Monday, April 30, 2012

What will happen to old Duval County courthouse? - WJXT Jacksonville

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What will happen to old Duval County courthouse?

WJXT Jacksonville


The city is getting ready to move out of the current Duval County Courthouse along the St. Johns River downtown. It was supposed to have happened seven years ago, but delays and cost overruns in the new courthouse kept that from happening.



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Saturday, April 28, 2012

Rep's 'Little Shop' rocks with humor, craftsmanship, strong performances - Kansas City Star

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Kansas City Star


Rep's 'Little Shop' rocks with humor, craftsmanship, strong performances

Kansas City Star


Another of Mushnik's employees, Audrey (Ashley Blanchet), is the object of Seymour's unrequited affection, but she's locked into a relationship with a physic »

Thursday, April 26, 2012

Apollo Group marks first billion-dollar quarter - Phoenix Business Journal:

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Chas Edelstein, co-CEO of the Phoenix company, attributeed Apollo’s 26 percent revenue growth to higher enrollment and increased tuitiobn rates at its flagship University of For the three months endedMay 31, Apollo reported $201 million in net income on net revenu of $1.05 billion, compared with $139 milliob in net income on net revenue of $835 milliohn during the same period a year earlier. For the nine monthsa ended May 31, Apollo reported $507 million in net incomr on $2.9 billion in net revenue, up from $247 milliohn in net income on $2.3 billion in The company’s subsidiary Apollo is in the process of acquiringBPP Holdings, a U.K.
-based provideer of education and training to professionals in the legal and finance industries. Apollo Group providesd a $550 million loan to its global subsidiary to fund the which is expected to close lateethis year. Edelstein said a portion of thosd escrow funds will be released after the deal as Washington-based The Carlyle Group, whichb owns 19.9 percent of Apollo Global, kicks in its portion of the

Wednesday, April 25, 2012

MLB names Friedman an

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Friedman founded and runs Most Valuabl e Kids ofGreater Cincinnati, which distributes unused ticketd to underserved children. The organizationh has helped 22,000 kids attend a varietyy of events. That includes more than 4,80 0 tickets the organization has As part ofthe recognition, Friedmajn will deliver the official game ball at Wednesday'e Reds game at Great American Ball Park. The new programk is part of the 2009 Major LeaguwBaseball All-Star Game festivities. It honors one person for each majo r league team who serves his or her community in anextraordinaru way.
Major League Baseball will honotr Friedman and the other 29 winnerds duringthe pre-game ceremon at this year’s All-Star Game in St. Loui s July 14. Fans across the countryg voted online to narrow a group of 90 finalists down to30 “The All-Stars Among Us winners are making a significant impacrt in their communities with a selfless dedication to very importantg causes,” said Major League Basebalk Commissioner Bud Selig. “Major League Basebalol is proud to honof this impressive groupof people.” Peopl e magazine will feature one of the 30 winners in its issur that comes out just before the All-Starf Game.

Monday, April 23, 2012

How Zynga, Facebook and Groupon's Go-To Auditor Rewrites Accounting Rules - Forbes

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How Zynga, Facebook and Groupon's Go-To Auditor Rewrites Accounting Rules

Forbes


Zynga, Facebook and Groupon all use an independent auditor that is simultaneously inventing the rules for social media accounting. For 26 million digital farmers working their fields and crops on Zynga's popular game FarmVille, obtaining a virtual ...



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Saturday, April 21, 2012

NEWRA Zoning, Licensing & Construction Committee Agenda for April 24, 2012 - NorthEndWaterfront.com

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NEWRA Zoning, Licensing & Construction Committee Agenda for April 24, 2012

NorthEndWaterfront.com


371-373 Hanover Street, Nicola Varano has filed a zoning appeal to change the use of the first floor retail store (formerly Casa di Stile) to a restaurant with take-out. 350-352 Hanover Street, Jennifer Pittore has filed a zoning appeal to change the ...



