St. Charles County Business Record, MO articles from January 2003

St. Charles County Business Record, MO archives from January 2003

State allocates training funds for St. Charles businesses.
January 2, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady While companies throughout the nation approach the new year with apprehension, more than 75 Missouri companies -- including 12 companies from St. Charles County -- will face the new year with a little help from the...

Commentary: Bad business abounded in '02, but hope remains for '03.
January 3, 2003... Byline: Mike Nixon The best thing that can be said about business during the past year is that it offered plenty of examples on how not to conduct business and numerous public reminders that scandals, greed and bad judgment calls are...

Two federal contractors link databases.
January 3, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady Small businesses looking to obtain business contracts with government agencies, either directly or indirectly, will find the registration process less time-consuming now that two federal contractor databases have...

Starbucks looks to open stores in St. Charles County.
January 4, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask St. Charles County residents soon may be able to pull up to a Starbucks to order their favorite espresso during their morning commute to work. The trendy coffee retailer is in the process of looking at a number of sites...

SBA loans more than $2.4B through terrorist relief program.
January 7, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady Earlier this month, the U.S. Small Business Administration announced it has made $2.4 billion in loans through its Supplemental Terrorist Activity Relief program to help 6,067 small businesses nationwide. The STAR...

Demand for new houses remains strong in St. Charles County.
January 7, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Low mortgage rates helped keep the home-building industry going strong in St. Charles County in 2002. December figures are not yet available, but the county's demand for new single-family homes rose 5.1 percent...

Demand for new houses remains strong in St. Charles County.
January 8, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Low mortgage rates helped keep the home-building industry going strong in St. Charles County in 2002. December figures are not yet available, but the county's demand for new single-family homes rose 5.1 percent...

Professor reviews 2000 census numbers for St. Charles.
January 8, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady That St. Charles County's population is growing rapidly is old news. But before anyone considers moving their businesses here, they should look behind the numbers and closely examine the demographics, says a leading...

Vacancy rate for office space in St. Charles County remains high.
January 9, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady While the nation pulls itself up from a sluggish economy, companies are beginning to buy or lease commercial real estate property again, and vacancy rates of office space are slowly dropping in the fourth quarter of...

Massive Whittaker housing project viewed favorably.
January 9, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask That the homebuilding industry is thriving in St. Charles County was confirmed Wednesday with the news that Whittaker Builders Inc. is planning a 3,000-home development. The project, to be called New Town, will...

James & Dreyer law firm expands with assistance from T.R. Hughes.
January 10, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady T.R. Hughes Commercial Group just completed the interior finish to an extra room for the expansion of the James & Dreyer Law Offices at 14 Richmond Center Court in St. Peters. James & Dreyer owns one of three...

Retirement changes expected as economic outlook adjusts.
January 10, 2003... Byline: Mike Nixon There is no denying that the image of a retirement lifestyle has made dramatic changes over the years. Long gone are the times, and Hollywood ideals, of an elder relative with nothing more to do than wile away the day at...

Vacuum pump manufacturer to close St. Peters operations.
January 10, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask The doldrums of the economy's manufacturing sector continue. The latest evidence comes from nash_elmo, a leading international manufacturer of industrial vacuum pumps and compressor products and systems, which is in the...

Small Biz Development Center of St. Charles impacts business community in 2002.
January 11, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady President Bush's economic plan last week included some tax breaks for small businesses. But there is a resource in St. Charles that has been providing help for small businesses for a long time. On Thursday, Ron...

Gamblers keep flocking to Ameristar Casino St. Charles.
January 14, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Even in an uncertain economy, Ameristar Casino St. Charles' recent expansion continues to attract gamblers. Missouri's casinos continue to make more money off their patrons than they did a year ago, but the casino here...

Statewide study targets growing number of entrepreneurs.
January 14, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour According to the U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Advocacy, the number of small businesses, or companies with less than 500 employees, has increased over the past few years. In 1999, there were 126,699...

Foristell's chamber of commerce gets involved in city's growth.
January 15, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady The city of Foristell, which sits in the far-western portion of St. Charles County, is beginning to appreciate the magnitude of westward expansion in the county, and its chamber of commerce wants to be prepared for...

Local businesses welcome tax relief proposed by president.
January 16, 2003... Byline: James Monahan Even though they personally would not benefit much from the business tax-relief proposals announced by President George W. Bush, several St. Charles County business owners are voicing support for the plan. Small...

Wentzville becoming a home builders' hotbed.
January 16, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Wentzville still has a way to go before that city is the burgeoning municipality that O'Fallon has become. But the community that bills itself as the Crossroads of the Nation may well be on its way if 2002's...

Sen. Chuck Gross named to state tourism commission.
January 17, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Just a couple of weeks before St. Charles voters decide the future of the city's tourism industry, the state senator who represents the community has been appointed to the Missouri Tourism Commission. Sen. Chuck Gross,...

Commentary: Crime and punishment challenges examined for political motives.
January 17, 2003... Byline: Mike Nixon One week ago today, outgoing Illinois Gov. George Ryan sparked the attention of many when he pardoned four death row prisoners who were awaiting execution in the state's corrections system. The following day, as a final...

