Tuesday, November 7, 2017

Jackson loses another car dealership

It appears Jackson will lose another luxury car dealership to Ridgeland.  The Ritchie Group plans on moving its dealership at 5320 I-55N in Jackson to a site on I-55N Frontage Road in Ridgeland next to Patty Peck Honda.  Ritchie sells Jaguar, Audi, Range Rover, and Volkswagen vehicles.  The city of Ridgeland is working with the Ritchie Group to issue $2.3 million in TIF bonds to fund infrastructure improvements for the project.






Chris Gouras addressed the Ridgeland Board of Aldermen last night at a work session as a representative of the Ritchie Group.  His plan (posted below) states:

Ritchey Management,  LLC (together  with  its assigns,  the  “Developer”) proposes to construct two luxury car dealerships and related improvements, to be located off Interstate 55 North and Sunnybrook Road (the “Project”).  The Project represents a private investment in excess of $20,000,000.

Here are the financial bullet points provided by Chris Gouras:

*There will be two adjacent car dealerships.  Each dealership will be 20,000 square feet.
*Private investment will be $20 million.
 *Dealerships will have 55 jobs
*Annual sales are estimated to be $55 million. (KF: How much sales tax revenue will this be?)
*Estimated increases in taxes: $33,000 for county, $20,000 for city, $55,000 for MCSD.  The current total property taxes are $51 (Ad valorem millage rate of $108).

A public hearing on the TIF plan will be held at Ridgeland City Hall on November 21, 2017 at 6:00 PM.   The Ritchie Group is owned by Kent Ritchie.


Kingfish note: Did anyone in Jackson city government have a clue this was taking place? The dealership paid $103,000 in property taxes to Hinds County, Jackson, and JPS.  Taxes were 66,297 in 2000. 83,680 in 2010.  103,500 in 2016.  Jackson's property taxes per year on this dealership are almost $35,000.  Don't even want to think of what the sales taxes lost will be.



Documents posted below
P.1: Gouras TIF plan
P. 20: City Resolution
P. 23: Legal Notice





68 comments:

Anonymous said...


Wow---Mercedes is moving and now Range Rover and Jaguar. What does this tell the Mayor and City Council and the "BIG DREAMER" Ben Allen? It tells them they had better get it together and get Jackson moving in the right direction. Dozens of small businesses have gone north or east of Jackson and there will be dozens more moving.

JUST ANOTHER NAIL IN THE COFFIN !!!!!!!!

Anonymous said...

You can't go watch a movie in a theater in Jackson, and before too much longer you won't be able to buy a new car in Jackson. The death nail is being driven deeper & deeper into 'the bold new city'.

Anonymous said...

Can you blame them?

pjm said...

wow, they spent some major coin building out the old jitney building. guess that'll leave another empty dealership building just sitting there.

Anonymous said...

Simple question. Who if anyone, in Jackson looks at the top 100 largest taxable businesses and makes sure they are happy? Seems like a simple concept that would well be worth paying someone in city government. Puckett Machinery Mercedes Benz and the list goes on. Does the Mayor even care?

Anonymous said...

No small amount of humor in the fact that while the dealership is running, those brand automobiles tend not to. Makes good economic sense to move to Ridgeland. Cheaper tow to the dealer for the car owners.

Anonymous said...

It's 'death knell,' and it refers to a bell being rung, 10:26. Your inability to distinguish, and the ignorance it represents, might be what's driving that death nail into said city.

Anonymous said...

As sad as it is to see these dealerships move north. It is way past time that I-55 in Jackson had a makeover. Like the District, someone with vision needs to jump on the wore out properties on the east side (sorry the west is lost for years to come) and rebuild. You could put a multi screen theater, retail and restaurants with some mixed use housing and make a fortune.

I-55 in Jackson looks like the outskirts of most major cities. Spotty, half rundown retail, mishmash buildings with nondescript businesses that should have left years ago. Nothing along that stretch calls out to drivers to explore until you get to Highland Village.

Anonymous said...

You will always be able to buy a car in Jackson: no money down, no credit check required.

Anonymous said...

Drive to Memphis, Birmingham, or Atlanta, and you will see that most of the luxury car dealerships have built new facilities in the surburbs. Was just a matter of time before it happened to the dealerships in Jackson.

Anonymous said...

Don't hold your breath 10:45. Increasingly clear long-on-the-talk Lumumba moves at glacial pace.

Anonymous said...

Look on the bright side, this will give DriveTime the opportunity to expand.

Why Is Kingfish Culling Legit Comments? said...

