It's done

It's just about to ready to open...a soft opening, I guess.

FedEx will unveil it's new hub beginning next week, the N&R reports. It appears that the aircraft service PTI already will simply shift over to the new facility first before flights are added. The new runway/taxiways aren't quite ready yet.

N&R:

FedEx , which expects weak demand through 2009, is delaying the start of overnight sorting operations at PTI for a few months and with a much smaller work force than anticipated.

By fall, depending upon the economy, the hub will begin its sorting operations with 200 additional workers, mostly part-time with benefits.

The company has not begun hiring those workers and will not announce its hiring process until it feels confident the economy can support the expansion.

The total of 350 workers is far lower than the 600 to 800 workers the company had predicted earlier that it would need when the hub opens.

Troubling...

E.C. :)

JetAmerica possibly to serve PTI?

Not your father's JetAmerica...the airline's original namesake was a victim of deregulation in the 1980s, based in Long Beach, Calif. flying MD-80s, and eventually being absorbed by Alaska Airlines.

The "new" JetAmerica kicks off in July with $9 fares, and has the Triad in its radar scope.

Another SkyBus? Another failure with its hands out? Hope not. (but its website doesn't seem to be working)

N&R:

Clearwater, Fla.-based JetAmerica said on Tuesday that 34 nonstop passenger flights a week will start July 13 at Toledo, Ohio; South Bend, Ind.; Melbourne, Fla.; Newark, N.J.; Minneapolis and Lansing, Mich. Twenty-eight flights start or end at Newark Liberty International Airport. The carrier will add six more flights — from Toledo to Minneapolis — starting Aug. 14.

And in its news release announcing the new service, the airline stated it could expand to the Triad. Among its "future focus cities under consideration in 2009" are Greensboro and Winston-Salem.

John Weikle, chief executive of JetAmerica, said the subsidies from some of the cities it will serve in July will help insulate the new carrier from spikes in jet fuel prices. Higher fuel prices have contributed to the failures of at least four major airlines since 9/11. Smaller carriers have also been hurt.

Good luck...God bless...

E.C. :)

PTI E-Fares for 5/27/09

As a public service, GSOMetro will begin forwarding the weekly PTI E-fares published every Wednesday. I'm not getting any kick-back from this, it's simply a public service. I've been using PTI a lot lately and like they say, we need to use it or we will lose it.

TO ROUND TRIP FROM PTI: Albany $166 See this fare Austin $230 See this fare Boston $188 See this fare Chicago $202 See this fare Cleveland $140 See this fare Columbus $140 See this fare Dayton $140 See this fare Houston $179 See this fare Indianapolis $130 See this fare Knoxville $140 See this fare Milwaukee $186 See this fare Nashville $140 See this fare New York/Newark $119 See this fare Norfolk $140 See this fare Pittsburgh $140 See this fare Philadelphia $174 See this fare Rochester $150 See this fare San Antonio $232 See this fare St. Louis $186 See this fare Syracuse $156 See this fare Tampa $172 See this fare Washington, DC $150 See this fare Click here for more special fares

Use the links provided in this e-mail or visit the PTI website FlyFromPTI.com and use the Fare Deals links from the PTI web site to see this and other special fare offers when possible. Some airlines will have a special button called, "Special Fares, or Promotional Fares" that will link you to fares not found through the regular booking or search process.

It is important to book a fare early because fares are subject to change and availability and go very quickly. You can also check with your travel agent to assist you with special fares from PTI.

Low Fare information is provided to PTI by individual airlines and is subject to airline conditions. We make our best effort to keep the information current and accurate but we can not guarantee that all fares are available at all times. Listed fares are for one adult, round trip and do not include applicable taxes and fees.

And remember flying from PTI is the best way to keep the air service we have and to attract new service. In other words, we need to use it or we will lose it.

Thanks for flying from PTI

Speaking of DOT...

...do they know that only about 1% of the fancy new median lighting on I-40 between the I-40-Bus. 40 split in western Guilford Co. to about High Point Rd. is actually working? Why have lights down the middle of an urban expressway if they don't work?

I don't want to turn this into a DOT blog, but I'm seeing a lot of things during my late-night commute that really get under my skin, and this is one of them.

