Car Market CoMebaCk - Columbia Business Times

Transcription

Volume 16
Issue 23
June 12, 2010
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$ 50
photos by jennifer kettler
www.columbiabusinesstimes.com
Car Market
CoMebaCk
Dan Burks of University Chrysler thanks Gene Winn for coming back to his dealership to shop for a new truck.
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Couple You Should Know
Chris and Stephanie
Rosskopf, Boone County
National Bank assistant
VP, SoCket marketing
manager
Business Proile
After 35 years of bringing
music to Columbia,
Hennessy and Sons closes
up shop.
Artist Proile
Jewelry maker Andrea Jira
creates bold pieces from
materials ranging from silver
to bronze, glass and fabric.
Deal-making resumes at car lots
By Jeremy Essig
Fueled by newly acquired Nissan and a rebounding Ford,
Joe Machens is in the driver's seat of Columbia's resurgent
auto market.
Car and truck sales at Columbia dealerships have
increased by more than 16 percent for the irst four months
of 2010 compared with the same period the previous year,
according to Missouri Department of Revenue data. The
local numbers mirror national sales, which also increased a
little more than 16 percent, according to data from Autodata,
a motor vehicle analysis irm based in New Jersey.
The recession caused tumult in the local car business as
sales of new and used vehicles dropped nearly 10 percent
in 2008. Larry Estes lost the Dodge franchise, and Lou Fusz
closed the Saturn dealership. Justin Perry, after selling the
Chevrolet dealership to Bob McCosh and opening a new
Nissan dealership, saw his sales drop 30 percent in 2009 and
sold the operation to Machens owner Gary Drewing. Don
Albert transferred his Buick and GMC franchises to McCosh
after sales declined sharply in 2007 and then remained lat
for two years. In late April, Frank Fletcher Honda gobbled
up the remains of Albert's 25-year-old dealership.
Now, Fletcher and Drewing are planning major expansions and relocations, and they have so much inventory that
they're illing nearby parking lots with their cars.
The upward trend began last year when local automotive sales increased by more than 7 percent compared with
2008. A large portion of this increase can be attributed to the
Machens family of dealerships, which were responsible for
more than 73 percent of car sales last year.
(continued on Page 11)
SPECIAL SECTION
Automotive
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June 12, 2010 Columbia Business Times | ColumbiaBusinesstimes.com
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New Business
Update
tW Auto owner tom
Schranck hopes to
attract customers with
upfront pricing and
laid-back service.
Citizen of the Year
karen taylor, executive
vice president of
consumer banking at
Boone County National
Bank, receives
Chamber award.
Aaron’s....................................................................... 8
Agents National title Insurance Company ................ 4
Albert Honda ........................................................... 14
Artlandish Gallery .................................................... 23
the Bank of Missouri................................................. 4
Better Business Bureau ........................................... 10
Bob McCosh Chevrolet ..................... 1, 11, 12, 13, 14
Boone County National Bank ...................... 1, 2, 5, 18
Buttonwood Business Center ................................. 10
Columbia College .................................................. 3, 4
Columbia Hyundai ................................................... 14
Columbia Regional Airport ........................................ 9
Columbia transit........................................................ 9
Commerce Bank.................................................. 8, 17
Delta Air Lines ........................................................... 9
Delta Systems ......................................................... 18
emerging Professionals in Columbia......................... 5
end of the Rainbow Child Care Center ..................... 4
estes Motors ............................... 1, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
Family Counseling Center ......................................... 5
Frank Fletcher Honda ........................ 1, 11, 12, 13, 14
Hampton Inn and Suites............................................ 3
Head Motor Company ........................... 11, 12, 13, 14
Hennessy and Sons .......................................... 1, 6, 7
Hilton Garden Inn ................................................ 3, 18
IBM .................................................................. 8, 9, 10
Joe Machens ............................... 1, 11, 12, 13, 14, 16
Landmark Bank ......................................................... 4
Linen king........................................................ 8, 9, 10
Lou Fusz Saturn ...................................................... 11
Midwest Computech................................................. 4
N.H. Scheppers ......................................................... 4
ousley Family Veterans Service Center .................... 4
Paratransit................................................................. 9
Peachtree Banquet Center ........................................ 3
Prudential Vision Properties ...................................... 4
PS: Gallery ................................................................. 3
Regional economic Development Inc. ................ 9, 10
SoCket ................................................................ 1, 5
Stephens College .................................................... 18
the Sunshine kids..................................................... 4
timeLine Recruiting................................................... 4
tW Auto............................................................... 2, 16
United Way ................................................................ 5
University Chrysler Jeep Dodge ... 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16
Visionworks Marketing & Communications ............... 4
William Woods University .......................................... 4
Williams-keepers LLC ............................................... 5
Women’s Network ................................................... 18
Air Masters Corporation .......................................... 19
Boone County National Bank .................................. 24
Dogwood Insurance Agency ..................................... 4
Beckett & taylor Agency ......................................... 23
City of Columbia Water & Light .............................. 18
Commerce Bank...................................................... 20
Delta Systems ........................................................... 6
Farm to table .......................................................... 16
Huber And Associates ............................................. 15
Information Management Systems ......................... 11
ke Lani Hair And Day Spa ......................................... 7
Landmark Bank ......................................................... 2
Miss-Lou's Catering .................................................. 7
Missouri Press Service, Inc ....................................... 3
Savant Business Development Systems................. 22
SoCket .................................................................. 21
Sycamore .................................................................. 7
towner Communications Systems .......................... 19
Wheeler Auctions .................................................... 14
Whiskey Wild ........................................................... 17
Wine Cellar & Bistro................................................. 10
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15
Health Literacy Missouri Summit on Health
Initiatives
10 a.m.-3 p.m. Hilton Garden Inn
With the recent passage of the Patient Protection
and Affordable Care Act, 32 million more Americans
will soon have access to health care coverage.
However, access doesn’t necessarily translate into
usage without an understanding of the process.
to better inform those in the health care system
government health workers, key health stakeholders
and media about these issues, HLM is bringing
together representatives from Missouri’s education
system, health services and community service
programs for a mix of presentations, panels and
breakout sessions. Registration is $49. to register,
visit www.healthliteracymissouri.org.
Planning & Zoning Commission Public
Hearing
5:30 p.m. City Hall addition, conference room 1A
A request by Rangeline Crossing LLC to rezone 2.65
acres of land from M-C (Controlled Industrial) to C-3
(General Business). the property is located north and
west of Range Line Street and Smiley Lane. Contact:
Steve MacIntyre, 874-7682.
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Women’s Network June Luncheon
11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Peachtree Banquet Center
Hear nationally known speaker Andy Core expand on
"Balancing Your Choices in a Crazy Busy World." $15
for members and $18 for guests. Contact Liz Glockhoff,
819-9119 or [email protected].
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Downtown Planning Charrette Public Hearing
6 p.m. Dulany Hall, Columbia College
the city’s charrette consultants are trying to develop a
consensus vision and implementation strategy for two
areas: north and south of the Broadway and College
intersection and the general region of the Providence
and Broadway intersection. this meeting focuses on
plan design options. (Follow-up hearing on draft plan:
June 25, 4 p.m. at Dulany Hall)
City Council Meeting
7 p.m. City Council Chambers, Daniel Boone Building addition
Chamber of Commerce New Member
Welcome
4:30-6:30 p.m. Hampton Inn and Suites, 1225 Fellows Place
this orientation and networking event is for new and
current members. Free to new members; $10 for existing
members. Contact: Suzanne Rothwell, 817-9110 or
[email protected].
(573) 499-1830 | (573) 499-1831 fax
[email protected]
Advertising information:
[email protected]
Chris Harrison | General Manager | Ext.1010
David Reed | Group Editor | Ext.1013
Alisha Moreland | Art Director
Kristin Branscom | Graphic Designer
Betsy Bell | Creative Marketing Director
Jennifer Kettler | Photo Editor | 573-529-1789
Cindy Sheridan | Operations Manager
Annie Jarrett | Marketing Representative
Joe Schmitter | Marketing Representative
Ashley Meyer | Creative Services
Writers in this issue: Andrew Denney, Jeremy Essig,
Keija Parssinen
Columnists in this issue: Al Germond, David Reed,
Bill Watkins
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EPIC: Art for Dummies
6-8 p.m. PS: Gallery, 812 E. Broadway
An art expert will give an informal yet informative look
at art basics, the reality of choosing art and how to
start an art collection. the presentation will take place
throughout the gallery, and the discussion will focus on
concepts of the art that is hanging at the time. Room
38 will provide free appetizers and drinks for everyone
in attendance during the presentation. After the formal
program, the party continues with a mixer at Room
38. $7 online, $10 at the door. Contact emily Poore at
817-9115 or [email protected].
The Columbia Business Times is published every other Saturday by
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timely and comprehensive news coverage of the local business community.
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for the exchange of information and ideas among Columbia’s business
professionals.
CBt BUSINESS CALENDAR — JUNE
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Hirings
Visionworks Marketing & Communications added Jill
Dudley as a business development specialist. Jill will focus on
Dudley
Monnig
sales and new venture development while adding talent in
the areas of voice, marketing and project management. She
previously worked as a director of business development for
TimeLine Recruiting.
