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FAST LANE - December
2002
WALTON
New Plant to Produce Power from Decaying Trash
Owen Electric Cooperative
and East Kentucky Power Cooperative (EKPC) have announced plans to build
the first plant in Kentucky designed to produce electric power from
decaying municipal trash.
Owen Electric, which
supplies electricity to nine Northern Kentucky counties, and its power
supplier, Winchester-based EKPC, are scheduled to build a $4 million
plant to begin producing power at the Bavarian Landfill in Walton by
the spring of 2003.
The 5,000-s.f. plant
will tap methane emitted by decaying trash to produce 3.2 megawatts
of electricity through four generators. Owen Electric will supply the
electricity to retail customers through its green power program called
EnviroWatts.
EnviroWatts began
after Owen Electric received inquiries from Toyota Motor Manufacturing
about supplying green power to its North American headquarters in Erlanger.
Toyota is purchasing enough renewable power from Owen Electric to supply
a significant portion of the energy for its laboratory on the headquarters
campus.
Through EnviroWatts,
customers will pay $2.75 more per month for each 100 kilowatt block
of green power. The customer has the option to enroll for all or just
a portion of their electric bill.
EKPC is also planning
to launch two other landfill gas projects in the next year. Gas-to-electricity
projects are planned for the Green Valley Landfill in Greenup County
and the Laurel Ridge Landfill in Laurel County. The Green Valley plant
should be operational by the spring, and Laurel Ridge should be generating
power by August.
Owen Electric Cooperative
began offering green power in Northern Kentucky in December 2001. In
June, Danville-based Inter-County Energy started offering EnviroWatts.
Blue Grass Energy Cooperative of Nicholasville followed in July and
Clark Energy in Winchester joined in August. Other co-ops are also expected
to adopt the program.
STATE
Airlines Meet Demand with New Flights, Larger Planes
 Though
the airline industry has struggled over the past year, demand for air
traffic in the Bluegrass State has consistently been high enough to
warrant the addition of new flights and larger planes.
Delta Connection
carrier Comair has upgraded its fleet and brought in the new 70-passenger
CRJ700 aircraft to replace 40- and 50-seat planes on flights from Cincinnati
to Louisville, Raleigh-Durham, N.C.; Huntsville, Ala.; and Bangor, Maine.
Comair has also
added more another flight from Cincinnati to Tampa and in January will
begin additional service from Cincinnati to Charleston, S.C.; Memphis;
Chicago-Midway; Madison and Green Bay, Wis.; Binghampton, N.Y.; and
Shreveport, La.
The international
front is also growing. Delta Air Lines recently announced that it will
be expanding its service from Cincinnati to Rome, making service available
year-round. The flight has previously only been offered during the summer
months.
Air travel statistics
have also been strong in Lexington, where Blue Grass Airport saw more
passengers go through its gates in October than any other month in its
56-year history. The monthly total of 102,255 broke the previous record
of 100,905 set in October of 1997.
In response to the
increased activity in Lexington, Chicago Express Airlines Inc. is adding
a fifth daily nonstop flight between Blue Grass Airport and Chicago’s
Midway Airport.
Michael Gobb, executive
director at Blue Grass, says the area can reasonably expect to see more
growth in the future. While the airport has achieved many of its marketing
goals in attracting new flight service, said Gobb, a number of “very
lucrative opportunities for new airline service from Lexington still
exist.”
STATE
Over 700,000 Phone Lines Now on No-Call List
 Some
may gripe about government interfering in their lives and businesses,
but few seem to be complaining about Kentucky’s new telemarketing
law, which allows citizens to request that their phone numbers be made
off-limits to telephone solicitations.
More than 707,662
phone lines – representing more than half of the state’s estimated
residential phone lines – have been put on the state’s no-call
list since the law went into effect July 15.
The state has also
been quick to act when it comes to pursuing companies in violation of
the law: Lawsuits have been filed against a number of companies with
multiple illegal calls and nearly 40 companies have been fined, with
charges ranging from $5,000 to $20,000.
STATE
UK Receives Grant to Enhance State's Math and Science
Education
 The
University of Kentucky has been awarded a $22 million grant from the
National Science Foundation (NSF) to help strengthen and reform education
in math and science in pre-K through grade 12 classrooms in Kentucky.
