This Blue World.

My posts are being titled after songs. There may or may not be any connection with the content. After 14,988 blog posts, a little freshening up might help.

The Blue Green Mouse says that in response to the news of American Queen Steamboat Company's layoffs, City Hall has authorized a $50,000 HWC Engineering study to explain what the hell American Queen Steamboat Company even is to being with.

Narrator: A foundation of the downtown economy, that's all.

A New Albany, Indiana-based steamboat company is laying off more than 200 workers on two of its vessels as the Covid-19 pandemic has taken much of the company’s business.

The American Queen Steamboat Company said in a Kentucky WARN notice that it will permanently lay off approximately 250 workers for two of its vessels, American Queen and American Empress. The first layoffs are slated to start by or near Sept. 24, according to the WARN notice.

WARN is short for the federal Worker Adjustment and Retraining Notification Act of 1988, which requires this sort of notice.

Greenville, Georgetown and Duncan capitulate as giddy Gahan boasts that New Albany is "the economic engine of Floyd County." No shit, Sherlock. But not so much regionally, eh?

Democrats are slobbering in ecstasy that we're slaughtering Galena; meanwhile, New Albany continues to steadily lose ground regionally in terms of economic development and job creation.

What we do have in abundance -- an indie business and entrepreneurial class -- labors under Jeff Gahan's insistence that (a) they receive few of the incentives and subsidies lavished elsewhere, and (b) he's responsible for their success, anyway.

Thus the sad pantomime. Here and there Wendy Dant Chesser tosses Gahan a few crumbs; in reply, Gahan and what's left of his captive council minions buy a few pencils from One Southern Indiana.

For eight years we've been waiting for Gahan to present and explain a coherent economic development strategy in this time of River Ridge hegemony and the concurrent loss of companies like Pillsbury (and remember Samtec's new plant ... in Scottsburg?)

For eight years, we've heard barely audible gurgling sounds in response -- and so with nothing concrete to offer, Gahan and the Democrats just conjure whoppers out of whole cloth.

Regular readers know how difficult it can be for reality-based people to fathom the DemoDisneyDixiecratic fantasyland wherein Tricky Dickey churns out fabrications, concoctions, fibs, cock and bull stories and fake facts almost as quickly as Putin's computerized bots.

What's worse, his press releases never vary from the Democratic National Committee's style-free user's manual -- which is to say, they're unreadable. Like so many other fiction writers, perhaps Dickey is paid by the word.

Let's be perfectly clear, Mudd.

HMS Maritime's expansion in New Albany had nothing to do with Jeff Gahan, although even one as skeptical as me can plainly see why this or any other sitting mayor seeks to take credit for each and every sunrise, taco and subsequent bowel movement.

But Greg Phipps?

Can anyone capable of reading and comprehending these words cite a single instance of Phipps being involved with economic development during the past eight years, apart from attending the stray ribbon-cutting, and issuing rote rubber-stamp approval of every expenditure ever handed him by Team Gahan?

Yet he is commended for "sponsoring" incentives written by City Hall's legal team. By this same skewed logic, 5th district councilman Matt Nash personally engineered the deal to spend a few million more in TIF-ATM funds for the Colonial Manor property.

As the kids say, "OMG."

Readers, we've all heard politicians lie. That's a real fact, not a fake one. But I can't recall a time when the "leading element" of the local Democratic Party has lied to such a breathtaking extent. Nor can I remember this much Kool-Aid and Loaded Rice Krispie Treats being consumed by the rank and file.

It's almost as if the quiver's empty, and self-delusion is all they have left.

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Democratic mayoral candidate David White understands that change begins with a whole lotta scrubbing, and NA Confidential advocates just such a deep civic cleansing. 

After eight years on the job, Mayor Jeff Gahan's list of stunning "achievements" is long, indeed: tax increases, budgetary hide 'n' seek, self-deification, daily hypocrisy, public housing takeover, non-transparency, pay-to-play for no-bid contracts, bullying city residents and bullying city employees. Eight years is enough. It's time to drain Gahan's swamp, flush his ruling clique and take this city back from Gahan's Indy-based special interest donors. 

NA Confidential supports David White for Mayor in the Democratic Party primary, with voting now through May 7. 

HMS Maritime's downtown expansion is a positive development, one largely omitting City Hall.

As preface, kindly note that I'm entirely down with HMS Maritime's expansion, its purchase of a downtown building and the notion of rehabbing it.

It's a perfect example of the sort of jobs that David White will be far better placed to attract to New Albany, whether by cooperating with the Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) and One Southern Indiana or on his own.

But that's a discussion for another time. As for HMS Maritime, I'm intrigued by the contrasting versions of the press release made available today.

There was a full-length press release from the IEDC amid the customary One Southern Indiana preening, but interestingly, the News and Tribune apparently edited it owing to space restrictions. In the latter's version, City Hall's role (exceedingly slight already) in enticing this expansion is rewritten and reduced to the final sentence.

The city of New Albany is considering additional incentives at the request of One Southern Indiana.

Note also the difference in banners, both identifying the company in question and stipulating finality in the transaction.

News and Tribune: "Global Marine Management and Operations Co. expanding in New Albany."

