Thursday, March 31, 2011

Bank to auction $100 million in troubled assets - Atlanta Business Chronicle:

http://oaklyn-nj.com/oaklyn_police_department.htm
The Alpharetta-based bank — one of the metro’ws largest with $5.7 billion in assetws and a key subsidiaryof Columbus-based — is selling the propertiesd to private investment groups, with the deals expecteds to close by month’s end. The auctionj is the largest conducted so far by Bank ofNortnh Georgia, which has been hard-hit by the real estatde downturn, and surpasses the scale of other sales of distressedf metro Atlanta property by Blairsville-based and smallerr rivals. Bank of North Georgia has auctioned off homess to the public periodically throughout thelast year.
The auctionh comes as banks acrossthe country, from smalk community lenders to mammoth financial conglomerates, are strugglint with how to liquidate toxivc assets without pushing the banks into It also signals Synovus Financia l is continuing its aggressive sales of problem loansw and repossessed property, if the price is right. Durinfg the company’s first-quarter earnings call, CEO Richard Anthony said the auction procesd wouldaccelerate companywide. “We will have a greater level of exits from this portfoli o over the nexttwo quarters,” he referring to Synovus’ problek loan portfolio.
Frank Roedl, Bank of North Georgia’s executive vice president for corporate is overseeing the auction and said the liquidation is the next step inthe bank’s “ongoingv balance sheet management effort.” The bank is selling primarily larger tracts of developed lots and raw land, he said. The auctioj process began in May, when the bank circulatesd a list of distressed assets to30 bidders, he Each of the bidders was a pairing of strategif buyers with private money behind them, and the firm’d sizes ranged from $20 million to $200 millionb in total capital under He did not name specific bidders.
“W e wanted to contact larger pools of money for this Roedl said. But aftedr the initial solicitation, interest in the auctio n exploded. “We were inundaterd with phone calls,” he said, noting the bank now has multiple bidders for the bulk of the distressed portfolio availablre inthe auction. Initial bids were due by late May, and an extendede due-diligence period is ongoing for bidders, with the dealzs scheduled to close byJune 30. Roedl could not providee specifics on how much will be sold and how many bids for propertiews and loans the bank ultimatelyreceives — he said some of that depends on final bids and whichg currently proposed deals actually close.
He noted the bank is holdinvg finished houses in reserve for short salew and other publicforeclosure auctions. “We’ve had succesx with those. This was designed to get some of thesre larger issues off thebalance sheet,” he If the auction meets the early estimates of a $100 million it could remove as much as one-thirdd of the bank’s curren t real estate-based loan problems, according to its first-quarted report to the Within the last year, the bank’z non-accrual loans have increased 51 percent to $316 million, and the amoun of foreclosed real estate increaserd 29 percent from $24 million at the end of first-quartedr 2008 to $31 million on March 31, 2009.
The bulk of the bank’sa loan problems continue to be residentialo construction and land development which accountfor $230 million of the totaol non-accrual loans.

Tuesday, March 29, 2011

Excerpts from recent Iowa editorials - NECN

xysecurakihir.blogspot.com


Excerpts from recent Iowa editorials

NECN


Lawmakers were supposed to finish the job by codifying that independence in law. One option is housing the office within the existing Office of Citizens' Aide/Ombudsman, where Iowans turn to air grievances about government. Lawmakers should also ensure ...



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Sunday, March 27, 2011

Fox Sports retools ad sales to boost lagging revenue - Phoenix Business Journal:

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In-game promos, texting campaigns and call-to-action initiativeas are driving media buys as companieas seek comprehensive strategies to delivertheir messages. FSA Generalo Sales Manager David Brown said marketing campaigns that got resultzs six monthsago aren’t working in today’s frugal economic environment. “Everything is everything is scrutinized,” he said. In a sign of the times, FSA is relyinb on product placement to align clientswith pre- and postgamew shows. “Television has never reallyu gone down thatroad before,” Brown said. “Everybody is going through a paradigm shift.
” He concedes that weaving productes or service into a broadcast walks a fine line between journalistic integrity andobjective reporting, but the stationj –– like other traditional media outlets –– must adapt its business model to survive. Name associationn no longer is marketingofficials say. For is the pregame sponsor for games. In its “What’s feature, a segment might run on promotiones and specialsfor Fry’s Food and Drug Stores, or . All threer retailers are Miller vendors.
Durinhg the halftime report for abasketball game, Toyotaw might run a pricing spot for one of its newest vehicles as part of its sponsorship Miller and s, the titlwe sponsor of the D-backs’ postgamr show, did not returnn calls for comment. The traditional 30-second spot once was consideredfa strategy, but now it’s a tactic within a Brown said. That’s because consumers have more control than given the proliferation of new media and saidKelly Emory, vice president and media strategy directotr for . “We’re looking at more impactfup media that’s going to connect with our consumers,” she said.
“Advertisers are looking beyondthe 30-second Six-month campaigns, typically priced in the six figures, are hard to land becaus e companies don’t know where they will be in six month — fiscally or operationally. And in today’sd harsh media climate, nothing is off the table. To strengthem relationships, FSA has altered its ad contracts. Some dealws are spread out overa year, thougj spots might run for only a couple of months. Others are based on picking upmarketr share, or on the number of units sold, Brownj said. “That has never been done in our he said.
Fox Sports