The program is a
key facet of President George W. Bush’s “No Child Left Behind”
education plan and is the first investment in his five-year $1 billion
math and science partnership initiative.
“Our goals
are to eliminate the achievement gap in science and mathematics in the
Central Appalachian region and to build an integrated elementary, secondary
and higher education system in this underserved region,” said Paul
Eakin, professor of mathematics in UK’s College of Arts and Sciences
and principal investigator on the project.
The program is designed
to achieve that goal by uniting the efforts of teachers, administrators
and guidance counselors in local schools with administrators and faculty
at area colleges and universities.
UK, the lead partner
in the project, will work with the Appalachian Rural Systemic Initiative
(ARSI) at the Kentucky Science and Technology Corporation and eight
institutions of higher education, including Eastern Kentucky University,
Kentucky State University, Morehead State University, Pikeville College,
Union College, University of Virginia College at Wise, University of
Tennessee and Somerset Community College. Other colleges and universities
are expected to join as the project progresses.
BARDSTOWN
Flaget Memorial Hospital to Move to New $38 Million
Facility by 2004
Flaget Memorial
Hospital has announced plans to build a new $38 million hospital that
will add nearly 100 new jobs within the first five years of completion.
Though the new 52-bed
hospital will have the same number of beds as the existing 65,000-square-foot
facility, it will offer all private rooms. The new 107,000-square-foot
facility will also allow for the expansion of the hospital’s emergency
services, surgery department, imaging services and ambulatory care services
in addition to an enhanced obstetrics and gynecology department.
Expansion plans
also call for a 10,000-square-foot physicians’ office building
and hospital officials are working to recruit eight to 10 new doctors
to the staff.
Flaget hopes to
have the new hospital open by mid-2004.
BEAVER DAM
Daicel Announces Plans to Add Two More Production
Lines
Daicel Safety Systems
of America, which produces dual airbag inflators for the automobile
industry, has announced plans to add a second assembly line in order
to handle a higher workload than originally anticipated.
The company, which
just opened its 1,100-square-foot facility in January, is also preparing
to add a third line by 2005. The two additional lines are expected to
add 71 new jobs, bringing the company’s total employment to more
than 140 by 2005.
Tax credits of $3.55
million from the Kentucky Rural Economic Development Act will help fund
the two additional lines.
The company also
has an option to purchase an additional 100 acres adjoining the current
facility, with tentative plans to construct a second plant that would
produce passenger side and curtain inflators. The existing Daicel plant
produces airbags that are strictly for use on the driver’s side
of the vehicle.
The Kentucky facility
serves as the American headquarters for the Japanese company, whose
primary customers are Honda, Nissan and Toyota.
LOUISVILLE
U of L Trustees Select State Budget Director for New
President
 The
University of Louisville’s board of trustees has unanimously approved
State Budget Director James Ramsey as the institution’s next president.
Ramsey has served
as U of L’s interim president since September, when he assumed
the position from Carol Garrison. Garrison was appointed acting president
when John Shumaker resigned to accept the post of president at the University
of Tennessee, then stepped down to take the position of president at
the University of Alabama at Birmingham, her alma mater.
Ramsey had initially
stated that he did not intend to seek the presidency on a permanent
basis, but had a change of heart after being encouraged to talk to the
university’s search committee by individuals from the university
and community.
The executive search
firm hired by the search committee had originally contacted more than
1,000 people and narrowed the field to eight people with strong credentials.
However, Ramsey
displayed “qualities that no one else had,” said U of L Trustees
Chair Jessica Loving. Trustee and presidential search committee co-chair
Chester Porter called Ramsey “one of the most qualified individuals
in higher education in the nation.”
Ramsey’s background
includes a number of higher education and government positions, including
vice chancellor for finance and administration at the University of
North Carolina at Chapel Hill, professor in the Department of Economics
at Western Kentucky University and acting president of the Kentucky
Community and Technical College System.
As of press time,
Ramsey’s University of Louisville contract and salary were still
being negotiated.
LEXINGTON
Keeneland Ends November Sale with Across-the-Board
Increases
 Keeneland’s
November breeding stock sale ended November 13 with increases in gross
sales, average and median prices and a decrease in the number of horses
that failed to reach their reserve bids.
