Volume 15Issue 26

July 25, 2009

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5The Big 25: Economic RankingsHow does Columbia stack up against its peers?

Business Profile: Job FindersEmployment service founder has navigated economic storms for three decades.6

16College Enrollments RiseEconomic downturn a major factor in upward trend

See Page 14

SPECIAL SECTION

Continuing Education

(continued on Page 16

Bob LeMone

Bring in the Business

Coverage begins on Page 8

By Bondi Wood

Columbia has always prided itself on its abundant opportunities for higher edu-cation. However, compared with other college towns with similar demographics, Columbia is missing a crucial component in its education infrastructure: a technical training facility for adults.

Columbia, like Lafayette, Ind., Lincoln, Neb., Champaign-Urbana, Ill., and Iowa City, Iowa, is home to what's known as a First Tier Research University, one or more colleges and a highly regarded K-12 public school system. But Columbia’s peer cities also have post-secondary adult workforce development and training facilities.

Jerry Wade, the City Council's Fourth Ward Representative, said the need for Columbia to add post-secondary adult career training is urgent. “In the world of smart work economics, the education infra-structure is, I would argue, the single most important component of a community’s infrastructure for sustained economic suc-cess,” he said.

Wade also admonishes the Columbia community for its late arrival to the tech-nical training table. “Columbia let itself get trapped in a college prep mindset rather than a skilled work mindset,” Wade said. “You’ll not find a high knowledge com-munity, other than Columbia, that does not have major opportunities for work force development and technical education."

Wade leads push foradult tech training

Mike Brooks, Columbia’s new economic development director, aspires to sprout high-tech businesses from fertile university research.

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Ashland Industrial Park................................ 20Boone County National Bank ...................... 32City of Columbia - Red Light Cameras ....... 14City of Columbia Solid Waste Division ........ 14City of Columbia Water & Light ................... 27Columbia College ........................................ 25Delta Systems Group .................................. 26Flat Branch Center ...................................... 22Guard-A-Kid ................................................ 18Hawthorn Bank .............................................. 3Landmark Bank ............................................. 2Mizzou Online .............................................. 24Moberly Area Community College .............. 18Personalized Computers ............................... 6Rainbow House 2009 Golf Classic .............. 23Room 38 Restaurant & Lounge ..................... 9Sandler Training ........................................... 12Shelter Insurance - Mike Messer & Mike Hatchett ....................................................... 13Socket Internet ............................................ 19Tech 2 .......................................................... 31The Callaway Bank ........................................ 7The Insurance Group ..................................... 4UMB TITAN Awards / 20 Under Forty Awards ............................... 30Vault ............................................................. 22Visionworks ..................................... 18, 20, 22Waddell & Reed ............................................. 5West Bend Mutual Insurance ...................... 29Westchester Village - Rhonda Carlson .......... 8Wilkerson & Reynolds Wealth Management ............................................... 21William Woods University ............................ 28Willie Smith's Magic Services ..................... 20

Plumbing for New CareerCareer Center expands, gears classes toward practical job training

People You Should KnowThe new UMB community bank president runs marathons.

Boone County National Bank ........................ 4

Central Methodist University ....................... 17

Central Missouri Plumbing .......................... 22

Columbia College ........................................ 16

Columbia Insurance Group ........................... 4

Commerce Bank ......................................... 11

Community Bank ......................................... 15

Delta Systems Group .................................... 4

Job Point ....................................................... 4

JobFinders .................................................. 6,7

Landmark Bank ............................................. 4

Midway Electric, Inc. ................................... 22

Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance .. 11, 13

Professional Contractors and Engineers ....... 4

Pure Marketing and Media ............................ 4

Shelter Insurance................................ 4, 21,22

Songbird Essentials ..................................... 31

Stephens College ........................................ 17

TimeLine Recruiting ...................................... 4

Van Matre, Harrison,

Volkert, and Hollis, P.C. ................................. 4

Visionworks Marketing

and Communications .................................. 27

Waddell and Reed ......................................... 4

Wilkerson and Reynolds

Wealth Management...................................... 4

William Woods University ............................ 16

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The Columbia Business Times is published every other Saturday by The Business Times Co. 2001 Corporate Place, Suite 100, Columbia, Mo 65202. (573) 499-1830.