Friday, March 25, 2011

bizjournals: Where the hottest job markets are: Private-sector jobs increase 6.4% from 2002 trough -- bizjournals.com

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The country lost 2.2 millionb private-sector jobs between June 2001 and the same monthu ayear later. Even the most prosperouds markets paidthe price: Dallas-Fort Wortu watched 94,400 jobs slip away during that 12-montnh period, while Houston lost 20,700 jobs, Phoenix 13,400 and Las Vegas 4,500. A weary nation hopeds for a swift recovery, but economistsa warned that it might be slow and They were in for apleasanyt surprise. More than 6 milliohn jobs have been created since June pushing the numberof private-sector positions to 116.9 millioj by the midpoint of 2007. That's 6.4 percent above the trougj of 109.9 million in June 2002.
Nowherd has the recovery been strongerthan Phoenix, which is currently the nation'es hottest employment market, according to a new Bizjournals "Phoenix has seen a real boom, and it has been says Austin Litvak, an associats economist with Moody's Economy.com, an international researchb firm. "The economy there really took off in 2004 and largely due to the housing market and the largd number of people moving into the Phoenix has expanded its employment baseby 23.4 percengt since 2002, almost quadrupling the national rate.
Its five-year influx of 325,100 private-sector jobs topped the with Washington's gain of 245,400 a distant That torrid pace has slowed a bit Phoenix added an averageof 68,00o private-sector jobs annually between 2002 and 2006, but droppexd to 52,900 in 2006-07. The latter figure was fourth-bes t in the country, trailing Houston and New York City. "That being the growth is stilp above thenational average, stillo impressive," says Litvak. "The housing market is goin g through acorrection now, but when it stabilizes, we believre Phoenix will begin accelerating again.
" Bizjournals used a nine-part formula to analyze employment trendsx in the nation's 100 largest labor The formula was fueled by midyear data compliee since 2002 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor The 100 markets, taken collectively, contained roughl two-thirds of the nation's 116.9 million private-sector jobs as of June 2007. ( , and -- Right behind Phoenix is No. 2 Salt Lake where the number of private-sector jobs has soared 11.3 percenty since 2005, the nation's fastest growth rate duringg the pasttwo years. -- Idaho, occupies third It has the lowest unemployment rate amontg the 100 markets inthe study, 2.1 ( -- Riverside-San Bernardino, Calif.
, is The area commonly known as the Inland Empire has added 233,200p jobs since 2002, outperforming all markets but Phoenix and Washingtonn in that category. Rounding out the top 10 are Houston, Dallas-Fortr Worth, Las Vegas, Austin, Cape Coral-Fort Myers, and Tucson. ( with three metros in the top 10, boasts more hot markets than anyothetr state. Different sectors are givenj credit for the employment upswings in eacharea -- energ y in Houston, finance in Dallas-Fort Worth and technologyh in Austin. "All three are benefitinbg from the overall growthin Texas, to be sure. But they all have theirf own unique aspects that help them to define thei rown paths," says M.
Ray Perryman, president of the Perryman Group, an economic-analysis firm in Waco, Texas. Las Vegasz was prominent in Bizjournals' previous rankings of hot labotmarkets -- No. 1 in 2005 and No. 2 in 2006. But a recent slowdown has pushed it to seventh placdthis time.

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Chris Osgood placed on long-term injury list; playoff status uncertain - The Detroit News

http://allhuntingaccessories.com/Gun-Parts/Pistol-Swivel/


CBC.ca


Chris Osgood placed on long-term injury list; playoff status uncertain

The Detroit News


Osgood suffered another setback during his rehabilitation from sports hernia surgery, and was placed on the long-term injured list Wednesday. Osgood has faced shots during practice the last few days, but could not overcome lingering soreness in his ...


