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Ocean Springs’ Stephanie Lee, subject of Katrina story in Esquire magazine, dies at 37
American Airlines pushes for sales tax break
RALEIGH State lawmakers are weighing a proposal from American Airlines and other carriers to exempt them from millions of dollars in sales taxes on fuel, a request that could affect Charlotte’s status as one of the nation’s largest airline hubs.
With a cap on jet fuel taxes set to expire next year, American, which merged with US Airways, has joined Delta, United and other airlines to seek an industrywide exemption from the tax.
A bill to address the issue is expected soon.
“What’s the right answer? I don’t know,” said Republican Sen. Jeff Tarte of Cornelius. “I do know that US Airways is absolutely critical not only to the Charlotte region but to North Carolina.”
Fuel is typically the biggest single expense for an airline. The push for a new tax exemption comes as fuel costs have plummeted and airline profits soar to new records. Last month, American Airlines reported a $597 million profit for its fourth quarter.
And for the coming year, American said it expects to pay $1.73 a gallon for fuel in the coming year. That’s down from $2.91 last year and $3.08 in 2013.
But Airlines for America, a coalition of American and other carriers, has called fuel “by far the industry’s largest and most volatile cost,” accounting for more than a third of its operating expenses. It said without legislative action, North Carolina will have the nation’s fifth-highest jet fuel tax in 2016.
Sales taxes on jet fuel are capped at $2.5 million. US Airways was the lone recipient of the tax break, which expires in January. Legislative analysts say the cap could cost the state $10 million this year.
An American Airlines spokeswoman said the airline supports the proposal to exempt jet fuel from sales tax in North Carolina, and referred further questions to Airlines for America.
Vaughn Jennings, a spokesman for the lobbying group, said North Carolina will be at a disadvantage to other neighboring states such as South Carolina – which doesn’t tax jet fuel – without action on the sales tax.
“Part of what makes NC a strong market for commercial aviation is the state’s currently favorable tax climate,” Jennings said in an email. “Furthering the tax burden on airlines could lead to less revenue to the government, reduced tourism and less economic growth.”
The group also contends that airlines are overtaxed already, and that taxes on jet fuel amount to double taxation.
“It is inherently unfair for consumers to be taxed on the end product – airfare – as well as the components that comprise the airfare,” Jennings said.
Low cost helps hub
Draft legislation from an American lobbyist would exempt jet fuel for all interstate air couriers and passenger carriers.
“I thought it was a little aggressive,” said Republican Sen. Bob Rucho of Matthews.
But Rucho, who chairs the Senate Finance Committee, said lawmakers will evaluate the proposal and its cost based in part on its return on investment.
“We’re going to look at it and make a judgment as to whether that fits into our tax structure,” he said.
A report from the N.C. Department of Revenue shows US Airways received a $9.2 million refund for fuel taxes paid in 2013, the most recent year available. The company was the only passenger airline to claim the fuel tax refund that year.
American said it carried 43.5 million passengers locally in 2013. If the entire $9.2 million tax refund were added to American’s costs and divided among those passengers, the airline’s cost would have risen by about 21 cents per passenger to operate in North Carolina.
American operates its second-busiest hub at Charlotte, behind only Dallas/Fort Worth, with more than 650 daily departures. The airline is Charlotte’s major carrier by a big margin, accounting for more than 90 percent of flights.
Charlotte serves mainly as a connecting hub for domestic passengers in the Southeast, with about 80 percent of passengers switching planes, rather than starting or stopping their trip in Charlotte.
American’s use of Charlotte as a major hub – which is disproportionate to the city’s population – is based largely on the airport’s low operating cost, which makes it cheap for American to fly from the city. Other large American hubs, such as Dallas/Fort Worth, Chicago and New York, have much larger populations, meaning they naturally have more airline passengers.
Critics question tax break
New York-based aviation analyst Bob Mann said the cost difference between Charlotte and other hub cities, many of which cost five times or more per passenger, means the jet fuel tax wouldn’t cause American to pull out of its hub.
“The very advantageous low per passenger costs at Charlotte are a much bigger factor,” Mann said. “Is it (a jet fuel tax) the sort of thing that would deter you from operating at Charlotte? No.”
