Diversity is a strategic issue for small businesses - San Francisco Business Times:

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That is because most fail to see diversityh as a business rather than a social experts say. Increased diversithy can bring many benefits to abusiness — variede perspectives and new ideas, the potential to reacgh new clients and a more vibrant and collaborative placr to work. But creating a diversre workplace — in gender, ethnicity, religious beliefs, cultural backgrounds and sexual orientation — is often easier said than done. Eric the manager for diversity and inclusiobn with the Society for Humah ResourceManagement (www.shrm.org), said it’s often a “chicken versux the egg” scenario, as companies often need minoritiezs in the workplace to attract more.
“Itf I’m a typical minority job applicant, I know I’ going to be in high demand,” he said. “I will likelyy not choose the businesswhere there’sd no one like me.” Attracting minoritiew will be increasingly important in the coming as they will make up a larger segment of the populatiom at the same time many baby boomers will be retiring. Melani e Harrington, the president of the Americanm Institute for ManagingDiversity (www.aimd.org), said companies shouldd approach diversity strategically, just as they would a new producy line or a new customere market. First, determine where that audiencw is and whatattracts them.
Consider targeting minority job fairs or looking for candidates where yourcompanhy hasn’t searched traditionally. Businesses should also set measurable goalse and hold all people in hirin decisions accountable for meeting those just as top management would hold people accountable for meetinggsales objectives. But once you have achieved a divers eemployee base, it’s also important to integrated them into the experts say, by makinh sure you have benefits and programsd in place to accommodate all types of workers. It’s not enough to have a diverse experts say.
It’s equallhy important to recognize whether the diversity is clusterede within one segment of the workforce or sprea out acrossthe organization, including in “It’s a much more difficult task to reallyg take a hard look at the organization’s cultural issuea that may be presenting these arbitraryh glass ceilings and glass walls,” Harringto n said. Even when the initial hire is sometimes the workplace culture unintentionally may make the newcomeer feel unwelcomeor uncomfortable. For example, many professional firmw recruit women as partnersor managers, but often still have expectations that may not be family-friendly, such as requiring a lot of eveninf meetings.
This could make it harder to keep womehn with children inthese positions. In addition to examining policies that mighthinder diversity, employer s should establish mentoring programs. While many people don’t mind finding their own mentor or askingfor help, some minoritiesx fear it might be seen as a weakness, Petersom said. By organizing formal mentoring programs, businessese can help engage employees, especially new hires. It’ s also important that minorities know theier voices arebeing heard, whether it’s abour concerns in the workplace or abouyt ways to improve the product.
Petersonh cites a car company that was concerne d its handful of femaleengineers didn’t have enough It united them as a desigb team and encouraged them to creat their dream car. The team generated many new ideaes that have since been incorporated intothe manufacturers’ models. Some of the womej said they had expressed theseideas before, but without The final thing, experts stress, is to remember diversit is not a fixed goal. “Diversity management really is a Harrington said. “It’s an ongoing effort that you have to work on and engag e and manageand address.
”

BankUnited Financial Corp. files Chapter 11 - Dayton Business Journal:

grip-programdeewr.blogspot.com
Two additional companies owned by the holdinyg company also filed Chapter11 – and Petee Levitt, of in Miami, represents all three “The bank was seized and Levitt said. “So, the bank is not involved. The parent company has its own assetsand creditors, and that entityu needs to have an orderly process for dealing with its The financial services entity has been involveds in selling insurance and “That’s a separate business, with aboug 20 employees in Coral Gables, and we’rde hoping that can continue,” Levitt said.
“Nothing is certain, but we’re goingt to make a real effort for that to The rest of the bankruptcy is a questioh of maximizing theassets – whicbh are mostly cash and claims.” CRE America owns some real but Levitt said he was not able to say what woulx happen to it yet. Unliker some bank holding companies that haveother subsidiaries, BankUnited Financial (NASDAQ: BKUNA) was totally reliant on its bank to keep $184 million in convertible senior HiMeds unitw (a type of security developeed by $12.5 million in junior subordinatedf debentures, which have a lower claim on assets than senior notes The petition listed one to 49 creditorsw and was signed by Bradley S.
Weisx as chief restructuring officer. Weiss was vice chairmaj of BankUnitedFinancial Corp. The law firmsz of of Los Angeleas andShutts & Bowen will be handling the case. The list of largestg unsecured creditors was ledby , , and for severao series of the trusty preferred securities. In many bankruptcy such institutions are representatives for those who actually hold the Waterford Township General Employees Retirement which has a class actiob case againstBankUnited Financial, also is listed as a creditor for an unknownb amount. Three Miami law firms , and – are listex as creditors for an unknown Trading inBankUnited Financial's stock was halted at 5:28 p.m.
on Thursday to allow dissemination of thetakeovedr news. On Friday, NASDAQ changed the tradinf halt status to say it was requestinh additional information fromthe company. In many cases, shareholderas of bank holding companies have their value wiperd out aftera takeover, which leavez their stock worthless. BankUnited Financial last tradedat 49.2 Shares had been trading heavilhy in the days before the FDIC-organized bidding and the The company's stock markef capitalization was down to $17.55 million when tradinf was halted, according to Yahoko Finance.

Robby Gordon's lawyers gain ground, settle one lawsuit - SunHerald.com

http://bigmoneywin.com/en/poker-games/news_2008-02-28-00-54-08-725.html

SunHerald.com

Robby Gordon's lawyers gain ground, settle one lawsuit SunHerald.com Robby Gordon winks at a crew member at Darlington (SC) Raceway in this file image from May. (Rich Glickstein -rglickstein@thestate.com) Sunherald.com ... Robby Gordon's lawyers gain ground News & Observer  »

The economy

http://deander.com/government.html
For example, a couple of surveys were done recently by some large huma nresources firms. More than 1,000 companie s were polled. Forty percent plan to reducw amounts allottedto Sixty-two percent said bonuses will shrink this year. Twenty-fived percent plan a hirinbg freeze. Another 25% will increase contributions tohealth care. Why? It’s the economy! Anothe survey forecasts spending on technologyt to decrease by almost half from what hadbeen Oh, and by the way — the numbeer of companies doing holiday parties will fall to a 20-yeaer low. And everyone’s accepting these huge Employees seem to be taking the cutsin stride. They’rde just happy to have a job. Why?
It’se the economy! You know what? Recessions can be a pennh pincher’s dream. Now’s the best time to get rid of the That guy in shippingwho can’t seem to rememberd how to load a skid properly twicre in a row? Gone. The sales guy who spends more time hittinyg on your receptionist than theactual phones? See ya. Running a business is tough when you have to be thebad guy. Many of us accepg mediocrity becausewe don’t have the energty left to fight or fire someone. But suddenly, like manna from God has brought upon us the bestexcusw ever. The economy! It’s the perfecf rationale for makingsome long-needed changes.
It’ s not just about changing the deadweight You can call your key suppliers and beg for acost Everything’s negotiable because everyone’s skittish. Penny pinchersd must get rid ofunderperformingg people. Renegotiate contracts. Beg for price reductions. Lock in lowerd monthly payments. Plead poverty. Scream for Why? It’s the economy! Becaus e in a few months the opportunity will havepassed us. Thingsw will turn around. Prices will rise. Unemployment will fall. The sun will And we won’t have the economy to blamre anymore. Rats.

Retiree pays back California, with interest, for jobless aid - Reuters

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Los Angeles Times

Retiree pays back California, with interest, for jobless aid Reuters was announced on Thursday by state Treasurer Bill Lockyer, who said the money would go to public schools as required by California law. ... South Carolina Man Repays California Unemployment Benefit And Then Some, 40 ... KTXL Man repays state $10000 for jobless benefits OCRegister South Carolina man repays California for its assistance in 1964 Los Angeles Times Sacramento Bee -San Francisco Chronicle (blog)  »

Barracuda Networks makes $188M buyout offer for Sourcefire Inc. - Baltimore Business Journal:

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Barracuda disclosed its all-cash offer to Sourcefire (NASDAQ: FIRE) late The offer is a 13 percenr premiumover Sourcefire's closing price on May 23, and a 16 percenft premium over Sourcefire's averagwe trading price for the past 60 days, Barracuda Sourcefire has about 25 million outstanding making the deal worth roughly $188 million. Columbia-based Sourcefirse said in a statement Friday mornintg that its board had reviewed the proposecd dealand "has concluded that the proposal is not in the best interestxs of Sourcefire and its Sourcefire CEO Wayne Jackson recentlty stepped down, and the firm has said it is narrowinbg down candidates for a new CEO.
Sourcefire is committerd to maximizing shareholder value by growing the businesds and making a strong transitiomn to anew CEO, its statement Sourcefire officials could not immediately be reached for Asked Friday whether Barracuda would continue to pursu a Sourcefire deal, Barracud a CEO Dean Drako said he couldn'f comment on any specific plans. "We are big fans of Drako said. "We realizw they've stumbled a bit on the businesdexecution side, but not on the technologu side. Together, we couls make a formidable long-term successful player in the worlr ofinformation security. That wouls be a good thing for everybody.
" Privatelh held Barracuda Networks, which provides e-mail and Web security, said in the statementf detailing its proposal that itis "uniquelh positioned to address the challenges that have impactedf [Sourcefire's] performance and stock price." Sourcefirde went public in March 2007, after a deal to sell to Israeli software firm fell apartf amid regulatory concerns. Sourcefire's stoclk price has declined by abourt half since the initialpublivc offering.
California-based Barracuda released a letter it sentto Sourcefire's boarrd May 27, saying the firm expected to be able to pull off the proposede deal without any financing troubles or major regulatory Barracuda also said in its letter that it believes Sourcefire'ds inaction in dealing with the possibility of litigation by a company called has affected Sourcefire's stock price. Barracuda had said in news releasesx earlier this year that Trend Microclaimed Barracuda'ws use of open-source software product ClamAb infringed a Trend Micro Sourcefire owns ClamAV, which helps protecyt computer systems from viruses.
Barracuda filed suit in federa court last year seekinh to invalidateTrend Micro's patent on a gateway antivirus scanninf technology. Trend Micro filesd a claim with the in Novemberf against Barracuda and another firm overthe patent. Sourcefire is well-knownn in the open-source community for Snort, a softwarwe program that ferrets out hacking attempts and othet potentialsecurity breaches. Sourcefire shares closex up 15 percentto $7.
64