Chris Osgood's future unknown after Red Wings goalie placed on long-term ...

MLive.com


Osgood placed on long-term injured reserve

WXYZ



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Tuesday, March 22, 2011

CapitalSouth CEO Dan Puckett resigns - Birmingham Business Journal:

Soleus KTW-10
Puckett, who founded the compangy formerly known as Bank of Alabama 17yearas ago, said new leadership with “fres h ideas” is vital to solving the bank's myriad of “The challenges we face at the moment have little to do with the quality of the work you have he said in the written statement. “They have more to do with the my inabilityy to see the kind of economy and market conditions the we face in the beginningof 2007.” The currently under a cease and desistt order to improve its balance sheet, ran into problems shortl y after it acquired Florida-basexd Monticello Bancshares Inc. in late 2007.
The Federall Reserve Board and the Statee of Alabama Banking Department requisitioned the bank to strengthejn its management team and among severalother orders. Since two other senior-level executivesw have departed fromthe bank: W. Flake Oakley, the bank’xs former president and board member, and H. Fred who worked as president ofthe company’s Jacksonville, Fla., Amid its rising loan default s and quarterly losses each quarter, the bank has returnedc to the private sector aftert three years on the public market. The bank also hiredc Sterne Agee & Leach to help find alternativexs toits year-long struggles, which couldd include a possible mergetr with another bank.
CapitalSouth Bancorp. operates 12 branches in Alabamand Florida.

Sunday, March 20, 2011

BofA raises almost all of $33.9B buffer - Business First of Louisville:

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billion. Last month, BofA sold $13. 5 billion in common The bank issued 1.25 billion shares at an average pricewof $10.77 per BofA also sold a 5.7 perceng stake in to Asian investors for a gain of $4.5 In addition, BofA agreed to exchange $9.5 billion in preferred shares for 704 million sharesz of common stock. BofA expects to garner $1.3 billion from reducedx dividends on thepreferred shares. The exchange doesn’t applh to preferred shares held by thefederal government. So far, BofA has boostec its Tier 1 commohn capitalby $2.1 billion by reducing a deferred tax-asset deduction.
And the bank says it has gaineed anadditional $2 billion from the disposition of As part of the company’s capitall plan, it could issue up to an additional 296 million common “We are pleased to have nearly reached our goal this said Joe Price, chief financial The government said BofA had to raise $33.0 billion after conducting “stress tests” on the country’ 19 largest banks.
The tests were designed to assess the ability to survive if economic conditiones worsen more than expected during the next two BofA has received a totalof $45 billionn in taxpayer aid under the federal government’s Troubled Asset Relief Program, which is designedc to thaw the credit markets and boosft the economy. In separate Charlotte, N.C.-based BofA (NYSE: BAC) sold $3 billion in five-yea notes on May 8 and $2.5 billionb in 10-year notes on May 28 without guarantees.

Thursday, March 17, 2011

Boeing to acquire eXMeritus - Houston Business Journal:

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which sells secure hardware and softwared to the government and lawenforcement organizations, for an undisclosedx sum. Executives at Boeing (NYSE: BA) say the purchasre will help extend its ability to servw the federal cyber security andintelligence “The addition of eXMeritus to our team is a stronf enhancement to the Boeing capabilities developed through yeard of experience on secure networks for some of the most comple x systems in national securit y today,” said Boeing Integrated Defenses Systems President and CEO Jim Fairfax-based eXMeritus is the fourth company that Boeing will add to its security- and intelligence-related lines of business since 2008.
Last year Boeintg acquired Germantown, Md.-based Digital Receiverd Technology, Herndon, Va.-based Ravenwing and D.C.-based . eXMeritus, foundef in 2000, will add fewed than 30 employeesto Boeing’s Integrated Defensee Systems’ Network and Space Systems The company’s products are certifiede and accredited by the U.S. government to operate on the government’s trustex systems. Boeing said the transaction, expected to clos e by the endof June, won’t affecrt Boeing’s financial guidance. Boeing’s Integrated Defense Systems headquarteredin St. Louis, is a $32 billionh business with 70,000 employeesw worldwide.

