Chattanooga wages outpace Chattanoooga inflation

According to a report by Dave Flessner in the Chattanooga Times-Free Press, wage gains for most Chattanooga workers stayed ahead of inflation last year. The article cites government figures from the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis which reported Monday that wages and benefits paid to the typical Chattanooga worker rose 3.7 percent during 2007 while consumer prices, on average, rose 2.6 percent.

Interestingly, the article in the paper included a more positive headline: "Area wages beat inflation for now." As it appeared online, the article had a negative title: "Chattanooga: Economy to pinch pocketbooks." Online, the headline mentions nothing about the positive news from the government report. The online headline touts only the follow-up point that the good might not last. In classic style, article emphasizes the cloud that the silver lining. The format for such reporting has become trite. "Good news, but there's bad news behind it."

Similarly, article emphasizes that Chattanooga wages trail the national average: "Despite the wage gain, however, Chattanooga’s average pay of $36,077 was 17.8 percent less than the U.S. average of $43,889 last year." The article also emphasizes that Chattanooga pay trails that of Atlanta, Huntsville, Nashville, Memphis and Knoxville.

What the article fails to point out is that Chattanooga's cost of living is also less than the US average by about the same percentage, and that Chattanooga cost of living is less than Atlanta, Huntsville, Nashville and Knoxville, and comparable to Memphis. According to data accumulated by AOL Real Estate, Chattanooga's cost of living is 82.5% of the nation's cost of living, or about 17.5% less than the US average. The cost of living for the other cities: Atlanta, 103.8%; Huntsville, 87.7%; Nashville, 89.5%; and Knoxville, 87.2%. Only Memphis at 81.2% has a lower cost than Chattanooga among those cities that the article sites as those which Chattanooga trails.

The article does note that Chattanooga’s wage shortfall may diminish as higher-paying manufacturers move into the region. Such manufacturers include Volkswagen of America, Alstom Power and other automotive and nuclear-power producers. The article quotes Mayor Ron Littlefield: “We’re certainly not immune to the recession, but Chattanooga should fare better than most communities.”

Chattanooga's prospects for beating the recession quicker than other parts of the country make Chattanooga real estate a great place to look for good real estate investments.

Pictures of the car VW will produce in Chattanooga

Car and Driver has pictures of the "mule" which, according to its report, represent the car that Volkwagen will produce in Chattanooga. The article analyzes some of the strategic points behind VW's Chattanooga plan. Chattanoogans should take comfort in some of the analysis, as it seems less dependent on demand for a single model, and more a part of VWs plans to gain market share against the Honda, Toyota, and Nissan.

VW's manufacturing site in Chattanooga is just east of downtown.

Click on the picture in the article to see more photos.

Pilgrim's Pride Files for Bankruptcy

According to the Chattanoogan.com, Pilgrim’s Pride Corporation, which has a plant in Chattanooga, voluntarily filed for relief under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code on Monday. Company officials said that does not mean that plants will close.

Opinion

No one wants the plant to close. The job loss would be too great. However, few would mind if the plant moved. It is at the southern edge of the central business district of Chattanooga in an area that has great potential, both in terms of residential and commercial development.

Aerial Views from Microsoft Live

• North
  
• East
• South
• West

Aerial View from Google
Street View from Google

For more information about commercial real estate in Chattanooga, contact Benjamin Pitts.

What's an auto job worth?

Peter Luke almost asks a good question, and almost answers the question he asks. But his question and his answer are fatally incomplete in several respects. His logic is not fatally flawed; it is entirely absent.

Mr. Luke authors the Michigan Political Report, a blog on mLive.com, a site about “everything Michigan.” Mr. Luke asks, “What's an auto job worth?”

What's an auto job worth?

In Tennessee, where officials offered Volkswagen an incentive package worth $577 million to build a 2,000-worker assembly plant near Chattanooga, each job is worth about $285,000.

Translate that to the 235,000 workers employed by GM, Ford and Chrysler and the total worth of those jobs nears $70 billion. So $25 billion in federal bridge loans would seem like a relative bargain to avert bankruptcy that auto experts say would wreck the industry.

States have been providing expensive financial help to car companies for years so opposition by southern members of Congress to federal help for the domestic industry is more than inconsistent.

U.S. Rep. Zach Wamp, a Republican from Tennessee, said last week that the Detroit Three had to learn its lesson "the hard way." But hailing Volkswagen's announcement, Wamp said back in July that it was his region's "destiny" to make "the vehicles of the future."

