Commoner
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Posts posted by Commoner
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On 8/10/2019 at 2:09 PM, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:
All my favorite liquor stores in NYC are filed with folks with personality and passion for wine and spirits. There are crappy ones for sure, but you can tell the difference before even walking through the door.
Sent from my iPad using TapatalkCompletely agree. My favorite one - between 6th and 7th, on the south side of 58th street, has a lot of Charlotte customers. The family is incredibly knowledgeable, generous with tastings, knows everything about the supply chain and remembers everything. I picked up a bottle of Codigo Rosa (can't get it in NC anymore...) this weekend.
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The ABC regime is atrocious. I understand the supply issue with certain (delicious) products like Blanton's, but there's no rational public policy reason why the State should operate a cartel for a consumer product. Get out of the way, NC!
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Steve Cummings (US CEO for MUFG) still has his home (and roots) in Charlotte. MUFG's corporate bank is in NYC and retail in LA. He wants to go from a large (West Coast) regional bank to a national top-10 deposit share bank. I don't know what M&A deal makes sense for them, but it wouldn't surprise me to see a deal and then more investment here. The Charlotte mafia used to be a thing, and it has its vestiges, and he's no doubt the best bet for its renaissance. We had lunch with him in UBS's dining room a few years ago and he was still a Charlotte guy, through and through, 40 floors above Park Ave in a Swiss Bank.
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On 7/26/2019 at 12:47 PM, ricky_davis_fan_21 said:
The building permits Halls filed say differently...
I love the Grill. The staff is great. Selfishly, it's right across the street from my office. But I would love a Halls. I hope you're prescient.
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Southpark Grill Update:
The rumors of the grill's demise (or Hall's arrival) are premature. They full revamped their dinner menu, and are serving very good steaks and typical accoutrement. Give them a try.
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This is a real disappointment. If you think about the end of the 20th century and the first few years of the 21st century, that's when this city's leadership approached opportunities like this with a refusal to lose, and fought with an underdog mentality, taking absolutely nothing for granted. That leadership (business, civic and social) took nothing for granted and absolutely would have connected something like this to Charlotte's future economic growth. Barings fell in our lap. This was a must-have, if you understand that the high paying jobs that used to exist at true banks have left the banking system (for a decade now) and are moving into alternative asset management. Trillions of dollars over the course of this generation's watch are moving into the hands of professional asset management firms like AB. Charlotte happens to have a unique, opportunistic ecosystem to nurture this industry. We already punch way above our weight in this growing, extraordinarily visible (to the rest of the world) and lucrative industry. The end of this decade should {have been}{be} a "big bang" of sorts - much like the mid-1990s was.
Charlotte will grow and will be successful, and 80% of the city will never have a clue what AB is or does, but you could say the same thing about broker dealer activities or interstate banking in 1989.
I'm quite disappointed in the individuals who pursued this opportunity for not bringing to bear every resource and angle that was in play. I am absolutely sure that they did not. The prior leaders wouldn't have let this slip past.
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I haven't read it, but in an "institutional" deal as I would imagine this partnership agreement to represent, there is a slate of standard market "minority protections" including but not limited to tag along rights (i.e., you own 10% but the plurality owner is selling, and you want to sell down pro rata with the majority/plurality), drag along rights (i.e., a group of 50% plus of the aggregate ownership wants to sell; the 10% owner can't hold the 50% plus hostage, who want to sell, so the minority gets "dragged" along) and others that don't really apply here ... well, maybe the ROFO and ROFR, i.e., if a member wants to sell, then other members get the right to buy at the price the seller received in his or her offer from the third party (if Jerry gets an offer for $10 for 48%, Hugh has the right to buy the 48% for $10).
While nobody does know (and unless someone steps in it and violates a core confidentiality provision of the partnership agreement, we won't know), these are the presumptions that people can/should make, if they're just speculating (as we are).
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Yes, smoking is out of the picture. I agree that a bar would be a robust business. I can't believe there isn't one in place now. Often when people check into a hotel, they are tired, want to have a nice relaxing drink without going into the craziness of the evening. I am sure the older folks would prefer the serenity of a hotel bar.
Same here - is the lounge (fireplace, small menu, couches and tables, bar service) that is currently in place, right outside of the BLT entrance, not what they're talking about?
