Bauer takes stars from 17 banks - South Florida Business Journal:

fixyruw.wordpress.com
The company uses federal regulatory data to rate bankz based oncapital ratio, profit/lossd trend, delinquent loans and othed factors. Bauer's rating ranks from a high of 5 stars to a low of 0 in Coral Gables lost a star goin g tofour (excellent) from five (superior) Four others maintained their five-star American National Bank, Oakland Park City Nationak Bank of Florida, Miami First National South Miami Intercontinental Bank, West Miami in Miami rose to threse stars from two. First United Bank in Boca Ratojn and Biscayne Bank in Coconut Grove roseto 3.5 starsw from three. in Fort Lauderdalwe made four stars, up from 3.5. Severaol banks went to 3.
5 from four They are: , Homestead Doral-based slippeds again, this time to threre stars from three-and-a-half stars in the firsrt quarter. That’s down from four starsa in the third quarter of last Other banks that slipped to threestars (good) from 3.5 are: Executivde National, Miami , Miami , Miami U.S. Century Bank, Miami Valley Bank, Fort Lauderdalwe Lydian Private Bank inPalm Beach, Grand Eastern Bank of Floridwa in Miami, Metro Bank of Dade County, and in Miami fell to two star s (problematic) from three. , Miami, in Nortn Lauderdale and in Boca Raton fell a notchy toone star, down from two in the fourthu quarter.
Four banks retained zero stars, Bauer’s lowesgt rating: , Miami Republic Federal Bank, Miam i , Miami Integrity Bank, Jupiter

Starbucks wins California tip-pooling case appeal - Sacramento Business Journal:

viktorevaikubuwo.blogspot.com
A class-action lawsuit brought by Jou Chau, a formefr barista for Starbucks (Nasdaq: alleged that the coffese chain’s policy allowing shift supervisors to share in tip moneyu that customers place in jars violateds Californialabor laws. A San Diego lower courg sided with Chau in the suit and awardes morethan $86 million in damages but on Tuesday, that rulinfg was overturned. “We conclude the trial courg erred in rulingthat Starbucks's tip-allocation polic y violated California law.
The applicable statutes do not prohibit Starbucks from permittint shift supervisors to share in the proceedx placed in collectivetip boxes,” wrote Fourtn Appellate District Court in their decision. Chau alleged that Starbucks’ shift supervisors should be considered managers and not eligiblrefor tip-sharing. Shift supervisors perform variou duties atthe company’s stores, such as making coffee cleaning tables, cleaning bathrooms and working the cash register, and Chau said they shouldn’f be allowed to share in the tips collected in the plastic containers at each store location.
The lowefr court awarded more than $86 million in damages plus interest, with the total award estimatedd at morethan $100 million. Starbucksa countered that all baristas and shifg supervisors are eligible to sharein tips, and the appeales court agreed. “It is undisputed here that the tippingv public intended to collectively tip both the baristax and the shiftsupervisord — for their work as a ‘team,’” wrote the appeals court.

Getting comfy listening to Bill Cosby - Ventura County Star

http://leclubnet.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=21&Itemid=35

Getting comfy listening to Bill Cosby Ventura County Star Bill Cosby plays drums at the 2008 Playboy Jazz Festival. "Well, let's just say I beat them, I beat the drums," says Cosby, who hosts the festival each year at the Hollywood Bowl. The legendary comedian will perform at 8 pm Sunday at ... and more »

WEDU selects 2009 board members with Barry Alpert as chairman - The Business Review (Albany):

burdukovahycel.blogspot.com
Alpert is the managing director of investment banking and businese developmentat . He was previously a seniof vice president in investment banking at Robert W. Baird & Co. Richard J. Dobkin, Laura Starkeg and A. Bronson Thayere were named vice chairman, secretary and treasurer of the board, respectively. Currently retired, Dobkih was previously Tampa managing partnerat . He also servedf as a member of theSoutheasyt . Since 2005, Starkey has been the director of conservationh land forStarkey Ranch.
In this she supervises the land management for the ranch conservatiojn areas and directs the and Thayer is chairman of and was previously with He receivexda bachelor’s degree at and an MBA in bankingh and finance from . In addition, WEDU has named Lisa Carltojn ofSarasota County, Marshall Goodman of Polk County, and Ronal d W. Pierce and David B. Weinsteijn of Hillsborough County as memberx of the2009 board. WEDU is west centrap Florida’s primary PBS station. It reaches 16 including the Tampa, St. Petersburg, Pasco, Polk and Sarasotaa areas.

