Berkeley County dealing with massive development By Sarah G. McC. Moise Cover Story: Part Two of a Three-Part Series
Editor’s note: This is the second part of a three-part series that focuses on how our county leaders are managing growth pressures while encouraging economic development.
EDITOR'S NOTES: College-bound not always the answer to career choice By Bob Bouyea I think I’m like most parents when it comes to my children’s education. I’ve given my girls a choice for as long as they could comprehend. They can choose which college they want to attend (as long as it’s not Florida State University. Sorry, FSU grads!). But I haven’t given them the choice of not attending college at all.
QUICK NOTES: Let’s rebuild the ‘real’ American dream here By Dennis Quick Housing heebie-jeebies. My apartment complex (technically it’s a townhome community) is going condo, and when my lease expires this summer I have to make a choice: buy mine or some other unit in the place, or leave.
Letters to the Editor
Tuition tax credit could drain state’s general fund
Headlines about the tuition tax credit legislation typically focus solely on the impact on education while disregarding the fact that this proposal drains money from the state’s general fund. This legislation was pre-filed in the state’s House as tax legislation, currently assigned to the House Ways and Means committee. All of you who ignore this legislation because you think it is simply an “education” proposal should examine its…
LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP: Looking back can help you look forward By Jack Hoey Recently my company completed its annual planning process. As most companies do, we have an annual planning cycle where we select projects for implementation, assure that income and spending are aligned in a way that meets our goals, and examine our progress toward long-term objectives.
Lawyers weigh benefits of new class action fairness bill By Sarah G. McC. Moise In a move to curtail multi million dollar class action lawsuits against companies, President Bush signed the Class Action Fairness Act late last month to overwhelming Congressional approval. The legislation is a major victory for large and small businesses, as well as a potential harbinger of future tort reform.
Charleston High School Project to honor alumni, staff By Dennis Quick Like other Lowcountry business owners, Rebecca Ufkes, president of UEC Electronics in Hanahan, is eager to do business with Dallas-based Vought Aircraft Industries.
South Carolina exports post strong growth in 2004 By Sarah G. McC. Moise
South Carolina companies face intensifying competition for markets and customers around the world. But according to the latest export statistics from Global Trade Information Services, the Palmetto State is more than up to the challenge.
Berkeley County revives vacant Kmart building By Rachel Pleasant One piece of Berkeley County’s development—the long-abandoned Kmart building on U.S. Highway 52—is slated to be open for business as the county’s new government seat come May.
Parking garage OK say aviation authority, builder By Matthew French The dispute between the Charleston County Aviation Authority and Gulfstream Construction Co., the prime contractor on the 1,200-space airport parking garage that is currently under construction, has simmered down for the time being. Both sides say they expect the structure will be completed within the guidelines of the contract and before the 2005 holiday season.
Real Estate News Briefs
Humanities Foundation receives over $800,000 in grants
In response to the high demand for low-income housing and support of services for needy individuals in Charleston County, the Humanities Foundation has applied for and received from the Department of Housing and Urban Development more than $800,000 in grants.
“With the many cuts in section 8 and services provided for those in need, it is very gratifying to know that we will be able to provide much needed…
AHPs could increase small business buying power By Matthew French When President Bush specifically addressed Association HealthPlans in his State of the Union address earlier this year, small business lobbyists nationwide stood up and cheered. The cost of health insurance is often the most difficult expense for business owners to cover; it’s so difficult, in fact, that more than 40% of businesses with between one and nine employees don’t offer health care coverage.
Public Works turns to MeadWestvaco for help By Matthew French When the Charleston Commissioners of Public Works found its computer servers at the Plum Island wastewater treatment facility suddenly were malfunctioning, not many would have considered the problem might be found in the air.
WORKING: Grace under fire: How do you perform under pressure? By Aleigh Acerni If you’re like I am, the daily pressures and stresses of work can affect you in different ways. Sometimes stress can cause me to be more effective: when deadlines are imminent I know I have no time to procrastinate. But pressure in the workplace can also at times make me feel overwhelmed—and having an elevated stress level every day, while being a good motivator, can eventually lead to such stress-related health problems as insomnia, headaches, upset stomach, elevated blood pressure and chest pain, according to WebMD.com.
Developer outlines plans for major Berkeley County project By Holly Fisher The number of homes in Berkeley County is quickly expanding. And Cane Bay Plantation is one of the larger developments planned for an area that seems to be getting less rural.
EXECUTIVE DEVELOPMENT: Intelligence is not enough By Wayne Outlaw It’s not enough to be intelligent. To be effective as an executive you must have the insight to perceive subtle changes, shifts in behavior, and most importantly, spot trends before they become fully evident. Insight is an essential skill that an executive must develop.