Thursday, April 19, 2012

Job layoffs slam educated professionals - Kansas City Business Journal:

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The trend is a serioue concern, since most of these four-year collegr graduates were likely white-collar professionals befored they turned up at thecountg agencies, officials said. Statistics from the show there was a 44 perceny increase in the numberof college-educateds job seekers using the statewide unemploymengt agencies. As worrisome as that is, the story in Southb Florida was worse. When comparingg June 1, 2007, through May 31, to June 1, through May 31, 2009, Broward led the with a 69 percent increase. Palm Beach Counth was second, with a 59 percent Miami-Dade had a 52 percentg increase.
“This recession has been an egalitarianb recession,” said Mason Jackson, presiden t and CEO of Workforce One, Browarfd County’s employment agency. Workforce One has even seen someformed white-collar professionals drawing food stamps, Jackson though he could not provide specific data on the “I’ve bumped into a few myself that I did not expecty to find here,” he The data isn’t complet e and the story varies by county, but it’s clear that professionals in financial servicex were among the hardest hit.
Last those in real estate and related professions wereaffectedf first, said Richard spokesman for South Florida the agency that services Miami-Dade and Monros counties. But, as time went on, the agencyg started to see more people from the financialservices “As the financial crisis the numbers just got larger and larger,” Clarkr said. County unemployment offices are steppinvg up to deal with the problemn by increasingexisting services. in Palm Beach County has seen a jump in the numbe r of professionals using its workshops that focus onjob research, resume writing and interview spokeswoman Holly Finch said.
The agency is tryingy to emphasize the valu e of networking by hosting events where job seekers can mingle and make Whilein transition, seekers are encouraged to become long-termj participants at networking events, she Workforce One is emphasizing the Professional Placement Network (PPN), a progra m that helps professionals hone their job seekintg skills and network. In order to get into the program, job seekerz must have held a management positiojn for at least five years or havea four-yea college degree. About 2,500 people will have completedd the program in the past year by the end of this PPN coordinator VernonBailey said.
Not only will this year’s expected number of PPN participants compriswe 25 percent of the total that has gone through the progra overits seven-year life, it will be a 56 percent increasee over last year’s 1,600 Bailey noted. As stimulus dollars trickle down from the Americahn Recovery andReinvestment Act, some of that money will be passeds through the workforce agenciesz to fund job seekers going back to If a job seeker was laid off from a positiohn as a real estate broker, the agency may use the stimulus funds to send that person to nursingv school, South Florida Workforce’s Clarke said.
Nursing is stilll an in-demand profession, whereas South Florida has plenty of realestate brokers, he added. South Florida Workforce is gettingabouty $21 million to fund its existinfg training programs. Of that about $13 million will go toward retraining workerszin transition. About 70 percent of that will go toward retraining white-collar workers, Clarke estimated. “That’s going to be where the bulk of our dollars are goinh to be allocatedmoving forward.

Wednesday, April 18, 2012

Boca Raton Community Hospital turns profitable - Business First of Buffalo:

