byte&chew

Are we smarter now?

Well, let's see if I can come up with something more worthy of the reader than the last spoof I called a post.  I think I wish to talk a little more about the opportunity we have with the availability to secure most of the township of Success. There's no question in my mind that the City missed a great opportunity to either acquire or control the former mill property. We now look at that ugly boiler and stack and for my part, see nothing promising for Berlin. What I see there on the mill site just reminds me of the past, it's like keeping your x-wife's shoes at the bottom of the bed! The real question we need to ask ourselves now is if we're going to make the same mistake with the Success lands? Success in my book is even more crucial than the boiler and stack because it has the potential of becoming a major economic boost to the City. Let's face it, in reality what would the Laidlaw biomass plant really do for Berlin other than make the City look like a mill town?Laidlaw claims it would create 40 jobs, yeah and they closed on the property last week! There isn't one biomass plant around that has 40 employees, that number was part of the PR to impress us. Most of these plant employ 20 to 30 people at best. Then there's the claim that they'll pay $1.5M in taxes. Sure, and you know what the bear does in the woods!  Whatever assessment the City puts on that 15 year old boiler will be appealed and you can bet your last dollar that Laidlaw will take advantage of every tax abatement the law allows. There's no way they will smile and pay their taxes like you and I do, there's tax loopholes available specifically to make those types of plants financially viable. Now there's also the fact that all that fancy pollution equipment that they tell us will keep our mountain air...as good as new, yup, it will be tax exempt. So what would a Laidlaw biomass plant really pay to Berlin in taxes?  It's anybody's guess, but I'll wager that it will be a fraction of what the PR from Laidlaw says it will be. Now let's look at the potential Success brings. Although it will take a few years to recover from Dillon's rape, 15,000 acres of well managed forest land will generate hundreds of thousands of dollars worth of timber per year, it's a number that the City should be investigating. If Berlin is to have a wood pellet plant and a biomass plant and we're learning that the wood supply needs to be close by to be viable, the available wood becomes even more valuable to safeguard the jobs in those wood related industries. Next is the value of all the logging roads and trails, miles and miles of recreational opportunities! I have no idea how to put a monetary value on that, but it has to be in the thousands. There's also the potential to put other recreational opportunities there, things like motocross and 4X4 tracks. Having events that feature those types of sports would bring thousands of people to Berlin. (and spend their money) What I read in The Berlin Daily Sun yesterday about making Berlin an outdoor recreation community makes sense to me and Success fits right in on several levels. I hope that the City doesn't make the same mistake of letting Success slip through its fingers like it did with the mill property.

Don't worry, be happy!

Monday, October 27, 2008

Berlin Project Update

I've received a bunch of calls and e-mails asking for an update on the Berlin transaction.

We are still working on closing the deal and all is well. I tried to be very clear in the last announcement that the 22nd was a "tentative" date, and that our agreement allowed us extra time beyond that date to complete the transaction. I realize everyone is anxious to see it completed, but we are going as fast as we can - so please be patient.

Posted by Michael Bartoszek at 2:15 PM                                                      ...................................................................... I post this for those of you who have money invested in Laidlaw Energy and are waiting for a dividend check.       Rocky                                                                                        

Having "CLASS"

Sorry for the length of time between posts,...I'm spending too much time out of town! There's been a flurry of activity in the region with the "branding" presentation by Roger Brooks in Whitefield and the Economic Development Master Plan meeting here in Berlin Thursday night. Both of these efforts are very timely and the recommendations are extremely valuable, but only if we implement the recommendations!  The shelves in our town buildings are stacked high with previous studies and recommendations that nobody has seen the wisdom of implementing, so what's going to be different this time? Looking at the big picture and Roger Brooks views, it's obvious that he believes that we live in a very special place and that if we work at it cooperatively, we'll be able to develop a strong tourism industry. Now there's tourism and, then there's "Tourism"! Just last night I went to see what the LLG clones on I-HUB had to say, and saw a comment about tourism in Berlin and where in their feeble minds, they believe that some of us want to turn Berlin into a North Conway. If that's where I thought we were heading I'd move! The last thing I want to see in Berlin is a series of outlets and burger joints, let them congregate in Gorham where they've already prostituted the charm of their community to the Golden Arches and Wally Mart. Berlin has escaped the contamination of cheap/ugly 80's and 90's development quite ironically, because of its air pollution/paper mill stench. No lighted golden arches or cheap Motel 8 signs (blight) hiding our magnificent views or providing below poverty wages to our residents. At the moment we're facing the real threat of being so hungry for economic development that I'm afraid we would allow Motel 8 to build an ugly motel on the Rite Aid block downtown and, too many people would support the project calling it progress. If you think I'm making things up, just think of those who support the Laidlaw biomass plant downtown, a project even worse than a Motel 8. It's not any-and-all economic development projects that are in our best interest. We need to focus on those which "fit" within what is so unique and special about our region and our community. Tourism with class does exist, we only need to look at the Balsams, the Mountain View Grand, the Mount Washington Hotel and Santa's Village. The other night, Roger Brooks was quick to point out that we're the only County in the Country where there's 3 Grand Hotels and that, we need to build our economy around "that class" of tourism. Berlin is minutes away from some of the best skiing, best fishing, best snowmobiling, best ATV'ing, best mountain climbing in the east, why not be the go to/best place to play and stay community. We need to shed our low self esteem mentality that was induced by the stench of the pulp mill. Let's open our eyes to the fact that we live in a beautiful place and, beautiful places are where people love to go (and spend their money). We need to strut our stuff, hide our prisons, get rid of that ugly boiler and stack and keep the National Guard out of Success. We are better and, better looking than all of that and, we can become more than the lowest common denominator of economic development. In our economic development efforts we need to insist on "having class" as the guide to our economic development objectives.

