On Friday, I questioned the bona fides of Skyline Investment Group. This private equity firm plans to buy the long vacant Dixie Cup building in Wilson Borough and convert it into 405 apartments. Why this matters is because it seeks a considerable 20-year tax break known as a TIF. Under this program, it can use the increase in property taxes that result from development to finance additional development. The three taxing authorities (county, school district and borough) will see none of it, although Skyline is willing to give the county $1 million for affordable housing projects in Forks Tp, Glendon and Easton. After I published this story, I received a call from Brian Bartee, the founder of Skyline. He blew smoke up my ass, telling me that this small blog is very influential. At the same time, he threatened me with a defamation lawsuit from the Morgan, Lewis law firm. The purpose of this story is to review each of the red flags I raised on Friday, along with Bartee's response. You can then decide for yourself whether this is a credible developer.
Red Flag #1. Skyline Investment Group appears to be a knock off of the worldwide Skyline Development Group. That's owned by Zygi Wilf, who also owns the Minnesota Vikings and is an actual developer. I believe using a name so similar to Skyline Development Group is designed to confuse gullible people.
Bartee's response. - He chose the name because he likes the word Skyline, did the necessary corporate name search and had no desire to fool anyone.
Red Flag #2. Skyline Investment Group's website lists locations in California, Florida, New York, Tennessee and Texas. But with the exception of its New York location, it fails to provide a physical address for any of these other venues. The only contact - and it's the same contact for all five locations - is a cell phone number with a 551 area code (in New Jersey). This kind of misrepresentation is designed to make Skyline look bigger than it actually is.
Bartee's response. He admits he has no physical presence anywhere except for NYC. He blamed it on COVID.
Red Flag #3. The sole physical location that Skyline does list is in New York at 200 Park Avenue, Suite 1700. That's the Metlife Building, and the use of that address is intended to create the impression that Skyline has a prestigious address. But it's a virtual address.
Bartee's response: He admits he uses a virtual address. He also blames this on COVID.
Red Flag #4. The portfolio for Skyline lists one project called the Louix. It fails to indicate where it is, what it is or when it was built. There is no description at all.
Bartee's response. He admits there is no Louix anywhere. Apparently, it is a design prepared by CHASM architecture.
Red Flag #5. The services offered at Skyline' webpage are a ridiculous array of items from accounts receivable to second mortgages to lines of credit to energy production. This is not development.
Bartee's response. Before he went into development, and the Dixie Cup is actually his first development. Bartee provided these services, mostly as a broker.
Red Flag #6. The webpage lists several firms as "partners" that are actually not partners. For example, CHASM Architecture is listed as a "partner." It is actually an architectural firm that would be employed by a developer.
Bartee's response. CHASM Architecture is his exclusive architect for all his development projects. (He has one). He added that Nathaniel Clark, managing partner at CHASM, is a principal in Skyline Easton, the entity that actually is poised to buy the Dixie Cup. So there is validity to his claim that CHASM is a partner.
Red Flag #7 The public faces of Skyline at municipal meetings have been Claudia Robinson and Neil Griffin. But get this. Neither is actually employed by Skyline at its make-believe office. Robinson is actually employed at AreaProbe, Inc., a Washington DC real estate advisory firm. She is apparently particularly good at snagging tax credits and is obviously working this deal as a consultant. I don't know what she may have told other municipal bodies, but she failed to disclose exactly what her employment status is with Skyline, despite a direct question about it from Council member Lori Vargo Heffner. As for Neil Griffin, he is a Project Manager at CHASM.
Bartee's response. He acknowledged that neither Robinson nor Griffin is employed directly by Skyline. He stated that he has 80 people working this project, including the Morgan Lewis lawfirm. They are not employees. When pressed, he said he has 11 direct employees.
Red Flag #8. On Friday, I confused Bartee with another person by the same name and incorrectly stated he was in sales for the medical care industry.
Bartee's response. He has never been involved in the health care industry and has devoted his career to real estate. He correctly took me to task for that error on my part. He acknowledged that this is his first actual development.
29 comments:
Bernie, this guy, company(?) and McClure is a match made in heaven. No wonder they found each other. If anyone uses the "Affordable Housing" slogan with this sleazy marriage undertaking should leave public office.
I understand every aspiring development company needs to start somewhere. But, reading here gives me the impression the Dixie project will present what COULD be a little too much for this group to complete. Is it possible the entire project could be supported by public assistance, but only with using smaller stages of completion? The initial stage completed and evaluated BEFORE granting any additional assistance?
Perhaps, redesign the plan in a way that separates out ONE wing of that massive structure as a preview to what could follow going forward.