But, Mann said, in the intensely competitive airline industry, where profit margins have historically been razor-thin or nonexistent, it makes sense for a carrier to fight for every advantage it can get.
“If they see an opportunity, they’ll go for any weak point they can,” Mann said. “It’s $9 million of found money. If you can get that and look at it as a perpetual advantage, sure, it’s worth going for. … A million here, a million there, pretty soon it’s real money.”
“Every bit of cost makes you think twice,” Mann said.
Unite Here, a union that represents 33,000 airport and airline workers, has recently taken aim at aviation fuel tax breaks, calling the issue a question of economic fairness. In a recent study, the group estimated that such tax breaks net airlines about $1 billion a year nationwide.
States differ widely in how they apply jet fuel taxes, the group said. Texas doesn’t tax such fuel, while California does, but gives tax breaks worth $384 million to make up for it.
This week, Unite Here released a study focused on North Carolina specifically and called for state lawmakers to let the tax break expire.
“While many North Carolina taxpayers are still struggling to make ends meet, American Airlines reported record profits,” Unite Here said in a statement. “The special treatment of American Airlines means that North Carolina is giving the airline an unfair advantage over its competitors.”
For legislators, taxes are always a sensitive subject. The airline request comes at a time when legislators let tax credits for historical preservation and the film industry expire. Lawmakers say the airline might be an exception.
“You know what? They’re 93 percent of the flights out of the largest economic engine in the state,” said GOP Rep. Charles Jeter of Huntersville. “It is making a special exception for them. But they’re special.”
Tagged with: Charlotte
Ongoing support requested for beach projects
Coastal issues played a prominent role in New Hanover County’s legislative priorities for 2015, laid out in a Jan. 30 meeting with state lawmakers and representatives of federal lawmakers.
Commissioner Rob Zapple opened the meeting with a request to representatives for Congressmen Walter Jones, R-N.C., and David Rouzer, R-N.C., to work for continued federal funding for coastal infrastructure projects like beach renourishment and inlet dredging.
Historically, the federal and state government assume most of the cost for the multi-million dollar coastal storm damage reduction, or renourishment, projects, which Zapple said protect coastal property and infrastructure and prop up the local tourism industry.
“The federal and state government’s financial participation, along with county and community support, in the past has formed a patchwork of funding that resulted in the creation of a successful program,” Zapple said.
Because the projects are federally authorized, the federal government has paid 65 percent of the total cost to regularly perform projects at Wrightsville, Carolina and Kure beaches.
An end to that arrangement is in sight for Carolina Beach, Zapple noted. One of the oldest federally authorized coastal storm damage reduction projects in the country, Carolina Beach’s 50-year authorization expired December 2014. Zapple credited former Congressman Mike McIntryre, D-N.C., for securing a three-year extension for the Carolina Beach project in the 2014 Water Resources Reform and Development Act, giving the county time to work internally and with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers to analyze and establish the project’s success and secure an additional 15-year extension. He encouraged the representatives for Jones and Rouzer to guide or direct the process in Washington.
“The county commissioners and the citizens of New Hanover County would greatly appreciate all of your support for moving the review of this program through the bureaucratic process and for the eventual approval of a new 15-year agreement for financial support of coastal storm damage reduction for the town of Carolina Beach and New Hanover County,” Zapple said
Commissioner Skip Watkins called for efforts to ensure the state also continues to contribute to the projects.
The state currently pays 17.5 percent of the total cost of the county’s renourishment projects, but a state policy stipulates the money is only offered as matching funds for federal assistance. A portion of the county’s room occupancy tax collections known as the sand fund picks up the remaining 17.5 percent of the tab.
Zapple also thanked Rep. Ted Davis Jr., R-New Hanover, for securing legislation that earmarks previously unused room occupancy tax collected in the unincorporated areas of the county to help pay for dredging of Masons Inlet and Carolina Beach inlets.
Other issues for the state and federal legislative sessions included a boost to the state’s new film grant program, which replaced a 25 percent tax credit this year, and federal reauthorization of the Children’s Health Insurance Program, which county manager Chris Coudriet said secures health insurance for many North Carolina children.
