On GPAC; To whom it may concern...

On GPAC; To whom it may concern, please confirm, criticize, question or deny the following before Monday, March 3, 2014's Yes Weekly's 10am deadline for next Wednesday's Hartzman column;

Greensboro’s taxpayers will be liable for shortfalls of donor commitments.

Greensboro’s taxpayers may pay more than the $30 million City Council authorized for the performing arts center.

If the City of Greensboro doesn't cover shortfalls of the private sector pledges with more than the $30 million the City has already committed, the lender or lenders can foreclose on and acquire the performing arts center.

The City of Greensboro is not in possession of legally binding donor commitments on about $35,448,920 of privately pledged assets.

The City of Greensboro doesn't know where the $35,448,920 is actually located.

The City of Greensboro doesn't know what the $35,448,920 is invested in.

The City of Greensboro doesn't have a detailed time line showing how much of the $35,448,920 is supposed to appear when over a 10 year time span.

The City of Greensboro doesn't know what would happen to the $35,448,920 if financial markets fall 20%, or 30% within the five years following the project’s approval.

The City of Greensboro doesn't know what would happen to the $35,448,920 if interest rates rise even more from their historically relatively very low levels within the five years following the project’s approval.

The City of Greensboro is unaware of the statistical likelihood that the $35,448,920 in pledges will or won't appear.

At the Council work session on Tuesday, February 25th, the Greensboro Community Foundation’s (CFGG) Walker Sanders’ said that less than $5 million of the pledged assets are currently within the foundation’s control and is ready to be allocated to the project.

The CFGG and City of Greensboro's financing mechanism attaches what would be a jointly owned GPAC between the City and a non profit without assets other than the property which would be used as collateral to obtain a loan to pay for construction costs before the pledges actually appear.

The CFGG will have no financial commitment to the project, yet stands to aquire the entire project without risk or taxes as detailed in item G4 of the Memorandum of Understanding At the Council work session on Tuesday, February 25th.

The City of Greensboro does not know how the CFGG is going to supply the loan interest payments for the financing.

The City of Greensboro's finance department has not underwritten, reviewed or signed off on the legally binding donor commitments, the potential taxpayer liability above the $30 million City Council authorized for the performing arts center, the private sector lending agreement, a time line of how much of the $35,448,920 is supposed to appear and when, the statistical likelihood of how much of the $35,448,920 in pledges may or may not appear or hypothetical asset return projections concerning the $35,448,920 in private pledges.

If I don't hear back, I will assume all of the above is correct.

Thanks,


George Hartzman
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The preceding was sent to Rick Lusk, Nancy Vaughan, David Parish, Jamal Fox, Jim Westmorland, Thomas Carruthers, Larry Davis, Walker Sanders, Kathy Manning, Mike Barber, Mary Vigue, Zack Matheny, Sarah Healy, Marikay Abuzuaiter, Nancy Hoffmann, Tony Wilkins, Sharon Hightower and Yvonne Johnson.