Wednesday, December 29, 2010

Jeff Dawson/Lester Library: Manitowoc-Calumet Library System benefits patrons - Herald Times Reporter

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Jeff Dawson/Lester Library: Manitowoc-Calumet Library System benefits patrons

Herald Times Reporter


It also  »

Sunday, December 26, 2010

With NFC South at stake, Falcons turn to 4 offensive threats one more time - Atlanta Journal Constitution

vanbeekdulejos1771.blogspot.com


With NFC South at stake, Falcons turn to 4 offensive threats one more time

Atlanta Journal Constitution


I'd be too confused if I had too many buttons to push." Only Atlanta opponents are confused now, trying to deal with four major offensive threats.



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Friday, December 24, 2010

Hollywood Dispute Pits Parking Against Organic Food - New York Times

http://madridfranquicia.com/reportaje.php?id=651


Hollywood Dispute Pits Parking Against Organic Food

New York Times


LOS ANGELES รข€" On weekdays, Ivar Street is a quiet strip of Hollywood with a theater, a sound recording studio, a Jack in the Box, ...



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Tuesday, December 21, 2010

Fontainebleau's Soffer caught by Lehman Bros. bankruptcy - Baltimore Business Journal:

http://www.helmitechnologies.com/codecentral/codecentral-applets.html
“When the retail division of the project lost accesw to fundingthrough Lehman, it was unable to repahy the resort for its share of costs,” said Scotyt Baena, of Bilzin Sumberg Baena Pricwe Axelrod, who represents Fontainebleau Las Vegass LLC in the bankruptcy. “Thayt put enormous stress on the resort and that was the beginning ofthe problems.” Fontaineblea u Las Vegas LLC and two of its affiliates filed bankruptcy petitions in Miami late Tuesday.
The Fontainebleau Miamij Beach is not included inthe Soffer, also principal with Turnberryy construction and development companies, has partial, persona guarantees on portions of the retail component of the Las Vegas project, but those portions are not in bankruptcty yet, Baena said. The complex is 70 perceng completed. Since December 2008, Lehman refused to make any advances underthe project’s $315 milliojn construction loan, according to a motion to maintain cash management filed in the bankruptcy. After Lehman’es refusals, money stopped flowing through the retail entity to theresorft entity.
In March, other lenders pulled theie financing, and construction on the resort stoppedin May, Baensa said. The company said in a news releasde that the decision to file Chapte r 11 was the result of litigatio n with the other lenders on project aboutfnearly $800 million in construction funding for the project. Other lenders include , JPMorgan Chass Bank and Deutsche BankTrust Co. Americas. In the shortr term, the company is seekinhg to stabilize and protect the finished portionn ofthe building, Baena said. “It’x no longer possible to downsizethe building,” he said. “Th e 30 percent remaining construction is principallythe interior.
We’vde got a lovely building waitingy tobe finished.”

Sunday, December 19, 2010

Intermountain Drilling opens AZ office - Dayton Business Journal:

borislavamcoc.blogspot.com
Lee & Associates represented the landlord, Irgens Development Partners LLC. NAI Horizo represented the tenant. • signed a 10-year leaswe for 31,400 square feet at 1140 and 1150 S. Priestf Drive in Tempe. The value of the leasee is $4 million. The which had been known as IIA College, is taking spacwe recently vacated by Collins which now operates in Cotton Centerr insoutheast Phoenix. Brookline is movinh from 925 S. Gilbert Road in Mesa. Grubb & Ellis/BRd Commercial represented the Pecos-Windmill N.W. LLC of Henderson, Nev. Landmarki TCN represented Brookline College. signed a five-year lease for 18,000 square feet at the Van BurenDistribution Center, 20 S. 48th Ave.
in The company distributes hydraulic industriakl hoses and is relocating from a locationbfarther west. Financial terms of the lease were not CB Richard Ellis representedsthe landlord, Mountain West Properties of Greenwood Village, Colo. Daum Commercial Real Estater Services representedthe tenant.

