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 10/16/2012 meeting. There were a couple of important items that were discussed at this meeting and the details are listed further below:
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All materials and maps for this meeting are provide at this link: City Council Agenda - October 16, 2012 - (14MB Document)
Invocation by Rev. Jeff Stewart, Pastor Java Journey Coffee House Ministry
Special Presentations
(1:35) Presentation of the 2012 Beautification Awards by Community Appearance Commission Chair, Leroy Harris - 1) Colette Dowell - 318 3rd St SE 2) The Village Corner - 121 NC 127 South 3) Gavin Mitchell - 15 2nd Ave NW 4) Hickory High School 5) Zhara Baker Playground 6) Morningstar Baptist Church 7) Adelaide Shuford Award - Paul Ohle - the corner of 14th St NE & 8th St Dr NE
Citizens Requesting to be Heard about Items on the Agenda
*** After the Special Presentation, the Mayor was supposed to ask if anyone had anything they wanted to say about Items on the Agenda. He did not and it was his proposal from the last City Council meeting and it was passed with Unanimous Consent and it was not adhered to. The Hickory Daily Record gave the Mayor kudos for the proposal and then at the subsequent meeting it is completely dismissed and I don't know if they are even aware of this.
During an item that was Removed from the Consent Agenda, the Mayor then made a motion to allow people to come forward about items on the agenda. I don't think people are comfortable with "fly by the seat of your pants" protocols. We don't need arbitrary rules. The above needs to be placed on the Agenda if it to be a part of the meeting. We need people to do what they say they are going to do.
Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 2, 2012 - Addendum on the CEG proposals - Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Consent Agenda:
A. Approval of proclamation for Toastmasters Week, October 29 through November 4, 2012.
B. Approval of proclamation for Pinecrest Retirement Day, October 20, 2012
C. Community Appearance Commission request for approval of a Landscape Grant for nonresidential property owned by Hollar Hosiery Landlord LLC located at 882 Highland Avenue SE in the amount of $2,500. - The applicant owns the property located at 882 Highland Avenue SE, which is currently being redeveloped into a mixed-use facility. The proposed site and landscape renovations include mulching and planting of juniper along the embankment adjacent to the railway. The overall project will also include the installation of additional landscaping materials as required by the City’s Land Development Code for redevelopment projects. The applicant has provided two bids for the proposed eligible improvements, which total $7,889 and $7,200; both quotes are greater than $5,000 therefore the applicant qualifies for the full grant of $2,500.
D. Community Appearance Commission requests approval of a Landscape Grant for nonresidential property owned by The Salvation Army located at 248 and 320 Lenoir Rhyne Boulevard SE, in the amount of $2,500. - The applicant owns the properties at 248 and 320 Lenoir Rhyne Boulevard SE, which are part of The Salvation Army’s campus. The intention of the proposal is to create an entrance feature that signifies the existence of the campus, and which also works to improve the appearance of the corridor. The applicant has provided two bids for the proposed improvements, which total $13,088 and $5,280, both bids are greater than $5,000 therefore the applicant qualifies for the full grant of $2,500.
E. (15:50) Community Appearance Commission requests approval of an Appearance Grant for nonresidential property owned by the Joe Jackson Mitchell Estate located at 808 Old Lenoir Road, NW, in the amount of $5,000. - The proposal involves the replacement of the doors and windows of a vacant building located at 808 Old Lenoir Road NW. The applicant has two bids for the improvements, which total $11,080.47 and $14,425, both quotes exceed $10,000; therefore the proposal qualifies for the full $5,000 grant. Item pulled from the Consent Agenda. Alderman Guess had the item removed - asked if it would have not better qualified for a Vacant Building Grant. Brian Frazier stated that they could look into tweaking this, but he isn't sure it fits the criteria - size and square footage -- for the vacant building program. Gavin Mitchell addressed the Council about questions as to whether he had an intended use for the property. He stated that he did not. Council votes 7-0 Unanimous Consent on this issue.
The Hound has been told that Mr. Mitchell constantly applies for grants and many times is awarded them. The rule should be no more than one grant be given to an entity over a specific period of time and that in my opinion should be 5 years. Mr. Mitchell talked about his track record. He said that he needed windows to make the property habitable/marketable. The Mayor talked about potential of the property. Isn't this picking winners and losers again? Also
for the Council to arbitrarily have a dialogue with Mr. Mitchell after
several times stating that they would not do so raises a lot of
questions. Are there going to now be back and forth discussions between the Public and the Council going forward. I think that is a good thing if it is done across the board. Inquiring minds want to know?
F. Approval of closing Patrick Beaver Memorial Library and Ridgeview Branch Library at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, December 14, 2012 for a training workshop. - Request to allow both locations of Hickory Public Library to close at 12:00 p.m. on Friday, December 14, 2012 so full time and part time staff can participate in an afternoon workshop on customer service, ethics, and security issues. The training will be conducted by Lori Special of the State Library of North Carolina, Yaidee Fox, Assistant to the City Manager, and a representative of the Hickory Police Department.
G. Approval of Lease Agreement and Aviation Fuels Contract with Eastern Aviation Fuels Inc. (EAF) as the Hickory Regional Airport’s supplier of aviation fuels. - Under the proposed contracts, Eastern Aviation Fuels, Inc. will supply the Airport’s requirement of JetA and AvGas and lease to the Airport two refueler trucks for a period of five (5) years. The cost of JetA fuel is to be based on the previous week’s average of the published Platt’s US Gulf Coast Pipeline Mean average (“Plats Index”) plus a differential, while the cost of AvGas will be Eastern’s posted dealer price. The Airport will have the option to purchase the fuel trucks at the end of the five year term.
H. Adoption of the Municipal Records and Disposition Schedule in accordance with the provision of Chapters 121 and 132 of the General Statues of North Carolina regarding public records. - It has been the practice of the City of Hickory to adopt the Municipal Records and Retention Schedule in order for the City to legally and properly dispose of records pertaining to the terms of the schedule. The North Carolina Municipal Records Retention and Disposition Schedule, prepared by the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, has been updated in accordance with the provisions of Chapters 121 and 132 of the North Carolina General Statues. This schedule was last updated and approved by City Council on June 16, 2009.
I. Approval of resolution of support for the creation of the Lovelady Rescue District. - Request from Caldwell County Board of Commissioners that the City of Hickory, Town of Granite Falls, and the Town of Rhodhiss (all jurisdictions with corporate limits in southern Caldwell County) approve resolutions of support for the creation of the Lovelady Rescue District in southern Caldwell County. The creation of the Lovelady Rescue Service District would allow revenue that is raised in the District to be returned directly back to the Lovelady Rescue Squad. The tax rate for the Lovelady Rescue District would remain at the current $0.0085, so taxpayers would not see a change in their current tax rate. The City of Hickory, Town of Granite Falls, and the Town of Rhodhiss all have corporate limits within the proposed Lovelady Rescue District. With that being the case, NCGS 153A-302 (a)(1) requires that these jurisdictions approve Resolutions of Support.
J. Citizens’ Advisory Committee Recommendations for Assistance through the City of Hickory’s Housing Programs - The following request was considered by the Citizens’ Advisory Committee at their regular meeting on October 4, 2012:
Martha & Frederick Boston, 123 10th Avenue SE, Hickory, were awarded a City of Hickory’s Housing Rehabilitation Loan. The Citizens’ Advisory Committee recommends approval for assistance not to exceed $5,000 for repairs to their home. Assistance would be in the form of a 3% interest loan for a 5 year period. Funds are budgeted for this item through the City of Hickory’s Rental Rehabilitation Program income received in FY 2010 and/or program income received through the City of Hickory’s Community Development Block Grant Program.
K. Budget Ordinance Amendments
1. To budget $105 of Library donations from several donors in the Library Books line item ($80) and in the Audio Visual line item ($25).
2. To budget a $1,000 donation to the Hickory Kiwanis Foundation in the Parks and Recreation Non-Asset Inventory line item. This donation is for the purchase of an additional piece of playground equipment for the Zahra Baker All Children's Playground.
3. To budget a $2,978 insurance claim check from Argonaut Great Central Insurance Company in the Police Department Maintenance and Repair of Equipment line item. This insurance claim check is payment for lightening damage to the Police Department Radio System.
4. To appropriate $2,833 of General Fund Balance and budget in the Street Division Contracted Services line item. $2,833 represents a portion of the Carolina Investment Fund donation that rolled into General Fund Balance. This appropriation is necessary to fund the relocation of a Duke Energy Pole that is in the way of the installation of new guard rail along Grace Chapel Road for the US 321S to Grace Chapel Road Connector. The municipal agreement between the NCDOT and the City states that NCDOT will fund building of the road project but the City will be responsible for relocation of utilities. The Duke Energy pole in conflict is a public utility and this one pole was not known to be a conflict until detail field surveying and construction layout was performed. Duke Energy will actually relocate the pole.
New Business - Public Hearing
(26:45) - 1. Petition No. 12-01, Rezoning of the property of MRCC Properties, LLC located at 205 29th Avenue NE from Medium Density Residential (R-2) to Office and Institutional (OI) - This public hearing was advertised in a newspaper having general circulation in the Hickory area on October 5, 2012 and October 12, 2012. Notices were mailed to adjoining property owners on October 1, 2012. The rezoning was considered by the Hickory Regional Planning Commission on September 26, 2012, at which time they adopted a statement confirming the petition’s consistency with Hickory by Choice 2030, and unanimously voted to forward a recommendation of approval to the Hickory City Council. Staff concurs with the findings and recommendation of the Planning Commission. Brian Frazier presentation.
Mr. Frazier and the Mayor talked about how the O&I designation has helped the immediately adjacent properties in the area. Mr. Frazier said they have had several properties inquire about the O&I designation. The Council gave unanimous consent.
New Business - Departmental Reports:
1. (33:00) Award bid to Midstate Contractors, Inc., in the amount of $35,880 for paving in the 400 block of South Center Street, a new parking lot to serve the Old Ridgeview Library. - City Staff is partnering with Interfaith to refurbish the Old Ridgeview Library. City Staff evaluated the existing off-road parking conditions on and near the 400 block of South Center Street in the vicinity of the Old Ridgeview Library and determined a sufficient need to warrant construction of a new parking lot on two City-owned lots along South Center Street. Staff recommends Midstate Contractors, Inc., be awarded the bid in the amount of $35,880 for construction of a new parking lot to serve the Old Ridgeview Library in the 400 block of South Center Street. Chuck Hanson presentation.
