Senior Class: An economic force By Holly Fisher The number of baby boomers already living in the Lowcountry, combined with the influx of newcomers, is creating an exploding aging population. And with that population comes a unique set of challenges for businesses.
Local textile manufacturers survive, thrive in niche markets By Dan McCue While the times continue to be difficult for mid-state fabric makers, textile manufacturers that call the Charleston area home are mining prosperity in niche markets and are focusing on higher-end products for other U.S. industries.
Wi-Fi: Convenience vs. risks By Shelia Watson The spread of Wi-Fi capabilities throughout the Lowcountry means that with the right hardware and software on a laptop, the tech-savvy user can log on to the Internet from almost anywhere, from upscale hotels to coffeehouses to college campuses.
FBI: South Carolina ranks second in mortgage fraud By Dennis Quick In November, four Charleston-area defendants pleaded guilty before a U.S. District Court to swindling $875,000 from WMC Mortgage Corp. and Fieldstone Mortgage Co. A fifth defendant in the scheme pled guilty in October.
VA Medical Center director to retire By Shelia Watson Ralph H. Johnson VA Medical Center director William A. Mountcastle has announced plans to retire in March, drawing to a close a 37-year career with the Department of Veterans Affairs.
Letters to the Editor East Cooper Habitat for Humanity salutes the Charlestown County employees who helped expedite the permitting process so that we could use our Collegiate Challenge volunteers more effectively this upcoming spring.
Invest in what is best for South Carolina: education, health By Andy Brack If state lawmakers were to forget politics and consider what two things they could do to best help people across the state, they might reach the following conclusion: The state’s lowest-in-the-country cigarette tax is a missed revenue opportunity that could pay for serious improvements for education, curb smoking and improve the health of South Carolinians.
Six marketing books for your reading shelf in 2006 By David L. Rawle Continuous learning inevitably makes work more stimulating and more successful. Even in this era of sound bites and instant messaging, it is still worth turning to books for more in-depth ideas.
Force Protection defends its armored vehicles By Dan McCue Officials of Force Protection Inc., the Ladson-based armored vehicle manufacturer, say they were blindsided by a report in The New York Times that revealed the company is the subject of an ongoing federal false claims investigation and that they still have not received official notification of the claims against them.
Cost estimates triple for MOX fuel conversion plant By Shelia Watson The cost estimates for a proposed Mixed-Oxide Fuel Fabrication facility at the Savannah River Site, a 310-square-mile site about 15 miles southeast of Aiken, have increased more than 300% since the Department of Energy reported a design-build cost of $1 billion to Congress in 2002.
SCWTC, SCSU to develop $400 million research center By Shelia Watson South Carolina State University trustees unanimously approved a preliminary agreement with the South Carolina World Trade Center for the development of a World Trade Park and Education Research Center.
Resolution: Make this new year a new ‘you’ year By Jeffrey Gitomer It’s the New Year: new opportunities, new goals, new resolutions, new beginnings, new determinations. But before you start up the new mountain, take a look at whose mountain you are climbing—yours or theirs.
Senate approves funds for state defense projects By Shelia Watson Congress has approved more than $100 million in South Carolina- related defense projects, with eight companies in the Lowcountry receiving the largest portion of the funding as compared with other parts of the state.
BB&T floats loans to S.C. businesses wanting to export By Dan McCue BB&T Corp., already one of the region’s most active providers of loans to small businesses entering the export market, is hiring a South Carolina coordinator in a bid to expand its export-related transactions.
CMTC receives Defense ManTech Achievement Award By Shelia Watson The Composites Manufacturing Technology Center has been named a co-recipient of the 2005 Defense Manufacturing Technology Achievement Award given by the U.S. Office of Naval Research at the Defense Manufacturer’s Association conference recently held in Orlando.
No takers in Independence Air’s bid to sell company By Dan McCue A federal bankruptcy court in Delaware has granted Independence Air’s request to provide severance and other payments to its furloughed employees but wants more time to consider unspecified payments to what court documents described as six “insiders” with the company.
Older workers’ maturity, wisdom part of team building recipe By Rachel Pleasant Patrick Dickerson has found the key to an efficient employee team. The owner/operator of Mount Pleasant’s Chick-fil-A hires senior citizens to work alongside his throngs of teenaged or early-20s workers.
Retirees bring new jobs, added revenue to local economy By Holly Fisher Britt Gilbert, president of Commonwealth Financial Group on Daniel Island, is seeing first-hand the effects of an older population in-migrating to the Charleston region.
Women grow business from ailment, target boomers By Dan McCue For the women behind L’Athene Inc., a Mount Pleasant-based cosme-ceutical company, the aging of the baby boomer generation is a prescription for golden business opportunities.
Transportation key issue among growing aging population By Dennis Quick Legendary bandleader Duke Ellington’s hit tune, “Don’t Get Around Much Anymore,” risks becoming a sad theme song for the nation’s graying baby boomers.
Retired professionals returning to school By Rachel Pleasant The number of tri-county residents 60 years old and older will increase by nearly 60% by 2015, a trend that will leave little unaffected, including the area’s higher education institutions.
Retirees seek ways to keep homes livable By Dan McCue No one can say for certain how many of the 76 million baby boomers retiring over the next 10 to 15 years will in-migrate to the Charleston region, but experts in aging and home development issues think those that do relocate to South Carolina will create an increased demand for home building and home redesign services.
Make a lifetime commitment to learning By John Carroll Mark Twain said, “I have never let my schooling interfere with my education.” Unfortunately, for many people, education and systematic learning end with their school years.
New MUSC Foundation board member brings venture capital experience By Shelia Watson Dennis Dougherty, the newest member of the board of directors for the Medical University of South Carolina’s Foundation for Research Development, could be a shot in the arm for Charleston’s bio-tech entrepreneurial network.
Career advancement: Does it mean moving up or sideways? By Barbara Poole Joe, a client of mine who works in the pharmaceutical industry, is one of the most dedicated and talented employees any organization could hope to have. He has been with his company for 18 years.
CaroLinks announces $250 million intermodal project By Shelia Watson Carolina Linkages, also known as CaroLinks, a supply chain and logistics provider, has revealed plans to create the only stand-alone integrated intermodal transportation and distribution network serving the Port of Charleston.
Developer buys Long Island, plans to build 155 homes By Shannon Cavanaugh Long Island speaks to the lost years of the South Carolina coast, with its marshes and live oaks that measure 90 inches around. Its natural beauty and history have tempted millionaire Joe Kimmel.
Zoning change could bring high-rise condos to Folly Beach By Shannon Cavanaugh Roof tops, now tree high, will grow taller as luxury condos reach skyward. There is no limit. The Folly Beach City Council approved last month a C-4 zoning with no height restrictions, allowing developers to build as high as their money will go.
Report: Charleston area home prices overvalued By Rachel Pleasant A recent study of housing markets across the country estimated that homes in the Charleston area sell for about 7% less than they should, creating a collective “you’ve got to be kidding me” moment for some who’ve considered buying a house here recently.
Cambridge Square gives ‘urban center’ to subdivision By Dennis Quick Park West, a suburban development off of U.S. Highway 17 in Mount Pleasant, will be the site of a new urban development—Cambridge Square, a 35-acre area upon which 138,000 square feet will be built.
Growth ethic shapes regional planning By Holly Fisher According to the 2000 U.S. Census, the mean travel time to work for people in Dorchester County was 28 minutes. It was slightly less for Berkeley and Charleston counties.
