Boston Herald Story

Click here. Story, more or less, about the irony of Peter Blute (ex head of MassPort) doing for Direct Air and Massport/ORH. But what caught my eye was

"The radio spots are part of a $300,000 federal grant to tout the airport and Direct Air, a new airline that flies from Worcester to Florida and Myrtle Beach."

We spent the last $300,000 in the Small Community Air Service Grant on Direct Air. Looking back we only spent less then $25,000 on Allegiant and over $100,000 on IMG and now $300,000 on Direct Air. We spent this money horribly.

Lastly where the hell did the spend the $300,000????

1% Percent Arguement

I am so sick of people saying 1%, no big deal. First of all in the case of the meals tax it is really 2%, 1% by the Commonwealth and 1% by the City of Worcester. Lets look at it for what it really is a

40% increase in the meals tax.

This week any bills I get, I am going to take 1% off them and pay them and tell people "whats the big deal, it is only 1%."

Cab Driver Breaks up Robbery

Telegram story, anyone hear from Jeff?

Clive McFarlane Story

Yesterday's paper Clive had a story in the Telegram titled "City Can Run Just Fine on Bare Bones". I actually was looking forward to reading what he had to say. In the article he went after two departments--the Forestry and Law Department. I have dealt with both departments and they are both two of the better run departments in the City of Worcester.

Great title but the story should have focused on the millions that can be saved if we:

1. privatize the airport
2. privatize the golf course
3. privatize DCU
4. privatize Union Station
5. stop anymore low to mod income housing developments
6. stop guaranting 5.8 million dollars when there is no foreseeable means of paying it back unless there are more Federal monies coming to pay the loan

Allegiant Keeps Expanding

note this link anonymous sent in.

Allegiant is expecting another strong year ahead. "The world has not ended," Allegiant CEO Maurice is quoted as saying by BusinessRockford.com. "It is hard to get that message across." As for growth, ATW reports Allegiant "will add four MD-80s to its fleet in the first half of 2009." And BusinessRockford.com writes Allegiant also "is planning to announce either a new focus city or another service expansion, officials said in a conference call with investors."

Fox UnderCover

Tonight there is suppose to be a segment on how people buy or rent "low to mod" income housing, rent them out to someone else, and pocket the difference while living somewhere else.

Here is the link, thank Jeff, click here.

Watch the video, the City of Boston does not want to do anything about since they would be violation of the low to mod income requirement and they (the City of Boston) and would have to pay the back any HUD monies that went to this unit on behalf of the person in question. The answers from the lady from the BRA are hillarious.

Cost of Public Housing

Jahn has been saying this for months, but we need to look at the hidden costs of all these high density low to mod income housing. Today Dewey sent me an article from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette, where the future Red Sox right fielder grew up.

Read this one line as to why the school budget has gone 42% in the past three years:

"We have the highest concentration of public housing of all Allegheny County," Ms. Serenka said, "and, we believe, in the state."

In fact, the Executive Director of the South Worcester Neighborhood Center has used the fact Canterbury Street School enrollment is down and we do not want it to be closed as a reason why we need Southgate place, 25 low income apartments at the former City Builders site.

Price Rite on Southbridge

Let stress this is from the RUMOR MILL.

Opening has been delayed indefinately since the building location violates zoning set backs and they can not get an occupancy permit?

Again purely rumor but somewhat reliable. Posting here to get feedback.

Flat Screen TV at Prisons

Click here for Boston Herald Story

Expanded Bottle Bill

Read about it in the Telegram today. Just another tax and another way to make small businesses uncompetitive.

Lets go back to cigarettes again. In Worcester the cigaretter business has been hurt up North it has been crushed by the latest $1 per pack tax that in the end has resulted in less total tax collections. Why stop there lets move into non-carbonated drinks and add a deposit.

People will say that the cost of these items will only go up .05 per bottle, but that is never the case. There is a cost now to handle and process the empties at both the whole and retail level so the cost will go up more, not to mention the cash that will now be tied up in these deposits. A fair estimate that the cost at the retail level will go up to consumer by about $2 per case, not $1.20 based on a case of 24.

Now lets assume you live in Northern Mass and you could buy a case of water for $8 in New Hampshire or $10 in Massachusetts, what would you do? Proponents will say that you will get you monies back when you bring back the empties but in this case you get $1.2, bring you to $9.20 not $10.00. Bottom line is that this passage will make Massachusetts even more uncompetitive and hurt retail businesses even more.

Here is the dirty rottten secret. For the people who don't return their deposits and simply throw them away, who gets that money. Not the retailers, not the wholesalers but the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Read the article, the Commonwealth expects to collect $20 million in unredeemed deposits.

In summary:

1. this is just another tax on the people of Massachusetts
2. another blow to the competitiveness of Massachusetts retailers and wholesalers

At least we may be able to collect a toll when people drive across the border to buy their alcohol, cigarettes, lottery and now uncarbonated businesses.