Midwest Computech hired six new employees: Chance
Anderson and Paul Newcome, technology coordinators in
the Lafayette and Wellington-Napoleon school districts; and
David Davison, Carl West, Aaron Meyer and Andy Henning,
network support specialists for school districts in Kearney,
Sedalia and Eldon.
TimeLine Recruiting, a health care recruiting irm, hired
Kathy Monnig and Natalie Stine as marketers. Monnig was
director of social services at Chariton Park Health Care, and
Stine taught gymnastics after graduating from MU with a
bachelor’s degree in health sciences.
Promotions
Stine
Walters
Keith
Williamson
Laupp
Reynolds
N.H. Scheppers, the distributor of Anheuser-Busch products and other beverages in Boone, Callaway, Cole and Osage
counties, promoted Michael Radzin to general sales manager.
Radzin, the company’s director of communications for the
past eight years, will direct the sales and marketing efforts for
its beer division. Scott Priesmeyer will continue to oversee
sales and marketing for the specialty products division of the
company, which has ofices in Jefferson City and Columbia.
Landmark Bank has named Charles Williamson a senior
vice president. Landmark also promoted the following
employees: Chris Walters, information services project
manager; Stephanie Brockmeier, loan review analyst; Sarah
Laupp, retail banking specialist; Jill Thompson, Stadium
West Banking Center manager; Tonya Keith, Downtown
Banking Center manager; Geoff Karr, Rock Bridge Banking
Center manager.
Awards
Nikki Reynolds of Columbia was named the 2010 SBA
Young Entrepreneur of the Year for the St. Louis district
and the Midwest region. Nikki is the owner and director of
End of the Rainbow Child Care Center, a curriculum-based
preschool.
The United States Small Business Administration recognized The Bank of Missouri as the No. 1 community bank
lender in the St. Louis SBA District. The Bank of Missouri is
an independent community bank locally owned and operated with locations in Columbia, Perryville, Jackson, Cape
Girardeau, Marble Hill, Springield, Ozark and Republic.
The University of Missouri’s Gabor Forgacs was included
in Fast Company magazine’s list of the 100 Most Creative
People in Business in 2010. Forgacs, a professor of biophysics
and co-founder of Organovo, was No. 80 on the list published
in the June issue.
Rajiv Mohan, Ph.D., associate professor of ophthalmology
at the MU School of Medicine, presented at the 2010 World
Ophthalmology Congress on how nanoparticles could be
paired with therapeutic genes to deliver new treatments to
corneal tissue. Mohan was one of only ive basic scientists
invited to make a presentation at the nanotechnology session
of the meeting in Berlin.
Appointments
Michael J. Podgursky, a professor of economics at MU,
has been appointed to help improve the effectiveness of the
nation’s schools as a fellow of the George W. Bush Institute.
Podgursky’s research focuses on educator compensation,
speciically retirement beneits systems, which are currently
facing iscal challenges.
The William Woods University Alumni Association elected
Susan Howard, Anne Clouse, Susan Werbach Lowry, Adam
Patchett, Justin Shy and Lance Moore to three-year terms on
the association’s board. Troy Boulware, Margaret Holmquist,
Leigh Hailey Kieffer and Amy Orr Michel were elected to two-
year board terms.
Agents National Title Insurance Company CFO Brent
Scheer accepted the appointment as chairman of the
American Land Title Association Title Insurance Accounting
Committee. The American Land Title Association represents
title insurance companies, agents and abstracters nationwide
on a variety of industry and legislative issues.
Peter G. Klein has been appointed to the board of directors of Agents National Title Insurance Company. Klein is
an associate professor at MU’s Division of Applied Sciences
and associate director of the Contracting and Organizations
Research Institute.
Philanthropy
Columbia College recognized George H. Ousley Jr. and
Gayleen Ousley at the newly named Ousley Family Veterans
Service Center located in Missouri Hall on the Columbia
College campus. The Ousley’s gave a gift that will help to
establish an endowed scholarship for veterans in need of
funding to complete their degrees.
The broker, sales professionals and employees of Prudential
Vision Properties have adopted The Sunshine Kids, a national
nonproit organization that provides positive group activities
and emotional support for children with cancer. As part of the
program, Prudential Vision Properties will host fundraising
activities on behalf of The Sunshine Kids. v
We want to hear from you. Please e-mail your submissions to [email protected]
5
Chris and Stephanie Rosskopf
Assistant Vice President, Boone County National Bank
Marketing Manager, SoCket
AGE: C: 32 S: None of your business
YEARS LIVED IN MID-MISSOURI: C: 32 S: 12
ORIGINAL HOMETOWN: C: Fulton S: St. Louis
JOB DESCRIPTION: C: Offering banking solutions for business clients such as commercial loans and additional services to promote business eficiency and proitability.
S: I work to develop and manage SOCKET’s overall marketing efforts throughout Missouri. With a team of hard-working people, we balance an ever-changing array
of advertising, event, customer communication, social media, public relation, Web and research projects.
EDUCATION: C: Graduated from Helias High School in 1996, BSBA in inance from MU. S: Graduated from Bishop DuBourg High School in 1998, BSBA in marketing and
management from Columbia College.
COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: C: Chamber of Commerce Total Resource Campaign, Friends of Scouting, United Way, Home Builders Association, Chamber of Commerce
ambassador, St. Thomas More Newman Center S: Women’s Network monthly program co-chair, Chamber of Commerce membership committee, Family Counseling
Center, Emerging Professionals In Columbia, St. Thomas More Newman Center
PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: C: I started with Central Bank in Jefferson City in 2001 as a credit analyst and eventually transferred to BCNB to become a commercial
lender. S: After graduating college, I worked for two years at Williams-Keepers LLC as a marketing coordinator. In 2003, I became a marketing representative for
SOCKET and became marketing manager in 2008.
A COLUMBIA COUPLE WE ADMIRE AND WHY: Jill and Art Cox. They have raised a strong
family while both being very actively involved in the community and volunteering
with organizations that work to make Columbia a better place to live.
WHY I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT MY JOB: C: I’m personally excited about helping new
businesses hit the ground running and offering solutions for them to continually
grow and expand and promote meaningful job growth in our area. S: SOCKET’s
environment encourages me to test new marketing ideas and challenges me to
push myself to always produce the best.
IF I WEREN’T DOING THIS FOR A LIVING, I WOULD: C: Be calling play-by-play for
Cardinals games on the radio. S: Be a restaurant critic — I always
seem to have an opinion.
FAMILY: Married for four years. Son, Gabriel, who is 10
months old; and Annie B., the daughter-like yellow Lab,
who is 3 years old.
WHAT WE DO FOR FUN: Playing with Gabriel, who is full
of non-stop energy. We also love to travel, whether on
a trip to Europe or a simple canoe trip. We also have
fun playing softball together (shout out to JABO),
which is how we met.
FAVORITE PLACE IN COLUMBIA: The softball ields at
Cosmo Park on Thursday nights — when it’s not
raining.
ACCOMPLISHMENT WE’RE MOST PROUD OF: A
successful (so far) transition from being carefree
young adults to responsible parents.
MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THAT: S: Ninety-nine
percent of Chris’ wardrobe consists of suits
and ties and gym shorts and T-shirts. I can’t
get him to wear the other 1 percent.
C: Stephanie throws a mean changeup pitch
that will have you swinging out of
your cleats.
photo by jennifer kettler
HOW ARE YOU ABLE TO
BALANCE RAISING A FAMILY
AND ADVANCING YOUR CAREER?
It all begins with appreciating each other for the little things that are done
to make a career work within the time allowed by family life. Recognizing each
other’s contributions, big and small, helps making personal sacriices easier when it
comes to working around schedules. DVR helps, too. v
COuPLES YOu SHOULD KNOW
photos by jennifer kettler
6
Frank Hennessy inely tunes a recently sold Yamaha piano at his shop, Hennessy and Sons Music. After 35 years of business,
the music store will close June 30.
Hennessy, a retail institution,
thrives in waning days
By Andrew Denny
Hennessy and Sons hardly looks like it’s on
its deathbed.
The musical instrument store at Broadway
Shopping Center has been “crazy busy” since
the going-out-of-business sale began in May,
owner Frank Hennessey said, and they’ve been
selling more used pianos than usual.
In a pattern established over decades,
Hennessy takes time from tuning a 1952
Chickering piano to chat with customers
browsing the loor or play a few scales on the
rose-colored 1886 Steinway that the business
restored.
But June 30 is the day the music dies at
Hennessy and Sons. After 35 years doing business in the community, Hennessy is closing
the retail store and distribution center. He cites
a reduction in his revolving lines of credit and
“doom and gloom” predictions for small businesses in the media since the beginning of the
recession.
“You just look at it and say, ‘I’ve had enough,’”
he said.
Hennessy said he made the decision in March
to close the business, which distributes products
to 30 counties in Missouri, after General Electric
purchased the three credit providers that provide the business with revolving lines of credit.
