text:
Frequent Links
Burger King
|Burger King's logo
|Fast food restaurant
|Insta-Burger King
5505 Blue Lagoon Drive,
Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States
Area served
Key people
|11px US$1.97 billion (FY 2012)[3]:6
|11px US$363.0 million (FY 2012)[3]:36
|#redirect Template:If affirmed
|11px US$117.7 million (FY 2012)[3]:6
|Total assets
|11px US$5.564 billion (FY 2012)[3]:12
|Total equity
|11px US$1.175 billion (FY 2012)[3]:12
Number of employees
|Restaurant Brands International
Burger King, often abbreviated as BK, is a global chain of hamburger fast food restaurants headquartered in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida, United States. The company began in 1953 as Insta-Burger King, a Jacksonville, Florida-based restaurant chain. After Insta-Burger King ran into financial difficulties in 1954, its two Miami-based franchisees, David Edgerton and James McLamore, purchased the company and renamed it Burger King. Over the next half century, the company would change hands four times, with its third set of owners, a partnership of TPG Capital, Bain Capital, and Goldman Sachs Capital Partners, taking it public in 2002. In late 2010, 3G Capital of Brazil acquired a majority stake in BK in a deal valued at US$3.26 billion. The new owners promptly initiated a restructuring of the company to reverse its fortunes. 3G, along with partner Berkshire Hathaway, eventually merged the company with Canadian-based doughnut chain Tim Hortons under the auspices of a new Canadian-based parent company, Restaurant Brands International
At the end of fiscal year 2013, Burger King reported it had over 13,000 outlets in 79 countries; of these, 66 percent are in the United States and 99 percent are privately owned and operated with its new owners moving to an entirely franchised model in 2013. BK has historically used several variations of franchising to expand its operations. The manner in which the company licenses its franchisees varies depending on the region, with some regional franchises, known as master franchises, responsible for selling franchise sub-licenses on the company's behalf. Burger King's relationship with its franchises has not always been harmonious. Occasional spats between the two have caused numerous issues, and in several instances the company's and its licensees' relations have degenerated into precedent-setting court cases. Burger King's Australian franchise, Hungry Jack's, is the only franchise to operate under a different name due to a copyright dispute and a series of legal cases between the two.
The Burger King menu has expanded from a basic offering of burgers, French fries, sodas, and milkshakes in 1954, to a larger, more diverse set of product offerings. In 1957, the Whopper was the first major addition to the menu; it has since become Burger King's signature product. Conversely, BK has introduced many products which failed to catch hold in the marketplace. Some of these failures in the United States have seen success in foreign markets, where BK has also tailored its menu for regional tastes. From 2002 to 2010, Burger King aggressively targeted the 18–34 male demographic with larger products that often carried correspondingly large amounts of unhealthy fats and trans-fats. This tactic would eventually come to hurt the company's financial underpinnings and cast a negative pall on its earnings. Beginning in 2011, the company began to move away from the previous male-oriented menu and introduce new menu items, product reformulations, and packaging as part of 3G Capital's restructuring plans of the company.
The 1970s were the "Golden Age" of Burger King advertising, but beginning in the early 1980s, the company's advertising began to lose focus; a series of less successful ad campaigns created by a procession of advertising agencies continued for the next two decades. In 2003, Burger King hired the Miami-based advertising agency of Crispin Porter + Bogusky (CP+B). CP+B completely reorganized Burger King's advertising with a series of new campaigns centered on a redesigned Burger King character accompanied with a new online presence. While highly successful, some of CP+B commercials were derided for perceived sexism or cultural insensitivity. New owner, 3G Capital, terminated the relationship with CP+B in 2011 and moved its advertising to McGarryBowen to begin a new product oriented campaign with expanded demographic targeting.
The predecessor to Burger King was founded in 1953 in Jacksonville, Florida, as Insta-Burger King. After visiting the McDonald brothers' original store location in San Bernardino, California, the founders and owners (Keith J. Kramer and his wife's uncle Matthew Burns) purchased the rights to two pieces of equipment called "Insta" machines and opened their first restaurants, based around a cooking device called an Insta-Broiler. The Insta-Broiler oven proved so successful at cooking burgers, they required all of their franchises to use the device.[4][5] After the company faltered in 1959, it was purchased by its Miami, Florida franchisees, James McLamore and David R. Edgerton. They initiated a corporate restructuring of the chain, first renaming the company Burger King. They ran the company as an independent entity for eight years (eventually expanding to over 250 locations in the United States), before selling it to the Pillsbury Company in 1967.[4]:28
Pillsbury management tried several times to restructure Burger King in the late 1970s and early 1980s. The most prominent change came in 1978, when Burger King hired McDonald's executive Donald N. Smith to help revamp the company. In a plan called Operation Phoenix,[5]:118 Smith restructured corporate business practices at all levels of the company. Changes included updated franchise agreements,[6] a broader menu,[5]:119[6]:66 and new, standardized restaurant designs. Smith left Burger King for PepsiCo in 1980,[7] shortly before a system-wide decline in sales. Pillsbury Executive Vice President of Restaurant Operations Norman E. Brinker was tasked with turning the brand around and strengthening its position against its main rival, McDonald's. One of his initiatives was a new advertising campaign featuring a series of attack ads against its major competitors. This campaign started a competitive period between the top burger chains, known as the Burger Wars.[8] Brinker left Burger King in 1984, to take over Dallas-based gourmet burger chain Chili's.[9]
Smith and Brinker's efforts were initially effective,[7] but, after their respective departures, Pillsbury relaxed or discarded many of their changes and scaled back on construction of new locations. These actions stalled corporate growth and sales declined again, eventually resulting in a damaging fiscal slump for Burger King and Pillsbury.[10][11] Poor operation and ineffectual leadership continued to bog down the company for many years.[11][12] Pillsbury was acquired by the British entertainment conglomerate Grand Metropolitan in 1989.[13][14]
Initially Grand Met attempted to bring the chain top profitability under newly minted CEO Barry Gibbons, the changes he initiated during his two-year tenure were hit or miss. Successful new product introductions and product tie-ins with the Walt Disney company were offset by continuing image problems and ineffectual advertising programs.[15] Additionally, Gibbons sold off several of the company's assets in attempt to profit from their sale and terminated many staff members.[16][17][18] After Gibbon's departure, a series of CEO each tried to repair the brand by changing the menu, bringing in new ad agencies and other changes.[19][20][21]
The parental disregard of the Burger King brand continued through Grand Metropolitan's merger with Guinness in 1997, when the two organizations formed the new holding company Diageo.[22] Eventually, the ongoing, systematic institutional neglect of the brand through the string of owners damaged the company to the point where major franchises were driven out of business and its total value was significantly decreased.[23] Diageo eventually decided to divest itself of the money-losing chain and put the company up for sale in 2000.[24][25]
The twenty-first century saw the company return to independence when it was purchased from Diageo by a group of investment firms led by TPG Capital for US$1.5 billion in 2002.[15][26] The new owners rapidly moved to revitalize and reorganize the company, culminating with the company being taken public in 2006 with a highly successful initial public offering.[27][28] The firms' strategy for turning the chain around included a new advertising agency and new ad campaigns,[29][30][31] a revamped menu strategy,[32] a series of programs designed to revamp individual stores,[33] a new restaurant concept called the BK Whopper Bar,[34] and a new design format called 20/20.[34] These changes successfully re-energized the company, leading to a score of profitable quarters.[35] Yet, despite the successes of the new owners, the effects of the financial crisis of 2007–2010 weakened the company's financial outlooks while those of its immediate competitor McDonald's grew.[35][36] The falling value of Burger King eventually led to TPG and its partners divesting their interest in the chain in a US$3.26 billion sale to 3G Capital of Brazil.[37][38] Analysts from financial firms UBS and Stifel Nicolaus agreed that 3G would have to invest heavily in the company to help reverse its fortunes.[38][39] After the deal was completed, the company's stock was removed from the New York Stock Exchange, ending a four-year period as a public company.[40][41] The delisting of its stock was designed to help the company repair its fundamental business structures and continue working to close the gap with McDonald's without having to worry about pleasing shareholders.[39] In the United States domestic market, the chain has fallen to third place in terms of same store sales behind Ohio-based Wendy's. The decline is the result of 11 consecutive quarters of same store sales decline.[42]