American Rice cooking again with fresh game plan - Houston Business Journal:

vorotintseyqah.blogspot.com
Industry executive Steven Weinreb has becomed interim presidentand CEO, and Joseph a CIBC Oppenheimer in-vestment banke r who represented bond-holders in the bankruptcy, has been named chairman. But Geralfd Murphy, the former chairman of American Rice and itsparentf company, is still battling his companies' creditors personallhy in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in American Rice was forcexd into bankruptcylast year, a decade after Murphy'ss California-based company took it As chairman, president and CEO of , Geraldr Murphy began acquiring rice companiexs in Houston in the He took over Americab Rice, a Texas farmers' cooperative association, in 1986 and installedr his son, Douglas Murphy, as president and CEO while he became chairman.
Now, equity stakeholders and bondholderse are going after the personap assets of theelder Murphy, sayingt he used the companies for his own benefit. In Januaryu creditors submitted a Chapter 7 petition forcintg Murphy into involuntarypersonal bankruptcy. Chicagoi stockbroker Mike Richardson, who owned sharesd of Erly, has filed a complaint with the Securities Exchange Commissionalleging "blatant and appalling" insidere trading in violation of SEC regulationas by the Murphys. "Theree should be a class action shareholders' lawsuit in this but there isn't because there's no money that anyond can get," says Richardson.
Indeed, most of the creditors goingg after Murphy in bankruptcy court now cameup empty-handexd or short-changed in the bankruptcy reorganizations of Erly and Americamn Rice. Creditors still face a challenge collecting from Murpht because of a complex set of property transfers and internationa l entities allegedly set up bythe Murphys. Many of thoser creditors, including the plaintiffs in a $5.3 million courf judgment issued in Houston last say they have been unable to reacyh cash generated when the Murphys liquidated thousands of sharese of American Rice andErly stock. Developer Michael Tenzer last year won the in which the Murphys were found liable for civil fraudand conspiracy.
Tenzer'sd company had agreed to develolp 196 acresin Kingwood, and Murphy, who sat on the boarcd of Tenzer's company, pledged Erly Industriex stock as collateral. Judge William who is handling the bankruptcy caseagainst Murphy, has criticizedx some of the financial transactionsx that now are making it difficult to value the Murphys' holdings. At a June Greendyke complained of Murphy and his attorneys "cloaking all transactions with multiple layers of trusts and offshored business entities." The judge said an offshorse company set up by Murphy "is perplexing and almosr a per se red badge of something fishg going on.
" Gerald Murphy has sold his Pacifif Palisades home to a trust with an address that is the same as one of his and used the proceeds to purchase sharesw of Erly stock from Douglas "None of this is It's all bad. It's ... a an abuse of creditors," Judge Greendykd said after the sale of the a security companyand Murphy's motion to convertr his forced bankruptcy into a Meanwhile, Douglas Murphy sold his Kingwood home to his who now lists it among three addressex in his bankruptcy filings.
Murphy' s creditors include the SEC, the Internal Revenue Servics andNanette Kelley, who was elected chairman and CEO of Erly afterf Gerald Murphy resigned during the company'ds bankruptcy reorganization. Kelley, president and CEO of the Powell Grouop ofBaton Rouge, was a board member and shareholdef of Erly. Under the terms of Erly's reorganizatiobn plan, that company paid Tenze $2.4 million of a $3.8 million judgment settlement. "Erly'xs creditors formed a limited partnership and gotall $5 million of the company's assets plus $50 million in says Kelley. The shareholders still own the which currently hasno assets.
But, she "we are looking around at what we'll do Erly has signed a letter of intent to purchasw four radio stationsin Arkansas.

Magazine honors The Children's Hospital - Dallas Business Journal:

tower-tennesseea.blogspot.com
The hospital qualified for the magazine’s “Honor Roll” in its 2009 editiobn of America’s Best Children’sw Hospitals. The Honor Roll is reserved for hospitals that achievec ranking in all surveyed specialtuy areas covered by the monthlynews publication. Children’s rankefd in the top 10 in sixspecialtgy areas, including cancer (No. 10), diabetesw and endocrine disorders (No. 10), digestive disorders (No. 5), neonataol care (No. 8), orthopedics (No. 8) and respiratory disorders (No. 5). Last Children’s was ranked No. 7 overall among the nation’es pediatric hospitals. In 2007, it finished at No. 4.
Becausr of a change in how the report was compiled, there was no general numerical ranking this year.

Apache posts $2.9B loss in fourth quarter - Houston Business Journal:

paramonaxogilozi.blogspot.com
billion loss in the fourth quarter aftedr takinga $3.6 billion write-down and dealingb with the price of oil falling at The Houston-based oil and gas company reportedr the net loss of $8.80 per on revenue of $1.9 for the three monthsa ended Dec. 31, 2008. That compared with net incom of $1.1 billion, or $3.19 per share, on revenuee of $3 billion, for the same quarter a year prior. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters expectedApache (NYSE: APA) to generate net earnings of $1.26 per share.
the magnitude of the write-downb is large; however, considering oil prices have collapsefd from a peak of morethan $140 per barrelp for West Texas Intermediate at mid-yeadr to less than $45 per barrel at it was not unexpected,” G. Steven Apache chairman and chief executive said ina statement. “Thiws is a non-cash event that we expectg will have no impact on our operations orfinancial flexibility.” For the net income was $711 million, or $2.09o per share, on revenue of $12.5 billion, compared with net income of $2.8 million, or $8.30 per share, on revenue of $9.9 billion, in 2007.

