The Hounds notes from the Regional Entrepreneur Summit (Part 1) - January 11. 2012

The following is Part 1 of a summary of the information provided at the conference on Building Entrepreneurial Communities held this morning Wednesday, January 11, 2012 sponsored by the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce and the North Carolina Partners in Innovation (NCPI). The conference was held at the Crowne Plaza in Hickory and featured speaker Ted Abernathy who is the Executive Director of the Southern Growth Policies Board who believes that "Complex problems need collaborative solutions. Collaboration is not natural, but by following some basic rules communities can use collaboration to create a competitive advantage. Entrepreneurial businesses and collaboration are both a natural fit and a marriage of necessity."

In Part 1 of the presentation you will see local leaders provide ideas, information, and initiatives that can help to turn the Economic plight of our community around. Especially interesting was the information provided by Bill Parrish who is the Director of The Small Business and Technology Development Center and a fellow participant in the Future Economy Council. Much of the information provided within this presentation is relevant to the discussions that have been presented on the Hound. In Part 2, I will write about the Presentation of Ted Abernathy, who in the past was the Director of the Research Triangle Park and wants to work in collaboration to help turn Hickory around. What you will see is that it isn't us against the World. There are many interested parties in this State that want to see this region turn it around and are willing to help us do just that.

Michael Blackburn, CEO of Frye Regional Medical Center and the current chairman of the board of the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce mad introductions for each speaker at the event.

Dr. Jane Everson the Chair of the NCPI explained the purpose of the NCPI and how it consists of the UNC system and the region's Community Colleges along with the four county Chamber of Commerce's. She introduced the top three finalist winners of the Edison project and spoke about entrepreneurial initiatives in the area. Dr. Everson is the outgoing Director of the Appalachian State University - Hickory Partnership and the outgoing chair of the NCPI. It will be hard to fill her shoes in these positions, because she has worked hard getting these initiatives off the ground.

Dr Garrett Hinshaw, President of Catawba Valley Community College was the next speaker. He talked about how hard it was to define entrepreneurship and compared the economy of the 1990s to now. What has happened? The challenge comes in the uncertainty of the future. He spoke about Frye Regional Medical Center and a patient with a fibrillating heart. You have to do something. The community is going to have to provide the shock and create the vision and it includes a role to play for every person in the community. He challenged the people at the conference to help determine what the shock will be. We have to determine that action. The answer has to be created. He introduced Bill Parrish.

Bill Parrish is the Director of the The Small Business and Technology Development Center (SBTDC). He paid complements to the work of Dr.s Hinshaw and Everson. He talked about last years event - (Innovation 2010 - Andrew Hargadon - Creating a Network of Innovation). He gave credit to Dr. Jim Zuiches and Dr. Tom White of NC State University, stating this event couldn't have taken place without their help. Bill spoke of the Catawba County Chamber's role in this event and wanted to emphasize Catawba County Chamber President Danny Hearn's point that this is a regional event. He pointed to the organizations that have supported this event.

Bill talked about a study done by a group called Collaborative Economics. Entrepreneurship and small business plays a key role in economic development and is the single business driver of economic well being, technological innovation, and wealth creation. Entrepreneurs are innovators, connectors, and collaborators raising money from people they don't even know. Entrepreneur - a person who organizes and manages any enterprise, especially a business, usually with considerable initiative and risk, but their are more definition than can be counted.

Execution - the act of putting ones ideas into action... putting it into a business entity that is sustainable.
He pointed to the movie "The Sound of Music" and how Julie Andrews character got things done in spite of children that didn't like her and an overbearing father. Execution separate the dreamer with an idea from the business visionary who takes it forward and creates jobs. He pointed next to Steve Jobs, the president of Apple.

So what? Who Cares? What me worry? Carrying on with business as usual won't get us where we need to go. Manufacturing in the United States was 20% in 1990 and has fallen to below 12%. Manufacturing in the Catawba County was over 50% in 1990 and has fallen to 27%. Technology Explains Drop in Manufacturing Jobs.


U.S. Manufacturing Productivity and Output.

We have lost 35% of our jobs in the 1987-2010 time period shown in the graph above. 49% of rural folks who become unemployed find work in one year. That means that 51% didn't. 30% of these people made less than half of what they made in their previous job. North Carolina Rural Economic Development Center

Dashboard Indicators- Most Communities are not Entrepreneurial
Change in Output - Local Equivalent of the National Gross Domestic Product
Employment Growth
Productivity
Per Capita Income Growth - Jobs is one thing, but to sustain and grow, you need income growth.

Keys to Regional Growth
Skilled Workforce - We are dead last in educational attainment. Local initiatives have created programs to address this. It will take time to turn around.
Business Dynamics - Churning - Entrepreneurial turmoil where businesses are created and destroyed.
Legacy of Place - The cost of outdated facilities and the effects of a shrinking tax base.
Location Amenities - Quality of Life. Will people want to move here?

Environmental Ecosystem
Assets - Education Infrastructure, Financial Institutions, Broadband
Connections - Networking, Partnerships, Collaboration
Culture - The mindset and attitude of the community towards entrepreneurs of different lifestyles.
Quality of Life - The Environment and pools of talent in a community
Combination - Recipe of Ingredients. The community has to put the ingredients together and make them work.