Alder Fox had several questions in relation to the parking lot and the building. She asked bout the trees and the open space as it now exists. Landscaping will be in house labor. This building will be used as a museum and re-creation of the old library. Alder Patton asked about the time frame on construction. Manager Berry stated that there currently isn't one. Alderman Lail asked about Lighting and was told by Mr. Hanson there would be lighting. Alder Fox's stated that she wanted to be on the record as stating that the old library should have been kept on the original site. Old buildings lose structural and historical integrity when they are moved. The Council gave unanimous consent.
2. (45:18) Community Appearance Commission request approval of an Appearance Grant for non-residential property owned by Hollar Hosiery Landlord LLC located at 883 Highland Avenue SE in the amount of $10,000. - The proposal involves the renovation of the existing building. The proposed renovations include the following: 1) cleaning and repainting of exterior brick work, 2) new exterior doors/storefront, 3) repair and repainting of window frames, 4) replacement and glazing of window frames, 5) replacement of exterior retaining walls, loading docks and exterior concrete and 6) renovation of dilapidated connector building into a plaza area. The applicants have provided two bids for the improvements, which both amount to approximately $225,000. The applicant has requested a grant in the amount of $10,000 which is twice the amount normally provided by Appearance Grants. The Community Appearance Commission finds the project is of significant economic scale and exceptional architectural merit and unanimously recommends that City Council provide grant funding in the amount of $10,000. In the event that City Council does not approve this recommendation, they would like City Council to consider funding the grant at the standard $5,000.
Brian Frazier presentation. There were questions of precedent related to granting $10,000 instead of $5,000. It was stated that the Community Appearance Commission's annual budget is $55,000. The Assessed value of this building will be $3.5 million. This has been done on one other occasion. Mr. Frazier stated that it was not of this magnitude. The Council gave unanimous consent.
The Hound thinks this is an excellent project, but what kind of precedent is being set by giving the multiple awards to an investor. Just like the situation above with Mr. Mitchell. We should not be giving multiple grants or arbitrarily granting certain projects more money than others.
3. (50:50) Approval of the Cooperative Agreement with US Environmental Protection Agency and the acceptance of two Community-wide Brownfield Assessments Grants. - The City of Hickory applied for two Community-wide Brownfield Assessment Grants from the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) in November of 2011. These grants can be used to assess environmental contamination at identified Brownfield sites, which are defined as vacant or under-utilized commercial and industrial properties whose redevelopment is hindered by either real or perceived environmental contamination. In May 2012 the City of Hickory received notice that it had been selected to receive two $200,000 grants to assess petroleum and hazardous materials contamination at Brownfield sites. The total amount of funding is $400,000. There is no required city match. The funds received from EPA will be used to perform Phase I and II environmental site assessments along with cleanup and redevelopment planning at selected sites. Sites will be selected with input from staff, citizens, local developers, and the City’s Brownfield Advisory Group. The grant will last from October 2012 through September 2015.
Brian Frazier presentation. He stated that the city is batting 500 the projects that have been awarded these grants. He pointed to Hollar Hosiery, Lyerly Mill, Moretz Mill, Piedmont Wagon, S&W Chemical - needs remediation, Piedmont Wagon, Regal Manufacturing, the old Hutto's now Verizon on Hwy 127n... The Council gave unanimous consent.
The Hound - These grants have helped out a lot and Mr. Frazier and his staff should be congratulated for the work they have done here.
4. (1:00:00) Acceptance of the Hickory-Catawba Wastewater Treatment Facility low bid award with Jimmy R. Lynch & Sons, Inc. in the amount of $10,219,657. - Upgrades to the Hickory-Catawba Wastewater Treatment Facility began in 2006. This upgrade is vital to the continued mission and goal of Hickory Public Utilities to protect the area’s natural resources. The existing facility was purchased by the City of Hickory from the Town of Catawba in 2003. The last upgrade to this facility occurred in 1956 to expand to 0.225 MGD. Portion of this facility are between 50 and 60 years old and are becoming very cost prohibitive to operate.
Kevin Greer presentation. Facility up a 1/2 mile on Lyle Creek on Lake Norman. Manager Berry made several statements about the positive economic impact this project will have on the area. Several questions were asked about the contracting of this plant. The operators of this facility will be determined at a later date. The Council gave unanimous consent.
Recognition of Persons Requesting To Be Heard
A. A member of Citizens for Equity in Government (Jesse McArthur) request to speak to Council regarding a request for City Council meetings to be televised on the government channel. Mr. McArthur and the CEG want the meetings recorded and broadcast on Charter Cable and the Internet to enhance the city council's goal for transparency and accountability by city government to its citizens. For those Citizen's unable to attend, they would be able to keep up with the work pof city council and to also see their ward representatives at work. Many cities and towns are broadcasting their meetings - Greensboro, Wilson, Boone, Morganton, and Mooresville to name a few. We ask that this request be given your utmost attention.
B. Larry Pope spoke about being blind and being lost on the city streets while traveling from his residence, near the Police Department, to Ridgeview Plaza. This happened when he was traveling Sunday, a week ago, while the Brett's Ride event was taking place. He wanted to thank Alder Sally Fox for helping him when he had become disoriented while walking around the city. She was the only person that had stopped to help him. She gave him a ride to his destination. Larry thanked her for being a person that put behind differences to help a fellow citizen. He stated that she is an example of what we should all be like, when we have differences, that is what we all should do to move the city forward. He once again thanked her and said keep the good work up.
Matters Not On Agenda (requires majority vote of Council to consider)
Alderman Lail moved that the matter of broadcasting meetings be discussed as a matter not on the agenda. Alderman Meisner said there were figures and Manager Berry said they were outdated. Alder Lail presumed there is local authority to program on the government channel and he stated that the issue should be studied. Alderman Seaver made statements about more and more cities doing this. It was decided that city staff should move forward on this issue.
The Hound is glad we are moving forward on this issue. The meetings are going to be recorded. It is just a matter of whether Hickory Inc. wants to take responsibility for that recording or they would prefer an outside agent move forward with the recording and broadcast of the meetings. This is something that I have specifically asked for in the public arena for 4+ years. Although I have not formally done so at City Council, I have talked about it here and the Citizens for Equity in Government have taken up the cause in the interest of all of the Citizens of Hickory. This is in the best interests of the Citizens of Hickory. We have not asked that it be broadcast live. We have not asked that it be broadcast in 3-D video or audio quality. All we ask is that it do justice to the meeting as it plays out. As Jesse states, this will go a long way in improving (the perception) of transparency and accountability and the relationship that citizens have with their council representative(s).
General Comments By Members of Council, City Manager or City Attorney of a Non-Business Nature
Alder Patton made mention Of Ulysses Long performing at the structure on Union Square this Saturday evening - Sails on the Square Entertainment:
Ulysses Long
Saturday, October 20
6:00 - 8:30 p.m.
Presentation to Ulysses Long at 7 p.m.
Free event! Bring a lawn chair and grab some food at one of the local restaurants and enjoy the musical entertainment! Ulysses Long's most recent appearance was on America's Got Talent! Alder Patton will present Ulysses with a proclomation and a key to the City.
Mayor Wright talked about a meeting of the League of Municipalities this weekend.
Alderman Guess talked about the success of Octoberfest and Mayor Wright added about the success of the Greater Hickory Classic and appreciation for the volunteers and the great exposure for the area.
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Thursday, October 18, 2012
Sunday, October 14, 2012
Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- October 14, 2012
Middle Out Economics - The Hickory Hound - June 26, 2012 - Over the last several days Barack Obama has pushed a notion that we need to have bottom up economics. Without mincing words, I think he is a little off. He does talk about the middle class, but the middle class isn't the bottom. It is the middle. The problem is that it is shrinking. Trickle Down or Bottom Up, these are both notions of Democrats. Neither is a sustainable economic theory. They are just simple slogans. What we have to do is reinvigorate the Middle Class. There is really only one way to do that. We need to regain the sovereignty of our nation by putting corporations back in their box. Currently, we don't have a Capitalist system. There is a notion pushed by Democrats that we do. The Bail Outs have sheared the vestiges of capitalism back to nothing. Capitalism is an idea and ideas don't die, but the system that is currently in place is a Corporate centered Neo-Feudalistic model. The Neo-Feudalistic model basically centers itself around having no middle class. There will be an elite class who control the Mega-Corporations and include those who revolve in and out of the government and then there will be the peasant class.
I noticed that people all over the country have been coming to the Hound to read this article. It is related to another article that I wrote in April 2010 entitled the Race to the Bottom that received a lot of attention. Both of the articles center around the notion that we cannot attain growth in this nation until we address the negative issues that face the middle class. We have heard this issue bandied about by both the Obama and Romney campaigns, but the problem is that these men and their campaigns can't relate to the plight of the middle class, because they are privileged. It seems that you have to be a part of this struggle to truly understand it. People at the upper end of the business strata and the government don't have a clue. They think they do, but they don't. Let's take them having to make choices about the necessities of life -- Food, Clothing, Shelter, Health, Transportation and Energy. Let's put them on a real budget and have them have to make decisions, not about what they would like, but about what is most vital to their survival and then maybe they might start to understand what many of us are facing today.
Forget Class-Warfare; It's Age-Warfare We Should Worry About - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 10, 2012 - As class-warfare implicitly breaks out - trumpeted by our political leaders - it seems that there is another, much more relevant, trend that is occurring that strikes at the heart of our nation. With Friday's jobs number still fresh in our minds, Citi's Steve Englander takes a look at one small slice of the demographics subject and found a rather concerning and little discussed fact. Employment-to-population ratios among older individuals have gone up in recent years, in contrast to the so-called prime-aged 25-54 cohort, where employment-to-population is much lower than earlier. It seems the real divide in this nation is not between rich and poor but old and young - as the 55-plus (and even more 65-plus) are forced to stay in the workplace as retirement remains a dream (thanks to ZIRP and Keynesianism's excess crises from boom-to-bust leave median wealth well down - even if the rich are 'ok')
Wholesale Prices in U.S. Rise More Than Forecast on Fuel - Bloomberg - Alex Kowalski - October 12, 2012 - Wholesale prices in the U.S. rose more than forecast in September, reflecting a jump in fuel costs that failed to trickle down to other goods. The producer price index climbed 1.1 percent after a 1.7 percent gain in August, the Labor Department reported today in Washington. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of 76 economists called for a 0.8 percent increase. So-called core producer inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was unchanged, the first time it didn’t increase since October 2011.
