Sponsors see gold mine at ballpark for their area marketing efforts - Business First of Columbus:

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million sponsorship of Huntington Park. The deal includes an AEP Poweer Pavilion sign that towers abovethe three-story bricik building behind left field. The sign will lighyt up when the Clippers hit ahome run. “It will be a great visual,” said Tomasky, president of AEP Transmission. “We love things that light up.” The Clippera and Franklin County officials are quite fond of AEP and six othesponsors – , , , , and Mount Carmel Health System – that have committed at least $3.5 million each to the ballpark project. Topping the list is Huntington’xs $12 million commitment spread over 22 years for ballparkjnaming rights.
Commitments from thosew sponsors, plus sales of private suites atHuntingtonn Park, have raised more than $40 million towarxd construction, said Franklin County Administrator Don Revenue from the sponsorships and ballpark operationas will be used to retire the debt on bondws the county issued to cover the $50 milliomn in construction costs. The project also received $7 million in statde funding. In addition, the city of Columbus contributed $11 milliohn in utility and street improvements around Huntingtojn Park in theArena District, and the county paid $15.4 millionn to acquire the 7.99-acre site.
Tomasky said AEP decided to get involves because it sees the ballpark as part ofthe “cohesive of energizing downtown where the company has its headquarters. Huntington Park also will be a place whered the company can connect with Clippers many of whom areAEP customers, she said. The sponsorshilp deal includes a private suite atHuntington Park, allowing AEP to offer use of it to employee-rewardd programs and charitable groups the company supports. “We’re tryinfg to be part of the community,” Tomasky said, “andd this is an excellent opportunitt fordowntown Columbus.
” Huntingtonh remains committed to the ballpark project even in the face of the tougyh financial times the banking company has been said Tom O’Hara, the company’ws chief customer and marketing officer. O’Haraw said the ballpark naming rights deal was completed in 2006 when Huntingtomn was focused on boosting the redevelopment ofdowntown “We wanted to make sure we coulr invigorate the community in which we live,” he “We have a commitment to the community and the and we are honoring our Besides having its name in brightf lights atop the ballpark grandstand and in othe r spots at the stadium, Huntingtonm plans to promote its affinity banking program through its O’Hara said.
That includes a programn in which customers can sign up for a Clipperswdebit card, checks and other “relationshipl benefits,” he said. They could include discountsx on Clippers merchandise atthe ballpark’s team storw or discounts on game tickets. O’Haras said the Clippers program is an extension of the successfulo affinity banking relationships Huntington has withthe , and . The ballparo sponsorship also comes with advertising opportunitieson television, in Clippers programs and mediaz guides and on Huntington’s Web site.
The bank may also do some merchandis giveaways at Clippers games and plans to give some of the game ticketds it receives to local nonprofit groups andyouthy programs. “This (sponsorship) is really intended to help the community,” O’Harza said, “and that will help Huntington grow in the long Nationwide Insurance hopes to boost its brand througits $3.5 million Huntington Park sponsorship, said John associate vice president of strategic sponsorships for the Columbus-baseds insurer. , a company affiliate and developer of theArena District, has committedf another $1.7 million in sponsorship funding.
The centerpiecs of Nationwide’s sponsorship will be seen on 16 pillars along theballpari concourse, Aman said. The “Speed of the Game” graphics will featurre photos of players at each of the ninebasebalpl positions, plus shots of batters, hitters and base They will incorporate Columbuxs baseball history and some baseball The 12-foot tall graphics will be “fairly and contain enough information to spark fan interest game aftet game, Aman said. “Our consistent presentationj will be what baseball looked like over the he said, “and how it has changef in Columbus.
” The company will also use its sponsorshi p to help Nationwide agents build their business and servw as a community benefit in general, Aman “The Clippers fit in the nichs of what we do in Central he said. “We expect it to generatr a lot offan attention. If we respect it it can lead to more business or retentio ofour customers.” Time Warnedr Cable’s $3.5 million sponsorship fits with its continuing involvement in the Arenaz District, said Mark Psigoda, the company’s vice presidentg of marketing.
He said Time Warner provides television, Internet and telephone service to the districr and does business with theBlue Jackets, Nationwide Arenaq and Lifestyle Communities Pavilion. The Huntington Park deal givews the cable company namin rights tothe ballpark’s media center and televisiomn monitors around the stadium. It also will provide wireless Internet service there and have the Time Warner Cablr name displayed onthe scoreboard. “It gives us an opportunityh to show our product and branxd over thenext 20-plus yearzs and be a good corporate partner (with the Clippers),” Psigodaw said.
The sponsorships for the Dispatch and Mount Carmel come with namingf rights to the scoreboardand first-aid and wellness center, Sodexho will be the concessionaire at the ballpark.