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I went to the BLT Steakhouse at the Ritz last night as a part of Restaurant Week. Figured it was a good time to check out a place that would other wise be overly expensive. I thought the ambiance was very cool. Outside the restaurant they have a nice lounge area with bartenders and fireplaces. Very cozy. Inside the restaurant, it was a little smaller than I was expecting, but still had a warm feeling. The food however was a little underwhelming. I had the skirt steak, which I thought was rather rough and a little dry (had it served medium). My wife had the lamb, which was definitely better but not off the charts. The sides they had though were awesome. The jalapeño mashed potatoes and Gnocchi were excellent. The deserts were actually pretty good also. We had the cheese cake and chocolate molten lava cake. Overall, I probably give it 3 out of 5 stars. The entree to me just wasn't as good as I was expecting. Though, I have found sometimes you'll get short changed at some restaurants during Restaurant Week. I would be interested in having one of their regular menu steaks to give it another try. Otherwise, in my opinion they don't hold a handle to the best steak restaurants in Charlotte (for me those are Del Frisco's and Sullivan's).
That's a shame. I agree with ATL and you in that Restaurant Week is sometimes a bad time to form a first impression. BLT is above my paygrade for everyday dining as well, but when you feel like you can swing it, it's well worth it. I also like Del Frisco's and Ruth's Chris a lot, but don't care to go during Restaurant Week.
As an alternative to Restaurant Week, I like to hit different places that have cocktail menus. McCormick and Schmick sort of pioneered this I guess. But Aria has a great $5 menu at the bar. BLT also happens to have one. I think they might work some kinks out, but I generally spend a lot less and have more fun with bar menus.
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I mean. If they added in some retail and teamed up with a developer, it wouldn't be that bad in Levine. But that's just dreaming, of course...
I would think they'd put a scraper in uptown, though.
Isn't there an empty building at Gateway?
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...The only thing I ever went there for was Thomas Pink. ...
Nothing Beats Taylor Richards and Conger and Paul Simon!!!!
Get out of here. NM Charlotte carries Thomas Pink? I've only walked through the men's section once and didn't notice.
@ StevenRocks - They now have a significant GOB markdown. 75%, I believe. It pains me to write this, because I won't be able to go until next week. Don't say I never gave you anything...
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Man that's a bit surprising.....I thought they were one of the most demanding stores In that wing. I will definately miss their sweet sensations candy! Omg I want some now!
Thought I, too, would drop in to pay my respects to Billy Reid (the store - not the designer). They filled a great niche in Charlotte. I always had great help from sales associates. I hate to see the store leave, but I would love to hear more about NM carrying his products.
The candies were great (psssst... you can get them at Candy Candy in Founders Hall), but I agree that the bourbon was a hit - especially when you're trying to carry your lunchtime buzz forward.
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I'm still surprised the old Morton's spot hasn't been filled yet. I think this would be a perfect spot for a Houston's restaurant. Some of their locations are connected to malls too.
http://www.hillstone...rants/houstons/
Oh man. At the risk of being called out for my lack of urbanity, I'd love a Houston's in Charlotte. Perfect location, too.
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Did anyone else see the protesters in front of the Ritz? I was on a bus and I couldn't see what they were protesting, specifically.
The gist of the signs was something about breaking promises to employees. I assumed it would be the use of non-union labor, but maybe it's something different.
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I won't divulge details, but he is no longer part of the staff.
I guess this means I can come back now ; )
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Trump seems happier these days parading around on the WWE wrestling matches as their mouthpiece.
And don't forget: telecom pyramid schemes...
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I think at this point, its probably more of a coffee house topic and just take off the AAA Ballpark opening in Third Ward part...
It could even be a topic for the NC Rules of Civil and Appellate Procedure.
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In my opinion, the greater planning failure here was the single-family development. It has front-loaded garages with frequent driveways that creates a hostile environment for pedestrians, all on a site within a quarter-mile of transit. No wonder then that these residents are worried about traffic, when their own development already encourages driving.
How does the single family development encourage driving any more than the multi family developments? You have a parking spot for your car and access to and from secondary roads with each project. Depending on the number of guest spots available at each multi family project, the single family project might discourage driving. It doesn't have any spots for guests.
I think the most obvious problem is the lack of on-street parking on Bland, Winnifred and Church Streets.
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Has anyone tried Punta Cana on South Boulevard? I'm looking for some Caribbean/Jamaican food and don't care to drive to WT Harris for Anntony's.
Any other near-downtown Caribbean recommendations are also welcome.
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Now on PBS ran a great feature on the allocation of transit project stimulus dollars. It featured the Lynx Blue Line and interviews with Mayor McCrory and other North Carolinians regarding North Carolina's (and States in general) competence in allocating transportation resources. It's especially complimentary of the Lynx's effect on South End.
