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Friday, May 16, 2014
The proposed property tax increase coming on Tuesday night
Insider Sources are telling us that the Bond Referendum being promoted by Hickory Inc. and the "Inspiring Spaces" folks is irrelevant. The Referendum is a vote on validation for Hickory Inc. to spend the money that they will already be accruing through the tax increase that they will have already approved on June 3rd. The wheels will have been set in motion and they are going to start spending millions of dollars on their "Linear Park"/Downtown Sidewalk whether that is what most Hickory citizens want or not.
The necessity to put this in the upcoming Fiscal 2014-15 Hickory City Budget is that, for one thing, Hickory Inc. needs money to help with the increased costs of operations, changing revenue streams, and problems with roads falling into disrepair that are Hickory Inc.'s responsibility. Hickory Inc. can't afford to come back next year and say, 'we need another tax increase for the "Linear Park".' This was also set up to happen this year, because it is a non-election year for the Mayor and City Council.
Remember that former City Council member Sally Fox wanted to raise property taxes last year, but Mayor Wright and Council Members Patton and Guess said no, claiming it was because there was no plan. The reality was that they didn't want to have to face the voters after having voted to raise taxes for this year. In reality, the plans are no more defined this year than they were last year.
The tax rate proposed by City Manager Berry is said to be at least 10¢ per $100 taking the tax rate from 50¢ to at least 60¢ per $100. A 10¢ increase in the tax rate is a 20% increase in your Hickory Inc. property tax bill. The median income house was defined as $151,000 in Hickory last year. A resident in Hickory based upon the median will see their tax rate in Hickory rise to $906 per year versus the current $755 -- a $151 increase. Add in Catawba County property taxes of 53¢ per $100 ($800.30 for the median) and that means that the total tax bill for the median house in Hickory will rise to $1,706.30.
The current median household income for Hickory is $37,364. Real median household income peaked in 2006 at $44,656 and is now $7,292 (16.33%) lower. That means the average family is earning $718.54 per week, so the average family is devoting nearly 2 1/2 weeks of their income to property taxes. The only reason I bring this up is to stress that this is a significant tax and decision.
Once the rate is raised, then the revenue stream will have been established. We have seen this happen before. With the Stormwater runoff program, Hickory Inc. decided what it wanted to do and then put together a committee to attempt to get validation. When the committee came back against Hickory Inc.'s recommendation, the fund/monies had already been designated and set aside and Hickory Inc. moved forward with the program anyway.
Hickory Inc. is trying to separate the issues and get the public to focus on the referendum, while having already established the "Inspiring Spaces" program monies in the General Fund. When the Bond Referendum fails, then they will tell you that people didn't vote down the Bond Referendum, because they are against the Inspiring Spaces projects, they voted it down, because they are against going into debt to fund the projects. Hickory Inc. just needs to focus and scale back "on what the people want." And that will be their "Linear Park/Sidewalk."
On Tuesday night we will see City Manager Berry propose his budget for the upcoming year and then the Council will come back two weeks later and vote upon the budget. If the Citizens of Hickory don't want to see this go through as proposed, then they don't have much time to act. November 4th is not the important date on the calendar. The important date on the calendar is June 3rd. If this tax rate is allowed to pass as proposed, then there will be no turning back. That will be your tax rate from here on out.
Thursday, May 15, 2014
Breaking News...
Why the upcoming Hickory bond referendum is
completely irrelevant. Hickory Inc. Insiders deliver information and expose the
smoke and mirrors of the upcoming Annual Hickory City proposed budget...
Wednesday, May 14, 2014
Monday, May 12, 2014
Inside Information
inside information (uncountable) - wiktionary.org
(US, law, finance) Information obtained by or from a person in a position of trust (a director, an employee, a consultant) that affects the price of publicly traded securities.
Conflict of Interest - (Wikipedia) - A conflict of interest (COI) is a situation occuring when an individual or organization is involved in multiple interests, one of which could possibly corrupt the motivation.