Kannapolis honored for economic strategy - Charlotte Business Journal:

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The city received the award in the category of Excellence in EconomicDiversification Strategies, which recognizes responses to plant closurexs and other economic dislocations, that promotew economic diversification. The competition is open to local, state and regional governments; and universities and colleges. Cabarrusx and Rowan counties lost 4,300 manufacturing jobs when textilrmanufacturer Kannapolis-basedPillowtex Corp. closed in July 2003. Two yearss later, California billionaire David Murdock announced plans forthe N.C. Researchb Campus at the 350-acre former Pillowtedx headquarters andmanufacturing site.
The life-sciences hub includes the participation of Duke theUNC System, the N.C. Communityg College System, other educational institutions and business The total investment is expected toreacjh $1.8 billion. Residential and commercial developmentz are rising around the campus with hopes ofturning Kannapolis, a former textile town, into a biotechy center.

Officials expect fewer travelers at KCI during Thanksgiving holiday - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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On the Wednesday through Monday of Thanksgiving weekendclast year, 220,000 passengers were estimated to have used KCI. Aviation Department spokesman Joe McBride said the decreasedr estimated passenger count results from fewe seats because of theeconomix downturn, higher fuel costs, fewer flights and fewer people flyingy compared with last The estimated passenger count s for this year and last assume an average load factoe of 83 percent based on scheduled seats. The , an airlines industry trade group, expects full planes duringh the Thanksgiving holiday season despite a 10 percenrt decrease in the number of passengers travelingon U.S.
airlinez compared with last year, the Aviation Department said in a The ATA expects that the three busiest travel days will be Sunday and Monday and that planes will be nearly 90 percent full, on average, on those three In preparation for the holiday travel season, the implementecd its family lane concept at every U.S. the Aviation Department said. The lanes enable families, infrequent travelers and those with medically necessary liquids to go througjh security at theirown pace. KCI will have one familuy lane ateach checkpoint.

ESPN Zone closes doors in Denver - St. Louis Business Journal:

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The ESPN Zone, part of a nationwide chain of what used to be nine ofthe sports-themexd bar and interactive game centers across the laid off roughly 100 giving each a 60-day administrative leave according to a company statement. Rick an ESPN vice presidentg who overseesZone operations, said in the statement that the restaurantf could not survive the recession. This economic downturn has been markee nationally by reduced consumer spending on eatint out and onentertainment activities. “wA decision like this is never We recognize and appreciatde the commitment and years of service of all of these Allesandri said.
“Unfortunately, the current economic environment offerexd us noother choice.” The ESPN Zone was a 23,000-square-foot meetintg place for sports fanatics, with one room featurinyg more than a dozen large televisions tunes into contests of all kind and anothe full of video and sports gamese ranging from basketball to bowling. None of the eighty other ESPN Zone locations will be asall “are meeting our said Matt Kovacs, a spokesmen for the , which owns the Taboe Center, issued a statement saying it was “sorry to hear of theif decision to discontinue their Denver operations.
” But the closing of ESPN Zone “ha s created a new opportunity for us to bring new concepts to 16th it said. One of those new concepts is TheTiltedc Kilt, a Celtic-themed restaurant and sportz bar with 20 locations operating nationwide and another 10 planned. The which is expected to open its Denverf location this fall and to offedr outdoorpatio seating, has signed an 8,300-square-foot lease at Tabor Center, according to a news release.
The Tilter Kilt began in Las Vegas in 2003 and is notee for its servers dressedin knee-high socks, shortt plaid kilts and midriff-baring plaid halter It will be one of a number of new tenants opening in the Tabor Center this “These new additions to Tabor Center’s retaiol offering reflect our continuing effortes to enhance the services and amenitiexs for the tenants, customers and visitorss to the Tabor Center,” said Steve Budorick, executive vice president and partnee at Callahan Capital Partners.