MARKETING: Making the Internet work for your public relations By David L. Rawle How has the Internet affected public relations? Significantly. The Internet is now the No. 1 choice for news in the 18 to 54 age group. And virtually all journalists (92%) start their article research online.
MEP-Chamber partnership to help manufacturers By Matthew French In an effort to provide a deeper repertoire of services for their respective memberships, the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and the South Carolina Manufacturing Extension Partnership last month announced the formation of an alliance to help further the state’s small and mid-sized manufacturers.
‘New’ American Theater plays starring role as events venue By Dennis Quick The American Theater’s Feb. 28 changeover from a movie house to a venue for corporate meetings and events might have disappointed downtown Charleston’s moviegoers, who no longer have a full-time movie theater on the peninsula.
Discount meds company works in federal law ‘gray area’ By Dennis Quick A plain storefront, a few tables and chairs, a pair of computers and other sundry office equipment is all there is physically to Lowcountry Discount Meds in West Ashley. It’s hardly your typical drugstore.
Government speculative building program lures businesses to area By Rachel Pleasant The arrival of Road King Trailers to St. George means a lot of things: new jobs, a boost to the county’s tax base and yet another success in a speculative building project Dorchester County began in 1992.
NFIB creates new quarterly report on state-by-state small business conditions By Matthew French The National Federation of Independent Business, one of the nation’s largest small-business lobbies, last week released its first quarterly “South Carolina Small Business Conditions” report. NFIB, which represents some 600,000 small businesses nationwide, interviewed 350 businesses around the state to get their take on the condition of the government, sales, jobs, benefits and the short-term outlook.
Federal cost-share program valuable resource for landowners By Sarah G. McC. Moise Earlier this month, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Natural Resources Conservation Service sought comments from South Carolina landowners and organizations on its conservation cost share program, the Environmental Quality Incentives Program.
Safe Moves creates supervised visitation center By Sarah G. McC. Moise Safe Moves, a local, not-for-profit family violence resource center, has developed the area’s first supervised visitation and monitored exchange program, which has been deemed a “necessary component” of protecting victims and their children during court ordered visitation, by the National Council of Family Court Judges.
CAREER COACH: Prepare well for interviews to set yourself apart By Barbara Poole Your New Year’s resolution was to find a new job that would be exciting and rewarding. You’ve been diligently working your strategy, sending out resumes and networking at every opportunity.
People
Architecure
Liollio Architecture named Rick Bousquet a principal and shareholder. He has been with Liollio for seven years, currently serving as director of operations.
Consultants
Work Volf Consultants LLC named Leonard “Butch” Volf vice president of business development. Volf is a former vice president of transmission service for Santee Cooper. …
Calendar
• MARCH 8: Charleston Women in International Trade meeting. 11:45 a.m. at the Charleston Naval Shipyard. Speaker: Assistant U.S. attorney Sean Kittrell. Topic: an overview of Operation Seahawk. Cost: $20 for members; $25 for non-members. Lunch will be provided but space is limited. Information: (803) 737-0488, cwit@sccommerce.com or www.cwitsc.org.
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Photo Finish
MIDDLETON PHOTO TAKES AWARDS: Tanya Emerson, public relations and marketing manager at Middleton Place, placed in the National Historic Landmark Photo Contest: Imaging Our National Heritage, sponsored by the National Park Service of the U.S. Department of Interior. She won first place in the Southeast region as well as first place in the national photo contest for her image of the wood nymph at Middleton Place. …
Appointments
The Professional Referral Network elected the following officers for 2005: president Robert Bernstein, an attorney with Bernstein & Bernstein; vice president Suzanne Barr, president of Azure Sky Resources; treasurer/secretary John C. Tiller, assistant vice president of Scott & Stringfellow Inc.; membership director Diane Bogart, owner of Cruise Planners; and past president Kevin Jackson, vice president of Investors Mortgage of Charleston. …
Giving Back
Business, employees donate to tsunami relief
A number of local businesses and corporations have donated money to the victims of last December’s tsunami in Southeast Asia. Food Lion gave a $50,000 cash contribution to the American Red Cross. Food Lion also provided employees and customers with an opportunity to make cash donations. Verizon Wireless enabled customers to make donations to CARE, a humanitarian organization fighting poverty. Using their phone’s text message feature, Verizon customers donated to…
Accolades & More
The Charleston Trident Association of Realtors named John M. Settle III of Prudential Carolina as 2004 Realtor of the Year. The award is based upon contributions to the community and the association on the local, state and national level.
Palmetto Tea and Etiquette, a new gourmet tea company, provided tea to the Volkswagen Main Street Lounge during the 2005 Sundance Film Festival. …
Local companies have few chances for Vought’s business By Dennis Quick Like other Lowcountry business owners, Rebecca Ufkes, president of UEC Electronics in Hanahan, is eager to do business with Dallas-based Vought Aircraft Industries.