The company that provided Hennessy and Sons
with loor-plan inancing cut the company off
entirely, which reduced its total line of credit
from $485,000 to $175,000.
“Almost everything purchased for stock you
had to pay for up front,” Hennessy said.
Although the business deals primarily with
pianos, which includes tuning, restoring and
rebuilding the instruments, Hennessy and Sons
also sells musical equipment, songbooks and
a few guitars. Pianos on the loor range from
around $1,000 to $174,000, the price for a 9-foot
Yamaha concert grand piano.
Hennessy said he’s been in music retail his
“entire life.”
He got his start as a salesman at Hauer Music
in Dayton, Ohio, in 1967, but he wasn’t hired
at the business right away. He tried to get a job
there 10 years earlier as a saxophone teacher,
shortly after he got his music degree from the
Air Force, but the employer turned him down
and told Hennessy that parents of saxophone
students would be concerned about the fact that
he stutters.
When he got a call from the owner in 1967
and a job offer as a salesman in the store’s piano
department, Hennessy was surprised.
Hennessy said he told the owner the only
thing he knew about being a salesman at that
point was how to spell the word. Hennessy, who
was working at the University of Dayton as a
music technician, was offered the job because of
his expertise.
“I have all the smooth talkers I need,”
Hennessy said the owner told him. “The problem
is when they open their mouths, they don’t have
the slightest idea what they were talking about.”
Hennessy said after he began to work at
Hauer, he moved pianos out the door so fast
that the carpet in the store’s approximately
600-square-foot showroom “never got warm.”
In 1972, he moved to St. Louis, where he
sold pianos at Hamilton Music. He moved to
Columbia in 1975 and opened Hennessy and
Sons at Crossroads West Shopping Center at
the corner of Stadium Boulevard and West
Broadway.
The business moved to the Biscayne Mall in
1980 and came to its current location in the shopping center at the intersection of West Broadway
and Clinkscales Road in 1989.
Hennessy said a major change he has noticed
in the way music retailers do business is location. Years ago, he said, shopping malls were the
Delivering ALL Your
Catering Needs From
Tailgates to Weddings,
Anywhere You Want!
We Do Ice Carvings Too!
Call 573.673.1637 or email [email protected]
Michael Barnes prepares to tune the last guitar for sale at Hennessy and Sons.
preferred locales for distributors because of the
volume of customers they could bring in.
However, he said strip malls such as the one
his business currently inhabits is a “great retail
location” because it’s more likely that customers
will enter the business with the intention to
make a purchase.
“They come for a reason,” Hennessy said.
Kate Basi, a Columbia resident and former
music director at Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic
church on Bernadette Drive, is a longtime customer of Hennessy’s. She said Hennessy sold the
church a 6-foot Yamaha concert grand piano, as
well as songbooks for music students there. She
said she also purchased an upright piano for her
home from Hennessy.
Basi said Hennessy’s business side was
“rolled together” with his personality, which
made him a trustworthy salesman.
“He’s always been a really good person to tell
it like it is,” Basi said.
Basi said there is a sense of community
among Hennessy’s customers, and when she
goes to the store, she feels as if she can “catch
up” with people she knows.
“We’re sorry to see him go,” Basi said of
Hennessy.
Hennessy, 77, said he’d continue to do restorations and tunings as long as his health will allow.
He said tuning pianos is physically taxing, especially on the tendons in his wrists, as it requires
him to press keys and torque a tuning hammer
up to 5,000 times while tuning one piano.
Hennessy said he regrets closing the business
and that longtime customers have walked in the
door with tears in their eyes. But he said he can
depart with his “head held high.”
“I didn’t forget how to run a business.”v
A goodbye note hangs on the door of Hennessy and Sons.
(Mississippi-Louisiana)
7
Miss-Lou’s
Catering
8
VOICES
From the Roundtable
Growing inventory of vacant property troubling for Columbia
Al Germond
Al Germond is the
host of the "Sunday
Morning Roundtable"
every Sunday at 8:15
a.m. on KFRu.
[email protected]
Watching the claw of a backhoe nibble away at
the old Cleeks building on the southwest corner of
West Boulevard and Worley Street brought back
memories. It also brought up some concerns about
commercial spaces.
A few decades ago, a third of the area's grocery
sales passed through Nowell's across the street
while the Cleek family’s chain of rent-to-own appliance and home furnishing stores started at the
Worley location. “Tiger” John Cleek became notorious for putting up a poster in a corner window the
week before each MU football game that showed
his prediction of the score, with a decided bias for
the Tigers.
After the Cleeks sold their business to Aaron's,
the father and son put their building at 1001 W.
Worley St. on the market. With little apparent
interest, the demolition squad was summoned for
a “tear down.” There was no particular signiicance
— either historical or structural — to merit retaining
the building. But it was still a sad passing. The
future plans for the corner have yet to be revealed.
The community should be concerned about the
growing inventory of vacant or underutilized structures punctuating area neighborhoods and what
will happen to them.
Although there's good news about recycling
vacant structures in the Lemone Industrial Park
for IBM and Linen King, there seems to be an inordinate amount of vacant property sitting around
Columbia that the community needs to get back
into action.
What might be done with the one-story
building for sale at 1518 N. Garth Ave. that once
housed the Bargain Barn? The building makes me
think of the refrain of an ancient radio jingle about
the Bargain Barn being a “real discount store” and
its memorable sign reminding customers that “the
credit department was on the 29th loor.”
Next door at 1500 N. Garth sits another vacant
building of comparable vintage that is “for sale
or lease.” The building, built by the late Ed Perry
some 50 years ago, represented a huge leap from its
predecessor, the old digs of Nathe Chevrolet. The
building on Business Loop 70 where Nathe moved,
later occupied by Bisping Olds and others, is also
vacant and on the market. It seems poised for an
angel to come and spare it from the Feast of the
Hungry Backhoes.
What doomed the Cleeks’ corner building?
Borrowing from the appraiser’s quiver of terms,
the “highest and best use” judgment seemed to
conclude that a vacant lot had more value.
Although there might have been complicating issues including the asbestos bugbear,
interest in what used to be a very hot corner for
commercial activity apparently wasn't present
when the market was tested. Perhaps in the
location-location-location referendum, 1001 W.
Worley just isn't what it used to be.
One well-known commercial Realtor
recently listed one of Business Loop 70's real
gems, the Commerce Bank Building. The
building is being vacated as employees move
A backhoe clears the lot formerly occupied by Cleeks.
to the newly renovated main bank building
downtown, and it could be the ideal spot for
another bank because the building has full vault
facilities. One hopes it won't be torn down. But
that's what happened to what preceded the
bank on that corner — Joe Dietz's Garage and
Motorcycle Shop, where area Harley-Davidson
fans used to gather.
With dozens of these presumably shovelready structures already in place and on the
market, owners and their representatives will
have to be adaptive to ensure the redeployment
of all this available square footage.
The Nowell’s market, for example, was
turned into the Columbia/Boone County
Health Department. v
Editor’s View
With development debates on horizon, can city forestall acrimony?
David Reed
Reed is the editor
of CBt. editor@
businesstimescompany.
com
A few days ago, I drove past the future home
of IBM on LeMone Industrial Boulevard to catch
up on the changing landscape. Construction
workers were getting the industrial building
ready for IBM to open in November, while
around the corner road workers were getting
close to inishing the Maguire Boulevard extension to Stadium Boulevard at Crosscreek Center.
Two years ago, the acrimony over local development reached a fever pitch and was focused
on this strip of land along U.S. Highway 63. The
City Council irst rejected and then, after mediation, approved commercial construction plans for
Crosscreek, which initially included a car dealership, a Taco Bell restaurant, a Landmark Bank
branch and a Break Time convenience store. Later
that spring, the City Council voted 4-3 to build
the extension of Maguire Boulevard from the
LeMone Industrial Park to Stadium Boulevard.
The debate over development in Columbia
has died down considerably since then. That's
not because the city has forged community
agreements on policies covering infrastructure
cost sharing, annexation, rezoning, neighborhood involvement and other issues that fuel
disagreements.
There simply hasn’t been much to argue
about. Residential and commercial construction
has slowed to a trickle, aside from government
and university building. There were only four
development plans submitted to the city in 2009,
compared with a few dozen annually during the
building boom that reached its zenith in 2006.
Crosscreek is still an enormous patch of bare land.
Now the economy is rebounding, and City
Planning Director Tim Teddy said there are signs
that the pace of building is picking up.
Next month the City Council will again consider the long-contested issue of rezoning 271
acres near Richland Road in east Columbia, and
the construction of the new high school in northeast Columbia will be a catalyst for residential
and commercial projects. There are two dozen
housing projects in the city’s pipeline. Developers
of the Bellwood residential subdivision at the end
of West Broadway recently submitted a inal plat,
a step that has rarely been taken in the past two
years.
The opening of IBM and the Linen King commercial laundry at LeMone, the completion of the
Maguire extension in August and the signing of
other industrial development deals in the works
will also stimulate building projects.
One of the lightning rods for the Crosscreek
dispute was the decision to clear-cut the 70 acres
where two branches of Hinkson Creek come
together. Several City Council members referred
to the expanse of bare dirt as the “moonscape.”