Copyright The Business Times Co., 2008. All rights reserved. Reproduction or use of any editorial or graphic content without the express written permission of the publisher is prohibited. Third-class postage paid at Columbia, Mo. The annual subscription rate is $39.95 for 26 issues.

OUR MISSION STATEMENT:The Columbia Business Times strives to be Columbia’s leading source for timely and comprehensive news coverage of the local business community. This publication is dedicated to being the most relevant and useful vehicle for the exchange of information and ideas among Columbia’s business professionals.

Writers in this issue: Bondi Wood, Joanna Schneider, Robert ThomasColumnists in this issue: Al Germond, Mike Martin, Karen Miller, Nick Peckham, Larry Schuster, Lili Vianello

Chris Harrison | General Manager | Ext.1010David Reed | Group Editor | Ext.1013Alisha Moreland | Art DirectorSarah Handelman | Graphic DesignerBetsy Bell | Creative Marketing DirectorJennifer Kettler | Photo Editor | 573-529-1789Cindy Sheridan | Operations ManagerBecky Beul | Marketing RepresentativeJoe Schmitter | Marketing Representative

(573) 499-1830 | (573) 499-1831 faxeditor@businesstimescompany.com

CBT CAlENDAR OF EvENTSJuly and August 2009

24 to 26Final Weekend, Boone County FairAll day at the Boone County FairgroundsOn Saturday, admission is $5 per person; children six and under are free. On Sunday, admission is free. Contact the Boone County Fair office for more information, 474-9435.

Show Me State GamesAt various venues around Columbia.Contact 882-2101 for more information.

28 Environment and Energy Commission Meeting7 to 9 p.m. at the Daniel Boone City Building, 701 E. Broadway. For more information, call 874-7111.

29Chamber New Member Welcome Reception4:30 to 6:30 p.m. at the YouZeum, 608 E. Cherry St.This orientation event allows new Chamber of Commerce members to speak about their busi-nesses and network with other new and current members. The event is free to new members and $10 for existing members. Registration is required. For more information, contact Andrea at ajira@ColumbiaMOChamber.com, 874-1132.

31 to 1Show Me State GamesAt various venues around Columbia.Contact 882-2101 for more information.

3City Council Meeting7 p.m. at the Daniel Boone City Building, 701 E. BroadwayFor more information, call the city at 874-7208. The agenda will be posted online at www.gocolumbiamo.com on July 31.

4EPIC Lunching Outside the Box: “Dusting Off Your Resume”11:45 a.m. to 1 p.m. at the Country Club of MissouriIn the first professional development seminar in the interactive series geared toward young professionals for the 2009-2010 program year, Mark Mothersbaugh of the University of Missouri’s Human Resources Department will teach how to identify the value of job skills to better represent them on paper. The cost is $13 at the door and includes lunch. For more infor-mation, contact Emily Poore, 817-9115 or eppore@ColumbiaMOChamber.com.

REDI Annual Investors' Meeting4:30 to 6 p.m. Location TBAContact Michele at 573-442-8303 or maholmes@gocolumbiamo.com for further information.

Columbia Regional Airport Master Plan Meeting1:30 to 3:30 p.m. at Columbia Regional AirportThe Technical Advisory Committee and Public Advisory Committee will hold a joint meeting to discuss its plan. For more information, call the airport at 874-7508.

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PEOPLEMOVEON THE

Presented By:

HiringsSteve Engle is joining Pure Marketing and Media as creative

director and as President of Pure Ag, the agency’s new agribusiness division. During his 28-year agency career, Engle has worked on major accounts in a variety of industries, including Monsanto, Syngenta, Bayer, DuPont, John Deere, Pioneer, DeKalb, Bank of America, Pacific Bell, and Blue Cross Blue Shield. Engle was honored in 2006 with the Professional Development Award of Excellence in Marketing Communications by the National Agri-Marketing Association.

Frank Corridori has joined Pure Marketing and Media as senior art director. Corridori comes to Pure after working for agencies in New York City, Phoenix, and Scottsdale, Arizona.