National Trends 2011
Focus on Region - Action and tangible outcomes of regionalism
Reorganizing Economic Development
Access to Capital - As hard to come by as ever
Tax Incentives - NC has a number of them
New Commitments to Technology Based Economic Development (TBED) - More money being spent on targeted research.
Research Investment
Higher Education & Stem Incentives - Science, Technology, Engineering, Mathematics

Fortune 500 Replacement
Replacement of 1/3 of companies in 1960 took 20 years, in 1983 it took 11 years, in 1999 it was down to 4 years. Those are the big businesses where things turn slower. Think of the smaller businesses and this churn rate. The entrepreneurs are having to outrun the big guys.

Bill next talked about Facebook
130 - Average # of friends of users of Facebook
50% growth of users in 2011
800 million users worldwide
$70 Billion minimum market cap estimate for when the company goes public


Bill wants us to watch a story that will be broadcast on NBC on January 16, 2012 at 10pm that will discuss the restart of Cochran Furniture. The company is being reborn as Lincolnton Furniture. The company CEO is Bruce Cochran and he was interviewed by Carolina Business Review (starts at the 11:00 mark in the video below).


CBR 2115 - Bruce Cochrane, President & CEO, Lincolnton Furniture Company from WTVI Charlotte on Vimeo.

The Hound's take on Mayor Wright's Interview with Hal Row - 1/9/2012

This morning I got up to listen to the Mayor on Hal Row’s show doing the “Monthly Morning Meeting.” Much of what was discussed seemed to be a rebuttal to what has been discussed here on the Hound.

In speaking with Harry about what we heard this morning. Harry had something very interesting that he pointed out. Remember Frank Luntz coming here last year and how everyone has bought into Frank Luntz’s word magic. It seems that the city is looking to take a page out of the Frank Luntz playbook and this is what they think branding is all about -- A game of semantics. They don’t like the fact that the $285,000 Big Tent on Union Square has been labeled that. They are jumping here, there, and everywhere to come up with some kind of descriptive moniker that will stick.

There was a comment in one of the earlier posts, about this subject, in which the responder stated that he didn’t think the Council understood the project. Although the wheels have been in motion on this thing for several months, I also don’t think the Council grasps the concept of what this structure is or its purpose and I think that this interview reiterated that point. The Mayor was using names like the gathering area, the Agora, meeting place, exhibit locations, pods, big pod, smaller pods, units, etc.; but it was almost as if he was doing an on air fishing expedition to find some way to describe what this thing is.

No matter how it is spun, this tent fulfills none of the capacities they are attempting to solve. I don’t know what the intrinsic artistic value will be worth, but it is plain as day to see its limitations. The Mayor said that there will be 16 to 20 pods. From what I understand there are presently 33 vendors at the Farmer’s market, where will the other 13 to 17+ vendors be placed? Does it make sense that this is supposed to be a permanent structure for the Farmer’s market and yet it doesn’t even sustain the current level of market activity? And does this not show that the Farmer’s Market on Union Square is maxed out and cannot grow anymore? And what about the fact that the fabric on the structure is going to have to be replaced in the not too distant future?

Then to call this structure an Amphitheater is a bastardization of that term. It will be less than two feet off the ground (look below your knees) with very limited seating and according to Mr. Zagaroli himself, this will not enhance the acoustics of that area. This token all purpose structure is being built to avoid a bolder, riskier move. So basically all they are doing is modernizing the current setup, yet we hear that there are still members of the City Council that want to see an end to some current events, such as Hickory Alive. So we are going to run off current draws with no guarantees of replacement events?

Once again, I don’t see where any of this adds up to helping recoup the $285,000+ that is being spent on this project,  coming from the general fund and penalty money revenues that people have had to pay due to the poor parking situation on Union Square. One of the biggest issues we hear from citizens who complain about their Union Square experience is the parking problems. Yet, money is being diverted from the fund that was instituted under the guise of creating infrastructure to help solve those problems. This is the definition of a slush fund folks.

Much of what we discuss above is the very reasons why we don’t want the City be in charge of building and running anything of this nature. We saw what they did at the LP Frans this past September with the Gay Pride Festival and we know how they are trying to find problems with Hickory Alive. Have you ever inquired about using a facility that is operated by the City of Hickory? It ain’t cheap folks! Do you want the Hickory City Government micro-managing entertainment choices in this community?

All anyone has asked the City to do is to foster and facilitate ideas and maybe help with seed monies that will be recouped as soon as possible. Any entertainment venues need to be operated by an “Authority,” which would be a local autonomous public-private venture. The Hickory City Council should have zero input on such a venture, with the exception being current codes and ordinances.

If you are going to build any public venue, then you institute an initiative. You have public entities come forward with requests for proposals, then you take a look at the ideas and how they fit within the framework of a budget and then after taking all variables into consideration, you make the decision on the project and who will build the project. That is what we saw with the Google initiative and that is what we are supposed to see with all Governmental initiatives, especially expensive ones.

