18. Ordinance annexing territory to the corporate limits located at 401-421 Birch Creek Road – 145.502 acres. (Council District: nearest District 1) (roll call vote)
Looks like Roy Carroll is going to sail this one through without any questions from the local media on just how did they pick his land for this project. Was there any other properties in Guilford County involved in this deal to land the project which was code named "Project Doublewide" .or was he and Richard Beard the only ones involved with this transaction.
Justin Catanoso from the Triad Business Journal had this as a title "AMEX may have offset tax break for land costs CLICKHERE . Here is a few quotes from post
Sources familiar with the negotiations say American Express pressed for reductions in per-acre costs before agreeing in principle (the deal hasn’t closed yet) to acquire about 100 acres in both Rock Creek Center and the new Birch Creek Corporate Park in unincorporated Guilford County
Richard Beard, a principal with Simpson Schulman & Beard, the brokers for Rock Creek, declines to detail the discussions that took place between his group and the agents representing American Express, which were led by Greg Wilson of the local C.B. Richard Ellis office. While Wilson declined to comment, Beard did say: “We had to make concessions toward the end of the negotiations.”
The code name played on the fact that not one, but two suitable sites were essential to seal the deal.
“Each location was very dependent on the other,” Beard says. “It was both sites or nothing. All negotiations were separate, but any time I saw Roy around town in the past few weeks, I’d ask him how things were going.”
Roy Carroll, one of Greensboro’s top developers and president of The Carroll Cos., declines to discuss the negotiations with American Express regarding the land it will buy in Birch Creek Corporate Park. As the location for the redundant data storage capacity, it is likely that construction on the estimated 150,000-square-foot backup facility won’t start for two years or more.
Can't wait to hear the cheerleaders at the Greensboro City Council meeting on 8-17-2010 talk about this project and not one of them will ask the question on why did they pick these properties from the most connected crony capilalist we have ever seen in Roy Carroll along with another member in Richard Beard who is a war memorial coliseum commission member and also the head cheerleader for coliseum director Matt Brown.
Below is the REPOST from April 21, 2010 and with one of the biggest comments periods we have ever had on Triadwatch.
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One of the biggest tax incentives deals ever proposed in Guilford County and Greensboro is American Express potential data center in the eastern part of the county.
It appears that Mr. Dan Lynch, Greensboro Economic Development Alliance President, who should have been involved in showing sites to AMEX, and Roy Carroll, owner of one of the properties, have shared the title of "Board Member" at the Greensboro Partnership.
Let's give a brief definition of Crony Capitalism:
What Does Crony Capitalism Mean?
A description of capitalist society as being based on the close relationships between businessmen and the state. Instead of success being determined by a free market and the rule of law, the success of a business is dependent on the favoritism that is shown to it by the ruling government in the form of tax breaks, government grants and other incentives.From Investopedia CLICKHERE
This definition fits local developer Roy Carroll to a T.
Here is what is being reported from the Greensboro News & Record CLICKHERE
"The American Express project would involve two buildings on two parcels in eastern Guilford: about 100 acres in Rock Creek Center and part of a 700-acre tract owned by developer Roy Carroll near Knox Road and Birch Creek Road.
The Carroll property would be annexed into Greensboro, allowing the city to share in the incentive offering and benefit from the promised boost to the tax base."
As we have stated in the past that local developer Roy Carroll had his own political action committee giving thousands of dollars to the campaigns of plenty of local politicians in Greensboro and Guilford County. Pay to play at it's best.
Here is a list from a few years ago of Greensboro City Council members and the closed out account of Roy Carroll's Political Action Committee called North Carolinians for Leadership in Government.
RECEIPTS
10/17/2007
ROY E CARROLL II
PRESIDENT/OWNER OLD SOUTH HOME COMPANY
3619 CAMDEN FALLS CIRCLE
GREENSBORO, NC 27410
Individual Contribution
Check
$4000.00
10/17/2007
VANESSA Y CARROLL
HOUSEWIFE HOUSEWIFE
3619 CAMDEN FALLS CIRCLE
GREENSBORO, NC 27410
Individual Contribution
Check
$4000.00
Total ALL Receipts:
$8,000.00
Expenditures
10/16/2007
DIANE BELLAMY-SMALL
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTION
Check
$1000.00
10/16/2007
ROBBIE PERKINS
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTION
Check
$1000.00
10/16/2007
SANDRA ANDERSON GROAT
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTION
Check
$1000.00
10/16/2007
TRUDY WADE
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTION
Check
$1000.00
10/16/2007
YVONNE JOHNSON
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTIONS
Check
$1000.00
10/16/2007
ZACK MATHENY
GREENSBORO, NC
CONTRIBUTION
Check
$1000.00
Total ALL Expenditures:
$6,000.00
We also have a few Guilford County Commissioners who have received PAC money from local developer Roy Carroll as well in the past in
Paul Gibson (D) 5-2-08 for $1,000
Kirk Perkins (D) 5-6-08 for $1,000
There are many red flags that need to be attached to any deal involving Roy Carroll. The first would be in who will be his real estate broker on this deal because we have had many people in the past talk about the ethical issues of local politicians like Guilford County Chairman Skip Alston with a downtown hotel project and him being the broker on that deal. Now we know that sitting Greensboro City Council member and also local developer Robbie Perkins works hand in hand with Roy Carroll. This relationship is so tight that during a council meeting in 2009 we had Robbie Perkins text messaging Roy Carroll in China on a issue where the city and Roy Carroll's company were going to court with another developer Marty Kotis over properties off of Horse Pen Creek Road and Robbie Perkins told Roy Carroll from council chambers that he needs to fight this, here is that report CLICKHERE.
We can also raise some red flags to see that why did they pick these sights and was there any possibility for any other properties on the table?
If the News and Record is correct then are they going to use both properties or are they looking at both properties and then choosing just one site?
We also know from the past that local developer Roy Carroll has the use of a private plane CLICKHERE . Was any local public officials flown to any meetings with executives from American Express on this incentive package and presentation on this plane?
We will see what happens on this tax incentive hand out to American Express for corporate welfare, but a true conservative would vote NO to this deal.
Let's also see just how much influence local developer Roy Carroll has on this deal being a part of his property so that he can reap the riches of water and sewer and road improvements to all of his properties near knox road and birch creek road.
Let's hope more people will want to know all the facts of every aspect of this whole incentive package and ask the right questions to all involved.
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