John M. Miller has been appointed treasurer for the University of Missouri System. He has more than 20 years of experience in the financial sector, including serving as treasurer for several health care systems and as treasurer and interim chief financial officer for Florida International University.

The Heart of Missouri United Way board of directors announced Timothy Rich has been named the interim executive director. Rich, who replaces Connie Benton Wolfe, has held leadership and develop-ment positions with several local nonprofit organizations, including the Central Missouri Food Bank, Salvation Army and Alternative Community Training.

TimeLine Recruiting, a healthcare recruiting firm, announced the addition of Ginger Behnke as a marketer. Behnke comes to TimeLine from Da-Com Office Solutions, where she was an account executive.

Pure Marketing and Media has hired Emily Eldridge as the director of new media and Deb Swanson as the director of opera-tions. Eldridge previously worked for the publicity division of Walt Disney Studios in Burbank, Calif. Swanson’s previous work experi-ence includes management positions at Brunswick and Ace Hardware Corporation in Chicago.

Promotions

Boone County National Bank announced four employee promo-tions. Stacy Sumpter was promoted to assistant manager for the University Hospital Bank. Sumpter began her career with BCNB in 2007. Josh Zeichik was named assistant manager for the Rock Bridge Bank. Zeichik has been with BCNB since January 2009. Cassie Frazier was promoted to consumer banking representative for the Village Bank. She has worked for BCNB since April 2007. Kimberly Hall was named mortgage loan assistant for the Downtown Bank at 8th and Broadway. Hall has been in financial services for six years.

Waddell and Reed announced the promotion of Travis Cook to District Manager. In addition to maintaining his responsibilities as a financial advisor, Cook will be recruiting in the area, monitoring performance and conducting training for current and newly hired advisors.

In the People on the Move section of its July 11 issue, the CBT left out information that Carroll Wilkerson and Jared Reynolds of Wilkerson & Reynolds Wealth Management still use Waddell and Reed as their independent broker dealer.

AppointmentsColumbia Metro Rotary installed new officers for 2009-2010: Bill

Costello as president, Cindy Whaley as vice president/president-elect, Jim Sharrock as secretary, Marcia Machens as treasurer and Norm Benedict as past-president. This executive committee will administer projects and functions for the coming year along with a nine-member Metro Rotary board of directors. Added to the board of directors to serve three year terms are Britny Wright, Les Gelband and Travis Cook.

Columbia Rotaract has announced its 2009-2010 officers: Kylene Richardson as president, Marissa Todd as president-elect, Alana Coon as secretary, Courtney Boydston as treasurer, Dana Martin as historian/sergeant-at-arms, Mark Claypool as programs chair, Sander Sowers as club social chair, Izzy Leatherman and Tara Gray as community service chairs, Mary Kate Rose as fundraising chair, Matt Quintero as membership chair and Monica Pitts and Jennifer Lindsay Smith as public relations chairs.

Job Point announced its 2009-2010 Board of Directors: Serving as chair is Jim Robertson, Columbia Daily Tribune; vice chair, Patricia “Pat” McDonald, Shelter Life Insurance Company; treasurer, Steve Tanzey, Landmark Bank; secretary, Kate Pitzer, Van Matre, Harrison, Volkert, and Hollis P.C.; member at-large, Linda Tomlinson, KOMU-TV8 & Mid Missouri’s CW; and past chair, Steve Powell, Delta Systems Group. New members include Frank Aten, Public School Retirement Systems of Missouri; Jon Erickson, Columbia Insurance Group; Ellen McLain, University of Missouri Office of Gift Planning and Endowment; and Craig Simon, Professional Contractors and Engineers. (Job Point is a nonprofit employment center serving our traditionally disenfranchised community members.)

The Boone County Commission and Columbia Mayor Darwin Hindman have named new Daniel Boone Regional Library trustees. Bridget Cannaday and Susan Daly received appointments to the Boone County Library District Board of Trustees, and Julie Baka and James Jones received appointments to the Columbia Library District. The DBRL Board of Trustees is made up of 19 volunteers.

