When You Screw Up, Reinvent Yourself?

My Daddy was a nobody but little did I know how much he was loved until his funeral a few years ago. So often we hear of elderly people who die and almost no one attends their funeral but that wasn't the case with Daddy's funeral. When Daddy passed it was standing room only in a big church in East Greensboro and the miles long funeral procession required escorts by not only the Greensboro Police Department but also by the North Carolina Highway Patrol.

The fact that Daddy was so popular long remained a mystery to me. He wasn't any sort of local celebrity, never owned a business, served in 2 wars (WW2 and Korea) but wasn't a war hero, was never in the media and never had money to donate to worthy causes. Not that he wouldn't have done so if he could have but having started out as a share cropper in the mountains of North Carolina, my Daddy never really made it that far in life. Daddy never even had a pension.

But Daddy was always daddy-- he never pretended to be anything he wasn't. When he screwed up he admitted he screwed up and even when he made bad choices he made them in good faith. Daddy never reinvented himself so everyone who met him from his childhood in the 1930s until his death a few years ago always knew who he was all those years later.

Such isn't the case with the folks who secretly run Greensboro. Not only do they reinvent themselves so that we don't know who they are but they also change their names and use multiple names that confuse us and keep us wondering who they are.

Take The Greensboro Partnership for example: The Greensboro Partnership is also known as Action Greensboro, The Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro, Downtown Greensboro Incorporated, the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, the Greensboro Chamber Of Commerce, Greensboro Merchant Association, the Greensboro Credit Union, the Guilford Merchants Association, the High Point Merchants Association. the Greater Greensboro Merchants Association, Joseph M Bryan Foundation, the Greensboro Foundation and more depending on what it is they're trying to do and what day they're doing it. Oh sure, on paper most have separate legal status but in board make ups and deed they operate as one entity. Others operate without any legal status whatsoever.

It's almost as if a new entity is invented for every new project and when an entity soils its name they create a new entity with a different name to replace it while keeping the same boards and management as before.

I guess this is legal. I haven't found any laws stating otherwise. But it is detrimental to Greensboro because we-the-taxpayers feel we have the right to know who it is that runs our city. And if we don't know who is in charge then we cannot trust that our city is being run properly.

This incestuous relationship needs to be of concern to everyone in Greensboro including the "non profits" who run our city and drive our local politics. Will it be addressed? I don't know but until it is addressed you will never have the confidence and trust of Greensboro's working class. And believe me when I tell you that as long as we don't trust you we will always resist anything you try to do, good, bad or ugly.

Oh sure, lots of people will attend your funerals but it won't be because of who you were. That's a right reserved for those who are always who they are.

Update: A friend read this post a few minutes ago and said it was very damning. That wasn't my intention. My intention was to wake up Greensboro's leaders to the fact that you are going to have to do differently if you expect the rest of us to support your efforts.

Continue to page 41. Tannenbaum Sternberger Foundation.

Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, Federal Tax Returns

Previously I looked into the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance only to discover they are not on record in the state of North Carolina. It's as if they don't exist. But the City of Greensboro says:

"The Economic Development office works with our partner, the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance (GEDA) to promote Greensboro as a place to locate and grow your business. The services of Economic Development also assist to coordinate available properties or redevelopment or development and determine if any City incentives are available."

Is the City of Greensboro working with ghosts?

So I looked up their Federal Tax Returns and found nothing. Best I can tell the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance has never filed a Federal Tax Return. Go ahead, look for yourself and tell me what you've found.

Computer glitch? Maybe, but who knows? But why 4 different names, Action Greensboro, Greensboro Partnership, Greensboro Economic Development Alliance and the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, for the same non profit entity?

Continue to page 37. Downtown Greensboro Incorporated, Federal Tax Returns.

The Giant Awakens?

Well it appears my efforts have gained the attention of the Greensboro Partnership who now has the Joy Cook Public Relations Group using twitter and other social media to promote the Greensboro Partnership. You'll notice they just took a trip to Raleigh to spend some time talking with state lawmakers. Remember: it's never a good thing when non profits feel the need to seek PR.

Or maybe I'm just being parinoid?

Action Greensboro Inc, Federal Tax Returns

Previously I looked into Action Greensboro but didn't find many answers. Well I took a little break and looked around for more records to search and while I'm unable to unearth any grand conspiracies, the tax returns for Action Greensboro did bring up a few more questions to which I haven't found answers.

