River of doubt By Dan McCue Patrick Barber knows the perils and challenges of maneuvering a barge up the Cooper River, through the Pinopolis Lock and across Lake Moultrie.
High price tags moving into low-rent districts By Kathleen Dayton New homes and condominiums, traditionally a rare site on the Charleston peninsula, are rising in neighborhoods above and beyond Calhoun Street, keeping company with modest wood-framed homes as well as vacant lots and abandoned buildings.
Professional sports have $6 million economic impact By Lindsay Danzell When a South Carolina Stingrays player slaps a hockey puck into the net, a siren blares to signify the goal. But to the Charleston Metropolitan Sports Council, it sounds less like an alarm and more like “ka-ching.”
Local college market robust, but not over-saturated By Kathleen Dayton If tri-county residents aren’t getting smarter, they can’t blame a lack of colleges and universities in the area. More than 20 post-secondary educational institutions are spread across the Charleston area and more are on the way.
Collaboration beginning to drive South Carolina’s economic development By Bill Settlemyer Earlier this month, the Business Journal hosted the last of our 2006 Power Breakfast forums. The title of the forum was “Research in South Carolina: Coordination, collaboration and technology transfer between universities and businesses.”
State’s murder rate doesn’t match public perception By Andy Brack A mother and her four children were shot and killed Sept. 30 in a North Charleston trailer. Two days later, Greenwood County authorities found four dead in two apparently unrelated murder-suicides.
Our state’s so-so Forbes business ranking is sobering By Dennis Quick The good news is that we finished nowhere near last. In fact, we finished near the middle, which I suppose translates to a respectable “C” on our economic report card.
Endowed chairs: MUSC simulator research promises economic benefits By Dan McCue To most observers, Dr. John J. Schaefer’s mannequin-based medical simulator is where the rubber meets the road for the potential of the state’s new endowed chairs to have a tangible, near-term impact on economic development.
Endowed chairs: Researcher seeks key to why we’re drawn to what’s bad for us By Dan McCue Researcher Gary Aston-Jones, the Medical University of South Carolina’s endowed chair in neurodegeneration, does through science what artists, writers and poets have sought to do for millennia: He tries to understand the underpinnings of motivation and why so many of us are drawn to that which is bad for us.
Endowed chairs: Sorenson: Collaborative spirit among state universities ‘remarkable’ By Dan McCue Andrew Sorenson, in his fifth year as president of the University of South Carolina, was driving near Columbia after two days of meetings with his counterparts in the Southeastern Conference and still marveling over one consultant’s particularly chilly reception.
Charleston recipe entices prospective businesses By Lindsay Danzell Mix a dash of rich history and quality of life. Combine with a growing population and economy. And then add a large helping of business-friendly atmosphere. In a city known for crab cakes and shrimp and grits, this recipe showcases the appeal of the thriving Charleston market to national and international businesses.
Chief Justice offers advice, opinions during rare visit By Dan McCue In a recent and rare visit to the Holy City to speak with students of the Charleston School of Law, U.S. Supreme Court Chief Justice John G. Roberts said that those in attendance aspiring to be a judge should concentrate first on being good lawyers and should strive for balance in both their personal and professional lives.
SC Launch! funding helps reel in med-tech company By Shelia Watson Sabal Medical, a Seattle, Wash.-based medical technology company, has relocated to the Lowcountry after receiving a $150,000 investment from the South Carolina Research Authority’s SC Launch! program.
Accounting firms merging, joining Dixon Hughes By Dan McCue The merger of Charleston’s two largest accounting firms is good news for them and potentially good news for the city’s other, much smaller certified public accountants, according to a practitioner who went through a similar merger 18 months ago.
If passed, bond issue could speed up road projects By Jessica Johnson Among the many decisions to be made in the voting booth Nov. 7 is whether to allow Charleston County to issue $300 million worth of bonds to more quickly complete a series of road projects and make greenbelt purchases.
Board game chases players through marshes, historic sites By Kathleen Dayton A local artist and a North Carolina interior decorator have created a new board game that isn’t played on a board and will be sold exclusively at a King Street furniture store.
Daniel Island center seeks to draw upscale retailers By Kathleen Dayton The Daniel Island Co. and a Charlotte, N.C., developer hope to give Charleston retail an upscale nudge with an open-air lifestyle center on Daniel Island.
Layaway gone the way of the horse and buggy By Kathleen Dayton One of retail’s oldest purchase plans is bowing out of department stores across the nation. Layaway is going away.
More apartment units in the works to meet demand By Dennis Quick The spate of apartment-to-condominium conversions during the past few years seriously shrank the number of available apartments in the Lowcountry, according to real estate experts.
