http://jacksonville.com/news/georgia/2010-08-11/story/st-marys-expands-development-boundaries
What the article does not address is that under state law, if your town has a bona fide "convention center" you can increase the bed tax by 1 cent on the dollar.
Note that Bird was out of town during the vote on a real estate issue in executive session. Howell voted to buy the property but when Bird got back and informed him that he official book-end position was to oppose the purchase, he began to deny having so voted.
You know, Bird being skeptical about the sweetheart deals that authorities can make is really, really rich.
Bird leases enough land at the airport to have built 4, large airplane jhangars. By the terms of his lease, he can rent space in them for the storage of airplanes. In fact, he rents space for airplanes, boats, and motor homes and anything else someone might want to store in there. He is unquestionaably making something
north of $25,000 per year.
So, how much do you suppose he pays for his lease from the St.Marys Airport Authroity?
Nope, way too high. He actually pays $840.00 per year! No, that's not a misprint: $840.00 per YEAR.
Hell, Aunt B's probably pays somewhere north of that per WEEK!
Now do you gullible idiots who adore Bird understand the real reason he opposes the airport move and in fact the very reason he is on city council - where he earns another $6,000 per year to go along with his outrageously low lease price?
Corection: Thanks to the alert and informed reader who phoned to let me know that I had transposed the numbers. Bird pays not $840 per year but a measely $480.00!
It gets even better.Bird has a 25 year lease. At the end of the 25 years, ownership of the $75,000 worth of hangers he's built on the property reverts to the city. However, get this now, there is a clause in the lease which says that if for ANY REASON, the city decides to close the airport prior to the end of the 25 year lease, Bird waives the right to sue the city and agrrees that he will have no recourse but to take the hangers down at his expense and move them off of the property.
Any remaining questions as to why Bird is REALLY so adamantly opposed to moving the airport?
Thursday, August 12, 2010
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17 comments:
You forgot the council got a pay raise. He now get 9K/yr.
Note that Bird was out of town during the vote on a real estate issue in executive session.
Did they really vote IN evecutive session?
I hope not!!!!
That brings up an interesting question: if you want to bid on a piece of property, there are obvious disadvantages to coming out of exucutive session and openly voting "to bid on the Gilman boathouse." By the same token that discussing real estate acquisition is one of the exceptions allowed for in executive session, does it not also make sense that you could vote on it in executive session and keep it quiet until after the sale, or in this case, the bidding?
Anyone know if there is such an exception?
Shows what I know. I was under the impression that the governing body could discuss the three allowable topics in exec. session legal, hr, and property, however, couldnt actually vote. Were you at this meeting? If so do you recall what was said, if anything, about activity of the exec session?
Now what would I be doing there (yet?)
It seems logical to me that if you have to come out in open session and reveal that you voted to buy X piece of property, you negated the whole reason for going into executive session on a property acqusition.
Let me check with city hall Monday.
Jay,
I believe that you are quite mistaken in your interpretation of Mr. Bird's lease. Nothing in the lease precludes his right to seek compensation for any losses due to closure of the airport. Also, he is not required to remove the hangars at his expense if the airport is closed although he may be allowed to if he wishes.
It has always been the stated goal of the city and the FAA,in the event of airport relocation, to cause no financial harm to the businesses presently located at the airport. This would probably include relocating these businesses to the new airport at no cost to them.
Buzzard
So, Greg, you dug out a copy f your lease, did you?
For some strange reason, the only copy the city clerk has access to is for one .15 acre parcel and one hanger for $10.00 per month.
(I'll publish that whne I'm not busy.)
Are there three more just like it?
You can e-mail copies to me , if you like.
jaymor@tds.net
Jay,
Greg probably has copies of all four leases; I don't. I do know that Terry Floyd wrote the leases and registered them. I have no idea why Mr. Floyd would have written four leases instead of putting everything on one but, since he did, I assume that he made sure that there were four properly executed leases.
That aside, what are you comments on the points I brought to your attention in my prior post?
Buzzard
With the start of three college courses (one with a pain-in-the-ass, lefty mandated public service project), Lions, Camden Citizens Academy, St. Marys 101, and sundry other committments,
I'm a little busy right now. I'll get back to you on that when I publish the one I do have.
Jay,
I'm still waiting for your answer regarding Mr. Bird's lease. Do you find language in the lease and in the RS&H Study that makes it more advantageous for Mr. Bird if the airport is not relocated?
Buzzard
Jay,
Do you actually have a copy of Greg's lease? I can send you a copy id you don't.
Buzzard
Yes, I do. I'll get to that this weekend.
"I believe that you are quite mistaken in your interpretation of Mr. Bird's lease. Nothing in the lease precludes his right to seek compensation for any losses due to closure of the airport. Also, he is not required to remove the hangars at his expense if the airport is closed although he may be allowed to if he wishes.
It has always been the stated goal of the city and the FAA,in the event of airport relocation, to cause no financial harm to the businesses presently located at the airport. This would probably include relocating these businesses to the new airport at no cost to them."
Jay,
May I assume that you have found nothing in Mr. Bird's lease that disproves my contention that the airport relocation would not be a great financial disadvantage to him?
Buzzard
You may, but you would be wrong.
"You forgot the council got a pay raise. He now get 9K/yr."
Wrong. It's still $500 per month for a councilman and $700. for the mayor.
"You may, but you would be wrong."
Jay,
Could you please tell us how I am wrong? I first asked you this over a week ago and you have yet to reply.
Buzzard
Sure, I could, but it's much easier to jerk you around - as was your intention when you came here.
How do you like it?
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