Wednesday, February 20, 2008

Adam Aircraft Throws in the Towel

Emerald City aircraft manufacturer files for Chapter 7 bankruptcy protection

“They’re going through another round of financing, and credit markets are very tight right now. I really expect this will be a short-term negative impact, and then they’ll back and everything will go forward as planned.”
Dave Harmer - Director
Ogden City Economic Development Department

Standard-Examiner
January 18, 2008
OPTIMISM, n. The doctrine, or belief, that everything is beautiful, including what is ugly, everything good, especially the bad, and everything right that is wrong. It is held with greatest tenacity by those most accustomed to the mischance of falling into adversity, and is most acceptably expounded with the grin that apes a smile. Being a blind faith, it is inaccessible to the light of disproof — an intellectual disorder, yielding to no treatment but death. It is hereditary, but fortunately not contagious.
Ambrose Bierce
The Devil's Dictionary
1911

Stick a fork in Adam Aircraft, gentle readers; they're done. Despite the rosy optimism expressed in our home town newspaper as recently as two days ago, we now have a report that the financially-troubled Ogden Airport airplane manufacturer has filed a bankruptcy petition, seeking liquidation under the provisions of Chapter 7 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.
The Denver Business Journal broke the story yesterday in its online edition.
Suggested moral of the story: When it comes time for Dave Harmer (or any of Boss Godfrey's cronies) to resort to expressing irrational optimism, it's also time for the lumpencitizens to become extra nervous.
Write it down so you don't forget it, gentle readers. This is a lesson we'll no doubt need for the future, as the Godfrey administration's grand plots and schemes continue unravelling one by one.
Update 2/20/07 9:11 a.m. MT: The Standard-Examiner also provides a good writeup this morning, in which Scott Schwebke reports that Dave Harmer's mood has been downgraded from "optimistic" to "hopeful."

11 comments:

Anonymous said...

Well, we've heard again this morning from Mayor Godfrey's Crack Economic Development Team. The SE also reports today that Adam Air has filed for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, which will permit the company to sell off its assets to pay its creditors. And Mr. Dave Harmer, Ogden's head of economic development , took time off from searching for the 275 public parking spaces he seems to have mislaid to comment on Adam Air's bankruptcy. He said: "“It’s definitely not a good thing because it’s basically a liquidation.”

By jiminy, you can't sneak much past Godfrey's Crack Economic Development Team [except for 275 public parking spaces, that is]. But if anybody tries to tell them bankruptcy is a good thing, they're not going to buy it. No sirree bob, they're not.

Anonymous said...

The Adam Aircraft bankruptcy story says:

The city did not provide any financial incentives to Adam.

Oh really? What about the new "executive terminal" at the airport with all those nice indoor jet hangars?

I suppose that was for the use of the executives of Crittenden Glass, Ogden Blue, and the Gift House?

Anonymous said...

Funny.

Schwebke states in an article on Feb 18 that the city "funneled" $1.1 million in tax increment to Mel Kemp for Adam Aircraft's hangars.

Then two days later he says the city did not provide financial incentives to Adam.

Technically true, but essentially false.

It's the way Godfrey does business.

Essentially lying all you want but technically telling the truth - guaranteed to keep the pearly gates open for you.

Anonymous said...

Citizen, the SE also failed to mention that the 1+ million was the smaller of two grants of cash to Kemp.

Anonymous said...

Well Citizen, if you really have been a citizen of the land of Oz for any appreciable amount of time, you would know that in the Godfreyite kingdom up is down, in is out, black is white and flexible truths are the norm.

Oh, and I almost forgot - if it is legal it is ethical.

That aside, I still hold out hope that Adam will be re-incarnated here in Emerald City. Chapter 7 is very often just a way for "operators" to shed pesky investors and start anew with no debt. The
Adam assets that will be auctioned are the design rights, tooling and parts on hand to build these two airplanes. Those assets have no value if they are broken up.

Therefore I predict that some one will buy this "package" out of bankruptcy for pennies on the dollar, throw the initial investors to the curb and start fresh. The buyers will be someone brought in by the insiders who have brought the project this far already. In order to get a "fresh start" away from their home base in Colorado where there may be a lot of ill will toward them, they may very well come back to Ogden with the whole deal. Ogden does have a lot going for it, including a trained work force, a compliant government, financial incentives and a nice facility at the airport.

As to Harmer being optimistic? What's wrong with that? That is his job after all! It is just too bad that this "crack economic team" has such a fatal flaw in its leader Lord Godfrey. Otherwise, I think they may actually be pretty good at what they do.

Anonymous said...

Oz:

You wrote: It is just too bad that this "crack economic team" has such a fatal flaw in its leader Lord Godfrey. Otherwise, I think they may actually be pretty good at what they do.

Possibly so, Oz, but the very sudden discovery that the development agreement The Team sent to the Council for its approval just before the meeting it would be voted on had a fatal flaw in it --- those missing 275 parking spaces the city had promised to convey, somehow, to the hotel developers --- was a major screw up by The Team. No way round that, seems to me. What The Team presented to the Council as a finished product ready to become a done deal clearly wasn't. And millions in city money was involved.

That said, I agree that The Team is laboring under a great burden, having Hizzonah at its head.

Anonymous said...

Ozboy, if you think corruption is pretty good team have at it.

Anonymous said...

From the SE's Mid-day Update Wed:

House to look at bill that would prohibit descrimination of military veterans by employers

SALT LAKE CITY -- Employers would no longer be allowed to discriminate against military veterans under a bill the Senate has approved.

Veterans would be added to a list of protected groups in the state's nondiscrimination act under Senate Bill 166.

Discrimination on the basis of race, sex, national origin and religion is already illegal.

The bill is sponsored by Sen. Scott McCoy, a Democrat from Salt Lake City.

It passed in the Senate 27-0 and will now be heard in the House.

-- Standard-Examiner staff and wire services


I have a question: is employment discrimination against veterans a problem? Or is this merely another feel-good bill, a solution in search of a problem, of the sort that is so popular with the legislature in Utah... which will five minutes later howl about our having too many laws. Have the Dems now decided to play the "message bill" game too?

Is there a problem with job discrimination against vets? In Utah? I find that hard to believe, but I'd be glad to be corrected on this if I'm wrong. [And it will be interesting to see how the Hon. {?} Sen. Buttars votes on this, once he figures out that it will protect gay vets from job discrimination too.]

Anonymous said...

Curm, right about now I thinks Buttars hate just about everyone.
Oz, As far as Harmer and co. He was the man in charge while Scott Brown allegedly self delt himself quite a little downtown realestate nest egg.

Anonymous said...

Mr. Curmudgeon

Hey, I'm a vet and that damn Godfrey will never give me a job! Now if that ain't discrimination I don't know what is!

And Bill, I know Harmer was Brown's boss when a lot of funny stuff was going on, but I still attribute the rotten and criminal conduct to the alpha dog in that kennel - Lord Godfrey hisself. He sets the dismal moral tone for his entire administration.

Anonymous said...

Curm and Oz,

I've heard second-hand rumblings from Godfrey's inner circle to the effect that every day they go to work on-edge, wondering what harebrained idea the boss will spring on them next. And he wants everything done immediately. Makes it hard to do anything carefully.

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