Council members and neighbors also complained
that neighborhood associations should have had
a stronger role in the decision-making process.
Will the heated arguments resume when
development restarts? Probably, but much has
changed since then.
Local government administrators took advantage of the lull in development and worked on
long-term planning that could forestall some
of the typical acrimony that arises during City
Council meetings. Then, in April, voters changed
the Council's balance of power by choosing
development-friendly candidates.
Earlier this year, the Council approved the
northeast Columbia area development plan
with the high school construction project as its
centerpiece. Later this month, the city will hold
its fourth public hearing on the east Columbia
development plan, which covers 21 square miles
and includes the road that eventually will connect Stadium Boulevard with Interstate 70.
The city is also embarking on a cost-beneit
analysis of development. City Manager Bill
Watkins came to the last Planning and Zoning
Commission meeting to talk about the infrastructure cost review process. A group working
on a comprehensive plan for development is
holding meetings twice a month, and next week
there will be intensive planning and public
meetings on two downtown areas ripe for
development.
The Planning and Zoning Commission and
the Environment and Energy Commission in
the next month will consider proposed modiications to land disturbance rules. As for the
other major issue that caused hard feelings
during the Crosscreek dispute, the planning
department is working on ways to improve the
relationship between developers and neighborhood associations.
“We’ve committed more of our resources
to do advance planning,” Teddy told the CBT.
“We hope we can have a better process now to
engage neighborhood interests earlier and more
productively.”
Although there will never be harmony
between growth-wary residents and developers, there might be less discord when Council
must make development decisions. The city
planners have learned some lessons and set
better ground rules, and now it's up to the participants to play nice. v
9
City View
City seeks excellence while budget still a zero-sum game
Bill Watkins
Watkins is Columbia’s
city manager. cityman@
gocolumbiamo.com
During my annual remarks on the state
of the city, I reported that things are tight but
stable.
We are in the third year of a inancial plan
that was set up in 2008, when local revenues
started declining. Because we took immediate
action, curbed spending and remained responsibly focused on delivering core services to
citizens, we are about where we expected to be
with budget. For the next few years, budgeting
is likely to remain a zero-sum game, but we
aren’t resting on our laurels.
At the direction of City Council, we have
set the goals of applying for and receiving both
the Missouri Quality Award and the national
Baldridge Award. Attaining excellence is something the city of Columbia can do, even with
limited resources.
The logical place to start is with our core
services, particularly in the following areas:
utilities, job creation, bus and air service, public
safety and parks.
Although each of these issues is important,
for the sake of brevity in this column, I will
focus on items that have signiicant impact
on our business community. I encourage you
to review the state of the city items related to
public safety and parks on our website, www.
GoColumbiaMo.com.
Utilities
City utilities become more complex every
year, with new regulations, growth and unanticipated challenges.
We have voter approval to maintain bond
requirements for electric, water and wastewater
services, and I am committed to working with
City Council members to keep all utility rate
increases as low as possible. I am equally set
on reaching higher levels of customer service,
performance and accountability.
City utilities become more
complex every year, with
new regulations, growth and
unanticipated challenges. ... I
am committed to working with
City Council members to keep
all utility rate increases as low
as possible.
Our sewer rates have received a lot of scrutiny and criticism, some of it deserved. In my
opinion, the guidance in our local sewer rate
ordinance is out-of-date and off-the-mark. Our
stormwater utility needs even more attention.
Stormwater that is unchecked causes property and environmental damage. Again, we
have an ordinance and rate structure but not
the horses to do the job. The stormwater utility
now generates about $1 million each year, far
from what’s needed to properly engineer and
staff this function and not enough to meet
federal and state environmental standards. We
are working to rebalance our regulations, especially in already developed areas.
Jobs
IBM and Linen King will bring wide job
diversity to Columbia and will use buildings
and facilities already in place. I am proud of
the united community that helped tip the balance to Columbia, including our economic
development director, Mike Brooks. Having
people with good jobs is part of our quest for
excellence.
Forbes.com recently named
Columbia the eighth best place
for business and careers. ... It
recognizes that our city has longterm solutions for innovators and
entrepreneurs.
There is too much energy and opportunity
in this city to let any of it go untapped. I like
to think that we are a city of solutions for
employers and entrepreneurs, both homegrown and otherwise.
Some of our solutions are industrial sites
in various stages of readiness for new tenants. Council members want to add a second
Missouri-certiied site to our inventory, and we
are working to get our site at Waco Road and
Route B ready to meet certiication standards.
A certiied site is at least 10 acres with, at a
minimum, water, sewer and electric service. It
has proper zoning and site control and is marketed for business recruitment or expansion,
not for retail. The state of Missouri holds standard data on all certiied sites so that it’s easily
available when opportunities come up.
Forbes.com recently named Columbia the
eighth best place for business and careers. I
ind this one of the most exciting ratings we’ve
received in a long time. It recognizes that our
city has long-term solutions for innovators and
entrepreneurs.
We have an opportunity to relocate our
regional economic development organization,
or REDI Inc., to downtown space at our new
parking garage. It’s been our plan all along to
have street-level space for retail and other business tenants at that location.
REDI’s current lease is expiring, and moving
improves its access to City Hall services and to
the University of Missouri campus. It opens the
possibility of partnering with the university
and the Small Business Development Center to
create a place where students, graduates and
other residents can cook up entrepreneurial
partnerships. The incubator set up by the
University of South Carolina in Columbia’s
new research district could be an excellent
model for us.
Bus and air service
Bus and air service is an important component of economic development. One of IBM’s
requirements is bus service to its facility and the
ability to transport customers and employees
easily by air.
In the past iscal year, Columbia Transit carried more than 2 million bus riders, even with
a fare increase. That’s a 250 percent increase in
ridership during FY 2005. Numbers were up for
ixed routes, campus shuttles and ParaTransit
services.
Our largest soft spot is the orange bus line.
Its current route is hard to cover in a 40-minute
“headway.” During the annual City Council
retreat, I discussed with Council some wholesale changes intended to make the service run
on time, reach areas we have not served before
and make sure that buses go to workplaces and
other key areas.
Improving service and capacity at Columbia
Regional Airport is another important topic.
Delta Air Lines has been a great partner. Flights
out of Columbia have been 70 percent full on
average, and the airline has switched all lights
to 50-seat regional jets. Delta also announced
that, effective this September, it will serve
Columbia Regional without a federal subsidy.
Getting off the Essential Air Service subsidy
is something that very few communities are
able to achieve. Thanks are due to airport staff,
to the Airport Advisory Board and to a supportive passenger community, but much work
remains. The airport master plan describes
more than $64 million in improvements during
the next 20 years, and there are some conlicting
priorities.
Improving service and capacity
at Columbia Regional Airport is
another important topic. ... Our
30-year-old terminal also needs
to be modernized to meet
federal air security standards.
We need new pavement and other improvements to meet FAA standards. That means
scheduling inancing and construction in a
way that lets us keep lying without serious
disruptions. These costs, if we meet federal
regulations, can be 95 percent reimbursed
with federal funds, but we still have to come
up with a 5 percent match. Our 30-year-old
terminal also needs to be modernized to meet
federal air security standards. Unfortunately,
terminals generally are not eligible for FAA
grants.
I believe passenger counts are key factors
in keeping our current service and attracting
new air carriers. I would like to see lights to
at least one more signiicant hub city. As new
employers and more workers come to the
region, I think Columbia Regional will attract
more business. It could be another center of
excellence, but we have to do things right.
These and other discussions during the
retreat and beyond will guide the budget
I propose to Council at the end of July. I
expect that the Fiscal Year 2011 budget will
still be very tight and that we will continue
to stretch every dollar, even if it means considering some service cuts or even layoffs.
I remain hopeful that as our local
economy picks up steam, new resources
might be available for core services and
other citizen obligations. I am committed to
reaching for excellence. Columbia citizens
deserve no less. v
VOICES
10 June 12, 2010 Columbia Business Times | ColumbiaBusinesstimes.com
REDI director turns attention
to "economic gardening"
By Jeremy Essig
Columbia, in Mike Brooks’ opinion, needs to
focus on seeding new industry.
At the City Council retreat in Lake Ozark,
Brooks, president of Regional Economic
Development Inc., spoke of "economic gardening," a concept that started in Littleton, Colo.
The idea, according to Brooks, is to provide conditions for new businesses to develop and then
provide those businesses the resources necessary
to lourish.
One such resource Brooks described is a proposed group of ofice spaces located within the
parking garage being built at the corner of Sixth
and Walnut streets. He said REDI could use this
space for its own ofices as well as provide incubator space for new businesses trying to establish themselves.
Brooks described the proposed space as a
"one-stop shop for economic development in
downtown."
Following his presentation, Brooks said
details of how and at what rates the incubator
space would be made available to start-up businesses was still in the planning stages. He said
the cost for the space covering 13,000 square feet
was estimated at $580,000.