The American Judicature Society:

"Founded in 1913, the American Judicature Society is an independent, non-partisan, membership organization working nationally to protect the integrity of the American justice system. AJS’s diverse and broadly based membership --including judges, lawyers and members of the public-- promotes fair and impartial courts through research, publications, education and advocacy for judicial reform. The work of AJS focuses primarily on judicial ethics, judicial selection, access to justice, criminal justice reform, and the jury system."

Not that the American Judicature Society is a bad thing but why did Action Greensboro Inc. donate $75,000 to AJS in 2005. The link is to Acton Greensboro's 2006 Federal Income Tax Return. And where did Action Greensboro get that money? How much money did the City of Greensboro give Action Greensboro that same year? And why is Action Greensboro donating to a non profit located in Des Moines, Iowa? Anyone?

From IRS Form 990, Part IV. Reason for Non-Private Foundation Status:

11a. "An organization that normally receives a substantial part of its support from a governmental unit or from the general public .
Section 170(b)(1)(A)(vi) (Also complete the Support Schedule in Part IV-A )"

And why a 2003 donation of $102,178 to the Inception Micro Angel Fund, LLC? I'm just askin'.

You can view all of Action Greensboro's Federal Tax returns here.

Something tells me I'm going to have to look up the tax returns of the American Judicature Society and a whole bunch more.

By the way, do you think it strange that the Bryan Foundation pays Action Greensboro to pay Grassroots Productions to hire Downtown Greensboro Inc to manage City Center Park and bill the City of Greensboro when DGI (funded by the City of Greensboro) Action Greensboro, The Greensboro Partnership, Greensboro Economic Development Alliance and Greensboro Chamber of Commerce are all one in the same?

Continue to page 36. Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, Federal Tax Returns.

Greensboro Partnership Attempts Eminent Domain

George strikes again, pointing out the truth, lies and deceit of the Greensboro Partnership and efforts to quietly manipulate bad laws into consent agendas.



This, my friends, is American Fascism in all it's glory.

Continue to page 28. Joseph M Bryan Foundation Board Of Directors.

Piedmont Triad Partnership In PART

As was pointed out by Sam at Piedmont Publius, an obviously right leaning product of the John Locke Foundation, PART is cutting routes because they lack funding. But then things are tough all over.

As for the Piedmont Triad Partnership, a local non profit with close ties to Mayor Robbie Perkins, Jim Melvin, the Greensboro Partnership and PART, why are they hiring lobbyists who are they lobbying and what are they lobbying for? And what is the involvement of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC?

What is their involvement with Brooks, Pierce et al? And why doesn't the information at the NC Secretary of State website not include the information found on OpenSecrets.org? Perhaps, Justice Frye can tell us.

Perhaps someone on their board will be able to answer my questions?

Continue reading page 24. Young Men's Christian Association of Greensboro.

Bill Knight On The Greensboro Chamber Of Commerce

Any investigation of the Greensboro Partnership has to include the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. You see, the Greensboro Partnership, Greensboro Chamber of Commerce, Action Greensboro, Downtown Greensboro Inc., Downtown Greensboro Improvement Corporation, Downtown Greensboro Foundation, Guilford Nonprofit Consortium, Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, and any number of area non profits are, for all intents and purposes, one in the same. Many even share the exact same boards of directors.

From a recent conversation between John Hammer and former Mayor Bill Knight:

"He said he spent a lot of time on economic development and would love to see the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce take a more active role in economic development and with existing businesses like it does in other communities.

He said he was surprised to see how little the chamber knows about some segments of business in Greensboro."

You see, as a non profit, the Chamber Of Commerce has no need to know about private business. The Chamber exists on handouts, taxpayer dollars and donations just like the downtown panhandlers who are forced to get permits before they panhandle. They don't do business, they beg. Since when did we put beggars in charge of business?

So maybe, just maybe the point of my investigation shouldn't be the infractions I've found thus far. Maybe it's simply inept management?

Continue to page 21. Greensboro Beautiful Inc Board Of Directors.

Greensboro Partnership Lobbied To Eliminate RUCO?

George Hartzman asks the Greensboro City Council if TREBIC used the Greensboro Partnership to eliminate RUCO, make homes unsafe and tax the poor?



If area non profits are manipulating local governments, then do we-the-taxpayers not have the right to know who these people are?

Continue to page 14. TREBIC Board Of Directors Suspended By State?

Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro Board Of Directors

I'm sure some of you are wondering about my unusual approach to exposing the truth, lies and deceit of the Greensboro Partnership but trust me there is method to my madness. Besides, I'm not telling everything I've learned-- yet.