The next big issue discussed was the Mayor inferring that $5 million to $10 million was going to be spent on a project that will be implemented this year.  The "Craftsman" idea is apparently the main theme behind whatever it is that council is going to do.  So this $5-10 million is going to be spent with that in mind.  Apparently, there is going to be some private investment as well.  But this notion of Hickory is ___________...  That blank is going to be filled in by the Council with the help of the City Manager's office and the Business Development team.  But given the track record we have witnessed, the ”It” will be what the Mayor (with City Manager Berry’s tweaking) wants to do, is thinking, wants done.

It seems the BIG project might be a business incubator, such as what Alderman Lail described from the visit to Chattanooga. The specific place they visited connected business owners with entrepreneurs. The Company Lab - (Facebook) connects idea people with artists. He said this space was full of energy. That could be an excellent endeavor, but it will depend on the process. Will we see an honest and above board process or will this be another manipulation that pads club members’ pockets.

A cynical worry is that “Investment” monies will be directed towards the airport under the economic development banner; looking to cover the mismanagement by the prior operators, which the city allowed to go on for years, with an explanation that they are "restructuring" the airport. In layman’s terms, how much debt incurred by River Hawk is the City of Hickory on the hook for and how much is it going to cost to recover from the neglect and recklessness created by River Hawk?

As usual, the big question will be how much public input will be allowed and how will the City attempt to spin the issues revolving around this investment? They don't have a track record of listening to the public and implementing what the public wants. You can rest assured that if the Mayor has introduced this topic that something is already on the table and will soon find its way out from behind the curtain. As we have witnessed for years, the fix is always in and it's going to be all about the sales job. 

Ironically, the initiatives that have been discussed here on the Hound have traction, but the Powers That Be are looking for ways to implement them “on the cheap.” They aren’t making the bold moves that we encourage. They are utilizing the initiatives discussed here as talking points, while we seek boldness and action. The Frank Luntz technique is all about political strategy through wordsmanship. I have nothing against Mr. Luntz, but I view him as a pop culture entertainer. He has no leadership capability and his methods create distrust; because we need people who say what they mean and mean what they say.

We must insist on accountability from the leadership of this community. That comes through cost/benefit analysis mechanisms, competitive bidding for projects, and real studies of the potential effectiveness of projects through compare/contrast analysis. The Big Tent deal is definitely not a template for a community to follow. The public is going to have to decide if they want mind games that lead to nowhere or real actions that can get us moving forward.

Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- January 8, 2012

A new excellent website to see how the actual economy is doing is paulcraigroberts.org

The Dismal Economic Outlook For The New Year - paulcraigroberts.org - Paul Craig Roberts - January 6, 2012 - Jobs offshoring, financial deregulation, and ten years of wars have severely damaged the US economy and the economic prospects of 90% of the American population. The signs are everywhere in front of our eyes. They are in the income distribution data, the BLS jobs data, the Census data, the poverty figures, and the high number of food stamp recipients.                   The signs are in the foreclosed and boarded up homes and the accompanying homelessness. They are in closed strip malls, in office building, warehouse, and shopping mall vacancies, and in the huge population losses of America’s manufacturing cities.                  The New Economy was a hoax, like Saddam Hussein’s “weapons of mass destruction” and the “war on terror.” Americans were deceived by “their” corrupt government, by greed-driven corporations, and by corporate shills among economists and the pundit class into believing that they were trading middle class “dirty fingernail” jobs in manufacturing for better middle class “clean fingernail” high-tech service jobs. Instead, reasonably paid manufacturing and professional skill jobs, such as software engineering and information technology, were traded for lowly paid jobs as waitresses and bartenders and for jobs in ambulatory health care.               Consequently, real median US income fell for the vast majority of the population. To keep consumers spending when they had no raises, the Federal Reserve used low interest rates to create a real estate and credit bubble. The low interest rates drove up housing prices, and Americans refinanced their mortgages and spent the equity in their homes. Americans maxed out credit cards. The rise in consumer indebtedness kept consumer demand growing and the economy afloat.                  But there is a limit to how far debt can outpace income, and the bubble burst. And when it burst the financial fraud that had been hidden in the euphoria was revealed. That set off the financial crisis.


US Economic Forecast for 2012 and the Election Year Cycle - Infowars.com - James Hall - January 4, 2012 - When it comes to business cycles, the former rules no longer seem to apply. The seminal events that changed the economic landscape after the 2008 financial crash still points to an uncertain future and marginal recovery. If you watch CNBC or Bloomberg business news, you hear that a modest recovery is in place. Accepting this kind of reporting may temporarily make you feel better, but in the real economy, the prospects for a rebound are mere fiction. Prosperity only exists for the chums of the insider financial system, who are immune from actual market conditions. Under the privileged and favoritism model, political subsidies and bailouts are more important than creative industry or innovative execution.               The businesses that produce and service the everyday functions of society flounder in a sea of uncertainty and a desert of capital illiquidity. Within this context, the only realistic way to examine the prospects for 2012, must factor in the political component. Yet the promoters of the corporatist system build up false hope, while fudging the number.                 Analyze the valid question; Can We Trust The Moderate Growth Forecasts? 

Lakshman Achuthan, chief operations officer of the Economic Cycle Research Institute, talks with Bloomberg about the next year in the U.S. Economic Outlook, Labor Market video.

Mr. Achuthan continues in a second video interview on the Daily Ticker – Says New Recession Unavoidable.