Food Inflation To Surge, Goldman Warns - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 10, 2012 - We have been very active in our discussions of the impact of the pending rise in food prices around the world (from central bank largesse to weather-related chaos). As Goldman notes, food inflation has been one of the most significant sources of headline inflation variation in emerging markets (EM) over the past few years. Since June, international prices for agricultural commodities have risen almost 30%, increasing the risk of fresh, food-related increases to EM headline inflation. We, like Goldman, expect EM headline inflation to start to reflect the relevant pressures more broadly in the October prints at the latest. While the effects, for now, are expected to be less extreme than the 2010-2011 episode, the timing as the US enters its fiscal-cliff-prone malaise, could mean a further round of easing will reignite this critical inflationary concern.
High-tech job openings in N.C. plunge 12% in September - WRAL Techwire - Rick Smith - October 12, 2012 - Research Triangle Park, N.C. — Just in time for the holidays, the jobs picture is getting worse across North Carolina for employment in information technology, High-tech job seekers are facing a toughening environment across North Carolina, a new report shows. Advertised IT open positions plunged 12 percent in September and have fallen for three consecutive months. In fact the daily average fell to below the same month total in 2010 and is only 250 higher than a year ago. Nationally, the news is somewhat better as job openings fell 1.1 percent. "Employers are pulling back," warns the North Carolina Technology Association in its latest IT Job Trends report. After openings surged to nearly 6,000 in March, the job market has fallen sharply with the monthly opportunities falling in five of the ensuing six months. Budget woes and the presidential campaign apparently are convincing firms to hold off on hiring, at least for now. "We believe that employers are correcting their outlook for engaging this year with job seekers close to a level last seen before the recession," the report says. "This resulted in a bump of employment this year. "The current trend suggests that we will not seen an improvement until after the presidential election. "With the federal budget uncertainties for next year in mind employers may want to restrain themselves until decisions have been made in Washington."
UPDATE 2-Fed's Bullard-Banks should be smaller to manage failure - Reuters - October 11, 2012 - Big U.S. banks should become smaller to make any failure more manageable, a senior Federal Reserve official said on Thursday, supporting a suggestion that the size of banks be limited to a specific percentage of U.S. gross domestic product. "I'm very much of a view that 'too-big-to-fail' remains alive and well and the only way to really make progress on this issue is to get firms down to a smaller size where you'd feel comfortable letting them fail if the situation arose," St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard told reporters. Bullard was referring to a situation in which a bank gets so big that it is too costly to let it fail if it gets into trouble. This is a competitive advantage a big bank can exploit through access to cheaper capital, which allows it to grow even larger compared with their rivals. Some Fed officials advocate simply breaking apart the biggest banks and Bullard has aligned himself with that camp. "I do not think that we need firms that are so large and complicated in order to have a healthy intermediation sector in the U.S.," he said. "We would be better served by a setup that had smaller firms in a competitive landscape across the sector." Fed Board Governor Daniel Tarullo suggested in a speech on Wednesday that Congress might want to think about new laws to cap the size of banks relative to the size of the U.S. economy. He argued this would tie their growth to the county's own growth and consequent ability to absorb the shock if they got into trouble. Bullard said that the suggestion had merit.
Plant that got $150M in taxpayer money to make Volt batteries furloughs workers - Fox News - Perry Chiaramonte - October 8, 2012 - President Obama touted it in 2010 as evidence "manufacturing jobs are coming back to the United States,” but two years later, a Michigan hybrid battery plant built with $150 million in taxpayer funds is putting workers on furlough before a single battery has been produced. Workers at the Compact Power manufacturing facilities in Holland, Mich., run by LG Chem, have been placed on rotating furloughs, working only three weeks per month based on lack of demand for lithium-ion cells. The facility, which was opened in July 2010 with a groundbreaking attended by Obama, has yet to produce a single battery for the Chevrolet Volt, the troubled electric car from General Motors. The plant's batteries also were intended to be used in Ford's electric Focus. Production of the taxpayer-subsidized Volt has been plagued by work stoppages, and the effect has trickled down to companies and plants that build parts for it -- including the batteries. “Considering the lack of demand for electric vehicles, despite billions of dollars from the Obama administration that were supposed to stimulate it, it’s not surprising what has happened with LG Chem. Just because a ton of money is poured into a product does not mean that people will buy it,” Paul Chesser, an associate fellow with the National Legal and Policy Center, told FoxNews.com. The 650,000-square-foot, $300 million facility was slated to produce 15,000 batteries per year, while creating hundreds of new jobs. But to date, only 200 workers are employed at the plant by by the South Korean company. Batteries for the Chevy Volts that have been produced have been made by an LG plant in South Korea. The factory was partly funded by a $150 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. LG also received sizeable tax breaks from the local government, saving nearly $50 million in property taxes over 15 years and another $2.5 million annually in business taxes. Landing the factory was hailed as a coup when shovels first hit the ground.
U.S. Files Civil Mortgage Fraud Suit Against Wells Fargo - Bloomberg - Chris Dolmetsch and Dakin Campbell - October 10, 2012 - Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) was sued by the U.S. for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages over claims the bank made reckless mortgage loans that caused losses for a federal insurance program when they defaulted. The complaint filed yesterday in federal court in New York, which alleges misconduct spanning more than a decade related to the bank’s participation in a Federal Housing Administration program, follows similar cases against other lenders, including Citigroup Inc. (C) and Deutsche Bank AG. (DBK)... Yesterday’s lawsuit undermines San Francisco-based Wells Fargo’s reputation as a lender that avoided some of the industry’s worst underwriting practices and threatens to compound the bank’s costs as the government completes probes of the housing bubble’s collapse. The firm, now the largest U.S. home lender, paid $125 million and set up a $50 million assistance fund to settle federal claims in July that it discriminated against minority borrowers. The settlement was the second-largest fair-lending accord reached by the Justice Department at the time. Wells Fargo originated 33.1 percent of all U.S. mortgages in the first six months of the year, according to Inside Mortgage Finance, an industry publication. JPMorgan, the second- busiest, originated 11.1 percent.
Eatery in Asheville closes, another plans to shut - Asheville Citizen Times - October 10, 2012
Restaurant Solace closing - Asheville Scene - October 10, 2012
The End of the Petrodollar Means The End of America as We Know it
The Petrodollar is really the only thing we have left ..... industries are leaving, the banks are BANKrupt and our resources pillage.d The biggest crash in financial markets history will be the end of the petrodollar.China and Russia are trying to strip the dollar of its dominant role in world trade, especially of Middle Eastern oil. So before they can boot the US military out of Asia and Eastern Europe, they have to strip the dollar of its dominant role in world trade, especially of Middle Eastern oil . The US military are not the world police for humanity, the US Military are the Police of Forced Free Trade via the US Petrol Dollar. As fast as the world can burn oil, the US can spend & print money. Tax dollars are subsidizing the price of gas at the pumps via the US Military in blood of the nations that have the oil . Al Qaeda is just another branch of the US government. Most people that think they really know what's going on, haven't figured that out yet.
Visualizing America's Economic Freedom Plunge - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 12, 2012
I noticed that people all over the country have been coming to the Hound to read this article. It is related to another article that I wrote in April 2010 entitled the Race to the Bottom that received a lot of attention. Both of the articles center around the notion that we cannot attain growth in this nation until we address the negative issues that face the middle class. We have heard this issue bandied about by both the Obama and Romney campaigns, but the problem is that these men and their campaigns can't relate to the plight of the middle class, because they are privileged. It seems that you have to be a part of this struggle to truly understand it. People at the upper end of the business strata and the government don't have a clue. They think they do, but they don't. Let's take them having to make choices about the necessities of life -- Food, Clothing, Shelter, Health, Transportation and Energy. Let's put them on a real budget and have them have to make decisions, not about what they would like, but about what is most vital to their survival and then maybe they might start to understand what many of us are facing today.
Forget Class-Warfare; It's Age-Warfare We Should Worry About - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 10, 2012 - As class-warfare implicitly breaks out - trumpeted by our political leaders - it seems that there is another, much more relevant, trend that is occurring that strikes at the heart of our nation. With Friday's jobs number still fresh in our minds, Citi's Steve Englander takes a look at one small slice of the demographics subject and found a rather concerning and little discussed fact. Employment-to-population ratios among older individuals have gone up in recent years, in contrast to the so-called prime-aged 25-54 cohort, where employment-to-population is much lower than earlier. It seems the real divide in this nation is not between rich and poor but old and young - as the 55-plus (and even more 65-plus) are forced to stay in the workplace as retirement remains a dream (thanks to ZIRP and Keynesianism's excess crises from boom-to-bust leave median wealth well down - even if the rich are 'ok')
Wholesale Prices in U.S. Rise More Than Forecast on Fuel - Bloomberg - Alex Kowalski - October 12, 2012 - Wholesale prices in the U.S. rose more than forecast in September, reflecting a jump in fuel costs that failed to trickle down to other goods. The producer price index climbed 1.1 percent after a 1.7 percent gain in August, the Labor Department reported today in Washington. The median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of 76 economists called for a 0.8 percent increase. So-called core producer inflation, which excludes volatile food and energy prices, was unchanged, the first time it didn’t increase since October 2011.
Food Inflation To Surge, Goldman Warns - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 10, 2012 - We have been very active in our discussions of the impact of the pending rise in food prices around the world (from central bank largesse to weather-related chaos). As Goldman notes, food inflation has been one of the most significant sources of headline inflation variation in emerging markets (EM) over the past few years. Since June, international prices for agricultural commodities have risen almost 30%, increasing the risk of fresh, food-related increases to EM headline inflation. We, like Goldman, expect EM headline inflation to start to reflect the relevant pressures more broadly in the October prints at the latest. While the effects, for now, are expected to be less extreme than the 2010-2011 episode, the timing as the US enters its fiscal-cliff-prone malaise, could mean a further round of easing will reignite this critical inflationary concern.
