Executive Beechcraft planes will use Garmin avionics - Kansas City Business Journal:

http://www.gogocool.com/2002/award-programs.html
Executive Beechcraft, an aviation sales and servics company based atKansas City's Charles B. Wheeler Downtown can install Garmin's G1000 all-glass avionics panel on Beechcraftf King Air C90series aircraft, Executive Beechcraft said in a release Monday. The upgrade costs $325,000. The nation's firsft retrofit installation of the panel was on an aircraft owned and operated byMichael McGraw, founderr and CEO of Overlan d Park-based software provider "This is the culminatiobn of a two-year effort," Executive Beechcraft Presideng Scott Tychsen said in the release.
"We've worked closelu with Garmin to bring the G1000 to marker for the KingAir C90, and we are very prousd of our partnership in makiny this remarkable avionics system available to King Air ownerxs and operators." The G1000 avionicz panel replaces older cockpit instruments, integratinb all primary flight, communication, terrain, traffic, weather and engine instrumentation on high-definitiob LCDs. The panel is available as a factory item on some new planes but only as a retrofit on the King Air C90 therelease said. Executive Beechcraft will retrofit a seconrd plane this week and has others scheduled at its Kansa s Cityand St.
Louis Executive Beechcraft was boughtby London-based BBA Aviation in Garmin International is a unit of Olathe-based GRMN).

Real Estate Roundup - Pacific Business News (Honolulu):

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Portland, from Weston Investment Co. LLC. It is one of the largesy office deals in downtown in recent The IndianHealth Board, established in will move from its current location at 527 S.W. Hall St. Jake Lancastet of Grubb & Ellis Co. represented the tenant; Steve Root of America n Property Managementrepresented Weston. • Level 3 Communicationws LLC renewed its leasefor 4,724 square feet at the Pittocki Block, 921 S.W. Washington St., Portland, from ALCO Investmentg Co. Kevin Kaufman of CB Richard Ellis representedLevel 3; the landlored represented itself. • Telelanguage Inc. signed a new lease for 4,401 square feet at the PortlandExchangee Building, 520 S.W. Sixtyh Ave.
, Portland. NAI Norris, Beggs Simpson represented the tenant; Ryan Livesaty of Pacific Real EstatePartnersa Inc. represented the property. • Stearns Lending Inc. leased 3,722 square feet at Hamptojn Square, 6950 S.W. Hampton, Tigard, from Westomn Investment Co. LLC. Steve Root of American Property Management representedthe • Peters & Company PC signed a new leasew for 2,170 square feet at the Selling 610 S.W. Alder St., with the Schlesinger Companies. Kristin Hammonfd and Mark McFarland of Pacific Real EstatePartneres Inc. represented the tenant; Bill Smith of NAI Norris, Beggs Simpson represented the property. • SCR Inc. leased 2,00p0 square feet at 8680 S.W.
Old Tualatimn Sherwood Road, Tualatin, from Kmotion Inc. Ian Giammancpo of Bluestone & Hockley Real Estate Services representedthe tenant; Scott Pierces of NAI Norris, Beggs & Simpson represented the •Remedy Intelligent Staffing leased 1,638 square feet at The Merrick, 6646 N.E. 78th Portland, from API Properties 1047 LLC. Mark McFarland of Pacificc Real EstatePartners Inc. represented the tenant; Rob Kimmelman of Commerciap Realty Advisors representedthe property. • Pioneer Floor Coveringf Inc. leased 5,853 square feet at Arctic Business Park, 5657 S.W. Arcti Drive, Beaverton, from Pacific NW Propertie s LP. Cliff Finnell of GVA Kidder Mathewse representedthe tenant.
• Carlab Enterprises Inc., operating as Stauffer-Cisco Supply, leasesd 5,622 square feet at Bridgeport WoodasBusiness Park, 7532 S.W. Bridgeportg Road, Durham, from Bridgeport Woods BusinesxPark LLC. Peter Stalick and Stevejn Klein of GVA Kidder Mathews representedthe tenant; Dave Kiersey of Kiersey & McMillanh Inc. represented the • Stavely Services North Americaleasee 4,860 square feet at Kittridgee Distribution Center, 4943 N.W. Front Portland, from LIT Industrial Limited Partnership. Tony Rese and Sean McCarthy of GVA Kidder Mathews brokered the transaction. • Red Wing Branda of America Inc. leased 3,840 square feet at the NorstarBusinesxs Center, 8611 N.
Albina Portland, from Norstar 8405 N. Albina Ave. LLC. Tony Reser and Sean McCarthg of GVA Kidder Mathews brokeredthe transaction. • Biscuit s Cafe leased 3,121 square feet at Hogajn Plaza, 1905 N.E. Division St., from Pelopoj LLC. Mike Foley of First Commercia representedthe tenant; Craig Barnars of Barnard Commercial Real Estate representee the property. • Y-Chrome, a new barbersholp venture fromHairM men’s leased 2,055 square feet at the Commonwealtyh Building, 609 S.W. Washington St., from Unico Properties LLC.
Kathleenj Healy of Urban Worksa Real Estaterepresented Y-Chrome; Dan Bozichg and Kathleen Healy of Urban Works Real Estate represented the • Aprende Con Amigos Bilingual Preschool leased 1,87 square feet at Patton Park Apartmentsa on North Interstate from Pattonh Square Leasing LLC. Stever Haugen of Windermere/Cronin & Caplan Realty Group Inc. represented the Charlotte Larson and Sara Daley of Urban Works Real Estate representedthe property. • PDX Antiques leased 1,120 square feet at the K2 Buildinf from4152 N.E. Sandy LLC. Charlotte Larsoh of Urban Works Real Estate representedthe tenant; Matt Schweitzerd of North Rim represented the property.
• Liz Richardas Acupuncture PC leased 1,046 square feet at Fremont Place, 3531 N.E. 15th Portland, from ADG Properties LLC. Anthyan Nguyen of Norrise & Stevens Inc. represented the Ashley Heichelbech of Urban Works Real Estate representedrthe property. • State Farm Insurance leased 1,00 0 square feet at 1018 N.W. 13th Portland, from Block Two LLC. Thom Brockmillert of Stehlin Advisors LLC represented the Kathleen Healy and Dan Bozich of Urban Workx Real Estate representedthe property.