Top 12 Trends 2012 - rense.com - Trends Research Institute - Gerald Celente - December 21, 2011 -  
1. Economic Martial Law: Given the current economic and geopolitical conditions, the central banks and world governments already have plans in place to declare economic martial law with the possibility of military martial law to follow.
2. Battlefield America: With a stroke of the Presidential pen, language was removed from an earlier version of the National Defense Authorization Act, granting the President authority to act as judge, jury and executioner. Citizens, welcome to "Battlefield America."
3. Invasion of the Occtupy: 15 years ago, Gerald Celente predicted in his book Trends 2000 that prolonged protests would hit Wall Street in the early years of the new millennium and would spread nationwide. The "Occtupy" is now upon us, and it is like nothing history has ever witnessed.
4. Climax Time: The financial house of cards is collapsing, and in 2012 many of the long-simmering socioeconomic and geopolitical trends that Celente has accurately forecast will come to a climax. Some will arrive with a big bang and others less dramatically but no less consequentially. Are you prepared? And what's next for the world?
5. Technocrat Takeover: "Democracy is Dead; Long Live the Technocrat!" A pair of lightning-quick financial coup d'états in Greece and Italy have installed two unelected figures as head of state. No one yet in the mainstream media is calling this merger of state and corporate powers by its proper name: Fascism, nor are they calling these "technocrats" by their proper name: Bankers! Can a rudderless ship be saved because technocrat is at the helm?
6. Repatriate! Repatriate!: It took a small, but financially and politically powerful group to sell the world on globalization, and it will take a large, committed and coordinated citizens' movement to "un-sell" it. "Repatriate! Repatriate!" will pit the creative instincts of a multitude of individuals against the repressive monopoly of the multinationals.
7. Secession Obsession: Winds of political change are blowing from Tunisia to Russia and everywhere in between, opening a window of opportunity through which previously unimaginable political options may now be considered: radical decentralization, Internet-based direct democracy, secession, and even the peaceful dissolution of nations, offering the possibility for a new world "disorder."
8. Safe Havens: As the signs of imminent economic and social collapse become more pronounced, legions of New Millennium survivalists are, or will be, thinking about looking for methods and ways to escape the resulting turmoil. Those "on-trend" have already taken measure to implement Gerald Celente's 3 G's: Gold, Guns and a Getaway plan. Where to go? What to do? Top Trends 2012 will guide the way.
9. Big Brother Internet: The coming year will be the beginning of the end of Internet Freedom: A battle between the governments and the people. Governments will propose legislation for a new "authentication technology," requiring Internet users to present the equivalent of a driver's license and/or bill of health to navigate cyberspace. For the general population it will represent yet another curtailing of freedom and level of governmental control.
10. Direct vs. Faux Democracy: In every corner of the world, a restive populace has made it clear that it's disgusted with "politics as usual" and is looking for change. Government, in all its forms ­ democracy, autocracy, monarchy, socialism, communism ­ just isn''t working. The only viable solution is to take the vote out of the hands of party politicians and institute Direct Democracy. If the Swiss can do it, why can't anyone else?
11. Alternative Energy 2012: Even under the cloud of Fukushima, the harnessing of nuclear power is being reinvigorated by a fuel that is significantly safer than uranium and by the introduction of small, modular, portable reactors that reduce costs and construction time. In addition, there are dozens of projects underway that explore the possibility of creating cleaner, competitively priced liquid fuels distilled from natural sources. Plan to start saying goodbye to conventional liquid fuels!
12. Going Out in Style: In the bleak terrain of 2012 and beyond, "Affordable sophistication" will direct and inspire products, fashion, music, the fine arts and entertainment at all levels. US businesses would be wise to wake up and tap into the dormant desire for old time quality and the America that was.



US Closes 2011 With Record $15.22 Trillion In Debt, Officially At 100.3% Debt/GDP, $14 Billion From Breaching Debt Ceiling - Zero Hedge.com - Tyler Durden on January 3, 2012 - While not news to Zero Hedge readers who knew about the final debt settlement of US debt about 10 days ahead of schedule, it is now official: according to the US Treasury, America has closed the books on 2011 with debt at an all time record $15,222,940,045,451.09. And, as was observed here first in all of the press, US debt to GDP is now officially over 100%, or 100.3% to be specific, a fact which the US government decided to delay exposing until the very end of the calendar year. We wonder, rhetorically, just how prominent of a talking point this historic event will be in any upcoming GOP primary debates. And yes, technically this number is greater than the debt ceiling but it excludes various accounting gimmicks. When accounting for those, the US has a debt ceiling buffer of... $14 billion, or one third the size of a typical bond auction.


DailyJobCuts.com
Charlie Trotter Closing Shop - NBCChicago.com - January 1, 2012 - Restaurant shutting down August 31
Florida hit hardest by Sears store closings - AP - December 29, 2011 - (List)
Sinbad restaurant serves final meal - Times-News - blueridgenow.com - January 1, 2012 -  (Hendersonville, NC restaurant closes - Typical story about small business America in this economy)


The Bank Holiday is coming - Ann Barnhardt and I (Warren Pollock) have an open conversation organized to provide background to this crisis, the setting of legal precedent, netting, settlement, and future trends including a potential bank holiday. We talk about MF Global as it applies to savings and commercial banking, brokerage, insurance, and commodities. We talk about numeric impossibility of solving the problem, incest between government and finance, having the victim of the crisis pay rather than the fraudster. We explain how the MF Global bankruptcy process will define how customer funds will be treated in a bank holiday. We talk about the idea of having an honest bank holiday to root out fraud vs an economic crisis which plays to looting and criminal activity of vested interest.