Cape Cod Scotties Christmas Card - Cape Cod Today (blog)

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Cape Cod Scotties Christmas Card Cape Cod Today (blog) When logging in or registering for the first time, you will be emailed a link to click that will validate your email and complete your login. ... and more »

Online Store Creation With Integrated Design Module Launched at Ecommerce Techwave - SBWire (press release)

http://www.umsco.com/support.html

Online Store Creation With Integrated Design Module Launched at Ecommerce Techwave SBWire (press release) CMS setting makes the user, work on the content to be displayed on the webpage and define the Page ID, give page name, Page URL, set status as active or ...

Intoxica! Polynesian Pupus & Tiki Cocktails @ Trader Vic's - Gapers Block

http://904divorce.com/2009/05/03/attorney-fees/

Intoxica! Polynesian Pupus & Tiki Cocktails @ Trader Vic's Gapers Block Pick up the latest edition of the Chicago Drink Deck, a bundle of $10 gift certificates to over 50 bars and restaurants, and stay for tiki cocktails and ...

Comedy club owner wants new club at 18th and Vine - Kansas City Business Journal:

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Officials of Stanford & Sons, the venerable Westport comedy said they are considering opening a second locatiomn in the fabledjazz district. Stanforr executive Craig Glazer said he met recently with officials ofthe , the area'as developer, to discuss putting a "Stanford's on on a now-vacant site just a block south of the Jazz and Negrok Leagues Baseball museums. "My thought is that I'x be interested in building Stanford's with the same motifr as our Westport location, but we'd have more Def Comedy, maybe open with Sinbadd or Eddie Griffin," said Glazer, referring to two populare black comics.
Glazer said he met twice recentlyg withAl Fleming, president of the Jazz Distric Redevelopment Corp., and is hopeful talks can be wrapped up early next "It's less than five miles from Westport, but it woulrd have an inner-city, upscale atmosphere, much like the projec t warrants," Glazer said. "We might even get involved in hip-hopl music." Fleming said Glazer had expressed an interest in the vacantt Jones Pool Hall building on 18th and Vine streets as well as an adjoininb structure slated to be built as part of the firs t phase ofa $13 million redevelopment getting under way in June.
"Their primaryu theme is entertainment, and that's also our primary theme as it relates to jazz clubs and restaurants and other thingz that would complementthe area." The $13 milliohn will be used to pay for the rehabilitation of five buildings in the including the Jones building, and the constructioh of four new including two on either side of the Jones Some of the money will also go toward constructio n of an apartment complex at 19th Streetr and Paseo. Plans call for one of the new buildings adjoining the Jones structure to housea Cajun-Creolwe restaurant. Fleming said a local whose name he declinedto disclose, was seeking financing for the start-uo venture.
The Jones Pool Hall building has been emptyy for at leasta decade. The building'zs streetside windows advertise haircuts for 35 cents and a shaved for15 cents, relice of Robert Altman's movie "Kansas City," some of which was shot in the The building is on the National Historic Glazer said he would like to put a restauranr on the ground floor of Stanford'a on Vine and has spoken with well-knownn local restaurateur Bill Nigro about developinyg it. Nigro co-owns Trumpets in Leawoodr and owns The Beaumont Cluband Torre's "Bill and I are close friends and he' s also the president of the Westport Merchantsd Association.
Bill and I have had great succesa turning around Westport and I think he woulx add stability tothe project," Glazer said. "Bill woulf come on board gladly." Nigro said he had severao conceptsin mind, including an Italianm menu, "but it's pretty much just preliminaryt talking right now." "Certainly, we said we'rd be interested in puttinhg in something down there, possibly a combinatiojn comedy club, restaurant and dance club in one building," Nigro

UCSF Med School under fire from Sen. Grassley - Nashville Business Journal:

http://wolmers.net/prep/activities_report2000_2003.html
The June 17 story, by James Oliphant ( ), said the top Republican on the powerfu SenateFinance Committee, has asked UCSF to supply documents on federalp funding over the last five including details of an external review by the KPMG accountingf firm. “If the financial integrity of UCSFis questionable,” Grassleyt said in a letter to the university, accordingb to the L.A. Times, “Iu am worried that similaf problems regarding taxpayer dollars may also existy at other campuses within theUC system, such as UC UCLA and UC Grassley’s comments come in duringg a continuing feud between UCSF and David former dean of its medical school, who earlier headed the U.S.
Food and Drug Administrationj underPresident Clinton, over allegationz involving the medical school’s financial reporting. The Time s reported that Kessler was fired inlate 2007, “aftedr repeatedly complaining that he had been misled about the school’s finances.” Kesslerr has filed a whistleblower lawsuig against the and is seeking to get his job back, along with lost pay, benefitz and damages, the Times reported. Grassleuy raised his concerns in an Apri letter to UC President Mark according tothe Times.
UCSF was awarded $444 millio last year from the National Institutes of with $383 million going to the medical school, whicjh is also seeking a big chunk of federal stimuluas funding. University officials have said Kesslerd was firedfor performance-related reasons, Oliphant’s article notes, but they’re treating him as a whistleblower. Kessler’s lawsuit has been stayed pendinh the conclusion of anadministrative review, the Timesz report said.
In a comment providec Wednesday afternoon to the San Francisco Business UC reiterated that it has provided informationto Grassley’sw office on the financiak issues in question and that Kessler’s allegations have been exhaustively and repeatedlyt investigated at the University’s expense. Thosse investigations “have found no evidenced whatsoever of any inaccuracy in the book s and records ofthe ,” UC said in its written UC officials also noted that a review released in Marcb 2008 by the U.S.
Department of Health and Human Services’ Office of the Inspector General found thatUCSF “haxd complied with all Federal regulations for claiming reimbursement for administrative and clerical connected to the NIH funding.

Lean principles take on new meaning for logistics providers in recession - Nashville Business Journal:

http://www.catalogler.com/article/fight-or-fright-reaction-and-stress/
Reducing waste has meant returning to basicsa and learning lean management skills to survivew in atighter economy. “While leaning inventories in principlre is agood thing, it was also from a practicapl standpoint, not always done,” says Care y Treadwell, director of global business with LLC. “Thers was still a lot of hedge withinncertain clients’ supply chainss because you still had the luxury to do so. Now, given the economic restraints ofthe market, what previously had been optionakl is more essential.
” Private general freight trucking companiesw are a good example of the roller coasted the overall distribution and logistics industry has been on in recenrt years. Nationally, these companies’ revenuer growth has slowed, according to They saw revenue growthuof 10.6% in 2005 and 9.38% in 2006 but that growtjh fell to 3.8% in 2007 and 5.9% in 2008. “Evejn though the overall industry is the price efficiency afforded by freight trucking couled be turning businesses back to freight from othe r formsof transportation,” says Melinda Crump, spokesperson with Sageworks.
The inventor index is another indicator that distribution and logistics companies are seeinfg theiroperations shrink. After five straighr years of manufacturingand non-manufacturing inventory growth, 2009 has seen significanty dips in both sectors, according to ISM’zs February data. Any number above the baseline represents growtuh while a number below it represents Manufaucturing inventories dropped to a reading of 37 inFebruaruy 2009, from a baseline of 42.6. Non-manufacturing inventories droppede to a reading of 39 in the same from a baselineof 50. So how do we do it? The idea to operatew leaner is one many distribution and logistics providerds are clinging to inthis economy.
One way companiesd can find efficiencies is by exploringlean principles, accordingh to David Will, managedr of lean enterprise at Buckeye has been doing this for three yearsx to streamline its entire business, everything from management to accountinyg to human resources. “We see it as a way of to start addressing how you manage a business goinbg intothe future,” Will says. Will thinke lean principles have many applications for distributiobn andlogistics companies. About 70% of businesses that try to incorporatw lean practices fail becausethey don’t do enough to make it a part of the company’z culture, he says.
“You can’t buy lean, you can’ t delegate lean, you have to practicre and learn lean from the top of managementron down,” Will says. It helps to have at leas one employeededicated full-time to lean Lean practices look at a company’s entire supply chain, which helpe distribution and logistics companieas by making them more involved in their real-time operations. “We’re at the tablwe and a party to those conversationsw so we can be astrategic partner,” Treadwelll says. Another way of cutting back on exces is to be prudent about whatyou have, where you have it and why you have that much of it according to Treadwell.
This can apply to labor, where sometime s smaller orders can require the same amountg of workers as bigger That means making eachshipment count. “We’re seeing more attempts at consolidated shipments, more planningh of shipments so thatthere isn’t a lot of rehandling of he says.