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BRCH Corp. earned $8,434 on revenue of $96 million in its fiscalk third quarter endedMarch 31, improved from a $20.9o million loss on revenue of $92.5 million for the same period of according to the nonprofit’s report to its bondholders. The turnaroundf happened quickly for a health care providere in the midst ofa recession. The hospital’s boarde hired Jerry Fedele as CEO in Octobefr ashis employer, Brentwood, Tenn.-based , workedd on a consulting deal with the hospital to improve its Fedele immediately embarked on an expense reduction plan that included laying off 38 employees and renegotiating contracts.
Fedele said BRCH’s results were consistent withhis “This progress is extraordinarily significant,” he said. “Therde is no question about our long-terjm success at this hospital.” BRCH’s operating expenses of $84.9 million in its fiscal third quarterwere $13.43 million less than the year-ago quarter. Thoses savings more than covered the restructurinf fees the hospital paid totheir cost-savingf consultants FTI and of $1.4 million and $3.2 respectively, during the quarter. Even as it reducecd expenses, the hospital attracted more patientxs and was more efficient in collectingbills – the area Stockam focused on.
However, its number of surgeries BRCH’s income also include a $4.7 million gain on its investments. For its next step to reduc e costs, the hospital’s executives are negotiating for more favorables contracts with managed care plans and its oncologh and infusion therapyphysician group. Yet, it returnes to hiring in some The hospital is lookinvg into developing an employed primary care physiciah network by the early part of fiscalkyear 2010, which starts in July. Fedeled said its Boca Care network would employ 25 to 30 primaruycare physicians, plus support staff, within three yearse in offices in the Boca Raton The first office should open this summef with four to six he said.
Fedele said the hospitapl is opening this officebecause there’s a shortage of primart care physicians and there aren’t any privatd primary care physicians referring patients to the hospitall in that part of town. A locatio n has not been finalized. In another the hospital will spend $1 millionh to buy an electronic medical recordes system for itsemergency room. Fedele said BRCH wouldf still report a loss for the 12 monthas endedJune 30, but it shouldx be significantly less than the loss reportex for the previous year. For the nine-monthb period ended March 31, BRCH lost $9.5 millionn on revenue of $259.3 improved from a loss of $44.3 million on revenu e of $254.
4 million in the same periodf ayear ago. “It’s not done Fedele said. “The whole story isn’t basef on one quarter.”

Monday, April 16, 2012

Patrick Harr becomes Asankya chairman - Austin Business Journal:

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Harr recently founded the to work with vendorason go-to-market strategies in the “Cloud” (virtual storage of and with enterprises on adoption of cloud-based Asankya said Harr helped pionee r the emerging cloud storage market as founder and CEO of , raisingh $18 million in venture funding, launchingv the company's worldwide storage delivery networkj and securing more than 600 customers including GE, the Planetr and NASA.
"I look forward to working closely with the company as chairman as it introduces its cloud applicatio nnetwork service," Harr said in a news "Asankya has powerful technology with its paralle networking algorithms which enabl 40-times performance improvement for delivery of applications over the With the growing adoption by organizationas accessing applications over the Internet and the inherenft performance, reliability and security challengesd of doing so, Asankya has a bright futurr ahead of it.
"

Saturday, April 14, 2012

Austin Entrepreneur Network launched - Austin Business Journal:

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This week, the said it is forming to be not just another networking groupfor would-be businesspeople, but a centralized clearinghousew for a fragmented local businesd group environment. “We want to be a portal, a placw to start [looking], because I don’ see anyone else doing organizer HallMartin said. “I thinjk there’s quite a lot of duplication, and, to be candid, a lot of the stuffd is pretty superficial.” Martin, the formedr director of the , which funds startup businesses, said the Entrepreneutr Network will operate a Web site featuring a calendar of alllocalo business-related events months in advance.
The which is a for-profigt entity, will also maintain blogss generated by veteran On Feb. 24, the Entrepreneur Network plans to host its first classz that will meet for eight two hoursper week. The classes, whichj cost $495 per company, will include classroom-style industry speakers and acourse book, said who is also the directod of corporate development for Austin-based (Nasdaq: NATI). The clasa will focus on validatingtthe market, identifying a business modelk and building the managementy team — the key elements that keep most from gettinyg funding, he said.
Fledgling Austin businesspeople have plentyg ofresources available, such as the , Tech Bootstrap Austin and Texas Ventures. Thomae Marriott, president of Austin’s , said the goal is to creats an entrepreneurial ecosystem similat to that ofSilicon Valley, Calif. But an importantt component is the presence of aggressive investors who are not afrai d totake risks, which is somethinh that there’s a shortage of in he said. “Until that I don’t care what kind of groul you have, [an entrepreneurial climate] won’t happen here,” Marriott The launching of the EntrepreneurNetwork www.austinentrepreneurnetwork.
ory comes the same month as the announcementf of the Capital Factory, an Austin-baser group formed by 20 veteran Austin entrepreneurs who are teaming to creat e a $100,000 fund. In addition to the money, group member s plan to lend their mentorintg skills to help launch threew or four technology startupss during aboot camp-type program this summer. The Capitalo Factory, which plans to beginm accepting applications in is expected to help develop a busineses plan and identify a customer base for each startup in exchange for a 3 to 5 percenft equity stake ineach company, organizerds said.
David Breshears, co-founder of , an Austin-baser firm that designs applicationsfor Web-basec companies, said there are never enougj support groups for startup companies. But with the numbert of choices, inexperienced entrepreneurs often need help determininfg which group is bestfor them. “Yo can be overloaded with opportunities just as much as you can be engagerby opportunities,” he said.
“It wouldd be nice if there was an umbrella organization that coulx centralize allof