In August 2014, 3G announced that it planned to acquire the Canadian restaurant and coffee shop chain Tim Hortons and merge it with Burger King with backing from Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway. The two chains will retain separate operations post-merger, with Burger King remaining in its Miami headquarters.[43] A Tim Hortons representative stated that the proposed merger would allow Tim Hortons to leverage Burger King's resources for international growth. The combined company will be the third-largest international chain of fast food restaurants.[44][45] The deal lead to a controversy over the practice of tax inversions, in which a company decreases the amount of taxes it pays by moving its headquarters to a tax haven, a country with lower rates but maintains the majority of their operations in their previous location. As a high-profile instance of tax inversion, news of the merger was criticized by U.S. politicians, who felt that the move would result in a loss of tax revenue to foreign interests, and could result in further government pressure against inversions.[45][46][47][48]
Structure and operations
Burger King Holdings is the parent company of Burger King, also known as Burger King Corporation and abbreviated BKC, and is a Delaware corporation formed on 23 July 2002.[3]:4 A public company, it derives its income from several sources, including property rental and sales through company owned restaurants;[3]:3 however a substantial portion of its revenue is dependent on franchise fees.[3]:3 During the transitional period after the acquisition of the company by 3G Capital, Burger King's board of directors was co-chaired by John W. Chidsey, formerly CEO and chairman of the company, and Alex Behring, managing partner of 3G Capital.[49] By April 2011 the new ownership completed the restructuring of Burger King's corporate management and Chidsey tendered his resignation, leaving Behring as current CEO and chair.[50]
The company operates approximately 40 subsidiaries globally that oversee franchise operations, acquisitions and financial obligations such as pensions.[3]:Exhibit 21.1 One example of a subsidiary is Burger King Brands, Inc. which is responsible for the management of Burger King's intellectual properties. A wholly owned subsidiary established in 1990,[51] Burger King Brands owns and manages all trademarks, copyrights and domain names used by the restaurants in the United States and Canada. It also responsible for providing marketing and related services to the parent company.[52]
The majority of Burger King restaurants, approximately 90%, are privately held franchises.[53] In North America Burger King Corporation is responsible for licensing operators and administering of stores. Internationally the company often pairs with other parties to operate locations or it will outright sell the operational and administrative rights to a franchisee which is given the designation of master franchise for the territory. The master franchise will then be expected to sub-license new stores, provide training support and ensure operational standards are maintained. In exchange for the oversight responsibilities, the master franchise will receive administrative and advertising support from Burger King Corporation to ensure a common marketing scheme.[54][55] The 3G Capital ownership group announced in April 2011 that it would begin divesting itself of many corporate owned locations with the intent to increase the number of privately held restaurants to 95%.[53]
As the franchisor for the brand, Burger King Holdings has several obligations and responsibilities; the company designs and deploys corporate training systems while overseeing brand standards such as building design and appearance.[33][56][57] The company also develops new products and deploys them after presenting them to its franchises for approval per a 2010 agreement between itself and the franchise ownership groups.[53] Burger King has limited approval over franchise operations such as minimum hours of operation and promotional pricing.[58][59] Additionally Burger King designates approved vendors and distributors while ensuring safety standards at the productions facilities of its vendors.[3]:6–9
Burger King is headquartered in a nine-story office tower by the Miami International Airport in unincorporated Miami-Dade County, Florida.[60] Elaine Walker of the Miami Herald stated that the headquarters has a "Burger King" sign that drivers on State Road 836 "can't miss." In addition, the chain planned to build a neon sign on the roof to advertise the brand to passengers landing at the airport. On Monday 8 July 2002, 130 employees began working at the Burger King headquarters with the remainder moving in phases in August 2002. Prior to the moving to its current headquarters in 2002, Burger King had considered moving away from the Miami area; Miami-Dade County politicians and leaders lobbied against this, and Burger King stayed.[61] In August 2014 the future of the company's Miami headquarters was again in doubt as reports surfaced Burger King was in talks with Tim Hortons about buying the Canadian restaurant chain, with a view to relocating its headquarters to Canada where the corporate tax rate is lower.[62]
The company's previous headquarters were in a southern Dade County campus described by Walker as "sprawling" and "virtually hidden away."[61] The former headquarters were located on Old Cutler Blvd in the Cutler census-designated place.[63][64] The former Burger King headquarters as of 2007 houses rental offices for several companies.[65]
When Burger King Corporation began franchising in 1959, it used a regional model where franchisees purchased the right to open stores within a geographic region.[5]:117[6]:64 These franchise agreements granted BKC very little oversight control of its franchisees and resulted in issues of product quality control, store image and design, and operational procedures.[5]:118[6]:64
During the 1970s, structural deficiencies in Burger King's franchise system became increasingly problematic for Pillsbury. A major example was the relationship between Burger King and Louisiana-based franchisee Chart House,[6]:64 Burger King's largest franchisee group at the time with over 350 locations in the United States. The company's owners, William and James Trotter, made several moves to take over or acquire Burger King during the 1970s, all of which were spurned by Pillsbury.[15] After the failed attempts to acquire the company, the relationship between Chart House and Burger King soured and eventually devolved into a lawsuit.[15] Chart House eventually spun off its Burger King operations in the early 1980s into a holding company called DiversiFoods, which in turn was acquired by Pillsbury in 1984 and absorbed into Burger King's operations.[66][67]
As part of the franchising reorganization segment of Operation Phoenix, Donald N. Smith initiated a restructuring of future franchising agreements in 1978. Under this new franchise agreement, new owners were disallowed from living more than one hour from their restaurants – restricting them to smaller individuals or ownership groups and preventing large, multi-state corporations from owning franchises. Franchisee were also now prohibited from operating other chains, preventing them from diverting funds away from their Burger King holdings. This new policy effectively limited the size of franchisees and prevented larger franchises from challenging Burger King Corporation as Chart House had.[6]:64 Smith also sought to have BKC be the primary owner of new locations and rent or lease the restaurants to its franchises. This policy would allow the company to take over the operations of failing stores or evict those owners who would not conform to the company guidelines and policies.[15] By 1988, parent company Pillsbury had relaxed many of Smith's changes, scaled back on the construction of new locations which resulted in stalled growth of the brand.[10] Neglect of Burger King by new owner Grand Met and its successor Diageo,[23] further hurt the standing of the brand, causing significant financial damage to BK franchises and straining relations between the parties.[68]
