The Real Deal

By Sharman Egan Lagniappe columnist

Tale of two sides of Mobile

It was the best of times, the worst of times… Mobile isn’t exactly Paris or London (the two cities in Mr. Dickens’ tale for those who slept through tenth grade English class), but it’s still a pretty good description of the state of affairs around here recently. We’ve seen more than our fair share of hope and despair, wisdom and foolishness, light and darkness, and so on.

First there was the May 1 announcement that plans for the Alabama Motorsports Park in Prichard had been scaled back dramatically to meet environmental requirements. Under the new plan, just 77 acres will be affected compared to 177 acres in the original plan, according to information on the racetrack Web site. There will be just three tracks, down from six. (For you tree huggers out there, I’m with you that this is a good thing for the environment. But this is a business column, and it will certainly have a negative effect on the business impact of the park.)

Next, my dreams of a condo downtown overlooking the river were dashed once and for all when representatives of the developer of Water Street Landing finally acknowledged the obvious in June – the project will never be built. That’s not exactly a surprise. As I reported almost a year ago, developer Millennium Pacific Icon Group LLC filed for bankruptcy in July 2007, according to court records. It’s not entirely clear what’s been happening since then to lead anyone to believe it could still be built, but now the project is dead for good, and the property at the foot of Government Street is up for sale.

Then the really bad news started to hit. In mid-June, the Government Accountability Office decided the Air Force fubarred the KC-45 tanker selection process that awarded a $40-billion contract to Northrop Grumman instead of Boeing. That contract would have brought thousands of jobs to Mobile’s Brookley Field. Of course, it’s not the first time. This drama has been playing since 2001 when the Air Force awarded Boeing a $23.5 billion contract. That deal was later scrapped after it turned out the company had conspired with Pentagon leaders.

There was still some hope the Pentagon would uphold the Air Force’s decision to award the contract to Northrop until early July when the Defense Department announced the two companies would have to submit new bids. One bit of good news: the new process will be streamlined (or so the feds promise) with a decision by the end of the year.

OK, so we’ve had a few setbacks on the business front. But this is Mobile, and it’s not going to stop us from enjoying life in paradise. So what did we do after the GAO announcement? Had a Mardi Gras parade, of course. So what if it was June. We still had many recent successes to celebrate, and we weren’t about to slink away feeling sorry for ourselves. It’s summer on the Gulf Coast and we can still enjoy the simple pleasures of life – the fabulous food, an adult beverage or two to cool off. Right?

Not if you frequent the clubs downtown and the state Alcoholic Beverage Control Board has anything to say about it. In case you haven’t been paying attention, a couple of months ago, the ABC Board leveled its sights on downtown Mobile. Officers have stepped up enforcement, with special attention to the bars operating under private club licenses. William Carroll, the City Council representative for the area, doesn’t like the situation one little bit. He’s expressed concern the extra enforcement could slow downtown business development.

So can’t these folks find something better to do? In a letter to the editor, printed in the previous issue of Lagniappe, Lt. Michael Cook of the ABC Board made it clear the answer to that question is no. “As far as the ABC presence on Dauphin Street ‘going away’ soon, is NOT going to happen,” wrote Cook.

The last straw, at least for me, was the shutdown without notice of Guido’s/Vinny’s, the popular Midtown restaurant. At least they didn’t give ME any notice. The first I heard about it was an e-mail sent to members of the Oakleigh Garden District Society on July 3 announcing the restaurant would serve its last meal that day. I may not have been their most lucrative customer, but it was one of my favorite restaurants, and they should have checked with me first before just locking the doors and going home, without so much as a chance to enjoy one last sandwich in the lovely courtyard.

OK, so that’s enough of the worst of times. What about the best of times part?

In spite of these disappointments, there’s still plenty of good news to go around. Mobile, unlike most of the rest of the country, still has a healthy real estate market. The downtown renaissance shows no signs of slowing, in spite of the ABC Board. After years in the planning stages, the Bring Back Broad project finally started construction in May. Tourism revenues are way up, even in the face of high gas prices. Rumors are heating up again about a newer and larger cruise ship. Construction of the ThyssenKrupp steel plant is well under way with hundreds of workers on site, and more jobs coming as construction ramps up. Austal continues to grow and the new container port is set to open later this year.

Laissez les bon temps roulez.

Sharman Egan is Lagniappe lagniappe columnist. Contact her at Sharman@SharmanEgan.com.

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