Yeah, well, I commented on this board many moons ago that there was a land rush underway along the new Ridgeland/Madison frontage by nearly all the owners of the I55 Jackson car dealerships but, of course, the GD Jackson cheerleaders who haunt JJ and obviously don't know shit from Shinola were quick to jump in to say that it wasn't happening. There's more announcements coming. Just watch.

Anonymous said...

10:55
Apparently you've forgotten, or are too young to know, that all the movie theaters closed in Jackson because of the gang related problems that overwhelmed them. Too many car breakins, fights, etc. Just how do you propose to change that? You will notice that the proposed movie at the District went away, right? Too many headaches.

Anonymous said...

@10:46

My car runs great. I look forward to only having to drive a couple minutes in town for my next oil change rather than down i55. Welcome to Ridgeland!

Change the Flag and Fill the Potholes said...

+1 @10:55 AM. You never see such wasted interstate frontage inside Houston, DFW, Atlanta and other metropolitan areas. (except maybe some industrial pockets). In fact, many of those cities have sprung up mini-downtowns along such corridors - similar to Renaissance. The Meadowbrook interchange is really a model for future development along I-55. Part of the problem is the limited frontage access between Northside and County Line - that is a harder issue to address. It is disappointing that the dealerships are moving but it in response to the changed demographics...

Anonymous said...

11:32. fly into houston and drive the gulf freeway down to galveston and get back to me on that... OR i75 south of the airport in atlanta. OR I30 dallas through arlington OR even I45 from I20 to I30. wastelands abound in major metropolitan area..

Anonymous said...

Hospitals... The last frontier.

Anonymous said...

You could put a multi screen theater, retail and restaurants with some mixed use housing and make a fortune.

Ain't happening unless city leaders get duped to shanghai the already threadbare tax base for boatloads of public $$$$ to lavish upon the developers. Maybe the developers can wrap some sloganeering around co-ops, co-ops, co-ops to see if the fish to rise to the bait. They ought to hit up YYyyyaaannnnngggggeeee to talk with the King of Pork while he's still awake to appropriate some more of them NMTC in the direction of the Democrats who carried his butt across the special election finish line.

Anonymous said...

How in the hell can Ridgeland afford to give out $2.3 million of anything?

The "conservative" tax base is already rolling out to further areas? Then the dealership will do the same thing in Ridgeland it is doing to Jackson? SMH

It's amazing how neighboring suburbs set themselves up to fail in the long run, for the same exact businesses that left a neighboring city. SMH

Win/Lose proposals in the metro area, when we should be seeking the win/win.

Constantly spinning our wheels in this place. SMH

Anonymous said...

Sales tax "rebates" based on projected revenues and increases in real and personal property taxes. How large a credit card do Madisonians think they really have...

Anonymous said...

No one in their right mind would invest a penny of their money in Jackson.

Anonymous said...

A city's greatness is not defined by how many car lots it has. Those guys weren't selling enough cars, that was their problem.

Anonymous said...

It's obvious that these Ritchie people did not want to compete with Tom Allen Auto Sales. Who can blame them?

Anonymous said...

10:26 you are getting your sayings mixed up. No such thing as a death nail

Anonymous said...

Yeah, just look at the history of dealership lots in the metro area over the last 40 years and you'll see the future of Ridgeland. Give it 20 years. Go look all up and down 80, Gallatin at I-20. State Street. I-55 North.

Or go look at any other southern city at the locale of the dealerships.

Car dealerships are a sign of change in an area....and not good change. But leave it to Ridgeland to float bonds to make it happen.

Anonymous said...

Jackson versus the suburbs aside....can we please quit talking about movie theatres? They are dinosaurs. Nobody is building movie theatres. How old are some of you people?

Bill Dees said...

@12:58PM - It's a bond issue. To be paid off with a portion of the increased ad valorem taxes and sales tax rebates resulting from the development. It's not coming out of the general fund.

Anonymous said...

Two hotels along the interstate aren't good enough but another car dealer is. $2.3 million in TIF?!?

Anonymous said...



"It's 'death knell,' and it refers to a bell being rung, 10:26. Your inability to distinguish, and the ignorance it represents, might be what's driving that death nail into said city."
November 7, 2017 at 10:52 AM

I can hear it now: 'death knell' being pronounced as daaaaay-uth naaay-yull'. The same types used to pronounce my grandmother's name, ('Mrs Boyd') as "Muaeeeeeeyizz Baaaaaah-widd'. Diabetes was "diii-beedus". 'Athlete' was "aay-uth-uh-luaete". 'Sewage' was "seurrrridge". 'Conduit' was "caw-uhn-duh-it". Cement was "see-mint". They went to a variety of churches, which taught them that we Methodists, Presbyterians, Episcopalians, and Jews, were unsaved Hell-bound sinners.