Another resource necessary for development, Brooks said, is providing support for new
entrepreneurship. Students are aware of support
systems available from local schools, he said, but
often unaware of what support is available from
the local business community. The new location could also be used to place these support
systems in one place, Brooks said, mentioning
speciically the Small Business and Technology
Development Center and the Procurement
Technical Assistance Center — both currently
housed on the University of Missouri campus.
City Manager Bill Watkins said he saw merit
in the ideas being proposed by REDI. "We think
there is truly an interest in that space downtown," Watkins said.
Earlier in the session, City Council member
Paul Sturtz inquired about the economic development resources the city has left at its discretion
after drawing the new IBM technology service
center.
The city "can't swing for the fences very often,"
Sturtz said.
Mayor Bob McDavid, however, noted that the
majority of the incentives for the IBM project came
from the state, not the city.
Brooks, while noting that the IBM project was
the seventh largest across the nation this year,
assured City Council members the city had not yet
spent all of its economic development resources.
"There are ways to do things if the opportunity comes up," Brooks said. v
Linen King hiring in July
By Jeremy Essig
Linen King, an Oklahoma-based provider
of laundry services to the health care industry,
plans to start interviewing job applicants in July
and hire 30 people by the end of the year.
Regional Economic Development Inc.
announced earlier this month that Linen King
would open a 52,000-square-foot facility at
2600 Maguire Blvd. in the LeMone Ofice and
Industrial Park. The building is just down the
road from the site of the incoming IBM service
delivery operation.
Linen King has the capacity to expand the
operations and hire close to 100 employees in
less than ive years, according to REDI. A cer-
emony to mark the opening is planned for sometime in August.
“Linen King will diversify our economic base
in a way that’s been missing for awhile,” Mayor
Bob McDavid said.
Linen King is the largest and fastest-growing
health care laundry group in the region,
according to the REDI news release. With four
health care speciic industrial laundries, Linen
King has the capacity to process almost 75 million pounds of laundry per year and will employ
more than 200 people for iscal year 2010 with
revenues approaching $20 million.
Linen King provides laundry service for
rental and customer-owned goods accounts, as
well as distribution, facilities management and
consulting services. v
BBB opening local branch
The Better Business Bureau of Eastern
Missouri and Southern Illinois is opening a midMissouri branch at the Buttonwood Business
Center in Columbia in mid-August and is interviewing applicants for the manager’s job on
June 29 and 30.
This will be the irst branch ofice the BBB’s
regional ofice, based in St. Louis, has opened in
its 93-year history, President and CEO Michelle
Corey said.
“We had often felt we had not adequately
served outlying regions,” Corey said. A feasibility study by an MBA class at the John Cook
School of Business at St. Louis University recommended the BBB open a branch ofice in
Columbia. Other factors in the decision were the
projected growth in Columbia, the robust media
market, the strong Chamber of Commerce and
Rotary clubs and the presence of MU, she said.
The Columbia ofice of the nonproit organization will serve nine surrounding counties, a
region that has 250 BBB-accredited businesses.
The BBB is also forming an advisory board for
the branch ofice.
The branch will focus on community outreach and will give mid-Missouri media a local
resource for consumer and business stories as
well as providing news generated by the BBB.
The website address for the Columbia
region is http://stlouis.bbb.org/Columbia/ or
http://stlouis.bbb.org/mid-missouri/.
The BBB provides objective advice, free business
Reliability Reports, dispute resolution services,
charity wise-giving reports and educational
information on topics affecting marketplace
trust. v
“The key to our success is good people,”
Drewing said. “We've got an old saying here, ‘You
either get better, or you get worse.’ And each year
we try to improve upon what we're doing at Joe
Machens.”
The Columbia market's sales leader during both
periods was the Ford-Lincoln-Mercury dealership
located on West Worley Street. For 2009, the dealership sold nearly 9,400 new and used vehicles, an
increase of more than 11 percent during its 2008
sales numbers. The dealership has found continued
success during the irst four months of 2010 and has
increased sales by almost 20 percent compared with
the same period in 2009. Nationally, Ford sales have
increased by 33 percent for January through April,
according to Autodata.
“It's amazing what Ford Motor Company has
done and the turnabout they've made the last three
years,” Drewing said.
The local Nissan dealership rebound has also
been dramatic. Since coming under the Machens
umbrella on Jan. 1, sales at the dealership have more
than tripled compared with the irst four months of
last year.
“That's been absolutely phenomenal,” Drewing
said. “Nissan is a great franchise, and our expectations are quite high there.”
All ive Machens locations — including ToyotaScion, BMW and Machens Automotive Group
— have seen an increase in sales for the irst four
months of the year, with Toyota-Scion, BMW and
Machens Automotive Group also yielding increased
sales in 2009 compared with 2008.
Bob McCosh Chevrolet has also seen an increase
in sales for both periods, and Head Motor Company
had an increase of more than 10 percent for 2009.
Sales at Head Motors, however, have decreased by
more than 20 percent for the irst four months of
2010.
University Chrysler, which includes the Jeep
and Subaru franchises, had the largest decline in
sales for the irst four months of the year, more than
32 percent. Owners Dave Drane and Danny Burks,
however, just opened a new location, and Chrysler
is projecting a 6 percent increase in new car sales
nationally this year after emerging from a government-funded bankruptcy protection case.
The new location at 1310 Vandiver Drive — formerly the home of Lou Fusz Saturn — will allow
the dealership to provide customers a higher level
of comfort and service, Drane said, as well as a
wider variety of inventory, which has just caught
up following the restructuring. During the restructuring period, University Chrysler was unable to
keep inventory at normal levels, Burks said. The
inventory became even more depleted during the
government's cash-for-clunkers incentive program.
“Chrysler had been shut down for several
months going through their reorganization,” Burks
said. “They weren't up to par on their ability to
produce the inventory at that point, so it was even
harder on us.”
Drane said their franchise could have sold
several times what it did during the program had
Chrysler been able to produce to demand.
Chrysler's reorganization had an up side: The
manufacturing company will pay less to provide
employee beneits and retirement plans, Drane
said, adding that the lower "legacy costs" put the
price of making a Chrysler more in line with that
of a Toyota.
With the lagship franchise emerging from the
restructuring period and bringing production back
to normal levels, University Chrysler has acquired
the local franchise.
Estes, owner of Estes Motors, had his Dodge
franchise taken away last June as part of the same
restructuring that made it hard for University
Chrysler to keep inventory at normal levels. With
Hyundai as his only current franchise, Estes managed to keep sales for the irst four months of the
year consistent with 2009 and sold 172 vehicles
during both periods, according to Department of
Revenue data.
“I've doubled my (Hyundai) sales from last year
at this time,” Estes said.
Estes also plans to expand his dealership with
the addition of Mahindra, a truck produced in India.
A diesel-powered vehicle, the trucks are “tough as
nails” and “inancially very sound,” Estes said.
(continued on Page 14)
11 June 12, 2010 Columbia Business Times | ColumbiaBusinesstimes.com
Drewing leads car market comeback ... continued from Page 1
PHOTOS BY JENNIFER KETTLER
RANKING COLUMBIA’S DEALER
#1. Joe Machens Ford-Lincoln Mercury
1911 W. Worley
joemachensford.com
Gary Drewing, owner
#
1
#4. Bob McCosh Chevrolet
1 Business Loop 70
bobmccoshchevrolet.com
Bob McCosh, owner
Brian
vehic
Gary Drewing
New vehicle sales
Used
2007: 4,054
5,048
2008: 3,539
5,282
2009: 3,519
5,880
% change
New Sales Used
From 2007 -13.2%
+16.5%
From 2008 -0.6%
+11.3%
Jan. 1-April 30 total vehicle sales
2009: 1,286
2010: 1,535
Change from 2009: +19.36% Last
Total
9,102
8,821
9,399
Total
+3.2
+6.6%
Joe Machens Ford
ToTal sales 2006: 9,493
2007: 9,102
2008: 8,821
2009: 9,399
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 1,393
1,291
2,684
2008: 1,038
1,222
2,260
2009: 1,196
1,112
2,308
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -14.1%
-13.9%
-14%
From 2008 +15.2%
-9%
+2.1%
2009: 316
2010: 357
Change from 2009: +13% Last year's rank: #
year's rank: #1
#5. Head Motor Company
#2. Joe Machens toyota-scion
900 Bernadette Drive
joemachenstoyota.com
Gary Drewing, owner
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 3,023
2,038
5,061
2008: 2,627
2,134
4,761
2009: 2,118
2,476
4,594
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -29.9%
+21.5% -9.2%
From 2008 -19.4%
+16%
-3.5%
2009: 632
2010: 664
Change from 2009: +5% Last year's rank: #2
#
2
Joe Machens Toyota-scion
2007: 5,061
2008: 4,761
2009: 4,594
#3 Joe Machens automotive Group
(Mazda, Mercedes-Benz, Cadillac, Pontiac)