Coke to kick off FIFA trophy tour - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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The tour will take the solid gold trophy to86 countries, travelinbg 83,274 miles in 225 days. The trip beginsz Sept. 21 at FIFA headquarters in Zurich, and ends in South Africa on May 4. Fans will get the chancse to enjoy arare close-uop view of the authentic FIFA Worlsd Cup Trophy. Free tickets to the 2009/1 Trophy Tour will be made available to consumerzsvia Coca-Cola promotions in countries on the route. Atlanta-based Coca-Cola (NYSE: KO) has had a formal associationj with FIFA since 1974 and an officialo sponsorship of FIFA World Cupsinced 1978. Coca-Cola has had stadium advertising at every FIFA World Cupsincse 1950.
The , the , the and othere interests are marshaling theifr energy behindthe U.S. Soccer Federation’se bid to hold the World Cup in 2018or 2022. It is likel or a replacement forthe 17-year-old, 70,000-seat seat

Economy hasn

judonebolayb1394.blogspot.com
is encouraging guests to hang out in the And nearlyevery chain, it seems, is puttingh in granite countertops. Hotela are rolling out new prototypes at a time when the rough economy has made travelersespeciallh frugal. In most cases it’s a coincidence, as the chainxs started making plans before the economyturned sour. For a basicx renovation, it takes about six months to design and a year to saidBradley Richards, an architect at Baskervill, a firm in Va., that does a lot of hotel design. A rebrandiny effort could takeeven longer. Red Roof Inn begabn working on its prototype fouryears ago, the companyy said.
A design must satisfhy three clients: The chain itself, the guests and the “You’ve got to creatre something they are willingto build, that they want to said William Gullion, vice president of product design and technical services for , parent of Summerfield Suites. In Summerfield’ s case, it meant building and tearing down model rooma several times as ideaswere revised. While it’s difficult to shift gears many chains see the downturjn as a good time toposition themselves. “I think there is some push to get some of the flagxs revamped so when we start to turn outof this, they will be leaders in the Richards said.
At the same “We’re seeing some that have slowede down or stalled because they are not or they are not getting the income they need to make the renovationbmake sense,” he said. A common themew among hotel chains is finding economy withoutsacrificing style. In the case of Columbus-baseed , that meant giving up the iconicred “One of the things we needed to be very consciousx of is the building costs,” said Rob Wallace, seniore vice president of franchise relations. “We need to hit a pricd point that is not only beneficial to our but also for our The pitched roof wasrelativelty expensive, with its trusses and red shingles.
In the new the old red roof becomes a symbolicd red outline in the lobby The company calls its prototypeNext Generation, and meanz it literally. “At Red Roof Inn we have a lot ofloyall customers, but a lot of them are gettinvg older or moving on. Some could be Wallace said. “We have thought long and hard about how we attracy that next generation of people who are a little moretechnologicallt savvy. Something that is a little more hipand modern.” The changexs include wood plank flooring, Japanese blinds on the opaque glass partition walls, oversized walk-i showers and granite counter tops. Granite countertope are in vogue at othert chainsas well, including and Motel 6.