By 2001 and after nearly 18 years of stagnant growth, the state of its franchises was beginning to affect the value of the company. One of the franchises most heavily affected by the lack of growth was the nearly 400-store AmeriKing. By 2001, the franchise owner, which until this point had been struggling under a nearly US$300 million debt load and been shedding stores across the US, was forced to enter Chapter 11 bankruptcy.[69] The failure of AmeriKing deeply affected the value of Burger King, and put negotiations between Diaego and the TPC Capital-led group on hold. The developments eventually forced Diaego to lower the total selling price of the chain by almost $750 million.[68] After the sale, newly appointed CEO Bradley (Brad) Blum initiated a program to help roughly 20 percent of its franchises, including its four largest, who were in financial distress, bankruptcy or had ceased operations altogether.[70] Partnering with California-based Trinity Capital, LLC, the company established the Franchisee Financial Restructuring Initiative, a program to address the financial issues facing BK's financially distressed franchisees. The initiative was designed to assist franchisees in restructuring their businesses to meet financial obligations, focus on restaurant operational excellence, reinvest in their operations, and return to profitability.[71]
Individual franchisees took advantage of the AmeriKing failure; one of BK's regional owners, Miami-based Al Cabrera, purchased 130 stores located primarily in the Chicago and the upper mid-west region, from the failed company for a price of $16 million, approximately 88 percent of their original value. The new company, which started out as Core Value Partners and eventually became Heartland Foods, also purchased 120 additional stores from distressed owners and revamped them. The resulting purchases made Cabrera the largest minority franchisee of Burger King, and Heartland one of the company's top franchises.[72] By 2006, the company was valued at over $150 million, and was sold to New York–based GSO Capital Partners.[73] Other purchasers included a three way group of NFL athletes Kevin Faulk, Marcus Allen and Michael Strahan who collectively purchased 17 stores in the cities of Norfolk and Richmond, Virginia;[74] and Cincinnati-based franchisee Dave Devoy, who purchased 32 AmeriKing stores. After investing in new decor, equipment and staff retraining, many of the formerly failing stores have shown growth approaching 20 percent.[23]
As part of 3G's restructuring plan, the company decided to divest itself of its corporate owned locations by re-franchising them to private owners and become a 100% franchised operation by the end of 2013. The project, which began in April 2012, saw the company divest corporate owned locations in Florida, Canada, Spain, Germany and other regions.[75][76][77] The move gave the company a Q3, 2013 profit of US$68.2 million over the same quarter, 2012 of US$6.6 million.[75]
At the end of its 2013 fiscal year, Burger King is the second largest chain of hamburger fast food restaurants in terms of global locations,[3] behind industry bellwether McDonald's (32,400 locations); it is the fourth largest fast food restaurant chain overall after Yum! Brands (parent of KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut totaling 37,000 locations),[78] McDonald's,[79] and Subway (32,000 locations).[80]
International operations
While BK began its foray into locations outside of the continental United States in 1963 with a store in San Juan, Puerto Rico,[81] it did not have an international presence until several years later. Shortly after the acquisition of the chain by Pillsbury, it opened its first Canadian restaurant in Windsor, Ontario in 1969.[6]:66[82] Other international locations followed soon after: Oceania in 1971 and Europe in 1975 with a restaurant in Madrid, Spain.[83][84] Beginning in 1982, BK and its franchisees began operating stores in several East Asian countries, including Japan, Taiwan, Singapore and South Korea.[15] Due to high competition, all of the Japanese locations were closed in 2001; however, BK reentered the Japanese market in June 2007.[85] BK's Central and South American operations began in Mexico in the late 1970s, and by the early 1980s in Caracas, Venezuela, Santiago, Chile and Buenos Aires, Argentina.[15] While Burger King lags behind McDonald's in international locations by over 12,000 stores, as of 2008 it had managed to become the largest chain in several countries including Mexico and Spain.[86] The company divides its international operations into three segments; The Middle East, Europe and Africa division (EMEA), Asia-Pacific (APAC) and Latin America and the Caribbean (LAC).[3]:5 In each of these regions, Burger King has established several subsidiaries to develop strategic partnerships and alliances to expand into new territories. In its EMEA group, Burger King's Switzerland-based subsidiary Burger King Europe GmbH is responsible for the licensing and development of BK franchises in those regions.[3]:5, Exhibit 21:1[87] In APAC region, the Singapore-based BK AsiaPac, Pte. Ltd. business unit handles franchising for East Asia, the Asian subcontinent and all Oceanic territories.[3]:6, Exhibit 21:1[54][88] The LAC region includes Mexico, Central and South America and the Caribbean Islands and has no centralized operations group.[3]:6, Exhibit 21:1
Australia is the only country in which Burger King does not operate under its own name.[3]:6 When the company set about establishing operations down under in 1971, it found that its business name was already trademarked by a takeaway food shop in Adelaide.[89] As a result, Burger King provided the Australian franchisee, Jack Cowin, with a list of possible alternative names derived from pre-existing trademarks already registered by Burger King and its then corporate parent Pillsbury, that could be used to name the Australian restaurants. Cowin selected the "Hungry Jack" brand name, one of Pillsbury's US pancake mixture products, and slightly changed the name to a possessive form by adding an apostrophe "s" forming the new name Hungry Jack's.[83][90] After the expiration of the trademark in the late 1990s, Burger King unsuccessfully tried to introduce the brand to the continent. After losing a lawsuit filed against it by Hungry Jack's ownership, the company ceded the territory to its franchisee.[83] Hungry Jack's is now the only Burger King brand in Australia; Cowin's company Hungry Jack's PTY is the master franchise and thus is now responsible for oversight of the operations that country with Burger King only providing administrative and advertising support to ensure a common marketing scheme for the company and its products.[55]
Over a 10-year period starting in 2008, Burger King predicted 80 percent of its market share would be driven by foreign expansion, particularly in the Asia-Pacific and Indian subcontinent regional markets.[91] While the TPG-led group continued BK's international expansion by announcing plans to open new franchise locations in Eastern Europe, Africa and the Middle East, and Brazil, the company plan is focusing on the three largest markets – India, China and Japan.[92][93][94][95] The company plans to add over 250 stores in these Asian territories, as well as other places such as Macau, by the end of 2012.[96] Its expansion into the Indian market has the company at a competitive disadvantage with other fast food restaurants such as KFC because of the aversion of the country's large Hindu majority to beef. BK hopes to use their non-beef products, such as their TenderCrisp and TenderGrill chicken sandwiches, as well as other products like mutton sandwiches and veggie sandwiches, to help them overcome this hurdle to expand in that country.[91][97] 3G has reported that it will continue with the plans to grow globally, even ramping up the planned expansion to help increase their return on investment.[14]:1 It is expected that 3G Brazilian-based management connections in the region may help Burger King expand in Brazil and Latin America, where it has been having problems finding acceptable franchisees.[14]:2[98]
Controversies and legal cases
Burger King has been involved in several legal disputes and cases, as both plaintiff and defendant, in the years since its founding in 1954. Disputes involving these many legal topics have affected almost every aspect of the company's operations. Depending on the ownership and executive staff at the time of these incidents, the company's responses to these challenges have ranged from a conciliatory dialog with its critics and litigants, to a more aggressive opposition with questionable tactics and negative consequences.[99][100][101][102] The company's response to these various issues has drawn praise[103][104] as well as accusations of political appeasement from different parties over the years.[105]