Vettel burns rubber in central Berlin to thank fans - Yahoo! Eurosport UK

http://www.chizine.com/chizinepub/books/napiers_bones.php

Sport.co.uk

Vettel burns rubber in central Berlin to thank fans Yahoo! Eurosport UK ... thousands of German fans on Saturday when he took his Red Bull Formula One car on a tyre-smoking demonstration run to Berlin's iconic Brandenburg Gate. ... Champion Vettel celebrates title in Berlin SuperSport.com F1 World Champion Sebastien Vettel comes to Berlin in triumph on Saturday Bikeland Champion Vettel has big day on Saturday (Roundup) Monsters and Critics.com  »

Hezbollah official: We won't destroy Lebanon - Ynetnews

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Ha'aretz

Hezbollah official: We won't destroy Lebanon Ynetnews A Hezbollah parliament member, Walid Sukkarieh, made an unusual statement Wednesday and said that "even if Hezbollah murdered Rafik Hariri, ... Hezbollah official hints at group's involvement in Hariri murder Ha'aretz How Israel And the US Hope to Destroy Hezbollah Scoop.co.nz (press release)  »

Over-the-Rhine debuts new condos, homes - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

http://kozanay.com/Car-Stereo-How-To/What-Is-Av-Stereo/
The 41 condos and five single-family homes ranges in price from $140,000 to $350,000. They’red part of the Gateway Quarter’x third phase, which will bring the project’s total number of new residential unitsto 106. • on Republic Street, an eight-condio project developed by / . The buildint is LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmentalk Design) certified, and the units featuree European-style kitchens and rooftop • Trinity Flats, on Vine Street, is new construction that includesnine two-bedroom/two-bath units. Developed by the , they includ secured parking androoftop decks.
City Home on Pleasant Street, includes six condoas and five single-family homes, developed by , , and the Five units offer special financingfor low- to-moderate-income • Lackman Lofts, on Vine Street, offerx seven condos, with original secured parking and rooftop decks, developed by . Good Fellows Hall, on Main Street, is a former furniture store developed byUrban Sites. It includes five condoz with secured garage parking androofto decks. • Falling Wall, on Main Street, also develope d by Urban Sites, includes six units with rooftop decks andsecured parking.
The Gateway Quartere includes the areaalong Vine, Race and Main streets betwee Central Parkway and 13th

Bradenton Holiday Inn Express owners seek bankruptcy protection - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

http://www.evyaapaar.com/article/Mahdi-Covers-Native-Sudan-With-Passionate-Purpose.html
Sroka Hospitality filed for Chapter 11 protection Monday inthe ’sx Middle District of Florida claimingt assets and liabilities of between $1 millionm and $10 million, court documents Sroka Hospitality was founded in 2003 and purchaseed the Bradenton hotel in 2007 for $7.2 million, accordin to the company’s case management summarhy filed with the court. Revenue was about $1.8 milliobn in 2008 and is expected to be almosrt half that in 2009at $1 Bank of the West is stilpl owed $4.3 million whilde the is owed just under $2 documents said. The hotell also owes $102,000 to the Manatee County Tax Collector, a debt the compang disputes. Both loans were handled throughythe .
Bank of the West said the hotel’s valuer has fallen from $7.2 million to $2.8 millio n based on its own however, Sroka Hospitality said it believes the property isworthn more. The hotel, located near Statee Road 64 and Interstate 75 in sold in 2004for $4.35 Sroka Hospitality purchased it after the companuy sold its St. Augustine hotel in favore of having a Holiday Inn Expresssbranded hotel, according to published reports.

Roots and rhizomes bed down for the winter - Danbury News Times

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Roots and rhizomes bed down for the winter Danbury News Times By that time old man frost has finally blackened the foliage of tender cannas and dahlias, and it's time to store them for winter. But first they have to ... and more »

NBC Universal, Microsoft strike ad alliance - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

http://mideastmonitor.org/issues/0609/0609_7.htm
Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Admira analyzes demographic data on viewersw to generate more targeted TV ads and also adds automationj to thebuying process. The two companiexs tested the system, using Admira with the NBC Locall Media group in Marcjh to buy and sell local television ads inLos Angeles. "Our initial test of the systenin L.A. is off to a grear start. Admira provides us with the potentiap to help attract an entirely new segment of advertiserd to thelocal marketplace, particularly small and midsize businessea that might not otherwise be able to buy local television statioh advertising, which is a huge leap forward.
" Franik Comerford, president of platform development and commerciakl operations for NBC Localo Media, said in a statement. The full partnership is set to begi inthe fall. The two giants are more known through their linkthrough MSNBC.

Eurogroup: last night's statement - Irish Times

http://www.seaos2.org/article/Fujitsu-to-use-carbon-nanotubes-as-heatsinks-for-semiconductors-.html

CTV.ca

Eurogroup: last night's statement Irish Times THE EUROGROUP welcomes the significant efforts of Ireland to deal with the ch »

The Rep names new managing director - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

http://troyproctors.com/content/327
Helsing will succeed Tim Shields, who left The Rep in Decembed 2008 to become managing director of the McCarter Theatre inNew Jersey. William Prenevost has served as interinmmanaging director. Helsing will begin work Aug. 15. 44, most recently served at the Court which is the professional theater on the campux of the Universityof Chicago. Prior to Court, she serveed as director of developmentfor Baltimore's Center associates managing director for Yale Repertort Theatre and managing director for Ensemble Company for the Performing Arts, alongg with other posts. Helsint joined Court Theatre in 2005 and oversaw the expansionof theater'sz budget from $2.5 million to $3.
2 million, achievinyg a balanced budget each year and allowiny for investments in infrastructure and artistic staff, accordinv to a January 2008 Playbill.com Helsing resigned from Court in January. At The Rep, whicb has an annual budget of morethan $9 one of Helsing's most important roles will be to help oversed the hiring of a new artistic director to succeedd Joe Hanreddy. He has previously announced thatthe 2009/201 0 season will be his last at the Milwaukese Repertory.
“I am thrilled to have this opportunity to help lead Milwaukee Rep at such anexcitinyg time, as we celebrate the extraordinary vision of Joe Hanreddhy and prepare to welcome the theater’s next artistic Helsing said in a statement. "I have been an admirer of The Rep both institutionallhy and artistically formany years." Board of trusteesw president John Kordsmeier noted that her appointmenrt comes during an important transition period for the theatef company. "Dawn's talent an experiencew will be valuable in her role as managing director as we plan for the successe of The Rep for many years to Kordsmeier said.
A spokeswoman for the Milwaukes Rep did not have detailwson Helsing's starting salary. Interim managing directo Prenevost said in an interview in Aprilo that the newmanaging director’s pay will be 16 percent less than pay, which was $175,100 for the fiscal year ended in 2007.

Report: N. Texas a top 10 market for jobs needing a security clearance - Dallas Business Journal:

zvonkovaleoqim.blogspot.com
, an online Internet job postint board for professionals with security is a subsidiary ofDes Moines, Iowa-based In its latest ClearanceJobs.com says Texas professionals with security clearancews saw their average salary jump from $60,252 in 2007 to $64,2087 last year. Specific pay information about Dallas/For t Worth workers was not but the report did note that North Texazs is among the top 10 regions in the nationh for this kindof worker.
Professionals with security clearances are findinyg that the dynamics of supplgy and demand are working in theie favor with employees seeking them out in a marketf where security clearances are still an uncommob trait and one that is particularly wantedr in areas such asWashington D.C. and northerhn Virginia. “The turbulent economy has put a governor on the growth rate of salarie for securitycleared workers,” said Evan founder and director of “However, there is no shortage of security-cleared career opportunities both in and outsided the D.C. corridor.
”

Study: Reputation, products key for banks - Houston Business Journal:

http://www.i-goodinfo.com/Travel/madagascar.html
The report, published Monday by , identifies the decision-makingv process shoppers use while choosintg banks during key phases of the selection known asthe “purchase The bank’s reputation particularly as influenced by recenyt events widely covered in the mediaq — have a strong effect on customer choice, the studh found. Thirty percent of consumers report deliberately excluding a bank from considerationb due to perceived financial instability orquestionable ethics.
But the study authors said they were surprise to find that customers are going beyond the hype of headlinexs to find banks that offer services such asonline functionality, mobils banking services, debit cards with reward programs, and accounf alerts. “This suggests that being on the leadinb edge with new products is an actionablw way to differentiate an institutionj fromthe competition,” said Rockwell Clancy, executive director of financial services at J.D. Power and Associates. “Wha t may be emerging here is a fundamental redefiningof ‘convenience.
’ In the past, this has meant having more brancyh locations — which has historically been a primaryg reason for consumers to choose a Now, convenience is more about availability at any time and any place.” Among customers who switch banks, 27 percent attributesd their decision to either having had a previouds good service experience with the new bank or receiving a positives recommendation about the institution. In better interest rates and lowefr fees were notably less important selection The report is based on responsesfrom 7,500 customersz in February evaluating 25 national and regional banks.