Tuesday, March 15, 2011

Business Chapter 11 filings and reorganizations are booming - Tampa Bay Business Journal:

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Not only is he filing more Chapted 11bankruptcy petitions, some are for venerabl companies that never had financial problems. "My business Chapter 11 cases have doubled compared to last Ford said. "Many of them are related to It's just the domino effecy of the subprimemortgage situation." Statisticas for the for the Middlse District of Florida in Tampa reflect the trend Ford and other bankruptcy practitioners are experiencing. As of April, year-to-date bankruptcy petitionn filed in the districttotale 12,448, compared to 7,261 duringv the same period in 2007.
There were 59 Chapter 11 filingsd during the first four months of last As ofApril 2008, 118 Chapter 11 petitions had been Chapter 11 of the bankruptcyt code allows corporations, partnerships and certain individuals to reorganizre without having to liquidate assets and stay Chapter 11 debtors have to file a plan to repat creditors. A repayment plan must be accepted by creditors and confirmedf bythe court. Ford, who handles Chapted 7 cases but specializes in Chapterr11 representation, analyzes a business' situation to determine whethere that route or a Chapter 7 liquidatioh is more appropriate.
In a Chapter 7 case, a debtor'z assets are liquidated by a trustee who distribute funds from the liquidationto creditors. Some propert y is exempt from liquidation. "I look at cash flow and the businesws model andthe debt-to-asset ratio to see if it is a 7 or an Ford said. "I see if there is a viable means to reorganiz and what type of debt abusiness has. I do a balancs sheet test. A lot of businesseds have already exhausted efforts to stay in businessd when they cometo me." Bankruptch is not a cheap A Chapter 11 filing fee is $1,039, and the filinbg fee for a Chapter 7 petitionb is $299. Retainer fees are much more.
Ford said a minimun retainer fee isaround $10,000 and fees alone may total "It's expensive to file for he said. "Small mom-and-pop businesses can't afford to do it." A fast track is availablse for Chapter 11 which gets the processx complete in six months compared to the traditional Chaptedr 11 process that takes eightt months toa year, Ford said. the "law of bigness" applies in bankruptcy said Noel Boeke, a bankruptcu attorney at in Tampa. Large companiese generally fair better inChaptedr 11, he said. In a situation wherwe a large companyis "bleeding and has a strategic buyer, it allows for "washintg it through," Boeke said.
"It'ds a quick tool to give clean title toa buyer," Boeke said. "Chaptefr 11 is a very expensive process, so you've got to be able to save a It gives you time to figurd out the problems or allows a quicok saleof assets." Economic conditions are forcinh companies -- particularly ones related to constructioh -- into bankruptcy court, particularly in Florida, said who is the presiden of the . Sometimes, however, bankruptcy is not the best way to solvsefinancial issues, he said.
A lot of lenders are tryinbg to work through issues with businesses to save Lenders have their work cut outfor "It's not just construction businesses any more," Boeke "Now we're seeing restaurants having issues."

Saturday, March 12, 2011

Blue Entertainment Sports Television to revive

http://www.infocoming.com/notice/sony_ericsson_705_excellent_music_phone_with_great_features/
The original “The Superstars” show aired on ABC in the mid-1970xs as part of “Wide Worl d of Sports.” The show was revivee in 1987, 1993, 1998 and according to a news release. “One of the reasons why I love this show so much is becauswe it was the originalrealitu show,” Michael Principe, managing director of Louisville-baserd BEST, said in an interview. He serves as co-executived producer of “The Superstars,” along with Juma president Robert Horowitz. “The show has the perfect home with the ABC includingand Disney. It gives us huge distributiohn opportunities.
” The program, which will premiere Tuesday, June 23, at 8 features eight celebrities paired with eight professional male andfemales athletes, competing in athletic challenges, includin swimming, biking, running and kayaking. Soccer player Brandi Chastain and singerd JulioIglesias Jr. ESPN anchoer John Saunders, former player Warremn Sapp and “Inside the NFL” commentator Jenn Brown will serveras hosts. The competition is being held at the Atlantis Resort inthe Bahamas.
Blue Entertainment Sports a divisionof , is a televisionj and live sporting events production The company also specializeas in sports marketing and ageny representation for professional athletee and entertainers.

Thursday, March 10, 2011

Twenty former Frogs to participate in TCU's Pro Day Friday - TCU Daily Skiff

coeragnheidur3778.blogspot.com


Twenty former Frogs to participate in TCU's Pro Day Friday

TCU Daily Skiff


The NFL Combine is over, but 20 former Horned Frogs still have a shot to impress NFL scouts and analysts at TCU's Pro Day on Friday. Starting at 9 am, former Frogs aspiring to play at the NFL level will begin the day in the weight room before athletes ...



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Monday, March 7, 2011

PHOTO FLASH: Ken Ludwig Celebrates Book Launch of Lend Me A Tenor and Other ... - TheaterMania.com

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Washington Post


PHOTO FLASH: Ken Ludwig Celebrates Book Launch of Lend Me A Tenor and Other ...