A trademark dispute involving the owners of the identically named Burger King in Mattoon, Illinois, led to a federal lawsuit. The case's outcome helped define the scope of the Lanham act and trademark law in the United States.[106] An existing trademark held by a shop of the same name in South Australia forced the company to change its name in Australia,[107] while another state trademark in Texas forced the company to abandon its signature product, the Whopper, in several counties around San Antonio.[108] Legal decisions from other suits have set contractual law precedents in regards to long-arm statutes, the limitations of franchise agreements, and ethical business practices.[109][110] Many of these decisions have helped define general business dealings that continue to shape the entire marketplace.[111][112][113]
Controversies and disputes have arisen with groups such as People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (PETA), governmental and social agencies, and unions and trade groups over various topics. These situations have touched on legal and moral concepts such as animal rights, corporate responsibility,[114] ethics,[115] and social justice.[115] While the majority of the disputes did not result in lawsuits, in many of the cases the situations raised legal questions, dealt with legal compliance, or resulted in legal remedies such as changes in contractual procedure or binding agreements between parties. The resolutions to these legal matters have often altered the way the company interacts and negotiates contracts with its suppliers and franchisees, or how it does business with the public.[103][104][116][117]
Further controversies have occurred during the company's expansion in the Middle East. The opening of a Burger King location in Ma'aleh Adumim, an Israeli settlement in the Israeli-occupied Palestinian territories, led to a breach of contract dispute between Burger King and its Israeli franchise due to the hotly contested international dispute over the legality of Israeli settlements in the Palestinian territories in accordance to international law. The controversy eventually erupted into a geopolitical dispute involving Muslim and Jewish groups on multiple continents over the application of, and adherence to, international law.[118][119][120] The case eventually elicited reactions from the members of the 22-nation Arab League. The Islamic countries within the League made a joint threat to the company of legal sanctions including the revocation of Burger King's business licenses within the member states' territories.[119][120][121]
A related issue involving members of the Islamic faith over the interpretation of the Muslim version of canon law, Shariah, regarding the promotional artwork on a dessert package in the United Kingdom raised issues of cultural sensitivity,[122] and, with the former example, posed a larger question about the lengths that companies must go to ensure the smooth operation of their businesses in the communities they serve.[123]
Charitable contributions and services
Burger King has two of its own in-house national charitable organizations and programs. One is the Have It Your Way Foundation, a US-based non-profit (501(c)(3)) corporation with multiple focuses on hunger alleviation, disease prevention and community education through scholarship programs at colleges in the US. The other charitable organization is the McLamore Foundation, also a non-profit, 501(c)(3) corporation that provides scholarships to students in the US and its territories.[124][125]
In various regions across the United States, Burger King and its franchises have aligned themselves with several charitable organizations that support research and treatment of juvenile cancer. Each year, these coalitions hold a fund raising drive called "A Chance for Kids", in which Burger King restaurants sell lottery-style scratch cards for $1. Each card produces a winning prize that is usually a food or beverage product, but includes (rarer) items such as shopping sprees or trips. In the Northeast, BK has affiliated itself with the Major League Baseball team the Boston Red Sox and its charitable foundation, the Jimmy Fund. The group runs the contest in Boston. In the New York City area, it operates the contest in association with the Burger King Children's Charities of Metro New York and the New York Yankees. Funds raised in these areas go to support the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, located in Boston.[126][127] In Nebraska, the company is affiliated with the Liz's Legacy Cancer Fund "BK Beat Cancer for Kids" program at the UNMC Eppley Cancer Center at the University of Nebraska Medical Center in Omaha.[128] In the Pittsburgh region, it funded the establishment of the Burger King Cancer Caring Center, a support organization for the families and friends of cancer patients.[129]
When the predecessor of Burger King first opened in Jacksonville in 1953, its menu consisted predominantly of basic hamburgers, French fries, soft drinks, milkshakes and desserts. After being acquired by its Miami, Florida, franchisees and renamed to its current moniker in 1954, BK began expanding the breadth of its menu by adding the Whopper sandwich in 1957. This quarter-pound (Script error: No such module "convert".) hamburger was created by Burger King's new owners James McLamore and David Edgerton as a way to differentiate BK from other burger outlets at the time.[130] Since its inception, the Whopper has become synonymous with Burger King, and has become the focus of much of its advertising.[131] The company even named its new kiosk-style restaurants Whopper Bars.[132]
The menu component of Donald Smith's Operation Phoenix was initiated in 1978 and led to the addition of the Burger King Specialty Sandwich line in 1979. The new product line significantly expanded the breadth of the BK menu with many non-hamburger sandwiches, including new chicken and fish offerings. The new Specialty Sandwich line was one of the first attempts to target a specific demographic, in this case adults 18–34, members of which would be willing to spend more on a higher quality product.[5]:119 One of Smith's other significant contributions to the menu was the addition of a breakfast product line, which until this time was not a market Burger King had entered.[15] Besides the addition of the Croissan'Wich in 1983, the breakfast menu remained almost identical to the McDonald's offerings until a menu revamp in 1985.[15] This expansion introduced BK's "Am Express" product line, which added new products such as French toast sticks and mini-muffins.[133]
As the company expanded both inside and outside the US, it introduced localized versions of its products that conform to regional tastes and cultural or religious beliefs. International variations add ingredients such as teriyaki or beetroot and fried egg to the Whopper;[134] beer in Germany, Italy and Spain; and halal or kosher products in the Middle East and Israel.[135][136][137] To generate additional sales, BK will occasionally introduce limited time offers (LTOs) that are versions of its core products, or new products intended for either long or short term sales. Items such as the Texas Double Whopper and various sandwiches made with mushrooms and Swiss cheese have been rotated in and out of its menu for several years,[138][139] while products such as its 1993 Meatloaf Specialty Sandwich offering and accompanying limited table service, along with special dinner platters, failed to generate interest and were discontinued.[140][141]
In order to appeal to as many demographic groups as possible and better compete with its competitor Wendy's, Burger King added a multi-tiered value menu in 1993 with items priced at 99¢, US$1.99 and $2.99.[15] The additions, part of then CEO James Adamson's back to basics program also called Operation Phoenix, were an attempt to add not only a value menu, but also a line of value meals.[142] The tiered menu was replaced with a more standard value menu in 1998, while the value meals were separated into their own menu segment.[143] This value menu featured seven products: Whopper Jr., five-piece Chicken Tenders, a bacon cheeseburger, medium-sized French fries, medium soft drink, medium onion rings, and small shake. In 2002 and 2006, BK revamped its value menu, adding and removing several different products such as chili and its Rodeo Cheeseburger.[144] Many of these items have since been discontinued, modified or relegated to a regional menu option.[145] To better appeal to a more adult palate and demographic, BK introduced several new products to its menu in 2003, including several new or revamped chicken products, a new salad line and its BK Joe brand of coffee. Some of the new products, including its Enormous Omelet Sandwich line and the BK Stacker line, brought negative attention due to the large portion size, and amounts of unhealthy fats and trans-fats.[146][147][148] Many of these products featured higher quality ingredients like whole chicken breast, Angus beef, and natural cheeses such as cheddar and pepper jack.[149][150] Again, not all these products, such as the BK Baguette line, have met corporate sales expectations.[29]