The Hounds viewership grew by 42.7% in 2011

We still have a lot of work to do when it comes to winning the public over and getting them to understand the validity of this newsource, but we are proud of what we have accomplished so far in the time of the existence of the Hickory Hound. Last year (2011) saw 22,920 unique viewers visiting this website compared to 16,058 in 2010 and 13,652 in 2009. That is an increase of 6,862 unique views from 2010 to 2011.

When looking at pageloads and people visiting various pages and documents on the site, the site grew to 39,865 pageloads in 2011 versus 28,374 pageloads in 2010. That is a 40.5% increase in pageloads. So one can see that the growth in the site was across the board and people are reading the site in depth.

Myself and the others who are associated with this site participate here, because we believe in the mission. We could spend time doing more leisurely activities and I am sure that there are many people who wish that we would "find something better to do." In the peril in which we find this community and our society, we feel we have a calling. Of course most of the input on this site comes from myself, but the connections that have been developed have been invaluable and we would not be growing at the rate we have without them. I thank each and every one of my colleagues from the bottom of my heart for being friends and talking issues out with me and providing expressed input themselves.

I remember a few weeks ago when we were accused of being one sided and narrow minded about the Union Square issues. People are starting to wake up around here and see through a lot of the rouse of simplistic labeling that goes on in this community. We have seen it all. First the insiders try to co-opt you. When that doesn't work, then they move on to saying you are a conspiracy theorist. When you have multiple incidents where your logic proves credible, then they move on to attacking your character. In the end the insiders don't understand that they are losing their grip, because people are witnessing the gamesmanship and as the scams are forced into higher and higher stakes, people are going to become more and more aware, because it is affecting more and more people personally.

When times were good, people weren't forced to pinch pennies and waste to a certain extent was acceptable. Now people have had to tighten their belts and scramble to keep financially level. Some people seem to think somebody else has to take the big haircut, while they trim around the edges. In times like these, all most of us expect is fairness when it comes to shared sacrifice. That is why we have pointed to certain issues involving economic and social equitability in this community. To me, Social Justice is not the bad word that some want to make it out to be; because we are not seeking equal outcomes. We are seeking a level playing field.

I think the growth of the blog shows the awakening going on in this community and to a certain extent legitimizes the message, which in turn brings with it a level of credibility. We will not take that for granted.

I don't know what the upcoming year has in store. I don't take for granted that this blog will continue to grow and growing at 40% in 2012 certainly isn't a given. I appreciate everyone of the 57,334 views that have been granted by the perusers of this site, even when they don't see eye-to-eye with me and vise-versa. It is certainly my hope that we will all enjoy the advancement and enhancement of our lives in the year ahead. And that is the goal we will continue to work towards in the many days ahead.

Peace Be with you all!!!

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of January 3, 2012

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 right of this page under Main Information links is an Hickory's City Website link. If you click on that link, it takes you to our city’s website, at the left of the page you will see the Agenda's and Minutes link you need to click. This will give you a choice of PDF files to upcoming and previous meetings.

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 1/3/2011 meeting. There were a couple of important items that were discussed at this meeting and the details are listed further below:

Please remember that pressing Ctrl and + will magnify the text and page and pressing Ctrl and - will make the text and page smaller. This will help the readability for those with smaller screens and/or eye difficulties.

Invocation by Rev. Karla Woggon, Episcopal Church of the Ascension

Reaffirmation and Ratification of Second Readings. Votes recorded on first reading will be reaffirmed and ratified on second reading unless Council Members change their votes and so indicate on second reading.

A. Community Appearance Grant to the Hickory Elks Lodge – Non-Residential Property Located at 356 Main Avenue NW in the Amount of $5,000.00 (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)
B. Community Appearance Grant to Michael and Nora Perkett – Non-Residential Property Located at 813 Main Avenue SW in the Amount of $5,000.00 (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)
C. Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 11 (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)
D. Grant Project Ordinance No. 5 (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)
E. Grant Project Ordinance Amendment No. 6 (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)
F. Approval to Enter into an Economic Development Agreement with Punker, LLC (First Reading Vote: Unanimous)

The Hound's reason why I have put the above reaffirmation and ratification items as reported in the night's agenda is to ask where the vote is that took place at the last meeting pertaining to the Canopy/Tent structure that is to be built on Union Square. The Council voted 7-0 to vote upon to move forward on that item and now it is conveniently not included in the votes that were taken from that night. There was most definitely a vote that took place that night, as I have documented on this site. As I stated, they will place this in the Consent Agenda and there will be no discussion. B-I-N-G-O, just look below in the Consent Agenda under item B. Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 12, No 2. To appropriate $285,976 of Capital Reserve Parking Fund and budget for the construction of the Permanent Structure Canopy Project for Union Square. Credibility on display once again.