There are several problems with Mr. Luke’s question and the four paragraphs that follow. First, local and state tax incentives cannot be compared logically to a federal loan. Second, the federal “bridge loan” to the Detroit 3 appears to be a bridge only to the next loan. Third, executives from the Detroit 3 have thus far been unable to say what they would do with the government funds. Fourth, the Volkswagen incentives include tax credits spread out over 3 decades, and infrastructure improvements with benefits lasting several years to decades, while the federal funds would get the Detroit 3 to the next quarter. Fifth, Volkswagen is profitable and its stock value is strong while the Detroit 3 are unprofitable and out of cash with near worthless stock.

Local and State Tax Incentives

An analysis by the University of Tennessee Center for Business and Economic Research (page 8) included the sources for the $577.4 Million came, and reported that it came from various city, county, and state tax breaks, infrastructure improvements, job training, and direct incentives. Apparently, none of the $577 Million came from the federal government. The Detroit 3 are not asking for state and local funds. They are asking the federal government to fund their solution. Yet Mr. Luke criticizes Wamp’s opposition to federal money for Detroit by pointing Wamp’s implicit support for state and local money for Volkswagen.

The Chattanooga Times-Free Press indicated Sunday that the federal government is providing $24 Million in direct incentives to the Volkswagen package. (The TFP’s article states that the $24 Million is included in the $577 Million, but the summary of state and local incentives in the UT-CBER report, as well as other articles from the TFP would indicate that this statement is incorrect.) If Mr. Luke did his algebra correctly by applying the $24 Million in federal funds, he might justify Detroit 3 asking the federal government for $2.8 Billion, but at almost 10-times that amount, the $25 Billion is not the bargain he claims.

Mr. Luke asserts that because states have been providing financial help for the auto industry, it is “more than inconsistent” for southern members of Congress to oppose federal funding for the auto industry. To perceived inconsistency is to fail (or refuse) to understand the difference between state government and the federal government. Just because state governments have doesn’t mean the federal government should.

Mr. Luke says, “Michigan would have given Ford hundreds of millions in tax breaks to build the cars that are the foundation of that company's destiny right here instead of Mexico.” But he offers no explanation as to why Michigan did not give incentives like Tennessee did. He notes that the Ford plant in Wixom Michigan “awaits the wrecking ball”, while Ford invests $3 Billion dollars and creates 30,000 direct and indirect jobs in Mexico. On the basis of total jobs created, Michigan and Detroit should have invested $1.443 Billion in incentives to Ford to match the state and local incentives from Tennessee and Chattanooga to Volkswagen.

“Bridge” Loans, Plans, and Payout

“Bridge loan” typically refers to a loan that keeps a business above water for a short time until additional investment or sales allow profitable repayment of the loan. The loan provides a bridge until an anticipated investment or profits eliminate the need for that debt. From testimony before the US Senate by the top executives from GM, Ford, and Chrysler, one could only conclude that the “bridge loan” would only keep the Detroit 3 above water until the next loan. When questioned about whether the Detroit 3 would be back for more money, the executives would not and could not offer any denial, indicating that they expected to be back for more, later.

Further, the Detroit 3 were unable at the last hearing to tell the Senators what they would do with the money if they got it. Supposedly, they wanted a blank check. Volkswagen got no blank check. The sources and uses of the funds – job training, infrastructure improvements, and job tax credits – and the benefits they were estimated to pay back were clear. For example, VW is investing $1 Billion in its plant. Much of that money will make its way directly into the local and state economy through grading and construction contracts. The Detroit 3 apparently want a gift.

Finally, the tax breaks offered by local and state governments to Volkswagen are spread out over the next 30 years. Similarly, the local infrastructure improvements would carry forward for decades, and benefit any manufacturer that locates in the same industrial park as Volkswagen, even if Volkswagen leaves. Spreading tax credits over a thirty-year period and offering infrastructure improvements to Volkswagen is nothing like a loan to the Detroit 3 to cover operating expenses. The Detroit 3 cannot even say that the funds they seek will create a benefit beyond the next few months, except to say that they hope, without knowing how, that the federal funds will keep them from failing, or at least defer failure.