With the purchase of the company in 2010, 3G began a program to restructure its menu designed to move away from the male-oriented menu that had dominated under the previous ownership. The first major item to be introduced was a reformulation of its BK Chicken Tenders product in March 2011.[151] Over the next few months, approximately 20 new products were researched and developed while others were reformulated, including its Chef's Choice Burger.[152] Eventually pruned down to 10 items, Burger King began deploying the items in the United States throughout 2011–2012 with the official roll out beginning April 2012. The changes included new ice cream products, smoothies, frappés and chicken strips. The Whopper was the most prominently reformulated product in this round of introductions with a new type of cheese and packaging.[42]
Like its menu, the equipment the company cooks its hamburgers with has also evolved as the company expanded. The burgers have always been broiled mechanically; the original unit, called an Insta-Broiler, was one of two pieces of equipment the founders of Insta-Burger King purchased before opening their new restaurant.[4]:27[130] The Insta-Broiler worked by cooking 12 burger patties in a wire basket, allowing the patties to be cooked from both sides simultaneously.[4]:27 When McLamore and Edgerton took over the company, besides dropping the "Insta-" prefix, they switched to an improved unit, which they called a "Flame Broiler". Designed by the two and featuring stationary burners that cooked the meat on a moving chain, the unit broke down less often, while maintaining a similar cooking rate.[130] The company would stay with that format for the next 40 years until Burger King began developing a variable speed broiler that could handle multiple items with different cooking rates and times.[153][154][155] These new units began testing in 1999 and eventually evolved into the two models the company deployed system-wide in 2008–2009. Accompanying these new broilers was new food-holding equipment, accompanied with a computer-based product monitoring system for its cooked products.[156] The monitoring system allows for more concise tracking of product quality, while giving the company and its franchisees a method to streamline costs by more precisely projecting sales and product usage.[157]
Since its foundation in 1954, Burger King has employed varied advertising programs, both successful and unsuccessful. During the 1970s, output included its Hold the pickles, hold the lettuce... jingle, the inspiration for its current mascot the Burger King, and several well known and parodied slogans such as "Have it your way" and "It takes two hands to handle a Whopper".[158][159][160] Burger King introduced the first attack ad in the fast food industry with a pre-teen Sarah Michelle Gellar in 1981. The television spot, which claimed BK burgers were larger and better tasting than competitor McDonald's,[6]:66 so enraged executives at McDonald's parent company that they sued all parties involved.[161][162] Starting in the early 1980s and running through approximately 2001, BK engaged a series of ad agencies that produced many unsuccessful slogans and programs, including its biggest advertising flop "Where's Herb?".[163][164]
Burger King was a pioneer in the advertising practice known as "product tie-in", with a successful partnership with George Lucas' Lucasfilm, Ltd., to promote the 1977 film Star Wars in which BK sold a set of glasses featuring the main characters from the movie.[165][166] This promotion was one of the first in the fast food industry and set the pattern that continues to the present. BK's early success in the field was overshadowed by a 1982 deal between McDonald's and the Walt Disney Company to promote Disney's animated films beginning in the mid-1980s and running through the early 1990s. In 1994, Disney switched from McDonald's to Burger King, signing a 10-movie promotional contract which would include such top 10 films as Aladdin (1992), Beauty and the Beast (1991), The Lion King (1994), and Toy Story (1995).[15] A partnership in association with the Pokémon franchise at the height of its popularity in 1999 was tremendously successful for the company, with many locations rapidly selling out of the toys and the replacements.[167]
Shortly after the acquisition of Burger King by TPG Capital, L.P. in 2002, its new CEO Brad Blum set about turning around the fortunes of the company by initiating an overhaul of its flailing advertising programs. One of the first moves by the company was to reinstate its famous "Have it your way" slogan as the corporate motto. BK handed the effort off to its new advertising agency, Miami-based Crispin Porter + Bogusky (abbreviated as CP+B). CP+B was known for having a hip, subversive tack when creating campaigns for its clients, exactly what BK was looking for.[29][30] One of CP+B strategies was to revive the Burger King character used during BK's 1970s/1980s Burger King Kingdom children's advertising campaign as a caricatured variation, now simply called "the King".[168][169] The farcical nature of "the Burger King" centered advertisements inspired an internet meme where the King is edited into unusual situations that are either comical or menacing, many times followed with the phrase "Where is your God now?"
Additionally, CP+B created a series of new characters like the Subservient Chicken and the faux nu metal band Coq Roq, featured in a series of viral web-based advertisements on sites such as MySpace and various BK corporate pages, to compliment various television and print promotional campaigns.[170][171][172] One of the more successful promotions that CP+B devised was the creation of a series of three advergames for the Xbox 360.[173][174] Created by UK based Blitz Games and featuring company celebrity spokesman Brooke Burke, the games sold more than 3.2 million copies, placing them as one of the top selling games along with another Xbox 360 hit, Gears of War.[174][175] These ad campaigns, coupled with other new promotions and a series of new product introductions, drew positive and negative attention to BK, and helped TPG and its partners realize about US$367 million in dividends.[176][177]
With the late-2000s recession hitting the 18–35 demographic targeted by the CP+B created ads particularly hard, the company saw its market share decline and the company move into the red. After the completion of the sale of the company in late 2010, the new ownership group terminated Burger King's seven-year relationship with CP+B and hired rival firm McGarryBowen to create a new campaign with an expanded market reach.[178] As part of the new campaign, McGarryBowen terminated the use of the The Burger King in the company's advertising program in favor of a new program that focused on the food and ingredients in its new advertising campaigns.[179]
See also
- Hungry Jacks, the Australian subsidiary for Burger King
- Drive-through
- List of hamburger restaurants
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- ^ Edery, David; Mollick, Ethan (October 2008). "3". Changing the game: how video games are transforming the future of business. FT Press. pp. 69–72. ISBN 0-13-235781-X. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
- ^ a b Wilson, Douglas (11 March 2007). "GDC 07: Burger King gets its game on". Gamespot. Retrieved 20 January 2011.
- ^ Coola (21 December 2006). "More than 2 Million Games Sold Nationwide...". XBox365.com. Retrieved 27 October 2007.[dead link]
- ^ "CP+B website, Burger King section.". Crispin Porter + Bogusky. Retrieved 24 October 2007.
- ^ Ochman, B.L. (12 April 2004). "Burger King Has Fun With Subservient Chicken Viral Campaign". Retrieved 25 August 2007.[dead link]
- ^ Parekh, Rupal; Morrison, Maureen (18 March 2011). "Burger King and Crispin Split After Seven-Year Run". Advertising Age. Retrieved 18 March 2011.
- ^ Morrison, Maureen (1 June 2011). "McGarryBowen Set to Grab Burger King Account". Ad Age. Retrieved 29 September 2011.
External links
|Wikimedia Commons has media related to Burger King.
- Official website
- Yahoo! Burger King Corporation Company Profile at Yahoo! Finance
- Burger King Corporation Company Profile at Hoovers.com
- Liz's Legacy Cancer Fund
- BK Beat Cancer for Kids
- Burger King at the Wayback Machine (archived March 24, 2002)
- Burger King at the Wayback Machine (archived April 19, 2001)[dead link]
- Burger King at the Wayback Machine (archived October 12, 1997)
- Burger King at the Wayback Machine (archived December 26, 1996)
Coordinates: 25°46′57.99″N 80°17′14.56″W / 25.7827750°N 80.2873778°W{{#coordinates:25|46|57.99|N|80|17|14.56|W|scale:10000_region:US |primary |name= }} Unknown extension tag "indicator"
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Rangers optimistic after Harrison has MRI
SURPRISE, Ariz. -- The Rangers are cautiously optimistic pitcher Matt Harrison is going to get through his latest back issue without any major problems.
Harrison had an MRI on Thursday and the results showed nothing serious. Harrison, who reported feeling better on Friday, is still going back to Dallas to be examined by back specialist Dr. Drew Dossett early next week. Dossett performed the two surgeries on Harrison last year for a herniated disk and wants to make sure everything is still good.
"I feel better today," Harrison said. "I slept on the floor last night. I really don't know because I had never felt that before on my right side. I thought it was kind of weird because I don't remember doing any one thing that could have caused it.