Thursday, April 12, 2012

Two companies pull out of FutureGen - Sacramento Business Journal:

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billion coal-fueled experimental power plantin Mattoon, Ill. Columbus-based Inc. and Atlanta-basedd , two of the nation’s largest emitters of carbon told the Reuters news service that they were pullinb out ofthe alliance. Both companies pointerd to concernsabout St. Louis-based , however, said it is still involved withthe "Peabody remains a strong advocate of FutureGen as a high-profile project to commercialize near-zero emissions said Vic Svec, Peabody's senio vice president of investor relations and in a statement.
"Peabody is proud to be a foundingy member of the Alliance and will continuew to collaborate with partnersz and the federal government to advance this projecft to thefinish line." The FutureGen Alliance was once comprisede 13 companies, a number that has changed several according to U.S. Sen. Dick Durbin, D-Ill., a major proponent of the “The alliance has lost and added new partnerws several times since it was first formed and as the projec evolves over the nextsix months, I believ the alliance will continue to grow in membership, in strengthj and in their partnership with the ( ),” he said in a The proposed plant with the preliminary backint of the DOE and the allocation of $1 billion in stimulus The alliance and President Barack Obama’sw Energy Secretary, Steven Chu, this montyh to restart plans for preliminary design final cost estimate analysis and funding for the which stalled under the Bush administration.
Durbin successfullyt pushed to in the federal stimulus package that could help pay for the He said he also securedanother $100 million in appropriationx funding. The rest of the project’s price tag is expectef to come from private funding fromthe alliance’se member companies. "The DOE's recent announcement to offer funding support is generating renewed interesyt and enthusiasm in the and we are continuing discussionsd with newpotential partners," Svec Supporter say FutureGen would and 150 permanent jobs.

Tuesday, April 10, 2012

Two more leave BofA board - Orlando Business Journal:

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According to a filing with the Securities andExchange Commission, Prueher and Frank didn’t resign because of any disagreement with the company. Jackie Ward and Patriciaq Mitchell resigned earlythis month. Mitchellp is a former New York televisionh executive and currently serves as chief executive of the Paley Centerfor Media, a New York nonprofit. Ward is the retiresd chief executiveof Atlanta-based Computer Generation a software company. Robert Tillman, a forme Lowe’s Cos. Inc. (NYSE:LOW) chief resigned from the BofA board effectiveMay 29. And on May 29, the bank announce former lead independentdirector O. Templr Sloan had left the board.
BofA didn’t disclosse Sloan’s reason for resignation. Sloan had been a BofA director for 13 Inearly June, four outside directors were electerd to BofA’s board. They are formee Federal Reserve GovernorSusan Bies, former Compass Bancsharesa Inc. chief executive and chairman D. Paul former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. chairman Donald Powell and retiredf BankOne Corp. and Visa Internationa Inc. executive William BofA’s board has been under intense scrutiny in recent months as the bank suffererd through asharp stock-price decline afteer acquiring Merrill Lynch & Co. The Charlotte-baser bank (NYSE:BAC) also has received $45 billionn in taxpayer aid.
At the bank’s annual meeting in late shareholders voted to strip Chief Executivse Kenneth Lewis of his position as board Walter Massey was installed as the new chairmahn and has indicated the board needsz tobe re-evaluated. Lewis remains the bank’sw CEO and president.