Worcester Section 108 Loans

This is an older link from 2003. Sorry could not find anything newer. It lists, on page 3, some 29 million in HUD guaranteed loans that the City of Worcester has made, current balance and who are the recipients. It accurately points out that Gardner Kilby Hammond will be 5.8 million.

Here is my question. Should we not hold Gardner Kilby Hammond accountable for not paying back the 5.8 million dollar loan the City of Worcester guaranteed for them??

HUD Section 108 Loan

Found this story in the Republican Herald in Pennsylvania. It is about a larger retailer in Pennsylvania, Boscov's, looking for two counties to help them out with 35 million in guaranteed HUD Section 108 loans.

Although the two counties want to help out the retailer and keep them in business, they were concerned as to what would happen if Boscov's was unable to pay back the 35 million themselves. The State of Pennsylvania's Department of Community and Economic Development wrote a letter to the two counties and I quote:

“...in the event of a default by Boscov’s NEWCO in repaying the 108 Loan, the Department will make the necessary payments on the 108 Loan so that the Community Development Block Grant funds otherwise available to Schuylkill County will not be seized by HUD (Housing and Urban Development) as permitted under the 108 Contract for repayment of the 108 Loan."

Even though the state of Pennsylvania is saying that they will cover the loan in the event Boscov's defaults and their CDBG funds will not be lost, they still would not do it. Why?

“How can you guarantee a loan by the state if we’re already $2.6 billion in debt?” Butler County Commissioner James L. Kennedy said in a telephone interview Friday.

In Worcester, we took out a guaranteed 5.8 million Section 108 HUD loan without, as far as I can tell, without any idea how we would pay it back other then the hope of additional Federal monies to make the annual payment.

Job Cuts

Spint -- 8000 jobs
Home Depot -- 7000 jobs
Caterpillar-- 5000 jobs
Microsoft--- 5000 jobs

Maybe the Commonwealth of Massachusetts reduce its workforce to balance the budget like private industry?

Take Back Beacon Hill

Website

Local Aid Cuts

Just noticed this line in yesterday's Telegram:

Mr. O’Brien said. He also said the city would like to see the state take on the entire cost of operating the airport, which amounts to $1.2 million on the city budget each year.

Why would the state take on the entire cost of operating ORH, especially now when the Commonwealth is struggling? We need to do two things right now:

1. Request a report as to how much would be saved if we were to downgrade to General Aviation?
2. Put together a RFP to out right sell or lease long-term the entire airport?

Happy New Year

Business is booming on Canterbury Street as it is Chinese New Year tomorrow. Many parties tonight.

Local Aid Cut 4.5 Million

Note story in Today's Telegram. Thats alot of money. Why don't we put up tolls on 290 on the Worcester border and collect money?

On a serious note I could save this $4.5:

1. Privatize ORH and allow a company like AvPorts to take over ORH if they agree to take over the operating and debt service for 20 years.
2. Privatize Green Hill and have a company like Johnson Gold take over Green Hill
3. Privatize the DCU Center
4. Hire a company like EduClean take over janitorial services at the public schools and any other public buildings that require janitorial services
5. Stop giving anymore subsidies to Low Income Housing projects by that I mean no more waiving permitting fees, no more waiving water/sewer fees, no more grant monies, etc

Section 108 HUD Loan

Sorry this loan is really driving me crazy..... Currently we are using unexpended CDBG funds, but eventually when we run out of unexpended of expended CDBG funds , how do we pay back the loan?

I went on the HUD website:

Loan Security

The principal security for the loan guarantee is a pledge by the applicant public entity or the State (in the case of a nonentitlement public entity) of its current and future CDBG funds. Additional security will also be required to assure repayment of guaranteed obligations. The additional security requirements will be determined on a case-by-case basis, but could include assets financed by the guaranteed loan.


In other words once the unexpended CDBG funds are spent then are current CDBG fund allocations will be cut to cover the payment. We need to take a look back at how we thought we were going to pay back this loan to avoid making this mistake again.

Southgate Place EPA Meeting

February 9th at 5:30PM at the South Worcester Neighborhood Center (SWNIC) there will be a public meeting on the 73,500 EPA Grant that is being given to SWNIC to clean up the old City Builders site. Keep in mind since SWNIC is a non-profit, they do not have to pay these monies back.

I am submitting one question:

I would like you to get in writing from the EPA that if this land is later sold to a for profit entity, within the next 5 years, will the grant become payable?

5.8 Million HUD Loan

Senator Jahn, I am totally confused. The City takes out a 5.8 million dollar for site acquisition, demolition and preparation of a 7.5-acre parcel in Main South, so it could be redeveloped. O'kay so far so good.

I assumed the City of Worcester took out this loan to kick start the project, but would get monies back from the parties benefiting from the clean-up (Main South CDC, The Boys Club and Clark). These monies monies would in turn be used to pay off the loan? The way I read Nick's story the City of Worcester was depending on the Feds to make the payments on the loan, that they in fact gave to us, does this make sense?

All the monies that were spent to acquire and clean up the land, did we not get any money back in sales or rental income? Someone help me understand this loan.