Confusing road striping will be fixed next year - Albany Times Union (blog)

shemwellmygalej1291.blogspot.com

Confusing road striping will be fixed next year Albany Times Union (blog) However, there is an arrowed sign for the Northway that faces those southbound drivers. Are cars permitted to turn into that entrance when driving ... Confusing road striping won't be fixed until next year Albany Times Union  »

Two MERC commissioners resign - Boston Business Journal:

stockdaleiqemico1521.blogspot.com
The resignations of Gary Reynolds and Janic e Marquis come about two weekds before councilorsfor Metro, of whicg MERC is a subsidiary, plan to vote on a measurs that would give the councipl more control over MERC’s generapl manager. The move could ostensibly lead to the firint of MERC General ManagerDavid Woolson, who’ws under fire from Presiden t David Bragdon. Reynolds and Marquis both opposethe proposal. president of the Portlanc accounting firmPerkins Co., mentioned the building problem s between Metro and MERC in his resignation “During the economic times, my attention needs to be focuserd on our clients at Perkins Co.
,” Reynolds wrote in his letter to Bragdon. “That I am disappointed in the recent breakdown in the workingb relationship between the Metro Council andthe , and believd it could have been handled differently.” a commercial real estate broker and the commission’se vice chair, didn’t mention the upcoming proposall in her letter to Bragdon, but resigned two yeards before her term was set to end. In a letter to Portlanrd city commissioners earlier this Marquis and commission member Ray Leary urgedf the council to helpdelay Metro’s vote on the MERC oversight matter.
Leary, Marquis, Reynolds and three of the other four remaining MERC commissions also sent Bragdoh a letterbacking Woolson. The letter came afteer Bragdon questioned the leadership of MERC General ManagefDavid Woolson. The other commission Don Trotter, resigned last month and will leav e the boardJune 30. Reynolds’ resignation takes effecft June 30. Marquis’ takes effect July 15. The terms of Trotter and Reynolds wouldf have expired at the end of 2009whiles Marquis' term was to expire at the end of 2010. The Metri Council plans to vote on the MERCmeasure — whichj would give Metro the authority to hire and fire the MERC generap manager — at its July 9 meeting.
It was introduce by councilors Rod Park andRex Burkholder, who also have concernxs about Woolson’s performance. MERC oversees the Oregon Convention Center, the Portland Centet for the Performing Arts and the Portland MetropolitannExposition Center. Metro’s councilorse are mulling a $457 milliojn budget for fiscalyear 2009-2010. The regiona l government serves 1.4 million people in the metropolitamn area’s 25 cities.

ACBJ to relaunch Portfolio.com site - Triangle Business Journal:

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Condé Nast and American City BusinessJournale . Bizjournals will oversee the editorial and business sides ofthe site. The Portfolio.com editoriap team and sales staff will be based inNew Condé Nast Portfolio magazine and its Web site Portfolio.com launched in April 2007; the magazind closed in April. The site provider insight intothe day’s top business stories, with analysids from bloggers and columnists. Tim Bradbury, president of new media at andDavid Carey, group president at Condé Nast, announced the move ACBJ and Condé Nast are units of Advance Publications. Trianglse Business Journal is part of the America City Business Journals groupof newspapers.
In additio n to newly created content, Portfolio.com will share content with othedr Condé Nast sites such as GolfDigest.com, and WWD.com, as it did It also will be the home of the archives of content publishedby Portfolio’s print and digital properties over the past 24 “We are excited about continuing Portfolio.com and includinvg the site in the bizjournalzs network because we were impressed by Portfolio’sw strong Web presence, its clean and crisp design, and its voicr in the business-journalism marketplace,” Bradbury says. “We believe our readers will benefit as therelaunched Portfolio.
coj will have a stronger focus on industryg news and a greater mission to offerf information relevant to today’s businesas professionals.” On top of its existing strengths, Portfolio.com will leverage the collaborative skills and insights of the more than 600 ACBJ business journalists around the country, Bradbury The site will have accessw to local market intelligence and work collaborativel y with ACBJ newsrooms across the presenting the most important local insights throughy a national lens and making it unique among national business media, he says. “We knew that Portfolio.
com was a highlh valuable asset, with an established digital strong direct navigation by anda solid, long tail of traffic from contenr published over the past two Carey says. “We saw ACBJ as a perfecyt match due to its great editorial resourcew in thebusiness arena, and view this as a win for both Portfolio.com’ s readers and the company.” Portfolio.com grew to 2.8 millionm monthly unique visitors and won industry praiser with awards such as the MIN:Bestr of Web Award 2008, MIN:Hottesty Launch of the Year and Webby nominees in Best Business blog and Financiao Services categories.
American City metropolitan businessa newspapers reach 4 million readers each weekwith in-depth coverage of their business communities. Bizjournals is the onlinwe media divisionof ACBJ, the nation’s largesyt publisher of metropolitan business newspapers. It operatexs the Web sites for each ofthe company’s 40 printg business journals and operates a Web-only site with local busineses news and information for Los Bizjournals provides nearly 9 millio monthly online users daily and weekly local business news and Condé Nast includes 22 consumer Condé Nast Digital, the Fairchild Fashion Parade, the Condé Nast Media Groulp and the Shared Services Centers.

Southwestern Carpets grows business from the ground up - bizjournals:

http://bildingnewspro.biz/Houses-For-Rent/Anchorage-Alaska-Houses-For-Rent/
Bill McCaddon has stripped Southwestern Carpetsz down and recreated it a couples of times since purchasing it from Don Lyncuhin 2001. When he bought the floorinf company, it specialized in removingv and replacing carpets in apartments betweenrental occupation. The Lewisville company was producinvg annual revenueof $5 million, but McCaddon found the businese too impersonal because it was driven by producgt sales and not on building relationships with customers.
So he decidexd to switch focus to themore relationship-centricd business of providing flooring solutione to new home-construction projects, which includes hardwood floors, and backsplash and tile The wholesale company saw dramatidc growth as a result, with annual revenue of $22 milliohn in 2007. But the growtjh was so rapid and so intense that managers were losingv control of the direction the companywas heading. So in he enlisted Don Brush, a consultant with The Renovaz Corp.
, to help bring new energy to his McCaddon’s sense of direction and leadership abilitiess come from his experience asa manufacturer’es representative for 18 years at companies like Shaw Carpety Manufacturer and Aleta Co. He had learned the importanc e of building relationshipswith clients. “My background was in working withnew homebuilders. The apartment businessd was non-relationship driven,” said McCaddon. “I didn’gt know how to buils a businessthat wasn’t relational.” McCaddon downsizedr the company to redirect the focus to the home-construction industry. He was met with resistancwe fromhis employees.
“I realized that usintg the sameemployees wasn’t going to I was trying to halfway do the he said. “Once we made the commitment, we reall y turned the corner.” He began switching out The company, which had grown annua revenueto $5 million, saw revenuee drop to under $3 millionb during the transition. But, once the commitment was made, McCaddon noted marked improvement. By revenue had grown by 35%. Between 2004 and the company went througjh its biggestgrowth spurt, reaching up to $22 million in salesw and employing more than 60 workers. But at that the storybook growth came toan end.
“Ir was getting to be chaotic because of so many new We werean 8-cylinder engine working on six or seven We’d lost a sensre of teamwork, and everyone was territorial.” That’s when McCaddobn brought in Brush. “Ford the most part, I engage them and talk with them in ordet to build a I wanted to find out the strengths of the compan y and what was working and whatneeded improvement,” said “They’ve got the dreams; they’ve got the vision. It’s just giving them the opportunity.” Brushy met with employees to figure out areas that neededx improvement and then created anactionm plan.
He showed the company how to creatre committees to address problems as they come up and then dissolv e the committees after the proble hasbeen handled. The shift has translatede intohappier customers. Bill president and co-owner of Darling Homes has worked with McCaddon since McCaddonh purchased Southwestern Carpetsin 2001. “(Wed started working with Southwestern Carpets) becausee of Bill and his relationakl approach to working with homebuilders as opposed to thetraditionall price-only approach,” said Darling. “Brush has helpefd Bill figure out how to communicatee better so that everyone is going in the same directionb as the management and will yield themaximu impact.
” For Chris McCoppin, operations manager for Southwestern the change in the corporate culture has been “Sometimes you don’t realize that when one department changesx their policies and procedures, it affectes others. Now everyone talks to each other,” McCoppinn said. “We’ve empowered them to make We gave them the power to runthe business. They feel With this new senseof empowerment, as well as an improverd use of digitizing software called Measure, Southwesterm Carpets has seen a marked improvemeng on the accuracy of the 3,000 work orders enterede each month — 95% up from 77% accuracy and has saved about $160,000 in unnecessary costs for havinf to fix incorrect work orders.
Instead of pursuing potential clients merely for the sake ofnew business, McCaddon and his stafrf focus on getting to know potential clients, researchingv them as much as possibles and understanding their needw before they even meet. “We’ll only do business with peoplr who will sit down and have a relationshipwith us. Someonwe is always going to come in lower (priced) than you,” said McCaddon. “We were alwayws chasing people who were focusexdon price. If they say, fax us (a pricre sheet), we say sorry, we can’tt work with you. We stay togethe r as a result. If you have the valuee relationship, they don’t leave.
”

Pablo Picasso paintings coming to Nasher Museum of Art at Duke University - Triangle Business Journal:

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“Picasso and the Allure of Language” features 60 workws created by the legendary artist betweemn 1900and 1969, four years before his death at the age of 91. The displau is intended to portray how literature and writinginfluenced Picasso’s art. “‘Picasslo and the Allure of focuseson Picasso’s deep and interdisciplinaruy interest in writing and language, and reveals new insights abour this famous, well-studied artist,” said museu director Kimerly Rorschach. “We can learhn a lot from the intellectual and artistidc exchanges between Picasso and some of the greatest thinkers ofhis day.” Some of the works that will go on display between Aug.
20 and Jan. 3, 2010, were created for Gertrude Stein, the expatriate American writert who served as his patrohn in Parisuntil 1914. The exhibition was created by theArt Gallery, and the art work comees from collections at the Yale Universituy Art Gallery, Yale University’s Beinecke Rare Book and Manuscript Library and the Raymond and Patsy Nashee Collection in Dallas, Texas. For more go online to .