Inside Information by Foreigner -
Lyrics:
One man to the left
One man to the right
One man in the middle
One man dressed in white
One man in the east
One man from the west
One man in the middle
One man under house arrest
(step back)
Get hooked on the power
Gotta stay in the game
Be the man of the hour
Gotta make a name for yourself
And the lady waits, so patiently
She waits for the call
She knows just what you need
You need inside, information
Information at a very high price
She gives you inside, information
That can change your whole life overnight,
In a minute
One man to the left
One man to the right
One man in the middle
Caught in the broad daylight
Just a man on the street
Another face in the crowd
One man on the beat
Wants everything that hes not allowed
And the lady waits, so patiently
She waits for the call
She knows just what you need
You need inside, information
She can get it at a very high price
A little, inside, information
It can change your whole life overnight
With a little inside, information
You get money, you get power, you get it all
Yeah but that inside, information
Can leave you waiting for that hammer to fall
(let it fall)
She gets that inside, information
Information at a very high price
With that inside, information
Its danger with each roll of the dice
You want that inside, information
Take the money, take the power, take it all
Take that inside, information
But get ready cause the hammer will fall
Its gonna fall
Inside, information
Inside, information
Is she telling you straight
Is she telling you straight
Is she telling you straight
Economic Stories of Relevance in Today's World -- May 11, 2014
Fed Chair: ‘Deficits Will Rise to Unsustainable Levels’ - CNS News - Terence P. Jeffrey - May 7, 2014 - Federal Reserve Chairman Janet Yellen, referencing the Congressional Budget Office's long-term budget projections, told the Joint Economic Committee of Congress today that under current policies the federal government’s deficits “will rise to unsustainable levels.” In the 10-year budget projections it released in April, the CBO estimated that the federal government will run $7.618 trillion in deficits from 2015 through 2024. At the same time, the CBO projected that the federal government’s debt held by the public would rise from $11.983 trillion at the end of fiscal 2013 to $20.947 trillion by the end of 2024...
The “Economic Recovery” Continues: Businesses Are Being Destroyed Faster Than They Are Being Created - The Economic Collapse Blog - Michael Snyder, on May 6th, 2014 - What would you say about an economy where businesses are shutting down faster than they are opening? Well, a shocking new study released by the Brookings Institution indicates that this is exactly what is happening in the United States. We are absolutely killing small businesses and the entrepreneurial spirit in this country, and as you will see below, the number of self-employed Americans has been on a downward trend for a decade even though our population has been steadily growing. Traditionally, small businesses have been the primary engine of job growth in this nation, so the fact that study after study has found that small business creation is being crippled in the United States is a really bad sign for our economic future. Personally, I write about our long-term economic decline nearly every day, but even I had no idea that businesses were being destroyed faster than they were being created. According to the Brookings Institution, this first started happening in 2009...
Manufacturing Job Postings and Hiring Data Were Weaker in March - Shopfloor.com - Chad Moutray under Economy - May 9, 2014 - The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that manufacturing job openings declined for the fourth straight month. After peaking at 298,000 in November, the number of job postings in the sector has continued to move lower, with 243,000 openings recorded in March. Weather has negatively impacted overall economic activity over much of this period, and it is possible that winter conditions hampered employment growth, as well. Nonetheless, we would expect that this trend will reverse in the coming months, particularly if the sector resumes the rebound that was occurring last fall. There had been upward movement in manufacturing job openings from May to November of last year (up from 203,000 to 298,000), for instance. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) have a bit of a time lag. Fortunately, we already know that manufacturers added 12,000 workers on net in April, providing us with some cautious optimism. In the March data, net hiring had turned negative for the first time in eight months. Manufacturers added 231,000 workers in March, down from 234,000 in February (and 269,000 in November, its recent peak). At the same time, the number of separations – including layoffs, quits, and retirements – rose from 224,000 to 236,000. As such, net hiring (or hires minus separations) shifted from a net gain of 10,000 workers in February to a decline of 5,000 in March. This was well below the net hiring rate of 41,000 observed in November, illustrating the current softness in the labor market. Meanwhile, employment numbers in the larger economy softened slightly in March, as well. Total job openings decreased from 4,125,000 in February to 4,014,000 in March. Even with the decrease, this was still a decent figure, representing a 3.5 percent increase year-over-year. Hiring in the nonfarm business sector declined from a net gain of 240,000 in February to an increase of 194,000 in March. Education and health services and government were two major sectors that had increased hiring for the month.