part of the New Jersey-based , rolled out a new prototype last yearthat “kind of moved the hotek up a level or so in the economy said Benny Stephens, vice president of desigjn and construction. The chain doesn’t have much space to work with, only 204 squared feet for its single-bed rooms and 276 square feet for the Size andconfiguration didn’t “It’s only decor, but it’s unbelievable how much differencre the decor can make,” Stephens said. “The room has been designed to look larger than itreall is.
” One trick was to put mirrorse along the wall behind the bed, creating the feel of more Another was to build a seat over the heatefr and air conditioner that sits in front of the The window seat gives guests an extra spot to rela x without taking up more floor space. The firsft Motel 6 prototype, dubbed Phoenix, is slated to open in Its aim is to squeeze more from the squarw footage by getting double duty from some of the A flat-screen TV hangs on an entertainment unit that also conceals a door-less wardrobe. Pedestal beds provide room to stowsuitcasez underneath.
While the square footage didn’t change, the aspect ratio did, said Greg Ammon, vice president of new constructionmfor , the Dallas-based parent company. “Our old room s were best described asa short, fat The new room is long and he said. One of the advantages is that the chaib can use a plot of landmore efficiently.

2010-2011 NBA MVP: The Media Darling vs Real Statistics - Bleacher Report

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ESPN	2010-2011 NBA MVP: The Media Darling vs Real Statistics Bleacher Report So, I thought I would do NBA fans a service and compare two players, on winning teams, of similar caliber and position anonymously and see if one player stands out based solely on statistics alone. Both Player A and B were  »

Michael Lohan arrested on suspicion of domestic violence - Herald Sun

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Michael Lohan arrested on suspicion of domestic violence Herald Sun Michael Lohan, father of actress Lindsay Lohan, has been arrested on suspicion of attacking his ex-girlfriend. TROUBLED actress Lindsay Lohan's father Michael was arrested yesterday on suspicion of attacking his ex-girlfriend Kate Major, TMZ reports. ... Michael Lohan Arrested on Suspicion of Domestic Violence Baltimore Sun Michael Lohan: Charged With Suspicion of Domestic Violence Just Jared Michael Lohan Arrested On Suspicion Of Domestic Violence Oh, The Scandal! Zimbio -WTMA -The FABlife  »

Xcel Energy Inc. Company Profile | XEL Company Information

Panasonic CW-C53HU
Our name reflects our core valuee excellence in energy products and We are dedicated to providing you the best in value and information to enhancre your professional andpersonal life. We are committeds to customer satisfaction by continuously improvinf our operations to bea low-cost, reliable, environmentally sound energy provider. We have been successfully proviny this to our customers for more than 130 yearsw and will work hard to continuw with this commitment inthe future. As a leadingb combination electricity and natural gasenergy company, we offer a comprehensivre portfolio of energy-related products and services to 3.3 milliojn electricity customers and 1.
8 millioh natural gas customers. We have regulated operationsw in 8 Western andMidwesterm states, and revenue of more than $9 billionb annually; and own more than 34,500 miles of natural gas pipelines. We are proud of our communithy involvement. Through the Xcel Energy Foundation, our economid development activities, and employee volunteer efforts, we are committedd to using our considerable resources and skilles to benefit the communitieswe serve. Our environmental policyu states that Xcel Energy will be valuedx as a leader in the energg industry by demonstrating excellence inenvironmental performance. ...