Anonymous said...

Mississippi Sales Tax Rates

Anonymous said...

Step 1. obviously we just need to steal the cars back one night. We'll set them up in the empty dealerships in Jackson
Step 2. ?
Step 3. PROFIT!

Anonymous said...

Folks sitting in Madison County and posting on the internet all day about Jackson are like the string quartet playing on the front end of the Titanic while it started leaning over. Somehow you aren't going down right?

Anonymous said...

Hey - I sold my Jaguar when it had 240K miles and it was still running!

Anonymous said...

I hope they Honor all these TIFs, isn't the county on the hook for a couple that went bad. A lot of the folks who buy these cars depend on the stock market for a living. It ain't far from tipping over the edge.

Anonymous said...

Yes, the county ultimately pays the bonds if the tax revenue is not enough to meet the obligations.

Anonymous said...

A lot of the folks who buy these cars depend on the stock market for a living.

How do you know? What percentage of sales for these dealers are from "folks who buy these cars depend on the stock market for a living"?

Face it, you are talking out of your arse.

Alapha Storm said...

Driving to St D's the other night looking at cowboy maloney's sign burned out. That real good example of not caring about how your business looks. How that would go over in other cities.

Anonymous said...

Hey 5:20 I work here trust me, it's all leveraged money and rentals.

Anonymous said...

30 day no pay
90 day no pay

The metric used to analyze current economic conditions says car loans are about to explode.

Folks like Joe Usry got outta dodge....literally.

It’s a hot potato contest now.

Used cars salesman said...

Madison is starting to look more and more like a uses car lot. We need to stop before it turns into Highway 80

Anonymous said...

According to Gallo's commercials, Joe Usery IZZZZZ Baaaaack and working at the Ritchie Dealership.

Every time I see Con Cowboy Maloney's junked 18-wheeler-trailer-advertisement sitting up beside the west frontage road in Jackson I think about how long that crap would last in Madison.

By the way....look for the impending demise of Watson Quality Ford since John Cuatt is no longer there. You saw it here first.

Anonymous said...

When cities give enticements, the record is becoming clear they are the losers. The city gets anywhere from 11-41 cents on the dollar in value if it isn't a total give away or loss.
As for the State, this isn't " creating jobs" , this is moving jobs. Even the construction jobs aren't " new" or for long if a few extras are hired in the building phase.

All cities should " just say no". This is no more than scamming made legal.

Anonymous said...

2:41 I don't celebrate Jackson's demise, however when I moved back to the metro area I did purposely put move far enough away from Jackson city limits that I'm hopeful I can stay in my home until I die of natural causes and not gang related activity. Jackson's decline is bad for all. How you deal with it is personal. For me, no way was I going to move my family in there and start fighting windmills at the expense of their safety...

Anonymous said...

Hey, 7:49, YOU'RE FIRED!

Anonymous said...


I sold my Land Rover with 178,000 miles and never had a problem with it. The guy I sold it to is still driving it and it's 16 years old.

Best vehicle we ever owned !!!!!

Anonymous said...

Just out of curosity, where can you go to the movie theater in Ridgeland?

The location they are leaving has been really good to them. I am sorry to see them go. All these dealerships that think they are going to do better in Ridgeland better remember good customers like us. We work in Jackson and will deal with people who can repair our cars near where we work. I have no desire to deal with anyone in Ridgeland. Tried to get down Jackson Ave. the other day at lunch time. Wasted 15 mins. going one mile. The posts on the blog by the Jackson haters keep me from wanting to deal in the suburbs unless absolutely necessary.

Anonymous said...

How soon til it's converted to a "megachurch"?

Anonymous said...

"Just out of curosity, where can you go to the movie theater in Ridgeland?"

Has the one on the south side of Northpark mall closed down?

Anonymous said...

....pardon me - North side of Northpark mall.

Anonymous said...

10:52 Did they close the multiplex at Northpark?

Plain ol' Catfish said...

@ November 8, 2017 at 7:42 AM

You are the first person that hates Jackson, but recognizes the importance of turning the city around to benefit everyone.

Finally, someone that is sensible.

Anonymous said...

Greater chance it will be converted to a "hair and beauty supply" emporium before it becomes a megachurch.

Anonymous said...

8:28 they ain't that stupid. We keep the lights on in finance.

