Business News

GM's new Cruze, Regal models may make or break GM

2009-11-13T17:27:00.001-08:00

DETROIT Two General Motors cars due in showrooms next year must be hits to help the automaker turn around sales and pay back its big debt to U.S. taxpayers.The Buick Regal midsize sedan and Chevrolet Cruze compact, both sold in key segments of the U.S. car market, face stiff competition and other obstacles to success. GM rolled out the Regal on Thursday in Los Angeles, and it's counting on the

Obama calls for jobs forum next month

2009-11-13T17:26:00.003-08:00

WASHINGTON With economic and political concerns rising as the unemployment rate has broken double digits, President Barack Obama announced Thursday that he will hold a high-level forum at the White House next month to try to find new ways to reverse the job loss."Even though we've slowed the loss of jobs ... the economic growth that we've seen has not yet led to the job growth that we

Nashville Business Briefs: Luxury condos will be auctioned

2009-11-13T17:26:00.001-08:00

The West End Luxury Condominiums in Nashville, a $60 million, 72-unit luxury condo project on West End Avenue that has sold just five units since sales started in the spring of 2008, is planning to auction up to 45 units on Saturday, Dec. 5.The auction will occur two weeks after another luxury condo complex downtown, the Terrazzo, puts 30 units up for bid. "We would just like to get momentum

Nashville mayor's neighborhoods director resigns

2009-11-12T16:29:00.001-08:00

Brady Banks, director of the Mayor's Office of Neighborhoods for the past two years, has resigned to work on state Sen. Roy Herron's gubernatorial campaign.Banks ran unsuccessfully for a Metro Council seat in 2007, then served as field director for Mayor Karl Dean's runoff campaign. He is a former hearings and appeals officer for the Tennessee Housing Development Agency and a graduate of Mercer

Middle Tennessee Electric says bills should drop in Nov.

2009-11-12T16:28:00.001-08:00

Middle Tennessee Electric Membership Corp. officials said the average customer's electric bill this November will be more than 15 percent lower than last year.That's because the Tennessee Valley Authority, which provides power to MTEMC, has lowered its charges. In Oct. 2008, the TVA raised its rates to a 30-year high, pushing the average electric bill in November to $153.88, according to MTEMC

Health bill seeks early end-of-life decisions

2009-11-12T16:27:00.001-08:00

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. Lillian Landry always said she wasn't afraid to die. So when death came last week, the 99-year-old was lying peacefully in a hospice with no needles or tubes. Her final days saw her closest friend at her side and included occasional shots of her favorite whiskey, Canadian Mist.Landry is an exception. Unlike most Americans, she made her end-of-life decisions years ago: no

Poll: Southerners want federal help, fear for jobs

2009-11-11T15:37:00.001-08:00

COLUMBIA, S.C. -- A new poll shows Southerners are fretting about job loss and the economy and don't think the federal government is doing enough to address either.The Winthrop Poll of 866 respondents in 11 Southern states found the economy was the top concern of four in 10 -- the same share of people who said they were concerned about losing their jobs. Overall, the economy was the biggest

Lawmaker escorted out of UT game

2009-11-11T15:36:00.001-08:00

State Rep. Stacey Campfield was escorted from a University of Tennessee football game after a dispute with police over a Halloween mask.A police report said the Knoxville Republican was wearing a Mexican wrestler's head mask during the Oct. 31 game against South Carolina despite publicity that Halloween masks were banned inside Neyland Stadium. A mother and her two daughters became upset over

Tennessee retailers link sales to charitable giving

2009-11-11T15:35:00.001-08:00

This Christmas, more retailers plan to target shoppers like 24-year-old Jacklyn Johnston, who vows this will be the first holiday when nearly all of her gifts are related to a philanthropic cause."I just really think that's important, especially this year, with people down on their luck," said Johnston, who plans to spend a couple of hundred dollars on gifts. "If you are in a position to help, I

Nashville home sales rise for first time in 3 years

2009-11-10T15:42:00.001-08:00

Nashville-area real estate agents applauded last week when Congress extended a series of tax incentives designed to boost home sales, and on Monday, the latest monthly numbers showed the area has already seen sharp gains in sales particularly among first-time home buyers.In fact, the Nashville real estate market saw its first increase in home sales in three years in October, when the number of

Franklin may make parents pay if kids do graffiti

2009-11-10T15:41:00.003-08:00

Franklin aldermen will meet today to discuss newly proposed graffiti laws that would make parents pay when their kids deface others' property.The rules would hold parents and legal guardians "jointly and severally liable" for children who get caught marking up private or public property with graffiti. That could mean covering the cost of removing the graffiti, in addition to paying a fine.