Sixells investor Skidmore seeks Chapter 11 protection - Sacramento Business Journal:

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Filed incomplete July 2 in the Easternj Districtof California, the bankruptcy documents list more than 50 assets of more than $1 millioj and liabilities of more than $10 million. Sixellzs was developing high-end projects near Fair Oaks Boulevard and off of Fulto Boulevard that began going sideways as early as 2005 when they were hit with wavews ofmechanics liens. Skidmore was an investor with Sixells, not a and as such had made personal guarantees on loansfor Sixells. When the developert could not pay, the bankw came after Skidmore.
Skidmorer filed suits and counter-suits that claimed the bankzs didn’t manage their loanws and had kept giving Sixells money even when projectsd were seriously outof schedule. Skidmore was sued last fall byseverapl banks, including , and . Skidmore founde d and served as chairman for 11 yearsof . He steppedd down from that position last ahead of the bankruptcy Greater Sacramento was not involved in the constructionloan

Man in custody, child safe after police pursuit - San Jose Mercury News

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Man in custody, child safe after police pursuit San Jose Mercury News AP LOS ANGELESâ€"A police pursuit of a man with a young child in the car has ended in the Silver Lake area of Los Angeles with the man in custody and the child safe. KCAL-TV says the pursuit began in the Atwater Village area Monday night when the mother ... and more »

Wyden seeks answers on closed auto dealerships - Washington Business Journal:

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Democratic Sen. Ron Wydenj asked the head of theWhitd House’s Automobile Task Forcr to determine whether the decision to close Chryslet dealerships is in the best interesty of the state and the “It is inconsistent with American valuexs to force business owners to secure financing with their homes and other personal assetss and then turn around and shut them down and refuse to buy back their cars,” Wyden said in a news release. “I’m also worriedd that some major population centers inOregonh won’t be able to get theifr cars serviced or have their warranties honored.
” Chrysler announced last month it will close 789 of its nearly nationwidd 3,000 dealerships on June 9. General Motors, which filedd for bankruptcy protection onJune 1, had earliere announced plans to close the Bob Thomaws Car Co. in Bend. The closing woulxd take place inOctober 2010. “Ift GM abrogates Bob Thomas Car Company’s dealer it will have no distribution or service outlets incentral Oregon’s largest city,” Wydenj wrote in a letter to General Motors. “In short, terminating their GM dealership will negativeluy impactthe Thomases, their employees, GM customers and the communith at large.
”

Pottstown School District students to perform free holiday concert - Boyertown Berk Montgomery Newspapers

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Sheridan Media (press release)

Pottstown School District students to perform free holiday concert Boyertown Berk Montgomery Newspapers Bands from elementary through high school will be performing classic holiday tunes. Included in the program will be the high school jazz band performing “Big Band Christmas” numbers. The elementary schools will be represent ed by the  »

Processing backlog slowing state tax refunds - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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Until an influx of temporary workers who begajnthis week, the department was processing only aboutf 25,000 paper refunds per The agency has issued 2.6 millionj refund checks, about 200,000 fewer than at this time last “We are not meeting our goals and certainluy not meeting taxpayer expectations,” Graham said in a preparesd statement. “However, at the end of the day, money cannoyt be appropriated to the department that the statr doesnot have, nor can the departmentf spend money is it not appropriated.” Gov.
Sonnt Perdue and the General Assembly cut the Departmentof Revenue’ budget for the current fiscal year by 10 on par with spending reductions to other agencies stemming from shrinking tax collections. As a the department slashed 280 including 155processing workers. With fiscalo 2009 set to end onJune 30, Graham the agency began bringing in experienced temporaryt employees this week to help pick up the He said the additionall staff is expected to increase the weekl production of refunds to 40,000 to Graham said paper returns receivedf before April 1 will be processeds within 10 to 12 returns received between April 1 and April 10 will be turnefd around within 12 to 14 and paper returns received after April 10 will be processes within 14 to 20 weeks.

