Aug. 20, 2004 – When the Government Employees Retirement System board of trustees met Thursday at the Westin Resort on St. John, presentations from two investment companies Bjurman, Barry and Associates and Oberweis Asset Management were the hot topics. The GERS board picked one of the two.
"We made a decision, but we haven't notified them yet," GERS administrator Laurence E. Bryan said on Friday, adding that he could not release the name of company until it has been notified.
The GERS board needed to replace one of its Small Cap Growth companies because its performance wasn't up to par, Bryan said.
He said the board also heard a report at the Thursday meeting from The West Indian Co. on its annual budget for Havensight Mall. WICO manages the mall, located alongside the WICO dock, for GERS, which owns the shopping complex.
Bryan did not have the details at hand.
Additionally, he said, WICO staff updated GERS board members on plans to tear down the Scotiabank building at Havensight Mall. The structure will be razed to make way for the widening of Long Bay Road. A new bank building is expected to be ready for occupancy by February, with demolition on the old building slated for March.
Bryan said the total GERS portfolio runs between $1.1 billion and $1.2 billion depending on market conditions. "It shifts in value on a daily basis," he said.
GERS pays pensions to about 6,000 retirees. About 10,000 government workers pay into the fund. Retirement system officials have been warning the government for several years that payments into the system are not sufficient to cover payments out, forcing GERS to dip into its investment earnings.
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