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I think a relocation of GMAC would be newsworthy in Charlotte, NYC and Detroit. The relocation of MS's depository institution to Charlotte would probably only be newsworthy here. You're talking about one division of a much larger company. Wachovia Securities has changed bases several times in the last ten years and, if I recall, that wasn't particularly newsworthy on its own (as opposed to it being in the context of an acquisition).
With respect to the Thain remodeling story, are you surprised that this is a much bigger story? Would this be the first time that MSM has opted for the sensational or tabloid story over something of substance? Or, if that's not the angle you want, how about the fact that it was fodder for the public's view of all individuals in banking as (my personal fav) "fat cats"? Also, let's remember that GMAC hasn't announced yet. THIS is where the discussion takes place before the actual story (the announcement). I guess if certain site admins wanted this to be more like the comments section to CNN or the Huffington Post, where we didn't discuss silly rumors like relos of bad auto finance companies*, we could wait for news to break and all congregate to discuss it.
*Incidentally, Fortune Magazine classifies GMAC as a "Diversified Finance Company", like GE.
As an aside, I've wondered where that Wachovia thread went. It suspiciously disappeared around the same time the big C dropped below $5.
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I have to say I always did enjoy going to the Home Depot design center and it was something unique for Charlotte to have, but that said I'd always go there to just look around really and don't recall buying anything there per se... Anyway, what's she square footage on this store.. 120,000-odd? square feet... i remember it being smaller than the Target upstairs because I think part of the Target sits on earth up there. But now should come the speculation of what would work there, particularly in this economy *and* for time to come. I think it could be the perfect size for a warehouse club such as Costco or BJ's, and a great location as well. Maybe it could also be subdivided adding aforementioned stores like Bed Bath and Beyond and Barnes and Noble, dunno about Belk though... it'll be interesting to see what happens!
I would think that the leases with Target and perhaps Trader Joe's contain covenants prohibiting the leasing of space at Midtown to a warehouse club or maybe even an additional grocery store. Subdividing doesn't sound like a bad idea.
Does anybody else think that the modern furniture store (I can't remember the name off the top of my head) is on deck? They always have a lot of empty space in the store.
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The lead of an additional couple of stores for the core over the structural steel is normal for steel built highrises.
I predicted that steel would be above ground by February, so its good to see the pace that this is progressing. Once they get to about the 6 or 7 floor for the core, they can add a level every 3-4 days. It should top out probaly in June.
Is this a steel-built tower? Didn't a concrete core lead the concrete exterior of the Wachovia Corporate Center too?
This has probably been banged out in another thread, but do steel built highrises go up faster than reinforced concrete (like Wachovia)?
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I have noticed that, since the ML disaster, many financial industry observers have begun to jump on the incompetence of Charlotte's bankers.
One example of this is here: http://bankstocks.com/ArticleViewer.aspx?A...ArticleTypeID=2
sample quote: "Once again, the Charlotte mafia has turned temporary success into ultimate, catastrophic failure."
Not much substance there (this is a thread about perception after all) but if combine that with the comments on the WSJ on the BoA / ML articles you can detect a consistent theme of "Southern banking rubes have severely damaged our industry."
That's funny. "Charlotte Mafia" was a term that was only used w/r/t McColl and his NCNB lieutenants (including Lewis) after the BAC merger in 1998 resulted in the exodus of legacy BAC managers. This is the first time I've seen it used to describe Charlotte bank leaderhip, in general. Not good!
The Bad News Report
in Charlotte
Posted
This (and A2's intellectual honesty) is a great discussion, and reminds me of the exciting (for sure) 2007-2009 time period. I also stayed away from UP for years, and for some reason, the irrational exuberance (and the development that ensues) lures me back, as usual, just in time for a reset.
As a not-yet-but-approaching-40 year old, the Great Recession happened at a critical (early) juncture in my career. It was life-changing, It affects every economic decision I make. But the dichotomy for me, personally, is going to make this one even more impactful.
On the one hand, I'm in the asset management business. We're liquid and hungry for any reset in asset valuations and investment terms. It's been silly for over half a decade. Financing is "secured" (to paraphrase Elon Musk) and locked in for the long haul. It couldn't come fast enough.
On the other hand, I've been divorced TWICE since the Great Recession. I'm silly broke. All assets and over half of my income is gone. I'm personally levered beyond reason, and need a miracle to dig out. I'm dreading the impact.
Should be exciting.