So unlike someone like Nat Hyman, this guy has no track record of this type of redevelopment. Something smells fishy about this. The fact that he threatened you with a lawsuit is red flag #9. Has anyone involved made political campaign contributions? Sensing some patronage payback for the trade unions? Has anyone done due diligence on this guys financials?
Who voted against this charlatan? Those who did should be recognized for attempting to provide good government vs the go-alongs who are too lazy and stupid to do their jobs and properly vet a scammed. It's stunning that it got this far. Special meetings should be immediately scheduled to rescing any prior support at any and all levels for this crazy scheme. TFW a blog provided better government than our elected know-nothings.
What a great deal for Wilson Borough. 1000 new tax payers !
https://www.citybiz.co/article/337647/claudia-robinson-joins-areaprobe-as-head-of-institutional-capital-real-estate-advisory-services/
https://chasmarchitecture.com/people/neil-griffin/
Totally against this TIF without affordable housing in WILSON. Why give money in lieu of that goes for affordable housing in Forks or Easton, etc. WILSON should get the housing for the residents that live there.
So, who all else in the makers and shakers of the Northampton County area knew all this? Are they comfortable with this? Inquiring minds want to know.
You must be kidding ! So this Bartee guy admitted that he has never developed anything and McClure is still giving him tax incentives??!! This is mis!management 101. McClure just lost my vote!!
This comment was spot on:
This project is a sham with blinking lights on it. Our local leaders have been terribly derelict in their duty to investigate. I don't want to believe that supporting leaders have received bribes for their inexplicable support of this shaky enterprise. I'd rather believe they are stupid vs corrupt. There isn't a third alternative.
May 11, 2024 at 4:25 AM
Excellent article, sheds a lot of light. Reminds me a lot of a shady outfit in Allentown developing a major apartment building in the 800 block of Turner Street, Swanson Turner Real Estate LLC. The company has no internet or social media presence under this name and the address they use consists of a tiny little ranch house in Metuchen, NJ. This shadowy operation has been given extensive zoning relief and other breaks by the City, yet for such a significant project, the public knows nothing about them whatsoever.
Let’s suppose Bartee is not who he says he is. The TIF only benefits the developer that can achieve the new assessment from doing the project.
Looks like you should ask the questions to the people you are writing about first before you spout off your assumptions. It's easier to beg for forgiveness than ask for permission.
Bernie:
This is great reporting on your part. The real.story here is that Lamont Mcclueless would get behind a tax gift without first investigating who he is giving it to! If he continues to support this after your reporting, it is malfeasance on his part, plain and simple
Don't you just hate it when liar's pants don't catch on fire?
CastleGreen Finance is involved.
No way does this Bartee guy ever get this done. He has never done one development and wants to do this massive project as his first? This building will be sitting dilapidated exactly as it is 10 years from now. A guy who never played high school football can't start with the NFL
TALK ABOUT GIANT RED FLAGS!!! OR RATHER GIANT RED DIXIE CUP DISASTER!!
He is a fraud. Skyline is a fraud.
Good Luck Wilson!
"Who voted against this charlatan? Those who did should be recognized for attempting to provide good government vs the go-alongs who are too lazy and stupid to do their jobs and properly vet a scammed"
My understanding is that the county, which traditionally votes last on these incentives, will vote on it in July. My belief is that this will pass on all three levels, notwithstanding the red flags. There is no question that some of the people involved, like Robinson and CHASM, are very good.
I am giving this guy a chance and hope the project succeeds. Anything is better than Joe Reibman continuing to sit on this property until he dies while it further rots away, then have it sit even longer while his heirs fight over it. At least this developer has some paid consultants that probably know what they are doing.
Bernie: if you're right and this does pass , then the officials who support it should pay for it at the polls next election. Remember the state hospital fiasco. Pat Browne was directing a sale to someone who never developed anything (sound familiar?) . Fortunately, Nat Hyman sued and stopped it . But Pat Browne lost in the next primary to Jarrett Coleman. Before that,everyone thought Browne was unbeatable. The same will happen to McClure and anyone else who votes for this.
Any positive comments in this blog about this guy Bartee doing the Dixie are definitely a plant by him. No one in their right mind would think he could do this as his first development !!!!!!!!!
"A guy who never played high school football can't start with the NFL"
antonio gates would like a word
This guy is a complete sham. Pass.
To quote a question from the Nixon era. What did McClure know and when did he know it? Is it possible that his crack CD staff never did a deep dive into this guys background?
Great trial Bernie, maybe the next one will be better?
Is this the same Skyline that ran dozens of senior homes that mistreated the elderly and stole from the employees health insurance plan? Do a google search on that debacle. It was an atrocity. If these are the same people, we are literally in bed with the devil.
Freedom of the Press!!!
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