Thursday, December 16, 2010

Health reform details emerge - Kansas City Business Journal:

acasadtoglad-shiva.blogspot.com
percent of the cost of healthu insurance premiumsfor full-time employees under the health care reform bill beinvg considered by the House. They also would be required to pick up at least some of the tab forinsuring part-time employees. Businesses that don’t provide this minimum levelp of coverage would be required to pay the federal governmentg a fee based on 8 percent of their Small businesses undera yet-to-be-determined thresholsd would be exempted from this “play or requirement.
The chairmen of three Housse committees with jurisdiction over health care introducedd draft legislationJune 19, offering the most details yet on how healthh care reform could affect small businesses. Under the small businesses and individuals could shop for insurance througnh anational exchange, which would includer a government-run plan and private insurers. Tax credits would be available to help small businessed affordthe coverage. Health insurance premiums for U.S. businessezs increased by 9.2 percent this and are expected to increase another 9 percent next accordingto PricewaterhouseCoopers. Small businesses oftebn face much higherrate hikes.
Whil e most small businesses agree the current healtg insurance marketis dysfunctional, there’s a lot of disagreement over whether the Housde bill would cure the problen or just make it worse. Mike who owns a retai l clothing store and desigjn business called Smash inDes Iowa, likes what he sees in the Draper thinks adding a public plan would hold down premiumse by creating more competition in the Draper doesn’t offer health insurance to its seven full-time workers, but reimbursew them for the cost of policies they buy on their own. That’s fine with his employees, who are singlse and in their 20s.
The reimbursementd now account for 6 percentof Smash’s but that could jump to 22 percenf in four years, when Draper expects everyone on his managementr team to have children, creating the need for familuy plans. His business couldn’t handle that expense, he said. If the Housee bill were enacted, he would consider buying insurance througbh the exchange if it were easyto use. But he mightr decide to pay the 8 percentr payrollfee instead, then reimburse his employees for some of the cost of the policie they purchase through the Draper thinks employers should be requiredf to help pay for their employees’ health Like Social Security contributions, this sort of responsibilityu is “kind of what you signedd up for” when you become a business owner, he Other small business owners, however, think the House bill imposes too tough of a standarde on small businesses.
The requirement to pay 72.5 percent of an employee’s premium for individua coverage “is much too high for many smalp businesses,” says Karen president and CEO of the SmallBusiness & Entrepreneurship Council. The only way many smalll businesses can afford coverage is by making employeesa pick up more ofthe cost, she Arlington, Va.-based Company Flowers Gifts Too!, for example, pays 50 percent of the cost of health insurance for sevenm full-time employees. Even that may not be affordablrenext year, because “our rates are going to skyrocket,” co-ownedr John Nicholson told the House Smallk Business Committee earlier this month.

Tuesday, December 14, 2010

U.S. Treasury Department selling TARP warrants at 34% discount - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

thiswake-citizenship.blogspot.com
Through the Troubled Asset Relief knownas TARP, the Treasury Departmenft purchased preferred stock and warrants from banksz in an effort to prop up lending. Warrants, whicj give the holder the right to buya company’sz stock at some point in the futured for a specific price, presented a lot of potentiall upside for taxpayers, should bank stock prices rise aboves the face value of the warrants. Many banks have sought to buy back theid preferred shares and warrantsfrom Treasury.
“Because the warrants that accompanied TARP assistance represent the only opportunitty for the taxpayer to participate directly in the increases in the share prices of banks made possible bypublicx money, the price at which the warrante are sold is the panel said. The charged with determining whether taxpayers are receiving maximuj benefit fromthe TARP, conductec its own valuation of the warrants the Treasury holds. It founc that the 11 banks that have repurchased their warrants from the Treasuruy for a total amount that the panel estimates to be only 66 percentg of currentmarket value, shortchanginbg taxpayers by $10 million.
The Treasuryu is still in the early stages of its warrantrepurchase program, and the panel acknowledgee that the prices thus far may not be representativse of what is to come.

Saturday, December 11, 2010

Exxon ordered to pay $507.5M in spill case - The Business Journal of Milwaukee:

martaemimbzini.blogspot.com
million in punitive damages plus interest to plaintiffs affected by the Exxobn Valdez oil spill that impacted residente and businesses living along the coast of Alaskwin 1989. The made their ruling Mondayt after the case was sent back fromthe . At the Ninthb Circuit level, justices were charged with determining interest andappellate costs. The Ninth Circuit confirmed the punitive damage amountf afterthe U.S. Supreme Court determined compensatory damages and punitive damages shouls be assessed usinga 1-to-1 ratio.
In its latest decision, the Ninth Circuit confirmer that Irving-based Exxon (NYSE: XOM) is responsible for $507 milliohn in punitive damages and must pay interest on the judgmentf at the rateof 5.9 percent dating back to when the initial judgment againstg the company was first issued by a The federal case against Exxon Mobil has been languishing for more than a decade. The Ninthy Circuit said both sides will covee theirown attorney’s fees. The original jury verdicty against Exxon Mobilwas $5 billion, an amount that has been reducef by 90 percent during the more than 10 yearw of litigation, according to court records.
An Exxon Mobill spokesman said Monday, "We are awared that the opinion has been issue and will review the opiniobn beforecommenting further."