Keeneland sold 2,377
horses for $187.23 million during the 10-day auction. Total sales increased
4.3 percent from $179,568,600 a year ago, representing the sixth highest
in the long history of the annual auction.
“The sale exceeded
our expectations,” said Geoffrey Russell, Keeneland’s director
of sales. “The median price this year is up 40 percent from a year
ago, and the RNAs (reserve not attained) decreased by nearly 22 percent.”
The top price of
the sale was $4 million, paid by ClassicStar LLC for Bless, a three-year-old
unraced sister to Kentucky Derby winner Fusaichi Pegasus.
A total of 20 horses
sold for $l million or more compared to 18 last year.
LOUISVILLE
SHPS Announces Purchase of Minneapolis Company for
$97.9M
SHPS Inc., a Louisville-based
benefits administration and health management services company, has
entered into a definitive agreement to purchase Minneapolis-based eBenX
Inc. for $97.9 million.
eBenX specializes
in managing transactions between employers and carriers that purchase
and supply group health and welfare benefits.
The combined companies,
which will operate as SHPS and remain headquartered in Louisville, will
form the market’s leading comprehensive human resources/benefits
administration and health management services company.
“We approached
eBenX with the idea of this combination because they have great technology,
a great customer list, and talented employees,” said David E. Garner,
president and chief executive officer of SHPS. “By combining our
two companies, we believe we can deliver a significantly better set
of products and services than either company could achieve individually.
I believe that the combined technology platforms and service offerings
are unmatched in the marketplace and position the combined company as
the clear leader in our space.”
The transaction
is expected to close in the first quarter of 2003, subject to regulatory
and shareholder approval.
SHPS currently employs
approximately 1,300 people in 10 cities throughout the country, including
Louisville, where 850 employees are based. eBenX employs approximately
454 and has offices in Atlanta, Chicago, Philadelphia, San Francisco,
Seattle and St. Louis in addition to Minneapolis.
LOUISVILLE
KEDFA's $5.8M in Incentives for Four Companies Creates
115 Jobs
The Kentucky Economic
Development Finance Authority has approved funding for four Louisville
companies that are expected to bring approximately 115 new jobs and
retain another 285 positions.
The companies that
have been granted approval for financial incentives from the KEDFA include:
- ColDan LLC, which
was granted approval for up to $2.9 million in incentives over 10
years, is seeking to purchase the plant currently owned by Carbide/Graphite
Group Inc. Carbide/Graphite has been operating under Chapter 11 since
last year. ColDan is prepared to invest $6.5 million in the plant,
which would keep more than 165 jobs (with an average salary of more
than $48,000) in Louisville.
- Minnesota-based
Ceridian Corp. is considering establishing a new data-processing center
in Louisville, where it would consolidate its offices currently located
in New Albany, Indiana and other U.S. locations. The endeavor would
bring some 22 new jobs with an average salary of $63,000. Ceridian
was given approval for up to $825,000 in incentives over 10 years.
- F.A.S.T. LLC,
which develops software for the commercial banking industry, was given
preliminary approval for up to $1.2 million in incentives to expand
its operations. The company recently purchased Orlando-based Compass
Technologies, Inc. and plans to move those operations and employees
to Louisville, creating 70 new jobs with an average salary of $40,000.
- Summit Energy
Services Inc. was granted preliminary approval for up to $874,700
in incentives. The company is in the process of expanding its operations
in Jefferson County, resulting in the addition of 26 new jobs with
an average salary of $51,923. The company presently employs approximately
75 workers.
LOUISVILLE
Humana, ZirMed Join to Streamline Insurance Process
for Physicians
Humana Inc. has
teamed with ZirMed.com to offer free online filing of medical claims
to physicians’ offices. The new service is being implemented in
an effort to ease the administrative burden facing healthcare providers
throughout the nation.
With the new service,
physicians’ business staff can submit individual claims through
direct data entry or a group of claims through a batch transmitted from
a practice management system. An immediate edit capability can reduce
errors along with the application’s patented claims correction
and resubmission logic. To use the solution, an Internet connection
and 128-bit encryption are required.
Louisville-based
ZirMed is one of the first application service providers in the nation
to offer real-time, interactive technology enabling providers to enter
and file healthcare claims, and make certain code and eligibility inquiries
in the process, directly on the Internet.
Humana, also headquartered
in Louisville, ranks as one of the nation’s largest health benefits
companies.
