Ok, and…? He’s taking advantage of a tax credit, and our (very old, lest we forget) city retains many of it’s very old, historic properties. Seems like more of a win for the city, in the long run.
Again, it could be a LOT worse… with some out of state developer coming in, buying up an old property, demolishing it, and building some ugly B.S.
Again, I’m not sitting here slobbing Hatem’s knob. He seems, as I’ve just said, like an asshole. His whole “drunktown” escapade was a joke, and a genuine PROBLEM for businesses for a little while. But I’d argue that the extreme public pushback to that actually helped lead to the eventual unleashing of sidewalk eateries and city-wide Sip ‘n’ Stroll program. So he kinda just shot himself in the foot with that one, just took a while to correct. But for what his company has done in preserving and restoring our city’s remaining historic properties and businesses, I can’t really find much to criticize, there. So fking what if he’s using that to get some tax credits? It’s a win/win for him and the city, at large. Good for all involved, there.
agree he should be put on blast for any poor treatment of his businesses employees. Have said so, will say so. I simply said my opinion on him is “complicated” for these exact reasons.
the point about tax breaks is that he is not some saint for doing it. as wey said this is not anyone decrying the tax breaks LOL it’s that he is not losing money on this. other companies do the same thing, he is not the only owner of historic properties. so defending him and consolidation of property ownership, and his very long history of being a terrible owner on that basis is pretty wild.
Holy hell, what is in the water today? In no way have I “defended” him lmao. I said my OPINION on him is COMPLICATED because he is an asshole and doesn’t run his businesses with his employees best interests in mind, but at the same time is a major reason so many of our historic properties STILL EXIST. I never once said A: that he loses money on it, B. other developers don’t/can’t preserve historic properties, nor C. that he’s a great guy and deserves to be defended. Can y’all read?? I have said - pretty succinctly - that he/his company do specifically buy up historic properties with express purpose of restoring and preserving them. Other companies certainly can still do that … so who else is doing it in the abundance that Empire does? And how many of the current Empire properties would not exist in their historic state had he not bought/preserved them? Again, he’s a double-edged sword. Two things can be true at the same time. Where is this absolutism coming from, and why do y’all think it’s productive?
Wow, it sounds like @Jake believes this man is a human and is not 100% good or 100% evil. This is definitely a nuanced concept that might be too complex for some to understand.
Your username is not fitting right now lmao - CHILL, man! AS I HAVE STATED: two things can be true at the same time. He can be good for the city because of x, he is also a dogshit human being and bad for (many of) the people his businesses employ because of y.
Wow… it’s almost like nothing is black and white, eh???
it’s weird cause there definitely is nuance, greg also tears down buildings all the time, and also sits on empty lots around the city. but we can all be happy that if he specifically didn’t own so much property we would be worse off
General rule of the internet is that if you’re writing entire words or phrases in all caps that you’re reaching “I’m not mad, don’t put in the newspaper that I was mad” territory.
My Brother in Christ, I use ALL CAPS for emphasis on key points I’m trying to make in my comments. Or to reiterate something I’ve previously stated that has seemingly gone ignored or completely misunderstood (as has inexplicably been the case with not-so-@prettychill). Or to add some flavor to a comment. What on Planet Earth would I have to be “mad” about right now? This is an internet comment forum full of armchair developers. We’re all just pissing in the wind, at the end of the day LOL
Back to the content. Last night was the opening night of Andretti Karting off Page Rd in Durham. The craziest track I’ve ever driven with 4 levels, banked turns, rollers and big elevation changes.
flavor 
to a comment. What on Planet Earth would I have to be “mad” about right now? This is an internet comment forum full of armchair developers. We’re all just pissing in the wind, at the end of the day LOL