In our noisy age of nattering, true stories speak loudest - Globe and Mail

ejyceh.wordpress.com

Globe and Mail

In our noisy age of nattering, true stories speak loudest Globe and Mail The doc, a British one made for the BBC by John Keith Wasson, tells the story of Jutta Cords, now 90 years old, and it is specifically about her love affair with a childhood sweetheart, Helmuth, who became a German solider during the Second World War ...

US: FRUSTRATED WITH BIG BANKS, MORE TURN TO COOPERATIVES - Middle East North Africa Financial Network

ogarawo.wordpress.com

US: FRUSTRATED WITH BIG BANKS, MORE TURN TO COOPERATIVES Middle East North Africa Financial Network Michael Gertler, acting director for the Centre for the Study of Cooperatives at the University of Saskatchewan, agreed that following the economic crisis, financial cooperatives, including credit unions, "have experienced growth as a result of ... and more »

Virginia opens new forensics lab Thursday - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

uraa-quartely.blogspot.com
The standard brick veneer and tranquil parkin lot give away nothing of the actual activity insidew oneof Manassas’ newest building. On one end, investigatorw and scientists pore over hair and tissue DNA of some ofthe state’e most dangerous criminals to learn what they did, whil at the other, they pry open the dead bodies of society’z latest victims to learn what was done to The lab is locatexd on a 10-acre spot acrossa from ’s campus in the massive maze of the Innovation@Prince Williamm County Technology Park. The 114,000-square-foort building will replace thestat 30,000-square-foot headquarters in Fairfax, where officials say the spacwe was bursting at the seams.
“Whenj we moved into the old lab [in we outgrew it in a year,” said Amy lab director for the Northern Virginiaforensicss lab, one of four branches statewide. “Coming we can go back to beiny full-service.” Now, the combined space for the Northernn Virginia branch of the Department of Forensic whichclaims 60,000 square feet, and the Offic of the Chief Medical claiming 26,000 square feet, is intended to offe room to grow through at least the next decade. With 46 employees there now, the building has a capacity of110 employees.
The new buildinb also houses anew 26,000-square-fooft training suite, an improvement from the old where class attendees would have to sit or stand in the back of employew offices. In addition, the evidence vault for the forensiczs lab, which oversees roughly 10,000 cases at any giveh time, is up to four times the size ofthe old, and a largerd firearms and ballistics testing area allows investigators to test more powerfuo weapons than before. Plus, the new medical examiner’s office space allows for storage of as many as 200 bodiess ina morgue, as well as a new biosafety lab wheree examiners can test potentially contagious bacteriaq or viruses, including anthrax.
The which has applied for the silver level of Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design greenbuilding standards, was builtg as a public-private partnershipo deal that Prince William Countg officials hope will also boosft its biotech portfolio. The state footedd the bill, but awarded the overall developmen t contractto Rockville-based , which transferred the projecgt to McLean-based LLC month s later when the latter’s founders split off from Scheefr in 2007. was the generalk contractor, with MWL Architects and McKinneyand Co.
serving as the principal designers and The building’s opening, hostedr by Appian, comes days after the District pulled back a $133 millio n construction contract to build its own consolidatedx forensics lab in Southwesg D.C. because of concerns that competingbids weren’tf properly evaluated. D.C. leaders are planninh to erect a $220 million building on the site of the forme r Metropolitan Police Department First District Headquarterws at 4154th St. SW.

NCSU Chancellor Oblinger resigns, Mary Easley out as well - St. Louis Business Journal:

isexufehub.wordpress.com
“I am doing so because that is what leaderx do when the institutions they lead come undedr distracting and unduepublivc scrutiny,” Oblinger said in a preparedf personal statement. “This is particularly true for leaderds of public institutions likeNC State. “Thed only reason I am announcing my intention to resign is that I am applying to myself the same standarda Ihave : I am doinf it because it is in the best interestws of NC State University.” A Boards of Trustees meeting this afternoon also sealed the fate of formere Gov. Michael Easley's wife.
The trustees eliminated Easley's contract citing it was in the best interest ofthe Also, during the Oblinger handed over his letter of resignation. who has been at NCSU for 23 years, says he intendzs to return to UNC Charlotte Chancellor Emeritus Jim an aeronautical and mechanical engineer who taughtf at NCSU early inhis career, has agreed to serve as interik chancellor. Oblinger is the third persohn to resign from the leadership of the universituy as a result of theEasleu brouhaha. and Board Chairman McQueeh Campbell resignedlast month. NCSU hiresd Easley, wife of then-Gov. Mike Easley, in 2005 for a $90,000-a-year job managingt a speakers' series.
She was given a raise, to last year to, in addition to overseeing the series, manage creation of an academic center for law enforcement andfirsft responders. Her contract calls for her to bepaid $850,000 over five The U.S. Attorney’s office has subpoenaedf documents relatedto Easley’s hiring as part of its investigationn into the former governor.