Here on page 10 of the book we concentrate on the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro. The Community Foundation solicits donations from the public and is said to spend those donations on public art, women's issues and other things of social value. In 2010 the foundation, chaired by Louise Brady, claims to have collected over $10 Million in donations and paid out $10 Million in grants to worthy nonprofits including the Interactive Resource Center, the Future Fund, the Public Art Endowment and Women to Women. Their 2010-2011 Annual Report lists the boards of 3 donating companies but doesn't tell us who sits on their own board of directors.

The articles of incorporation for Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro are not available at the NC Secretary of State website probably because their 1983 date of incorporation predates the Internet. They apparently changed the name of the corporation in 1995 but that is also pre Internet. Their previous name was the Foundation of Greater Greensboro, Inc. but they currently do business (dba) as the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium. Why two names? I haven't a clue.

From the Guilford Nonprofit Consortium:

"In 2003, Weaver Foundation and the Community Foundation were instrumental in the exploring the interest in and need for the Consortium. Facilitated by a Leadership Greensboro project team, nonprofit stakeholders in our community defined the need for and dimensions of a capacity building consortium. The question they sought to answer was: "How might nonprofits come together as a community and build capacities among and between nonprofits as a way to creatively meet some of these growing challenges?" In 2004, more than 100 nonprofit organizations stepped forward to form the initial membership of the Consortium and local foundations came together to fund the Consortium so that annual dues could be kept to a minimum."

The Consortium membership list appears to be a who's who of who wants a handout. Apparently they do the same thing as the United Way except on a smaller and more local scale. Apparently they are the go to people for local non profit organizations in need of money.

I find it strange that the Community Foundation of Greater Greensboro and most of the local non profits I've discussed to date all have problems making known who their board members are as it's apparently not a problem for the non profit, Guilford 200 Club.

Continue to page 11. Grassroots Productions Limited Board Of Directors.

Downtown Greensboro Incorporated Board of Directors

After failing to find different boards of directors for Action Greensboro, the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce and the Greensboro Partnership I thought I'd take a look at some of the other non-profit organizations involved in the governmental and civic operations of Greensboro, North Carolina beginning with DGI, aka Downtown Greensboro Incorporated. From the DGI website:

"How is DGI funded?

The major funding source for the organization is a Municipal Service District or Business Improvement District (BID), that levies a special assessment on Downtown business and property owners to provide enhanced services and programs that benefit the ratepayers. This district was created by City Council in 2005 after a petition process demonstrated support by over 60% of the property owners. These funds are governed by state law and are intended to enhance, not replace, government funding to Downtown.

The City of Greensboro and Guilford County contributes to DGI through annual contracts for economic development and other services for the area. These contracts have specific, quantifiable outcomes that are targeted to growing the community's tax base. DGI also receives contributions from its Annual Fund Drive. Contributors include the Guilford Merchants Association, local foundations and dozens of individual supporters."

So we've established that DGI is taxpayer funded. With a name like Downtown Greensboro Incorporated, one would assume they have a board of directors just like any other corporation and the DGI website even shows they have a Chief Financial Officer whose name is Kate Phillips and a CEO who is said to be, Ed Wolverton. As it turns out their 2011 Annual Report does list a 33 member DGI Board of Directors but the current board isn't mentioned. You see, I know the current board isn't the same as last year's board because DGI board member and former Greensboro City Manager, Rashad Young skipped town a few months ago. So who is currently seated on the board at DGI?

No conspiracies here so I decided to do the usual searches. DowntownGreensboro.net is registered to an unknown entity. Why? I don't know. My search of the NC Secretary of State website tells me that DGI's registered agent is The Greensboro Area Chamber of Commerce but like other non profits DGI is not required to file annual reports and has never done so. Interesting note: If you go to this page and click on " THE GREENSBORO AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, INCORPORATED" you will be directed to this page And while you're on the second page, try clicking on "DOWNTOWN GREENSBORO INCORPORATED" and see where that takes you. As with most things involving the Greensboro Partnership, I have no clue as to what that means so you're free to speculate anything you wish.

Update: DGI's board can be found here.

Continue to page 9. synerG Board Of Directors.

State Of The City of Greensboro 2012

While investigating the Greensboro Partnership I think it important that we look at the facts:

"THE OVERALL ‘STATE OF THE CITY’ IS LESS THAN ROBUST
• Greensboro continues to struggle with the ongoing ramifications of the national recession particularly regarding the region’s significant job losses and high

MEDIAN EARNINGS AND PER CAPITA INCOME DECLINEDMARKEDLY
• Although median earnings in Greensboro increased significantly from 2008 to 2009, this was not the case in 2010. Compared to the largest cities in North Carolina, Greensboro experienced the most substantive decline (-8.6%) in median earnings going from $26,205 in 2009 to $23,953 in 2010. By contrast, median earnings increased in Winston Salem (+3.7%) and Charlotte (+2.6%).