Commissioner Woody White and Rep. Susi Hamilton, D-New Hanover, were unable to attend the meeting.
email miriah@luminanews.com
Tagged with: North Carolina
East Bound and Down: Beers + Bikes = Oskar Blues
@IluvRIDING Marketing, monopoly on the distribution system (particularly in the US), and they’ve been around for quite awhile. The craft brew scene is very young.
@amirazemi Because he doesn’t sound like he’s had a beer in the US in the past 10 years. Microbrews are exploding everywhere, essentially what European nations have had for centuries. Each town has their own lot of local breweries. Most of them do not distribute far. It gets interesting when all these breweries do not necessarily have a native style so they borrow, experiment, and create. I’ve had beers all over the world and haven’t seen near the variety of the current craft brew scene going on in America.
Tagged with: Asheville
Virgin Galactic gets back on track toward space tourism
UPHAM, N.M. (AP) – The only thing interrupting the creosote and mesquite that make up one of New Mexico’s most remote stretches of desert is a pristine runway where Virgin Galactic plans one day to launch the world’s first commercial space-line.
In the four years since its completion, however, the runway has seen little use. No constant roar of jet engines. No screeches from landing gear. Just promises, year after year, that it would shuttle paying passengers to the edges of Earth.
Virgin Galactic had proclaimed 2015 was finally going to be the year. That was until the company’s rocket-powered spacecraft broke apart over California’s Mojave Desert during a test flight last fall, killing one pilot and igniting speculation about the future of commercial space tourism and Spaceport America.
Virgin Galactic CEO George Whitesides said things are on track now and testing will take off again this year.
“I really think we’re turning the corner,” Whitesides said. “We’ve gone through one of the toughest things a company can go through and we’re still standing, and now we’re really moving forward with pace.”
He said the company and its investors aren’t backing down from the goal of making space accessible.
Virgin Galactic’s manufacturing crew is about two-thirds done with building a new spacecraft, and the operations team is ramping up for a test-flight program that will serve as one of the last major hurdles to getting off the ground.
“Our company has spent a lot of time and money to get to the point where we can carry out successful commercial operations at Spaceport America. We’re still committed,” he said.
Whitesides has always been reluctant to attach a timeline to the milestones the company needs to reach, but he’s certain test flights will resume later this year.
That’s what New Mexico taxpayers want to hear.
They’ve already funneled nearly a quarter of a billion dollars into the world’s first purpose-built spaceport, and state lawmakers are being asked for nearly $2 million more this year to make up for the lost fees stemming from the delay in Virgin Galactic’s commercial flights.
Some lawmakers have called for pulling the plug, adding fuel to criticisms that the project – first initiated by former Gov. Bill Richardson, a Democrat, and British billionaire Richard Branson – is a boondoggle.
Others, including Republican Gov. Susana Martinez’s administration, say the state has a chance to carve out a new niche for economic development and position itself on the front end of space tourism.
New Mexico has struggled to rebound from the recession, creating only 14,000 jobs over the past year while neighboring states have bounced back to 2008 employment levels.
Whitesides visited Spaceport America in December. The runway was quiet, but workers inside the massive, futuristic hangar continued to outfit it for the day Virgin Galactic opens.
“I really think we’re on the edge of something truly incredible, which is enabling people and students to experience space, whether going themselves or sending their experiments,” he said.
He added: “These things are hard. That’s why they haven’t happened yet.”
Christine Anderson, the head of New Mexico’s Spaceport Authority, pointed to the ill-fated Apollo I launch rehearsal and the 1986 Challenger explosion as examples of space exploration efforts that resulted in tragedy. Still, astronauts and scientists pushed on, and she said those backing Virgin Galactic and Spaceport America are doing the same.
“We have invested $218 million, so there’s absolutely no reason to stop now,” she said.
Virgin Galactic continues to pay its lease, and more money will come from lease and user fees related to the testing scheduled to begin this spring for a reusable rocket being developed by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. But Anderson acknowledged that the spaceport needs to entice more tenants and host other events, including fashion and auto photo shoots, conferences and more rocket launches by companies such as UP Aerospace.
The spaceport in late February also expects to open its visitors’ gallery at the site, which spans more than 28 square miles.
“The challenge was to build a commercial spaceport here. There was absolutely nothing here. We did it,” Anderson said. “It’s amazing to think of it.”