LOUISVILLE
Appriss Inc., J.C. Malone Among Nation's Fastest-Growing
Businesses
Two Louisville companies
have been named to Inc. magazine’s annual Inc. 500, a listing of
the nation’s fastest growing private companies.
Appriss Inc., which
specializes in voice-enabled communication technology, was ranked at
#500 on the list. Appriss was also featured last year, coming in at
#271. (A drop in ranking is typical for fast-growing business.)
J.C. Malone Associates,
an executive search and recruiting company, made its first appearance
on the list, ranked at #383
Companies are named
to the list based solely on revenue growth over a five-year period.
In order to be considered, businesses must have revenues of at least
$200,000 at the start of the five-year cycle.
Seven Kentucky companies,
including Appriss, were named to the list last year.
LOUISVILLE
Unemployment Account Numbers Now Available Via the
Internet
Kentucky employers
can now apply for unemployment insurance account numbers online with
the Kentucky Department for Employment Services.
The new self-service
Internet process will save time for employers and should also reduce
mistakes because the information will not have to be retyped, said Tony
DeName, director of the Division of Unemployment Insurance.
Employers can complete
the application form online at http://www.desky.org and will immediately
receive an account number. The process takes approximately 20 minutes,
compared to waiting up to two weeks to receive it by mail. Employers
can also use the service to change their mailing address.
STATE
AIK Honors Three Industries for Service, Innovation,
Originality
 At
the annual meeting of Associated Industries of Kentucky (AIK), three
companies were honored with its Kentucky Industry of the Year Awards.
Established in 1911, AIK has represented the legislative interests of
Kentucky industries as an effective lobbying and communications organization.
The winner in the
large industry category was American Electric Power (AEP), a Columbus,
Ohio-based company with a large presence in East Kentucky, including
ownership of the Big Sandy Generating Plant in Louisa. Having more than
172,000 customers in the state, the company has more than 11,000 miles
of transmission and distribution lines from operation centers in Ashland,
Hazard and Pikeville.
Winning the Mid-Sized
Industry category was Boneal Inc., which operates a custom plastic injection
molding plant in Buckner and a technical development plant and sales
office in Lexington, among other Kentucky facilities. Boneal products
range from high volume production items to single prototypes for a variety
of industries and the government.
Winning in the Small
Industry category was Clark Publishing and Communications, based in
Lexington. A small (three full time employees), but highly visible company,
Clark publishes what is commonly known as “the Gold Book,”
which is a directory of addresses and phone numbers of virtually every
state, county, municipal and school board official. Found in almost
every newsroom and library, the Gold Book was first produced by the
company in 1988 under its original moniker, Clark’s Kentucky Directory.
LEXINGTON
Two Investment Firms Purchase Tempur World Inc. for
$350 Million
Lexington-based
Tempur World, Inc. has been purchased by the investment firms TA Associates
of Boston and Friedman, Fleischer & Lowe of San Francisco for $350
million in cash and debt.
Tempur is a leading
manufacturer and distributor of mattresses and pillows made from a visco-elastic
material originally developed for the NASA space program. In the U.S.,
Tempur-Pedic mattresses and pillows have seen tremendous success in
leading furniture and specialty stores.
The company has
experienced rapid growth over the last several years, posting greater
than 30 percent average annual increases and revenues and earnings since
1999.
“Having grown
Tempur World from a start-up into a worldwide company with over $250
million in annual revenues, we saw this as an ideal time to benefit
from the additional capital, connections and advice TA and FFL have
to offer as we move into our next phase of growth,” said Tempur
CEO Robert B. Trussell Jr., who founded the company in 1992.
LOUISVILLE
New AIC Software Allows Physicians to Write Prescriptions
Electronically
Advanced Imaging
Concepts, Inc. (AIC), which develops software systems for medical practices,
has added prescription software that enables physicians to electronically
write prescriptions and automatically document them into the patient’s
records.
“There are
some very good products in the industry that provide every bell and
whistle and are quite expensive. Some customers can’t afford all
of that, nor do they want it,” said Jeff Amrein, CEO and founder
of AIC. “They just want the capability to write a prescription
using the computer that is easily sent to the pharmacy electronically
and automatically put into the patient chart.”