High-tech job openings in N.C. plunge 12% in September - WRAL Techwire - Rick Smith - October 12, 2012 - Research Triangle Park, N.C. — Just in time for the holidays, the jobs picture is getting worse across North Carolina for employment in information technology, High-tech job seekers are facing a toughening environment across North Carolina, a new report shows. Advertised IT open positions plunged 12 percent in September and have fallen for three consecutive months. In fact the daily average fell to below the same month total in 2010 and is only 250 higher than a year ago. Nationally, the news is somewhat better as job openings fell 1.1 percent. "Employers are pulling back," warns the North Carolina Technology Association in its latest IT Job Trends report. After openings surged to nearly 6,000 in March, the job market has fallen sharply with the monthly opportunities falling in five of the ensuing six months. Budget woes and the presidential campaign apparently are convincing firms to hold off on hiring, at least for now. "We believe that employers are correcting their outlook for engaging this year with job seekers close to a level last seen before the recession," the report says. "This resulted in a bump of employment this year. "The current trend suggests that we will not seen an improvement until after the presidential election. "With the federal budget uncertainties for next year in mind employers may want to restrain themselves until decisions have been made in Washington."
UPDATE 2-Fed's Bullard-Banks should be smaller to manage failure - Reuters - October 11, 2012 - Big U.S. banks should become smaller to make any failure more manageable, a senior Federal Reserve official said on Thursday, supporting a suggestion that the size of banks be limited to a specific percentage of U.S. gross domestic product. "I'm very much of a view that 'too-big-to-fail' remains alive and well and the only way to really make progress on this issue is to get firms down to a smaller size where you'd feel comfortable letting them fail if the situation arose," St. Louis Federal Reserve President James Bullard told reporters. Bullard was referring to a situation in which a bank gets so big that it is too costly to let it fail if it gets into trouble. This is a competitive advantage a big bank can exploit through access to cheaper capital, which allows it to grow even larger compared with their rivals. Some Fed officials advocate simply breaking apart the biggest banks and Bullard has aligned himself with that camp. "I do not think that we need firms that are so large and complicated in order to have a healthy intermediation sector in the U.S.," he said. "We would be better served by a setup that had smaller firms in a competitive landscape across the sector." Fed Board Governor Daniel Tarullo suggested in a speech on Wednesday that Congress might want to think about new laws to cap the size of banks relative to the size of the U.S. economy. He argued this would tie their growth to the county's own growth and consequent ability to absorb the shock if they got into trouble. Bullard said that the suggestion had merit.
Plant that got $150M in taxpayer money to make Volt batteries furloughs workers - Fox News - Perry Chiaramonte - October 8, 2012 - President Obama touted it in 2010 as evidence "manufacturing jobs are coming back to the United States,” but two years later, a Michigan hybrid battery plant built with $150 million in taxpayer funds is putting workers on furlough before a single battery has been produced. Workers at the Compact Power manufacturing facilities in Holland, Mich., run by LG Chem, have been placed on rotating furloughs, working only three weeks per month based on lack of demand for lithium-ion cells. The facility, which was opened in July 2010 with a groundbreaking attended by Obama, has yet to produce a single battery for the Chevrolet Volt, the troubled electric car from General Motors. The plant's batteries also were intended to be used in Ford's electric Focus. Production of the taxpayer-subsidized Volt has been plagued by work stoppages, and the effect has trickled down to companies and plants that build parts for it -- including the batteries. “Considering the lack of demand for electric vehicles, despite billions of dollars from the Obama administration that were supposed to stimulate it, it’s not surprising what has happened with LG Chem. Just because a ton of money is poured into a product does not mean that people will buy it,” Paul Chesser, an associate fellow with the National Legal and Policy Center, told FoxNews.com. The 650,000-square-foot, $300 million facility was slated to produce 15,000 batteries per year, while creating hundreds of new jobs. But to date, only 200 workers are employed at the plant by by the South Korean company. Batteries for the Chevy Volts that have been produced have been made by an LG plant in South Korea. The factory was partly funded by a $150 million grant from the U.S. Department of Energy. LG also received sizeable tax breaks from the local government, saving nearly $50 million in property taxes over 15 years and another $2.5 million annually in business taxes. Landing the factory was hailed as a coup when shovels first hit the ground.
U.S. Files Civil Mortgage Fraud Suit Against Wells Fargo - Bloomberg - Chris Dolmetsch and Dakin Campbell - October 10, 2012 - Wells Fargo & Co. (WFC) was sued by the U.S. for hundreds of millions of dollars in damages over claims the bank made reckless mortgage loans that caused losses for a federal insurance program when they defaulted. The complaint filed yesterday in federal court in New York, which alleges misconduct spanning more than a decade related to the bank’s participation in a Federal Housing Administration program, follows similar cases against other lenders, including Citigroup Inc. (C) and Deutsche Bank AG. (DBK)... Yesterday’s lawsuit undermines San Francisco-based Wells Fargo’s reputation as a lender that avoided some of the industry’s worst underwriting practices and threatens to compound the bank’s costs as the government completes probes of the housing bubble’s collapse. The firm, now the largest U.S. home lender, paid $125 million and set up a $50 million assistance fund to settle federal claims in July that it discriminated against minority borrowers. The settlement was the second-largest fair-lending accord reached by the Justice Department at the time. Wells Fargo originated 33.1 percent of all U.S. mortgages in the first six months of the year, according to Inside Mortgage Finance, an industry publication. JPMorgan, the second- busiest, originated 11.1 percent.
Eatery in Asheville closes, another plans to shut - Asheville Citizen Times - October 10, 2012
Restaurant Solace closing - Asheville Scene - October 10, 2012
The End of the Petrodollar Means The End of America as We Know it
The Petrodollar is really the only thing we have left ..... industries are leaving, the banks are BANKrupt and our resources pillage.d The biggest crash in financial markets history will be the end of the petrodollar.China and Russia are trying to strip the dollar of its dominant role in world trade, especially of Middle Eastern oil. So before they can boot the US military out of Asia and Eastern Europe, they have to strip the dollar of its dominant role in world trade, especially of Middle Eastern oil . The US military are not the world police for humanity, the US Military are the Police of Forced Free Trade via the US Petrol Dollar. As fast as the world can burn oil, the US can spend & print money. Tax dollars are subsidizing the price of gas at the pumps via the US Military in blood of the nations that have the oil . Al Qaeda is just another branch of the US government. Most people that think they really know what's going on, haven't figured that out yet.
Visualizing America's Economic Freedom Plunge - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 12, 2012
Friday, October 12, 2012
The Edison Project - Good News and Great Ventures - Year 2 - 10/1/2011
2012 The Edison Project - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce
What is The Edison Project? The Edison Project is sponsored by the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce and is a celebration and recognition of the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of Catawba County. We are looking for entrepreneurs that have an innovative idea for a viable business in the Catawba County area that they would like to submit for consideration and review by a panel of judges. You will compete with other entrepreneurs for an economic incentive of $10,000 in cash ($5,000 1st place; $3,000 2nd place and $2,000 3rd place) plus other pro-bono benefits for the best new entrepreneurial business ideas in the Catawba County area for 2012.
Photos provided by Pat Appleson Studios:
Photos copyright: ©2012 Pat Appleson Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Used By Permission
2012 The Edison Project - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce - Rules of Competition - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce website
The Edison Project - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce - The Winners - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce website
The Edison Project (2011) - Good News and Great Ventures - 9/19/2011
First Place: David Scalise, Tileware Products - David and his business partner Mike Freedel has developed a new fastening system for shower accessories installed in the tile mortar. They have manufacturing and distribution in progress and are looking to expand on their already working business model with investor assistance.
Second Place: James Tate, Tension Technologies - James has developed an innovative load indicating lock washer and patented tensioning components. James is seeking capital to manufacture product to meet demand, as well as continued testing, research and establish a marketing program.
Third Place: Molly Hernstreet, Opportunity Threads - Molly has already established a social enterprise that is an eco-textile cut and sew operation that is mainly grant funded. She works with entrepreneurs that have productions requests that are below most textile company's minimum orders. She is looking for capital for additional equipment and seeking out new customers to grow a sustainable self-funding business.
Other Contest Finalists
Jill Towery-Salmagundi: salmagundibags@yahoo.com Jill’s business produces chairs, settees, and tuffets each one unique. Jill is seeking capital to expand the manufacturing side of the business as well as increase her online retail partners.
Sara Hord-Millstone Meadows Farm LLC: mhord828@bellsouth.net Sara is a trained and experienced chef looking to add to her existing business of a destination working farm, to add homemade artisan bread to be sold to restaurants and through farmers markets. Some equipment has already been purchased and additional capital is needed to fully equip the commercial bakery at the farm.
Barbara Gilbert- Cecil’s Kitchen: bmgilbert@embarqmail.com Barbara is looking to expand on her existing catering business by offering a “community incubator kitchen” facility for a fee to part time bakers and caterers. Capital is sought to establish this commercial grade kitchen.
Jonathan Williams-Delightfully Daisy: jonathan@delightfullydaisy.com Jonathan’s business produces gourmet dog treats with 100% human-grade ingredients. Due to the demand from wholesale and retail customers Jonathan seeks funding to scale his business to meet the ever growing demand.
Jeff & Teena Stewart-Java Journey: deafjeffdaref@gmail.com Java Journey is an existing non-profit coffee shop ministry. Their goal is to obtain capital to grow the roasting business, which will allow them to share their ministry by reaching more people and offering jobs and skills to the unemployed.
Andrew Harren-Flip Frame Media: drew@flipframemedia.com Andrew has developed a media model that uses 15 inch HD monitors in high traffic locations to display company’s advertising messages. Test marketing of the product has been well received. Andrew is seeking capital to expand his business by purchasing and installing 50-200 additional Flip Frames over the next two years.
Edison Project Application
Writing an Executive Summary
Edison Project Q and A
What is The Edison Project? The Edison Project is sponsored by the Catawba County Chamber of Commerce and is a celebration and recognition of the creativity and entrepreneurial spirit of Catawba County. We are looking for entrepreneurs that have an innovative idea for a viable business in the Catawba County area that they would like to submit for consideration and review by a panel of judges. You will compete with other entrepreneurs for an economic incentive of $10,000 in cash ($5,000 1st place; $3,000 2nd place and $2,000 3rd place) plus other pro-bono benefits for the best new entrepreneurial business ideas in the Catawba County area for 2012.
Photos provided by Pat Appleson Studios:
Photos copyright: ©2012 Pat Appleson Studios, Inc. All Rights Reserved, Used By Permission
2012 The Edison Project - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce - Rules of Competition - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce website
The Edison Project - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce - The Winners - Catawba County Chamber of Commerce website
The Edison Project (2011) - Good News and Great Ventures - 9/19/2011
First Place: David Scalise, Tileware Products - David and his business partner Mike Freedel has developed a new fastening system for shower accessories installed in the tile mortar. They have manufacturing and distribution in progress and are looking to expand on their already working business model with investor assistance.