Will History Record The Ending Of QE As An Archduke Moment? - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - May 10, 2014 - One can’t help but look at the situations transpiring around the globe and hope: things are different this time. The problem is being different puts it right back in line with that other caveat: history doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme. And so lies the most troubling aspect facing not only the U.S. economy, but quite possibly the world as whole. For if things rhyme anything inline with past events in history: We’re all in a dung heap of QE based minutia, with Geo-political ramifications the “intellectual” crowd never contemplated as possible – let alone probable. It was just a mere 4 years ago this month in which then Fed. Chair Ben Bernanke announced to the world via his now infamous Jackson Hole speech that QE would basically be adulterating the financial markets indefinitely. i.e., QE1 became QE2 signaling QE4eva. And since that time the Federal Reserve has done just. And as always that decision was heralded by the financial media as “genius.” And why wouldn’t they since this would now afford them a seemingly never-ending revolving set of happy faced hedge fund managers that could tell the world how they were just making a killing for their investors. Everything once again seemed just ducky. “Don’t fight the Fed.” again became the clarion call. However what most of these “wizards of smart” couldn’t read past their teleprompter is that the world may turn and fight them – literally. The distortions in financial markets throughout the world have been breathtaking to anyone who’ll look using a thimble full of common sense. As the emerging markets became overheated and searched for ways to deal with hot money inflows wreaking havoc within their own markets. The Fed. and crew kept the pedal down, year, after year seemingly not giving any notion of care that others may retaliate in ways never contemplated by the intellectual crowd. i.e., War...
BorgWarner adding 150 jobs in Buncombe County - WRAL (Raleigh) - May 8, 2014 - ARDEN, N.C. — A company that makes turbochargers will expand its plant in Buncombe County, creating more than 150 jobs. BorgWarner said it will spend $55 million to expand its plant in Arden over the next five years. About 60 of the jobs are expected in the next three years. The company says the 154 jobs will include engineering and production positions. They are expected to pay around $75,000 annually, including benefits. The plant opened in 1977 and currently has more than 650 employees. BorgWarner expects an increased demand for its turbocharger systems with stricter emissions standards. The company's turbochargers are used in commercial trucks and in high-performance race cars in the IndyCar races...
10 Ways That Birth Order Affects Your Life - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - May 9, 2014 -
Where you exist in your family’s birth order can profoundly inform your path in life, whether because of genetics or simply the way that family members tend to treat firstborns vs. middle children vs. youngest children. Psychologists have been debating the “Why?” since the 1800s, but, as ConvergEx's Nick Colas notes, the outcome is certain regardless of the cause – the effects of birth order last for a lifetime... Via ConvergEx's Nick Colas, For example, firstborn kids are often rules-following and do better in society, while younger children tend to be revolutionaries, artists and so forth. Only children generally act like firstborns. Today’s Note from ConvergEx explains how birth order matters through the lens of a top 10 list of things you should know about birth order psychology. After all, much of business and investing depends on your ability to evaluate people, and this is another useful tool. Note From Nick: If you had to size up a stranger and you could only ask them one question, what would it be? For me, the answer is simple: “Where are you in the birth order of your siblings?” Are you a first/only child, or a later born? As Beth outlines today, the answer is quite telling. By virtue of genetics or childrearing (the debate rages there), birth order matters a lot to the person you become. Question: What do Hillary Clinton, Marissa Mayer, Oprah Winfrey and Beyoncé have in common? Answer: They are all firstborn girls. Who all happen to be on the Forbes list of most powerful women in the world. And if you consult findings from the vast field of birth order psychology, you’ll see that there is probably more than coincidence at play here. A study released just last month found that firstborn girls are statistically the most likely to succeed among any combination of birth order and gender, for the simple explanation that parents devote more time and energy to them. It could be that they are more intelligent too, but evidence points to the role of parental investment as the leading cause. Well what about Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Aristotle? They were all adopted. And according to Adam Pertman, author of a book on the subject titled Adoption Nation, adopted people “feel more compelled to show that they can do it” due to a sense of loss of their original family. A feeling of rejection often pushes adopted children to wonder if they are good enough and whether they are the reason their original family is no longer intact. As a result, they’re predisposed to prove their worthiness and avoid another tragedy. While birth order is not the end all be all – for example Ted Bundy was also adopted – it certainly impacts our personality and therefore the course of our lives. Success in the business world is partly dependent on your ability to read people and understand their emotional intelligence, of which birth order plays a key role. Thus we’ve compiled a top 10 list of things you should keep in mind about birth order psychology and how it factors into our lives. Read on for the details…
The Hound: I was asked to begin summarizing the articles in the Economic Stories of Relevance and how they relate to where we are today. Once again we are seeing no real economic recovery. Projections for the U.S. Deficit are not improving. Kicking the can down the road is only growing the deficit/debt in a exponential manner. Small businesses/Start-ups are the main thrust of initial businesses, but they are having a harder and harder time competing against established businesses, because only the larger businesses can compete in in the Corporocratic Environment in which the largest businesses own the regulatory process.
