Historic Deforestation, On the Road

Historic Deforestation

Is this the solution? 

It was bound to happen, sooner or later.

Downtown Norfolk is full of empty historic buildings and no one wants to buy them.

Others, like Norfolk Redevelopment and Housing Authority’s headquarters on Granby Street, can’t sell, even though it does have tenants.

The buildings are clustered in a two block area, ironically near the proposed site of Norfolk’s hotel and conference center, now dubbed The Plot.

The names are familiar.

The former Trader building, now owned by Landmark, at the corner of Plume Street and Granby Street.

The Savoy at 161 Granby Street and the former Union Mission.

The Royster building.

Buyers just aren’t interested any more in these buildings unless they can get them for pennies on the dollar in a distressed sale or a bankruptcy, as did Buddy Gadams, when he and his partners bought the Wainwright building.

Here’s my unsolicited advice.

The city of Norfolk should buy these buildings, renovate them and sell or lease them.

The city of Norfolk should re-direct the $16 million it spent to buy properties for a hotel and conference center which, eight years later, hasn’t materialized.

The city of Norfolk should forget a hotel and conference center, costing the city and taxpayers more than $60 million, and inject some life and soul into downtown Norfolk.
It has the money and isn’t shy about buying properties. According to the city assessor’s annual report for fiscal year 2012, the city of Norfolk is the second highest owner of tax exempt properties. 

Federal Government	61	$4,122,082,140
Commonwealth of Virginia	556	$87,631,400
Norfolk State University	23	$170,160,100
Old Dominion University	252	$382,762,500
Virginia Port Authority	2	$344,413,400
City of Norfolk	1,963	$2,177,030,300
NRHA	1,270	$615,196,200
Norfolk Airport Authority	80	$312,621,700
Regional General Municipal	84	$128,343,500
Others	6	$4,014,300
Religious	821	$721,374,000
Secular Organizations	218	$680,358,300
TOTAL EXEMPT	5,336	$9,745,987,840

And the city isn’t reticent about selling properties for well below the assessed values of the properties or for buying properties well above their value.

Buy the properties. Throw in some perks. Think outside The Plot.

On the Road
Economist Christine Chumra might as well be a Virginia state employee. 

Virginia's transportation future

Not surprisingly, her latest report, among many she has done for the state's present leadership, justifies Gov. Bob McDonnell’s proposal to eliminate the 17.5 cents per gallon gas tax and raise the sales tax and other fees.

In a press release, the governor said he “welcomed the results of a new study on the economic impacts of his comprehensive, long-term transportation funding plan - "Virginia's Road to the Future."

The report is full of the usual data-speak.

The new proposal will generate more revenue for transportation in the future, as transportation revenue-tied to sales tax-is expected to grow faster than the current motor fuel tax revenue, it said.

The gasoline tax is more regressive than the sales tax. As a result, removing the gasoline tax will create a less-regressive tax structure than existing law, benefiting low-income households, it said.

With the elimination of the gasoline tax, it is estimated that the overall sales of gasoline in Virginia will increase total sales at gasoline stations by $123.0 million, it said.

Maybe the governor and the economist should listen to this guy, representing the Everyman.

"I am sure Chmura took into account the simple fact that on I -81 you have high gas and sales tax states of West Virginia, Maryland and Pennsylvania, giving Virginia a big sales shot in gasoline."

"I do it myself on the northbound leg [from New Jersey] by gassing up before hitting those states. Everyone does. On the southbound leg I make sure I am filled up prior to those states and I can reach Virginia and cheaper prices. This is true on I-95 also. So, what would VA actually lose or gain from this plan?"