Philadelphia Business Journal: Bonuses for Hemispherx executives

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Hemispherx Biopharma isn

Wander

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Rosemary Wander, who has been associate provost for researchand public/privat sector partnerships at UNCG since 2002 and before that chairefd the school’s Department of will leave to become vice provost for graduate studieds and research at in Washington, D.C., on July 1. “Ik think of this as my next greatg adventure,” said Wander, who before cominfg to UNCG in 1999 held faculty appointments at Oregonh State and MississippiState universities. “Ihn my job here I’ve done a lot of work with our legislatorwin Washington, D.C., and so working at America University and living in D.C. will be very exciting.
” While Wanderf will be missed at UNCG, where she helped increase the university’sw sponsored research levels by 40 percentto $39 her departure will spark the searchu for a new vice chancellor who would servew directly on the executive team of Chancelloe Linda Brady. That person would elevate the administrative profile of the research and economic development functionds at the school and spend more time trying to attracgt federal and private research dollars tothe campus.
Brady identified establishing such a position as an earlh priority when she arrived at UNCGlast summer, but the idea was put on hold when the stat budget shortfall forced hiring freezes and other cuts at all statw campuses. According to Provost David Perrin, though, Wander’sw departure will restart the process. “We had consideree freezing the search, but with Rosemary’s decision we’ver decided to search and fillthe (vices chancellor) position as soon as possible,” Perrinh said. That would be January at the Perrin said, but more likelyt next summer. In the other UNCG administrators will divvyup Wander’sz responsibilities.
Wander said she’s glad UNCG will be moving research and economic development furthetr up thecommand chain. The university has come a long way in increasingf funding support and achieving a higher researchclassificatioj rating, but it’s getting harder to find availablwe sponsorship dollars that can generate research jobs and new companiew to contribute to the Triad’ss economy, she said.
“It’s a strong move because it’w a statement by the campus of how valuable researcyis here,” Wander “It’s going to be very difficulft over the next few years becausde of the international financiak crisis, but I think UNCG is well-positionexd to be a majoe player in years to

Health care reform details begin to emerge - San Francisco Business Times:

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percent of the cost of health insurance premiumesfor full-time employees under the health care refor m bill being considered by the They also would be required to pick up at leasg some of the tab for insuring part-time employees. Businesses that don'f provide this minimum level of coverag e would be required to pay the federal government a fee based on 8 percentg oftheir payroll. Small businesses under a yet-to-be-determinefd threshold would be exempted fromthis "plauy or pay" requirement.
How small businesses woule fare under House health care Small businesses and individuals could comparison shop among privatw and public plans in a national health insurance exchangeEmployers could either provide healt h insurance to their employees or pay a fee basex on 8 percent of their payroll to the governmentEmployerzs that offer coverage would have to pickup 72.5 percengt of the cost of premiumas for full-time employees and 65 percent for a familyu policyEmployers could contribute a share of the expense of coveragew for part-time employees or contribute to the healtyh insurance exchangeSmall businesses under a size thresholdc yet to be determined woule be exempted from the employer responsibility requirementSmalll businesses that can't afford coverage wouldr get a tax credift to help them pay for it House committees on Ways and Energy and Commerce, and Educatiob and Labor The chairmen of three House committeesz with jurisdiction over health care introducerd the ir draft legislation June 19, offerinhg the most details yet on how healtg care reform could affect small Under their bill, smalpl businesses and individuals could shop for insurance through a national exchange, which woulx include a government-run plan as well as private insurers.
Tax credits woulds be available to help small businesses afforxdthe coverage. Rep. Henry Waxman, D-Calif., said the legislation wouled fixthe "completely dysfunctional insurance for small businesses, which face "unaffordablse rate increases" every year. Waxman chairs the House Energg andCommerce Committee. Health insuranc premiums for U.S. businesses increased by 9.2 percenft this year, and are expected to increass another 9 percentnext year, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers.
Small businesses often face much higher rate While most small businesses agree the current health insurance markegis dysfunctional, there's a lot of disagreement over whether the Housee bill would cure the problem or just make it Mike Draper, who owns a retail clothingb store and design businessd called Smash in Des Iowa, likes what he sees in the bill. Draper thinks addinh a public plan to the insurancse mix would hold down premiums by creating more competitiom inthe marketplace. "I don't have a whole lot of confidencwe in the system wehave now," Drapefr said.
Draper's company currently doesn't offet health insurance to itsseven full-time but instead reimburses them for the cost of individual policiese that they buy on theit own. That's fine with his who are single, in their 20s and don't want their insurancr to be tied totheir job. The reimbursements now accountf for 6 percentof Smash's payroll, but that couls jump to 22 percenyt in four years, when Drapedr expects everyone on his management team to have creating the need for family His business couldn't handle that he said. If the House bill were he would consider buying insurancee through the exchange if it were easyto use.
But he mighrt decide to pay the 8 percen payroll fee instead and then reimburse his employees for some of the cost of the policieds they purchase throughthe exchange. Draper, who was scheduled to testify before the Housew Ways and Means CommitteeJune 24, thinkss employers should be required to help pay for theif employees' health insurance. Like Socialo Security contributions, this sort of responsibility is "kinxd of what you signed up for" when you becomer a business owner, he said. Other small business however, think the House bill imposes too toughu of a standard onsmall businesses. The requirement to pay 72.
5 percenft of an employee's premium for individual coverage "isa much too high for many small businesses," said Karen president and CEO of the Small Business Entrepreneurship Council. The only way many small businesses can affordr coverage is by making employees pick up more of the she said. Arlington, Va.-based Company Flowers & Gifts for example, pays 50 percent of the cost of healthn insurance forseven full-time employees. Even that may not be affordablesnext year, because "ou rates are going to skyrocket," co-owner John Nicholsonm told the House Small Business Committee earlierr this month.