AIC Script-Writer
allows authorized users to view a summary of all medications for the
patient and also provides a complete audit trail and automatic record
of dosage information for repeated scripts.
LONDON
Plans Move Forward for Development of Civil War Attraction
in Laurel County
An additional $450,000
in federal funding has been secured for the development of the Blue-Gray
Civil War Park, a project designed to capitalize on the area’s
historic significance and boost the local and regional tourism industry.
Plans call for a
62-acre family theme park alongside I-75 in London that will include
natural woodlands and small lakes. From the highway, travelers will
be able to see a 10-acre scale layout of a 14-state regional of the
United States that will be outlined with landscaping to highlight major
Civil War battles. The park would also feature a visitor center and
museum, an amphitheater, walking path, and a restaurant similar to Shaker
Village or Boone Tavern that could accommodate special events and groups.
Officials with the
London-Laurel County Tourist Commission hope to begin construction by
Spring 2003.
Business
Briefs
BOWLING GREEN
- Hill’s Pet
Nutrition has announced a $30 million expansion that will add new
product lines and jobs at its Bowling Green plant. The expansion will
accommodate production of the company’s new Nature’s Best
line and other new products. The number of new jobs that will result
has not yet been determined, said company officials.
BULLITT COUNTY
- Jewish Hospital
HealthCare Services (JHHC) is investing $400,000 to expand the Bullitt
County Medical Center in an effort to respond to the rapid growth
in the area. The additional space will allow JHHC to “bring additional
primary care and specialty physicians into a community that is federally
designated as medically underserved,” said Ron Greenberg, senior
vice president of JHHC.
CAMPBELLSVILLE
- Despite a slowdown
in the national economy, Campbellsville University has actually seen
a slight increase in overall giving and an impressive 49 percent increase
in alumni contributions over last year. President Michael V. Carter
said that because of the increase in support, the university has been
able to offer students greater financial assistance packages as well
as improved academic, athletic and residential facilities, while enhancing
its ability to attract well-respected scholars to its faculty.
DANVILLE
- Kimball International
is cutting its Danville workforce by half as the result of a shift
in operations to the company’s plant in Jasper, Indiana. The
Danville plant, which has 100 employees, produces institutional furniture
for nursing homes and retirement communities.
DAVIESS COUNTY
- Lanham River
Terminal has been purchased by Kinder Morgan Energy Partners, a Houston-based
company that is the nation’s largest independent terminal operator.
Terms of the sale have not been disclosed. The 92-acre Lanham terminal
is one of the country’s largest storage and handling points for
bulk aluminum and is one of only four facilities used by the New York
Mercantile Exchange to establish aluminum prices.
EDDYVILLE
- The Eddyville
Industrial Development Authority has secured a deal for the purchase
of an industrial spec building and its 20-acre site. Seapac, which
specializes in materials packaging, repackaging warehousing and distribution
has agreed to pay $1 million for the building and site, located on
US Highway 62. An additional 150,000 s.f. is being added to the facility
to accommodate Seapac’s operations, which are expected to begin
by July 2003. The company anticipates hiring 45-50 workers, with hourly
wages ranging from $10-$15.
ERLANGER
- Sunbelt Business
Brokers Network has opened an office in Erlanger to serve the Northern
Kentucky market. The company provides services to those wishing to
sell or purchase a business.
FALMOUTH
- Falmouth has
lost its second-largest employer with the closing of Vege Manufacturing,
which employed 127 workers. Employees at the auto engine and parts
remanufacturing plant were told that it was no longer feasible to
keep the facility open due to a lack of profitability.
FLORENCE
- Shire Pharmaceuticals
Group plc, the parent company of Florence-based Shire US, has secured
the rights to a drug used for the treatment of ulcerative colitis,
an inflammatory disease of the colon and rectum. The agreement with
Giuliani S.p.A. gives Shire the rights to develop, manufacture and
market the foam treatment worldwide (excluding Italy, Vatican State
and San Marino) with a patent for the United States. Shire will conduct
phase III clinical studies using the rectal foam with the objective
of submitting a US new drug application upon completion of the clinical
program.
FORT MITCHELL
- Two Northern
Kentucky businessmen have teamed to open a new community bank in Ft.
Mitchell. Jack Kenkel and Henry Fischer have received approval from
the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to establish Victory Community
Bank. Kenkel is president of Victory Mortgage in Crescent Springs.
