Friday, November 13, 2009
OBICI HOUSE BLUES
The few bids that came in to the city fathers must have been a slap in their faces judging by their reaction to the bidders. And they will get no reason why their attemts, apparently feeble, were not accepted so we have a right to guess. Was it because the city deciders did not want the likes of what they proposed? Does the city want to own and restore? Does the city really want it demolished? Is there another bidder more favored by those in charge at city hall? Weren't the bidders plans up to snuff? It seems to us that good manners would have provided an inkling of why the snub. It's not like they submitted the bids on a napkin...time and expense had to be involved if bidders wanted to be taken seriously. Based upon media coverage of the frosty turndown our "leaders" don't look good.
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
20 comments:
It is a usual practice that when a group or organization is turned down for a grant, there is an opportunity for those who submitted the grant to listen to and view the reasons the grant was rejected. I'm not sure if the grant applicants realize this, but if not - I do hope they'll look toward the reasons their applications were denied.
I suggest that the name Obici should be removed from the hospital. I suggest that the sister cities divorce. I suggest that the remaining Obici relatives tell the council, mayor and other movers and shakers who dont care about our city, its heritage and its benefactor Amedo Obici to kiss off. What ever is left in the estate that they go into court and sue to retake control of it for their own, it is theirs. Also sue to stop the name from being used in any capacity.Tear down the home and replace it with a monument that resembles a toilet. It would be most fitting in recongizing what the city leaders over the years have done to the name of Obici.Hows that working for ya and being a national landmark?
When a bid comes in that suggests the use of OPM (Other Peoples Money) it was genaraly accepted as a privats/public partnership. However in light of today's harsh economic environment those catchy phrases are a thing of the past. Susan Blair's group and the others are going to have to dig into their OWN pockets IF they are sincere about rescuing Obici House. If the city hadn't been such spendthrifts years ago this would not be an issue. SCCA, Jefferson School, Pheonix Bank, East Washington, Fairgrounds, Garden Hilton Hotel, Obici Hospital property, Suffolk Roads, Community Well acqusitions just to name just a few. It time Madame Mayor to sell those under-utilized properties and divest from the SCCA, Garden Hilton and other money sucking disasters.
There appears to be a bias against Italians in our little myopic city. It could be because old Suffokians come from either an English or African heritage and have no concern whatsoever about the man from Italy that put Suffolk on the map. Will the little algae covered fountain by the courthouse paid with private dollars be the only thing left to recognize his name. Or is he just be an excuse to travel to Italy for the well heeled and powerful and influential?
While I know of no one who does not wish the Obici House be saved, it is surprising that such a feeble recommendation is being promoted by the local newspapers as being likely to save the building.
From what the word is on the street, none of the proposals were serious or had any substance, and it hardly seems appropriate that someone who suggests that her husband could fix the building while her friends could move one of their restaurants to the building would combine to make a likely use without some financing and something more solid than just a dream. In fact, others have even indicated that a more likely use would be a spa, meeting center or even a business retreat where one business would own the entire building and use it for vacations or free time for its personnel.
Who were the planners for the group that says they had the resources to save this building. From what I can understand, they did not list the backing of any of the City historic groups, the state preservation group (which actually had been very strong in wanting to save the building for which nevertheless apparently has not endorsed these barely known citizens), the Hall Place Civic League which housed many of Obici’s workers, and it does not appear to be any “big names” among the supporters such as Sue Woodward, The Pollard’s, The Young’s, Jack Eure, Betsy Brothers, or many others who have achieved some outstanding results in preserving older properties in Suffolk.
Perhaps these people should try to reform and get some bankers or at least prominent parties to back their group rather than just merely going on the “I have a dream” theory and trying to promote that theory to embarrass the City into giving them something that they could hardly handle based upon the inadequacies at least from what the newspaper articles have summarized.
How many foreclosures and ruined mortgage situations is this City going to experience before realizing the futility of trying to make “millions” at the expense of Suffolk residents and those who are from out of town who will pay exorbitant prices for real estate here? Virtually every downtown project in the last year (the lofts at two locations, the lakeside apartments, the Prentis buildings, numerous overbuilt and over prepared older housing) has been a disaster, and no matter how naive the newspapers reporters are who continue to promote these, the citizens seem to have little desire to have to now start funding and tolerating other huge loses for the Obici House based upon the demands of a small group with minimal backing in the community. Their efforts, for all practical purposes, actually do an injustice to those who feel strongly about saving the Obici House but feel that it should be done with some solid proposals and not those that are likely to result in just another annual money drain such as the SCCA.
Why pay attention to the dead, they do not vote?! They do not pay contributions to campaigns!