Lili Vianello, president and owner of Visionworks Marketing and Communications has been elected as a member at large to the Woodhaven Board of Directors. Vianello has more than 20 years of experience in advertising, marketing, public relations and communications.

The Mid-Missouri American Advertising Federation announced the members of its executive committee: Jocelyn Tipton of Bucket Media as president, Pat Marks of Columbia Photo as vice president, Sidney Neate of KMIZ as secretary and Emily Price of Bucket Media as treasurer. The organization also selected the chairs of its other committees: J. Michael Roach, website chair and immediate past president; Nancy Daniel, education chair; Allyson Campbell and Candice Burgess, events co-chairs; Sidney Neate, communications chair; Bob Smith, fundraising chair; Tom Bradley, programs chair; Matt LaCasse, publicity chair; Danielle Glenn and Emily Price, ADDY judging co-chairs; Allyson Campbell and Candice Burgess, ADDY event co-chairs; Lisa Stevens, membership chair; Pat Marks, ADDY’s awards and printing chair. v

Behnke

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ECONOMIC INDEx

lABOR Columbia Labor Force May 2009: 91,712May 2008: 92,066Change (#): -354Change (%): -0.4%

Missouri Labor Force May 2009: 3,016,211May 2008: 3,022,535Change (#): -6,324Change (%): -0.2% Columbia Unemployment May 2009: 5,191May 2008: 3,631Change (#): 1,560Change (%): 43.0%

Missouri Unemployment May 2009: 265,213May 2008: 166,843Change (#): 98,370Change (%): 59.0% Columbia Unemployment Rate May 2009: 5.7%May 2008: 3.9%Change (#): 1.8%

Missouri Unemployment RateMay 2009: 8.8%May 2008: 5.5%Change (#): 3.3%

CONSTRUCTION AND HOUSING Building Permits – Residential June 2009: 92June 2008: 72Change (#): 20Change (%): 27.8% Value of Building Permits – Residential June 2009: $7,337,952June 2008: $3,214,298Change (#): $4,123,654Change (%): 128.3%

Building Permits – Detached Single Family Homes June 2009: 38June 2008: 15Change (#): 23Change (%): 153.3%

COLUMBIA’S ECONOMIC INDICATORS

How does Columbia stack up against its peers, cities of similar size with research univer-sities such as Lawrence, Kan; Athens, Ga; and West Lafayette, Ind.?

How would Boone County’s economy be affected by focusing its job creation during the next 10 years on specific industries, such as high-tech manufacturing or medical services?

The city posed those questions to the University of Missouri’s Community Policy Analysis Center. The CPAC, with guidance from an advisory panel of local leaders, answered them in a report released earlier this month.

The center compared 25 peer cities (listed in a chart on Page 24) in regard to economic perfor-mance indicators and economic changes.

Here’s how Columbia ranked in its “economic conference:”

•13th in per capita income ($31,325 in 2006)• 7th in overall job growth (25 percent from

2002-06)• 1st in retail job growth in retail sector (40

percent 2002-06, $21,568 average wage)• 6th in employment growth in manufac-

turing (14 percent, $36,326)• 7th in growth in retirement-related employ-

ment (67 percent, $17,230)• 17th in growth in high-tech employment

(52 percent, $65,505)• 21st in growth in private medical employ-

ment (1 percent, $38,517)• 21st in growth in insurance employment

(about 6 percent, $52,896)

The medical employment category does not include University Hospital and Clinics, one of the city’s largest employers. The report said a slight decline in the number of insurance jobs “does little to diminish the importance of this sector to Columbia’s economy.”

Economic Impact ScenariosThe second half of the report followed up on

the City of Columbia Baseline Report, which was issued in October and provided information on historical patterns of employment, labor force, commuting patterns, demographics, retail sales and other economic indicators.

The scenario section analyzed the potential social, economic and demographic impacts for Boone County if there were 1,000 jobs added in the year 2010 in six separate industry clusters.

Here are the key findings:•Non-high tech manufacturing and insur-

ance have the greatest local impact. Of the seven scenarios proposed, the addition of 1,000 new non-high tech manufacturing jobs to the Columbia economy appears to have the greatest impact on most variables in this analysis. The impact of 1,000 new jobs in the insurance sector would have the second highest impact.