Experts advise weighing mortgage options By Dan McCue A recent tumble in interest rates and fears fueled by analysts’ forebodings about a looming surge in the nation’s foreclosure rate are prompting many homeowners across the country to convert their existing adjustable rate mortgages to new ARMs with a more distant adjustment date or to other, “safer” financing vehicles.
Developments changing face of peninsular Charleston By Kathleen Dayton New condominium complexes and renovated houses are multiplying on the streets of Charleston’s upper peninsula, where some of Charleston’s poorer neighborhoods are in a state of transition.
New condos bring affordable housing to Daniel Island By Dennis Quick Daniel Island, where the average price for a single-family home exceeds $700,000, has low-cost housing on the front burner of its homebuilding activities.
Teamwork may be the best thing for new agents By Paul Samuels Q: I am a new real estate agent and I have heard that joining a team of agents is a better way to start out in a very complicated, competitive business. What are your thoughts?
Your internal picture of the most important person in the world By Jeffrey Gitomer Got sales sense? The sense of selling, or sales sense, comes from mastering a series of internal senses. These senses are both subtle and blatant. They are both simple to understand and complex to master, but they hold the key to your sales success.
New Homes Tour shows off Charleston builders By Kathleen Dayton Potential home buyers got the chance to tour 44 new homes around the tri-county region during the recent Charleston New Homes Tour, held during the first three weekend of October.
First phase of Cane Bay nearly mapped out By Jessica Johnson The master plan for Cane Bay Plantation may take decades to be fully realized, but the first phase is almost mapped out. Only one first-phase parcel remains unsold.
RTMA studies rural feeder system for commuter rail By Shelia Watson For the director of the Berkeley-Charleston-Dorchester Regional Transportation Management Association, continued success is a matter of priorities.
Commuter rail’s ‘Catch-22’ By Shelia Watson Commuter rail in the Lowcountry has found itself in a “Catch-22” situation: Almost everyone involved in studying the possibility agrees that it is certainly a good idea—possibly even critical to future economic development—but it will be difficult, if not impossible, to afford.
Labor Department: Region not qualified to apply for additional BRAC funds By Dan McCue After a year of laying the groundwork, economic developers in the Charleston region have learned they did not get the $6 million Base Realignment and Closure funding they were seeking to implement the AngelouEconomics report’s plan for local economic growth.
Law enforcement training center receives DHS funds By Shelia Watson Earlier this month, President Bush signed into law the Department of Homeland Security Appropriations Act for Fiscal Year 2007, which provides $32 billion in funds for the department and several sub-agencies, including money for projects in Charleston.
Partnership enables MUSC to obtain imaging equipment By Shelia Watson A strategic alliance with Siemens Medical Solutions will enable the Medical University of South Carolina to obtain the latest in high-tech imaging equipment, much of it at reduced costs and the bulk of it destined for MUSC’s new hospital, due to open next summer.
Knowing your market key for early business survival By Ted Albenesius Market research is a systematic and objective way of determining who your potential and actual customers are and for collecting information to gain an understanding of their needs, their desires and, most importantly, their behavior.
How to survive the perils of corporate networking By John Carroll You know the scene. You walk into a room of people with the purpose of expanding the network of those who know you, trust you, would buy from you or recommend you to others.
Making your case with a strong case for support By June Bradham Q. I am the chairman of the development committee of a local charity. Recently, the development officer asked me to review our “case for support.” What is that?
Remember, in a high-tech world, it’s still about people By David L. Rawle I know. I know. We live in a high-tech world of communications and marketing, and we all tend to become obsessed with the power and possibilities of technology.
Calendar OCT. 31: Urban Land Institute ‘Everything Coastal’ Conference. Charleston Place Hotel and Riviera Theatre, downtown Charleston. Speakers: Ed McMahon, ULI senior resident fellow; John Crotts, director of College of Charleston’s Hospitality and Tourism Management Department; and a panel of public and private-sector professionals from Charleston, Myrtle Beach, Hilton Head and Beaufort.
People in the News Kathleen Brophy of Mount Pleasant has been named executive director of the Trident Technical College Foundation.
Accolades & More The Noisette Company LLC will award four public schools in North Charleston with its Example of Excellence awards.
Giving Back Gala raises $130,000 for Carolina Youth Development Center
"A Night for the Children" raised more than $130,000 to benefit the Carolina Youth Development Center, formerly know as the Charleston Orphan House.
Photo Finish CHAMBER'S INNOVATION HEAD PUTS ON CHEF'S HAT
Pennie Bingham, the Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce’s vice president for innovation, took a day off from being a regional business leader to take the national stage—as a cook.