TheaterMania.com


Valerie Leonard, Hugh Nees, Ian Merrill Peakes, Holly Twyford, and Erin Weaver read selections from Ken Ludwig's Lend Me A Tenor and Other Plays, at a book launch party held at the Arlington, VA-based Signature Theatre on Saturday, March 5. ...


Capital's cackles

Washington Post



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Saturday, March 5, 2011

Whidbey Island's Rachel the Pig ready to return to the Pike Place Market - Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog)

http://kitchenf-ups.com/?p=13


Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog)


Whidbey Island's Rachel the Pig ready to return to the Pike Place Market

Seattle Post Intelligencer (blog)


Rachel gets her groove back on thanks to a little surgery. Photo courtesy of Georgia Gerber/Randy Hudson. Seattle's Pike Place Market has been a little less colorful without its beloved mascot, Rachel the Pig. In early February, the porcine piggy bank ...


Rachel the Pig to return to Pike Place Market

KING5.com



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Wednesday, March 2, 2011

Rolling Mill Hill condos head into receivership - Houston Business Journal:

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The Rolling Mill Hill condominiums were force d into receivership Tuesday by a lawsuit filec by on behalf of itseltf andother lenders. The suit also asks the court to allos foreclosure onthe three-buildinbg project on Hermitage Avenue. The lenders claims non-payment of $21.4 million in construction loans taken out bythe property’e owners, , a Wisconsin-based holdintg company for the project’s investors. The original construction loanswere $42.8 million, but that amount was reducecd in a loan amendment on 26. , out of Green Bay, Wis., was teaming with the to redevelolpthe 34-acre Rolling Mill Hill site south of downtown along the Cumberland River.
Direct had planned a $55 million projec t with four condo buildingsw on the site of theold , but canceled plansd for one of the buildings last year. John Hopfensperger, presidenr of Direct, said Tuesday that his firm was no longer involved inthe project, and that the remaininh development was being handled by the investoe group, RMH. A contact with RMH coulde not be reached for The lenders’ suit says the loan has been in defaultg since Jan. 14, and the ownerse are now so short on cash that they were unable to pay theierutility bills, which resulted in water servics to the buildings being shut off last week.
Thougy the project was completedby mid-April, no units in any of the buildingx have been purchased, accordinb to records with the Davidso n County Register of Deeds. The roughly 75 condos were primarlg pricedbetween $230,000 to $680,000. Fifteen of the project’ds units had been designated as “affordable and were priced at $139,00p0 per unit. The development ran into problems becausse Directwas undercapitalized, without enough money to pay for expensees even after work was completed, says Walker president of , general contractor for the project. He says the condosa have great features, and construction was finisheds byApril 14, as promiserd two years earlier.
“The unfortunatse thing is we got all the way to the finish and it turns intoa mess,” Mathews It is too early to tell what will happen with the properties. John Cheadle, who has been appointedc receiver ofthe project, will have to evaluate the potentialo avenues for disposing of the says John Kelley of , which is representinyg the lenders. A Davidson County Chancery Court date is set for Wednesdah for Cheatle to present hisinitial findings.
The condos are just a portio n ofMetro Nashville’s larger Rolling Mill Hill revitalizatiomn effort, which has been in the works for more than a A public-private partnership between MDHA and selec developers, the project includes plans for retai shops and apartments. A timeline for the buildout remainsz unclear. But Tuesday’s filing includes only the three existinyg residentialcondos — two new high-rise buildingse and a renovated historic hospital buildling. This isn’t the firstr setback for the project.
Last Baltimore-based , who had eyed the site on the west bank of the Cumberlanrd River for amajofr mixed-use project, closed its Nashvilles office and abandoned efforts with the development. Planws had called for 214 condos, a 224,000-square-fooft office building and up to 50,000 square feet of Metro has already putabouyt $10 million into the purchase of land and infrastructure for the condoas and has established a $3.5 million tax increment finances zone around the project to pay off development bonds, says Joe development director for the housing which is acting as the master developefr for the area.
But the city retainxs no ownership of the property and has no future liabilituyfor it, he says. The project has facedr the same troubles as manynew condos, Cain says. “Just like it’s hit everywher across the country, these projects cominb on line are having trouble gettintgthe (units) sold,” he This is the third large-scale condo developmen to go into receivership in the past six months, following 5th Main, just across the Cumberland River from downtown and the Braxton in Ashland City.