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To: Roads End who wrote (26481)	3/28/2005 11:10:45 PM
From: shades	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 116555

Local governments bow down to the alter of corporate welfare in the name of jobs and a vibrant local economy to justify the concessions they hand out. In fact they have to compete with other bureaucratic do-gooders, the so-called winner gives away the most freebies. Seems to me with all those vital concessions handed out over the years our communities should all be nirvana by now. The really good times are just over the horizon though.....if we can just get this one more abatement, really. I hear all the convergy's guys laughing at those city planner suckers! This also happens to nations, corrupt politicos and dictators bow to the best deal haliburton and friends will give and then when they have milked the local populace and have them up to their ears in debt, they bail and the poor local people left holding the bag! palmbeachpost.com St. Lucie wants grants back as Convergys exits early By Lori Becker Palm Beach Post Staff Writer Friday, March 25, 2005 St. Lucie County gave Convergys Corp. $300,000 over the past three years for creating jobs at the company's Fort Pierce call center. Now that Convergys has announced plans to shut down the 4-year-old center at the Orange Blossom Business Center in May, the county wants its money back. When Convergys made plans to open the call center in 2000, St. Lucie officials agreed to pay the Cincinnati-based telemarketing and customer-service company $1,000 for each full-time job created, up to a maximum of $100,000 a year. But the deal was contingent on Convergys staying in St. Lucie County for at least 10 years, starting in October 2002, according to the July 2000 contract. "The point of the grants is to provide long-term stable jobs to our community," County Administrator Doug Anderson said. Convergys (NYSE: CVG, $14.67) had fulfilled its end of the bargain by creating at least 100 jobs a year at the call center from 2002 to 2004, so the county paid the company $100,000 each year. But Anderson wants a refund because of the company's early departure. He said he has not yet contacted Convergys because he is waiting until county attorney Dan McIntyre returns from vacation. Convergys spokeswoman Lauri Roderick would not comment on Anderson's planned request. "Every year, Convergys has exceeded the annual job creation goal set forth in the agreement we have with St. Lucie County," she said in a statement. "Convergys has earned the monies received for creating jobs in the Fort Pierce contact center under its agreement with the county." Convergys plans to close the 56,000-square-foot center, laying off 200 employees, in a move to streamline operations and cut costs, Roderick said earlier this week. County officials said the call center, which handles technical support and sales calls for large companies, had lost some contracts in recent months. The call center, which has had nearly 1,000 workers at times, had dropped its staff to 200. St. Lucie County strengthened the terms of its job growth investment grant contracts in 2003, extending them to 15 years and being more explicit that any money would have to be paid back if a company left early. But Anderson hopes Convergys' original 10-year contract also is enough to get money returned. "We're just not going to throw in the towel without at least attempting to get the money back," he said.