Consent Agenda:
A. Resolution of Intent for Petition of Hollar Hosiery Investments, LLC (James Clayton Neill, Manager) to Close a Portion of Highland Avenue, SE (Authorize Public Hearing on February 7, 2012)

B. Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 12
1. To transfer $44,474 of General Fund Contingency to the Unemployment Insurance line item. This transfer is necessary to cover an unexpected increase in the City of Hickory’s annual Unemployment Insurance expense to the North Carolina Employment Security Commission.

2. To appropriate $285,976 of Capital Reserve Parking Fund and budget for the construction of the Permanent Structure Canopy Project for Union Square.


The Hound doesn't need to add any more to this than has already been alluded to over the past two weeks. If you haven't read it, I have provided the links below sequentially.

Newsletter about the City Council meeting of December 20, 2011 -- Addendum on Union Square's largest Awning yet - $285,000 - 12/21/2011
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of December 20, 2011 - 12/22/2011
Subterfuge and Obfuscation by Hickory's Insiders -- Silence DoGood - 12/27/2011
No Public Hearing for the Big Tent on Union Square - 1/2/2012


C. Capital Project Ordinance No. 1
1. To accept a $285,976 appropriation of Capital Reserve Parking Fund Balance and budget for the Construction of the Permanent Structure Canopy Project for Union Square.

Departmental Reports:
1. Report on City Council Visit to Chattanooga, Tennessee - Assistant City Manager Andrea Surratt gave the presentation. and was introduced by City Manager Mick Berry who said that 4 City Council members attended a series of conversations, visits, and tours.Ms. Surratt stated that they were visiting areas that had planned well for their downtowns, redevelopment areas, and manufacturing areas that have experienced decline.

Chattanooga has a professional full time Mayor and the Head of the County Government. They talked about branding, vacant buildings, and wayfinding. They met with a lady named Missy Crutchfield who is the administrator of the administration arts and culture department.This is a Mayor appointed position that is equivalent to the Arts Council, the DDA, and some of the education groups (Champions of Education) all lumped into one function under her direction. They have transformed Chattanooga from being one of the most dirty cities in the U.S. to being one of the greenest cities in the U.S.

They went to an area called North Shore - The Chattanooga Riverfront Story - The Tennessee Aquarium. She talked about the Walnut Street Pedestrian Bridge. There is a lot of mixed use there. She talked about the LED lighting there. They visited the Chattanooga  Business Development Center, which is a partnership between Chattanooga and Hamilton County. This is an incubator, which is a former manufacturing facility which is subdivided into units with central access to business needs.

Ms. Surratt talked about the multiple farmer's markets in Chattanooga and the group called Gaining Ground - (Facebook Page). She next showed a local youth hostile. She showed redeveloped areas along tyhe water front and the local aquarium. "They have a good presence about their public spaces." The last stop was the Volkswagen facility that incorporated a lot of open spaces.

Alderman Lail talked about the similarities of the MSAs of Chattanooga and Hickory. They have about the same size, but while Chattanooga's population is more centrally located around the city of Chattanooga, our population is more dispersed throughout the MSA. 150,000 people live in the City of Chattanooga, while only 40,000 people live in the City of Hickory. Alder Patton talked about the presence of corporate offices in downtown Chattanooga that made a huge difference in their downtown. They have a tremendous amount of private money available. When they want something done, they just put it out there and people jump on it. People step in and get things done to move things forward.

Alderman Lail talked about the major benefactor, the Lyndhurst family. Alder Patton talked about how there was art everywhere they went. Alderman Lail talked about what impressed him was the space that connected business owners with entrepreneurs. The Company Lab - (Facebook) connects idea people with artists. He said this space was full of energy. manager Berry spoke of a DVD that is available called Chattanooga's heroic drive and he passed it to other council members.

Alderman Lail asked Manager Berry to speak to how this is part of our process. Manager Berry spoke about how this was a different approach to the city's annual retreat. They have been to Roanoke, Burlington, Chattanooga and are looking to next go to Asheville and Greenville, SC. They will set out goals early in the Spring.

The Hound is glad that Hickory officials learned something from a city that is apparently making progress, because they aren't afraid to try some new things. Notice how they talked about a couple of specific Business Incubation Initiatives. Remember how Mayor Wright spoke out against such initiatives back in the Summer, because they compete against existing business.

I think it is great how this Council has great back and forth dialogue and brings more color to presentations and conversations when the Mayor isn't present. Maybe this isn't the Mayor's fault, but every time a Mayor Pro-Tem presides over a City Council meeting, the Council sure does perk up and bring some energy into their public deliberations.

Alder Patton stated, with some of the art, that a Chattanooga representative said that some people (1/3) are just deadset against anything, 1/3 love it, and another 1/3 take a wait and see approach. I think that is the dynamic of Hickory, but I also think a lot of those "deadset against" people serve in positions of power in our city. I don't think that can be said for most of you who read the Hound. We are definitely in favor of progressive actions.