Conclusion

Do not misunderstand this response: the Detroit 3 are not necessarily the problem. Chattanooga and Tennessee would likely have been just as happy to land the Ford plant and its 30,000 direct and indirect jobs. (The Volkwagen plant is projected to create between 11,000 and 12,000 direct and indirect jobs.) Why didn’t Ford look in Tennessee? or in Michigan? Why is it that Volkswagen can put a plant in the US but Ford can’t? The answer has little to do with state and local incentives, or even federally funded “bridge loans”.

Mr. Luke may ultimately be right that the federal government should offer bridge loans to the Detroit 3. But even conceding that, Mr. Luke is wrong when he asserts that it is inconsistent to support state funding while opposing federal funding. 

Volkswagen Leases 30,000 SF in Downtown Chattanooga

According to a number of news outlets, Volkswagen Group of America has leased space in downtown Chattanoga. WTVC reports that VWGA announced today that it has signed a lease for approximately 30,000 square feet of office space at Chestnut Tower in downtown Chattanooga. The space will be used for the plant leadership, purchasing and other administrative support functions. Volkswagen will retain its office space on Discovery Drive, which will be reoriented to support positions more directly related to plant construction.

Other reports:
Chattanooga Times-Free Press
WDEF
The Chattanoogan

Chestnut Tower
Google Maps
Streetview Google Maps
Microsoft Maps Live
Microsoft Maps Live Birds Eye Aerial

Arts and Culture as an Economic Development Strategy

Earlier this week, the Michigan Municipal League in partnership with the Department of History, Arts, and Libraries (HAL) at the Detroit Area Library held a training seminar titled “Arts and Culture as an Economic Development Strategy” featuring keynote speaker Robert McNulty, the founder and president of Partners for Livable Communities.

McNulty used Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and Chattanooga, Tennessee as examples of what happens to a community when money is invested in cultural activities. Both cities were turned around positively through the investment of capital, leadership, innovation, and hard work. He noted that culture and the arts are assets to help achieve the goals of a livable community, and libraries can assist because of their unique ability to change according to community needs.

For the complete story, check the Detroit Area Library Network site.

Crye-Leike scraps plans for office building in Huntsville, AL, acquires agency in Fayetteville, TN

According to the Huntsville Times, Crye-Leike Realtors has scrapped plans to construct a three-story office building on the former Copeland's restaurant site, blaming the economic downturn.
The property is now offered at $1.85 Million.

According to the article, written by Steve Byers, company spokesman Mike Machak estimated that Crye-Leike sales are off about 30 percent so far this year. The company reported 2007 sales of $5.7 billion.

The article also reports from Machak that the company recently acquired Farm and Home Real Estate in Fayetteville, Tennessee, and plans to convert the 14-agent firm into a Crye-Leike office by Dec. 1.

UPDATE 11/14/08: 

If you desire representation in considering a purchase of the the former Copeland's restaurant site, contact Herman Walldorf & Co., Inc., 

or you may contact the owner directly:

Rob Hatchett

Regional Vice-President

Crye-Leike

Office: 423-892-1515

rob.hatchett@crye-leike.com

For information about restaurant sites in the Chattanooga area, follow this link.

Chattanooga: Planners OK downtown theater plans

Jason Reynolds, reports for the Chattanooga Times Free Press that Regional planners on Monday approved rezoning plans for the downtown Chattanooga movie theater that will replace the Bijou, though not without questioning the readiness of the design. The new 12-screen Carmike Cinemas will be at Broad and Third Streets. The back of the theater, with emergency exit ramps, will face the Creative Discovery Museum, on Chestnut Street.

For the complete story, click here. For information about Chattanooga retail space, click here.

Summit and Bridgescale Buy VIPGift

VIPGift, LLC, a leading provider of corporate and consumer incentive programs and prepaid card solutions to clients across the United States, announced today that it has received a majority investment from Summit Partners, a private equity and venture capital firm that has raised more than $11 billion since inception, and Bridgescale Partners, a late-stage venture capital and private equity firm.

“Summit Partners targets privately held companies — such as VIPGift — that have bootstrapped their businesses to profitability and established leadership positions in their industry. VIPGift’s brand equity and reputation for great customer service is second to none in the incentive industry. We are pleased to partner with VIPGift and help the company to continue extending this leadership position,” said J.J. Kardwell, a Principal with Summit Partners.

“Bridgescale Partners invests in category leading private companies in rapidly growing markets. VIPGift is the leader in the fastest growing segment of the prepaid market, with a strong track record of product innovation and customer service,” said Rob Chaplinsky, a Managing Director with Bridgescale Partners.