The “Economic Recovery” Continues: Businesses Are Being Destroyed Faster Than They Are Being Created - The Economic Collapse Blog - Michael Snyder, on May 6th, 2014 - What would you say about an economy where businesses are shutting down faster than they are opening? Well, a shocking new study released by the Brookings Institution indicates that this is exactly what is happening in the United States. We are absolutely killing small businesses and the entrepreneurial spirit in this country, and as you will see below, the number of self-employed Americans has been on a downward trend for a decade even though our population has been steadily growing. Traditionally, small businesses have been the primary engine of job growth in this nation, so the fact that study after study has found that small business creation is being crippled in the United States is a really bad sign for our economic future. Personally, I write about our long-term economic decline nearly every day, but even I had no idea that businesses were being destroyed faster than they were being created. According to the Brookings Institution, this first started happening in 2009...
Manufacturing Job Postings and Hiring Data Were Weaker in March - Shopfloor.com - Chad Moutray under Economy - May 9, 2014 - The Bureau of Labor Statistics said that manufacturing job openings declined for the fourth straight month. After peaking at 298,000 in November, the number of job postings in the sector has continued to move lower, with 243,000 openings recorded in March. Weather has negatively impacted overall economic activity over much of this period, and it is possible that winter conditions hampered employment growth, as well. Nonetheless, we would expect that this trend will reverse in the coming months, particularly if the sector resumes the rebound that was occurring last fall. There had been upward movement in manufacturing job openings from May to November of last year (up from 203,000 to 298,000), for instance. The Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey (JOLTS) have a bit of a time lag. Fortunately, we already know that manufacturers added 12,000 workers on net in April, providing us with some cautious optimism. In the March data, net hiring had turned negative for the first time in eight months. Manufacturers added 231,000 workers in March, down from 234,000 in February (and 269,000 in November, its recent peak). At the same time, the number of separations – including layoffs, quits, and retirements – rose from 224,000 to 236,000. As such, net hiring (or hires minus separations) shifted from a net gain of 10,000 workers in February to a decline of 5,000 in March. This was well below the net hiring rate of 41,000 observed in November, illustrating the current softness in the labor market. Meanwhile, employment numbers in the larger economy softened slightly in March, as well. Total job openings decreased from 4,125,000 in February to 4,014,000 in March. Even with the decrease, this was still a decent figure, representing a 3.5 percent increase year-over-year. Hiring in the nonfarm business sector declined from a net gain of 240,000 in February to an increase of 194,000 in March. Education and health services and government were two major sectors that had increased hiring for the month.
Will History Record The Ending Of QE As An Archduke Moment? - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - May 10, 2014 - One can’t help but look at the situations transpiring around the globe and hope: things are different this time. The problem is being different puts it right back in line with that other caveat: history doesn’t repeat itself, but it does rhyme. And so lies the most troubling aspect facing not only the U.S. economy, but quite possibly the world as whole. For if things rhyme anything inline with past events in history: We’re all in a dung heap of QE based minutia, with Geo-political ramifications the “intellectual” crowd never contemplated as possible – let alone probable. It was just a mere 4 years ago this month in which then Fed. Chair Ben Bernanke announced to the world via his now infamous Jackson Hole speech that QE would basically be adulterating the financial markets indefinitely. i.e., QE1 became QE2 signaling QE4eva. And since that time the Federal Reserve has done just. And as always that decision was heralded by the financial media as “genius.” And why wouldn’t they since this would now afford them a seemingly never-ending revolving set of happy faced hedge fund managers that could tell the world how they were just making a killing for their investors. Everything once again seemed just ducky. “Don’t fight the Fed.” again became the clarion call. However what most of these “wizards of smart” couldn’t read past their teleprompter is that the world may turn and fight them – literally. The distortions in financial markets throughout the world have been breathtaking to anyone who’ll look using a thimble full of common sense. As the emerging markets became overheated and searched for ways to deal with hot money inflows wreaking havoc within their own markets. The Fed. and crew kept the pedal down, year, after year seemingly not giving any notion of care that others may retaliate in ways never contemplated by the intellectual crowd. i.e., War...
BorgWarner adding 150 jobs in Buncombe County - WRAL (Raleigh) - May 8, 2014 - ARDEN, N.C. — A company that makes turbochargers will expand its plant in Buncombe County, creating more than 150 jobs. BorgWarner said it will spend $55 million to expand its plant in Arden over the next five years. About 60 of the jobs are expected in the next three years. The company says the 154 jobs will include engineering and production positions. They are expected to pay around $75,000 annually, including benefits. The plant opened in 1977 and currently has more than 650 employees. BorgWarner expects an increased demand for its turbocharger systems with stricter emissions standards. The company's turbochargers are used in commercial trucks and in high-performance race cars in the IndyCar races...