Fischer is founder of Fischer Homes in Crestview Hills. The new bank
represents the 12th new banking institution to open in the region
since 1990.
FULTON
- A new substation
in Fulton Industrial Park has raised power capacity by 40 percent,
representing the largest increase in the 40-year history of the Fulton
Electric System. The new facility was built to accommodate industrial
and residential growth in the area.
GOSHEN
- As part of its
acquisition of Goshen Utilities, Louisville Water Co. is preparing
to launch a 12-year plan to build more and larger water lines and
storage tanks. The projects are designed to improve water flow and
pressure for the community’s 1,800 customers.
HARRODSBURG
- Construction
has begun for a new wing at James B. Haggin Memorial Hospital that
will include a new emergency department, two operating rooms, and
a new radiology department. The project is expected to be complete
in 2004.
HAZARD
- Hazard ARH Regional
Medical Center has broken ground for an expansion that will feature
a new operating suite (including an open heart surgery operating room)
and a new reference lab addition.
HEBRON
- Specialty Films
and Associates, a manufacturer of flexible packaging products, has
been purchased by Exopack LLC, a supplier of flexible packaging for
consumer and industrial products. SFA will operate as a wholly-owned
subsidiary of the South Carolina-based company and will remain located
in Hebron. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
HENDERSON
- Henderson is
expecting a record number of riverboat stops in the coming year, according
to Henderson tourism officials, who are hiring additional tour guides
in preparation for the March-to-November season. The Delta Queen Steamboat
Company is slated to make 22 stops; RiverBarge is scheduled for six.
HICKORY
- Construction
has begun on a new 20-acre commercial development on Highway 45 North
near Hickory. James Sanders Implement Co., which currently operates
two stores in McCracken Co., has signed on as the first tenant at
the Cooley Commerce Center. The company plans to open James Sanders
Kubota in February.
LEXINGTON
- James N. Gray
Co., a Lexington industrial construction firm, has opened a regional
office in Birmingham, Alabama that will provide construction services
for markets in Alabama, Mississippi, Georgia and Louisiana.
- The University
of Kentucky’s board of trustees has granted approval for a new
College of Design, which will incorporate architecture, interior design
and historic preservation. Courses within the new college will be
offered beginning in January.
- Henkel Denmark,
a Lexington-based design-build-manage company, has been awarded the
Grand Award in the 33rd Annual Environmental Improvement Awards Program
sponsored by the Associated Landscape Contractors of America, a national
organization of 2,500 professional exterior and interior landscape
contractors and suppliers.
LOGAN COUNTY
- Auburn Hosiery
Mill is eliminating the second and third shifts at its plants in Auburn
and Adairville, resulting in the loss of 190 manufacturing and supervisory
positions. The layoffs equate to approximately 40 percent of the workforce
at Auburn Hosiery, which produces athletic socks for Wilson and Converse
and has been one of Logan County’s largest employers. The cutbacks
were announced by the president of Kellwood, the Missouri-based company
that acquired the mill from Gerber Childrenswear earlier this year.
LONDON
- Therm-O-Disc
has announced plans to close its London plant by the middle of next
year, leaving more than 300 workers without jobs. Company officials
said the decision to close the plant, which produces electrical switches
and thermostats, was brought about by increasing foreign competition
and a weak economy.
LOUISVILLE
- Louisville-based
Sandvik Sorting Systems has been awarded a $35 million contract with
Lockheed Martin Distribution Technologies to supply technology for
Lockheed’s automated package processing systems.
- FullCircle Registry,
Inc., a technology-based emergency information and document management
company, has acquired Paradigm Solutions Group in a stock transaction
valued at approximately $5 million. Paradigm sells healthcare reimbursement
plans.
- A class-action
lawsuit has been filed against Kindred Healthcare by the Massachusetts
State Carpenters Pension Fund, which has claimed that the company
misled investors.
- Business Intelligent
Systems LLC, a software development company, has filed for Chapter
7 bankruptcy. The company’s Sales Master Pro software was designed
to enable auto dealers to more efficiently track prospects and owners.
- In response to
increased enrollment and the addition of a new medical program, Spencerian
College has opened a classroom annex in a shopping facility near its
main Louisville campus. The school enrolled more than 900 students
this fall at its Louisville campus, compared to 585 last fall. Spencerian
also has a Lexington campus and has seen enrollment increase there
as well.