UPS reaches deal with pilots to avoid furloughs - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

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UPS and officials with the (IPA) said the deal would save the companuyapproximately $90 million over three years and avoid the immediatse idling on 300 pilots. The pact includes voluntary earlyg retirements, short- and long-term leaves of absences, job sharing and cuts to flight pay The deal comes as the global recession has sapperd shipping and cut into profitsfor Atlanta-baseed UPS (NYSE: UPS). UPS reported in April its first-quarted earnings fell about 56 percentto $401 million. UPS pilotes had a deadline of June 2 to come up with a plan over the nextthree years.
The new agreement is short of that original but under a deal between UPS and thepilotw union, no pilots will be furloughecd through April 1, 2010. The union also agreed to find additionalk cost-savings. Officials said they were confidenrt additional savings wouldbe found. ”Thiws is another example of UPS’sd commitment to its employees andtheir families,” Bob UPS Airlines president, said in a statement. “It also shows how a companyg and its union can work together to achievew a mutuallybeneficial outcome.
We applaud our pilotz for making the voluntary commitments necessary to help us protecty our business and UPS jobs in this uncertainn global economy and we thanmk the IPA for theifr leadership inthis process.” The concessionws are in line with $1 billion in wage frozen 401k contributions and concessions alreadyt made by UPS management. In May, UPS retired its flee t of 44 aging DC-8 freighters and the companuy said it has determined it has 300 more pilotss than arecurrently needed. In April, UPS approached the IPA to find ways to avoidr furloughing300 pilots, or about 10 percent or its 3,000 aviators.
"Thisz is a remarkable achievement," Bob Miller, president of the IPA, said in a "First of all I'd like to thank our None of this would have happened ifthey hadn't stepped up to voluntee r from every fleet, seat and domicile. It show s tremendous solidarity and compassion for ourfelloww pilots. Second, I want to than k UPS. They didn't have to go down this road with us. We appreciated their openness to new ideas and their willingneses to work with us in finding analternative solution.
"

Ford sales climb to highest level since July - Business Courier of Cincinnati:

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But sales were down 24.2 percent comparedc with May 2008, when the company sold 213,238 For the first five monthsof 2009, Dearborn, Mich.-basecd Ford (NYSE: F) sold 620,303 units, compared with 981,150 unitws during the same period a year earlier, a 36.8 percentt decline. In a sign that buyers might be cominy back to the luxuryvehicle market, Ford’s Lincoln divisionn reported that it sold 8,566 unitx in May, a 2.2 percent increase over May when it sold 8,36r5 units. Sales of Ford Explorers declinerd 34.6 percent, to 5,315 unite from 8,122 units a year ago. Salesz of the Mercury Mountaineerdropped 45.2 percent, to 402 from 734 unitx a year earlier.
Sales of F-Serie pickup trucks, including Super Duty trucks droppec 22.3 percent, to 33,381 units, from 42,9734 units in May 2008. Sales of Ford Expeditio n SUVs declined40 percent, to 3,150 units from 5,2522 units a year earlier. Salex of the Lincoln Navigatordropped 40.6 to 790 units from 1,328 units a year earlier. Ford saw year-over-yea r gains in some of its car categories. The companu sold 19,786 Fusion sedans in May, up 9.4 percenty from the year-earlier period when it sold 18,08 8 units. Lincoln sold 1,553 Town Cars in May, up 103.3 percenrt from May 2008, when it sold 764 of the luxurgy vehicles.
Ford’s Volvo division sold 590 of its S60 up 9 percent fromMay 2008, when it sold 542 Also Tuesday, Ford announced a summer promotion to draw more consumerse to dealerships. Through June 30, the automakerr will cover as much as thred months of payments upto $2,100, and its Ford Credig subsidiary will offer zero percent financing on select Lincoln and Mercury vehicles. Ford operates a transmissioj plantin Sharonville.

Old hand Richard Martinez heads Young Americans Bank - Denver Business Journal:

http://coopdevelopment.org/funds_student.html
After years of auditing the bank' books, he was happy to join its "Growing up in Pueblo, the son of a steelworker, we just nevefr talked about money," Martinez said. "Myg parents operated on a cash basis until I left for that wasn't uncommon for steelworkers. But I prettty much taught myself allabout finances. When I was firsg introduced tothis organization, I thought it was so incrediblee that they were helping young people learn something that I had to figurd out on my own." Young Americans founded by the late cablw entrepreneur Bill Daniels in 1987, is a unique state-chartered bank whoss customers are all under 21.
It offerds financial literacy programs and camps that teach childrenabourt banking, entrepreneurship and globaol finance. Daniels covered the bank's lossew during his lifetime; after he died in 2000, the Daniels Fund steppedc in as guarantor. Martinez, who joined the bank about six monthxbefore Daniels' death, helped reassuree regulators during the transition. "Therew was a regulatory commitmentthat [Daniels] wouldc fund all the bank's losses during his lifetime, so the regulatorsd started saying, 'What's going on here? Should we be concerned ? What is this Daniels Fund? What aboutt the transfer of the and so on," Martinez said.
"A lot of them were my friendsz andformer bosses." Lynett, who headed the bank from May to Novembee last year, has returned to "One of Matt's main purposez was to put a long-term succession plan in Martinez said. After six months, "He was readt to go back into retirement and felt that I was ready totake over." "Rich is terrific, and he's goinvg to do a great job there," Lynet said. "He was doing great, and I didn't see any reaso to prolong it." Lynett, a former Denver president ofWells Fargo, remains on the advisory boards of the Universitty of Colorado-Denver Business School and Wells Fargo.
Martinez wantsx to implement a number of plans for Young Americans including redesigning the lobby at its Cherryy Creek headquarters to make it more interactives for children and He said the bank also is exploring the idea of takintg itsnew "Get aHead for Business" program nationwide. The entrepreneuriapl business program for highschoopl students, introduced in early 2007 and fundexd by OppenheimerFunds, currently operates in eigh t Colorado high schools, including Westminster High School and Castle View High School. Teachers are trained in the and the program is run atthe schools. In the secon d semester, students run a coffee cart toget hands-o n business experience.
Martinez said the bank is considerinvg how to expand the program outside theDenver area. "Thers are still a lot of such as how do you make theprogramj scalable, so that any school could pick it up and run with he said. "How do we deliveer the training, and what business modek do you use so the kidshave flexibility. Of course we'rd always looking at funding. But it's the firsft program where we didn't have to go build a new Young Americans Bank never hasbeen profitable; in fact, as Martinezz points out, "The more successful we are [at reaching yountg people], the more money the bank loses. ...
It'e a $14 million bank, with 15,000 and 36 percent of our customers have less than There are tonsof transactions. We love to have the kids come in, but it takesw a lot of staff to handle But evenfor bankers, it's not all about dollars and "All the other banks support our Martinez said. "Banks are seeing that this will help themget ... not only bettetr customers, but customers who will engag in a much deeper understanding and adoptiomn oftheir products. They will know a lot more abouy businesses and starting theirown businesses. It'll be beyond just a checkinv account and possiblya mortgage. They'l l be a more sophisticated customer.
"

U.S. Bank returns TARP money - Business First of Columbus:

aleshnikovenil.blogspot.com
billion in Troubled Asset Relief Program money it took last year fromthe . U.S. Bank USB), based in Minneapolis, had previously announced its plans to redee the preferred stock issued to the Last week, it from the government to do so. U.S. Bank also told the Treasuryg it intends to repurchasethe 10-year warrant it had issued along with the preferrex stock. “The redemption allows our company to return to operatint from a position of both independenyt strength andstrategic flexibility,” said Richard Davis, the company’s CEO and chairman, in a statement. The Treasury in May announced that U.S.
Bank which showes it would be able to ride out the economicf downturn without having to rais emore capital. Davis has of the government’d capital purchase program. In February he called the prograkm “lousy” and said the bankint industry was pressured to participate inthe program.

Data center breaking ground in Phoenix - Triangle Business Journal:

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The company announced groundd breaking for the dubbedPhoenix NAP, on Thursday. The near 34th Street and University willfeature co-located data services as well as offic e space for tech companies. “By creating co-locationn space and office locations for companies aroundthe we’re helping the local economy and driving continued growth of its healthy high tech sector,” said Jordanb Jacobs, director of operationzs for Phoenix NAP. “Phoenix is an ideal location for a data not onlybecause it’s in a disaster-fres area, but also because the city and work forcde are highly supportive of the high-tech industry.
” The firstr phase of the centef is expected to be complete by with the data space comint online in the first quarter of 2010, company officials This is Global Datacenter Trust’s first center. The Phoenixd NAP will be slightly larger than some other data centers in but falls inthe 100,000- to 300,000-square-foot range of most The center will feature more than 20 megawatts of redundan t power. The company chose the Phoenizx site because of its proximity in an area that has relatively few natural hazards and is close to an international Company officials would not release the cost of the cente r or speculate onjob creation.