Second Place: James Tate, Tension Technologies - James has developed an innovative load indicating lock washer and patented tensioning components. James is seeking capital to manufacture product to meet demand, as well as continued testing, research and establish a marketing program.
Third Place: Molly Hernstreet, Opportunity Threads - Molly has already established a social enterprise that is an eco-textile cut and sew operation that is mainly grant funded. She works with entrepreneurs that have productions requests that are below most textile company's minimum orders. She is looking for capital for additional equipment and seeking out new customers to grow a sustainable self-funding business.
Other Contest Finalists
Jill Towery-Salmagundi: salmagundibags@yahoo.com Jill’s business produces chairs, settees, and tuffets each one unique. Jill is seeking capital to expand the manufacturing side of the business as well as increase her online retail partners.
Sara Hord-Millstone Meadows Farm LLC: mhord828@bellsouth.net Sara is a trained and experienced chef looking to add to her existing business of a destination working farm, to add homemade artisan bread to be sold to restaurants and through farmers markets. Some equipment has already been purchased and additional capital is needed to fully equip the commercial bakery at the farm.
Barbara Gilbert- Cecil’s Kitchen: bmgilbert@embarqmail.com Barbara is looking to expand on her existing catering business by offering a “community incubator kitchen” facility for a fee to part time bakers and caterers. Capital is sought to establish this commercial grade kitchen.
Jonathan Williams-Delightfully Daisy: jonathan@delightfullydaisy.com Jonathan’s business produces gourmet dog treats with 100% human-grade ingredients. Due to the demand from wholesale and retail customers Jonathan seeks funding to scale his business to meet the ever growing demand.
Jeff & Teena Stewart-Java Journey: deafjeffdaref@gmail.com Java Journey is an existing non-profit coffee shop ministry. Their goal is to obtain capital to grow the roasting business, which will allow them to share their ministry by reaching more people and offering jobs and skills to the unemployed.
Andrew Harren-Flip Frame Media: drew@flipframemedia.com Andrew has developed a media model that uses 15 inch HD monitors in high traffic locations to display company’s advertising messages. Test marketing of the product has been well received. Andrew is seeking capital to expand his business by purchasing and installing 50-200 additional Flip Frames over the next two years.
Edison Project Application Writing an Executive Summary Edison Project Q and A
Thursday, October 11, 2012
CEG's HDR Letter to the Editor - Unedited Version - from 10/10/12
- Response to Council Action on October 2, 2012
In the Hickory Daily Record last week, Citizens for Equity in Government presented five specific ideas for improving the way our City Council functions to serve the people of the city. Each of these ideas relates to enabling the Council to become more transparent and more responsive to interested citizens. In addition, CEG called for members of the Council to meet with representatives of the CEG which followed a suggestion made by Dr. Michael Crowell from the NC School of Government.On Tuesday night, at the first meeting of the City Council since the special election, the Council to an extent responded to the CEG’s first suggestion to move the "Citizen’s Requesting to be Heard" from the end of the meeting agenda to the front . That response, in a motion made by Mayor Rudy Wright, passed unanimously by the Council . Mayor Wright has stated that this was done to allow citizens to comment on any specific agenda item prior to the Council moving on to the Consent Agenda and the rest of the meeting. While we commend the City Council for attempting to address Citizen Comment in a more constructive manner, it was once again done through a process that failed to gather citizen opinion through open dialogue before the Council moved forward and the motion was approved.
The Mayor and several Council members have publicly indicated that they are open to meeting with “any voter” with an issue or concern. CEG members are voters and citizens of Hickory. Our efforts in the recent referendum effort helped to correct the failure of the City Council during the 1960’s to allow the voters to decide how they prefer our council members to be elected. The Mayor has said he wants “to move the city forward in unity.” It would help if he proved his sincerity by not continuing to speak disparagingly about citizens who voted “Yes” on the referendum, and by meeting with CEG representatives.
Clearly, by the vote Tuesday night, City Council has acknowledged the validity of some of the concerns and issues that led to the petition drive and referendum. We hope they will heed Dr. Crowell’s insightful wisdom and agree to meet with CEG representatives for a constructive dialogue to discuss citizen issues, working together to build an enduring foundation for all of the people of Hickory.
- Joe Brannock and the Citizens for Equity in Government
Wednesday, October 10, 2012
Don't fall asleep - More Big Stuff is Coming!
I will be putting together the presentation of the Edison Project tomorrow. It took me a few more days to get last weeks City Council newsletter than I would have liked. That process is evolving and I can assure you that exciting developments lie ahead involving the endeavor to bring these meetings to you in a more user friendly fashion.
We have also had a lot of things going on behind the scenes and as in a discussion I had last night with an associate, all that has come forth is overwhelming and is hard to research, verify and report in a timely fashion when I am responsible for the content myself. But, everything is falling into place and I have faith that we will continue moving forward towards the goals we have established and continuing down the rabbit hole of the mission that many of us have chosen to accept.
Muse - Survival
We have also had a lot of things going on behind the scenes and as in a discussion I had last night with an associate, all that has come forth is overwhelming and is hard to research, verify and report in a timely fashion when I am responsible for the content myself. But, everything is falling into place and I have faith that we will continue moving forward towards the goals we have established and continuing down the rabbit hole of the mission that many of us have chosen to accept.
Muse - Survival
Sunday, October 7, 2012
Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- October 7, 2012
Workers in China strike over iPhone 5 labor demands - USA Today - October 6. 2012 - Thousands of factory workers at a plant in China went on strike Friday to protest their working conditions on the iPhone 5's production lines, CNN reports. Employees at Foxconn's plant in Zhengzhou, China, made the decision after management enacted "overly strict demands" for production of Apple's new iPhone 5. The strike began at 1 p.m. local time on Friday with the majority of its participants from the on-site quality control line for the iPhone.The work stoppage has "paralyzed the production lines," CNN reports. Neither Foxconn nor Apple responded to requests for comment by the news agency. "Employees could not even turn out iPhones that met the standard" because of "design defects," according to China Labor Watch, a New York-based advocacy group that works closely with sources in China. Foxconn's demands, coupled with the fact that workers were not allowed to take vacation time during a recent week-long holiday, created a high-pressure situation, CNN reports..... Foxconn denies worker unrest slowed iPhone assembly - USA Today - October 6, 2012
16 Critical Economic Issues That Obama And Romney Avoided During The Debate - The Economic Collapse Blog - Did you watch the presidential debate on Wednesday night? It is absolutely amazing how they can have an hour and a half debate about the economy and say so little. It seemed like both candidates were falling all over each other wanting to talk about how much they value education, but will more education really solve our problems? After all, 53 percent of all Americans with a bachelor's degree under the age of 25 were either unemployed or underemployed in 2011. So perhaps they should just both agree that education is a good thing and start talking about how to create more jobs for all of us. If you want to grade the debate from a technical standpoint, clearly Romney was the winner of the debate. Romney was full of energy and was generally sharp with his answers. Obama looked like he had just popped a couple of antidepressants and was ready for nap time. As a result, this might have been the worst blowout in the history of presidential debates. A CNN/ORC International poll that was taken right after the debate found that 67 percent of all Americans that had watched the debate thought that Romney was the winner. Never before had any presidential candidate crossed the 60 percent mark in the history of their post-debate polling. So Romney definitely had a big night. But the reality is that both candidates were telling the American people what they want to hear. If either Obama or Romney told the truth about what we are facing they would lose votes, and in a race this tight both of them really want to avoid doing that. Obama and Romney both desperately want to win this election, and the words that are coming out of their mouths have been carefully crafted to appeal to the "undecided voters" in the swing states. If you actually believe that they can deliver on everything that they are promising, then you must not have been paying much attention to U.S. politics over the past several decades. Perhaps the biggest failure on Wednesday night was debate moderator Jim Lehrer of PBS. His questions were about as far from "hard hitting" as you could get. The hour and a half debate was almost entirely about the economy, and yet almost all of the critical economic issues were ignored. Yes, Obama and Romney have slight differences when it comes to tax rates and regulations, but those small differences are not going to do much to change the direction of this country one way or another. Meanwhile, there were some really huge issues about the economy that were not addressed at all last night....
Gasoline Prices Set to Rise Through Election Day - CNBC - Sharon Epperson - October 5, 2012 - Retail gasoline prices, already at the highest levels on average since July 2008, are likely to continue to climb this month as refinery and pipeline problems overshadow weakness in U.S. consumer demand. On Wednesday night, a fire broke out at Exxon's (XOM) Baytown, Texas refinery, a 584,000 barrel per day facility that is the largest operating refinery in the U.S. Exxon said there may be "some impacts to production" from the fire, but the plant will resume normal operations. A partial shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, the nation's largest oil product pipeline, also contributed to supplies fears, as it impacted the portion of the line carrying gasoline from Atlanta to Nashville. "It will only take another refinery issue and a bit more of geopolitical noise to have the first U.S. election at a US average gasoline price of $4 a gallon," says energy analyst Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix. The national average for regular unleaded is now at $3.79 a gallon, basically on par with where pump prices were last Friday. Yet that masks the volatility in the gasoline futures (New York Mercantile Exchange: RBCV1), and especially some wholesale markets. Gasoline futures prices dropped 30 cents after the expiration of the previous month's contract, reflecting the seasonal shift among many refiners from summer-grade gasoline to a cheaper winter-blend. On Wednesday morning, the EIA reported a sharp drop in gasoline demand versus a year ago - leading futures to fall to the low of the week. But prices quickly recovered after the fire at the Exxon Baytown refinery.
U.S. restaurants look to overcome weak traffic - Wall Street Journal Market Watch - Debbie Cal - October 5, 2012 - TAKING THE PULSE: Efforts to manage commodity costs by raising menu prices without deterring customer traffic could pay off in the third quarter for U.S. restaurant companies. They are expected to record a combined same-store sales increase of 2.8%. Starbucks Corp. SBUX -0.73% , McDonald's Corp. MCD -0.03% and Yum Brands Inc. YUM -0.71% are continuing investments in their overseas businesses to maintain profit margins amid concerns around sluggish domestic growth, while Brinker International Inc. EAT -1.13% is relying on menu and in-store improvements to boost sales. Street projections show both profit and revenue growth for Yum Brands, Starbucks, Brinker and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. CMG -4.45% , while profit is likely to be flat for fast-food leader McDonald's. Wall Street Expectations: Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters predict an adjusted profit of 97 cents a share on revenue of $3.64 billion. A year ago, Yum posted income of 80 cents, or 83 cents excluding some items, on revenue of $3.27 billion. Key Issues: The parent company of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut expects its China and Yum Restaurants International businesses to drive its profit growth in the second half as its Pizza Hut and KFC chains are booming in urban areas. However, China generated just 37% of Yum's total operating profit in the second quarter as rising food costs and wage inflation squeezed Yum's profit margins in the country. China typically contributes half of Yum's total profits.