NACA to add more than 1,000 jobs in Charlotte - Nashville Business Journal:

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The hiring will begin immediately, with the national nonprofir hosting a job fair Fridayyand Saturday. NACA focuses on lendiny to low- and moderate-income families. Gov. Bev Perduwe announced the expansion Thursday, with the stated giving NACA a $1 million grant from the One NortbCarolina Fund. It plans to invest more than $4 millionj here, with 1,014 jobs expected to be added over the nextfive “North Carolina remains a strontg presence in the U.S. financr sector, and this is a tremendouas opportunity forthe Charlotte-area,” Perdue said. “Ourf top-rated business climate and skillec financial-services work force are attractive to growintnational operations.
” NACA is headquartered in Bostoh and operates more than 40 offices nationwide. It currentlh employs about 100 workersz in Mecklenburg County to originate and processmortgage loans. Unded the five-year state incentive agreement, the organization plans to add 550 jobs The jobs will pay an average annual wage of Salaries will range upto $80,000 The hiring will focus on mortgagde negotiators, customer-service representatives, call-center managerse and mortgage counselors. “NACAz is excited that it’s putting more than 1,000 peoplse to work during these tougheconomifc times,” NACA Chief Executived Bruce Marks said Thursday.
“Today’s announcement is more than just a soundsbite — we are followinyg through on this investmenf by holding a jobs fair tomorrow to hire 550 peopls immediately.” Perdue said Thursdauy that she consulted with former Bank of Americaz Corp. Chairman Hugh McColl Jr. about the deal. McCollo has been a longtime supporterof NACA’s BofA began a partnership with NACA under McColl’ss watch in 1995 and in 2004 committed $6 billionn to its lending program.
Perdue says McCol l confirmed to her that he expectex NACA could follow through on its job commitmentas in severalphone “When someone begins somethinvg like this in Charlotte, it always McColl said in an interview “They’ll come in and find this is a good placd to find (a work force). I would hope it woulfd be an eruption of not justtrickle down.” The group claimds it will be the largest numbedr of people hired immediately in one area and the largesty job commitment in the country since the mortgage crisis began in 2007. The hiring comes as NACA embarksw on a nationwide Save theDreamj Tour.
Marks says the addexd jobs are crucial as NACA leadas its campaign to makemortgages affordable. Hundreds of NACA staffv will provide long-term solutions for homeowners with anunaffordablee mortgage. “Charlotte continues to be attractive because of ourknowledgeablew financial-services work force and we welcomes NACA’s investment in North N.C. Sen. Dan Clodfelter (D-Mecklenburg) said in a NACA’s Counseling Center is in the Charlottes East office park off Albemarlse Road between Central Avenue and FarmPond Lane. “Charlotter continues to be recognized as a leadedr in financial services with a talented and experienced labor says Charlotte Chamber ChairmanTim Belk.
“We are pleased to welcomr NACA to the community and look forwarrd to the investment in jobs and presencre they will bring to ourEast side.” The chambert assisted NACA in its expansion effort. Charlotte East ownefr Roger Kellogg, principal of , and leasing director Eric Speckman have worked closely with NACA since when the nonprofit established a smalkl office inthe park. NACA has legally bindinb agreements with all themajor lenders/servicers to restructur the mortgages they service. The NACA agreements coveer more than 90 percent of homeowners with an unaffordable mortgage.
The staff from the Counseling Center in Charlottde will travel nationwide to work on Save the Dreamn events where morethan 25,000 people are counseleed over four days, with thousands receiving affordable restructured mortgages with permanent interest rates often at 4 3 percent and 2 percent and wherse necessary the principal reduced. The started in 1988, has the primary goal of building strong, healthy neighborhoods nationwide through affordable NACA operations includefinancial counseling, specialized mortgage services and a Home Save prograj for homeowners with an unaffordable mortgage. NACA will host a job fair from8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Fridayu and Saturday at its CharlotteCounseling Center. For more information abou t Neighborhood Assistance Corporationof America, includingb employment opportunities, go to www.naca.com.

Revamped offense helps Florida Gators end losing streak - MiamiHerald.com

http://www.zentails.com/product/wisdom-is-listening/

Kansas City Star

Revamped offense helps Florida Gators end losing streak MiamiHerald.com Florida coach Urban Meyer inst »

Crescent files Chapter 11, replaces CEO - Washington Business Journal:

http://iyds.net/?tag=editor
The moves are part of an effort to cutthe company’as debt and rework its capital the Charlotte, N.C.-based developer says. and some of its subsidiariesa have filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitionxs in the in the Western Districtof Texas, Austi Division. Crescent also announcedc today thatArthur Fields, the company’e chief executive officer, has retired, effective immediately. He will continuer to work in anadvisory capacity. Crescent had been struggling to refinancdea $1.2 billion loan, with payment due in full by September 2012.
The company amended the loan in June 2008 becausew it was in violation of the original Before the Chapter11 filing, Crescent faces payments of $50 million by the end of this $75 million in 2010 and $100 million in 2011 on its The company, which has developed more than 1 millionn square feet of office space in Cool Springs since the has been facing local troubles, too. Pat Emery, Crescent’ws long-time vice president and regionalo managerin Tennessee, left the company last And the developer’s Crescent’s Greenway One, a $33 168,000-square-foot building near completion on Carothers Parkway, has been boardef up for months as contractorsw filed millions of dollars in liens againstr it.
Another similarly sized Crescent project next to it is about 90 percenyt vacant a year afterebeing built. The company says it pland to continue businesses without any significanty interruptionduring restructuring. Crescent has obtainer a debtor-in-possession financing facility of $110 million from a group of itsexistinbg lenders, which will provide funds so it can continure operating. Andrew Hede will replace Fieldxs as CEO and will be chargefd with leadingthe Hede, a managing director with LLC, has more than 15 years of financia restructuring and business experience.
“We have been in activee discussions with our lenders and othe r stakeholders as we work towarfd an agreement that will bring our capitapl structure in line with the currenteconomic environment,” Hede says in a “Those discussions are continuing, and we are pleasex with the ongoing support we have received from our We intend to reach an agreement on our new capitao structure and emerge from bankruptcy quickly.
”

Helix Energy Solutions Group, Inc. Company Profile | HLX Company Information

http://tamparelocationinfo.com/page/Camping-Equipment---Your-Survival-Could-Depend-On-.html
Helix Energy Solutions Group is a uniquw member of the deepwater offshore energy serving asa world-class servics provider to energy producing companies while producing oil and gas from our own This two-stranded strategy sets Helix aparf from our peers, who typically elect to be either a servicwe contractor or producer. The first strand of this strategyt is comprised of our Contracting Service sbusiness units, including Subsea Canyon Offshore, Well Ops and Helix RDS, providing servicesd and methodologies critical to finding, developing and producing offshore oil and gas Oil and Gas Operations make up the secon strand of our strategy.
From the origination of a to drillingand production, and finally plugging and abandonment, we focus on creating value at key points in the lifespah of a reservoir. Since our inception, Helix has focused our collective effortse on executing thisbusiness strategy, combining offshore constructiomn services with oil and gas production operations. Findinv and developing our own offshore reservoirs gives Helix unparalleled experience and expertise in offshore energy which we share withour customers. In Helix shares the potential for risk and reward in fielrd developments by inviting other producers to partner with uson projects.
Our past successese and reputation for development expertise have made Helix a preferredr partner on projects aroundthe world.

Former Tribune exec Dennis FitzSimons joins Media General board - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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“Dennis FitzSimons is a proven and innovativde business leader who led a premierf media company through times of outstandingh growth andtough challenges,” said Marshall N. Morton, Media General’ president and chief executiv officer, in a filinvg with the . “His industry knowledge and experience with the changing media landscapr and the synergies of broadcast and online platforms will briny a valuable perspective to the MediaGeneral board’s deliberations.” FitzSimons was the chief executive officer and president of untilo December 2007 after completing the sale of the companuy to Sam Zell for $8.
2 billion, ending a 25-year relationship with the FitzSimons is said to have earned $41 million in that Getting his start in the company’s broadcast FitzSimons was named an executive vice president at Tribune in Januart 2000 and earned an election to Tribune’s boarf of directors that same year, according to the SEC filing. He wouldc become president and chief operating officeer in July 2001 and then elevated to chief executivs officer inJanuary 2003. Tribune Co.
filef for bankruptcy in December 2008, caused mostlty by the media company’s efforts to go private a year Outside directors to the Media Generalo board receive an annual retainerof $116,0000 for all scheduled meetings as well as an additional $1,759 for each unscheduled board meeting and each committere meeting attended beyond the two includedf in the retainer, according to SEC filings. Half of that compensationb is issued in deferred Class A and each director can elec to receive the other half eitherein cash, deferred stock units, or split evenlh in cash and deferred Media General (NYSE: MEG) reported a loss of $21.
w3 million, or 96 cents per in the most recent quarter ended March 29, deepere than a $20.3 million, or 92 cents per sharwe loss, the year Revenue fell from $194.5 million in the firsr quarter of 2008 to $159.5 million in the most recent Media General shares were trading at $2.066 just after 4 p.m. Wednesday, up more than 7 percenft from their previous-day close of $1.92. The media company’s shares have traded between $1.265 and $27.18 over the past year.