What we are against is manipulations of process that take away the citizens' ability to have any input in the decision making process. The narrow mindedness doesn't come from people wanting to participate in local governance. It comes from people who don't respect the intelligence of the local citizens to make informed decisions and some governors work harder to keep people from being able to participate than if they would allow them onto the playing field. We have too many of the local governing decision makers that want to shape decisions towards their personal desires, instead of through consensus as to what is best for the entire community.

We also need local business stakeholders to realize that they have a selfless role to play if they want to revitalize the local marketplace. Look at what they espoused about Chattanooga's businesses investing in these projects. I hope that Council learned something here and doesn't take it as, "That's nice, but we can't do that in Hickory," because we can do this exact paradigm in Hickory.

Citizens Requesting to be Heard



Larry Pope once again comes before the Council. Mr. Pope talked about the lack of respect given to a citizen of the city. He goes on to address issues involving inaccessibility to his vision impairment involving the site construction of the "Canopy Structure" on Union Square. There are several problems due to how the square has been roped off for the building of the Farmer's Market "Canopy Structure" area.

Larry also spoke about the City Administration's policy of charging 25-cents per page for copies of public information that have been requested, 10-cents is reasonable. It is unreasonable that the city should be charging that much and the only reason they are is to try to make the costs for information requests cost prohibitive. The city has stated that part of the costs is to pay for administrative workers time involved in making copies. We shouldn't be paying for city workers to do what is supposed to be part of their job. 

City Manager Berry stated that Ms. Arnita Dula (the city staff attorney) had placed the letter in the mail and he didn't know why Mr. Pope hadn't received it. He stated that he delivered a letter to the City of Hickory pertaining to the issue and was supposed to hear back within 10 days, but has not yet heard back and the deadline would have been Saturday. Mr. Pope stated that Mr. Berry should understand why he wouldn't take his word for it when the City has told so many untruths in the past. He is asked to put requests in writing, which he has others do due to his visual impairment. He talked about how the city talks about tight budgets, but has plenty of staff on hand and Mr. Berry has a new secretary in his office. He wondeers why the city can never find money to do things when it is needed, but when they want something, like the Farmer's Market building, they can find it.

Mr. Pope talked about what has gone on in the recent past and stated that it is obvious that the City (administration) is going to do what it wants to do. Why is it alright to spend money on this structure on Union Square, but it wasn't alright to spend money to fix the swimming pools in the poor and minority areas in South Hickory?

No Public Hearing for the Big Tent on Union Square

You can go look at the Agenda for City Council meeting to be held on Tuesday night January 3, 2012. The appropriations for the "Canopy Structure" has been placed in the Consent Agenda. So once again you see that our "Conspiracy Theory" once again ends up being "Conspiracy Fact." Including the appropriations at the airport, they have now designated spending on short term projects right at $500,000, with no public discussion, in the past two weeks.

It would feel good to be right if this weren't another travesty of the Democratic Process, but Hickory most definitely has the governance it deserves. I'm not going any further into this, because I would only be forced to repeat myself for the 1,000+ time. Everyone that is paying attention knows what the deal is.


B. Budget Ordinance Amendment No. 12 (Exhibit VI.B.)
1. To transfer $44,474 of General Fund Contingency to the Unemployment Insurance line item. This transfer is necessary to cover an unexpected increase in the City of Hickory’s annual Unemployment Insurance expense to the North Carolina Employment Security Commission.
2. To appropriate $285,976 of Capital Reserve Parking Fund and budget for the construction of the Permanent Structure Canopy Project for Union Square.

C. Capital Project Ordinance No. 1 (Exhibit VI.C.)
1. To accept a $285,976 appropriation of Capital Reserve Parking Fund Balance and budget for the Construction of the Permanent Structure Canopy Project for Union Square.

Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- January 1, 2012

Happy New Year. Welcome to another year. Let's work hard to turn this thing around. It won't happen without action. It won't happen without effort. There are no easy answers and no knights in shining armor. The sooner everyone realizes that, the sooner we can correct the problems we face.

China, Japan to Back Direct Trade of Currencies - Bloomberg - By Toru Fujioka - December 26, 2011 - Japan and China will promote direct trading of the yen and yuan without using dollars and will encourage the development of a market for companies involved in the exchanges, the Japanese government said. Japan will also apply to buy Chinese bonds next year, allowing the investment of renminbi that leaves China during the transactions, the Japanese government said in a statement after a meeting between Prime Minister Yoshihiko Noda and Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao in Beijing yesterday. Encouraging direct yen- yuan settlement should reduce currency risks and trading costs, the Japanese and Chinese governments said.


How wealth of members of Congress has TRIPLED in 25 years - while average U.S. family has suffered a DROP in their worth - Daily Mail (UK) - David Richards - December 27, 2011 -

• Median net worth of member of Congress rose from $280,000 to $725,000 between 1984 and 2009
• Over same 25 years the wealth of the average U.S. family slipped from $20,500 from $20,600

From captains of industry to former finance executives members of Congress have always been richer than their fellow Americans. The reasons put forward for their wealth now include the high cost of entering politics in the first place as well as inheriting wealth and marrying into money. Protected from the economic ravages faced by the rest of the population the lawmakers are now edging into the '1 percenter' income group attacked by the Occupy Wall Street protesters. The anti-corporation protesters have given voice to rising concerns over banker bonuses, unemployment and distribution of wealth. The movement which began in New York in September - and marked its 100th day of protests last week - has spread to cities across the U.S. and across the world. While the rise in lawmaker's wealth might not attract controversy when times are good it starts to become an issue when times are tough....