Insurers seek 17 percent increase in NC homeowner policy rates - WRAL.com - October 3, 2012 - The North Carolina Rate Bureau, which represents insurance companies that provide coverage in the state, has asked the state Department of Insurance for an average 17.7 percent increase in homeowner policies, officials said Wednesday. The Rate Bureau would like the increase to take effect next June. The filing is the first request for higher homeowner insurance rates since the Rate Bureau sought a 19.5 percent increase in 2008. The DOI allowed a 4.05 percent statewide average increase to go into effect in May 2009. The public can comment on the proposed increase during a public hearing on Oct. 17 in the Jim Long Hearing Room of the Dobbs Building, 430 N. Salisbury St. in Raleigh. Written public comments can be mailed to NCDOI, Attn: Bob Mack, Property & Casualty Division, 1201 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1201, or emailed to 2012homeowners@ncdoi.gov. The deadline for submitting written comments is Oct. 19. The DOI will then review the request to determine what, if any, rate adjustments are warranted. If the two sides cannot agree on rate changes, another public hearing will be held for both parties to present their cases for any rate adjustments.
Reason For Today's Unemployment Rate Plunge: Part-Time Jobs For Economic Reasons Surge Most Since QE1 Announcement - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 5, 2012 - We already noted the absolutely stunning surge in reported Household Survey jobs which "added" 873,000 jobs, or the most since 2003 and the second most in the past decade, which was just a little bit off the Household Survey used in the monthly NFP jobs changes, which came at 114,000, or about 8 times less. But what was the reason for this epic jump in Household survey jobs? Simple, and those who have read our series on America's transition to a part-time worker society know the answer. The reason is that the number of part-time people employed for economic reasons soared by 582,000 to 8,613,000, the most since October 2011, and the largest one month jump since February 2009, when "restoring" confidence in the economy was all the rage... and just before the Fed announced the full blown QE1 in March of 2009. Odd symmetry. So putting it all together, what does this mean for the true state of the US economy? Recall back in September one of our Charts of the Day was the number of Unemployed and Underemployed for the month of August, which was 25.8 million. Readers may be surprised to learn that when putting it all together, in September this number increased to 26.2 million.
Why the unemployment rate won't keep dropping - CNN Money - Stephen Gandel - October 5, 2012 - In September, the politically charged rate fell because of a huge jump in a survey that few economists trust. FORTUNE -- It was either an average month for job growth, or one of the best months in nearly three decades. In the September jobs numbers, there was evidence for both. Last month, employers said they added 114,000 workers to their payrolls. Not fast by any means, but not bad. The unemployment rate, however, was a blockbuster. In September, the unemployment rate fell to 7.8%, down from 8.1%. That's the lowest it has been since Obama took office....
A Jobs Report Conspiracy? - The Economic Collapse Blog
Another Phony Employment Report - Paul Craig Roberts - October 5, 2012 - October 5. Today’s employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows 114,000 new jobs in September and a drop in the rate of unemployment from 8.1% to 7.8%. As 114,000 new jobs are not sufficient to stay even with population growth, the drop in the unemployment rate is the result of not counting discouraged workers who are defined away as “not in the labor force.” According to the BLS, “In September, 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force.” These individuals “wanted and were available for work,” but “they were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.” In other words, 2.5 million unemployed Americans were not counted as unemployed. The stock market rose on the phony good news. Bloomberg’s headline: “U.S. Stocks Rise as Unemployment Rate Unexpectedly Drops,” http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-05/u-s-stock-futures-little-changed-before-payrolls-report.html . A truer picture of the dire employment situation is provided by the 600,000 rise over the previous month in involuntary part-time workers. According to the BLS, “These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.” Turning to the 114,000 new jobs, once again the jobs are concentrated in lowly paid domestic service jobs that cannot be offshored. Manufacturing jobs declined by 16,000. As has been the case for a decade, two categories--health care and social assistance (primarily ambulatory health care services) and waitresses and bartenders account for 53% of the new jobs. The BLS never ceases to find ever growing employment of people in restaurants and bars despite the rising dependence of the US population on food stamps. The elderly are rising as a percentage of the American population, but I sometimes wonder if employment in ambulatory health care services is rising faster than the elderly population. Whether these reported jobs are real, I do not know. The rest of the new jobs were accounted for by retail trade, transportation and warehousing, financial activities (primarily credit intermediation), professional and business services (primarily administrative and waste services), and state government education, where the 13,600 reported new jobs seem odd in light of the teacher layoffs and rise in classroom size. The high-tech jobs that economists promised would be our reward for offshoring American manufacturing jobs and tradeable professional services, such as software engineering and IT, have never materialized. “The New Economy” was just another hoax, like “Iraqi weapons of mass destruction” and “Iranian nukes.”
16 Critical Economic Issues That Obama And Romney Avoided During The Debate - The Economic Collapse Blog - Did you watch the presidential debate on Wednesday night? It is absolutely amazing how they can have an hour and a half debate about the economy and say so little. It seemed like both candidates were falling all over each other wanting to talk about how much they value education, but will more education really solve our problems? After all, 53 percent of all Americans with a bachelor's degree under the age of 25 were either unemployed or underemployed in 2011. So perhaps they should just both agree that education is a good thing and start talking about how to create more jobs for all of us. If you want to grade the debate from a technical standpoint, clearly Romney was the winner of the debate. Romney was full of energy and was generally sharp with his answers. Obama looked like he had just popped a couple of antidepressants and was ready for nap time. As a result, this might have been the worst blowout in the history of presidential debates. A CNN/ORC International poll that was taken right after the debate found that 67 percent of all Americans that had watched the debate thought that Romney was the winner. Never before had any presidential candidate crossed the 60 percent mark in the history of their post-debate polling. So Romney definitely had a big night. But the reality is that both candidates were telling the American people what they want to hear. If either Obama or Romney told the truth about what we are facing they would lose votes, and in a race this tight both of them really want to avoid doing that. Obama and Romney both desperately want to win this election, and the words that are coming out of their mouths have been carefully crafted to appeal to the "undecided voters" in the swing states. If you actually believe that they can deliver on everything that they are promising, then you must not have been paying much attention to U.S. politics over the past several decades. Perhaps the biggest failure on Wednesday night was debate moderator Jim Lehrer of PBS. His questions were about as far from "hard hitting" as you could get. The hour and a half debate was almost entirely about the economy, and yet almost all of the critical economic issues were ignored. Yes, Obama and Romney have slight differences when it comes to tax rates and regulations, but those small differences are not going to do much to change the direction of this country one way or another. Meanwhile, there were some really huge issues about the economy that were not addressed at all last night....
Gasoline Prices Set to Rise Through Election Day - CNBC - Sharon Epperson - October 5, 2012 - Retail gasoline prices, already at the highest levels on average since July 2008, are likely to continue to climb this month as refinery and pipeline problems overshadow weakness in U.S. consumer demand. On Wednesday night, a fire broke out at Exxon's (XOM) Baytown, Texas refinery, a 584,000 barrel per day facility that is the largest operating refinery in the U.S. Exxon said there may be "some impacts to production" from the fire, but the plant will resume normal operations. A partial shutdown of the Colonial Pipeline, the nation's largest oil product pipeline, also contributed to supplies fears, as it impacted the portion of the line carrying gasoline from Atlanta to Nashville. "It will only take another refinery issue and a bit more of geopolitical noise to have the first U.S. election at a US average gasoline price of $4 a gallon," says energy analyst Olivier Jakob of Petromatrix. The national average for regular unleaded is now at $3.79 a gallon, basically on par with where pump prices were last Friday. Yet that masks the volatility in the gasoline futures (New York Mercantile Exchange: RBCV1), and especially some wholesale markets. Gasoline futures prices dropped 30 cents after the expiration of the previous month's contract, reflecting the seasonal shift among many refiners from summer-grade gasoline to a cheaper winter-blend. On Wednesday morning, the EIA reported a sharp drop in gasoline demand versus a year ago - leading futures to fall to the low of the week. But prices quickly recovered after the fire at the Exxon Baytown refinery.
U.S. restaurants look to overcome weak traffic - Wall Street Journal Market Watch - Debbie Cal - October 5, 2012 - TAKING THE PULSE: Efforts to manage commodity costs by raising menu prices without deterring customer traffic could pay off in the third quarter for U.S. restaurant companies. They are expected to record a combined same-store sales increase of 2.8%. Starbucks Corp. SBUX -0.73% , McDonald's Corp. MCD -0.03% and Yum Brands Inc. YUM -0.71% are continuing investments in their overseas businesses to maintain profit margins amid concerns around sluggish domestic growth, while Brinker International Inc. EAT -1.13% is relying on menu and in-store improvements to boost sales. Street projections show both profit and revenue growth for Yum Brands, Starbucks, Brinker and Chipotle Mexican Grill Inc. CMG -4.45% , while profit is likely to be flat for fast-food leader McDonald's. Wall Street Expectations: Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters predict an adjusted profit of 97 cents a share on revenue of $3.64 billion. A year ago, Yum posted income of 80 cents, or 83 cents excluding some items, on revenue of $3.27 billion. Key Issues: The parent company of Taco Bell, KFC and Pizza Hut expects its China and Yum Restaurants International businesses to drive its profit growth in the second half as its Pizza Hut and KFC chains are booming in urban areas. However, China generated just 37% of Yum's total operating profit in the second quarter as rising food costs and wage inflation squeezed Yum's profit margins in the country. China typically contributes half of Yum's total profits.