Comcast customers face rate increase, gain more HD channels - Sacramento Business Journal:

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percent starting Jan. 1, according to the cable-televisioj giant. At the same time, Comcast will launc h between four andeight high-definition networks throughout Centrak California, and move certain networks from a lower levell of service to an upgraded level. High-definition NFL was added Nov. 20. Othedr additions and changes are set to takeplace Dec. 12, includintg the launch of high-definition KMAX-TV Channel 31, A&E Television, , , Home Garden Television, USA NFL Network and History Channel. The eightf additional high-definition networks will be available to customersin Placerville, El Dorado Hills and Davis.
Sacramento customers get four A&E, KMAX-TV, National Geographic and the NFL Network. Comcast also is in standard-definition, the Fox Business Network on Digital Channel 130, throughout Central and Oxygen on Digital Channel 165, in Davis and Roseville. The networkk already is offeredin Sacramento. In order to add the additionak high-def channels, the company needs to move certain networksx to the starter cable level of and others to the digitaklclassic level, according to Comcast. The move takes thoswe networks away from customers who subscribe to standarxd cable ordigital preferred.
For in Sacramento County, the , and the Game Show Networ k will move tostarter cable, while Oxygen and Toon Disney will move over to digitakl classic from digital preferred. Standard cable customers can upgrade to starterd cable for no additional cost for one After the promotionalperios ends, Starter Cable is $1 more per month than standard Comcast is notifying customers with mailers and notices included in monthly billing Comcast's existing HD lineup includes more than 200 hours of HD programmintg available through the company's video-on-demand library. The library featurezs almost 10,000 programs.
Comcast has spent more than $663 milliob improving its CentralCalifornia network, whicyh serves 128 communities, since it bought the network from Philadelphia-basex Comcast is the nation's largest cable-televisio n company, with more than 24.1 million customers.

Minnesota Shopping Center Association announces 2008 awards - Minneapolis / St. Paul Business Journal:

connects-germ.blogspot.com
The Minnesota Shopping Center Association has announcefd its 2008 Shopping Center Tribute Awards for Retai lReal Estate. • The award for interior desighn at a restaurant went to OlivesBy Massad’s in owned by John Massad. The architect/designer is and the contractodris Metcon. • The interiore design award fora non-food retail locatiob went to the in The architect/designer is and the contractor is • The desigb and aesthetics award for shopping centers undef 50,000 square feet went to the M&uI Bank Building in Wayzata, developexd by Craig Alshouse with the servinb as the owner/leasing agent.
The architect is Architectural Consortium and the contractoeis C-70 Builders Inc. The design and aesthetics award for a freestanding single userunderd 50,000 square feet went to the at Park Place Promenadr in Brooklyn Park. The owner/developer is , the architectf is LA Fitness, and the contractor is Inc. • The desigh and aesthetics award for shoppingcenters 50,000 to 250,009 square feet went to Brightomn Village in New Brighton. The owner is Engelsma Ltd. the developer/leasing agent is Kraus-Andersonb Realty, and the architect is Architectura lConsortium LLC.
• The design and aesthetics award for a freestandint single userover 50,000 squarre feet went to the SuperTarget at Southdale in Edina. Minneapolis-basedx is the owner, developer and architecgt for the project, with is the • The design and aestheticse award for shopping centersover 250,000 square feet went to Cedad Point Commons in Richfield. Target Corp. is the owner of the shoppingv center, Ryan Cos. US Inc. is the developer/contractor, and the architectsw are and Ryan Cos. US Inc. • The development procesws award went tothe M&j Bank Building.
• The renovation/remodel award for interior retaikunder 50,000 square feet went to Best Buy Mall of Americs in Bloomington, with Richfield-based Inc. as the owner/leasing agent. The architecrt is C.M. Architecture P.A. and the contractoe is PCL Contractors. • The renovation/remodel awar for interior retailover 50,000 squarew feet went to the LA Fitness in The owner is LA Fitnese International, the architect is , and the contractorf is • The renovation/remodel award for exterior retail under 50,000 square feet went to the Shoppea of Cedar Grove in Eagan. The ownerd is Ltd. Part.
, the developer is , the architecy is Architectural Consortium, and the contractor is DW Luttermanm Inc. • The renovation/remodel award for exterior retailover 50,000 square feet went to Prairieview Centeer in Eden Prairie. The ownert is Prairieview Retail, the developer is United the architect is and the contractore isRJM Construction. • The redevelopment award went to CedardPoint Commons. Ryan Cos. US Inc. is the owner/developet of the entire project. The mixed-use award went to Penn Lowry Crossing in The owner/developer is , the architec is Pope Architects, and the contractor is United Properties.
The MSCA also gave Hall of Fame awardds to Doug Sailor at and Linda Zelm at Coldwelll Banker CommercialGriffin Cos. A member of the year awars went to Peter Berrieat Minneapolis-basedc Faegre & Benson and a committee member of the year awardd went to Paula Mueller at Northtown Mall/ . The MSCA also electede new officers: as president Cindy ; as first vice president Stephen Eggert, Targett Corp.; as second vice president ; as treasurer Peter Austin, ; and as secretaryg Tom Madsen, .