Officials see Olympic diving trials as opportunity to market the area.
January 17, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Now that the St. Louis Sports Commission and St. Peters have secured the rights to host the 2004 Olympic Diving Trials at the St. Peters Rec-Plex, attention has turned to how officials can best take advantage of the...

Organized labor backs convention center project.
January 18, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Almost since the idea was first discussed way back in the 1980s, the proposal to build a convention center in St. Charles has received the support of the local business community. The St. Charles Chamber of Commerce is a...

River conditions slow progress on Page bridge project.
January 18, 2003... Byline: James Monahan The stage is set to put in place the second and final truss of the Page Avenue Bridge over the Missouri River, but Mother Nature is not cooperating. The Missouri Department of Transportation had hoped to float the...

St. Charles Community College provides business training.
January 21, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour For many years, St. Charles Community College has partnered with the St. Charles County business community to provide customized training programs to businesses for less than the cost of what a private consultant may...

St. Charles visitors bureau releases list of events interested in using convention center.
January 22, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask In a move to line up voters' support for the convention center project, the Greater Saint Charles Convention & Visitors Bureau on Tuesday called a news conference to release a list of 15 events that either have committed...

Liberty Printing, Scarab Printing Arts begin new year as one company.
January 22, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady Liberty Printing Co., a 70-year-old printing company located in St. Charles, is changing its name and merging with its sister company Scarab, a St. Charles-based finishing service. The new name is Scarab Printing...

Seminar helps homeowners, mortgage company.
January 23, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour Making the decision to sell your home either on your own or with the help of a real estate agent can be a tough choice. A free seminar hosted by HMS Financial, a St. Peters mortgage company, will be held at St....

Businesswomen celebrate one-year anniversary for support organization.
January 23, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady When Linda Binns, owner of Harmony Inside & Out, planned the first Encouraging, Supporting, Promoting Women meeting, she expected 100 people to show up. But when 200 businesswomen showed at the first ESPW meeting...

Missouri Outreach to present Quickbooks computer course.
January 24, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour The University of Missouri Outreach and Extension Center is hosting two one-day seminars this month on Quickbooks at St. Charles Community College. After popular demand in the two years the class has been taught,...

State approves senior housing development in O'Fallon.
January 24, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask The Missouri Housing Development Commission has given the green light to a not-for-profit corporation and its partner to build a $7.5 million, 60-unit senior citizen apartment complex in O'Fallon. The MHDC on Jan. 17...

Fair share budget comparisons offer equal challenges for all.
January 24, 2003... Byline: Mike Nixon Missouri Gov. Bob Holden called on the memory of President Harry Truman's "Fair Deal" program last Wednesday as he introduced his own "Fair Share" budget. Drawing on the image of this plain-speaking president, Holden...

Boeing Weapons Programs facility prepares for larger contracts.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady With the imminent threat of war on the horizon, it is no surprise that production has increased at the Weapons Programs division of The Boeing Co., which is located here in St. Charles. At the second annual joint...

Study shows positive, negative results for Missouri women in business.
January 27, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour While Missouri has made great strides in its participation of women in the workforce and education, it still falls behind other states in the categories of women's health and well-being, financial independence and other...

St. Charles County Family Arena hires new director of sales.
January 28, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady There's another staff change at the Family Arena -- but this time it doesn't involve the general manager. Dennis W. Bond began his first day working as the new director of sales at the St. Charles County Family...

St. Charles County group looks to attract more sporting events.
January 28, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask With the 2004 Olympic Diving Trials now secured for the St. Peters Rec-Plex, a group of local business and civic leaders is looking at ways to bring other major sporting events to St. Charles County. About two dozen...

Biz development director finds St. Charles County easy to sell to businesses.
January 29, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady It is easy to sell a good thing. That is what David Leezer, director of business development at the St. Charles County Economic Development Center, said about selling St. Charles County to businesses nationwide....

New program helps dislocated workers start businesses.
January 30, 2003... Byline: Amy Armour In order to help boost the economy and increase job placement by drawing on America's strong entrepreneurial spirit, the Missouri Department of Economic Development decided to design a workshop for dislocated workers who...

Education helps keep jobless rate low in county.
January 30, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask A highly educated work force is helping to keep St. Charles County's unemployment rate at a relatively low level. St. Charles County's jobless rate remained at 3.6 percent in December, unchanged from the previous...

Commentary: Small businesses could be key to economic recovery.
January 31, 2003... Byline: Mike Nixon In what observers called a warm-up for Tuesday's State of the Union address, President George W. Bush offered a preview of his 10-year, $674 billion economic stimulus plan last Wednesday to invited business leaders and...

Old-fashioned marketing builds notoriety for this small business.
January 31, 2003... Byline: Kathleen Brady ***** CORRECTION: In an article about Biosorb Inc., published in this paper on Friday, Jan. 31., the Korean-American Nursery Association was incorrectly stated to reside in Korea. The Korean-American Nursery...

Subcontractors seek payment for work on Ameristar Casino.
January 31, 2003... Byline: Mike Trask Subcontractors who did work on the $360 million expansion at Ameristar Casino St. Charles are starting to file liens or notices of intent to file liens on the property. Of the 10 subcontractors who have filed notices...