Insurers seek 17 percent increase in NC homeowner policy rates - WRAL.com - October 3, 2012 - The North Carolina Rate Bureau, which represents insurance companies that provide coverage in the state, has asked the state Department of Insurance for an average 17.7 percent increase in homeowner policies, officials said Wednesday. The Rate Bureau would like the increase to take effect next June. The filing is the first request for higher homeowner insurance rates since the Rate Bureau sought a 19.5 percent increase in 2008. The DOI allowed a 4.05 percent statewide average increase to go into effect in May 2009. The public can comment on the proposed increase during a public hearing on Oct. 17 in the Jim Long Hearing Room of the Dobbs Building, 430 N. Salisbury St. in Raleigh. Written public comments can be mailed to NCDOI, Attn: Bob Mack, Property & Casualty Division, 1201 Mail Service Center, Raleigh, NC 27699-1201, or emailed to 2012homeowners@ncdoi.gov. The deadline for submitting written comments is Oct. 19. The DOI will then review the request to determine what, if any, rate adjustments are warranted. If the two sides cannot agree on rate changes, another public hearing will be held for both parties to present their cases for any rate adjustments.
Reason For Today's Unemployment Rate Plunge: Part-Time Jobs For Economic Reasons Surge Most Since QE1 Announcement - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - October 5, 2012 - We already noted the absolutely stunning surge in reported Household Survey jobs which "added" 873,000 jobs, or the most since 2003 and the second most in the past decade, which was just a little bit off the Household Survey used in the monthly NFP jobs changes, which came at 114,000, or about 8 times less. But what was the reason for this epic jump in Household survey jobs? Simple, and those who have read our series on America's transition to a part-time worker society know the answer. The reason is that the number of part-time people employed for economic reasons soared by 582,000 to 8,613,000, the most since October 2011, and the largest one month jump since February 2009, when "restoring" confidence in the economy was all the rage... and just before the Fed announced the full blown QE1 in March of 2009. Odd symmetry. So putting it all together, what does this mean for the true state of the US economy? Recall back in September one of our Charts of the Day was the number of Unemployed and Underemployed for the month of August, which was 25.8 million. Readers may be surprised to learn that when putting it all together, in September this number increased to 26.2 million.
Why the unemployment rate won't keep dropping - CNN Money - Stephen Gandel - October 5, 2012 - In September, the politically charged rate fell because of a huge jump in a survey that few economists trust. FORTUNE -- It was either an average month for job growth, or one of the best months in nearly three decades. In the September jobs numbers, there was evidence for both. Last month, employers said they added 114,000 workers to their payrolls. Not fast by any means, but not bad. The unemployment rate, however, was a blockbuster. In September, the unemployment rate fell to 7.8%, down from 8.1%. That's the lowest it has been since Obama took office....
A Jobs Report Conspiracy? - The Economic Collapse Blog
Another Phony Employment Report - Paul Craig Roberts - October 5, 2012 - October 5. Today’s employment report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics shows 114,000 new jobs in September and a drop in the rate of unemployment from 8.1% to 7.8%. As 114,000 new jobs are not sufficient to stay even with population growth, the drop in the unemployment rate is the result of not counting discouraged workers who are defined away as “not in the labor force.” According to the BLS, “In September, 2.5 million persons were marginally attached to the labor force.” These individuals “wanted and were available for work,” but “they were not counted as unemployed because they had not searched for work in the 4 weeks preceding the survey.” In other words, 2.5 million unemployed Americans were not counted as unemployed. The stock market rose on the phony good news. Bloomberg’s headline: “U.S. Stocks Rise as Unemployment Rate Unexpectedly Drops,” http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-05/u-s-stock-futures-little-changed-before-payrolls-report.html . A truer picture of the dire employment situation is provided by the 600,000 rise over the previous month in involuntary part-time workers. According to the BLS, “These individuals were working part time because their hours had been cut back or because they were unable to find a full-time job.” Turning to the 114,000 new jobs, once again the jobs are concentrated in lowly paid domestic service jobs that cannot be offshored. Manufacturing jobs declined by 16,000. As has been the case for a decade, two categories--health care and social assistance (primarily ambulatory health care services) and waitresses and bartenders account for 53% of the new jobs. The BLS never ceases to find ever growing employment of people in restaurants and bars despite the rising dependence of the US population on food stamps. The elderly are rising as a percentage of the American population, but I sometimes wonder if employment in ambulatory health care services is rising faster than the elderly population. Whether these reported jobs are real, I do not know. The rest of the new jobs were accounted for by retail trade, transportation and warehousing, financial activities (primarily credit intermediation), professional and business services (primarily administrative and waste services), and state government education, where the 13,600 reported new jobs seem odd in light of the teacher layoffs and rise in classroom size. The high-tech jobs that economists promised would be our reward for offshoring American manufacturing jobs and tradeable professional services, such as software engineering and IT, have never materialized. “The New Economy” was just another hoax, like “Iraqi weapons of mass destruction” and “Iranian nukes.”
Paul Craig Roberts : The Unemployment Numbers are Phony
Thursday, October 4, 2012
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 2, 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 8/21/2012 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 Pastor Jay Robinson of Viewmomnt Baptist Church
Special Presentations
A. Presentation and Administration of Oath of Office to Deputy Chief Fred Hollar - (From the City Information Officer) - (2:15)
B. Presentation of Proclamation for Fire Prevention Week to Chief Fred Hollar
Whereas the City of Hickory is committed to ensuring safety and security of all those living in and visiting our city; whereas home fires killed more than 2,600 people in the United States in 2010 and fire departments in the United states responded to more than 369,000 home fires; Whereas residence who have planned and practiced a home fire escape plan are prepared and therefore will be more likely to survive a fire; Whereas only one third of Americans have developed and practiced a home fire escape plan and whereas working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in half; whereas Hickory's first responders are dedicated to reducing and preventing Hickory home fires and home fire injuries through prevention and protection education; whereas the 2012 fire prevention week theme, “Have two ways out." effectively serves to remind us to develop and practice a home fire escape plan through fire prevention week and year round; Therefore the Hickory City Council does hereby proclaim the Week of October 7 – 13, 2011 as Fire Prevention Week in the City of Hickory .
Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 2, 2012 - Addendum on the CEG proposals - Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Consent Agenda:
A. Approval of Jeffrey Don Boggs to the Hickory Fire Department Local Relief and Supplemental Retirement Board of Trustees. - The Fire Department Board of Trustees Local Relief and Supplemental Retirement Board consist of five (5) members. The five members consist of (1) appointed by the North Carolina Insurance Commissioner (2) appointed by Mayor and Council, (2) elected by the fire department membership. The purpose of the board is to administer the disbursement of funds received from the State of North Carolina Department of Insurance for local firefighter relief and supplemental retirement programs. As of September 7, 2012, Deputy Fire Chief George Byers submitted a letter to Fire Chief Tom Alexander giving notice of leave from the appointed position by December 31, 2012. This is to ensure that a sufficient amount of notification is given to appoint a new board member.
B. Approval of acceptance of a bullet proof vest grant in the amount of $10,150 to the Hickory Police Department to assist in funding the purchase of bulletproof vests for police officers. - This grant will pay up to 50% of the cost of NIJ approved vests purchased by Hickory Police Department. Thirty vests have been requested at an estimated price of $675 for each vest. Monies are placed in the Police Department budget uniform line item annually to purchase vests for police officers. Life expectancy of each vest is approximately five years. The City’s match is already budgeted in the annual budget.
C. Approval of proclamation for Mr. and Mrs. Wade Hampton Shuford Day, October 7, 2012.
D. Approval of proclamation for Red Ribbon Week, the week of October 23 through October 31, 2012.
E. Special Event/Activities Application for Girls on the Run, Nancy Mitchell, Operations Director, YMCA, December 8, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 7:00 am until 12:00pm.
F. Special Event/Activities Application for Crawdads 2012 Fall Fling, Matt Moes, Director of Special Events, Hickory Crawdads, November 10, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 9:30am until 2:00pm.
G. Special Event/Activities Application for Enterprise Company Picnic, Matt Moes, Director of Special Events, Hickory Crawdads, October 27, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 2:00 pm to 11:00 pm.
H. Special Event/Activities Application for Peelin’ Eatin’ & Politican, Lindsay Keisler, Catawba County Chamber of Commerce, this event is for a Legislative Shrimp Boil, at L.P. Frans Stadium, October 25, 2012, from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
I. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Sharon Widder Kenz in Oakwood Cemetery
J. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Terri S. Hammons in Oakwood Cemetery
K. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Pam Connelly in Fairview Cemetery
L. Approval of moving the regular scheduled Council Meeting of November 6, 2012 to Monday, November 5, 2012 due to the National Election day being held on November 6, 2012.
M. Budget Ordinance Amendment # 4.
1. To appropriate $1,974 of General Fund Balance (Funds reserved from the State of North Carolina Un-Authorized Substance Tax revenue) and budget in the Police Department's Departmental Supplies line item. This amendment is necessary to purchase items for the School Resource Officers to teach DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) in the school system for FY12-13. Funds are made available to the Police Department from the State and remain in General Fund Balance until appropriated.
2. To transfer $8,779 of General Fund Contingency and $8,779 of Water and Sewer Contingency to the Stormwater Fund-Stormwater System line item. These transfers are necessary to pay the contractor for additional work done on the 8th St. Ct. NE culvert replacement project. The additional work is due to the
significant amount of existing underground utilities that the contractor had to work around.
3. To appropriate $109 of Local Government Revenue received for the month of August 2012 and budget in the Police Department Overtime line item. This payment is revenue that funds a portion of an Officers time spent when accompanying involuntary commitment patients.
4. To budget a $3,416 insurance claim check from Argonaut Great Central Insurance Company in the Police Department Maintenance and Repair of Buildings line item. This insurance claim check is payment for lightening damage to the Police Department Firing Range.
5. To transfer $10,150 from the Police Departments Uniforms line item to the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Project. The United States Department of Justice awarded the City of Hickory a $10,150 Federal Grant to pay up to 50% of the costs of National Institute of Justice approved vests. There is a 50% required local match which is funded from the Police Departments Uniforms line item; therefore a budget amendment is necessary.
New Business - Departmental Reports:
1. Inspiring Spaces update, Assistant City Manager Andrea Surratt - (14:50)
Community Input Phase - Meetings with different City groups and other organizations such as DOT. They will have meetings in each quadrant. City staff will hold a meeting with every group, including council, in January.
Quotes below are from the advisory committee.
Ms. Surratt showed various pictures of locations in the city.
Corridors that are being looked at
Looking for Public Private partnership. How does our character define our community.
2. Grace Chapel Road update, Public Services Director Chuck Hansen - (37:50) - Connects Grace Chapel Road to the WalMart complex near Granite Falls. It is meant to keep traffic off of Highway 321 and to create some industrial properties through a partnership between the Caldwell County Economic Development Corporation, the City of Hickory, Granite Falls, and MDI in Caldwell County. There are 9 preliminary buildings designed for this developed land consisting of 1,000,000 square feet. Utilities will be the next issue addressed. Properties are zoned Office and Industrial.
