Throughout this mitigation process, I’ve picked up on a few predictable negotiation-related behaviors. Perhaps you’ve recognized them as well.
Negotiation begins with a declaration of position or need by the parties involved. In this situation, the CRC declared the height of the bridge would need to be 116 feet. The local businesses made their need and concerns known early in the process, and made it clear they needed more than 150 feet of clearance.
Next comes the flinch, intended to communicate that the “price” is higher than anticipated. Though our two parties are not classic buyers and sellers, there is certainly the same tension as you’d find when a seller has made the pitch of his or her career to a brutally tough buyer.
With early mitigation discussions focusing on relocating all or part of the operations of the local manufacturers, the flinch came in the form of the CRC’s application to the U.S. Coast Guard for a bridge permit. The application made no mention of relocation, but rather focused on replacing lost profit of the three companies. The application states that mitigation discussions (read negotiation) are ongoing, although it is our understanding that none of the manufacturers in question were notified by the CRC of the switch from relocation to profit replacement.
There comes a point in negotiating when one party has hit the price they are willing to accept, known as the buy back. It is used to signal to the other party unwillingness to negotiate further by going back to a previous offer.
Again, without disclosure to the other parties, the CRC has communicated to the U.S. Coast Guard that the profit replacement number should actually be less than they previously anticipated – certainly an interesting approach to continuing mitigation discussions.
The last predictable behavior in a negotiation is the walk away, typically seen in the purchase of a car or a home when the buyer has simply had enough and walks out. To a car salesperson, it’s a clear signal that if they want to make the sale they had better come up with something quick.
For our three manufacturers, the walk away presents a set of consequences that could be felt throughout the community for decades. If appropriate mitigation isn’t achieved our business community stands to lose nearly 900 family wage jobs as well as the service and supplier businesses who have located in our region to support these manufacturers.
If mitigation discussions continue, it is our opinion that the solution needs to focus on keeping these businesses whole and sustainable, able to pursue whatever projects they have the capacity to build – as they did when they located their businesses where they are, without the impedance of a crossing built too short to accommodate those who rely on the height provided by the current bridge.
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