Tagged with: Raleigh
Atlantic Coast Pipeline Signs Pipe Manufacturing Contract with Dura-Bond …
RICHMOND, Va., Feb. 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC, which has proposed a 550-mile natural gas pipeline to bring much-needed energy to Virginia and North Carolina, today announced an agreement totaling more than $400 million with Dura-Bond Industries to produce steel pipe for the project.
Pending approval by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), the Atlantic Coast Pipeline (ACP) would run from Harrison County, W.Va., southeast through Virginia with a lateral extension to Chesapeake, Va., and then south through eastern North Carolina to Robeson County. If approved, construction is scheduled to start in late 2016.
Dura-Bond, which ACP LLC selected after an extensive bidding process, is scheduled to produce the pipe at its Steelton, Pa., mill beginning late 2015 through March 2017. Dura-Bond plans to hire about 150 employees at the mill to run a second shift of union workforce to meet the schedule.
“We are excited to work with Dura-Bond, one of the nation’s premier suppliers of gas transmission pipeline,” said Diane Leopold, president of Dominion Energy. “Dura-Bond has an outstanding reputation in the industry and has been a long-term supplier of pipe and pipe coating for Dominion’s gas transmission business, dating back to the 1970s.
“This contract alone will provide significant economic growth to the region, beyond cleaner air, lower customer bills and jobs,” Leopold added.
The ACP joint venture reached the agreement with Dura-Bond prior to FERC approval because of the long lead time needed to buy raw materials and to get a guaranteed production schedule for this large amount of new pipe. ACP expects to file its FERC application late this summer, receive its FERC certificate in the summer of 2016 and begin construction shortly thereafter. The pipeline is expected to be in service by late 2018.
Producing about 540 miles of pipe ranging from 30 to 42 inches outside diameter is the largest single order in Dura-Bond’s history, said Dura-Bond Vice President Jason Norris.
“We are extremely pleased with such a large pipe order, and are proud that the Atlantic Coast Pipeline partners have the faith and trust in us,” said Norris. “Since 2006, we’ve produced nearly 200 miles of pipe for Dominion and are excited to secure this tremendous order. We have a lot of work ahead of us and we will be up for the task.
“This is a great example of how the growth in the Marcellus Shale impacts the economy,” added Norris.”This increase in activity at Dura-Bond also means more business for our local suppliers who we depend on and support whenever we can, so the trickle-down effect will be significant.”
In a separate transaction, Dominion signed an agreement with Dura-Bond to produce 39 miles of additional 36-inch and 30-inch outside diameter steel pipe for the company’s Supply Header Project in West Virginia and Pennsylvania, which has the ACP as its primary customer. The Supply Header project schedule is the same as for the ACP.
Atlantic Coast Pipeline LLC is composed of four major U.S. energy companies – Dominion, Duke Energy (NYSE: DUK), Piedmont Natural Gas (NYSE: PNY) and AGL Resources (NYSE: GAS). The joint venture partners plan to build and own the $4.5 billion-to-$5 billion pipeline, which would help meet the growing clean energy needs of Virginia and North Carolina by providing direct access to the burgeoning natural gas production in the Marcellus and Utica shale basins of West Virginia, Pennsylvania and Ohio.
About Dominion
Dominion (NYSE: D) is one of the nation’s largest producers and transporters of energy, with a portfolio of approximately 24,600 megawatts of generation, 12,400 miles of natural gas transmission, gathering and storage pipeline and 6,455 miles of electric transmission lines. Dominion operates one of the nation’s largest natural gas storage systems with 949 billion cubic feet of storage capacity and serves utility and retail energy customers in 12 states. For more information about Dominion, visit the company’s website at www.dom.com.