500 Vandiver Drive
joemachensgm.com
Gary Drewing, owner
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 325
991
1,316
2008: 300
770
1,070
2009: 636
2,201
2,837
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 +95.7%
+122.1% +115.6
From 2008 +112%
+185.8% +165.1%
2009: 356
2010: 503
Change from 2009: +41.3 Last year's rank: #8
#
3
Joe Machens automotive Group
2007: 1,316
2008: 1,070
2009: 2,837
710 Business Loop 70 W.
headmotorcompany.com
Steven and Stewart Head, owners
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 639
1,108
1,747
2008: 509
973
1,482
2009: 521
1,111
1,632
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -18.5%
+0.3%
-6.6%
From 2008 +2.5%
+14.2% +10.1%
2009: 258
2010: 200
Change from 2009: -22.5% Last year's rank:
#6. University Chrysler Jeep Dodge
1310 Vandiver Drive
universitychrysler.com
Danny Burks and Dave Drane, owners
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 433
716
1,149
2008: 418
708
1,126
2009: 450
626
1,076
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 +3.9%
-12.6%
-6.3%
From 2008 +7.7%
-11.6%
-4.4%
2009: 195
2010: 132
Change from 2009: -32.3% Last year's rank:
RSHIPS
#
4
Columbia
Dealerships
total sales
2007: 26,669
2008: 23,491
2009: 25,349
One-year change: 7.9%
two-year change: -1.25%
Jan-april 2009: 3,644
Jan-april 2010: 4,244
One-year change: 16.5%
#7 Frank Fletcher Honda*
1717 N. Providence, centralmohonda.com, Frank Fletcher, owner
n Bailey, Joe Benne new
cle sales managers
Bob McCosh Chevrolet
2007: 2,684
2008: 2,260
2009: 2,308
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 774
423
1,197
2008: 660
350
1,010
2009: 604
402
1,006
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -22%
-5%
-16%
From 2008 -8.5%
+14.7% -0.4%
2009: 200
2010: 183
Change from 2009: -8.5% Last year's rank: #9
#3
Frank Fletcher Honda
2007: 1,197
2008: 1,010
#
2009: 1,006
*Purchased from Don Albert
in April 2010.
7
#8 estes Motors
1300 Vandiver Drive, columbiahyundaimo.com, Larry Estes, owner
#
5
steven and stuart Head
Head Motor Company
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 822
734
1,556
2008: 629
568
1,197
2009: 477
416
893
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -42%
-43.3%
-42.6%
From 2008 -24.2%
+26.8% -25.4%
2009: 172
2010: 172
Change from 2009: 0% Last year's rank: #5
estes Motors
2007: 1,556
2008: 1,197
#
2009: 893
8
2007: 1,747
#9 Joe Machens BMW
1510 I-70 Drive S.W., joemachensbmw.com, Gary Drewing, owner
2008: 1,482
2009: 1,632
: #4
#
6
Dan Burks and Dave Drane
: #6
University Chrysler Jeep Dodge
2007: 1,149
2008: 1,126
2009: 1,076
New vehicle sales
Used
Total
2007: 224
442
666
2008: 191
455
646
2009: 160
670
830
% change
New sales
Used
Total
From 2007 -28.6%
+51.6% +24.6%
From 2008 -16.2%
+47.3% +28.5%
2009: 115
2010: 118
Change from 2009: +2.6% Last year's rank: #10
Joe Machens BMW
ToTal sales 2007: 666
2008: 646
#
9
2009: 830
#10 Joe Machens nissan
201 Nebraska Ave., joemachensnissan.com, Gary Drewing, owner
New vehicle sales
Used
2007: 606
585
2008: 614
504
2009: 373
401
% change
New sales
Used
From 2007 -38.5%
-31.5%
From 2008 -39.3%
-20.4%
2009: 114
2010: 380
Change from 2009: +233.3% Last
Total
1,191
1,118
774
Total
-35%
-30.8%
Joe Machens Nissan
ToTal sales 2006: 649
2007: 1,191
2008: 1,118
2009: 774
year's rank: #7
#
10
source: Missouri Department of Revenue
14 June12,2010Columbia Business Times|ColumbiaBusinessTimes.com
SPECIAL SECTION | automotive
Automotive market ... continuedfromPage11
Mahindra trucks recently passed Environmental Protection Agency standards,
Estes said, and he hopes to begin selling them by late fall. Once the new vehicles
become available, Estes said he will be one of eight or nine dealers in Missouri to
carry the trucks and one of 320 in the nation.
Although Estes acquired a new franchise, another local franchise acquired new
ownership. Don Albert, owner of Albert Honda, sold his Providence Road Honda
dealership to Arkansas-based Frank Fletcher Motors in late April. Although Albert
Honda only sold 0.4 percent less vehicles in 2009 than it did in
2008, Fletcher General Manager Mike Hodges said new ownership has doubled sales at the location during May.
During Albert's best months, Hodges said, the company
would sell about 40 new cars. Fletcher sold 83 new vehicles in
May and plans to move an additional 105 to 110 in June.
Hodges said one of Fletcher's advantages is the volume of cars
it has at its disposal. Currently, the dealership has 250 on its lot
and many more ready to ship as soon as space is made.
“You could call up six Honda dealerships right now, and six
total wouldn't have as much inventory as I have,” Hodges said.
The large inventory Fletcher has at its disposal allows the
dealership to provide customers with what Hodges described as
“aggressive pricing.”
“We don't have to make the extra proit on them because of
the volume we do,” he said. “We don't have shareholders. We
don't have all these crazy expenses. Everything is paid for, so our
overhead is very low.”
Not content with just doubling Albert's sales, Hodges said the
dealership’s goal is to eventually sell 150 to 170 vehicles a month
and become the largest Honda dealership in Missouri. Fletcher
has already scouted four possible locations in Columbia to build
a new dealership, and Hodges said the move is expected to be
complete in the next 12 to 18 months.
Drewing is also planning to build larger facilities for the
Toyota, Mercedes and Cadillac dealerships. The majority of the
expansion expected to be inished by next spring will be located
near the intersection of 63 and Stadium Boulevard or on land the company owns
on Business Loop 70.
With rising sales numbers, new locations, new ownerships and new products,
dealers expressed hope for the future — tempered with caution.
“I think the car industry is on the recovery mode; it's picking up every month,”
Estes said. “Don't get me wrong; it's not all wine and roses out there. I think it's
going to be a tough year, but it's going to be a year that if you watch your expenses
closely and you watch everything closely, it will be OK.” v
!
N
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A
E
T
A
T
S
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L
A
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56.9 ACRES, 2 COMMERCIAL BUILDINGS - 22,000 SF
CTS
LAND OFFERED IN 4 TRA
FRIDAY, JUNE 25, 2010 • Starting at 11:00 AM
PROPERTY LOCATION: One mile east of Tipton, Missouri on Highway 50.
Auction will be conducted on site in the large building located on Tract 1.
The auction will consist of 56.9 acres two large commercial industrial or agriculture buildings that consist of:
22,000 sq. ft. to be offered in four tracts
Multi-Par real estate auction method will be utilized. This computer enhanced method of selling real estate at auction
gives bidders the ability to bid on individual tracts, combinations of individual tracts or the entire property at anytime
throughout the auction.
AUCTIONEERS NOTE: The structures are extremely well built with attention given to every detail to provide usefulness
and durability. This well-maintained property is ready for immediate occupancy. DNR acceptance of Closure Certiﬁcation
and Release from Financial Assurance for Closure Liability Insurance documentation is available for inspection.
For a private showing or to receive a detailed prospectus please call or email Wheeler Auctions’ Representative, Charlie
Nordwald at 636-795 or [email protected]
SELLER: SID’S AUTO SALES & SERVICE, INC.
For more details on the division of
Tracts please visit our website at
www.wheelerauctions.com
SPECIAL SECTION | automotive
University Chrysler owners Dave Drane and Danny Burks ilm a TV ad.
‘We’re No. 4!’
Dave & Dan, the anti-dealers, brag
Rather than standing among a shining sea
of new cars and shouting about great deals,
University Chrysler owners Dave Drane and
Danny Burks promoted their dealership by
spending a day at the hair salon.
The television ad begins with Burks telling
a woman getting her hair done that she would
look "marvelous" as a blonde. After a brief discussion of her recent purchase from University
Chrysler, the ad showed Burks and Drane playing with salon equipment, Drane asking for a
"little off the top" of his bald head and, inally,
Burks snoring under a hair dryer, while Drane
reads a magazine.
The hair salon skit is one of many that have
set University apart from the stereotypical automotive ad and established the two owners as the
jesters of the local market. Subsequent ads have
shown Burks being defeated by a child in karate
and the two attempting to assist another former
customer in holiday meal preparation.
According to Burks, the impetus behind the
ads — at least at irst — was to introduce the two
owners to the community when they took over
the dealership in 2004.
Drane and Burks prepare a turkey in one of the
dealership's ads.
"We had to take the store in a new direction
and get people to know what we were and make
it ours, Burks said. "We're just regular guys;
we're from this area; we're approachable."
The irst commercials were made in true doit-yourself fashion, with the two owners developing the concepts themselves and shooting the
spots with Burks' home video camera.
"The idea was to make fun of us," Drane said
of the early commercials. "One of our irst campaigns was, ‘We're No. 4’ ... The idea of that was
very few people have ever won anything, you
know, ever been irst at anything. But a lot of
people have been fourth."