•Population. Under baseline conditions, Boone County‘s population is projected to grow to approximately 178,988 by 2015. This is an increase of 32,558 people (or 22.2 percent, 2.2 percent per year) between 2005 and 2015. The “shock”of adding 1,000 new non-high tech manufacturing jobs in 2010 would result in the

Columbia's economic rankings

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BuSINESS PROFIlE | JOB fINDERS

By Robert E. Thomas

During her 23 years in helping people find jobs in Columbia, Ann Williams has found it critical to stay ahead of the next rise, or fall, in the economy.

No one has a crystal ball, but, as she puts it, “change is good.”

Williams is owner of JobFinders, an employ-ment service located in the Broadway Shopping Center. She founded the firm in 1986, a year when the price of oil plummeted from about $31 a barrel to below $14, interest rates finally dipped below 10 percent and inflation fell sharply.

Today, as the worst recession in her lifetime may or may not have reached bottom, Williams has four full-time and two part-time employees, and the company was nominated for the 2009 CBT Entrepreneur of the Year.

By the nature of the business, employment agencies are tightly wound to the whims of the economy. Williams has found the need for change in both good and bad times.

In the heady mid-1990s, the business of filling jobs was good for full-time employment, but Williams saw with such growth a need for temporary hires to staff new projects, fill in during vacations or work on expanding production lines.

She started TempFinders and in the first year placed 75 people, mainly in clerical or light industrial positions. In 1996, JobFinders doubled its income and was a player in the temporary staffing business, she said. JobFinders now places more than 400 temporary posi-tions a year.

“I believe 100 percent that, if employers are looking at their bottom line, they will consider temporary or contract workers because the companies do not

have to pay fringe benefits,” she said. During a recession, clients are also often anxious to accept temporary or part-time work waiting for the return of full-time manufacturing jobs.

“In this economy, nothing is going like it usu-ally does, but when our recruiting business is up, then our temporary business is down,” she said. “When temporary business is up, then the other business goes down.”

Williams has experience in dealing with recessions. The first came in 1979, her first year in the recruiting business. In 2001, after the 9/11 terrorist attacks, her firm’s sales were cut in half, clients were not paying their bills and almost no one was hiring.

In addition, just a short time before 9/11, the firm had moved to a new location, tripling its square footage and rent and increasing its payroll. Through loans and belt-tightening, the firm made it through and “within 15 months life returned to calm,” she said.

If the 9/11 attacks registered a 10 on the economic disaster chart, the current 2008-2009

Employment service founder navigates economic storms

Anne Williams, president of JobFinders, helps place 30 to 75 people a month in temporary work.

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BuSINESS PROFIlE | JOB fINDERS

recession is about a seven, she said. To survive, Williams came up with some new services.

A new division called J.F. Medical Brokers recruits health professionals for such clients as the University of Missouri, nursing care homes and hospitals locally and through the Midwest.

“We have a model that we think will work better than other recruiting firms,” she said. “The people we will be hiring will be full-time or direct hire,” she said. “There is especially a need in rural areas for quality staff.”

Another success has been the People in Transition program.

The program helps workers who have been laid off. For a fee ranging from $349 for nonprofessionals to $3,499 for executives, clients receive a one-on-one session with a counselor, group sessions focused on resume writing, financial counseling and job search strategies that range from the proper dress to mock interviews. These people are then able to get together and network. The idea behind the program is helping the clients find employment on their own, rather than through the agency.

“We are the only people in Central Missouri to do this service,” she said.

Applicants for temporary work are screened with math and spelling tests, references, tested for drugs, and go through an interview process.

“We’re not right 100 percent of the time, but we have a 99 percent fill rate, and employers tell us people we send stay longer on the job than others,” she said.

Williams believes the economy is turning around. “The Midwest was the last to be hit, and it may take a little longer to get out of it,” she said.

A recent University of Missouri study has indicated that Columbia ranks seventh out of 24 peer communi-ties (in population and having a research university)

across the nation in employment growth in manu-facturing. It ranks in the lower half of peer com-munities in employment growth in high-tech and private medical employment.