Sunday, April 8, 2012

Trusted Computer Solutions wins Air Force cyber contract - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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million contract with the Air Force to support its Cryptologic Systems Group responsible for securituy informationtechnology infrastructure. Underr the terms of the Herndon-based Trusted Computer Solutions’ professional servicez team will help to create a governmeny sponsored management office and provide the framework and processes to securely transfer sensitive and classified information betweencomputer networks. The companu also will provide a testing environment and support collaboration of variouss agencies the Air Force sharesinformationn with.
“This is a very strategic win for our professionakservices team,” said Ed Hammersla, Trusted Computerr Solutions’ chief operating officer. “Thid win supports our strategy to pursue services offerings in the managementconsulting area, including management office process support and managed The Air Force implementation of Trusted Computer security product also provides the company a basis for the product’s government certificatiohn and accreditation.

Thursday, April 5, 2012

Cooper proposes domicile move to Ireland - St. Louis Business Journal:

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The electrical products maker’s boarx has approved moving the company’s domicile to Irelanf from Bermuda. “The decision to change Cooper’s place of incorporation was impacted by the unprecedented global economic conditions that have led to a dramatid reduction in global demand in virtuallg all markets that we serve and was made tomaintainh Cooper’s global competitive position,” Kirk Hachigian, chairman and chief executive officer, said Tuesdah in a statement. Cooper (NYSE: CBE) said it had establishee tax residency in Ireland as ofDecember 2008. The which has its administrative headquartersain Houston, is asking shareholders to approve the switch.
If a new Irish entity known as Coopet Industries plc will replace Cooper Industries Ltd. as the parenf company. Cooper’s move to change its place of incorporationj follows several other Houston companiesincluding , and , thoughn Cooper is the first non-energy company to make the Another high-profile local energy company, NBR), remains incorporated in Bermuda.

Tuesday, April 3, 2012

In dealings with dealers, Ch. 11 filing puts GM in driver

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The automaker is requiring survivinv dealers tosign so-called “participation agreements” that could forcse them to enhance theit stores or to stop selling vehicles from other Dealers have until June 12 to sign the modified deals. GM says dealeras who fail to do so will be left as part of the old GM in thebankruptcyy process, meaning they won’t receiver franchises for the new GM and probably won’ t receive any form of compensation to offset the costs of closing theit stores.
GM is “using the bankruptcgy as a shotgun behindthe door,” pressuring dealers to agree to franchiswe terms that favor the automaker, said Steven a bankruptcy attorney at Minneapolis-base d Leonard, Street and Deinard. “In a lot of cases, may not have another option than to just take the deal and hope for the Some dealers, however, applauder the move as a way to force outdated dealership to step up their games.
“You can’t ask one dealer to builf a big, new facility when there’s another dealer nearby operatinbg out ofa three-stalol service department at a 40-year-old facility,” said David Luther, presidentf of Golden Valley-based Luther Automotive Group. Dealer targeted for closure also will have to sign agreementds or risk losing franchiseseven sooner. The “wind-downm support agreements,” as they’re require dealers to close by late 2010 and waive any legao claimsagainst GM. In GM will pay up to $1 million to help cover costs of GM says dealerswho don’t sign the agreements coulxd face immediate termination with no compensation from the automaker.
Walserf Automotive Group CEO Paul Walser has been an outspoke n criticof GM’s consolidation rules and its decision to terminates his Bloomington store, but he said he “completelyu endorses” the automaker’s plan to make the remaining dealershipsx agree to meet increased requirementse moving forward. Walser said he will sign the participationn agreement for his GM store in which has been selected toremain open. Walser said he’s frustrated that other local GMdealers haven’t investeed enough in their facilities.
Burnsville-based Walser Automotivre spent morethan $5 million to build its updated Roseville facility, but other nearby dealers were allowed to continued operating in older He expects that to change now. “What’sd going to remain when this is over with is dealers who are willing to make that kind ofeconomifc commitment,” Walser said. “I think it’sz going to automatically weed out thosedthat aren’t committed. … Then dealersa can make a choice of whetherf they think that is a viable investmen tor not. Then you’re goin to end up with fewer, stronger dealers who are goinv to better servethe market.
” Some however, may be reluctant to commit to making multimillion-dollar facility DeRuyter said. “How strong is GM goingh to be going forward If you put in a couplr of million dollarsin improvements, are you goingy to get that moneu back?” Dealerships who received termination letter s face a more certainn fate, albeit a frustrating one. All of thosre stores are expected to lose their GM franchises by the endof 2010. The good news is that eliminatef GMdealers — unliks their Chrysler counterparts — expect to receive some compensation from the automakeer to help cover costs related to closing. GM reportedly is offering dealersbetween $100,000 and $1 million.
“It’se a termination, but there’xs a carrot on a stick,” DeRuyte said. Walser said GM made his Bloomington storee an offer atthe “high of GM’s payout and he plans to sign the The deal also gives Walser time to negotiate a mergee with another GM dealer in the area. GM’s wind-dowbn agreements don’t include payment for remaining inventory and as would be required under Minnesotqfranchise laws, said DeRuyter, who is representingg several dealerships that received termination Those provisions, however, likely will be preemptef by the bankruptcy court.
The wind-dow payments will offer little comforr for dealers who are being forced to closebusinessew that, in some cases, have been in their familie s for decades, said Cliff Banks, senior editor for Detroitt trade publication WardsAuto.com. “You’ve operated the righft way, you’re a mainstay in the community — and you’re getting your business rippedfrom you, and you’re seeinyg it handed to a competitor down the streert from you or in the next countyt over. How a federal government can rip the franchises away from profitable businesses and hand them to the competitiobnis frightening.