So what value is it to remember them?
The Obici name is of value only when the powerful invoke it for their own purposes and that is clear!
If the Obici money was going to be spent downtown for the benefit of the old families in Riverview, it would get done for sure.
That cracking sound you hear is the house of cards called suffolk falling apart due to poor leadership and management. What kind of job is the City Manager doing again?
Excuse me, whizzing on the name of Obici isnt benefiting anyone except council and the estate planners. In fact Mr Obici is old Suffolk, you can thank him for the hospital we once had. Again another useless display of Northern Suffolk so called superiority.
Just shows how much you think you know, and really don't. "Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open you mouth and remove all doubt".
I recall members of the Board of Directors at Obici warmed a seat there for decades. They have since moved out of the Godwin Blvd disaster they created and are presently building a momument on North Main Street to their over inflated view of self-importance. Indeed old Suffolk injects the name of Obici only for their self-interest.
As to the warfare between North Suffolk and Downtown there is a persistent question. WHY did Amadeo Obici work in Downtown but chose to live in North Suffolk? Was was the Planters Club built in North Suffolk? Was it the people, the place or something else about downtown that drives people like him away?
On the subject of bidders it appears that bidders for the sad business of SPSA have been given the cold shoulder. IF IT WAS THE NEW BOARD THAT ACTED IT SURE DIDN'T TAKE THEM LONG TO DECIDE.
Toasty: ROFLMAO
Lets see its 1924-25 in Nansemond.
A family known as Obici obtain land that becomes known as Bay Point Farms (dairy, with class A cows. Gurnsey in description.)
North Suffolk is where on the map?
Mr and Mrs Obici could not find this place called North Suffolk to choose to build and live in. Platers Club had the same problem. Plese find and show those maps from that era upto the merger between the city known as Suffolk and the county named Nansemond. Now that history has shown that this place called North Suffolk didnt exisit and the Obici's never lived there. So lets burn down the landmark and build those condos on the Nansemond. Lord knows the only way the old city of Suffolk can survive is the tax revenues generated by the real city of North Suffolk. We are taking a hit now over all those foreclosed homes in North Suffolk. Go ahead and incorporate hire your lawyers and become your own version of unicorns who expell sparkles and rainbows. Utopia doesnt neither does Neverland. I dont care what revenues your tax base generates. Let me know when you find those maps showing where North Suffolk was during the Obici time. OK? Will they show now this place called Utopia aka North Suffolk? How about todays maps?
Yes indeed Nansemond County once existed before it's leadership bent their knee in 1970s and bowed to Suffolk Downtowners to become what it has become, in debt, poorly lead and torn by special interests. Once again the question is if downtown is such a paradise downtowners claim it to be, why did the Obici's chose to live in today's North Suffolk?
Believing that increasing tax reveues will bail the city out is as great a folly as all the monuments to municipal waste we see all over the city. If you give this council a dollar of new revenue they'll spend a buck and a half. There is no end to it unless they are financialy squeezed into the harsh reality of fiscal conservatism.
Before a condo is ever considered the Obici House, carriage house and adjoining property must be sold and preserved using private funding. Shame on all of us if we lose it.
1925 and todays North Suffolk not even close to being a comparrison of living conditions. In that time the land looked maybe like a UTOPIA to them then. Today? Cement, steel, buildings, strip malls, crime and traffic? Yep thats UTOPIA aka as North Suffolk Afgain the Obici's never lived in North Suffolk, its a claim you cannot make And yes the estate should be repaired and kept in repair. By any private group that can obtain the funding to do so. The city is responsibe for its condition and they should be held accountable and some money should come from the city.how fitting the verification word to get his posted is fleece....lol
Lets avoid talking in circles. If you have a compass and it points North that is the direction the Obici's moved to back in 1925. But why did they passed on the Utopia of Downtown you have yet to answer. Did they like the open area up yonder? There's plenty of that around downtown. Did they like the waterfront? You also have that in downtown. Maybe it was the convenience of shopping and medical care? There again they were centered around downtown. How about the people many his employees and the businessmen who's livelihood was dependent on Mr. Obici's fortune and fame. Yep they lived in downtown. His factory, warehouses and shipping all based in Downtown. So what shaped his opinion to pass on this Utopia of convenience, recognition and prosperity and live in Upper Nansemond County now popularly called North Suffolk?
If you think North Suffolk is all steel, cement, buildings and strip malls you need to get out more often. Funny, that too sounds like downtown.
