I must admit that I have been unusually busy lately and have neglected to do much writing on IS. Like most people these days, I have been trying to make a living under a new set of demands, where taxes and costs for everything are higher and what we make is a lot less.
However, tonight I was reading about the “Ugly Truth about State Pensions”. Even the most casual observers understand that the feds are printing money like crazy, but the states cannot and they even have strict limits on borrowing, too. One must also recognize that much of what is driving these defecits is the burden of ever rising costs to the fastest growing group of retirees in the USA, and that is for state pensions. This is one of the fastest growing expenses the states owe and will grow even more under the present system. The article went on to describe the situation in dire detail, but I was thinking about how this could affect us locally, in little Suffolk?
So I pondered: Who is the largest pension investor in Suffolk? Wrong, it is not the city; it is CenterPoint our newest sugar daddy.
Anyone remember last year, when our Suffolk leadership approved a huge new development out on Route 58, along “Hamburger Alley” over the concerns of one and all?
CenterPoint describes themselves on their website: “After 12 years as a public industrial real estate company, CenterPoint was acquired by CalEast Global Logistics in March 2006. CalEast is a leading investor in logistics warehouse and related real estate whose members include the California Public Employees Retirement System (CalPERS) and LaSalle Investment Management.”
So I was thinking… What might happen to the big plans for CenterPoint out on Route 58, as they see more redemptions and a bigger drain on funds by retirees? Might CenterPoint be a bit slow to do what they said they would after all, given the direction of the economy?
This may derail, so to speak a huge project. Do we have a plan if this project fails? I doubt it as they still don’t have a plan for all those trucks, either… Comments???
Roger A. Leonard
Suffolk…
19 comments:
ANOTHER WHAT IF. Can you imagine what would happen in North Suffolk if the Federal Government ever went broke and had to quit feeding the defense industry up there. High paying jobs could become no paying jobs.
This from the Pilot.
"The San Diego-based company held a ribbon-cutting Monday morning with local executives and government officials. Sen. Jim Webb, whom the company credits with securing a $1.6 million contract to build parts for an air-launched decoy system for the Air Force, said: "The real guests of honor here today are the new employees who are going to be operating this facility during the months and years ahead," Webb said. "The decision to launch this state-of-the-art production facility is great news for Suffolk, is great news for Virginia and is great news for the national security of our country." The company employs 18 at the plant, but Cobham plans to employ 198 workers in Suffolk by 2014 with average salaries estimated at about $43,000. The company, a subsidiary of Great Britain-based Cobham Plc, had planned to build a $13.2 million manufacturing plant in the Northgate Commerce Park. That deal faltered, but in October, the Suffolk Economic Development Authority said it would give $824,400 to keep the project in the city."
What if the city offices and courts moved away from downtown? There are no new big employers in downtown. Planters and Lipton could close the shutters at the whim of their parent companies. Sentara Obici and NSA are in Chuckatuck. Most would say that couldn't happen, but then no one expected a National Socialist in the White House. How's that hope and change workin out for ya folks?
Webb is treading water as best as he can after he bit-h slapped us by voting infavor of the Stimulus, Healthcare and Employment legislations. I cannot wait to take this sorry example of a decorated veteran out of office and show him the door to a San Franciscan bath house.
Centerpoint instead of becoming a container consolidating facility could become the location for the new Southside elementary school. It will happen if the school name, the real estate broker and the strip mall nextdoor has Johnson in it.
Good stuff ROGER. At least we have one thinking guy in SUFFOLK! I expect that like usual in Suffolk we will plod along and never see it coming. The real question is when all those promises the mayor made will be kept if ever.
If Paul Fraim can get re-elected with his poor record, rest assured Linda Johnson can. To beat them you have to be a bigger braggart, and money grubber.
Where did the EDA get the $824,000 it gave to keep the project alive?
Cobham also received a 1.6 million
contract before the paint on the front door wsas dry. If it falters again do we get our money back?
More good news about the failure of Suffolk economic lies told to spend our money. Johnson and Company seem never to run out of new ways to spend, so that their friends can pocket it all. Suffolk has become a bigger joke than Portsmouth and that says a lot. We need a real mayor and council, not what we have. These kind of deals must end and now!
It sounds and looks like this pipe-dream is about as money savey as the SCCA project was for us. Mayor Johnson has done little to lead in these issues and no one wants to cross her on that. Where is the big businessman Pair? He seats on council and puffs all th etime, but nothing on what counts. Is it possible that he will get another 4 years? One can hope not!
There are four large warehouses one empty or virtually empty the other empty in Windsor, one on 460 empty and one on Kenyon Rd. empty and I think the one one Kenyon Rd. has been empty for about two years.Why would Center Point build storages costing millions and think they could lease or sell them and the operator be in competition with storages that are now handling all cargo from the ports. What makes Center Point think all the many business and firms that have warehouses now handling and storing their cargo are going to leave those warehouses, if they are getting service for a fair price now, and go to a warehouse with a new operator. Center Point creating thousands of jobs, right.
City Councilman Barclay should share with us his opinion of Centerpoint. Being a local lawyer with absolutely no international business experience makes him fully qualified to understand the global dynamics of containerzed shipping.
Why not put the empty warehouses to work for the betterment of downtown? I'm surprised Andy Damiani didn't think this one up. There are hundreds if not thousands of parking spaces available around the long vacant warehouses. He could set up a bus service to shuttle the throngs of visitors back and forth to Andyville and Garciaton. It could include a slight detour to the Great Dismal Swamp to take a look at the little birdies. It could be called Suffolk Urban Commuter Service or SUCS for short. I'll bring it up at the next DBA meeting.
How many foreclosuers are there so far this year up in Utopia? More on the way ya think? How about that non issue with crime?
Arson, abandoned children, murders, bank robberies all in our little beautiful haven called downtown. Haven't heard too much going on up yonder. Guess they're busy working for their pay check to care about us. Well we're going to show them who's the boss, right Linda?!
yep there is no reason to have a gang task force to combat gangs at all. What was the count on homes foreclosed on lasts count?
I just got down to this story by Roger and I am happy to see he is still writing on here. We need to hear more Roger. By the way, what happended to your friendship with Linda Johnson and why has she turned out so badly as Mayor?
Keep writin the real news and do not let up!
IT will tune out that the only ones to make money on this deal for huge wharehouses will be the people like the mayor and council. Why are we all so stupid when it comes to these things? Wonder how much Parr made off this?
Over 5000 trucking companies have gone bust.Over 4000 ships sit idle. Business at the Port of Hampton Roads is down. And you are asking where are the trucks?Have you read that Europe is about to go bust?
Post a Comment