Nashville commission rejects convention center referendum idea

2009-11-10T15:41:00.001-08:00

A proposal to let voters decide on building major Metro capital projects like a $600 million convention center was rejected by the city's Charter Revision Commission on Monday.The proposal comes from Councilman Eric Crafton. He's pushing a revision to the city charter that would allow for a voter referendum any time Metro wants to issue more than $250 million in bonds for a capital project if

Dollar General may go public next week

2009-11-07T22:19:00.003-08:00

Discount retailer Dollar General Corp. is expected to go public next week, analysts said Friday.The Goodlettsville-based company will sell stock in the range of $21 to $23 a share and expects to raise $750 million in the public stock offering, according to documents filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. Dollar General was taken private two years ago after private equity firm

Jobless rate is even worse than thought

2009-11-07T22:19:00.001-08:00

WASHINGTON Just when it was beginning to look a little better, the economy relapsed Friday with a return to double-digit unemployment for only the second time since World War II and warnings that next year will be even worse than previously thought.The jobless rate rocketed to 10.2 percent in October, the highest since early 1983, dealing a psychological blow to Americans as they prepare

Local Business Briefs: Fresenius acquires Brentwood firm

2009-11-07T22:17:00.001-08:00

Dialysis clinics operator Fresenius Medical Care North America has acquired Brentwood-based Health IT Services Group, giving it ownership of products including electronic health records software used by nephrologists.Health IT's product Acumen had been available to Fresenius' nephrologists under a partnership between the companies. Dr. Franklin W. Maddux, Health IT's founder, will become senior

Former Hanover Corp. execs face fraud charges

2009-11-06T12:44:00.001-08:00

Two former leaders of the bankrupt Hanover Corporation LLC, have been indicted on criminal charges that they defrauded investors of $18 million in a Ponzi scheme from 2004-2006, the U.S. Attorney's Office for Middle Tennessee said Thursday.Terry Kretz of Gallatin, Hanover's chief executive officer, and Rober Haley of Lebanon, the chief financial officer, face charges of conspiracy, securities

If you're missing your '08 tax refund, IRS hopes you'll call

2009-11-06T12:43:00.001-08:00

Here's a switch: The Internal Revenue Service is looking for 1,849 people in Tennessee but to give them money rather than collect it.Among those owed money in the form of unclaimed tax refunds are 276 people in Davidson County alone, and there are no strings attached. The 2008 tax-refund checks came back to the IRS from the post office as "undeliverable." Statewide, there is nearly $1.8

Retailers close out best month in year

2009-11-06T12:42:00.001-08:00

U.S. retailers had their best month in more than a year in October as shoppers turned to discounters and high-end stores alike.The news fueled a rally on Wall Street, helping to push the Dow Jones industrial average up 203.82 points, or 2.1 percent, to 10,005.96. Year-over-year retail sales rose 1.8 percent, the best showing since June 2008 and the second consecutive month of gains, according to

Belcourt Theatre lands Sundance film event

2009-11-05T15:57:00.003-08:00

For one night in January, the Sundance Film Festival will come to Nashville.The long-running independent cinema showcase will dispatch eight films and their makers to eight American cities on the night of Jan. 28 as part of an initiative called Sundance Film Festival U.S.A., and Nashville's Belcourt Theatre is the only Southern city on the list. "Nashville is a city rich in emerging artists and

Column: While state scrimps, legislators get per diem raise

2009-11-05T15:57:00.001-08:00

Oh, Tennessee legislators! Hath thou no shame?Even as Gov. Phil Bredesen announced deeper budget slashing, there came the news that members of Tennessee's state House and Senate will get an 8.1 percent raise in their per diem. Some lawmakers had the decency to respond with a mere sputter of outrage. House Republican Caucus Chairman Glen Casada, who drives to Nashville from College Grove in

Harley-Davidson plant won't be in Murfreesboro

2009-11-05T15:56:00.001-08:00

Harley-Davidson has announced that a Kentucky location not Murfreesboro, Tenn. is the only one it is considering if it relocates its York, Pa., motorcycle plant.The site being considered is in Shelbyville, Ky. The company earlier said it was also looking at locations near its Kansas City, Mo., plant; in Shelbyville, Ind.; and in Murfreesboro. The York Dispatch reported that a company

Nashville Shores acquired by former Six Flags execs

2009-11-03T15:54:00.003-08:00

An investor group led by former executives of Six Flags Inc. has acquired Nashville Shores Water Park and Marina.The transaction includes the water park, a marina, a boat rental business and about 385 acres of land and water. Financial terms of the transaction werent disclosed. RelatedNashville Shores water fun Kieran Burke, chief executive of Six Flags until 2005, and Gary Story, its

Frustrated neighbor can click to track cleanup of eyesore next door

2009-11-03T15:54:00.001-08:00

QUESTION: An Inglewood resident called for help with a home. She says it has numerous problems: a backyard that looks like a jungle, a pool that isn't maintained, and dilapidated outbuildings. There are also vehicles: a car up on blocks and one left for months in a driveway.She appealed for help in getting the owners to fix up and clean up. ANSWER: Metro Codes Department inspected the property

Nashville People in Business

2009-11-03T15:53:00.003-08:00

NorthCrest Medical Center said: Lisa Linville, RN, is director of NorthCrest's critical care unit. Linville has been at Sumner Regional Medical Center in Gallatin. Dana Mires, RN, is director of NorthCrest's medical surgical services. Before joining NorthCrest, Mires was lead nursing supervisor at Hendersonville Medical Center. Insurance Shay Edney is a customer service agent for The Crichton

Toyota discloses U.S. findings on floor-mat safety

2009-11-03T15:53:00.001-08:00

NEW YORK — Toyota says its vehicles are not at risk of accelerating out of control unless the driver's side floor mat is incorrectly installed or is not meant for that vehicle.The Japanese automaker says the finding is the result of a U.S. government investigation into the possibility of unintentional acceleration in some of its vehicles. In August, Toyota announced a recall of 3.8 million