Monday, December 6, 2010

Professional services firms shopping for new office space in tenants

http://www.golfequipmentsupply.com/golfer/date/2006/02/page/2/
And, the city’s largest professional services firme will be the belles of the with at least five giantsin Atlanta’w legal, accounting and consulting industries alread y looking for a new deal — and more possibly to follow. Each firm is looking at leases ranginvg from atleast 100,000 square feet to abouty 400,000 square feet. , Atlanta’s largest law firm with 435 attorneys and housedrin Midtown’s One Atlantic Center, is looking for new , a unit of the globapl insurance and consulting giant , is potentiallty moving from the 19-story Prominence in Buckheadx at Piedmont and Lenos roads.
Midtown’s , which calls 10 Tentn Street home, recently began testing the waters for a new joining Big Four competitor and downtownb officetenant , which is currently housede at SunTrust Plaza. And, , the city’s fourth-largesty law firm, is also expected to enter the It would consider movingtfrom Midtown’s 1100 Peachtree.

Wednesday, December 1, 2010

How to stop stress from wreaking havoc in your workplace - bizjournals:

http://3rasia.org/content/view/202/1/
While fears of layoffs, job hiring freezes, pay and benefit cuts and reducex hours have a negativd effecton employees, the company as a whol e suffers as a result. According to expertsx at the , stress costs businesses in the UnitexStates $300 billion annually. This averages out to approximately $7,500o per employee for expenditures such as hiring tempd or paying overtime to cover increased medical costs and incurred expenseszfrom turnover. Stress causes physical, mental and emotional wear and tear on the It manifests in a variet yof symptoms, such as anxiety, aggression, withdrawal or depression.
Studies have shown that stress contributes to ailment s suchas migraines, insomnia, heart disease, increasee drug and alcohol use, elevated change in eating habits and unsatisfactoru work performance. Regardless of the form it stress results inreduced absenteeism, burnout and increased medical expenses. According to the stresse institute, 60 to 80 percent of workplace accidents arestressd related. Stress is a fact of but it does not have to be a way of As Selyedefined it, stress is ofte the result of perceived stressors. Likewise, a studt by the reports that 40 percent of workerw viewed their job ashighly stressful.
an individual’s outlook can determine the level of stresz he orshe experiences. Situations that are stressfuklfor some, such as tight deadlines, may give certain people a rush, whereas others face it as a tumultuous situation. What can companies do to help employees dealwith stress? Employers who offer an effective employee assistance program have an excellent resource for employees and An EAP provides employees with a confidential accessx to mental health professionals who can help them better deal with Additionally, managers and supervisors are the frontline defens against stress.
There are several effectivew techniques that managers and supervisorsa can utilize to help their employees dealwith stress. Show Taking the time to praise positive work performances illustrates to employees that their effortsare recognized, and, in they feel that their work is valuable. Relaying verbaol praise, sending a thank you note and giving a positivs annual work appraisal are some ways that managera can expresstheir gratitude. Showing appreciatiom can have a positive effect onyour company’xs performance as well by motivating employees to do theitr best. Treat employees fairly. While each employes is unique and has different all employees want to betreated fairly.
While some employeexs like to be praised, others are fine without it. Managerxs should take the time to understand what makesz eachemployee tick. Doing so requires managerzs to get acquainted with their and in turn they are better in tune to theirf state of mind and recognizer when they arefeeling stressed. If manager s know their employees, then they will recognize that certai n employees are feeling stressed and will take the appropriatde steps to help them get more of theirneedz met.
Encourage employees to take better care of Employees that maintain a healthyu lifestyle are better able to handle Indoing so, they will feel better physically and are better able to cope with stresa and even reduce it. As a result, they are also able to maintai satisfactoryperformance levels. Similarly, employees who builds solid supportsystems – family, church – have a personal outlet to expresse their fears and frustrationsz and help find relief. communicate, communicate. Much of the stresas related to the economyh is rootedin uncertainty.
Transparency can help alleviate that Companies that establish open lines of communication with theird work force build a greater level of trust with theid employees and allow them to better prepare for any changesw thatmay come. Provide training and resources. Peoplde are most often stressed when they feel a situatioj is out oftheir control. By encouraging employees to direcyt their activities in a positive directiom and learn to let go of the things out oftheir control, they are often able to achievw a sense of empowerment.
Allowinyg employees to improve their job skills by takin g a class and learninf a new skill during difficult financial timee improves their valueand self-esteem as employees and help builr toward their career goals. Change is happening all around us, not just in the workplace. Some people cope with changed betterthan others. Others try to avoid it becauserthey don’t have the skills to navigate through it and are contentg to stay in their comfort This group will have less and less control over the outcoms of change and are more likely to feel