Press release

Miscellaneous

New Details on the Volkswagen that Chattanooga Will Build

WDEF-TV

VW pushes unveiling of concept car from LA Auto Show ths month to Detroit Auto Show in January amidst contradictory reports about the car's platform

Motor Trend

Fannie Mae home inventory from foreclosures equal to owning all homes in Chattanooga

Reuters

Nathan Lindley To Operate New Restaurant At Warehouse Row

The Chattanoogan.

NOTE: Lindley was co-founder of the St. John's Restaurant.

For information about Chattanooga Commercial Real Estate follow this link.

Volkswagen already talking about expansion in Chattanooga

The Chattanooga Times-Free Press reported this weekend that Volkswagen is already considering expansion the announced production capacity at the Chattanooga, Tennessee facility currently under construction. The article by Mike Pare reports, "The expansion would include more paint and press lines and expanded body and assembly shops, which would allow VW to double production from 150,000 vehicles a year to 300,000. The expanded facility would have the potential to produce 595,000 vehicles a year, the documents show."

The conclusion is drawn from information contained in Volkswagen's air quality permit application as presented to the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Air Pollution Control Bureau. The Parties assume that the application could be designed to keep VW's options open, and would therefore not represent concrete plans. Nevertheless, the news cannot be viewed as anything but good for Chattanooga.

For the complete story, click here. For information on the Chattanooga commercial real estate market, follow this link.

"We're No. 2!"

The state of Tennessee ranked second in Site Selection magazine's annual ranking of state business climates nationwide. Tennessee was second only to North Carolina. The ranking is based on two components: 1) surveys of site selection professionals, and 2) actual business expansion activity as tracked by the magazine's "proprietary New Plant database."

The results are the cover story for the magazine, but the web version is a little light on discussion of Tennessee, focusing mostly on No. 1 North Carolina. The angle is North Carolina Governor Mike Easley's understandable commitment to NASCAR.

If half of the measure is performance based, it would seem to bode well for Tennessee's future rankings as the "proprietary New Plant database" reflects the new plants related to Volkswagen and its suppliers who locate in the Chattanooga area.

Read the complete web article on Site Selection magazine's web site.

Knoxville delegation to Germany considers follow-up trip

According to the Knoxville News, the portion of Governor Phil Bredesen's delegation to Germany that went to represent the Knoxville and Oak Ridge area is considering a return trip.  The report quotes Kim Denton, president of the Oak Ridge Economic Partnership, saying there also has been discussion of a possible follow-up trip to solidify relationships made during the trip. "I think the follow-up is really important," she said. "I think continuing to develop those relationships is really important, and if a follow-up trip is necessary, then I think we'll explore that as well."

Denton is reported to have said that in addition to developing relationships, a goal was to create an awareness of how close the Knoxville-Oak Ridge area is to the Volkswagen facility. The group distributed cards that showed a map of East Tennessee and had a Top 10 list of reasons why the Knoxville-Oak Ridge location is perfect for Volkswagen suppliers, including the fact that the plant will be just over 100 kilometers away and that "The Tennessee Valley Authority offers affordable electricity and exceptional reliability."
The group also distributed flash drives with data about sites and buildings in the region that are suitable for automotive suppliers.

Barnes & Noble to open new store in Hamilton Place November 12

Barnes & Noble will open its new Chattanooga store on November 12 at Hamilton Place, according to a press release from Barnes & Noble. A preview party, including a ribbon cutting ceremony, begins at 6PM on November 11.

Hamilton Place Mall is bounded by I-75, Shallowford Rd, and Gunbarrel Rd in Chattanooga.

Former Prize Corp (now izmocars) locates offices downtown

izmocars, which purchased Chattanooga's Prize Corporation and provides CRM products for the auto industry, has located its offices downtown, according to a press release. The offices will be at 1 Central Plaza, located at the corner of Cherry St and MLK Blvd.

The release does not say how much square footage or how many employees the offices will have, but it does demonstrate the possibilities of smaller offices and time addressing the issues presented by the new Blue Cross campus and the related for potential office vacancies in downtown Chattanooga.

For the complete press release click here.

Could Chattanooga get more of Volkswagen expanding production plans?