3. Hickory’s brand initiative “Life. Well Crafted.” began a year ago and many strides have been made over the last 12 months. Communications Director and Brand Manager Mandy Pitts will review year one and give an update on some exciting new marketing tools and strategies. (51:30)
The Branding website has be rebranded as Hickory Well Crafted from the former Start something here. This site has been changing daily. One story from the site is related to businesses that have been located in Hickory for 75+ years.
Logos of various entities located in the area meant to display a consistent theme.
This advertising was in an US Airways magazine in September during the time that the Democrat National Convention was taking place.
The following is a snapshot of priorities heading into year two.
The vision looking ahead.
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 8/21/2012 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 Pastor Jay Robinson of Viewmomnt Baptist Church
Special Presentations
A. Presentation and Administration of Oath of Office to Deputy Chief Fred Hollar - (From the City Information Officer) - (2:15)
“I feel fortunate that we have a person of Chief Hollar’s character and experience. He is well known and well respected through out the community. His vision and relationships with our partners in emergency services make him uniquely qualified to lead our excellent professional fire fighters,” said City Manager, Mick Berry.
Chief Hollar started working for the fire department after graduating from Hickory High School and has been dedicated to his career since day one. He brings over 45 years of experience and dedication to his new position. Two of his many major accomplishments include developing the City of Hickory Disaster Plan and developing a comprehensive 15-year plan for the Hickory Fire Department, including station locations, apparatus placement, purchase, and cost projections for planned facilities, including personnel resources for growth.
“I look forward to serving as the Fire Chief for the City of Hickory and serving with all the dedicated men and women within our department and throughout the city,” said Chief Hollar. “Delivering core services to the community is a team-oriented experience. We in the Hickory Fire Department realize this as our base philosophy. We will work hard to train our department to meet the needs of the community so each and every member can respond to any incident where help is needed.” Chief Hollar added, “Two words—responsibility and accountability—will define our department as we move into another management team.”
Chief Hollar brings a background of extensive experience in Fire Sciences, Fire Service, and Operations, encompassing areas of expertise in Management of Emergency Services, Community Fire Safety and Prevention, Fire Suppression, Emergency Management, Fire Investigations, Training, hazardous Materials, Emergency Medical Services, Administration, Budgeting, Equipment Safety and Performance, Rules and Regulations, Aircraft Rescue Services, and Diversity.
Chief Hollar is very active in developing and initiating programs not only for the department, but for the county and state, as well. He has extensive knowledge of Emergency Management and Emergency Operations Center, which are used on a daily basis for the City.
The City of Hickory’s Fire Chief Thomas Alexander retired after 45 years of combined service with two fire departments. Chief Hollar was previously working as the Deputy Fire Chief for over 23 years. Chief Hollar and Chief Alexander share the same objectives on how the Hickory Fire Department should operate and how best to achieve those objectives.
Additionally, Chief Hollar understands how to communicate and motivate coworkers to get the job accomplished. He has the ability to establish and maintain effective communications and rapport with fellow staff, clients, and management, plus the various private federal and local entities that are affiliated with fire services.
In addition to his responsibilities as the Fire Chief, he serves on a variety of boards and commissions within the City, county, and state. Chief Hollar’s ability to establish positive, strong work relationships and his open and positive personality has enabled him to maintain an effective and efficient performance in a conscientious manner throughout his years working with the Fire Department. His dedication to the City of Hickory Fire Department is an asset that will continue to be a benefit in his new role as the Hickory Fire Chief.
B. Presentation of Proclamation for Fire Prevention Week to Chief Fred Hollar
Whereas the City of Hickory is committed to ensuring safety and security of all those living in and visiting our city; whereas home fires killed more than 2,600 people in the United States in 2010 and fire departments in the United states responded to more than 369,000 home fires; Whereas residence who have planned and practiced a home fire escape plan are prepared and therefore will be more likely to survive a fire; Whereas only one third of Americans have developed and practiced a home fire escape plan and whereas working smoke alarms cut the risk of dying in half; whereas Hickory's first responders are dedicated to reducing and preventing Hickory home fires and home fire injuries through prevention and protection education; whereas the 2012 fire prevention week theme, “Have two ways out." effectively serves to remind us to develop and practice a home fire escape plan through fire prevention week and year round; Therefore the Hickory City Council does hereby proclaim the Week of October 7 – 13, 2011 as Fire Prevention Week in the City of Hickory .
Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of October 2, 2012 - Addendum on the CEG proposals - Proposal introduced by the Mayor outside of the constructs of the agenda
Consent Agenda:
A. Approval of Jeffrey Don Boggs to the Hickory Fire Department Local Relief and Supplemental Retirement Board of Trustees. - The Fire Department Board of Trustees Local Relief and Supplemental Retirement Board consist of five (5) members. The five members consist of (1) appointed by the North Carolina Insurance Commissioner (2) appointed by Mayor and Council, (2) elected by the fire department membership. The purpose of the board is to administer the disbursement of funds received from the State of North Carolina Department of Insurance for local firefighter relief and supplemental retirement programs. As of September 7, 2012, Deputy Fire Chief George Byers submitted a letter to Fire Chief Tom Alexander giving notice of leave from the appointed position by December 31, 2012. This is to ensure that a sufficient amount of notification is given to appoint a new board member.
B. Approval of acceptance of a bullet proof vest grant in the amount of $10,150 to the Hickory Police Department to assist in funding the purchase of bulletproof vests for police officers. - This grant will pay up to 50% of the cost of NIJ approved vests purchased by Hickory Police Department. Thirty vests have been requested at an estimated price of $675 for each vest. Monies are placed in the Police Department budget uniform line item annually to purchase vests for police officers. Life expectancy of each vest is approximately five years. The City’s match is already budgeted in the annual budget.
C. Approval of proclamation for Mr. and Mrs. Wade Hampton Shuford Day, October 7, 2012.
D. Approval of proclamation for Red Ribbon Week, the week of October 23 through October 31, 2012.
E. Special Event/Activities Application for Girls on the Run, Nancy Mitchell, Operations Director, YMCA, December 8, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 7:00 am until 12:00pm.
F. Special Event/Activities Application for Crawdads 2012 Fall Fling, Matt Moes, Director of Special Events, Hickory Crawdads, November 10, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 9:30am until 2:00pm.
G. Special Event/Activities Application for Enterprise Company Picnic, Matt Moes, Director of Special Events, Hickory Crawdads, October 27, 2012 at L.P. Frans Stadium, from 2:00 pm to 11:00 pm.
H. Special Event/Activities Application for Peelin’ Eatin’ & Politican, Lindsay Keisler, Catawba County Chamber of Commerce, this event is for a Legislative Shrimp Boil, at L.P. Frans Stadium, October 25, 2012, from 4:00 pm to 9:00 pm.
I. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Sharon Widder Kenz in Oakwood Cemetery
J. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Terri S. Hammons in Oakwood Cemetery
K. Transfer of Cemetery Deed from City of Hickory to Pam Connelly in Fairview Cemetery
L. Approval of moving the regular scheduled Council Meeting of November 6, 2012 to Monday, November 5, 2012 due to the National Election day being held on November 6, 2012.
M. Budget Ordinance Amendment # 4.
1. To appropriate $1,974 of General Fund Balance (Funds reserved from the State of North Carolina Un-Authorized Substance Tax revenue) and budget in the Police Department's Departmental Supplies line item. This amendment is necessary to purchase items for the School Resource Officers to teach DARE (Drug Abuse Resistance Education) in the school system for FY12-13. Funds are made available to the Police Department from the State and remain in General Fund Balance until appropriated.
2. To transfer $8,779 of General Fund Contingency and $8,779 of Water and Sewer Contingency to the Stormwater Fund-Stormwater System line item. These transfers are necessary to pay the contractor for additional work done on the 8th St. Ct. NE culvert replacement project. The additional work is due to the
significant amount of existing underground utilities that the contractor had to work around.
3. To appropriate $109 of Local Government Revenue received for the month of August 2012 and budget in the Police Department Overtime line item. This payment is revenue that funds a portion of an Officers time spent when accompanying involuntary commitment patients.
4. To budget a $3,416 insurance claim check from Argonaut Great Central Insurance Company in the Police Department Maintenance and Repair of Buildings line item. This insurance claim check is payment for lightening damage to the Police Department Firing Range.
5. To transfer $10,150 from the Police Departments Uniforms line item to the Bulletproof Vest Partnership Grant Project. The United States Department of Justice awarded the City of Hickory a $10,150 Federal Grant to pay up to 50% of the costs of National Institute of Justice approved vests. There is a 50% required local match which is funded from the Police Departments Uniforms line item; therefore a budget amendment is necessary.
New Business - Departmental Reports:
1. Inspiring Spaces update, Assistant City Manager Andrea Surratt - (14:50)
Community Input Phase - Meetings with different City groups and other organizations such as DOT. They will have meetings in each quadrant. City staff will hold a meeting with every group, including council, in January.
Quotes below are from the advisory committee.
Ms. Surratt showed various pictures of locations in the city.
Corridors that are being looked at
(First Pass)
(Second Pass)
Looking for Public Private partnership. How does our character define our community.
2. Grace Chapel Road update, Public Services Director Chuck Hansen - (37:50) - Connects Grace Chapel Road to the WalMart complex near Granite Falls. It is meant to keep traffic off of Highway 321 and to create some industrial properties through a partnership between the Caldwell County Economic Development Corporation, the City of Hickory, Granite Falls, and MDI in Caldwell County. There are 9 preliminary buildings designed for this developed land consisting of 1,000,000 square feet. Utilities will be the next issue addressed. Properties are zoned Office and Industrial.
3. Hickory’s brand initiative “Life. Well Crafted.” began a year ago and many strides have been made over the last 12 months. Communications Director and Brand Manager Mandy Pitts will review year one and give an update on some exciting new marketing tools and strategies. (51:30)
The Branding website has be rebranded as Hickory Well Crafted from the former Start something here. This site has been changing daily. One story from the site is related to businesses that have been located in Hickory for 75+ years.
Logos of various entities located in the area meant to display a consistent theme.
This advertising was in an US Airways magazine in September during the time that the Democrat National Convention was taking place.
The following is a snapshot of priorities heading into year two.
The vision looking ahead.
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