E.C. :)

Beltway/I-40 Signage Solution

There was a simple fix to the Beltway/I-40 signage mess...make the ENTIRE Urban Loop signed as 840, not just the northern part of the loop. Make it 840 Inner Loop and 840 Outer Loop. If the idiots at DOT would've done that from the start, the signage fiasco would've never have happened.

440 is signed all the way around Raleigh, 485 is signed all the way around Charlotte...again, things have to be done differently in the good ole' Triad. And if it's starting to make you wonder why the Triad continues to be the ugly stepchild of the state, stupid things like this should enlighten you as to why that's the case.

Just venting...

E.C. :)

Ryan goes for 2

City Council candidate Ryan Shell announced today that he will seek the nod for Dist. 2 instead of at-large. So far, Shell remains the only announced candidate for D-2. Smart move.

Shell tells GSOMetro:

"We are one step closer to doing what some call 'impossible.' By having a clear vision I firmly believe we can completely transition Greensboro in to the city we all know it can be...This campaign is about transparency (not the talking point - the actual thing), collaboration and uniting others."

It will also set up an interesting saga if School Board member Deena Hayes decides to change her mind and run. Rumors continue to swirl about her possible candidacy. She publicly denied the rumors recently, but some speculate that she may deliberately leave the door open for a possible D-2 run. We shall see.

E.C. :)

Another day...another announcement of major layoffs

American Express announced this week it will close its Piedmont Centre travel office in North High Point, laying off 103 employees. Many of them were handed pink slips on the spot. Tragic.

We are no longer a manufacturing-based, textile-based, tobacco-based economy...we are a service-sector-based economy now. And now that we're losing our service-sector jobs, are we relevant? Is our area losing its relevance? And if so, how do we get it back?

E.C. :)

Beltway bull

This could have been avoided. But now, it appears as though this will become another unwelcome and unwanted issue that has the potential to surface in this fall's municipal elections, along with the lawsuits, the Dept. of Justice investigation, and _____ (name your city hall scandal here).

It appears as though developers didn't realize a multi-lane superhighway would traverse through one day. Well, it will. And since this was highlighted in this week's News & Record, it is causing a crap-storm.

City Council candidate Joel Landau:

The tragedy of errors that is resulting in several northeast Greensboro residents losing their homes and being relocated at taxpayer expense (“In the Bull’s-eye,” May 3) shows the consequences of our elected officials’ failure to connect the dots and consider all the ramifications of their actions. The City Council in 2000 OK’d what became known as Quail Oaks, a housing development immediately adjacent to the Urban Loop’s future interchange with U.S. 29. Lots continued to be sold there five years later, even after it was known that the highway interchange would need to be rerouted right through the new neighborhood.

As a result, the dreams of many new homeowners have been thwarted, and large sums of taxpayer dollars wasted, while the developers and real-estate company are getting off scot-free.

Elected officials should balance the interests of developers with those of the community as a whole. One reason I am running for council is to make sure that our city better manages its growth.

Ironically, Quail Oaks represents the kind of urban sprawl that is perpetuated by planning centered around building roads like the Urban Loop. Zoning policies should encourage smarter development that takes advantage of existing infrastructure, reduces dependence on cars and enhances the livability of our neighborhoods.

Wow...

E.C. :)

W-S takes it up the keister

I'm enjoying the antics over in nearby Winston-Salem from my armchair...some notables:

1. W-S mayor Allen Joines being named this week to the state's Economic Development Board (what is that???) by Gov. Bev "no-clue" Perdue.

Heh...funny.

The comments in a Winston-Salem Journal article today apparently show how unpopular he seems to be around that town. This, coming in the same week as it was revealed that their minor-league baseball team (DASH) will not play in their new stadium this year because it won't be ready yet (hat-tip: Piedmont Publius).

City residents suspect the stadium simply has become a boondoggle.

Beware, the Dell and Dash man Joines crooking for good ole Bev now. That should make a good pair and clean the citizens clocks good with lots of losing propositions. "Local economic-development officials said that Joines' chairmanship would benefit the Triad.' just like it did the taxpayers with baseball and Dell investments!!!. What a joke!!

Nothing like having "Tin Cup" Alan on your team. Rattling his cup, begging for tax dollars for pet projects. As for "green jobs", his first project should be the grass on the infield of the Dash stadium. Looks like a big dirt pile right now. Maybe he can make that green.

Ouch!