As Volkswagen's $900 Million auto assembly facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee moves forward, more reports indicate that Chattanooga has good prospects to get more of the $4 Billion that Volkswagen currently has earmarked for production facilities. The Parties recently featured a report from German auto magazine Auto Motor und Sport about the possibility of the hybrid technology being produced in Chattanooga. Expanding on that report, Motor Authority reported today that there will certainly be North American production of the hybrid technology, which probably means either expanding the VW drive train assembly plant in Mexico, or the new VW auto assembly plant in Chattanooga. Since the site will be developing VW's own hybrid technology, at least some of the jobs should be research and engineering intensive.

Further, the Motor Authority article quotes VW board member Werner Neubauer as saying that additional production facilities for VW's next-generation, state-of-the-art dual clutch gears will be produced in North America, and indicates that the facility for the dual clutch will be either Mexico or Chattanooga.

If the hybrid drive train assembly plant is similar in job creation to gas-powered drive train assembly plants, it could mean 750 to 1,500 more jobs. Add the dual clutch assembly facility, and it could double the number of VW jobs announced so far. The impact will be far reaching, increasing demand not just for Chattanooga manufacturing space, but for Chattanooga retail and office space, too.

Click here for the complete report from Motor Authority.

VW CEO Says Audi Needs U.S. Production to Meet Sales Goals

It appears increasingly certain that Audi will announce US production facilities in 2009, and increasingly likely that if they make that announcement, it may well involve Chattanooga.

Today, Motor Trend reports, "In the past six months, Audi has gone from mulling over the idea of a U.S. production plant to now needing one, according to Volkswagen Group CEO Martin Winterkorn. Ever since Volkswagen announced its intentions to build an assembly plant stateside, Audi has sniffing around for one of their own and the latest reports indicate that a possible plan to produce Audis at Volkswagen's plant rather than build a second plant is the most likely scenario. Winterkorn, though, wouldn't confirm just where Audis will be built in the future."

The story includes some details an and links to other stories supporting the speculation that the VW plant will produce both Audi and perhaps Porsche.

See the complete story here.

Volkert commissioned to study traffic patterns around VW Plant

According to a report by Cliff Hightower in today's Chattanooga Times Free press, The city has commissioned a study in hopes of mapping out traffic patterns around the most notable industrial development site in Chattanooga, Enterprise South industrial park, the future home of the Volkswagen auto assembly plant. The city commissioned the study in anticipation of the thousands of workers connected with the Volkswagen plant and its suppliers, officials said.

The report includes links to PDFs of the study points and map.

See the complete story here.

Further Evidence of Volkswagen's Bigger Plans

Cookeville-Putnam Chamber of Commerce President George Halford was a part of the recent delegation to Germany, and he returned telling the Cookeville Herald Citizen, "This project is bigger than big. It's bigger than we expected." Halford said, "They could double the size of this plant. The $1 billion investment could double. There's going to be a lot of business heading our way."

Despite the project being bigger than expected, Halford still apparently sees a lot of competition. "Just in the state of Tennessee, within 90 miles of the Volkswagen plant, there are 346 industrial sites, 192 available buildings and 19,433 acres available for industry," Halford said. "This just shows the level of competition that we're working against. I didn't realize there were that many sites."

City of Pikeville to buy plant in hopes of attracting VW supplier

According to a report in the Chattanooga Times Free Press, the city of Pikeville is buying the former Dura Automotive Plant in the industrial park in hopes of attracting one of the suppliers that will locate in the area to serve the Volkswagen assembly plant in Chattanooga.

According to the article, the Pikeville plant has about 140,000 Square Feet and sits on 15.5 Acres. The aerial image comes from Mapquest.

The plant sits about 90 minutes from the site of the VW plant, according to a route map from Google, shown below.


View Larger Map

Interested parties might contact the city of Pikeville directly, or if they desire independent assistance in inquiring about this property, they may contact a commercial Realtor®: Benjamin Pitts, Commercial Realtor® at Herman Walldorf & Company at (800) 489-2402. (Information contained herein deemed reliable but not guaranteed.)

VW says to make hybrid parts on its own

A Volkswagen official told German auto magazine Auto Motor und Sport magazine that VW will produce its hybrid drive trains itself, according a report by Reuters. Other manufacturers have bought their hybrid drive trains, but according to the article quoting VW executive Werner Neubauer, VW sees this as an opportunity to gain a competitive edge.