• Per capita income levels continued a three-year decline from a high of $25,560 in 2008 to $23,832 in 2010. Unlike earnings, per capita income includes more than just wages and salaries since it also includes income derived from interest, dividend, rent and transfer payments. The substantive decline in dividend investment capital due to the financial crisis and national recession of the late 2000s may have negatively impacted per capita income. From 2009 to 2010, Greensboro experienced the second most significant decline in per capita income relative to Charlotte (-7.6%), Durham (-2.5%), Raleigh (-2.5%), and Winston Salem (+3.6%).

EDUCATION AND HEALTH SERVICES CONTINUE TO EXPAND AND ACCOUNT FOR ONE-QUARTER OF ALL JOBS IN GREENSBORO BUT AVERAGE WAGES ARE STAGNANT
• Education and health services continue to be major industries in the local economy accounting for over one-quarter of all jobs in Greensboro. The overall market share of education and health services increased noticeably from 21.2% in 2008 to 25.2% in 2010. The downside of this growth is that average wage rates have been stagnant since 2008 with the lowest net gains of any industry.

TRANSPORTATION LOGISTICS CONTINUES TO LOSE MARKET SHARE BUT AVERAGE WAGE RATES NOTICEABLY INCREASED
• Despite the recent successes regarding companies like HondaJet and FedEx Ground, the transportation-related industry continues to lose market share in terms of the percentage of jobs generated. From 2009 to 2010, transportation employment share dropped from 4.8% to 3.4%, part of a three year downward trend. On the other hand, average wage rates increased 2.6% from $42,968 to $44,103 over the same time period – the third highest increase of any industry.

TAX BASE GROWTH IS FLAT
• Partly as a result of the 2008/9 recession and related fiscal crisis, growth in the Guilford County tax base was stagnant increasing a modest 0.5% from $36.6 billion in 2009/10 to $36.8 billion in 2010/11.

POVERTY RATES REMAIN HIGH
• The percentage of the city population in poverty remains high and largely unchanged, increasing slightly from 20.0% in 2009 to 20.1% in 2010 meaning one in five Greensboro residents were in poverty. (Note: for a family of four with two children under the age of 18, the household is considered poor if total household income is below $22,113 in 2010.)

RESIDENTIAL SPRAWL INDICATORS
• Recent sprawl studies have indicated that Greensboro and the Piedmont Triad metropolitan area have some of the most sprawling growth patterns in the United States.

HOME OWNERSHIP AND VALUE
• A high percentage of home ownership illustrates a propensity for residential stability in a community and signals a vote of confidence in the overall quality of life of the area. If a large proportion of the population opts to invest in the real estate market instead of renting, it implies a long-term commitment to the community.

• Homeownership in Greensboro decreased from 54.1% of the housing stock in owner-occupied units in 2009 to 53.4% in 2010 – a decline of 0.7 percentage points. The recent recession is likely a major causal factor particularly given the gradual rise in the percent owner-occupied from 2005 through 2008.

MEDIAN EARNINGS
• Median earnings are an excellent measure of the overall skill level of the community and the quality of jobs being created in an area. Earnings are defined as the sum of wage and salary disbursements and are often used as a proxy for income generated specifically from participation in production.

• Overall median earnings in Greensboro declined significantly (-8.6%) from $26,205 in 2009 to $23,953 in 2010 – the lowest median earnings since the American Community Survey began reporting Greensboro data back in 2005. From 2009 to 2010, Greensboro experienced the most significant decline in median earnings relative to Raleigh (-4.7%), Durham (-1.3%), Charlotte (+2.6%), and Winston-Salem (+3.7%).

PER CAPITA INCOME
• Per capita income is an excellent measure of the overall accumulation of wealth although it is not a direct measure of wages and salaries because it also includes income derived from such things as interest, dividend, rent and transfer payments.

• Unlike with median earnings, Greensboro experienced a less precipitous decline in per capita income although income levels still dropped noticeably from $24,982 in 2009 to $23,832 in 2009 – a 4.6% decline. From 2009 to 2010, Greensboro experienced the second most significant decline in per capita income relative to Charlotte (-7.6%), Durham (-2.5%), Raleigh (-2.5%), and Winston Salem (+3.6%).

JOBS: LABOR FORCE COMPOSITION BY INDUSTRY
• An important part of any city economy is the arts and entertainment/accommodation and food industry particularly in downtown areas which tend to act as important focal points for the industry. However, Greensboro’s share in this industry decreased from 12.8% of all jobs in 2009 to 12.5% in 2010. Although the Greensboro city center has recently experienced a rebirth of sorts – particularly the nightclubs and bars along South Elm Street – more could be done to attract young urban professionals to the city.