2009 People to Watch in Airlines - South Florida Business Journal:

http://en-ezine.info/book-marketing/page_8.html
This happened as the economy receded and fuelprices spiraled. Spirit stayedr competitive with aggressivefuel hedging, capacity reductions, cost cutting measurew and strong Latin American and Caribbeanm routes. Spirit expanded its revenue stream in 2008 with the Mile HighMediaq campaign, an on-flight advertising program that allows companies to planes’ interiors with brandingf on seat backs, tray tables and throughout the cabin. “Ibn addition to providing unsurpassed value to our advertising Mile High Media helps offset recordfuel prices, whichb helps us to continue offering our customerz the ultra low fares they know and Mile High Media Sales Director Michael Pewthet has said.
In 2009, Baldanza will face soft “2009 will be a challengintg year for the airline given the uncertainty of thegenerapl economy,” he said. “Spirit is committed to continuing to offe r low fares to get the economymovingh again, and can prosper in this environmenr with its ultra-low cost

Worthington buys cylinder companies

http://najmiehskitchen.com/art/hsit.html
The Columbus-based steel giant said it boughr assets related to the business ofNew Miss.-based Piper Metal Forming Corp. along with U.S. Respiratorg Inc. and Pacific Cylinders Inc. Financia l terms of the deal, set to closd in the next 30 weren’t disclosed. Worthington said the companies brought inabout $30 million in revenuee last year. Piper, the company said, makes aluminum high-pressuree cylinders along with steel andaluminum parts. U.S. Respiratory assembles and distributesthat company’s medical cylinde r products, while Pacific runs distribution on the West CEO John P.
McConnell calleed the deal a “naturapl extension of our focua on growing our highlysuccessful pressure-cylinder business.” The company added that the new assetsd will boost its industrial gas products and mark its entry into the markert for medical products. Worthingtohn Industries (NYSE:WOR), one of Central Ohio’s 10 largest publicly held companies, lost $94.45 million on $2.16 billion in revenuw in the first nine months of the fiscalp year thatended Sunday. The compan employs about 7,000.

Unesco Suspends Award Sponsored by Equatorial Guinea's President Obiang - Bloomberg

http://www.kasabati.com/article/Timeshare-Owners-Still-Tripping.html

Daily Nation

Unesco Suspends Award Sponsored by Equatorial Guinea's President Obiang Bloomberg The United Nations' cultural body suspended an award funded by Equatorial Guinea President Teodoro Obiang ... UNESCO drops prize sponsored by E.Guinea's Obiang AFP UN suspends controversial award BBC News  »

Home sales at lowest levels in five years - Birmingham Business Journal:

http://gemvis.com/html/patio_umbrella.html
While real estate agents expect the market to see increaseed activity this year because ofthe $8,000 tax credit, insiders predict sales levels won’tf reach the highs of years Nor should they, said Rick Heben, generak manager of Coldwell Banker Heritager Realtors. “Selling 15,000 homes a year was We know that because of the numberof foreclosures,” Heben said. “It was artificial.” With loweree lending restrictions and plenty offinancing options, people who didn’tf have adequate funds were purchasing homes they couldn’t Agents said the number of sales has returned to 2003 levels of about 11,000 or 12,000 per year, closer to a level.
But the slowdown has been difficult. Januaruy saw the fewest number of homea sold in the Dayton area infive years, with 520 homes changing ownership. November and Decembef also posted the lowest sales transactions for their respective months in the past five Last November, 630 homes were which represents a nearly 30 percent drop from Novembet of 2007, a month that saw 884 “Business wasn’t too bad until the middlr of last year.
Going by pure numbers, it was horribl e when Octoberrolled around,” said Steve team leader and broker for in He said the Daytobn area won’t go back to the highs of but the tax credit for first-time home buyerz should help lower the amountt of inventory on the market. In there were 8,300 homesa on the market. While the figure is lower thanlast January’ss inventory, the slower sales pace means thosew homes represent a supply of 16 months, up from 14 month s last January. The balance between a buyer’s marketg and a seller’s market is generally thought to bea six-montn supply of homes.
That way, neither the buyerd nor the seller is in a position of powerr when it comes to closinga deal. Debrqa White, owner/broker for in Beavercreek, said it is nice to help peopld buya home, but the real help will be gettinhg homes off the market, freeing others to buy. “Thw first one has to happen before anything else can White said. “Real estate is like dominos, if they (first-time home don’t buy, no one else Bill Rogers, vice president of Sibcy Cline’s , said with the slow many real estate agents have either put theid licenses on hold or left thebusiness “Hundreds have dropped out,” Rogers White said with agents either out of the game or focusing less on the tax credit may not have the same impact as it woulx if the market wasn’t so sour.
Bob Jones, communications coordinator forthe , said the numbert of members fluctuates from month to month and has been as low as 2,3009 and as high as 2,800 in the past five As of January, there were 2,683

UTSA doctoral accounting students eligible for new scholarship - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

http://www.anvilinformatics.com/news/pr2001-10-16.html
UTSA accounting doctoral students are now eligible to applyy for the Accounting Doctoral Scholarsfellowship program. The UTSA Colleg e of Business is one of only 40 academic programs nationwides to participate in the Accountingg DoctoralScholars program. Each year, the institute will select 30 candidates nationwide to receivea four-year $30,000p stipend. The aim of the Accountiny Doctoral Scholars program is to increase the numbe r of doctoral accounting graduates in There is a critical shortage of accountingg doctoral faculty teaching auditinf andtax courses, according to UTSA and the The goal is to increase the numbeer of people with doctoral degrees in accounting.
The plan is to encourage these individuals to then join the businessw faculty at schools throughout the countryu so that they can teac hundergraduate courses. The institute founded the Accountinv Doctoral Scholars programin 2008. The progra m is funded by accounting firms. Candidates should have experience in audift or tax in a public accounting bea U.S. citizen or permanent resident and be working toward a career as an accountinggfaculty member. Applications will be acceptedr for the Fall 2010 classthrough Oct. 1. UTSA’es College of Business is one of the 40th largesft business schools in the nation with morethan 5,800 students. Web www.adsphd.
org

WorldPerks miles phase-out starts Thursday - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

http://besttoursin.com/en/travel-and-leisure/page_8.html
Thursday marks the month-long phaseout of the and the latest installment of a marketing warbetweenh , which runs the WorldPerks affinity program, and , whicu runs ’s SkyMiles program. When Atlanta-based Delta (NYSE: DAL) acquired Northwest in October, the two companie s said their frequent-flier programs would be merged in late effectively dumpingthe U.S. Bancorp program. WorldPerks cardholders will stop earning miles from credit card purchasew on a date over the nextmonthg that’s determined by their billinf cycle. Customers who switched to the Delta SkyMilez American Express card will continuee to earn miles underthat system, said an American Express spokeswoman. U.S.
Bancorp, meanwhile, has gone its own way, changing WorldPerkzs customers over to its FlexPerks Travel Rewards Visa cards in May. Both U.S. Bancorp and Delta-Americahn Express have been campaigning heavily in the Twin Citiexs market to courtWorldPerks customers.

Recovery report - bizjournals:

xeconatyxex.blogspot.com
percent of contracts financed by the economic stimulusspackage — far less than the federal government’s overall goal of 23 percent. “This is simplyg unacceptable,” Sen. Olympia Snowe, R-Maine, said at a May 21 hearing on opportunitie for small businesses to win contractz financed bythe $787 billion stimulu s act. Snowe, the ranking Republican on the Senatwe Small Business andEntrepreneurship Committee, said smalp businesses still have time to win their fair shard of stimulus work because many stimulus contracts have not been awarded yet. Chairwomam Mary Landrieu, D-La.
, said the intent of the May 21 hearinhgwas “to prevent us from looking back in five years to ask” why the money neverr made its way to small businesses. Small businesses have been awardexd $389 million in stimulusa contracts as ofMay 19, said Joseph Jordan, the ’sa associate administrator for government contractingt and business development. The share of stimulus dollars going to smallp contractors has been increasing each he said. The SBA is tryinh to help small businesses win subcontracts from larger businessed that are awardedstimulua contracts. that lists stimulus-related subcontractintg opportunities.
CASH FLOW WOE: Nearly half of all small businesds owners haveexperienced cash-flow problemd during the past three months, according to a surve y conducted in May for . That numbefr is up from 39 percent in April and is the highesty since Discover launched its monthlu small business survey threeyears ago. The surveyt also found that 48 percent of ownere said economic conditions for their businesses aregettintg worse, up from 40 percent in April. More than half plan to cut spendiny on business development in the next six Thisincludes advertising, inventory and capital expenditures.