About Dura-Bond Industries
Dura-Bond Industries, founded in 1960, supplies gas transmission, midstream, gathering and gas distribution pipeline companies with locally manufactured steel pipe, protective pipe coating and other pipeline products. Dura-Bond manufactures and coats large diameter steel pipe at modern facilities in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale region. The company fabricates complex steel structures, piling, wale systems, tie back systems, soundwalls, retaining walls, railing systems and other marine applications. Dura-Bond’s convenient locations reduce transportation expenses and provide just-in-time deliveries of pre-staged pipe and pipeline products. For more information about Dura-Bond, visit the company’s website at www.dura-bond.com
About Duke Energy
Duke Energy is the largest electric power holding company in the United States with approximately $115 billion in total assets. Its regulated utility operations serve approximately 7.2 million electric customers located in six states in the Southeast and Midwest. Its commercial power and international energy business segments own and operate diverse power generation assets in North America and Latin America, including a growing portfolio of renewable energy assets in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, N.C., Duke Energy is a Fortune 250 company traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol DUK. More information about the company is available at: www.duke-energy.com.
About Piedmont Natural Gas
Piedmont Natural Gas is an energy services company primarily engaged in the distribution of natural gas to more than one million residential, commercial, industrial and power generation utility customers in portions of North Carolina, South Carolina and Tennessee, including customers served by municipalities who are wholesale customers. Our subsidiaries are invested in joint venture, energy-related businesses, including unregulated retail natural gas marketing, and regulated interstate natural gas transportation and storage, and regulated intrastate natural gas transportation businesses. More information about Piedmont Natural Gas is available on the Internet at http://www.piedmontng.com/.
About AGL Resources
AGL Resources is an Atlanta-based energy services holding company with operations in natural gas distribution, retail operations, wholesale services and midstream operations. AGL Resources serves approximately 4.5 million utility customers through its regulated distribution subsidiaries in seven states. The company also serves approximately 630,000 retail energy customers and approximately 1.2 million customer service contracts through its SouthStar Energy Services joint venture and Pivotal Home Solutions, which market natural gas and related home services. Other non-utility businesses include asset management for natural gas wholesale customers through Sequent Energy Management and ownership and operation of natural gas storage facilities. AGL Resources is a member of the SP 500 Index. For more information, visit www.aglresources.com.
This news release includes certain “forward-looking information.” Examples include information as to our expectations, beliefs, plans, goals, objectives and future financial or other performance or assumptions concerning matters discussed in this release. Factors that could cause actual results to differ from those in the forward-looking statements may accompany the statements themselves. In addition, our business is influenced by many factors that are difficult to predict, involve uncertainties that may materially affect actual results and are often beyond our ability to control or estimate precisely, such as estimates of future market conditions, access to and costs of capital, the receipt of regulatory approvals for, and timing of, planned projects and compliance with conditions associated with such regulatory approvals, and the ability to complete planned construction or expansion projects within the terms and timeframes initially anticipated. We have identified and will in the future identify a number of these factors in our SEC Reports on Forms 10-K and 10-Q. We refer you to those discussions for further information. Any forward-looking statement speaks only as of the date on which it is made, and we undertake no obligation to update any forward-looking statement to reflect events or circumstances after the date on which it is made.
SOURCE Dominion
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http://www.dom.com
Tagged with: Charlotte
Retreat helps commission focus on moving forward
Rather than try and reinvent the wheel in setting priorities, Tallahassee city commissioners on Wednesday presented a wish list of ideas focusing on continuing to address issues they feel need addressing in moving the city forward.
Among the issues discussed were:
•Creating a vision for improving the Adams Street corridor in the heart of downtown Tallahassee, including the possibility of relocating the Greyhound station to the airport
•Improving the image of Tallahassee by getting residents to take more pride in the community and in unkempt properties, as well as encouraging more public art and aesthetics
•Improving upon the city’s ongoing efforts in promoting more pedestrian gateways and reducing vehicle traffic
•Giving serious attention to addressing issues of important to children and families
•Focusing more attention on Tallahassee’s south side, particularly South City.
Mayor Andrew Gillum, city commissioners, staff and some members of the public met in a retreat at the FSU Reservation.
Besides discussing city priorities, commissioners got an overview on innovation and entrepreneurship in Tallahassee by retired IBM executive Steve Evans and also heard a presentation from Ernest Andrade, founder and executive director of the Charleston Digital Corridor, about the success the city of Charleston, South Carolina has had in branding itself as a tech-based community.