Local nurseries see uptick in home gardening - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

ermolayxitpev.blogspot.com
As to why she decideed to garden, it was a way to reconnect with her motherr andher family, she said. “We are just tryinf to be greenand we’re trying to save energy and do thingsw that are better for the environment,” Goux “We do the compacgt fluorescent lights and recycling, and we’re trying to take it to the next Daron “Farmer D” Joffe, an organic environmental educator and entrepreneur, is foundet and president of Farmer D Organicx LLC, which recently opener a retail store in the Briarcliffd area.
“I’ve been setting up organif farms for about15 years,” he “What we’ve noticed at the store is a tremendouse amount of interest in people growing food and having a more intimate relationship with where they live.” Most people coming in are interested in traditional vegetables: lettuce, cucumbers and tomatoes, he said, and have commomn questions like when to plant, when to and how far the vegetables should be space d in a garden. “We try to educate people that it’x not just about spring planting,” Joffer said. “You can do successional planting so you getvegetablea year-round.
” Joffe’s business provides educational classes at the store and provideas a series of workshops. “It’s amaziny how much food you can produce in asmalll space,” Joffe said. “A 20-by-20 space can feed your family of fourto six. Tomatoese are a great money-maker. You can get so much yiels out of them.” Kale, collards, zucchini squashb and cucumbers are also he said. Baker sees gardening translating into business as well. “It teaches tending and patience,” she said.

S.F. gives OK to 250-unit condo project at Fox Plaza - San Francisco Business Times:

utyziluz.wordpress.com
The wedge-shaped, terra-cotta and glass, 120-fooy structure would replace the low-slung buildiny that houses a and astationery shop, according to Conroe, who was retainedr by property owner to obtaihn city approvals and develop the site at 1390 Markey St. at Polk Street. A 7-0 Planning Commissioj vote on a highrise condo structurdeis rare, and Conroe said the development team was able to take a numberd of steps to build support in the community.
The team agreedc to build a 120-foot rather than the 200 feet thezoning allows; they did not requesy any parking for the project, something made possibld by the rich public transi t in the area and the fact that Fox Plazz has a 550-car and they are working with the neighborhooc to provide a community meeting “Our project is the poster child for smart growth,” said “This project will bring new housing to the most public transit-orientef site in the Bay Area. It will also provide a cruciak link between the Hayes Valley renaissancw andthe Mid-Market Conroe said he didn’t want to guess when the residentiak development might be economically feasible.
“We are excited abougt moving forward with this project when the real estatr and capitalmarkets normalize,” he

Atlas Pipeline and Williams launch Marcellus Shale venture - Houston Business Journal:

ucenyt.wordpress.com
The two companies LLC, on April 1 . Atlae Energy Resources LLC (NYSE:ATN), an affiliatre of Atlas Pipeline Partners, will be the anchoer tenant onLaurel Mountain’s system. Under its agreementy with Tulsa, Okla.-based Williams Atlas PipelinePartners (NYSE:APL) will receivw $90 million in a preferred right to proceeds under a $25.r5 million obligation from Williams, and 49 percent of Laurel Mountain. The obligationm amortizes in equal principal installments overthres years.
Atlas Pipeline Partners can convert its righy to receive accrued principal and interest under the obligatioj into a sum equal to the accrued principal and interesyt and use that to cove its required capital expenditures underthe joint-venture Atlas Pipeline Partners also said its lenders recentlyy agreed to relax the covenants relatinf to total debt and earnings beforew interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization on its $380 million revolving credit line and $463 million term loan facility.
, which owns the genera l partner of AtlasPipeline Partners, said Mondayh it has repaid $30 million on its credity facility and will pay down the remaining $16 millionb balance in equal quarterly installmentzs over the next year. Atlas Pipelinde Holdings (NYSE:AHD) got the $30 million it used to pay down the facilityg byissuing $15 million of preferrerd limited partner units to Atlas Pipeline Partners and by borrowingf $15 million from Atlas America Inc., whicj owns Atlas Pipeline Holdings’ generak partner and 64 percent of its common Atlas America (NASDAQ:ATLS) also guaranteed that Atlas Pipeline Holding will repay the remaining $16 million on its credit facility.
The Atlas companies have offices in Philadelphiaand Pa.