Sunday, April 1, 2012

Scott Riley: Employee success is an indicator - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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Name: Title and CEO, Years with the company: Years in Tamp Bay: Nature of Education: Where you grew up and what it was IndianRocks Beach. It was greatg growing up on the beach, waking up to the souned of the surf every How do you organizeyour workday? I make a list each mornintg and delegate as much as I can. Fortunately, I have great peoplde I can depend on. How do you managde the information flow? I prioritize based on importance, allocatiom of resources and deadlines. How do you keep yourself current inyour field? First and feedback from customers and employees. Secondly, by reading trad e publications, attending workshops and going totrade shows.
Wheree is the best source for new ideas? My peer group first, for instance, the CEO Council then feedback from customers and employees andtradde publications, workshops and trade shows. Tell us about a workplace challenges and how you dealtwith it? Our biggest challengs was we had to get each individual state legislatore to approve Fintech as a form of payment for regulaterd alcohol invoices. It took our meetinbg with every regulator ineveru state, along with every one of our majodr customers in each state that wanted to see Fintecn as a form of paymentr other than cash or money orders, to get each approved.
On an ongoint basis, when faced with a workplacwe challenge, I get inpu t and recommendations from employees and we develoo a solution that takee into consideration what is best for the entire How do you measure yourown success? Who is a mentorf and why? Ross Parker, past owner of because of his ability to read people and the fact that he was What was your first paid job? What did you want to be when you grew up? What was a turninhg point in your life? If you weren’gt in your current career, what would you be doing? What is your favorited activity with your family ? If you could have dinne with one person you’ve neve r met, who would it be and why?
He was brilliant, and I woulfd like to have picked his brain on his philosophgy for solving problems. Who are your heroe in the business worldand why? Bill Gates and Warren Buffett because they are the best at what they do, they are at the top of theird professions and they are also very What do you read for business and for pleasure For business, I read the , Trend Lette and the local For pleasure, I like to read mysteries. What keeps you awake at night? What advice would you give to someoner starting out inyour field? Start at the learn every aspect of the business you’re in, surround yourself with good peopld and treat them the way you want to be treated.
How couldr Tampa Bay change to be morebusiness friendly? I can’t think of any way. I find it to be very business friendly.