10 Ways That Birth Order Affects Your Life - Zero Hedge - Tyler Durden - May 9, 2014 -
Where you exist in your family’s birth order can profoundly inform your path in life, whether because of genetics or simply the way that family members tend to treat firstborns vs. middle children vs. youngest children. Psychologists have been debating the “Why?” since the 1800s, but, as ConvergEx's Nick Colas notes, the outcome is certain regardless of the cause – the effects of birth order last for a lifetime... Via ConvergEx's Nick Colas, For example, firstborn kids are often rules-following and do better in society, while younger children tend to be revolutionaries, artists and so forth. Only children generally act like firstborns. Today’s Note from ConvergEx explains how birth order matters through the lens of a top 10 list of things you should know about birth order psychology. After all, much of business and investing depends on your ability to evaluate people, and this is another useful tool. Note From Nick: If you had to size up a stranger and you could only ask them one question, what would it be? For me, the answer is simple: “Where are you in the birth order of your siblings?” Are you a first/only child, or a later born? As Beth outlines today, the answer is quite telling. By virtue of genetics or childrearing (the debate rages there), birth order matters a lot to the person you become. Question: What do Hillary Clinton, Marissa Mayer, Oprah Winfrey and Beyoncé have in common? Answer: They are all firstborn girls. Who all happen to be on the Forbes list of most powerful women in the world. And if you consult findings from the vast field of birth order psychology, you’ll see that there is probably more than coincidence at play here. A study released just last month found that firstborn girls are statistically the most likely to succeed among any combination of birth order and gender, for the simple explanation that parents devote more time and energy to them. It could be that they are more intelligent too, but evidence points to the role of parental investment as the leading cause. Well what about Jeff Bezos, Steve Jobs and Aristotle? They were all adopted. And according to Adam Pertman, author of a book on the subject titled Adoption Nation, adopted people “feel more compelled to show that they can do it” due to a sense of loss of their original family. A feeling of rejection often pushes adopted children to wonder if they are good enough and whether they are the reason their original family is no longer intact. As a result, they’re predisposed to prove their worthiness and avoid another tragedy. While birth order is not the end all be all – for example Ted Bundy was also adopted – it certainly impacts our personality and therefore the course of our lives. Success in the business world is partly dependent on your ability to read people and understand their emotional intelligence, of which birth order plays a key role. Thus we’ve compiled a top 10 list of things you should keep in mind about birth order psychology and how it factors into our lives. Read on for the details…
The Hound: I was asked to begin summarizing the articles in the Economic Stories of Relevance and how they relate to where we are today. Once again we are seeing no real economic recovery. Projections for the U.S. Deficit are not improving. Kicking the can down the road is only growing the deficit/debt in a exponential manner. Small businesses/Start-ups are the main thrust of initial businesses, but they are having a harder and harder time competing against established businesses, because only the larger businesses can compete in in the Corporocratic Environment in which the largest businesses own the regulatory process.
Saturday, May 10, 2014
Endarkenment
Listen to the link below where Alice Walker, who wrote the book The Color Purple, talks about this time period in history.
Alex begins this sequence talking about there are some good people in government and they have written some good laws, but the Corporate Culture is twisting everything. That is what leads to the conversation above. Ms. Walker says that she wants to go down in consciousness with good people surrounding her.
'When Blacks were slaves in this country, white people thought they could never be slaves and would be in control'... Alex says, 'Sharecroppers were just as bad off in a lot of ways, but at least they could be mean to the black people.' Ms. Walker says, 'now many Whites are getting to see the system and how Blacks have been living.' She says she likes to call this awakening 'Endarkenment.'
'Its all about exploitation. The great Native American Russell Means said the Federal Government broke every treaty they made with us and now they are breaking the treaty they made with you - The Constitution. Your skin is not going to save you.'
Alex begins this sequence talking about there are some good people in government and they have written some good laws, but the Corporate Culture is twisting everything. That is what leads to the conversation above. Ms. Walker says that she wants to go down in consciousness with good people surrounding her.
'When Blacks were slaves in this country, white people thought they could never be slaves and would be in control'... Alex says, 'Sharecroppers were just as bad off in a lot of ways, but at least they could be mean to the black people.' Ms. Walker says, 'now many Whites are getting to see the system and how Blacks have been living.' She says she likes to call this awakening 'Endarkenment.'
