tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post430410091941601027..comments2024-03-19T04:04:20.402-05:00Comments on Jackson Jambalaya: Costco chaosKingfishhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06184990110961727404noreply@blogger.comBlogger75125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-20188673865115983222015-08-25T18:45:52.973-05:002015-08-25T18:45:52.973-05:00Gene will look good in black& white. The quest...Gene will look good in black& white. The question now is, who will be sharing his new stylish look?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-51935622744327638742015-08-25T15:25:03.985-05:002015-08-25T15:25:03.985-05:00To 9:49...After hearing all their whinning, I'...To 9:49...After hearing all their whinning, I'm very happy that Ridgeland will be ground zero for the project. Costco would be foolish to not move forward and build. I have personally collected 500 letters, all from different individuals, asking Costco to please come to Ridgeland. They've been mailed via Fed Exp. Rankin County is out because the their liquor laws and Jackson is out because they don't have the proper demographics. This is a high class business and the majority of local residents welcome them!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-73808902413839368572015-08-25T09:49:16.393-05:002015-08-25T09:49:16.393-05:00To 8:26......Personally, I could give a shit wheth...To 8:26......Personally, I could give a shit whether or not Cosco gets built. What I hated to see is you pompous ass rednecks acting like.......well.....pompous ass rednicks!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-52962785645498483412015-08-24T20:26:43.864-05:002015-08-24T20:26:43.864-05:00Poor little genie weenies!
Often when people are ...Poor little genie weenies! <br />Often when people are lied to & deceived they have a tendency to get upset. These people were brave speaking up against big money & power. If you were so in favor, why did not you have the guts to speak. The "good" preacher got all his instructions from Costco. He was the one that was abrasive. I heard a lot of gears from the spineless wimps who did not have the guts to orderly go down front & be recognized to speak. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-51928494284710818572015-08-24T15:53:23.042-05:002015-08-24T15:53:23.042-05:00Regardless of the merits of this development proje...Regardless of the merits of this development project, many of the people at last week's meeting were mean, nasty, arrogant, and uncivilized. You talk on these threads about "not having enough time to be heard".....bullshit! You were heard; it's just that you were all saying the same thing. What did you expect the good preacher to do....let the meeting consist of everyone screaming and yelling all at one time? There had to be some resemblance of order, and the preacher tried his best to do just that. No, he was not very successful.....because of you rude, pompous rednecks with your holier-than-thou attitude. It would have served your cause better if you had appointed 1-2 persons to deliver a civilized, succinct, informative, and thoughtful message, but you blew your opportunity! You acted like a bunch of wild animals. You people are the same folks who looked down your preverbal noses while Ferguson, Missouri tore itself up from the inside. Open your eyes! You did the exact same thing. I agree with a previous poster about you.....you looted and stole the civility and common decency you were taught by your mother and grandmother. Shame on you!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-565326857371147702015-08-24T05:59:59.197-05:002015-08-24T05:59:59.197-05:00Would the Costco supporters on this site please ex...Would the Costco supporters on this site please explain what revenues Costco will bring to Ridgeland that makes this a good example of economic development for the community? Where are the dollar figures?<br /><br />IF this is good for Ridgeland and Madison County, it should be demonstrable with objective dollar figures from other communities. Where is the cost/benefit analysis from an objective source? That is the FIRST thing McGee should have demanded.<br /><br />And, those figures should include an impact on the residential property values and residential tax base.<br /><br />NIMBY is a cute derogatory jab, but it overlooks that commercial development and increased traffic have a real impact on residential development and property values.<br /><br />The elected officials conspired with Costco to buy the land cheaply, rezone it without informing the public as to WHY it was being rezoned,and gave Costco an enormous tax break that erases the revenues for the time this location will be most profitable and viable. Then, like Sam's et.al, they will relocate and do this again.<br /><br />The way this was done makes one suspect the taxpayers are again financing a business and guaranteeing profit with no return on investment. Please explain why this is now justified as a function of government in a capitalistic society. <br /><br /> IF Costco is a good business, why do they need the $26+ million for start up from forced investment with no return on investment?