Anonymous said...

@1:57pm. Or maybe both. One stop shopping.

Anonymous said...

You would have to bury utilities to flip the aesthetic switch. Noone here wants to take that first step.

You cant see a power line through the Lefleur District and Eastover District and north through Highland Village. Then BOOM!, you cant see anything but power lines.

Anonymous said...

Cuatt is gone? Say it ain't so. He was the only one keeping the doors open at that dealership.

Anonymous said...

Try to keep up people. Movie theatres will soon be like drive-ins...non-existent. You will be getting all movies on your television.

Even large cities have fewer movie theatres than they once had even though their populations increased.

Theatres are trying to make up for the decline at the concession stand and keep tickets under $10. " Going to the show" is not a "cheap date" anymore.

If you have Netflix or Amazon, you will "get" that more movie producers are going straight there for a reason. They'll get more money directly from your buy or rent on television than they now get from your ticket cost when you go to the theatre.

The theatres of the future that are left will be " boutique" experiences. They will target a specific audience and/or feature a certain genre of films. Such places already exist in larger,prosperous cities.

If Mississippi is to ever prosper, we need to look to the future, not base our decisions solely on the past. We can take advantage of trends that other states are already experiencing and learn from their mistakes as well.

Staying in our comfortable box has never worked.

Anonymous said...

With all these car dealers...Ridgeland can be the Getwell Road of Memphis

By the way....in 20 years you won’t own a car. You will use portions of cars for the times you need them.

Uber now acts as day care for kids....

Self driving cars will eliminate car notes and pricey car insurance.

And Ridgeland will have large empty buildings just like Jackson.

Anonymous said...

Plain ol' Catfish said...
"@ November 8, 2017 at 7:42 AM
You are the first person that hates Jackson, but recognizes the importance of turning the city around to benefit everyone Finally, someone that is sensible."
November 8, 2017 at 1:42 PM

First person? REALLY? Do you mean, "first person on this thread", or maybe, "first person posting on JJ"? What DO you mean?

And PLEASE learn when it's appropriate to write "that", and when the word should be "who". You should have written, "...first person WHO hates Jackson...", and "...someone WHO is sensible.".

You come off sounding really rednecky and ignorant.

Anonymous said...

What the hell is the school teacher doing on here when she should be teaching kids how to spell their name?

Anonymous said...

8:12 - Your attempt to paint Jackson's not have a movie theater as simply a sign of the times falls flat. While it may be true that theaters are eventually going out of style (but maybe not), that's not at all the reason there's not one in Jackson and you damn well know it.

Plain ol' Catfish said...

@ November 9, 2017 at 11:43 AM

"And PLEASE learn when it's appropriate to write "that""

Tell "that" to your mammy, you sorry backwoods bama!

Anonymous said...

7:49 / 5:49, You're just proving that you're out to screw people. Joe will fire your ass. He's got plenty more contacts in finance who are loyal to a dealership and to customers. And it takes more than one department to keep the lights on in a dealership.

Anonymous said...

Only place in Jackson that is still desirable is from Lakeland to Northside on the east side of I 55. That area will continue do well. Office buildings up and down I 55 are 1/2 vacant or rent is cheap because tenants don't feel safe. You can buy them for about nothing. Hooters and Twin Peaks are doing great. How about another one of those to fill up these vacant spaces.

Anonymous said...

Only place in Jackson that is still desirable is from Lakeland to Northside on the east side of I 55. That area will continue do well. Office buildings up and down I 55 are 1/2 vacant or rent is cheap because tenants don't feel safe. You can buy them for about nothing. Hooters and Twin Peaks are doing great. How about another one of those to fill up these vacant spaces.

Anonymous said...

Jackson is lucky Robert Watson moved here from New Orleans.
He has turned the old John Harvey Ford dealership
into the best ford dealership in Mississippi. Keep buying up all
that property around the area and your kids will take the dealership
to more heights like you did with your dad.

Anonymous said...

Anonymous Anonymous said...
@10:46

My car runs great. I look forward to only having to drive a couple minutes in town for my next oil change rather than down i55. Welcome to Ridgeland!

November 7, 2017 at 11:25 AM


Anonymous @ 10:46, have you taken a good look at Ridgeland lately? The very things that have caused Jackson' issues are flowing over into Ridgeland. It's merely becoming an annex of Jackson with increase in crime and sections becoming blighted. I used to refer to Jackson as the armpit of the state. But it's not-it's more like the crotch or rectal region now. Glad to be getting the heck out of this state soon.



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