2. So if the honorable Allen Joines will be pitching "economic development," I wonder what he can do to attempt to save the gutted Hanesbrands, one of the so-called crown jewels of Winston-Salem. I swear, if that company lays off any more people, it will be the security guards looking for work.

Local commentator Jim Longworth has some strong (and poignant) words about Hanesbrands in his column in this week's YES! Weekly:

But unlike Dell, which cloaks its layoffs in secrecy, Hanesbrands openly and unashamedly continues to fire Americans in broad daylight, and send their jobs to third-world countries. Last week’s announcement by Hanesbrands added particular insult to injury by not directing the layoffs to come from its foreign plants first, before further decimating the local workforce. And through it all, after two years of this unpatriotic crap, Hanesbrands management seems to be getting a free pass from just about everyone, which is very strange, given the anger most Americans feel toward greedy corporations these days. That Hanesbrands keeps profiting and pillaging in today’s post AIG environment is almost surreal. In fact, this saga has evolved into a full-blown morality play, featuring five distinct groups of actors: A-holes, apologists, apathists, academics and antagonists.

Classic.

But Longworth goes for the jugular:

Among the apologists, Winston-Salem Chamber of Commerce President Gayle Anderson is the most vocal. Anderson’s best apology to date was last week when she told Richard Craver of the Winston-Salem Journal that Hanesbrands continues to support the local economy with “leadership and volunteerism.” Leadership and volunteerism? First of all, corporate greed is not leadership; stripping retirees of their subsidized medical benefits is not leadership. Second, what exactly is the economic value in having thousands of unemployed volunteers living in the community? When it comes to apathy, no one excels better than the electronic media.

TV news departments continue to broadcast whatever lame, diversionary statement is made by Hanesbrands spokespersons without even taking time to challenge those statements. Yes, I realize that corporate-owned news gatherers are short on staff these days, and that a reporter is not supposed to render opinions, but that doesn’t justify not probing the story or the source.

1. Charlotte
2. Triangle
3. Triad...but people wonder why this area continues to play third fiddle?

E.C. :)

City Council candidate Nancy Vaughan: someone to watch

Former two-term Greensboro city councilman Nancy Vaughan is about to make another go at it, this time for an at-large position this fall...and she wants you to know why:

"I'm displeased at the inaction of our Council and the lack of civility."

That should say it all.

In an interview with GSOMetro, Vaughan said for these reasons and more (along with the blessing of her family), she had to begin prepping to get back in. She said the waffling on "protest petitions" were the catalyst of her itching to run again.

Make no mistake, Ms. Vaughan, whose husband is Guilford County state Sen. Don Vaughan, has strong opinions about the direction of Greensboro.

Take for instance:

On the city's economy and jobs:

"Our quality of life is hurting. Quality of life is a motivator. We need to focus on small business retention. This city has a lot going for us that we need to capitalize on."

On public safety:

"We don't live in 'Dodge City' but if there's a problem, we need to fix it," she said. "We need to gain our reputation back. We've gotten used to Greensboro taking a back seat to Charlotte and Raleigh. Greensboro has some good bones and we need to rebuild."

On all-things-Simkins:

"I'll sit down and meet with them, but I won't sell my soul to them."

On privatisation of the Coliseum:

"I don't see why we can't revisit [the idea]. But unless there's an anchor tenant there, then there's no money coming in. Our coliseum does bring in a good deal of business to local restaurants and hotels."

On the racial polarization of the city:

"Our boards and commissions need to take the lead on this. And our elected representatives need to set a better example. We need to face this head on."

And what about those board and commissions:

"There needs to be more equity. Are there professionals on some boards? Yes. Are our boards completely stacked with them? No. I think we need to have boards and commissions that are more professional in nature, with a set of professional standards."

On accountability:

"The city manager is accountable to us as a city council. Thus, the manager should report back to us. In addition, the city attorney needs to report to council on a regular basis. Important information shouldn't be filtered through the city manager."

On the Time-Warner fiasco:

"I was surprised it took Council so long to issue a response. They should have had Time Warner executives summoned almost immediately to explain what it was they were doing. On this, we need to do long term planning for the future."

Vaughan tells GSOMetro her campaign will begin ramping up in the coming weeks, with fundraisers planned soon after. Feeling confident of her chances for victory in a crowded at-large field, Vaughan said she is using this time to begin reaching out to key people and supporters citywide.

E.C. :)