Eglin AFB commander announced - Crestview News Bulletin

kapitonragomo.blogspot.com

Eglin AFB commander announced Crestview News Bulletin ... of command ceremony are pending senate confirmation. Merchant's full biography can be viewed online at www.af.mil/information/bios/bio.asp?bioID=10032. and more »

Short sales creating headaches - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

bakakinkorypon.blogspot.com
It had been at least a month since they sold thei r homein Fayetteville, N.C., so buying one shoulsd be the easy part. It hasn’t been. “We’rw frustrated,” Christine Augustine said. “We’red three weeks away from moving, and we stil l don’t know if we’re good to The Augustines have founs themselves caught in the short sale market where sellerss on the brink of foreclosure are trying to dumphomese they’re upside down on. Bankas could take months to approvesa deal, forcing many buyers foraging for good deals to walk “The name ‘short sale’ is anything but,” said Bill a real estate practitioner with .
“Banksd are making us jump through so many hoopzsthat it’s taking forever to get deald done. It’s putting pressure on price s and keeping our recovery fromactually Annoying, but legal? The number of shoryt sale offers may be overwhelming to banks. But several residentiall real estate practitioners, including Realtors, told the that brokerss representing sellers are the ones responsible for gumming up the processz by sidestepping rules designerd to expedite transactions for bona fide One practice that has raise some ire in the real estate community is brokeras representing short sellers collecting multipled offers on active MLS listing s and sending all of them to the bankfor That’s tying up potential buyerds that may have little chance to actuall purchase the property if their bid is among those in the lowef tier.
“These are people that coule instead be looking at other properties they have a better chanceof getting,” said Matthew Augustyniak, owner of in Bradenton, whicj specializes in short sales. But such a move is actuallyh withinMLS rules, said Ann president and CEO of the , which manages the and Pasc o counties. “Some sellers want offerzs to go directly to the bank first to seeif they’ll even acceptg it before singing anything,” Guiberson said. “If the seller doesn’t sign off on it, then it’s not a pendingg contract.
On the other a potential buyer can walk away atany There’s nothing holding them to the offer, even if the bank acceptsa it at some The problem, some Realtors say, is that MLS doesn’tt have required fields to identify a listinv as a short sale. Listiny agents, for the most part, are suppose d to identify short sales in a section knowbn asRealtor notes, which is available only to real estat practitioners. But digging through thousands of listings to find short sales can be and not all Realtors add theproperr notes.
Either way, sending a batch of varioud offers to banks is exactly what the original lending institutions haveaskefd for, said Dallas, who typicallyh represents sellers. Over the threr months it could take for a bank to the top bidder could grow impatient anddrop out, leavinfg smaller bids on the table. Sendinb multiple offers saves a seller from havingt to start the bank process allover “We’ll note on the listingh to other Realtors that offers have been submittedx to the bank but the listing remainsd active,” Dallas said. “Banke want the highest and best price, so if someonee wanted to make a bigger offerf afterthe fact, there would be room to do it.
” Just two years ago, homebuyeras paying all cash made up just 12.5 percent of residential purchases in Hillsborough County, according to the . In April that jumped to 24 percent of all Andlast month, cash buyers represented 39 percentr of all purchases, outpacing conventional financing by nearly 29 Short sales might be the darling of cash-wielding buyers, thoswe looking for mortgages are getting in on the too, but not always by choice. “Wse only plan on being there forthrere years, so we originally were goingg to rent,” said Augustine, whosde husband will be stationed at . “But then we saw all the greagt dealson houses, and thoughtr it makes sense to buy.
There are a lot of dealse out there, but it’s hard to find one that isn’y a short sale.” Short sales aren’tt the only bargain out there. Homes that already have gone back to the bank also are beiny offered below their most recentsale prices, and buyers won’t have to wait montha to get an answer. “Once the bank has the it becomes motivated to get it sold as quicklgyas possible,” said Rae Catanese, an agentr with Prudential Tropical Realty. “Many times we can get an answere back within48 It’s pretty smooth sailing.
” Potential buyers also have to be realisti about the market, PRO’s Guiberson Lower median prices have convincer some buyers there are deals too good to be true on the markef when in reality, it’s simply reflecting that more homesd on the lower end of the pricingt spectrum are selling near actual value while higher-ensd home sales are a bit stagnant. “You’re not gointg to get a $500,000 home for $180,000,” Guibersob said. “I don’t think you’ll ever see the marketr that bad.
”

Fernandez Bond Yields Fall Below Higher-Rated City Debt: Argentina Credit - Bloomberg

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Fernandez Bond Yields Fall Below Higher-Rated City Debt: Argentina Credit Bloomberg Government yields were as much as 235 basis points higher than the city's as recently as May 6 and fell below Buenos Aires about a month ago. ... and more »

A&B sells Oahu business park - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

http://freerapiddownload.com/2010/03/page/3/
The company (NYSE: ALEX) announced Tuesdahy that it completed the sale ofthe 85,200-square-foot, three-buildint warehouse complex. The sale price wasn’tg announced. “We were able to achieve a favorables pricing for HawaiiBusiness Park, particularly in light of curreng market conditions,” said Norbert M. president of A&B Properties, in a “During our ownership, we increased the property’s net rent by 92 perceng and maintained 100 percent average occupancysince 2002. The propertyu was therefore well positioned to achieve its fullmarket value.” The businesz park was built in 1983 and was purchased by Honolulu-baseds A&B in 1999.
With the sale of the businessa park, A&B Properties’ commercial property and investment portfolilo consistsof 8.4 million square feet of office and industrial space in Hawaiik and eight Mainland Shares of Alexander & Baldwin stocm ended the day down slightly at $22.25.

Best Buy Co., Inc. Company Profile | BBY Company Information

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Inc. With operations in the Unites States, Canada, China, Europre and Mexico, Best Buy is a multinationaol retailer of technology and entertainment products and services with a commitment to growth and The Best Buy family of brands and partnerships collectively generates morethan $45 billion annual revenu e and includes brands such as Best Buy, Audiovisions, The Carphone Warehouse, Future Shop, Geek Squad, Jiangshu Five Star, Magnolia Audio Napster, Pacific Sales Kitchen, Bath and Electronic The Phone House and Speakeasy.
Approximately 155,00p0 employees apply their talents to help bring the benefita of these brands to life for customers through retail multiple call centers andWeb sites, in-home product delivery and activities in our communities. Community partnershi p is central to the way we do business atBest Buy. In fiscalo 2009, we donated a combined $33.4 million to improve the vitalitg of the communities where our employeesa and customers liveand

Zacks Sell List Highlights: Telephone & Data Systems, Gulfport Energy, Mobile ... - Kansas City Star

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Zacks Sell List Highlights: Telephone & Data Systems, Gulfport Energy, Mobile ... Kansas City Star Note that a #5 Strong Sell rating is applied to 5% of all the stocks in the Zacks Rank universe: Telephone & Data Systems, Inc. (NYSE: TDS) second quarter ... and more »

Whirlpool to cut another 3,000 jobs - Dayton Business Journal:

http://e-book-sviyash.com/books/1/page8.html
The Benton Harbor, Mich.-baseds appliance maker said it is shedding additional jobs to adapt toa “rapidly changing and very challenging economic environment” that led to a sharp drop in demand during the thirr quarter. “The global credit crisis has had a profound negatives impact on what was alreadyy a weakening and very fragiledglobal economy,” Jeff Fettig, chiefc executive officer of Whirlpool said in a statement. “Declining home values, risint unemployment and very low consumere confidence levels will likely prolong a negative demand environment at least through the middleof 2009.
” which employs about 9,000 in Ohio, plans to shut down a facilityu in Jackson, Tenn., and move the work to its dishwashefr plant in Findlay. That move will resultf in about 500 job cutsin Tennessee. The companuy this year has closed two plants in Mexiclo along with facilitiesin LaVergne, Tenn., and Miss. Job cuts could arriv e in the state as the company plans to cut about 500 salaried positions inNorthu America, including contractors, but specifics on the cuts weren’t immediatelt available. The majority of the new job cuts will takeplacd overseas, where Whirlpool plans to cut about 1,900 mostly in Europe. The companh employs more than 73,000 worldwide.
In additiojn to the Findlay Whirlpool in Ohio operatesa small-appliances operation in Greenville, a dryer manufacturinf operation in Marion and a washer plant in Clyde. The job cuts are expectesd to saveabout $275 million the company said. Whirlpool through the firsr three quartersearned $374 million, down 17 perceny from $453 million through Septembet 2007. Revenue through the third quarter isup 3.5 percenty at $14.6 billion, versus $14. billion last year.

Skyline Exhibits Sponsors Educational Seminars on 'Successful Marketing Strategies for a Tough Economy'

http://www.rchost.org/Optimise-Your-Domain-Registration.html
June 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Skyline Exhibitds & Events is hosting six information-packed educational classes in North Carolinq that will help companies win more busineszs at trade shows and eventsa while reducing theiroperating costs. The Successfup Trade Show Marketing Strategies and Bettefr Booth Staffing seminars are concentrated learning experiences that will benefiB2B marketers. Guest lecturer will lay out proven strategiees that enable sales and marketing professionals not only to controol operating expenses but maximize the effectiveness of the messager that isbeing broadcast. The seminars will be hosted in Greensborko onJune 9, Charlotte on June 10, and Raleigh on June 11.
The Marketinb Strategies Seminars will be heldfrom 9:30-12:00 and the Betteer Booth Staffing Seminar will be held from The morning session is free, while the afternoonj session is optional and fee-based. See for - Promoting your participation - at and after an event Attendees will also receive twotrainingf booklets: a 68-page "Tradd Show Marketing Kit" and a "Booth Staffing Register now by visiting or by calling is designing, fabricating, and servicing innovative exhibiy systems, as well as providiny concept-to-creation solutions for face-to-face marketing environments, including tradse shows and corporate interiors.
From its thre e regional design centers inNorth Carolina, Skyline's clientws enjoy access to a worldwide network of eventf marketing professionals in 47 countriez and 138 cities.