The New York Times' report into the wealth of members of Congress found that they were also getting rich compared with affluent Americans. It found that the median net worth of members of Congress rose 15 per cent from 2004 to 2010 as the net worth of the richest 10 per cent of the country remained for the most part flat.



3.5 Million Homeless and 18.5 Million Vacant Homes in the US - Occupy America - Diane Sweet - December 30, 2011 - In the last few days, the U.S. government census figures have revealed that 1 in 2 Americans have fallen into poverty or are struggling to live on low incomes. And we know that the financial hardships faced by our neighbors, colleagues, and others in our communities will be all the more acutely felt over the holiday season.             Along with poverty and low incomes, the foreclosure rate has created its own crisis situation as the number of families removed from their homes has skyrocketed.                  Since 2007, banks have foreclosed around eight million homes. It is estimated that another eight to ten million homes will be foreclosed before the financial crisis is over. This approach to resolving one part of the financial crisis means many, many families are living without adequate and secure housing. In addition, approximately 3.5 million people in the U.S. are homeless, many of them veterans. It is worth noting that, at the same time, there are 18.5 million vacant homes in the country.                 The stark realities that persist mean that millions of families will be facing the holidays in temporary homes, or homes under threat, and far too many children will be wishing for an end to the uncertainty and distress their family is facing rather than an Xbox or Barbie doll.            
Housing is a basic human need and a fundamental human right. Yet every day in the United States, banks are foreclosing on more than 10,000 mortgages and ordering evictions of individuals and families residing in foreclosed homes. The U.S. government’s steps to address the foreclosure crisis to date have been partial at best.             The depth and severity of the foreclosure crisis is a clear illustration of the urgent need for the U.S. government to put in place a system that respects, protects and fulfills human rights, including the right to housing. This includes implementing real protections to ensure that other actors, such as financial institutions, do not undermine or abuse human rights.



Young people using 'no stigma' solution of insolvency as record numbers are hit by the crippling cost of living - Mail Online - Becky Barrow - December 30, 2011 - Young people addicted to the ‘have now, pay later’ culture, or who cannot cope with the crippling cost of living, are being plunged into insolvency in record numbers, official figures revealed yesterday.            The shocking figures, from the Government’s Insolvency Service, said more young people are taking out a new type of insolvency than any other age group.                   Since the Debt Relief Order was introduced in April 2009, one in four have been taken out by a young person between the age of 25 and 34.....           In their late twenties and early thirties, many of their parents had got married, bought a home, had children and started to build up a pension.              But their children, who are now grown-up, have no chance of getting onto the property ladder, have large debts and little chance of being able to afford to pay into a pension.               Joanna Elson, chief executive of the Money Advice Trust, the debt advisers, said: ‘Many struggling 25 to 34-year-olds might have expected to be further up the financial ladder by now.             ‘At the same age, their parents would most likely have bought their first home, have a comfortable pension lined up and be saving for the future.                  ‘For today’s 25 to 34-year-olds, the picture is much bleaker.’            She said their debt situation is made worse by the fact that many young people took out debts, hoping that pay rises in future years would mean they could easily pay them off.                   In reality, millions of workers have seen their pay either frozen since the start of the recession in 2008, or have received paltry pay rises which are far below inflation............


Foreigners Dump Record Amount Of US Treasuries In Past Month - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - 12/30/2011 - With year end fund flows making absolutely no sense for the most part, thank you global central planning, as the euro plunges and the market refuses to follow, with risk assets rising on speculation the ECB (and/or Fed) are about to restart printing yet gold collapsing (on one or two hedge funds liquidating, yet econ PhDs already rewriting their theses on why the "gold bubble has popped"), and finally with Treasurys soaring to near all time highs (10 Year under 1.9% yesterday even as stocks surged on data from the National Advertisers of Realtors, aka NAR, of all fraudulent and corrupt entities), here is the latest observation to make the confusion complete. As the Fed's critical H.4.1 weekly update shows (which is leaps and bounds more accurate than the Treasury's TIC international fund flow data), in the week ended December 28, foreign investors sold the second highest amount of US bonds in history, or $23 billion, bringing total UST custodial holdings to $2.67 trillion, a level first crossed to the upside back in April. This number peaked at $2.75 trillion in mid-August, and as the chart below shows the foreign holdings of US paper have been virtually flat in all of 2011, something which is in stark contrast with what the price of the 10 Year would indicate vis-a-vis investor demand. And going back further, the last week is merely the latest in a series of Custodial account outflows. In fact, in the last month (trailing 4 weeks), foreigners have sold a record $69 billion in US paper, a monthly outflow that was approached only once - in the aftermath of the US downgrade (when erroneously it is said that a surge in demand for US paper pushed rates lower - obviously as the chart shows nothing could be further from the truth)....


As '11 Ends, 11 Charts Of 11 Disturbing 11 Year Trends - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - 12/30/2011 - Please Go check out the charts from this submission


Annual New Year's Eve economic forecast with Karl Denninger-On the Edge with Max Keiser-12-30-2011