One local drawback is that so many manu-facturing jobs are tied to some aspect of the auto industry, and there are few hirings, she said. “But things are taking off again, and every week my temp payroll is getting larger,” she said.

Williams has some advice for anyone job-hunting right now. Write 200 words about yourself, the things you are most proud of and you want the world to hear. Memorize what you wrote, and during a job interview these thoughts will come to your mind, she said. v

Job Finders Employment Services

1729 W. Broadway Ave. Suite 4Columbia, MO 65203-1190

446-4250

OPPOSITE PAGE, BOTTOM: JobFinders helped Libby Stone find a job at the Muscular Dystrophy Association. After working a temporary position as an administrative assistant, she later got promoted to a permanent position as a District Field Representative. RIGHT, BOTTOM RIGHT: Randy Humbird, left, helps clients fill out applications for temporary work.

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Q&A | MIKE BROOKS

By Mina Mineva

With 30 years of economic development experience and previous work with major universities, James Michael “Mike” Brooks started his new job as the city’s economic development director and president of REDI Inc. in mid-July.

Brooks will be paid an annual salary of $120,000 and receive performance-based compensation if spe-cific economic development objectives are met. The objectives include planning and executing strategies for attracting new businesses and encouraging start-up companies as well as expanding and retaining existing businesses.

Brooks had been working in Indianapolis as presi-dent of the Indiana Health Industry Forum, a mem-bership-based nonprofit organization that focuses on statewide economic development opportunities within the health industry and life science economy.

He previously was the vice president for research and economic development at Utah State University and president of the Economic Development Corporation in Lafayette, Indiana.

CBT staff writer Mina Mineva talked with Brooks in his office during his second week on the job. (The Q&A has been edited for clarity and length).

CBT: What are your initial impressions of Columbia?Brooks: It’s a beautiful community. Columbia and Boone County exceed any expectation I would have as a place to live and enjoy life’s occupation. The com-munity reminds me of a place that I spent earlier in my career, Bloomington, Ind., which is the home base of Indiana University. (There are) a lot of similarities

between Columbia and Bloomington. I enjoyed my tenure in Bloomington, so the opportunity to have that kind of experience here in Columbia is really special.

CBT: What are some of the similarities between Bloomington and Columbia?Brooks: The communities are similar in size. Columbia is larger, but they are similar. They are both located in a geographic area where rocks and rolling hills are part of the topography. Bloomington is located 30 minutes from a large lake, while Columbia is about an hour from a very large lake. The strength of the university as a driver for the local economy certainly makes for a lot of similarities. The strong interest in the community to create a high quality of life is another similarity.

CBT: What impressed you the most about Columbia?Brooks: It was the combination of the university community and the diverse economy. It seems to me there is great opportunity here to continue to build onto the work that has already gone before me as it relates to strengthening the local economy. That was a large driver … (Columbia) is close enough to major cities that you can get there and enjoy the ameni-ties that come from the major cities, but you are far enough away that you can have the identity of the local community.

CBT: Have you already picked a place to live?Brooks: We have. We are closing on a house next Tuesday (July 28). It’s in the Bellwood neighborhood.

CBT: What does your wife, Kitty, think of Columbia?Brooks: Similar to me, she is excited about the oppor-tunity. It’s a community that has a great quality of life. Kitty has a particular interest in the arts. She is excited about what she has seen and how the community sup-ports the arts.

CBT: What have you done and what will you be doing to develop the economic development strategy for Columbia and Boone County?Brooks: The first steps are to get out and meet the stakeholders in the economic development commu-nity, such as local government officials and people within the university. There is a wide range of stake-holders, as you might guess. Before I feel comfort-able having a discussion about a strategic direction, it’s really important that I get the foundation and knowledge about the community — how others see Columbia, what others see as some of the opportuni-ties going forward, what some of the challenges are…

It all obviously also depends on the board of direc-tors. We should never lose sight of the fact that REDI is a nonprofit corporation, and we have a lot of good directors who put in their time to help make this a better community from an economic perspective.

We can convene folks here in the community to take a look at what direction we should be putting our emphasis on and what we should be doing within those emphasis areas. Rather than being presump-tuous, I think that it is really important as a not-for-profit corporation that we should do things as a group working together.