MathStar eyes merger with private company - Portland Business Journal:

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The Hillsboro-based fabless semiconductor company (Pink MATH), which shut down operations more than ayear ago, said it is considerinyg a merger with a privately-heldf company that could use MathStar’s cash reserves for expansion, according to a filinyg made Friday with the federal Securities and Exchanger Commission. MathStar said it is also considerinvg a move to restart operations thankas to an opportunity to acquire a new video technologyy similar to one previously createdby MathStar. MathStar was once a developerd of a promising programmable semiconductoe technology that drew interestfrom high-profile customer such as LG Electronics USA and Arrow Electronics Inc.
But the companyt shut down its semiconductorr operations in May 2008 after raisinygabout $137 million from investords and never recording a profit. It ended 2008 with a $14.t million loss. Investors — including the company’s two largest shareholders — have been pressuring the company to A proxy vote on the issue is scheduled to take plac e atthe company’s annual shareholders meetinfg on June 29 in Minneapolis. MathStar has been opposede to liquidation, saying it preferred to merge with anotherd semiconductor company that could make use ofits $14 millionb cash balance as of March 31 and $140 millionn net operating losses.
In the SEC MathStar’s board urged stockholders to reject a tender offer made last montbh by LLCof $1.15 per Besides the company’s other strategic alternatives, the boars said Tiberius only wants to acquire 51 percent of shares, the benefift of MathStar’s net operatinv losses would likely be eliminated in the and the offer is far less than the company’s estimated $1.40 per share liquidation Meanwhile, Minnesota-based , which makes buildinb performance software, last week made its fourthu offer for the company, offering $1.28 per share. MathStart has previously rejected PureChoice on the grounds that it prefers merging with anothersemiconductor company.
It seems histor y will repeat itself. In the SEC filing, MathStaer said the unidentified private company it is nowconsidering “meetd many of the criteria the Boarr set forth earlier regardingv potential strategic transactions.” MathStar sharezs were unmoved Friday at $1.22 per share. They have a 52-weei range between 63 cents and

Hotels fearing another bad year in 2009 - Baltimore Business Journal:

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The managing director of Baltimore’s Tremonf hotels has lost closeto $300,000 in cateringf business in December from companiew that have canceled or scaled back theitr holiday parties. He has also lost $30,00p from a meeting canceled. “Each day is worse than the day he said. Weak demand among business travelers and an increasinglyg shaky economy arestraining Baltimore’s hotel Hoteliers are bracing for a challenging holiday seasom and expect fewer heads in beds in 2009. “Everyone expectds it to be rough in light of theeconomicx issues,” Haynie said. “I can’t imagines it would be better than 2008.
” Thoughu sluggish hotel demand is a national Baltimore isworse off. Occupanc and revenue per room — a key industryg measurement — have dropped twice as much here than thenationall average. It’s a dramatic turnaround for hotels that were 71 percent fullin 2005, compares with 64 percent so far this year. Touriskm leaders had complained the Baltimore market lackee enoughhotel rooms. Buoyed by easy developers constructed new hotels around Baltimore the past few But just assupplh increased, demand dropped.
Hoteliers are employing different sales and marketinfg strategies to drum up sales next The city’s main tourism agency is devisinf new discounts and promotions to get more visitorz and is devoting more attention to booking short-ter business to help hoteliers get througgh the recession. Some hoteliers say decreased demand has forced them to droptheir prices. “We’re lagging behindx in rates,” said Fletcher Mayes, acting general managet of the hotel. “The top-tier ratez aren’t out there.
” A nightg at the Westin can be had for a 50 percent discouny onits $279 standard One might think the lower ratesa would help Baltimore win convention But the problem is that other cities are lowering their too, said Tom Noonan, CEO of the Baltimore Area Conventiojn and Visitors Association. The average daily rate for a Baltimor e hotel room in Octoberfwas $122, according to That is a 4 percenft drop compared with October 2007. But Baltimore’s $122 rate is $15 highefr than the average U.S. hotel rate. “Our ratesd are dropping and so areeveryonre else’s,” Noonan said. “Everyone is as hungry as they’ve ever been.
” The hoteliers say, is not just the economy, but the fact that Baltimorde has gained many morehoteo rooms. Baltimore’s supply of hotel rooms grew more than 5 percentythis year, twice the national according to Smith Travel. The additionall hotel rooms should be a bonus for a city that has historicallu grappled with lowhotel supply. But the new rooms have come on boarfd just as the economyturned sour. Baltimore’s biggesty hotel opened in August, a 757-rookm Hilton that cost the city $300 millio n to build. In the long the Hilton will help Baltimorw book business by offering rooms next to the Baltimore Convention Center, hoteliers say.
But in the short term, the additional supply has made it difficulrtto compete. Linda Norman, the ’s general manager, could not be reached for The supply is slated toget bigger. Sevenm hotels are currently under construction in Baltimore. They include a 130-room Hotel Indigo on Redwoor and Calvert streets and a to open in Harbor Eastin 2010.

DirecTV CEO leaving as Liberty merger nears - St. Louis Business Journal:

http://e-hakuba.com/group/tool/remodel_check.html
just as the satellite broadcaster readies to merge with an offshoor ofJohn Malone’s News Corp. and DirecTV confirmef Wednesday that Carey will leave theEl Calif.-based satellite broadcaster July 1 to become second-in-command — handling international operations — for Rupertf Murdoch’s global media empire. Carey’ws defection may muddy investors’ receptionj of the planned merger between DirecT andLiberty Entertainment, a divisiobn of Douglas County-based Liberty Carey ran DirecTV for the past six leading it through a period of growth and winninb partnerships with every major telecom company in the U.S.
He was expected to stay with DirecTV after it became independent ofLiberty Instead, he returns to working for Murdoch and News where he worked for 15 years prior to headingg DirecTV. Liberty Entertainment (NASDAQ: LMDIA) holds a 54 percent staked in (NASDAQ: DTV) as well as controllint stakes in online gaming company Fun the Game Show Network and regional sports TV networkxin Denver, Pittsburgh and Those holdings are being spun off this year into a free-standinb company to clear up DirecTV’s stock structure and make it easiere for it to engage in mergers and acquisitions, the companiews said. Malone’s company traded its 16 percent ownershil stake inNews Corp.
back to Murdoch’sd company in 2007 in exchange for the controllinv stakein DirecTV.

Northern Kentucky University breakfast events assist nonprofits - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

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Institute Director John Vissman saidthe group’ws Breakthrough Breakfast events were created late last year to fill a void in the region’w nonprofit community, which these days is struggliny under the pressure of increaseds demand for services and shrinking resources. Vissman said the forumz are an extension ofthe institute’s work. It helps connect service learning classes to nonprofits toprovidde services, most of which are free. “Wre can help the nonprofits do theidrwork faster, more efficiently, more effectively and hopefully with fewe resources,” he said. Aaron Wolfe-Bertling said he’e found the breakfasts to be very helpful.
Wolfe-Bertling, the executivee director of the , estimated that he’sx attended a half-dozen of the “You always learn from each other. And if it’a a good idea, you like to steall it,” he said. In addition to the networking, Wolfe-Bertlinbg said he likes the fact that some breakfast topics focusaon hands-on skills, such as parliamentary while others give broader information on topics such as demographicsx or regional planning efforts. The next Breakthrough Breakfasty on June 4 will focus on the work ofAgendz 360, the regional planning effort. A session in Augusf features a presentation on social mediaand nonprofits.
Vissmann said the institute has worked to make theforumx affordable, too. Paid INC membersd receive free admission tothe Non-members pay $10. Seating is limited. For more .

Chamber keeps Inter City Visit at home - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

http://www.wh-auction.com/article/Sonia-summons-YSR-aide-after-signature-campaign.html
Political and business leaders announce plans Tuesday to keep the annual Inter City Visitin Charlotte, shelvintg plans for a three-day trip to Boston in The reason: economic woes. “We’ve decided to be internally saysTim Belk, chamber chairman and chief executivse of the department-store chain. “We want to be sensitivse about thebudget situation.” Last the chamber took 130 political and businesz leaders to Chicago. Each paid $2,1009 to go on the Interf City Visit.
This year, the group likely to exceed last year’s becausde of the local focus will spend three days discussing and examinin g various issues and taking tours of important landmarks inlocal education, tourism, business and politics. An agendaz for the three-day meeting should be determinedr ina month. For the next two weeks, organizer s will be gleaning ideas from the public through a surve y offeredat charlottechamber.com. Though stayingv home saves on travel chamber executives expect to charg an undetermined fee for meals and logistical costsw associated with thelocal agenda. Chamber leaderds made the decision to skip the Boston trip after a recent survey of 20past participants.
Four peopl e said they planned to skipthe trip, eigh t were undecided and the remaining eight wanted to move ahead with the Boston visit. Public officialz were adamantly against using taxpayer money to fundthei trips. “For government, we do not have the moneh to travelright now,” Mayor Pat McCrory Coupled with corporate belt-tightening, the chamber decided a typical trip woulf suffer too many absences to be productive. The chamberd hopes to re-schedule the Boston trip for 2010, dependint on economic conditions.