Freightliner says they are staying

[MarkDaMan]

Freightliner staying put?
Portland Business Journal - by Matthew Kish Business Journal staff writer

Freightliner Chief Executive Chris Patterson put local officials at ease late Wednesday, saying the company has no plans to move its headquarters out of Portland.

"They are not considering moving their headquarters now," said Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen. "That is not something they are actively considering."

The company did not immediately return a call seeking confirmation.

Mayor Tom Potter, Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler and Cogen scheduled the Wednesday afternoon meeting with Freightliner months ago in order to discuss persistent rumors the company might leave town.

The three elected officials met with Patterson, Freightliner Chief Operating Officer Roger Nielsen and the company's legal counsel, Paul Hurd.

The meeting took on a more somber tone after the company announced two weeks ago it might relocate "several corporate functions" to an Eastern location.

Freightliner employs 2,700 white-collar workers here and another 1,000 in its Swan Island manufacturing operations, making it one of the area's largest employers.

The Portland Business Journal reported last week that plans are in the works to move an initial wave of 200 to 800 of the front-office jobs to Charlotte, N.C. According to a story in last week's Charlotte Business Journal, the North Carolina Department of Commerce is also looking for sites that could eventually house all of Freightliner's administrative employees.

Potter, Wheeler and Cogen went to bat for the truck manufacturer before the meeting, sending a letter to Oregon Attorney General Hardy Myers on Monday asking him to forgo collection of a $210 million judgment against Freightliner.

The judgment was part of an $850 million lawsuit Portland-based Freightliner lost to the German truck manufacturer Man AG in Multnomah County in December 2006. The judgment included roughly $500 in economic damages as well as $350 million in punitive damages.

It was the largest jury award in the country last year, according to Bloomberg.

Under Oregon law, the state is entitled to 60 percent of the punitive damages in any lawsuit, or $210 million of the judgment against Freightliner. The money is earmarked to benefit crime victims.

Before the state could collect the money, however, Freightliner settled the case with Man outside of court. The settlement included dropping the punitive damages portion of the jury award.

Because the state did not consent to the deal, Myers claims Freightliner owes Oregon $210 million. He filed suit in Marion County in August seeking that amount.

In the letter sent to Myers, Potter, Wheeler and Cogen asked the attorney general to drop the case.

They argue the dispute originated in Europe and did not harm any Oregonians, therefore, the state's not entitled to the cash.

Perhaps most importantly, they said the lawsuit could be a pivotal factor in the company's decision to remain here.

"I became convinced that [the attorney general's office] is inadvertently, or without considering it ... going to contribute to the largest employer in my district leaving," Cogen said before meeting with Freightliner executives. "It's my view we should be creating a climate where they feel welcome."

The attorney general was at a conference in Nashville, Tenn., earlier this week and unavailable for comment. Myers could settle with Freightliner outside of court, pursue the litigation or drop the case.

Attorneys for Freightliner and Man AG did not immediately respond to calls for comment.

Crime victim advocates say the cash is critical to serving injured Oregonians. The state provides as much as $20,000 to victims of violent crime through the Oregon Crime Victim's Compensation Program, a program that is plagued by underfunding.

The program collected $1 million from punitive damage awards in the 2005-2007 biennium, but has only collected $10,000 since the new fiscal year began in July.

The money is used to pay for expenses such as funerals, counseling and medical care.

If collected, the $210 million would be a groundswell for the state program.

"It would allow us to stabilize the funding for crime victims compensation," said Stephanie Soden, a spokeswoman for Myers.

Cogen said the effort isn't meant to deprive crime victims of just compensation.

"Punitive damages are about punishing somebody for an act that has caused damages to your community," he said. "This case does not seem like that."

Wheeler and Cogen plan to schedule meetings with 100 of Portland's largest businesses in the next 18 months.