"From what they saw [on the MRI] it was nothing there. He still wants to check me out. He tried to figure out what might have caused it, and it may have been just as simple as something may have moved or shifted a little bit and nicked that nerve because it's so close together in there. I feel a lot better today about everything and hopefully I'll be even better tomorrow and move past this and it will be a nonissue."
Harrison was an 18-game winner for the Rangers in 2012 but made just two starts last season before going on the disabled list with a herniated disk in his lower back. He needed two operations to correct the problem and did not pitch the rest of the season.

subset: commoncrawl


text:
One of America's greatest strengths, if not its most distinctive characteristic, has always been its extensive network of private efforts to solve personal, family, and community problems. When it comes to dealing effectively with such social concerns, government is not by a long shot the only game in town.
Indeed, given the expensive quagmire that government is widely conceded to have created with welfare programs, private efforts are providing a beacon for progress and reform. As management expert Peter Drucker has put it, non-profit agencies in the private sector "spend far less for results than governments spend for failure." What America needs, he says, is "a public policy that establishes the nonprofits as the country's first line of attack on its social problems."
Nonprofits are spearheading an unprecedented number of local programs to combat a wide range of pressing social concerns: hunger, illiteracy, homelessness, welfare dependency, drug use, and teen pregnancy, to name a few. The secret to their success is accountability, since they are run by local people who are closest to the problems and have a strong incentive to manage resources wisely and get the job done. Michigan is home to two new and innovative programs that deserve special attention.
In October 1991, Michigan ended its General Assistance program for able-bodied, single adults. In the mid-Michigan town of Harrison, a group of concerned volunteers wanted to help former GA recipients by easing their transition to productive self-reliance. The volunteers' efforts resulted in the creation of a unique, privately-funded assistance center called Hard Times Cafe.
Once a week on Thursday afternoons, former GA recipients (as many as 50 at one time, ranging in age from 18 to 63) gather at St. Athanasius Church for a hot meal, companionship and some very innovative counseling--all designed to instill new incentives for the clients to get control of their lives. They share their concerns in an atmosphere of trust and respect. They learn thinking, planning, and organization skills, as well as good work habits.
They also earn "Hard Times Dollars" which are redeemable in personal needs items from soap to toothpaste. Recipients earn the goods, donated by churches and businesses, by displaying positive work habits while performing designated community service work. They do carpentry, maintenance, and gardening work; they help out at a local YMCA camp; and they've been busy planting trees along US-27. With sufficient "dollars" they can even obtain vouchers for rent, house payments, taxes, utilities, transportation and medical needs, funded through private grants.
The government welfare system requires people to constantly confirm their inability to meet their personal and family needs, and reduces benefits for people who work. Hard Times Cafe does just the opposite: it infuses a "can-do" spirit of independence and rewards its patrons who exhibit positive, pro-work attitudes. The project's organizers, including a Volunteer Coordinator in the Clare County Department of Social Services and Catholic Family Services of the Archdiocese of Saginaw, report remarkable success with high client motivation and glowing endorsements from work supervisors.
Meanwhile, in Grand Rapids, another locally-conceived program is helping people rebuild their lives. Faith, Inc. is a non-profit organization, started by Heartside Area Ministries, formed to help the homeless get jobs, training and counseling.
During the daytime, Faith's director, Verne Barry, seeks out homeless people, welfare recipients and otherwise discouraged individuals from the area and offers them a chance to help themselves. In the evening, Faith, Inc. utilizes a portion of a 100,000 square foot manufacturing warehouse owned by Hope Network (a work facility for the developmentally disabled), which is normally closed after 4:00 p.m. Faith employees teach these individuals "whom everyone else has written off" to perform light assembly and packaging jobs--real work needed to fill orders for private contracts awarded to Hope Network. At the end of the week, each employee receives a paycheck, many for the first time in years.
Faith ensures each individual receives counseling from a variety of private organizations in order to improve their work habits and lifestyles--and overcome substance abuse and emotional problems. With very limited resources, Faith has helped 52 people get off public assistance, either fully or partially, and many have moved on to higher paying, steady jobs.
The key to Faith's success, according to Barry, is that its clients work, and in doing so they develop important life skills--personal decision-making, self-reliance, and responsibility. He questions government programs which spend millions of dollars annually to teach and train people "how to work" in lieu of the real thing. "At Faith, we don't send them to `assessment school' for six months to decide what career they would like," he said. "We help them start working immediately. It's essential to enhancing their self-worth."
The experience of Hard Times Cafe and Faith, Inc. add credence to this comment from Marc Bendick of the Washington, D.C.-based Urban Institute: "Through their small scale, non-bureaucratic nature, local knowledge and personal relationships, neighborhoods, families, churches and voluntary associations can respond rapidly, accurately and in a more acceptable manner to local and individual needs in ways that large, formal institutions such as government agencies cannot."
As local, state, and federal governments search for a way out of the social welfare morass, the most instructive alternatives are already forming in our midst. Let's take a look at them, encourage them, and thereby assist many needy people in the process.
The Mackinac Center for Public Policy is a nonprofit research and educational institute that advances the principles of free markets and limited government. Through our research and education programs, we challenge government overreach and advocate for a free-market approach to public policy that frees people to realize their potential and dreams.
Please consider contributing to our work to advance a freer and more prosperous state.


text:
The CloudBurst conference kicked off in Sweden today with sessions from Mark Brown, Magnus Mårtensson, Mike Martin, Maarten Balliauw, Scott Klein and Andy Cross. It was great to see such a good line up of presenters and some excellent sessions. Just like last year we had a packed room with many developers returning after last years event, and all sessions being live streamed.
We have a great line up for day 2, and will be live-streaming all the sessions from 09:00 Central European time. You can see the session line up and link to the live stream on the CloudBurst website.


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Parks and open space should be options for city-owned lots on William Street
As those of us know who participated in the recent Ann Arbor Downtown Development Authority exercise featuring "scenarios," it had boxes to check for several kinds of development on five city-owned lots on or near William Street. Retail, Office, Indoor Performance Space, Residential — these were among the options. Missing was a box for a Park, a Public Open Space.
Because "Park" was not included in the options, respondents could not check a box that could be counted. Therefore "Park" will not appear in the DDA's report of this exercise when it goes to City Council.
The same defect marred the DDA's online survey of public opinion in February and March of this year. The survey offered a dozen or so possible responses to each question, for people to choose. "Park," or "open plaza," or "green space," was not offered as a choice.
However, the survey included several open-ended questions inviting respondents to expand on the choices that were offered. Many people gladly named parks, green space, public open space, outdoor performance space, and other names for what they felt was missing from the survey.
Until now, no one has read and counted all those responses that fell "outside the box." Vivienne Armentrout made a good start last summer, tabulating 464 responses to Question 3. Picking up where Vivienne had left off, I have now finished reading all the individual responses in the 400-page report of the survey. Considering that there was no easy way to register support for a park (each person had to take time to compose an answer) it is impressive how many seized this slim opportunity.
Question 1 of the survey invited people to rank 12 goals from one to five in order of importance. A goal which had a kinship to a park was "opportunities for spontaneous social interaction." It was ranked a four or a five (important or "extremely important") by 1399 out of 2,041 respondents. Another such goal was "opportunities for outdoor community events." It was ranked a four or a five by 1243 out of 2038 respondents.