The Parties have speculated about the location of a hybrid drive train assembly plant in Chattanooga. The VW drive train assembly plant in Mexico will supply the Chattanooga auto assembly plant with gasoline and diesel drive trains. Though VW officials have said that the Chattanooga plant might produce hybrid vehicles, the Mexico plant (according other blogs read by the Parties) is not set to manufacture hybrid drive trains. That fact is implicitly confirmed by Mr. Neubauer when he says that VW is considering "expanding its plant in Mexico or building a new site in the United States." It makes complete sense for that drive train assembly plant to be located in Chattanooga.

The speculation about a Chattanooga-based hybrid drive train assembly plant arose as the Parties tried to figure out Congressman Zach Wamp's math in the days following the original announcement about the VW plant in Chattanooga. The Parties were trying to evaluate the impact of the announcement on the Chattanooga real estate market, and were researching what types and how many total jobs would come from the jobs at VW.

Wamp (and others) said that the plant would yield 14,000 total jobs from the 2,000 jobs at VW. The Parties considered that number extraordinary. That many jobs would require a 7x multiplier of the jobs at VW. Economic impact studies of other plants have indicated valid multipliers at between 3.75x and 4.25x. The UT/CBER projections by economist Dr. William Fox had a multiplier of about 5.25x, using base data from the US Department of commerce. The 7x number was 30% to 40% higher than the next highest numbers used by any intelligent analysis.

The Wamp number at 7x could be explained a few different ways: 1) irrational exuberance; 2) plans that were not yet public. If the 14,000 job number was irrational, Rep. Wamp probably would have been the only one to use it, yet others did (though the Parties acknowledge that multiple people can quote a single, overly optimistic source).

On the other hand, perhaps the number is rational. Assuming the 14,000 job result and Dr. Fox's 5.25 multiplier, to validate the result, the Parties calculate that VW would have to employ about 2,700; using a 4x multiplier from other sources, VW would have to employ about 3,500. Those numbers are between 700 and 1,500 more jobs than VW originally announced. The employment numbers for drive train assembly plants fall squarely within that range. If such a plant were to be built by VW close to its announced auto assembly plant, then the Wamp number would make complete sense.

The Parties look forward to the prospects of Chattanooga hosting a hybrid drive train plant. It would be entirely consistent with Chattanooga's efforts toward sustainable manufacturing.

Northeast Alabama Courts Volkswagen Suppliers

Alabama firms providing parts for the state's auto industry see Volkswagen's plan for an assembly plant in neighboring Tennessee as a chance to expand.

About 20 industry recruiters from several Alabama cities plan to spend this week in Germany courting Volkswagen suppliers. A Tennessee delegation went on a similar mission last week.

In July, Chattanooga, Tenn. won the $1 billion assembly plant that had been sought for Huntsville, Ala.

From the Associated Press as reported in the Columbian.com

Ever wonder what Alec Taylor is up to?

He always was pretty good at PR. He is now Chairman and CEO of FGX International. They make sunglasses.
The Providence Journal

Not sure why Lamar said this - what's to be gained?

"U.S. Sen. Lamar Alexander, R-Tenn., worried in a speech on the Senate floor last week that the tumult in the credit market was hurting Volkswagen’s access to credit financing, possibly hurting car sales and perhaps even plans for VW’s $1 billion plant in Chattanooga.
"VW spokeswoman Jill Bratina countered that the company has plenty of credit and still plans to build its plant."
Chattanooga Times Free Press

EMJ gets contract related to VW work

"The city of Chattanooga plans to enter into a $2.25 million agreement with EMJ Corp. for the company to administrator contracts related to the construction of Volkswagen’s new plant.
Lee Norris, the city’s deputy administrator of public works, said there will be a lot of construction and other contracts signed related to the building of the $1 billion plant over the next couple of years.
He said the city doesn’t have the staff to administer the contracts, but EMJ does."
Chattanooga Times Free Press

Chattanooga Mayor on Panel for Green Development in Pittsburgh

According to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, Chattanooga Mayor, Ron Littlefield, was a part of a panel of four "experts" on green development brought to the Neville Island area of Pittsburgh, PA by Carnegie Mellon University. Neville Island was an industrial site and hazardous waste dump. The panel spent two "intensive" days studying the site, its progress, and its plans, then making recommendations.

Complete Story

Forbes Article Features Chattanooga "Rebirth"

Forbes Magazine recently featured an article on Chattanooga's rebirth through technology. The article provides a good rundown of the last couple of decades of economic history in Chattanooga and shows why the current economic state might be considered a "rebirth".