"For a lot of corporate leaders, there' s a sense that elected officials don't get it," Wheeler said before Wednesday's meeting. "Freightliner is a linchpin in our economy. To lose Freightliner would be tragic."

mkish@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3414
http://portland.bizjournals.com/port...ml?t=printable

[pdxman]

Awesome news...i did not want to see another company leave portland

[PacificNW]

Looks like Freightliner is moving::


Wednesday, October 31, 2007 - 3:47 PM PDT
Freightliner calls press conference
Portland Business Journal


Freightliner LLC, which has been rumored to be leaving Portland, has called a press conference for noon Thursday.

The company, the nation's largest truck manufacturer, announced in September it might relocate "several corporate functions" to an Eastern location.

Reports subsequently surfaced in the Charlotte, N.C., area that Freightliner was searching for a 300-acre site there on which to make a $400 million investment in a new 1-million-square-foot headquarters.

Freightliner CEO Chris Patterson told Multnomah County Commissioners Jeff Cogen and Ted Wheeler and Mayor Tom Potter on Oct. 3 that the company was not actively considering moving its headquarters.

A report in the Mooresville Tribune in North Carolina, however, said Wednesday a deal to bring Freightliner to that city fell through Tuesday as a result of a lack of state incentives. Mooresville is 30 miles north of Charlotte.

Greenville, S.C., remains in the running for a new Freightliner headquarters, according to the Tribune.

Greenville is home to several auto manufacturing plants, including the North American headquarters of Michelin. BMW also has a production facility nearby.

[pdxman]

Lovely

[Drew-Ski]

This is part of a continuing trend of large companies leaving Portland for the South. Lousiana Pacific, Georgia Pacific are other examples that come to mind. With big tax incentives, cheap labor, inexpensive housing, these are gigantic carrots which cities use and are very tempting. This has been a major problem plauging the Industrial Midwest and other Northern Regions for quite a long time. Keep in mind though, this is also part of changing economic climate which favors some regions over others. In the case of the two timber companies mentioned above, their moves were primarily due to the fact that each of these companies have more timberland interests in the south than the NW. Another big factor was the Forest Service cutting back sustantually the amount of timber sales in the National Forests. In the case of Freightliner, it is very common for companies to locate in areas which there is "economy of scale" of simular industry. A good local example(s) of this in Portland is the "Silicon Forest" and the "Atheltic Shoe and Appearal industry".

[PacificNW]

I don't know whether this will have a major impact on Portland...maybe adding to the perception of being "anti-business". Hopefully they are announcing that they are building the "next tallest" in PDX for a new headquarters!

[pdxman]

^^^One can only hope. It seems like more and more companies are leaving than are moving in...and even if they aren't, thats the perception

[sopdx]

So the state gets screwed out of 210 million in punitive damages because Cogan and Mult. Co heads are desperate to keep Freightliner here. Then Freightliner essentially lies saying they are not considering moving, all the while they are looking for property to move - probably to keep Cogan on their side and screw us out of the money. Gee, what a bunch of disingenuous fucks.

Yeah it sucks to lose jobs, but it was just a matter of time. We're kidding ourselves thinking we will keep any manufacturing jobs here except smaller ones or locally dependent one. They'll move to the south today and China tomorrow.

We need to foster employers and encourage employers to locate here that are based on developing clean energy, apparel and the creative industries. That 210 would have helped.

[cab]

And yet a few post down we have a story about how Portland is doing great when it comes to manufacturing. http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=138888

Seems like those companies that move to cheaper locations are on the downturn or there economic model just doesn't cut it in a local that is actually trying to grow NEW business. I mean really two timber companies and a has been trucking company? And not to burst the anti-Portland crowd, but Seattle the golden child of business lost Boeing.

[MarkDaMan]

Originally Posted by sopdx

So the state gets screwed out of 210 million in punitive damages because Cogan and Mult. Co heads are desperate to keep Freightliner here. Then Freightliner essentially lies saying they are not considering moving, all the while they are looking for property to move - probably to keep Cogan on their side and screw us out of the money. Gee, what a bunch of disingenuous fucks.