Question 2 asked respondents to choose (from the list of 12) three goals "that are most important to you." This time "opportunities for outdoor community events" and "opportunities for spontaneous social interactions" were the top choices. They were checked by 40.7 percent and 43.6 percent of respondents respectively. Note that neither of these options mentions a park. The DDA's question about social interactions could have envisioned events such as Taste of Ann Arbor, or Festifools. The one about outdoor events referred to sidewalk cafes as an example. We would not know what the respondents envisioned, except that many of them took the opportunity to write an open-ended answer to the next question.
Question 3 asked, "Please feel free to share an extremely important goal." Of 815 who composed answers, 201 (24.7 percent) named parks or open space. Others chose various goals, such as economic development or housing. It was not an either/or choice; most of the goals were mutually compatible, given the 5 sites under consideration.
Question 4 asked, "Please select the things you'd like to see more of downtown." A list was offered. The last option was "other." Of 426 who wrote in the "other" space, 142 (33.3 percent) mentioned a park.
Question 5 asked, "What economic benefits are most important to you?—select all that apply." Of 293 respondents who used the "other" space, 60 (20.5 percent) mentioned parks and the economic benefits that flow from them.
Question 7 asked, "What environmental benefits are most important to you?" A list was suggested. Sixty-eight respondents wrote about parks and open, green spaces, which were not on the list.
Question 8 asked, "What social benefits are most important to you?" Here again, 71 participants chose to step out of the box and mention the social benefits of an urban public park.
Question 9 asked respondents to "Envision a really great time you had in another downtown. Please briefly describe what you were doing, your surroundings, and why it was such a great experience." This was a completely open-ended question, and people responded by describing a day, or an evening, a cluster of happy experiences. These answers are hard to break down into quantifiable lists. An expert in analyzing survey data named Dorothy Nordness, of the Institute for Social Research at the UM, applied her skills to Question 9. Coding key words in 302 of the 1,310 responses, she found that walking, parks, events, and dining/shopping were the features most often mentioned first in a response. (28 percent, 18 percent, 14 percent, 13 percent, respectively) They also were the features most often mentioned second, third, or fourth. ("Events" was the code Dorothy assigned to a variety of experiences: "outdoor, free, museum, street performers, architecture, music, public art, festivals.")
Question 10 asked whether such an experience could be enjoyed in Ann Arbor, and if not, why not? What was missing? Of the responses to this question, 149 (16 percent) mentioned the lack of a downtown park or green space.
Question 11 invited people to "provide any additional comments about the Connecting William Street process or this survey." Of the 647 responses, 111 (17 percent) pleaded for a park.
When the DDA published the results of this survey (on their website), their "Overview" did note the high proportion who favored "opportunities for outdoor community events" and "opportunities for spontaneous social interactions." They also acknowledged in several places — appreciatively — the desire for parks and green space which had been expressed by respondents. At the end of their overview, the DDA asked, "What does this all mean and what are the next steps?
In their answer they promised to strive for five goals: a vibrant sidewalk experience, attention to quality and design of buildings, economic development, housing, and open space/plazas.
It seemed like they "got it." They understood and accepted that their survey, perhaps inadvertently, had revealed the real thinking of a significant proportion of the people— who were trying hard to communicate despite obstacles.
Why was this revelation subsequently ignored when the DDA designed the Connecting William Street project? The three "scenarios" make no mention of parks or green spaces. Who at the DDA decided to reverse course? Who are the faceless unelected people who are pulling the strings? We need to know who they are. Citizens may well feel cheated by a process which ignores them. They have a right to be angry when jerked around so capriciously.
The following is a summary of responses to open-ended questions on the DDA online survey, spring of 2012.
The percentage of respondents who used this opportunity to write in "park," "open space," or something equivalent:
Question 3: "Please feel free to share a very important goal": Of those who responded, 24.7 percent named parks or open space.
Question 4: Please select the things you'd like to see more of downtown." Of those who used the space for "other," 33.3 percent mentioned a park.
Question 5: What economic benefits are most important to you? Of those who used the space for "other," 20.5 percent mentioned economic benefits that flow from parks.
Question 7: What environmental benefits are important to you? Of those who used the space for "other," 20.5 percent mentioned parks and open spaces.
Question 8: What social benefits are most important to you? Of those who wrote in the space for "other," 33.3 percent mentioned social benefits flowing from parks.
Question 9: " A great time in another downtown please describe." Consistently in the first four key words was "park."
Question 10: Are you able to get the same experience in downtown Ann Arbor? Why or why not? Of 1298 responses to this question, 149 (16 percent) mentioned the lack of a downtown park or green space.
Question 11: Provide any additional comments about the Connecting William Street process or this survey. Of 647 responses, 111 (17 percent) asked for a park.
Here's the conclusion: When asked open-ended questions, a significant proportion of respondents took the opportunity to ask for a park. Depending on the question, they ranged from 1/6 to 1/3 of respondents. These are people who made an effort to put in to their own words what was missing from the questionnaire. Please note the other respondents, with very few exceptions, did not oppose a park. They used the space to mention other goals.
Council members evaluating the "Connecting William Street" exercise should also study this earlier DDA survey, particularly the open-ended responses. It would be folly to ignore up to a third of any group of constituents. These are highly motivated citizens and voters. They have confirmed, in 2012, the results of the Calthorpe report 0f 2005-6. Ann Arborites want and deserve a central downtown park.
Thu, Nov 29, 2012 : 8:11 p.m.
Thank you, Mary, for shining light on the community's wish for a park. The DDA tried to hide that wish by they way they formatted their surveys and by the questions they asked - almost like push polling - but the people used the open ended questions to make their desires known.
Thu, Nov 29, 2012 : 3:04 a.m.
Is it because Liberty Plaza is working so well that folks want another one, except bigger and tucked behind a bus station? That sounds really appealing. Listen, if "Library Green" doesn't have the "green" to buy these properties and pay property taxes on them, I'd suggest patronizing the incredible number of parks the city is already struggling to maintain.
Jamie Pitts
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 6:52 p.m.
Why are we letting our local government prioritize business development over all other concerns with these parcels? If the majority of people asked in the survey had said "business development" I would understand standing by while downtown builds up to the sky. But even if that were the case, there still should be a balance between business needs and human needs. A large park downtown would even help business by creating a special attraction downtown, and help people grow and be more productive. And it would create more of a sense of community for all of us. It is worth the investment, and has been for all towns and cities that want to attract talented people to live and work in their city centers. Search this term in google to see the DDA survey results that Mary Hathaway is referring to: "Connecting William Street Vision Survey".
Jamie Pitts
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 8:50 p.m.
That is a very good point about increasing usable "floor space" in order to make life more affordable downtown. As much as I like the idea, the greenbelt policies will lead to a long-term housing supply crunch unless more apartment buildings are built throughout the city. Beyond the current "allocate some apartments for low-income people", affordability definitely needs to be in the mix of considerations for what to do with these public properties downtown.
rusty shackelford
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 6:56 p.m.
My concern is that we've only enacted the anti-sprawl part of the greenbelt, while increased density in town (the other, just as crucial part) has been fought tooth and nail at every single instance. The result has been dramatic increase in rents and home prices. While new development may spike rents somewhat initially, the fact is that more usable space in the core of town helps to prevent the town from becoming even more expensive than it already has. Of course, those who already own property are more than happy to see this trend continue.
Alan Goldsmith
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 5:36 p.m.
Yes! Let's put the option of continuing the DDA on the ballot, next November, for voters to decide? I'm sure mavens of democracy Ms. Lowenstein and Ms. Gunn should be fine with that. What do you say?
Patricia Lesko
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 2:49 p.m.