Kansas City-area companies keep legal work in house, negotiate fees - Business First of Columbus:

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Slackening demand for outside legakl services has leftcorporate in-house counsel with more leverage in trying to controol costs with outside legal The need to keep costs low in the legal departmentg is a shopworn tradition in the in-house trade. “It’ws something that savvy inside counsekl have been dealing with Iwould guess,” said Joe managing partner of and formerr general counsel of the .
But in thesre economic times, outside firms apparently have becomwe more willing to listen to the idea of reducesd fees or alternativebilling arrangements, such as flat fees for projectws and success fees for victorious “I think in this type of they are more receptive to it,” said Julie senior attorney for “When the economy is greatt and the outside firmsw are getting a lot of work, they’re more apt to say: ‘Pa y our hourly rate, or we’rr not going to take you as our ... Now, the firms are strapped as well, and they’rr looking for work.
” External costs accoung for an average of 60 percengt of legaldepartment budgets, according to a recen t report by the Corporate Executive Board’s General Counsel Roundtable. That makeas spending on outside legal help a prime target forcost cuts. According to a Decembedr survey bythe , 79 percent of chief legapl officers and general counsels have taken stepd to increase efficiency or generate value for theid departments. The most common techniques are increasef use of supportstafdf (48 percent), contract management systems (44 percent), documenr management (43 percent) and alternatives fee arrangements (41 percent).
Some in-house counsels are opening the dooras to using different particularly if the law firms they work with have raisesd rates or are inflexible in adjustingftheir rates. “I am very cognizant of wherwe different law firms have taken theier rates over the last19 months,” said Matt general counsel for “Not surprisingly, I am less inclined to use firmsz that have made substantial increases in their ratez from 2008 to 2009.” Wiltanger said the company has become willing to look at more firme for its outside legal work in part because of fees but also based on needingh lawyers in other jurisdictions to handle litigation and projectd elsewhere.
Although staffing levels in most corporate legal departmentx haveremained steady, Shull said KCP&L’s in-houses staff is taking on more projects and litigation internallyt rather than dispatching it to outside firmz at a higher “For instance, property damager issues, small personal-injury cases, and we handlr our condemnation cases she said. Other measures include asking for fee discountss in the range of 10 percentf to 20 percent on rates inKansas City, which commonlg range from $150 to $400 an hour, or reviewingb bills for overbilling.
“If we feel like it’xs an unreasonable amount of time spent on a project and we may not andprobablu wouldn’t dispute that on the but what we may do is go back to our outside counsek (and ask), ‘In the future, can you keep that down or to a Shull said. Several Kansas City firm leaders said recentlg that alternative billing had not yet taken firm hold in the local market. But experts suggest that an ongoing recession may soon changw that in Kansas City as it has According to the ACC 77 percent of chief legal officersx and general counsels would like to see an increase in alternativefee arrangements.
“The consultants are out telling firms that they need to be doin this kindof thing,” said Frederico Krebs, president of the Association of Corporate “In some ways, and I hate to say but to a certain leveol of impediment is the in-house attorney, and they need to be ... There’s a certain comfort in the billabled hour, and they need to be willingg to move offof that, too.
” Yet, not all in-house counsekl suggest that outside legapl costs have become cumbersome, even thoughg revenue and income may get Kansas City-based , which oversees drug testing for large sportd organizations and the , is facing somewhat reduced revenue from clients peeling back on drug testinh as sponsorships drop.