That is exactly what I was thinking. And this is why I'm glad Portland isn't a corporate town because this kind of shit pisses me the hell off!

[PacificNW]

Seattle might have lost the Boeing headquarters but the Puget Sound Boeing operations still employ thousands of associates...Isn't most of the workforce for Freightliner located in North Carolina? I hope their decision will not prompt Lufthansa to change/eliminate their operations @ PDX.

[PacificNW]

Freightliner LLC will announce at a noon press conference today that it is moving some sales and marketing functions to a new location south of Charlotte, N.C., according to Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen. Cogen spoke with Freightliner CEO Chris Patterson this morning.

The move to York County, S.C., will affect roughly 300 of the Portland company's 2,700 white-collar employees. More details will be available early this afternoon.

The company will also disclose that it is not moving its headquarters to the East Coast. However, the Charlotte Business Journal, an affiliated publication, reports that the initial investment could evolve into a larger commitment to the region that may involve a new headquarters. Freightliner has consistently denied that it is moving its headquarters from Portland.

The news follows months of speculation that the company would relocate its entire headquarters to the East Coast. Those rumors picked up steam Sept. 19 after the company released a statement saying it might move "several corporate functions" to an Eastern location.

Cogen, Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler and Mayor Tom Potter subsequently met with Patterson and other Freightliner executives Oct. 3 to address the speculation.

At the time, Freightliner executives told the elected officials it would not be moving its headquarters.

According to the Charlotte Business Journal, sources close to the negotiations say the company will start with a 300-job, $10 million office. From there, the investment could grow to a 3,000-employee headquarters.

Freightliner executives are telling Charlotte-area developers the project could evolve into a $400 million investment.

This story will be updated throughout the day.

mkish@bizjournals.com | 503-219-3414

[MarkDaMan]

^that was previously announced. This hype seems like much ado about nothing...Besides their contract with the Port of Portland would require them to forfeit millions in land, buildings, and machinery, so it didn't make sense unless they got enough incentive from the other city to make up for the losses they'd have to give up here.

I still think they are acting like a scummy company.

[PacificNW]

Thursday, November 1, 2007 - 3:03 PM PDT
Freightliner headquarters move still a possibility
Portland Business Journal - by Matthew Kish and Aliza Earnshaw Business Journal staff writers


Freightliner LLC left open the possibility of moving its corporate headquarters at a press conference Thursday, announcing the relocation of 341 sales and marketing jobs to the Charlotte, N.C., area.

The transfers will affect roughly one-tenth of the Portland-based company's local work force. The company employs roughly 2,540 white-collar workers and another 970 in its local manufacturing operations on Swan Island.

The affected employees will be moved in summer 2008 to a 150,000-square-foot office building in Ft. Mill, S.C., about 30 minutes south of Charlotte.

Affected workers will have the option of transferring or receiving severance packages.

The company made the decision in order to be closer to its customers, suppliers and dealers. The majority of its operations are in the Carolinas.

At the press conference, Freightliner CEO Chris Patterson said the company has options on land in South Carolina and did not rule out building a new corporate headquarters there "depending on the markets and our relationships with our affiliates." In press materials, he said the company expects to close on some land in South Carolina in the very near term.

The company has been discussing incentive packages with several states. Freightliner will not get the best deal unless it moves more than the 341 positions announced today, Patterson said, leading to speculation that the company is strongly considering moving its headquarters.

Sources tell affiliated publication the Charlotte Business Journal that Freightliner is in discussions to build a 300-acre, $400 million headquarters facility in York County.

In a closed session this morning, the York County Council in South Carolina considered a batch of economic incentives for industrial development, presumably for Freightliner. Such executive sessions are not open to the media.

Moving jobs to the East Coast will allow Freightliner to consolidate several operations. Freightliner operates three huge Charlotte-area plants, which at their busiest employ almost 7,000.

The facilities include the company's largest heavy-truck facility, which employs nearly 4,000 in Cleveland, N.C. A 616,000-square-foot medium-duty tractor facility in Mount Holly, N.C., once employed more than 1,500 workers. It also has a cab and chassis parts facility in Gastonia, N.C.