PHOTO BY JENNIFER KETTLER
ByJeremy Essig
longtime customer Ruth York shares a laugh with Dave
Drane at University Chrysler Jeep Dodge.
Although it might seem an unusual introduction for new owners in a competitive auto market, both owners said sales numbers are not the
main focus of the dealership.
"We need to sell a certain amount of numbers
from a business standpoint to make everything
work," Burks said. "But our real concern is the
relationship that we have with the customers,
that we do well in the community and we can
take care of our employees. If we can do all that,
it really doesn't matter if we sell as many as
someone across town or not."
Drane and Burks stressed the importance of
being part of the community. Both were raised in
the Columbia area, and Drane said both of their
families have been in Boone County for more
than 200 years.
"We're part of this community; we care about
this community," Drane said.
And while University Chrysler has moved to
a new location on Vandiver and begins the process of restocking inventory following Chrysler's
restructuring, Drane's goals remain the same.
"The measure for success for us is when we
can walk out on the showroom loor and have
a nice conversation with people that we know,
that we've done business with," Drane said. v
TW Auto
new business uPdATE
Location: 700 Vandiver Drive
Owner: Tom Schranck, 499-0700
Tom schranck
Tom Schranck said he hopes his recently opened used car dealership will attract customers turned off by the experience of negotiating for prices at other dealerships.
Schranck, who’s worked in the auto sales industry for 27 years,
opened TW Auto on Vandiver Drive between three large franchise dealers: Joe Machens Automotive, University Chrysler and
Estes Motors. Schranck said he hopes his location will stand out
for its upfront, relaxed sales environment.
"I'm very low-key, laid back," Schranck said. "If I tell (a customer) a price, there are no hidden fees."
A former Joe Machens used-car department manager, Schranck
began his career at age 20 working for a dealership in St. Louis. In
1993, he moved to Jefferson City to work for Mike Kehoe before
ending up at Machens, a job he left in 2008.
Schranck said he had been eying the location on Vandiver for
awhile, and when he saw the former occupants, Auto Link, had
closed, he began looking into setting up shop. Schranck signed
the lease on the location Jan. 1 and got the dealership up and running at the beginning of March.
Schranck said he hopes to hire someone to run the day-to-day
operations sometime in the future, which would allow Schranck
to travel the country searching for vehicles. In 2009, Schranck said
he spent 40 weeks on the road, a schedule that has slowed to one
out of every three weeks since opening the dealership.
While in Columbia, Schranck said he knows the type of customer he wants to cultivate for TW Auto.
"My basic target is people who are looking for a irst or second
car that has been checked out pretty well," he said, noting that the
average price of his vehicles ranges from $5,000 to $10,000. v
Columbia Computer
Outlet
William S. Angel
888-377-2911
18 E. Business Loop 70
Suite B
Computer sales/service
Columbia Jazzercise
Center
573-823-7600
Laura Jean Kitzi
120 E. Nifong Blvd.
Suite C
Fitness studio
Crazy 8 #6087
Gymboree Retail Stores
Inc.
573-445-4385
Suite 412
Retail children’s clothing
D & S Automotive, LLC
Dena J. Macias-Yanez
573-474-2272
1404 Grand Ave.
Suite A
Automotive repair
Herstyler
Barbara Turner
479-783-2312
Hair styling products
Dr. Carl’s Auto Care
Shahriyar Siraji
573-673-0758
1722 B Paris Road
Automotive repair
Hook’s Dealers Direct Inc.
Elizabeth E Hook
573-777-3113
310 Tiger Lane
Suite 2
Used auto dealer
Halls Automotive
Service Inc.
Wade Harold Hall
573-817-1565
910 Dinwiddie Circle
Automotive repair
Hy-Vee Food and
Drugstore #1082
Hy-Vee, Inc.
573-442-8028
25 Conley Road
Grocery
Petro Mart #51
Western Oil Inc.
1300 Fellows Place
Gas/convenience store
The Automotive Garage
James Brent Dodson
573-446-2047
2308 Industrial Drive
Automotive repair
Moon Valley
Massage Therapy
Amber Nichole Treece
573-578-5120
Susan J. Eggener
573-214-1866
920 E. Broadway
Suite A
Massage therapy
new opened BuSINESSES
Mary Moss Earth Friendly Furniture
(Opened June 9)
Kay Wax
573-864-9348
1400 Heriford Road
Features eco-friendly furniture
and fabrics
Bevinco
Kent Hendrix
573-673-6974
3604 Ridgeview Drive
Beverage inventory control system
Windsor Street Montessori
(Opened May 26)
Mary Windmiller
1616 Windsor St.
Montessori education
PHOTOS CORTESY OF STELLA STUDIOS
Commerce Bank President Teresa Maledy
said she asked architect John simon to turn
her former corner ofice on the top loor into a
conference room (shown here) so more people
could enjoy the view along Broadway.
leFT: Commerce Bank hosted a reception on
June 3 to show visitors the remodeled interior
of the newly reopened main bank at Ninth and
Broadway downtown.
new business LICENSES
Karen Taylor, executive vice president of consumer banking
at Boone County National Bank, was named the Outstanding
Citizen of the Year by the Columbia Chamber of Commerce.
Taylor received the award at the 105th annual meeting and
awards banquet on June 2 at the Hilton Garden Inn.
Lynda Baumgartner, study abroad coordinator for Stephens
College, wrote in her nomination of Taylor that “Karen is all about
change for the better. She is a visionary whose leadership skills in
the end create a better community for all who live, work and play
in Columbia.”
Fellow nominator Greg Steinhoff, executive vice president and
director of sales at BCNB, wrote: “When she recognizes an opportunity to make something right, to help somebody reach their
potential or to make something better, she doesn’t turn her head
and walk away; she seizes the moment. She is inspired, then she
inspires. Time after time, the results are extraordinary.”
Taylor’s involvement and leadership with local organizations,
in particular the Columbia Chamber of Commerce and Women’s
Network, is extensive. She won the Women’s Network ATHENA
Award in 2004.
Outside of the Chamber, Taylor has organized three local
initiatives: Mothers Against Drunk Driving, the Dolly Parton
Imagination Library and Keep Columbia Safe.
The Dolly Parton Imagination Library program provides newborn babies in Columbia with a free book every month until age 5.
The Outstanding Citizen Award winners are nominated by
their peers and selected by a special committee of the Chamber
of Commerce. v
Chamber names
Taylor Citizen of Year
Karen Taylor, center, lanked by Greg
steinhoff and lynda Baumgartner.
leFT: Boone County Commissioner Karen
Miller received the 2010 Debin Benish
outstanding Businesswoman award at
the Columbia Chamber of Commerce
annual meeting. The annual award,
named for the late founder of Delta
systems, is a $1,000 business grant from
Women’s Network and Delta systems
that is targeted for local businesswomen
who have achieved excellence in
leadership, mentoring and volunteerism.
leFT: Paul land, the new Chamber chair,
reads from Jeff Foxworthy's Complete
Redneck Dictionary during his closing
remarks at the 2010 Chamber annual
meeting.
RIGHT: Byron Hill
U.S. Chamber praises state’s tax structure
Missouri’s commitment to providing a favorable corporate tax structure placed it among the top
states in the country when it comes to growing jobs through enterprise-friendly tax and regulatory
initiatives, according to a new study from the U.S. Chamber of Commerce.
The Enterprising States study highlights how state and local policies — including those in
Missouri — play a vital role in spurring job creation and economic development.
“By embracing many of the strategies at the core of our free enterprise system — competitive
tax rates, open trade and commonsense regulation — states are helping to jumpstart our economic
recovery and create more jobs,” Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber, wrote
in a letter to Gov. Jay Nixon.
The Enterprising States study was released as part of a recent U.S. Chamber event at which a
group of Republican and Democratic governors discussed the role of the free enterprise system in
job creation.
The Enterprising States study highlights six factors that drive job creation: innovation, productivity through investments in workforce development and training, science and technology, infrastructure, exporting and competitive tax rates.
Speciically, the study highlights how Missouri is playing a pivotal role in fostering the conditions
for job growth by having one of the lowest corporate tax bills in the nation, supporting small business through the Show Me JOBS initiative and educating Missourians in high-tech ields through the
Training for Tomorrow program.
Entrepreneurship and innovation
As part of the Show Me JOBS initiative, the Department of Economic Development will work
with the Missouri Development Finance Board to create a pool of funds for low or no-interest direct
loans for small businesses to allow them to expand and create jobs.
Workforce development and training
The Training for Tomorrow program is a $12 million initiative to educate Missourians in high-tech
ields and get them working in growing industries. The grants will help Missouri community colleges create or expand training programs to serve additional students. Under Training for Tomorrow,
member institutions of the Missouri Community College Association will partner with the government of the county to develop or expand programs to train Missourians in technical ields.
Taxes and regulation
An important tax advantage for Missouri businesses is the amount of income considered taxable;
only income earned in the state is taxed. Manufacturers’ inventories (raw materials, goods in process
and inished goods), as well as goods and wares of retailers, distributors and wholesalers are exempt
from property taxes in Missouri. v
(Link to the study: http://ncf.uschamber.com/enterprising-states)
ToP: attendees of the 2010 Chamber
annual meeting enjoy a slideshow
paying tribute to retiring Chamber
Chair Byron Hill.