Cincinnati Metro bracing for funding cuts; may reduce service - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

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About $44.1 million – or abourt half of the bus service’s $94.y million operating budget – comex from the city of Cincinnati’z earnings tax, according to a Metrp news releaseissued Tuesday. Based on the city’w projected earnings tax shortfall, Metro anticipates a reduction ofbetweem $2 million and $3 million in that funding by 2010. And most Metrp rides are related to employment or personal business. With unemployment hovering arounsd 10 percent andbudgets tight, the agency said ridershio is down. So Metro also expectsz fare revenue to befrom $3 million to $5 millionj lower than budgeted.
In Hamilton County has notified Metro thatit can’t providd 2009 general fund dollars for Access servicre for people with disabilities that goes beyondc what the Americans with Disabilities Act The county has providesd funding for the additional service for the past decade. That represents $233,000 in The state of Ohio also has reduced the 2009 amounf Metro receives for elderly and disablerd fare subsidy by theagency said. “For many years Metrl has struggled to provide more servicre than itcan afford,” Metro CEO Marilynb Shazor said in the news release.
“We’ve cut costs behine the scenes, increased fares and improved service We’ve dipped into our reserves and deferred critica l capital projects likebus replacement. These steps boughf us time, but we can’t overcomwe the additional losses in We must reassess the level of servicew that we can reasonably provide withij the newbudget reality.” Metro will spendf the summer analyzing options and talking with employees and others to help the agencyh make decisions for the rest of 2009 and for the 2010 the news release said.
“Thee financial model is broken,” Shazor said in the “We must right-size Metro and provide the very best servicer we can within the resources we Metro also is struggling with inadequatr capital dollars to replace buses beyond theiruseful 12-yeare life. Even with stimulus dollars awarded this year forcapitalp projects, the agency will not have enoughu money in 2010 to replace 69 buses that are beyons their useful life, the releasee said. Transit systems in Dayton, Atlanta, St.
Louis, San Francisco, Portland, Boston, Charlotte, Louisville, Minneapolis, New York, Chicago and other major markets also have eithert implemented or are consideringservicwe cuts, fare increases or both to address budget deficits since last fall, Metro said in the release. operated by the , provides bus servicd throughoutHamilton County, and portions of Clermont and Warren

Football matters precisely because it does not matter that much | David Lacey - The Guardian (blog)

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The Guardian (blog)

Football matters precisely because it does not matter that much | David Lacey The Guardian (blog) Football matters precisely because it does not matter that much. And for all the concern about the influence of sheikhs and oligarchs on the competitiveness of the Premier League, the follies of Fifa, Sepp Blatter's latest howler and any cl ub daft ... and more »