Talk of Freightliner moving jobs to the East Coast picked up steam Sept. 19 after the company released a statement saying it might move "several corporate functions" to an Eastern location.

Multnomah County Commissioner Jeff Cogen, Multnomah County Chair Ted Wheeler and Mayor Tom Potter subsequently met with Freightliner CEO Chris Patterson and other executives Oct. 3 to address the speculation.

At the time, Freightliner executives told the elected officials it would not be moving its headquarters in the near future, a sentiment that the company repeated this afternoon.

[Snowden352]

It's not just freightliner jobs that would be lost; it would also be businesses that work with freightliner. They will move their positions to follow freightliner. The AG is a short-sighted politician who is pursuing a lawsuit that has no context within the Portland region. That money from punitive lawsuits is supposed to deal with labor disputes. This suit came from anti-competative practices IN ENGLAND.

Additionally, this does not help Portland's business climate. Seriously, that's a problem; a serious problem.

[sopdx]

It's unfortunate, really, but the writing was on the wall when they first purchased land down there. It's cheaper and as pointed out earlier, the industry is there, not here. But honestly, how does their move affect Portland's business climate. There is absolutely nothing the city could have done. What, pour money and incentives to keep them here? Manufacturing in a place with high labor costs is never going to work. They didn't move to San Francisco or Seattle or Chicago, they moved to North Cacalacky.

I think our economic troubles are the result of whimpy business leadership in the city and meager political support. We should be aggressively pursuing the location of alternative energy companies and facilities. This really fits Portland and we have a headstart. Whether it's the dude with the carbon eating algae or solar panel production we need to pound it, and create a critical mass that will sustain more employment, more innovation, more employment. Look at Seattle and software and biotech. You've got UW and Microsoft - brain and economic engines. Equally important, they have strong leadership that knows what they are doing.

Sometimes I feel the only things coming out of here are new restaurants and streetcar lines.

[zilfondel]

2,000 posts!


If I recall, the city of Eugene and state of Oregon gave Hynix (Hyundai) something like $50 million in tax incentives to stay. 4 years later or so they closed down! *poof* - money gone.

Subsidies don't work for big companies. Some shop around for the best tax breaks and jump around, others look for actual business reasons to locate to an area: workforce, trade/transport links, materials, network of similar businesses (suppliers and so on).

[PacificNW]

Heck, if they elect to move they should relocate their entire operations....then the local/state governments should seize their present property (for giving them tax breaks and incentives) and redevelop it into a streetcar production facility and hire the former local Freightliner skilled workforce...just a thought...

[MarkDaMan]

^if they left:

The company signed a 40-year lease with the Port of Portland last fall. The agreement consolidated leases on three Freightliner locations on 27.6 acres on Swan Island.

That deal, however, included a one-time exit opportunity that could be exercised in 2013, an oddity in commercial leases.

"A normal lease doesn't have a buyout opportunity," says Mark Childs, managing member of Integrated Corporate Property Services, a Portland commercial real estate firm that counts Freightliner as one of its clients. "Landlords hate those clauses. You can only assume the worst-case scenario."

The lease requires Freightliner to notify the Port of Portland between June 30, 2011, and July 1, 2013, if it plans to terminate the agreement. It can vacate the lease no sooner than 270 days later.

Freightliner would then pay a one-time early termination fee of $8.45 million.

If Freightliner leaves early, it also forfeits its assets on Swan Island. Although the company leases its land from the Port of Portland, it owns its 215,000-square-foot corporate headquarters and a research and development facility there.

County tax records estimate the value of the headquarters building at $13 million.

The company also spent $5 million to build the research facility in 2004, putting the total cost of leaving Portland at more than $26 million.

Freightliner can't sublease any of the property without the consent of the Port of Portland.

http://www.al.com/business/ambizdail...0806132580.xml

[cab]

Wow, not a bad pull for the Port of Portland.