• It is clear that the transportation logistics and warehousing industry has the potential to become a major player in the Greensboro economy particularly with the opening of the mid-Atlantic FedEx hub in 2009 at Piedmont Triad International Airport. However, given the economic slowdown, it is perhaps not surprising that the percentage of all jobs in this industry noticeably decreased from a 4.8% share of the market in 2009 to 3.4% in 2010. More disconcertingly, this represents the second largest relative decline of any industry in Greensboro for the same time period.

POVERTY RATE
• The Greensboro poverty rate increased slightly between 2009 and 2010 going from 20.0% to 20.1% of the population.

THE OVERALL ‘STATE OF THE CITY’ IS LESS THAN ROBUST
• Greensboro continues to struggle with the ongoing ramifications of the national recession particularly regarding the region’s significant job losses and high poverty rate.

MEDIAN EARNINGS AND PER CAPITA INCOME DECLINED MARKEDLY
• Although median earnings in Greensboro increased significantly from 2008 to 2009, this was not the case in 2010. Compared to the largest cities in North Carolina, Greensboro experienced the most substantive decline (-8.6%) in median earnings going from $26,205 in 2009 to $23,953 in 2010. By contrast, median earnings increased in Winston Salem (+3.7%) and Charlotte (+2.6%).

• Per capita income levels continued a three-year decline from a high of $25,560 in 2008 to $23,832 in 2010. Unlike earnings, per capita income includes more than just wages and salaries since it also includes income derived from interest, dividend, rent and transfer payments. The substantive decline in dividend investment capital due to the financial crisis and national recession of the late 2000s may have negatively impacted per capita income. From 2009 to 2010, Greensboro experienced the second most significant decline in per capita income relative to Charlotte (-7.6%), Durham (-2.5%), Raleigh (-2.5%), and Winston Salem (+3.6%)."

Source: 2012 STATE OF THE CITY REPORT: GREENSBORO, NC. by DR. KEITH G. DEBBAGE PROFESSOR OF URBAN GEOGRAPHY UNIVERSITY OF NORTH CAROLINA AT GREENSBORO and The Greensboro Partnership.

No, not all the news is bad, just most of it.

Continue to page 6. Action Greensboro Board Of Directors.

Interesting Notes About The Greensboro Partnership

If you attempt to sign-up for e-mail alerts from the Greensboro Partnership you get redirected to the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce newsletter.

Jason Cannon, VP Governmental Affairs controls the Partnership's Twitter feed but has so far been uncommunicative.

The Greensboro Partnership is run by Action Greensboro, the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance and the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. A search for the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce board of directors takes you to the Greensboro Partnership as the #1 search result. A search for the Greensboro Economic Development Alliance board of directors also shows the Greensboro Partnership as the #1 search result. A search for Action Greensboro board of directors returns the same results. Are all 4 of these publicly funded non profit organizations really one in the same?

To be continued as I learn more.

Continue reading page 4. Conflicts Of Interest Cripple Greensboro Economy.

Exposing The Greensboro Partnership: The Beginning

Who is the Greensboro Partnership? Who are their members? What are they're real goals? Is the Greensboro Partnership really in business to help all of Greensboro or just a select few connected developers and contractors? What has the Greensboro Partnership done that benefited all of Greensboro and not just a few? How is the Greensboro Partnership funded and who pays the bills? What are the secrets the Greensboro Partnership doesn't want you to know?

From the Greensboro Partnership website:

"The Greensboro Partnership was formed in 2005 from the merger of Greensboro Economic Development Alliance, Action Greensboro, and the Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. The mission of the Partnership is to serve as the principal economic and community development organization in Greensboro and to strategically develop a vibrant community that creates, expands and attracts business while advancing the quality of life for all. The work of the Partnership is guided by a comprehensive strategic plan that focuses on:"

It sounds good enough but is that all there is to it? And why all the layers and layers of non profit organizations that make up the members of the Greensboro Partnership-- is spending money that was removed from the tax pool to create another non profit organization a wise or even legitimate use of public money? How much in taxpayer Dollars is used to fund the Greensboro Partnership and its member organizations? Are we getting our money's worth? What percentage of the overall funding goes into actual projects that benifit the citizens of Greensboro and how much is paid to overpaid executives?

These and more are the questions this book hopes to answer. Contact us if you'd like to help. Your confidentiality will be protected.

Continue to page 2. What Happens To Non Connected Entrepreneurs In Greensboro?.