Andrade said, in 2001, Charleston was comfortable because of the status quo and its dependency on tourism, but it was woefully lacking in creaatig new energy and providing opportunities for a yonger generation. The Digitial Corridor was created and through its public/private partnership in promoting high-tech entrepreneurship, it has helped propel Charleston to being rated as one of the best economies in the country.
Tallahassee, he said, has everyting it takes to make the same progress. The key is making it happen.
“You all have assets way beyond what Charleston has,” Andrade said. “Sixty-thousand college students. That’s the future of your economy. You better not let them go.”
Gillum said he was pleased in how commissioners came together in “sharing their vision for the future of our community and to get buy in on how to make Tallahassee better. I think there were some really solid ideas that came out.”
Commissioner Scott Maddox pointed out how the city has been instrumental in creating a sense of place in the Midtown area and in the south with Cascades Park, Gaines Street, developing FAMU Way. He also mentioned the state has plans to buy properties on North Monroe and create a park just north of Brevard Street, and that The Gove near the Governor’s Mansion is being restored.
“Right in the middle of all of that is probably the worst the area in the worst shape,” he said, referring to the Adams Street corridor.
“How in the world do we leave out Adams Street from Tennessee Street to the Governor’s Mansion,” he said. “The state is moving ahead with its plans for property around the Governor’s Mansion. We need to have an overall plan. We need to have a corridor plan.”
Commissioner Gil Ziffer agreed with Maddox and mentioned that opportunities could open up since Greyhound officials have expressed some interest in relocating the bus terminal near the airport. Plans also are in the works on a major renovation at the C.K. Steele Plaza, which would remain downtown.
In addition to Maddox’s concerns about Adams Street, Ziffer talked about his interest in promoting more public art in the city to create a sense of place, and, to encourage business owners and developers to think of ways to make their buildings more aesthetically pleasing.
“I think we are losing the battle on how we look as a community,” Ziffer said. “There seems to be more litter, these (illegally placed) signs. We, as a community, don’t take much pride in our community. “
He wants to have discussions with businesses and the Council of Neighborhood Associations to further that discussion.
Paying more attention the city’s efforts in creating a multi-modal transportation district continue to need to be reviewed and possibly tweaked, Commissioner Nancy Miller said. The plan promotes planning provisions that reduce vehicular traffic and promote more pedestrian access through sidewalks and safety measures for bicyclists.
She feels the size of the targeted district is perhaps too large, and should be focused on areas where it can work. “The MMTD works in areas with a mix of uses, densities and intensities,” she said in a prepared statement. “Adams Street, Gaines and the All Saints District offer success stories, as well as parts of Midtown, Lake Ella and other sense of place areas. The code is written for more urbanized community with a mass-transit system … in many parts of the (district) StarMetro and adequate connectivity measures are not yet in place to support the (MMTD) development.”
Gillum’s reiterated his plans to move the city forward in addressing issues that affect parents and children, ranging from grading businesses based on their family-oriented practices to developing tougher standards for child care operators.
“Different communities have adopted standards that are higher than the state standards,” Gillum said. “We could influence state guidelines child care.”
Gillum, saying the topic isn’t one usually addressed by the commission, said improving the life of children, especially, younger children, and helping parents on parenting, will bring benefits to the city as a whole.
“It’s human infrastructure, not fracture, as we know it. As far as long-term planning, that’s an area that I have a lot of passion around.”
The mayor said a Children’s Summit involving government leaders, business owners, child care advocates and others is planned for March.
Richardson, elected to the commission last fall on a campaign that included bringing economic opportunities to the south side and the Springfield area, remains a priority.
“Driving economic development to those areas, as well as Orange Avenue and the airport need to be addressed on short-term as well as long-term as (approval) of the Blueprint 2000 money becomes available,” he said.
And while the Blueprint money is more in line with long-term goals, he said more focus needs to be made on South City and its issues with code enforcement, crime and poverty.
“Certainly what is being done by the Community Redevelopment Agency in Frenchtown is commendable, but that has not translated to the south side.”
