragement of the Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac Scam that caused our current National Economic Crisis (15+ minutes)