I don't know why everyone is so excited over this property. Obici left it to his brother in law and within about 5 years he sold it. He must not have thought it was so special to the family. That sale was in 1952. I think any proposed use of the property for a place for golfers to eat would be in conflict with Ronnie Rountree's plans for his clubhouse. Food and drinks can add a lot of income to a golf course. The building has been allowed to deteriorate for such a long time that it is probably not practical to try to restore it. After you spend all that money the hopes of ever getting anything back is not very realistic. When this is all said and done the city will probably find it is best to tear it down. Maybe that was the plan until a few folks started complaining about it. I can find a few folks to complain about anything. To think that people are going to be rushing to support a restaurant just because you renovate an old building that has historical significance to a few people is a dream.
There is no history, nor character in the structures of North Suffolk, made of steel nor the streets.It is made up of mostly carpet baggers who left other known squalor's of places like New Jersey, NY and Michigan. Did you turn out the lights when you left?
As a lifelong resident of Suffolk, I find it bizzare that anyone would claim that another citizen is a "carpet bagger". The term is both stupid and meant to boil the blood and has no place in our fine community. Suffolk has more "carpet bagger" that old salts like me in it anyway, so what is your point? And I do not live in the north end of town.
I believe that it is time that all recognize that Suffolk is about our people, not the downtown anymore and the damnd by some of public tax money for thier uses. I have read the comments on this nice IS site for some time and find embarassment in the comments by some who claim to speak for "old Suffolk" when they rundown another citizen by the stated reason that he was not born here like me.
So if you don't have facts to state your case or can't make a better argument, other than you were born here as your claim to right, how about just seating quietly, while the rest of us talk like adults? The ignorant attitude that claims right by the time of residency in Suffolk is as stupid as many of the plans that come out of Market Street!
I would also say that many are right that the north end of town is the growing part of our community. That was by the design of past leaders and may be right or not. The south end of town could also be up for some serious growth if allowed. The sewer and water are now run and development will follow. So as a life long resident I feel that if the writer who claims right by longevity is a business operator downtown, the a boycott of his establishement is in the interests of one and all. We do nto need such bigoted, small minded people around us in Suffolk!
So now, let us know who you are and where your shop is so we can all stay away, along with our dollars!
Please copy and paste back in where my business was mentioned. There is no such comment nor is there a business. I was born here and Im tired of the attacks on the downtown area.I prefer to support my "neighbors" in the east, west and south. I only hear the complaint that all of the growth is being pushed,steered, directed and offered tax breaks by the council and mayor to the north portions of the of the city. Downtown has been ignored like the Obici properties and its time for ALL Suffolkinas to see that the ignoring stops.The northern tax payers have reaped the benefits of the downtown being ignored including the south, east and west Its time to stop complaining about the cultural arts center, the fairground projects,crime or any other project that is presented from within or from outside sources. Why wasnt there a pitch for Centerpoint to be built up north or out to the east. It would have been closer to the Port of Hampton Roads. The condition of downtown is no different than the Obici estate, its been ignored by choice and politics.Zoning is changed to appease someone else's interest not the city's.We were a city of 12,000 and now we are 80,000 + and will be growing as we should. Its time to support the city as a whole.Im sorry but the financial institutions run by some good folks are not inclined to provide funds for any small business owner in the downtown area. I know first hand, there have been some discussions with an attorney hired to speak and inquire on ones behalf.The spokesperson employed was not from Suffolk which could have been good but also bad. (Something about maybe the network) The question was why not consider up north. The reply was why? The city leaders are they so embarrassed that they can't admit they have neglected downtown or the Obici property. They cant admit nor can the previous leaders that the old city is a plight that they created. The real estate moguls cant admit they are as guilty. When was the ciy as a whole offered to any business who was considering Suffolk. The conflicts of interest there are none? None have been created? I am not against growth. It is known that the northern folks only want it for their part and want the real hub of the city to as they say "wish for it to die"
It is clear that city adminstratos over the last 15 years have the same thinking.Why not just hire someone to come in and have a controlled burn or just implode every structue. It would be much faster to kill it off.
Bigots? Look no further than Market Street and North Suffolk they are bigoted towards downtown and its residents.If I had a bussiness downtown it and others are already being boycotted. So there is nothing new other than you are promoting it. So who is the bigot now? And you question who the adult with a small mind is? Blood boiling? I will leave you and your own bigot mentality and the entire debate the following thought. "Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open you mouth and remove all doubt".
By your tyraid above you have vilotated your own principal: "Better to be silent and thought a fool, than to open you mouth and remove all doubt".
Boy you are long winded and just WRONG!
I believe Amedeo Obici was a Carpet Bagger by the lose terms of people who have no concept of the world ourside of their city. Indeed we need to drive out of this city of such myopic thinkers.
Post a Comment