Tagged with: North Carolina
Easy Escapes | Jackson County, NC, offers mountains, music and more
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Tagged with: Asheville
What’s Happening for FEBRUARY (Updated Feb. 5)
Communities
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Tagged with: Raleigh
Robert L. Johnson Donates Selections From The Barnett-Aden Collection To …
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BETHESDA, Md., Feb. 4, 2015 /PRNewswire/ — Robert L. Johnson, founder of The RLJ Companies and founder of Black Entertainment Television (BET), today announced a donation of select artworks from his privately owned Barnett-Aden Collection to the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture. A terracotta sculpture (Head of a Negro Woman) by Elizabeth Catlett and paintings from Romare Bearden (A Walk in Paradise Gardens), Archibald John Motley Jr. (The Argument), Henry O. Tanner (Flight into Egypt), and Frederick C. Flemister (Self-Portrait) will become part of the Museum’s permanent exhibition.
“As a founding council member of the NMAAHC, the artwork I have donated represents pride and dignity and is a celebration of the diverse aspects of African American history. Each piece not only represents the creative genius of the artist but also tells a story and is a tribute to African American art and culture,” said Johnson. “I identify personally with several pieces from the Barnett-Aden Collection, and I am confident the National Museum of African American History and Culture will ensure that the works from such talented artists of early American history are preserved and exposed for both educational, cultural, and enjoyment by millions of Americans and people from around the world who tour the Museum,” he concluded.
“We are delighted to receive such a significant donation from Robert L. Johnson to house as part the museum’s permanent collection,” said Lonnie G. Bunch, founding director of the National Museum of African American History and Culture. “Mr. Johnson’s gift of artworks from the Barnett-Aden Collection marks an important milestone for the museum and for the establishment of the visual arts permanent collection,” he continued.
The Barnett-Aden Collection was founded in 1943 by Howard University’s James Herring and Alonzo Aden and is reported to be one of the country’s oldest collections of African American art featuring portraiture, urban genre themes and depictions of the African American experience.
Since the 1980s, Johnson has assembled a private collection of more than 250 pieces of artwork by 19th and 20th Century artists. The Barnett-Aden Collection, which documents the struggles, achievements and celebrations of black people in America, was acquired by Johnson in 1998 from the National Museum of African American Art (NMAAA) based in Florida, and selections from the Collection were displayed in Washington, D.C. in early 2009.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture’s Visual Arts Gallery will be the only permanent art exhibition on the Smithsonian Mall dedicated to illustrating the critical role American artists of African descent played in shaping the history of American art. The gallery will contain various modes of fine art production, including painting, sculpture, works on paper, art installations, mixed media, photography and digital media.
The National Museum of African American History and Culture was established by an Act of Congress through legislation signed into law in 2003 by President George W. Bush. Scheduled to open in 2016, the museum is under construction on the National Mall in Washington, D.C., on a five-acre tract adjacent to the Washington Monument. Upon completion, the National Museum of African American History and Culture will become the nation’s largest and most comprehensive cultural institution devoted exclusively to exploring and documenting the African American story and its impact on American history.
About The RLJ Companies: The RLJ Companies, founded by Robert L. Johnson, is an innovative business network that provides strategic investments in a diverse portfolio of companies. Within The RLJ Companies portfolio, Johnson owns or holds interests in businesses operating in a publicly traded hotel real estate investment trust, private equity, financial services, asset management, automobile dealerships, sports and entertainment, and video lottery terminal (VLT) gaming. The RLJ Companies is headquartered in Bethesda, MD, with affiliate operations in Charlotte, NC; Little Rock, AR; Los Angeles, CA; San Juan, PR; and Monrovia, Liberia. Prior to founding The RLJ Companies, Johnson was founder and chairman of Black Entertainment Television (BET). For more information visit: www.rljcompanies.com.
About the Barnett-Aden Collection: The Barnett-Aden Collection was originally assembled by the founders of the Barnett-Aden Gallery, James Herring and Alonzo Aden, from the 1940s through the 1960s and was built by the purchase of works shown in the Gallery throughout the years. Works by prominent African American artists such as James Porter, Romare Bearden, Archibald Motley, Henry O. Tanner, Dox Thrash, Elizabeth Catlett, and Raymond Barthé were exhibited by the Gallery and are now part of the permanent Barnett-Aden Collection, which currently includes: fifty-four pieces of African art, 107 paintings, eleven sculptures, and nine drawings, along with fifteen pieces of ephemera, photos, and the original desk used at the Barnett-Aden Gallery.
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