IEDC: "HMS Global Maritime Considers New Albany for Training/Customer Support Center."

Are we to surmise that with all other state incentives duly awarded, genuine "done deal" finality awaits the city's "additional incentives at the request of One Southern Indiana?"

Here's the News and Tribune text, which pleasingly omits a measure of self-glorification on the part of the suits. Congrats to whomever wielded the word ax.

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NEW ALBANY — HMS Global Maritime, an Indiana-based marine management and operations company, and its affiliate, American Queen Steamboat Co., announced plans today to expand in New Albany, creating up to 50 new jobs by the end of 2022.

"Businesses like HMS Global Maritime and American Queen Steamboat Company are vital to Indiana’s success, helping propel the state’s economy and enriching their communities by providing quality career opportunities for Hoosiers,” said Indiana Economic Development Corporation (IEDC) President Elaine Bedel. “This commitment is an exciting step forward for Indiana, where our transportation and logistics industry is thriving in the Crossroads of America, as well as for the New Albany community, which continues to invest in its quality of place to support a growing talent base.”

HMS Global Maritime and American Queen Steamboat Co., HMS Global Maritime's overnight cruise division, plan to invest nearly $800,000 over the next few years to renovate and equip a recently-purchased, 10,000-square-foot historic building at 213 Pearl St. in downtown New Albany. The new facility will house a training and customer service center for American Queen Steamboat, which will accommodate 200 to 300 hospitality and hotel trainees annually. Construction is underway, and the new facility is expected to be fully operational by the fall of this year.

HMS Global Maritime and its affiliates, including American Queen Steamboat, employ 56 associates in Indiana across two existing New Albany facilities and a warehouse in Clark County. With this increased footprint, the companies will scale their teams in Indiana to support operations across the country. Hiring is expected to begin this summer with new positions in customer service and hospitality training. Interested applicants may go online to apply for open positions.

"At HMS Global Maritime and American Queen Steamboat Company, our philosophy is to push ourselves to not only be a world-class company, but to commit to delivering an uncompromising customer experience by providing our employees the very best in training, support and skills to be successful," said John Waggoner, HMS Global Maritime president and CEO. "This proposed training center in the heart of downtown New Albany would not only help us maintain the quality workforce we need to succeed, but also bring hundreds of visitors to our hometown annually. It is the very definition of a win-win situation."

HMS Global Maritime is a family of international, hospitality and support companies that serve government, private industry and direct consumers. The company provides a variety of services from project consulting to turn key management. HMS Global Maritime has experienced substantial growth in its overnight cruise division over the past eight years and has built the American Queen Steamboat Company from the ground up to more than $100 million in annual revenue.

The IEDC offered HMS Global Maritime up to $400,000 in conditional tax credits and up to $50,000 through the Hoosier Business Investment (HBI) tax credit program based on the company's job creation and investment plans. These tax credits are performance-based, meaning until Hoosiers are hired or until qualified investments are made, the company is not eligible to claim incentives. The city of New Albany is considering additional incentives at the request of One Southern Indiana.

The Baptist Tabernacle (316 E. 4th) has new windows, and renovation work continues.

August 2016.

Circa 2008.

2008 - 2012 (photo published in 2012 N and T).

Restoration begins in 2012.

In an effort to make a long story short, the former Baptist Tabernacle was featured as part of a 2005 effort to interest potential investors in downtown properties (among them Shrader Stables, now The Exchange). My photography is primitive, but the NAC posting has interior views.

(October 27, 2005)

Recapping the Historic District Building Tour and Field Day, Part 4: Baptist Tabernacle.

Two and a half years later, Team England purchased the building at a sheriff's sale.

(January, 2008)

City acquires historic Baptist Tabernacle building on East Fourth.

Subsequently, various proposals were minted toward a goal of adaptive reuse (the relocation of City Hall and a home for the Vintage Fire Museum among them), but then Mother Nature intervened, and in September, 2008, hurricane force winds blew off the roof, destroying the ceiling paintings in the process.

The final three years of England III were devoted to politicking, insurance claims and spit-balling, and the Tabernacle sat unattended. It was sold to Keystone Restoration in 2011 for $1, as explained in the newspaper. Work then began to roof and stabilize the structure and make it fit for resale.

John Waggoner of HMS Global Maritime, who also owns the White House Center and Hornblower Marine (115 E. Market), bought the Baptist Tabernacle building. It currently is being readied to house a division of his company, which will bring around 25 jobs to downtown New Albany.

Tabernacle Baptist Church (Neoclassical; 1879)
316 East 4th Street
New Albany, IN 47150

This congregation was formed by the merger of First Baptist Church and Bank Street Baptist Church. Dedicated on January 4, 1880, the sanctuary here could seat over 1000 people and was said to have the finest frescoes on the walls and ceilings of any in New Albany. The congregation remained here until it purchased the former home of Third Presbyterian Church in 1920 and changed its name back to First Baptist Church. That congregation still remains active today at the corner of East Ninth and Spring streets.

The building housed a number of commercial uses after ceasing to be a church. When the remnants of Hurricane Ike blew through New Albany in September 2008, the building - which was vacant at the time - lost its roof. A new roof has been reinstalled by the current owner, and rehabilitation work is ongoing.