Complete Article

Chattanooga Condo Market Stable

From WRCB-TV 3:

"All real estate is local," said Randy Durham. And that is good news, considering.
Monday evening, NBC Nightly News featured condominium complexes across the country that have gone bust. But, here in Chattanooga, even with new construction going up seemingly everywhere...along the Northshore, downtown and the Southside...the condo market remains steady.

Full Report

Chattanooga Real Estate Market Makes Positive Move

From the Chattanoogan:
According to figures released by the Chattanooga Association of Realtors Multiple Listing Service, Southeast Tennessee and Northwest Georgia saw a combined 489 listings sold in the month of February. This figure represents a 15 percent decline in sales from the same month in 2007, though it was also recognized as the region's third best real estate year on record.

The Chattanoogan

Schimpf Taking Over Riverfront Project as Florida Developer Bows Out

From the Chattanoogan:
Developer Buck Schimpf said he is taking over a multi-million-dollar downtown riverfront project announced earlier by a Florida developer.Mr. Schimpf said he is set to close on the purchase of just under six acres at the old Gilman Paint site on April 3.He said the project will include a hotel, restaurant, a new marina, condominiums and townhomes.

The Chattanoogan

Westinghouse wins tax break, but will pay schools portion

From the Chattanooga Times Free Press: Westinghouse Electric Co. on Tuesday won an 11-year property tax break related to its planned expansion slated to add 52 jobs in Chattanooga. But, in what’s believed to be a first for a payment in lieu of tax agreement in Hamilton County, Westinghouse will continue to pay the schools portion of its tax bill, an official said. “That’s something we’ve struggled with here,” said Dan Mayfield, chairman of the county’s Industrial Development Board, which approved the tax break. “It’s great you’re using this project to set a precedent."

Chattanooga Times Free Press

BRT Acquires Chattanooga Garden Apartments

"BRT REALTY TRUST (NYSE:BRT) reported today that it acquired by deed in lieu of foreclosure a 308 unit garden apartment complex located in Chattanooga, TN. The property, which secured a first mortgage loan with an outstanding principal balance of $25.7 million, was deeded to BRT by the borrower in accordance with the terms of a "walk-away guarantee" provided by the borrower's principal."

Trading Markets

Kinsey Probasco to redevelop ALCOA site

ALCOA announced this morning that it has signed a letter of intent with a Kinsey, Probasco and Hays to redevelop the 350-acre former ALCOA West Plant property. The West Plant, which opened in 1920, was ALCOA's first fabrication facility.

Daily Times
Knoxville News Sentinel

Chattanooga Needs a Downtown Grocery Store

It's official. Chattanooga needs another downtown grocery store. Bueller's is it. Have you been in there? Very nice folks. Interesting offerings. High prices. The planning commission has looked at Chattanooga's downtown market, and some have concluded downtown needs more than Bueller's, despite the nostalgia any downtowners may have for it.

See more in the Chattanooga Times Free Press.

Miscellaneous

Chattanooga gets downtown development ‘right’
Murfreesboro Post - Murfreesboro,TN,USA

First Security Group, Inc. Announces Webcast of Fourth Quarter Conference Call
CNNMoney.com - USA

Water plan goes to Assembly
Bainbridge Post Searchlight - Bainbridge,GA,USA

Drought, taxes top concerns among Georgians
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA

Drought spurs calls for limits on growth
Atlanta Journal Constitution - GA, USA

Developer plans hotel, condos, marina along riverfront
Chattanooga Times Free Press - Chattanooga,TN,USA

Renovation to bring old inn that hosted presidents back to life
Knoxville News Sentinel - Knoxville,TN,USA

Civic Competition
Friendly rivalry continues as growing Knoxville and Chattanooga try to keep pace
Knoxville News Sentinel

Section By Old Stringer's Ridge Road Is Little Changed
by John Wilsonposted
A 100-acre section proposed for development along historic Stringer's Ridge is remarkably unchanged from the days when the ridge was traversed by wagons and when the Union Army came calling.
The Chattanoogan - Chattanooga,TN,USA

New Fort Oglethorpe council plans for coming issues
Catoosa County News - Ringgold,GA,USA

Stringer's Ridge developer sticks with plan
Chattanooga Times Free Press - Chattanooga,TN,USA