"W" Stands for where?

As I read about the various goings-on in the North Country, I often wonder if we’ll ever wake up/get it.  A couple years ago the City could have acquired the mill property for a song, but did not. Why not?   A couple weeks ago Clean Power Development wanted to talk business with AVRRDD (Refuse District) where what was being offered was a win-win deal for all parties involved, but AVRRDD refused to put the CPD matter on the agenda of the board meeting. Why?  I bet there’s dozens of these types of circumstances that come up every year, opportunities that come knocking at the door and we turn our backs or ignore what might be something that’s in our best interest. Right now there’s an opportunity knocking at our door again!   We have the opportunity to   acquire around 15,000 acres of land almost for the asking, nearly the whole town of Success and, were not only not taking steps towards that end, but our City officials are accepting gifts/bribes of free airplane rides etc. across the country and over Success township in an effort by the Army National Guard to turn that land into a training area for some new toys the army is getting. Are we out of our minds? Here’s a perfect opportunity for Berlin to develop a Community Forest and, land area to further expand its outdoor recreation opportunities while our politicians are riding around in military helicopters with visions of turning that forested area into a missile range! Again I say, what’s wrong with that picture? A community forest would not only provide traditional outdoor recreational opportunities, but could be linked to the State ATV Park enhancing that experience and attract more riders to Berlin. What will the army pay in taxes? $ 0.00 while a community forest would eventually generate several hundred thousand dollars a year in timber sales, not to mention that some of the land nearest downtown could be made available for development. Now I know that in the past we did not have to think in a business like manner because the paper mill provided us with nice tax payments, but those days are gone forever! We lost not only tax revenues, but millions in wages and other revenue generating opportunities, yet we behave as if we can afford to do business as usual. Some of us even gaze at the remaining stack and boiler seeing a biomass plant as our savior. That in my book is as insane as riding over Success in a military helicopter gazing at the land below thinking that this is in our best interest!  If we’re doing any intelligent thinking, we’re surely keeping it a secret from the rest of the world! Where’s our collective intelligence? Where is the wisdom of the business community? Where is the leadership?

Rats at AVRRDD

I realize that it's not every body that's a news junkie like I am, but once in a while reading a news story that appears to be a ho hum who cares type story leads you to something quite interesting. Today I just happened to have The Berlin Daily Sun from Tuesday September 30 sitting on the breakfast table and I followed a front page story "Truck crossings will temporarily increase on Hutchins Street" by Gail Scott. Now mind you reading about garbage trucks having to use a new scale is not the most exciting reading first thing in the morning and I'm not sure it should be front page either, but there it is, in bold, replacing what is a very significant story that shows its ugly head buried on page 3 in the same article. This same garbage story goes on to say that Mel Liston of Clean Power Development who wants to locate a small biomass power plant next to the City's waste water treatment plant was in the audience at the AVRRDD monthly Board meeting. (I placed a couple of calls since reading this article and was told that Mr. Liston had written a letter to AVRRDD asking to be placed on the Boards monthly meeting, but had been denied that priviledge and told to speak from the audience) Interesting don't you think! Now back to the newspaper article, the meeting was being chaired by Linda Cushman  and I quote; "Cushman had previously set the presentation limit to ten minutes and told Liston there would be no questions or comments from board members". Now get this, here's a developer coming to Berlin with a "real and doable" $85,000,000.00  project and he's not allowed to have a discussion with the board about buying a right of way for a power line! On top of that, focus for a minute on the fact that ARVVDD is an organization that is supported by several local towns including Berlin and what Mr. Liston is proposing would make it possible for AVRRDD to purchase electricity at about half price, not to mention that he's also willing to buy the gas produced at the landfill. I'm told that the Berlin representative on the Board Councilor Richard Lafleur just sat there like a "good old boy" not objecting to not only being gagged, but not allowed to officially ask about what Mr Liston was proposing, a proposal that could cut the cost of operating the landfill and open the door to a significant economic development opportunity. Now this page 3 portion of the story should have been front page, in bold "AVRRDD Implicated in Plot To Kill Economic Development"  Now I don't use the word "Plot" lightly, I'm convinced that there's a hell of a lot more to this story than the unfriendly and rude behavior of AVRRDD and Ms. Cushman!  Those of you who live locally and have a representative from your town on this Board need to start asking questions. Personally I smell a rat in this story and this rat is working behind the scene and against the best interest of Berlin and the North Country! My instincs also tell me that there's a real possibility that Laidlaw/NADC figures in here somehow. Now keep in mind that at one time the properties in question (landfill & water treatment plant) were all owned by Fraser and it's my understanding that the long fingers of Fraser can be found buried in these deals when they sold properties related to the pulp mill. Enter NADC/Laidlaw/Fraser. Now there's a trio for you! To be fair, the article goes on to say that Mayor Bertrand and Norman Charest Economic Development Director were allowed to say words in support of Clean Power Development.