- Louisville International
Airport has established a new “waiting zone” that offers
free temporary parking for people coming to the airport to pick up
arriving passengers. The waiting zone lot is located east of the terminal
and is free of charge.
- Dillards is adding
approximately 55,000 s.f. to its store at Jefferson Mall for a new
home store. The addition will also allow the company to enlarge its
men’s and children’s departments.
- The Louisville-based
law firm of Greenebaum Doll & McDonald has launched a family business
practice group that will offer legal services geared to family-owned
businesses. Services will include issues related to estate, tax and
retirement planning; buy/sell agreements; business consulting and
strategic planning support; succession planning and ownership transfer;
general tax planning and litigation; executive compensation; financing
and capital-raising, mergers, acquisitions and sales; private placement
and public offerings; and employee stock ownership plans.
- Raytheon Co.’s
Louisville facility has been awarded a $46.5 million government contract
to upgrade 16 Phalanx Close-In Weapon Systems and produce four additional
Phalanx upgrade kits for the U.S. Navy.
- Bee Line Courier
Service Inc. has opened a regional branch office in Nashville. The
new office was added as the result of a two-year contract with U.S.
Bank NA, which calls for the Bee Line to make pickups and deliveries
at U.S. Bank branches in 24 Tennessee cities. Bee Line, which employs
some 250 workers, also offers pickup and delivery service in Kentucky,
Indiana and Ohio.
- Delta Dental
Plan of Kentucky has donated $1.5 million to the University of Kentucky’s
College of Dentistry that will be used to fund research regarding
oral health among pregnant women and periodontal disease in women.
- The University
of Louisville has been selected to receive an $8.2 million grant from
the National Institute of Health for research involving the diagnosis
and prevention of birth defects. The grant is the second largest ever
received by the university.
- The building
that once housed Schiller Hardware on Louisville’s Market Street
is being renovated by Cobalt Ventures LLC to accommodate a 40,000-s.f.
merchant center that will feature offices, retail space and restaurants.
Though the renovation of the three-story, circa 1880s structure will
be extensive – including state-of-the-art fiber optic connections
– the exterior of the building will retain its historic authenticity
and character, says Todd Blue, co-director of Cobalt Ventures.
- ResCare Inc.
has announced plans to purchase the education and training division
of Arbor Inc., a Pennsylvania-based job training and placement company
that focuses on welfare recipients, those who’ve experienced
lay-offs and individuals who have other obstacles that create difficulty
in obtaining a job. The addition is expected to create approximately
$20 million in annual revenue for ResCare.
- Travelers flying
Northwest Airlines out of Louisville will now find three additional
self-service check-in centers, where passengers can obtain boarding
passes and locate their gate number without waiting at the ticket
counter. Other options include upgrading or changing seats, accessing
frequent flyer account balances and changing flight itineraries.
- Louisville International
Airport has established a new “waiting zone” that offers
free temporary parking for people coming to the airport to pick up
arriving passengers. The waiting zone lot is located east of the terminal
and is free of charge.
MAYSVILLE
- Federal Mogul
has completed an expansion project that has consolidated the company’s
engine part distribution facilities into one location. The addition
is a welcome one for the Maysville community, which watched apprehensively
as the company sought federal bankruptcy protection and either downsized
or closed plants in California, Florida and Tennessee. The company’s
expansion in Maysville – where it produces engine sealing products,
brakes and chassis components, and wiper and lighting products –
has increased the local payroll from about 75 workers to more than
300.
MUHLENBERG COUNTY
- The state of
Kentucky has issued an air permit for Peabody Energy’s Thoroughbred
Energy Campus, a planned 1,500-megawatt coal-fueled electric generating
station that will eventually provide electricity for approximately
1.5 million households. The Thoroughbred Energy Campus will include
two 750-megawatt generating units fueled by up to 6 million tons of
coal per year produced from an adjacent mine. Company officials said
the plant could be operational by 2007, creating up to 500 jobs and
generating $100 million in annual economic benefits for the state.
MURRAY
- The Kentucky
Department of Local Government has awarded $2 million in community
development block grant funds to the Murray-Calloway County Economic
Development Corporation. The money will be used to help pay off debt
incurred by the purchase of the former Mattel facility in Murray,
which the EDC purchased to help attract Pella Corporation to the area.