<br /><br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-55843575509132524092015-08-23T18:40:23.589-05:002015-08-23T18:40:23.589-05:0012:00, you are so full of S$$$ that you can't ...12:00, you are so full of S$$$ that you can't tell which end of your body it is spewing from. Your statements of what is truth and what is a lie just don't hold water. Bet you also have great dreams at night.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-46990955370271804222015-08-23T12:00:07.600-05:002015-08-23T12:00:07.600-05:00I live in Ridgeland. I have never considered this...I live in Ridgeland. I have never considered this east/west division. The first I heard of it was from the mayor. A mayor for which it has been well documented, has been untruthful & deceptive to his voter. No CA required him to do this. Even when the developer released the mayor from this CA, the mayor continued being untruthful & deceptive. In the mayor' s press conference, he stated that Costco started purchasing this property in 2014. The Costco representive in charge of real estate for Costco at RHS meeting denied this. The mayor further stated in this press release that the city would receive $1.5M in sales tax revenue from this deal. Again, simply not true. The developer himself admitted at the RHS meeting that the sales tax from this property would be diverted to him rather than the city receiving any until he recovers 30% of his investment or 15 years, which ever comes first. The second time that I heard this east/west divisive ploy was from the above mentioned Costco representive when he stated he liked the demographics of this site. Obviously snubbing the people of Rankin, Jackson, & east Ridgeland?<br />Now good citizens of Ridgeland, with whom would you rather align, you neighbor citizens who are trying to protect the quality of life in Ridgeland and in doing so, safe guarding the fiscal integrity of or city, or do you want to align yourself with a mayor, in which it has been very well documented, has secretive & covertly conspired to deceive his constituents. <br />It has been reported that this projected was named "the Santa Claus project". Have these people been watching too many spy movies or just trying to usurp the laws of Mississippi? Where are you media people that have fought so hard for the open records law in Mississippi?<br />Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-78361261384943647852015-08-23T11:07:01.818-05:002015-08-23T11:07:01.818-05:0012:50, you bring up a good point. The NIMBY argum...12:50, you bring up a good point. The NIMBY argument against Costco is exactly the same as the one against Oxford House. Where's Senator Longwitz? Could his chumminess with the Mayor be keeping him from looking out for his constituents?Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-3391918598945491162015-08-23T06:48:37.608-05:002015-08-23T06:48:37.608-05:00Does anyone know how HCP was built? Madison Count...Does anyone know how HCP was built? Madison County, at the request of HC Bailey, passed a special assessment on all the adjacent HCP landowners in order to buy and build HCP. Most of the landowners were farmers that did not have the thousands of dollars required annually to pay the special assessment and were forced to sale their land at farm land prices to guess who- HC Bailey. HC Potter purchased the land knowing his investment would reward him ten-fold. And now, Potter has all the wealth and now you know the rest of the story. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-60547203331094663042015-08-22T22:12:08.539-05:002015-08-22T22:12:08.539-05:00GO DOW!!! DOW YODER for Mayor!!!!!GO DOW!!! DOW YODER for Mayor!!!!!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-7639023471058471212015-08-22T19:53:48.838-05:002015-08-22T19:53:48.838-05:00Costco never wanted to be in Jackson fools.Costco never wanted to be in Jackson fools.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-56973773500826220862015-08-22T18:44:30.725-05:002015-08-22T18:44:30.725-05:00Maybe they need to "Land Lease" the prop...Maybe they need to "Land Lease" the property and charge each home owner an extra $2000 a year, just like the Reservoir pays. The price is higher of course in West Madison because they support the area tax-wise, and also this is commercial land can never be developed. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-17724309277919453822015-08-22T18:32:54.639-05:002015-08-22T18:32:54.639-05:00Dow Yoder, you are absolutely correct. Dow Yoder, you are absolutely correct. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-84404398872824754182015-08-22T18:09:17.921-05:002015-08-22T18:09:17.921-05:004:38 nails it. Don't ignore economic developme...4:38 nails it. Don't ignore economic development and complain after. Don't like what could come in, buy the property. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-19981388199454880012015-08-22T16:49:48.868-05:002015-08-22T16:49:48.868-05:00All of the people complaining bought or built home...All of the people complaining bought or built homes in the backyard of commercial zoned property that welcomes big boxes,and yes,it did this BEFORE the June 2nd rezoning! The outlash should be against your realtors and builders who did not inform you that one day HCP would be fully developed!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-27629314661231927732015-08-22T16:38:52.079-05:002015-08-22T16:38:52.079-05:00This whole debate would be laughable if it wasn...This whole debate would be laughable if it wasn't so stupid. Costco wants to go to this location rather than one on Highway 51 for the same reasons that they wanted to go to the Smith Wills site rather than all the other locations suggested by the high-handed neighbors in NE Jackson. They like the traffic count, the demographics and the visibility. <br /><br />The 'welcoming neighbors' that want Costco, but just not in our neighborhood are just as idiotic as the folks in Eastover who rejected Costco after having rejected the Department of Revenue building. NIMBY at its finest.<br /><br />I didn't hear all the 'neighbors' on the west side of the interstate complaining about the 'tax lost' with Reinaissance development. Or the GOZONE bonding for that development - oh no! They got a Fresh Market and Mint. Ooops - lost the Mint but thats just a detail. Still didn't hear about the 'government intrusion' or the financing schemes for all those deals. Just don't like this one because .... wait....wait....wait....IT includes gas pumps! Or, it takes down the trees that I like to look at. Or, it will put too much traffic on Highland Colony - a false statement from what I read about the current traffic count compared to the design capacity, but let's don't worry with facts here. Truth is - its a dislike for the developers and the neighbors think they should control someone else's property. <br /><br />You want to control what goes there? Then buy it. Otherwise, recognize that HCP would not exist if it had not been partially developed by the landowners along the way including those that built the residential subdivisions and those that are building the commercial property.<br /><br />As to alleged 'deciet' by city officials - check out the history of any economic development project. Confidentiality is almost always a requirement - that's why development projects have code names. Remember Nissan? It was done quietly all the while the Governor and development officials 'denied a project'. Same thing with the big damn deal in western Hinds County now. We all know its going on, but you can't get anybody on the record to acknowledge it because they are bound by development agreements. You don't like it? Then give up any new development and die on the vine like my fair city of Jackson is doing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-19695261846728632712015-08-22T15:44:21.070-05:002015-08-22T15:44:21.070-05:00We live just down the street from Jane and Gene Mc...We live just down the street from Jane and Gene McGee. While I understand the need for a degree of confidentiality in economic development, the decision to collateralize the pockets of a few private investors with $26,700,000.00 of taxpayer money has been made. <br /><br />While Gene and the Board of Aldermen continue million dollar deficit spending, they also conspire to increase our taxes, so that we can pick up the tab for the Mattiace Lowe's development on County Line Road. They are giving away our tax dollars to people who will return a percentage of their profits to the pockets of those who are elected to protect our interests. <br /><br />Mattiace and Bailey won't leave a sack of $100 bills in Gene's freezer---- they will buy life insurance policies from him; engage in 'discretionary' business relations with his family, etc., so that it's not a direct quid pro quo the FBI can easily target. Forget the local DA and AG---- they don't target or prosecute public corruption. <br /><br />Gene takes no responsibility in failing to negotiate a good development with Harbor Walk, or with efforts to redevelop distressed commercial and residential properties south of Lake Harbor. <br /><br />The majority of Ridgeland taxpayers can expect 1 thing for every resident on the East side of I-55: HIGHER TAXES, TO UNDERWRITE THE PRIVATE INVESTMENTS OF A FEW MILLIONAIRES WHO ARE RETURNING THE KICKBACKS TO GENE MCGEE AND THE BOARD OF ALDERMEN THROUGH CAMPAIGN CONTRIBUTIONS, PRIVATE, NON-REPORTED CONTRACTS, AND 'IN KIND CONTRIBUTIONS.'Anonymoushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/11704448573183290847noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-17858646245407438932015-08-22T14:04:49.461-05:002015-08-22T14:04:49.461-05:00To the person questioning where these families got...To the person questioning where these families got their money -<br />How about they not only worked for it but have also worked to keep it? Is that a concept that requires a whole lot of thought?