'Its all about exploitation. The great Native American Russell Means said the Federal Government broke every treaty they made with us and now they are breaking the treaty they made with you - The Constitution. Your skin is not going to save you.'
Friday, May 9, 2014
Newsletter about the City Council meeting of May 6, 2014
I began video recording the City Council in 2012, because of my desire that the City do it on their own as any modern 21st century community began doing long ago. I had people tell me that they couldn't make it to the meetings, but they would like to see what is going on. I was also told by some council members that my summaries did not truly reflect the record, so having a video/audio recording cannot be misinterpreted.
So below is the City Council meeting. With each agenda item, you can click on the links and it will take you to that specific point in the meeting. You can always drag the marker on the video display to the point in the broadcast that you are interested in seeing.
Agenda about the City Council meeting of May 6, 2014
Thoughts about last night's Hickory City Council meeting - May 6, 2014
Invocation by Rev. Whit Malone, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church
Special Presentations
A. Proclamation for National Police Week May 11-17, 2014. - Mayor Wright read and presented the National Police Week Proclamation to Chief Tom Adkins, and other members of the Hickory Police Department.
B. Proclamation for Lupus Awareness Month May 2014. - Mayor Wright read and presented the Lupus Awareness Month Proclamation to Ms. Angela Berasa.
Mayor Wright recognized Scouts in attendance from First United Methodist Church, Troop 234, and Scouts from Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Troop 300.
Mayor Wright also recognized students from Ms. Davis’, St. Stephens Honor Civics class.
Persons Requesting to be Heard
Cliff Moone - addressed Council on Inspiring Spaces. He commented that he is for Inspiring Spaces and for letting the people have a referendum to let Council know how they feel. He believes in referendums, and he also believes in Council making decisions. He knows that when we do things, when we go up, and standup, and start doing something, new people will come. It will be a good thing. He has served on Inspiring Spaces Committees and on Innovate Catawba, and he has seen the ideas. He is not for every idea that is put out there, and he will challenge them when he feels the need. He is with Council, he if for this, and he hopes Council is for it, and fully behind it. He thinks it will make our City a better place to live work and grow.
Larry Pope - addressed Council on Inspiring Spaces. He stated he was taking a different position than Reverend Moone took on Inspiring Spaces. He has been disappointed within the last several years about how money, City Council has spent, and City Council not accounting for the expenditure of that money. He stated that City Council had disbanded the Inspiring Spaces Committee because, when they went to Charlotte to meet with the consultants, they found out as a City Council that Committee could not exist, and Council will do a referendum for the funding that Council feels is needed for the Inspiring Spaces. He stated that once a referendum is done the same Committee will be reappointed, because that is the only legal way that Council can do it. He is tired of Council playing games with the City to accomplish the things that Council wants to accomplish that may not be the best for this City. He referenced survey’s done regarding the swimming pools, and commented that it was voted by citizens in Northeast, Northwest Hickory, that they wanted a swimming pool in every quadrant of the City, and a centrally located swimming pool. Council paid for that survey, and for those consultants to do the work. Council turned around, because they got bit in the backside, because they did not expect those citizens to vote that way, and put that on the shelf, and it is somewhere on a shelf collecting dust. If Council can’t raise the taxes, then they are talking about doing a bond referendum to have every citizen in this City to pay for a bond. That work may not be done within their communities to improve their communities, but they are going to have to pay for that bond. He stated that he will be the most outspoken person that ever existed to encourage citizens to vote against that bond. He will also be very vocal to encourage citizens to raise cane if Council tries to raise their taxes, because we have so many senior citizens in our City that are property owners, that cannot afford to have their taxes raised. Council spent, they claim, $500,000 plus dollars for the Sails on the Square, Council took the money that was designated for a parking deck and used it. When that money was raised for that parking deck, which was much needed downtown, what is going to happen now to folks that come downtown for events and there is nowhere to park. We are going to have to quit telling citizens that we are raising money for one thing, and then turn around and do something else with those funds. Bond referendum, no. Raising taxes, no. Council can find another way to do what they want to do.