Deeds of Trust more than $233,500
$15,000,000
COLUMBIA AREA JOBS
FOUNDATION
BOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANK
LT 2 CARFAX PLAT 2
$4,250,000
BROADWAY TOWNHOMES
LANDMARK BANK
STR 17-48-12 /E/NW
$2,550,000
COLUMBIA AREA JOBS
FOUNDATION
LEMONE, ROBERT M TRUST
LT 2 CARFAX PLAT 2
$1,993,500
LINEN KING REAL ESTATE
HOLDINGS LLC
ARVEST BANK
LT 24 CONCORDE OFFICE &
INDUSTRIAL PLAZA PLAT 10
$1,500,000
JAJ LLC
PROVIDENCE BANK
STR 11-46-12 /NW/SW SUR BK/PG:
1657/521 AC 37.89
$1,105,000
SOUTH CANYON VIEW LLC
HAWTHORN BANK
LT 2601 SOUTH CANYON VIEW
CONDO
$800,000
OLD PLANK LLC
BROOKSIDE TOWNHOMES PLAT 1
$495,000
EULISS, RYAN & KIMBERLY
MISSOURI ELECTRIC
COOPERATIVES EMPLOYEES'
CREDIT UNION
LT 126 OLD HAWTHORNE PLAT
NO. 2
$417,000
DUDLEY, SCOTT & SUZANNE
JEFFERSON BANK OF MISSOURI
LT 16 PL 1 HIGHLANDS
$417,000
BARNARD, DAVID ROBERT &
MICHELLE ANNE
USAA FEDERAL SAVINGS BANK
LT 221 THORNBROOK PLAT NO. 7
$400,000
ROBERTSON, H GLEN & LINDA L
LT 34 WOODLANDS PLAT 3A THE
$362,400
JANG, WOOSEUNG & PARK, HANA
BANK OF MISSOURI THE
$355,000
WELEK, JOHN M & FRANCES A
MISSOURI CREDIT UNION
LT 32 COUNTRY WOODS SUB PLAT 2
$352,400
ODLE, JONATHAN & ANNTONETTE
AMERISAVE MORTGAGE CORP
LT 232 OLD HAWTHORNE PLAT
NO. 2
$331,000
DUDLEY, SCOTT M & SUZANNE L
PROVIDENCE BANK
LT 16 PL 1 HIGHLANDS
$330,000
BOWDEN, COREY G
LANDMARK BANK
STR 28-47-12 /NE/NE SUR BK/PG:
855/254 AC 10
$329,600
BELL, ROBERT D & CRYSTAL L
LANDMARK BANK
LT 4 VEMER'S BEND
$310,000
JCC 2007 THE REVOCABLE TRUST
LT 1405 HIGHLANDS PLAT 14-B THE
$304,000
ROGERS, TAUNIA K & THOMAS M
TOP FLITE FINANCIAL INC
LT 24 STEEPLECHASE ESTATES PLAT
NO. 1
$290,000
OLIVER, TODD & MARY JANE
HAWTHORN BANK
STR 23-48-14 /E/NE SUR BK/PG:
3011/106 FF TRACT 4
$285,000
DOLLIVER, ROBERT H IV & LISA
LANDMARK BANK
LT 26 STEEPLECHASE ESTATES PLAT
NO. 1
$284,500
PAGE, MATTHEW P
LT 41 GREENBRIAR SUB
$276,000
CHENG, JIANLIN & WU, LIWEN
U S BANK
LT 304 CASCADES PLAT NO 3 THE
$271,581
BIERK, JACEN C & AMY N
CALLAWAY BANK THE
LT 154 BELLWOOD PLAT NO. 1
$271,005
O'NEIL, ERIC W & ALYSHA M
FLAT BRANCH MORTGAGE INC.
LT 35 EASTLAND HILLS ESTATE
PLAT 1
$260,800
STEINBERG, GENE & LEEDER,
LAWRENCE E III
LANDMARK BANK
LT 31 WOODRIDGE SUB BLK 6
$252,040
WEHMEYER, DOUGLAS ALVIN &
HONEY LEE
CRESCENT MORTGAGE CO.
STR 18-50-12 /SE/SE SUR BK/PG:
752/439 FF TRACT 9
$250,000
PEPMILLER, CRAIG E & CYNTHIA M
MISSOURI CREDIT UNION
LT 8 WOODRAIL SUB PLAT 6
$250,000
REMIS, ROBERT E & JACKIE L
LT 4 WOODS EDGE SUB PLAT 1
$247,435
FALLAHIAN, AMIR H &
BAKESHLOO, SHAHRZAD AFSHAR
VANDYK MORTGAGE
CORPORATOIN
$238,500
JONES, JACK D JR
LT 305 STONERIDGE ESTATES PLAT 3
$233,923
COFFMAN, RANDY L & BRENDA J
U S BANK
LT 44 MONTEREY HILLS PLAT NO. 1
$233,500
SIPE, CODY BISHOP & DANIELLE
RENEE
FCS FINANCIAL
STR 13-49-14 //SE
pubLiC RECORd
ByKeija Parssinen
For Andrea Jira, former membership director at the Columbia Chamber of
Commerce, becoming an artist was more of inevitability than a choice.
As a child growing up in Kansas City, Jira’s irst gifts were a pottery wheel
and a calligraphy set, which she received before knowing how to write cursive.
By heritage, she is Mexican and Spanish, and her parents took their children to
festivals and fairs that sparked Jira’s early imagination. Today, her mother is a
dedicated mosaic artist and furniture painter, and Jira’s sister creates charcoal
sketches and also makes jewelry.
From that foundation, Jira has built a life around art, speciically the making
of bold jewelry from materials ranging from ine silver to bronze to clay to glass
and fabric.
“About 15 years ago, I went into a store and saw a pair of earrings and said, ‘I
can do that,’” Jira said of her irst moment of inspiration.
She started doing beading and working with gemstones in their natural state;
she preferred the rugged look of the stones prior to being polished and faceted. The resulting pieces were elegant but strong and hinted at the paradox that
would become a Jira trademark.
“The majority of my clients are very powerful, strong women,” she said. “Not
everyone can pull off larger pieces.”
While working to establish herself, Jira served as a walking billboard for her
jewelry and wore her pieces around town and on vacations with her husband.
The idea worked; her jewelry caught the attention of several lifelong fans, including local couple Erik and Andrea Morse and Rebecca Staebler, owner of the Hub
Bubb boutique in Chehalis, Wash., who now regularly displays Jira’s jewelry.
“She bought the jewelry I was wearing right off my body,” Jira said of Staebler.
Erik Morse worked with Jira at the Chamber of Commerce and often complimented her on her unique accessories. Finally, in search of a present for his wife’s
birthday, Morse asked Jira where she had purchased her jewelry. When she told
him she made the pieces she wore, he hired her on the spot to design a custom
necklace.
“The piece was meant to represent us as a family,” Andrea Morse said of the
irst of ive Jira pieces she now owns. “I was pregnant with Oliver, so there were
three circles and a dot.”
PHOTOS BY ANASTASIA POTTINGER
Steady Hand, Artistic Vision: Jewelry maker Andrea Jira
During the years, in her ongoing search
for new materials, Jira has learned how
to solder silver and ire bronze in a
coal kiln at 1650 degrees.
Because she works with natural materials and uses processes
that aren’t entirely predictable, she can never replicate any one
piece exactly. Although this is frustrating for admiring friends of
clients, it guarantees that each item is unique.
“She’s deinitely got collectors,” said Lisa Bartlett, owner of
Artlandish Gallery, one of the places where Jira’s work can be
found locally. “They feel as if they’re wearing a little work of art.”
Right now, Jira is busy exploring glass and creating whimsical
three-dimensional boxes in beautiful, pearlescent hues. She fastens one around her neck and smiles. The glass catches the bluegreen of her eyes, changes colors and glows subtly. There is a sly
playfulness about it. But most evidently and pleasingly, the artist
is having fun. v
“
“In the construction business we hire sub-contractors to
take care of different trades on each construction project. We trust
them to work with our best interest in mind and perform on a supe rior level. We have the same expectations with regards to our insurance program. Matt and Jake have earned our trust and allow us to
focus on what we do best.”
”
Scott Daugherty, Owner
Fairway Meadows Corporation/Daugherty Construction
That allusive dot is typical of Jira’s playful style. As she spreads
her work on the table, she shows a ring whose three lat rocks spin
freely on a wire axis. A silver lower ring features an intricate and
unexpected ladybug perched in the folds of the metal blossom.
“You learn to be patient working on such a small scale,” Jira
said. “You develop a steady hand.”
During the years, in her ongoing search for new materials, Jira
has learned how to solder silver and ire bronze in a coal kiln at
1650 degrees.
“I love pulling it [bronze] out of the red hot charcoal,” she said.
“When it touches the air, the colors explode. It’s like Christmas. I
truly love it.”

Car Market CoMebaCk - Columbia Business Times

Transcription

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