Pella announced in June that it would be setting up operations in
Murray. The company anticipates hiring approximately 500 employees
within its first two years there.
OWENSBORO
- U.S. Bank Home
Mortgage, already Owensboro’s largest employer, continues to
expand. Company officials say they plan to add another 200 jobs over
the next year and expect to have 1,000 employees by 2005. The company’s
Owensboro facility handles all of the U.S. Bank’s mortgage business
in the U.S. Puerto Rico, Guam and the Virgin Islands.
- Owensboro-based
Indep-endence Bank has broken ground for the development of a new
$6.5 million building that will serve as corporate headquarters for
its five-county market area. The 36,000-square-foot structure is designed
to be a replica of Philadelphia’s Independence Hall.
- Brill Media,
which filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February, has sold Owensboro
radio station WVJS-1420 AM to Nashville-based Cromwell Radio Group
for an undisclosed price. Cromwell also owns Owensboro stations WBIO,
WXCM and WTCJ.
PERRYVILLE
- State officials
estimate that the recent Civil War reenactment of the Battle of Perryville
had an economic impact of more than $1 million for Perryville and
Boyle County. Some 40,000 spectators and reenactors from around the
nation gathered for the October event, filling hotel and restaurants
for miles around.
PIKEVILLE
- Truck body and
trailer company Benson Manufacturing Inc. has closed its Pikeville
plant, leaving 39 workers without jobs. Company officials said the
closure was the result of poor economic conditions. The company opened
its facility in Mossy Bottom Business Park in 1998.
PULASKI COUNTY
- The Southern
Kentucky Information Technology Center in Pulaski County has been
recognized as a 2002 Innovation Award winner by the National Association
of Development Organizations, a public-interest group that recognizes
organizations’ innovative approaches to economic and community
development. The $2 million, 20,000-square-foot office building, designed
by Taylor-Whitney Architects of Lexington, is currently under construction
in the Valley Oak Technology Complex. The building has been designed
to attract high-tech companies who need to move in quickly and have
immediate access to telecommunications infrastructure.
VERSAILLES
- Osram Sylvania
is adding a 454,000-square-foot distribution center to its Versailles
campus that is expected to employ approximately 140 workers. The project
is slated to be complete by Fall 2004, at which time the company will
close its Lexington distribution facility and move operations to the
Versailles site.
SHEPHERDSVILLE
- Interlake Material
Handling Inc. is closing its Shepherdsville conveyor manufacturing
plant and will consolidate its operations with those of its Lexington
facility. Employees have been offered the chance to relocate to Lexington.
The number of affected employees has not been disclosed.
STATE
- Merck & Co.
has joined forces with Health Kentucky to provide 11 of its medications
free of charge to Kentuckians who quality for free healthcare. The
medications being made available by Merck & Company include CozaarTM,
HyzaarTM, SingulairTM, ProscarTM, ZocorTM, MaxaltTM, Maxalt-MLTTM,
TrusoptTM, CosoptTM, VioxxTM, and FosamaxTM. Several of the medications
treat conditions for which there was previously an unmet need in the
program including asthma, ophthalmic agents, benign prostatic hypertrophy,
migraine, and osteoarthritis.
- The Kentucky
Pharmacists Association has named Scotty R. Sears, of Prospect, Kentucky,
as the 2002 Distinguished Young Pharmacist of the Year.
- Airports around
the state are experiencing their annual upturn in holiday passenger
counts and traffic. The new, highly efficient UPS WorldPort facility
in Louisville has thus far managed an upsurge in holiday package shipments
without needing to hire temporary workers. In the past, UPS has hired
as many as 1,700 workers for the holiday season. At the Greater Cincinnati-Northern
Kentucky International Airport, the union representing Delta Airlines
pilots has requested that Comair give preferential hiring status to
Delta pilots who have been laid off. The Northern Kentucky airport
is the home facility for Comair, a Delta Airlines subsidiary. Some
Comair pilots are suing the national office of the Air Line Pilots
Association, claiming that a conflict of interest exists. In Lexington,
Blue Grass Airport announced that two new daily nonstop flights to
Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport will start Jan. 31. Delta
Airlines will use 50-passenger jets in offering these flights, which
are expected to be priced competitively.
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