Precedent suggests Duggins should have offered Sonoco roughly $1.33 million to close AFTER the election.

We interrupt our usual discussions of political chicanery with an economic dishevelment bulletin from David "Boilerplate" Duggins.

Seems it is official: Sonoco will join Pillsbury, Indatus and StemWood as prominent businesses leaving New Albany or ceasing to exist during Duggins' watch.

May we surmise that a completely imaginary relief package, similar to the $7 million pretended to be thrown at Pillsbury's moving vans by Duggins and Mayor Jeff "But Water Park" Gahan, as part of crass political theater believed by absolutely no one in town not named Pat McLaughlin, is being devised for Sonoco as we speak?

Sonoco to close New Albany plant (Courier-Journal)

Sonoco is permanently closing its packaging plant in New Albany, Ind., and laying off all 76 employees in the process....

In a letter to the Indiana Department of Workforce Development, a human resources manager said the company has confirmed the decision to close the plant at 705 Pillsbury Lane. The plant is expected to close by the end of August 2016 and employees will all be laid off by Jan. 2, 2016.

More than 400 employees of the adjacent General Mills-Pillsbury plant are facing layoffs, after plans to close it were announced in February. Sonoco was contracted to make the paper and metal cans for dough products and deliver them by conveyor to the Pillsbury plant. Pillsbury is also expected to close by mid-2016.

It's a done deal: Pillsbury closing is confirmed.

Now that the choreographed City Hall gesture has been dismissed, we have $7 million toward independent small business incentivization.

Right?

Pillsbury plant 2016 closure agreement signed, by Charlie White (C-J)

More than 400 union workers at General Mills' Pillsbury plant in New Albany and neighboring Sonoco in New Albany face layoffs after union officials confirmed Thursday morning that the plant will close in 2016.

"The plant is closing," union head Roger Miller said Thursday morning following talks last week. "We have negotiated the closing agreement and I'm presenting it to the members today."

City council agrees to proceed with a $7 million bond for General Mills, but there are dissenters.

Daniel Suddeath explains the 5-2 vote in favor of proceeding with a $7 million offer to General Mills.

NEW ALBANY — There’s no guarantee the facility won’t close, or that the bond will pass, but the New Albany City Council agreed Tuesday to proceed with the steps to foot a $7 million bond in hopes it will convince General Mills to keep the Pillsbury plant open.

By a 5-2 vote, the council approved a nonbinding resolution that stated its support of moving forward with the bond. The council and likely the New Albany Redevelopment Commission will have to cast ballots on the $7 million bond before it becomes official.

Councilmen Kevin Zurschmiede and Greg Phipps voted against the resolution, saying they need more details about the bond package before agreeing to use taxpayer funds to support a business.

Meanwhile, an academic rushed in where the politicians feared to tread ... except Zurschmiede and Phipps.

Should New Albany be giving General Mills $7 million?, by David A. Mann (Louisville Business First)

... But such offers aren't necessarily beneficial for cities. In general, this kind of move doesn't really pay off for cities because they will never recoup their investment through higher tax revenue, he said.

"They're just handing a company a pile of money," (Josh) Pinkston said. "If that's a good idea … why just General Mills? Why not hand out a big pot of money for other companies in New Albany?"

He described an incentive package such as this one as political risk management. City leaders do not want to be seen as the guys who let General Mills leave, he said. But paying companies to stay is not really efficient economic development policy.

"This is $7 million they are taking away from the taxpayers of New Albany and giving it to General Mills," Pinkston said. And, he wonders what the long-term cost of that would be.

Then again, Phipps is an academic, too. Perhaps we need more of them.

Pillsbury: Is General Mills being honest?

There seems to be a pre-determined trajectory to the Pillsbury story, in terms of our reactions and also as it pertains to peeling back the layers of what (sadly) is another corporate decision made far, far away, and impacting lives in this community. During the Vietnam War, Country Joe memorably asked, "What are we fighting for?"

Pillsbury's maneuverings compel an echo chorus: "Who (and what) are we working for?"

Daniel Suddeath informs us:

Gahan meets with union officials, Lt. Gov. over plant closure

 ... Gahan announced he will be taking steps to try to stave off the closure of the plant, which employs about 400 people at a facility located off Grant Line Road.

Let's hope the mayor's team is reading from the General Mills playbook (i.e., its annual report), as a frequent reader has been doing. He contributes this comment.

(Note that his reference to trans fat comes from the reported Pillsbury explanation to local employees, to the effect that there is production redundancy when consumers no longer prefer trans fat-laden products)

Pillsbury (General Mills) isn't being honest - two facts from their 2014 annual report:

1) Pillsbury enjoys a whopping 70% market share of ALL refrigerated baking products sold in America and Pillsbury refrigerated biscuits are their single best selling refrigerated baking product.

2) The company has been closing all manufacturing facilities in America that are over 50 years old; no depreciation value left. The NA plant was built in 1959.

One fact from their corporate website:

1) Pillsbury Grands® Flaky Layers Original Biscuits (one of their best selling products in history) contains NO trans fats.

Every variant (all 13 lines of biscuits) have no trans fats in their recipe.

Folks are being bought off with easy "facts".

Another pertinent question: "Didn't we as a county and a state rebuild the rail spur and highway to accommodate General Mills needs in 2009 - 2010?"

There remains much fog around this story, but at the present juncture, the reactions I'm hearing are variations on a theme of "how many carrots do we have left, and can we use them, given that we have no sticks?"

WDRB says: "Pillsbury plant in New Albany to close soon."

In the early days of Sportstime Pizza, when Kate's and Amy's father kept it open 24 hours a day, seemingly all of Pillsbury's third shift gathered at 7:00 when the drinking lamp was lit. They had good union jobs, and paid some of our salaries, to boot.

It's true that 300 jobs aren't chump change, although objectively, this closure probably has less impact now than it would have two decades ago. Still, as a business owner on the GL corridor, I genuinely hate to see it happen, especially union jobs.

Pillsbury plant in New Albany to close soon (WDRB-41)

... An employee that contacted WDRB says the announcement was made during a meeting Thursday morning. That's where Pillsbury officials told workers they plan to phase phase out operations at the plant and close over the next 18 months.

Here's the single most interesting pull:

Employees were told there were other plants across the country that already make the same products. Since most of those products are loaded with carbohydrates and trans fat, they are becoming less popular with the public.

The dough boy has a cholesterol problem? Sounds to me like Pillsbury isn't keeping up with contemporary consumer demand.