<br />conservationsouth@gmail.comnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-37690340554250450982015-08-22T10:19:37.425-05:002015-08-22T10:19:37.425-05:007:57 Why didn't you fill your car up with gas ...7:57 Why didn't you fill your car up with gas goIng to/coming from school. There is no public high school over ther either.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-54753810609856993482015-08-22T10:13:43.419-05:002015-08-22T10:13:43.419-05:00There is no doubt to any reasonable honest person ...There is no doubt to any reasonable honest person that the comments of a paid Costco representative, who I believe is their real estate guy, said Costco selected that site because of the demographics. He was speaking on behalf of Costco.<br />I do not know Stephanie Nix. She was probably nervous. She was probably very emotional due to the deceitful manner in which the citizens of this community have been treated. She was giving her personal opinion based on her long experience in this real estate market. It was her personal opinion. She was speaking on her personal behalf. This is still America. A lot of people have given their lives to protect that privilege. I applaud Stephanie for having the guts to speak up in a public forum. It is not always easy. I only heard one person speak in favor of this proposal & he was from Pearl, and the audience applauded for him to get a Costco in Pearl. I did heard a lot of rude, interrupted remarks when opposition people were speaking from the little spineless pro people that did not have the guts to be recognized to speak. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-22265673512404532015-08-22T07:57:50.512-05:002015-08-22T07:57:50.512-05:00Costco could have built BEFORE the June 2nd zoning...Costco could have built BEFORE the June 2nd zoning change, the zoning has always allowed big box stores. The only thing the zoning did was allow gas pumps! Which is needed over there, my parents have lived over there for over 20 years and it is a pain to have no nearby gas pumps! Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-16360131669328750932015-08-22T07:55:32.137-05:002015-08-22T07:55:32.137-05:0012:50. There was public notice of the zoning chang...12:50. There was public notice of the zoning change. It was posted. I bet you neglected that notice and did not attend that meeting. You weren't duped. You're just a dope. <br /><br />This reads exactly like the Oxford House ordeal. Vocal minority who failed to ensure proper zoning have an "undesirable" move in and lose their damn minds. Will we see an "interview" of someone who's loved one chocked on a $1.50 hotdog implore you not to be fooled by the evils of Costco? Time will tell. Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-32858048869435008572015-08-22T06:30:22.865-05:002015-08-22T06:30:22.865-05:00I have a question: I keep reading the anti-Costco ...I have a question: I keep reading the anti-Costco claims that Ridgeland will reap "no taxes!" from a Costco because of the MDA sales tax rebate deal. But aren't property taxes also a big deal? Wouldn't the city benefit in a big way via property taxes a Costco would pay? I don't have a real dog in the fight since I don't live out there, but I will admit to being pleased at the thought of a higher quality alternative to Sam's.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2447438783001404385.post-62016408960980345132015-08-22T00:50:12.403-05:002015-08-22T00:50:12.403-05:00Clearly there are some folks that don't have a...Clearly there are some folks that don't have all the facts. This was NOT zoned for a Costco until on June 2, 2015, when our city leaders used a zoning ploy straight out of Costcos play book to altar our 2014 zoning ordinances enabling Costco to come to the property in question. Their actions were, at the very least, underhanded and there are many that question its legality. That is why there were so many passionate residents at the meetings. Zoning ordinances are in place to protect citizens property rights. The mayor made absolutely certain that Ridgeland residents were totally locked out of the process and had no opportunity to have any knowledge or input. <br /><br /> In 2014, this location was zoned for the same type of commercial property as the rest of Highland Colony Parkway; not for warehouses and fast food drive thrus and gas pumps! We welcome more of the Renaissance-type development at the property in question. And, we welcome Costco, but NOT at the property in question!!! <br /><br />We were duped! And when I say "we," I mean all of Ridgeland. You see, the zoning alteration affects every piece of C-2 property in the city!!! Yep, that's right! So you may be loosing an apartment complex in your back yard (apartments are C-2), just to be gaining a big box store!!! Good luck, friends and neighbors. It seems no one is safe.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.com