Consent Agenda:
Item L was removed from the Consent Agenda and discussed - Release of Bond Claim and Assignment of Claims Executed by the City of Hickory to Westchester Fire Insurance Company. - Council previously declared American LaFrance to be in default of a contract to build a ladder engine truck for the Hickory Fire Department after American LaFrance closed its operation and failed to deliver the truck to the City. American LaFrance had purchased a performance bond from Westchester Fire Insurance to cover such instances of default. Notice was given to Westchester in March that the City was making a claim on the bond for the amount paid to American LaFrance for the ladder truck in the amount of $729,864. Westchester has investigated the City’s claim on the bond and made the determination the claim is valid. Westchester will pay the claim in full subject to the City executing a release form. The release form was received and reviewed. Seeing no issues with the release’s provisions, staff executed the release and returned to Westchester to expedite the process. Staff requests Council to ratify the execution of the release and assignment of claims.
Informational Item
A. Report of Mayor Wright’s travel to Asheville, North Carolina
New Business - Departmental Reports
1. Vacant Building Revitalization and Demolition Grant for 56 3rd Street SE - Dave Leonetti Presentation - Unanimous Consent
2. Street Resurfacing - Public Services Director, Chuck Hansen will present an analysis of the City’s street program resurfacing. - Chuck Hanson - Unanimous Consent
General Comments
Alderman Seaver stated that he was substituting at Hickory High School and had attended the Academic Awards Banquet and Dr. Blake Brandes was the speaker. He was a former Key Club President of Hickory High in 2002. He works in a Champions for Kids program raising money to help kids. He has helped over a million kids in three years. At the Key Club Banquet, the year that he was President, Graylyn Scholarship Committee was present there to observe him, and interview him after the banquet. He received that prestigious scholarship through Wake Forest. While at Wake Forest he received the Marshall Scholarship, which paid for his Masters, and his PhD at Kent University in England. While there, he was operating a business, he was making albums while he was in High School. Alderman Seaver tried to get Mr. Brandes to attend the Kiwanis meeting to speak but he was busy with some other schools in the Rowan Salisbury School District, and some others around the State. He is moving from New York City to San Diego as well. Alderman Seaver commented that maybe we could get him to attend a Council meeting to speak.
Alderman Seaver also commented that he had Kiwanis pancake tickets for sale. The event would take place Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church.
Mayor Wright commented that it is good breakfast and the money is for the kids.
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Hound's Notes: Not much to add to the notes. Go read my thoughts about the meeting. The next meeting will be the City Manager's recommended budget. I saw in the Hickory Daily Record that Newton raised its tax rate to cover operational costs and also spoke about the loss in revenue due to loss of property value. That is exactly what I was addressing in my notes. Just to remain revenue neutral, Hickory Inc. is going to have to raise the property tax rate; add to that the monies they want to spend on their proposed projects and there should be a substantial increase in the property tax rate.
So below is the City Council meeting. With each agenda item, you can click on the links and it will take you to that specific point in the meeting. You can always drag the marker on the video display to the point in the broadcast that you are interested in seeing.
Agenda about the City Council meeting of May 6, 2014
Thoughts about last night's Hickory City Council meeting - May 6, 2014
Invocation by Rev. Whit Malone, Pastor, First Presbyterian Church
Special Presentations
A. Proclamation for National Police Week May 11-17, 2014. - Mayor Wright read and presented the National Police Week Proclamation to Chief Tom Adkins, and other members of the Hickory Police Department.
B. Proclamation for Lupus Awareness Month May 2014. - Mayor Wright read and presented the Lupus Awareness Month Proclamation to Ms. Angela Berasa.
Mayor Wright recognized Scouts in attendance from First United Methodist Church, Troop 234, and Scouts from Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, Troop 300.
Mayor Wright also recognized students from Ms. Davis’, St. Stephens Honor Civics class.
Persons Requesting to be Heard
Cliff Moone - addressed Council on Inspiring Spaces. He commented that he is for Inspiring Spaces and for letting the people have a referendum to let Council know how they feel. He believes in referendums, and he also believes in Council making decisions. He knows that when we do things, when we go up, and standup, and start doing something, new people will come. It will be a good thing. He has served on Inspiring Spaces Committees and on Innovate Catawba, and he has seen the ideas. He is not for every idea that is put out there, and he will challenge them when he feels the need. He is with Council, he if for this, and he hopes Council is for it, and fully behind it. He thinks it will make our City a better place to live work and grow.