The Hieftje cronies on the DDA Board are pushing the ALEC-inspired agenda of our local pseudo-Dems who believe that smaller government, cuts to services, attacks on labor unions, public-private partnerships and Regan-era economic policies will make our city a better place to live. Are the city's roads in better shape? Storm water system? Do we all enjoy paying higher fees for services for everything from water, using the swimming pools, to recycling? Meanwhile, Hieftje and his Council allies spend $1.2 million on sewer improvements to an empty field on Fuller Road, and Hieftje's cronies on the AATA Board blew how many millions on a transit plan it turns out no one (not even Ann Arbor) wanted. As @Veracity explains, the DDA Board needs to develop those parcels because of poor decisions made over the course of the past 4 years which have put the organization in the position of eventually running a deficit. Imagine voters' reactions if City Council put a "Millage proposal to support the DDA" on the ballot. Let's see DDA Board members Joan Lowenstein and Leah Gunn "explain" why Ann Arbor's "old, xenophobic, selfish" Republican voters (to quote Lowenstein's December 2011 piece in The Ann) don't understand why a millage to support the DDA is vital to downtown. The DDA has doubled parking rates in a short period to meet bond payments for the new city hall and to desperately try to cover bond payments for the new underground parking garage. These are the last people who should decide what is done with public land; they simply can't demonstrate they have the best interests of the public (or our wallets) in mind when they make their the bulk of their decisions.
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 7:17 a.m.
Citizens should understand the motivation of the DDA for developing the five remaining city-owned properties involved with the "Connecting Williams Street" effort. For four or five years the DDA has produced budgets with deficits averaging $2 million per year. Capital investments have created lingering debt obligations which can not be met by revenue from its two sources, parking fees and TIF (Tax-Incremental Financing). The DDA has raided its reserve fund in order to balance its budget each year. The reserve fund will be drained within two years if deficit budgets persist as is expected. The DDA is in the process of increasing parking fees which will raise more revenue (as long as parking is not discouraged) but not enough to cover indebtedness. Likewise, present TIF payments do not cover remaining expenses. If the DDA does not find additional money to balance the annual budget then the DDA may be become insolvent in another year or two at which time it must be disbanded and existing debt obligations transferred to the City. Another option is to have a millage or income tax created to cover outstanding expenses. To avoid this catastrophic ending, the DDA wishes to create more TIF payments by encouraging private development of its remaining publicly owned properties. Also, the size of TIF payments is directly related to the increased property value of a development and the DDA will encourage large projects. Twelve story buildings costing up to $50 million dollars or more would be ideal for maximizing TIF payments. The problem is that major residential and commercial developments may not always be successful. For example, the Ashley-Terrace condominium building was recently sold out of bankruptcy for 30 cents on the dollar. As a result, the DDA will not receive nearly the TIF funds that it hoped to receive and desperately requires in order to remain solvent. The DDA is dysfunctional and should be disbanded before causing more financial damage.
Will Hathaway
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 3:59 a.m.
In case the reader is wondering why the opinion article above ends so abruptly, somehow annarbor.com omitted the conclusion of the opinion piece by Mary Hathaway. The complete missing text is too long to fit into a comment, but here is a portion. We will post a graph of the survey data on the Library Green website: http://a2centralpark.org "In their answer they promised to strive for five goals: a vibrant sidewalk experience, attention to quality and design of buildings, economic development, housing, and open space/plazas. It seemed like they "got it." They understood and accepted that their survey, perhaps inadvertently, had revealed the real thinking of a significant proportion of the people—who were trying hard to communicate despite obstacles. Why was this revelation subsequently ignored when the DDA designed the Connecting William Street project? The three "scenarios" make no mention of parks or green spaces. Who at the DDA decided to reverse course? Citizens may well feel cheated by a process which ignores them. They have a right to be angry when jerked around so capriciously... ...Conclusion: When asked open-ended questions, a significant proportion of respondents took the opportunity to ask for a park. Depending on the question, they ranged from 1/6 to 1/3 of respondents. These are people who made an effort to put into their own words what was missing from the questionnaire. Please note that the other respondents, with very few exceptions, did not oppose a park. They used the space to mention other goals. Council members evaluating the "Connecting William Street" exercise should also study this earlier DDA survey, particularly the open-ended responses. It would be folly to ignore up to 1/3 of any group of constituents. These are highly motivated citizens and voters. They have confirmed, in 2012, the results of the Calthorpe report 0f 2005-6. Ann Arborites want and deserve a central downtown park." Mary Hathaway
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 3:31 a.m.
Who is "pulling the strings" here and why does it seem obviously clear to me that the City is totally against even ONE blade of grass in the immediate downtown area? We have enough concrete and hardscape already. Hey City/DDA...don't you want to lure people to actually live downtoen? Is it too much to ask for a little greenery or are we stuck with sitting on all the horrible concrete planters? Take $100 of my taxes and plant some grass...as the surveys suggested!!!
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 12:06 p.m.
If you want blades of grass, not the smoking kind, don't live downtown. How simple is that. If you choose to live downtown, live with the consequences of that decision.
Ron Granger
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 1 a.m.
To whom is the DDA accountable? They serve the business owners, many of whom do not even live in this town.
Vivienne Armentrout
Thu, Nov 29, 2012 : 6:39 p.m.
They are accountable only to the Mayor, who has handpicked this board. Not to business owners, who may have influence but no vote.
rusty shackelford
Tue, Nov 27, 2012 : 11:42 p.m.
Your data are not nearly as convincing as you seem to think they are. What I see from them is that, despite a concerted effort going on a year now by "park boosters" you're able to garner, at a maximum, support for the idea from 25% of respondents. Why not push to remodel Liberty Square instead? That park could be quite nice with some design changes. It would have lower costs, of both the monetary and opportunity variety. Then, we could have a park downtown AND increased density of development.
Jamie Pitts
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 1:52 a.m.
I see, and I jumped to conclusions too quickly there... The reaction to homeless people always gets in the way of rational discussions about Liberty Plaza, the library, and parks downtown in general!
Jamie Pitts
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 1:49 a.m.
Correction: I should have emphasized that we should remodel Liberty Plaza in addition to creating a park (not instead of)!
rusty shackelford
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 1:43 a.m.
I'm not against homeless people using the park when it's open (i.e. during the day) merely was trying to preëmpt what I perceived to be a likely counterargument to my point re: Liberty.
Jamie Pitts
Wed, Nov 28, 2012 : 1:24 a.m.
In the case of Question 3, park/open space was the one goal that was mentioned more than any other. While 25% may seem small, this answer is one of any number of ideas -- many good -- that can be on the mind of the person responding. Shouldn't the DDA and City Council listen to what the majority wants? I totally agree about Liberty Plaza. It is ridiculous that the parking lot was put there without much thought put into how it could help address the design problems in Liberty. They are a pebble's throw from each other, yet someone forgot to connect them. Lastly, these unpleasant homeless people that you seem to want to not "use" our common space are actually not as much of a problem when there is more space, more people walking through, more kids playing on a playground, etc. But there has to be somewhere to walk through to, a playground to play on, something more than a set of hidden benches to eat a sandwich on. When one group of people are making a space an undesirable place for others the problem can be addressed through better use of the space!
rusty shackelford
Tue, Nov 27, 2012 : 11:45 p.m.
rusty shackelford
Tue, Nov 27, 2012 : 11:45 p.m.
Before anyone responds to the effect that there are "too many homeless" at Liberty Square for this idea to work, consider: who are going to be the main users at a park effectively surrounded by the library, the bus stop, a liquor store, and (1 block SE) a large subsidized housing complex?