Larry Pope - addressed Council on Inspiring Spaces. He stated he was taking a different position than Reverend Moone took on Inspiring Spaces. He has been disappointed within the last several years about how money, City Council has spent, and City Council not accounting for the expenditure of that money. He stated that City Council had disbanded the Inspiring Spaces Committee because, when they went to Charlotte to meet with the consultants, they found out as a City Council that Committee could not exist, and Council will do a referendum for the funding that Council feels is needed for the Inspiring Spaces. He stated that once a referendum is done the same Committee will be reappointed, because that is the only legal way that Council can do it. He is tired of Council playing games with the City to accomplish the things that Council wants to accomplish that may not be the best for this City. He referenced survey’s done regarding the swimming pools, and commented that it was voted by citizens in Northeast, Northwest Hickory, that they wanted a swimming pool in every quadrant of the City, and a centrally located swimming pool. Council paid for that survey, and for those consultants to do the work. Council turned around, because they got bit in the backside, because they did not expect those citizens to vote that way, and put that on the shelf, and it is somewhere on a shelf collecting dust. If Council can’t raise the taxes, then they are talking about doing a bond referendum to have every citizen in this City to pay for a bond. That work may not be done within their communities to improve their communities, but they are going to have to pay for that bond. He stated that he will be the most outspoken person that ever existed to encourage citizens to vote against that bond. He will also be very vocal to encourage citizens to raise cane if Council tries to raise their taxes, because we have so many senior citizens in our City that are property owners, that cannot afford to have their taxes raised. Council spent, they claim, $500,000 plus dollars for the Sails on the Square, Council took the money that was designated for a parking deck and used it. When that money was raised for that parking deck, which was much needed downtown, what is going to happen now to folks that come downtown for events and there is nowhere to park. We are going to have to quit telling citizens that we are raising money for one thing, and then turn around and do something else with those funds. Bond referendum, no. Raising taxes, no. Council can find another way to do what they want to do.
Consent Agenda:
Item L was removed from the Consent Agenda and discussed - Release of Bond Claim and Assignment of Claims Executed by the City of Hickory to Westchester Fire Insurance Company. - Council previously declared American LaFrance to be in default of a contract to build a ladder engine truck for the Hickory Fire Department after American LaFrance closed its operation and failed to deliver the truck to the City. American LaFrance had purchased a performance bond from Westchester Fire Insurance to cover such instances of default. Notice was given to Westchester in March that the City was making a claim on the bond for the amount paid to American LaFrance for the ladder truck in the amount of $729,864. Westchester has investigated the City’s claim on the bond and made the determination the claim is valid. Westchester will pay the claim in full subject to the City executing a release form. The release form was received and reviewed. Seeing no issues with the release’s provisions, staff executed the release and returned to Westchester to expedite the process. Staff requests Council to ratify the execution of the release and assignment of claims.
Informational Item
A. Report of Mayor Wright’s travel to Asheville, North Carolina
New Business - Departmental Reports
1. Vacant Building Revitalization and Demolition Grant for 56 3rd Street SE - Dave Leonetti Presentation - Unanimous Consent
2. Street Resurfacing - Public Services Director, Chuck Hansen will present an analysis of the City’s street program resurfacing. - Chuck Hanson - Unanimous Consent
General Comments
Alderman Seaver stated that he was substituting at Hickory High School and had attended the Academic Awards Banquet and Dr. Blake Brandes was the speaker. He was a former Key Club President of Hickory High in 2002. He works in a Champions for Kids program raising money to help kids. He has helped over a million kids in three years. At the Key Club Banquet, the year that he was President, Graylyn Scholarship Committee was present there to observe him, and interview him after the banquet. He received that prestigious scholarship through Wake Forest. While at Wake Forest he received the Marshall Scholarship, which paid for his Masters, and his PhD at Kent University in England. While there, he was operating a business, he was making albums while he was in High School. Alderman Seaver tried to get Mr. Brandes to attend the Kiwanis meeting to speak but he was busy with some other schools in the Rowan Salisbury School District, and some others around the State. He is moving from New York City to San Diego as well. Alderman Seaver commented that maybe we could get him to attend a Council meeting to speak.
Alderman Seaver also commented that he had Kiwanis pancake tickets for sale. The event would take place Thursday, Friday, and Saturday, at St. Luke’s United Methodist Church.
Mayor Wright commented that it is good breakfast and the money is for the kids.
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Hound's Notes: Not much to add to the notes. Go read my thoughts about the meeting. The next meeting will be the City Manager's recommended budget. I saw in the Hickory Daily Record that Newton raised its tax rate to cover operational costs and also spoke about the loss in revenue due to loss of property value. That is exactly what I was addressing in my notes. Just to remain revenue neutral, Hickory Inc. is going to have to raise the property tax rate; add to that the monies they want to spend on their proposed projects and there should be a substantial increase in the property tax rate.
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