Brooks asks stakeholders for guidance

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Q&A | MIKE BROOKS

CBT: Do you already have in mind a couple of areas to look at specifically?Brooks: It all revolves around three fundamental base pieces. In economic development, you have one: how to recruit new business. Within that area of discussion, you’ve got the opportunity to look at what the clusters are you would like to focus on and what the opportu-nities are, and the strengths the community has that provide a greater opportunity in this area versus that area.

The second area is the retention, expansion of existing companies. So often, economic development organizations do not spend the time and effort neces-sary to support the companies that are invested in the community, employing people and working to make the economy strong. I think it’s really important that … we support these companies…It is important that we understand these companies, what those compa-nies’ needs are, and where there are opportunities.

The third step of this stairwell is the entrepreneurs. That I refer to as the organic growth piece, where you are not dependent on decisions made elsewhere but, rather, you are focused on how to create new enter-prises, new companies. Some of those efforts will obviously focus on the university and the opportuni-ties that come from commercializing technology from the universities.

Some of that comes from the hope and trust we find in our students who, instead of going to work for some large corporation, say, “You know, I would really like to create my own company.” I think there is a lot of opportunity in that area. This whole area of entrepreneurship is an important one, and the univer-sity will play a role in that effort, or at least I certainly hope it will.

But, it’s more than just those three pieces. You need to focus on the infrastructure that is necessary to make

those things happen, such as working with develop-ment, site development, land and buildings. There may be questions about transportation or things that communities need to have to support various kinds of economic development opportunities.

CBT: How long do you think it will take you until you get a hold of things?Brooks: I was at a lunch meeting today, and 95 percent of the things I heard I knew nothing about. Out of that 95 percent, I could translate my previous experience to almost all of it. You walk into a meeting, and you understand the 50,000-foot level of understanding, but you also need to get the nuts and bolts, such as who is involved and what role they play. It is such an important part of the requirements to be successful, but it just takes time.

CBT: What kind of data do you look at to gather an understanding of Columbia’s economy?Brooks: The fundamental stuff, such as population, demographics, earnings that are in the community and disbursement of jobs across the various sectors. This is the starting point. There is more information than any one person can pull in. You look at where the research dollars are coming in. I’ve got a spreadsheet that I created, and it’s got about seven worksheets. Each has a different source of data, such as the Bureau of Economic Analysis, Census and Department of Labor.

CBT: In your opinion, what are Columbia’s biggest strengths and weaknesses in attracting more jobs and new business?Brooks: The university has to be mentioned as a strength. I think proximity, the location between St.

Louis and Kansas City. The basis of the economy, the drivers of the economy here, are a real asset.

CBT: What about weaknesses?Brooks: There is no place that does not have weak-nesses. This is not a statement that there are no weak-nesses, but I’d really rather get more insight to under-stand what are some real weaknesses versus simply opportunities not being developed. v

Michael Brooks looks through site maps of recent REDI projects.

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vOICES

The debate rages about health care reform, and I am confused.

From the Left, the Right, the Middle and perhaps some mysterious kingdom out yonder comes the debate, polemics, shouting, anger, rage and downright orneriness that fuel the talkers and writers and the exponentially expanding blogosphere. It's time to pause for a reasonable discussion about what the various "reforms" touted from all corners may mean for the Greater Columbia area's health care industry.

What do we know about the dimensions of this burgeoning economic engine? Both University Hospital and Boone Hospital Center are undergoing massive physical expansions, and Landmark Hospital’s acute care center will open soon. The number of hospital beds already is large for a community this size (338 at BHC and 566 at University Hospital), as is the square footage under roof devoted to health care and allied fields, the total number of health care workers (7,721 at BHC and University Hospital), the annual payroll represented by those workers, and the total annual financial turnover in dollars that passes through all these enterprises.

As a start, these impressive developments and statistics surely propel Columbia into a top-10 list of metropolitan areas offering a com-prehensive range of medical and health care programs and facilities. (A shout out, by the way, goes to University Hospital for recently garnering accreditation as Missouri's second Level One Trauma facility serving some 88 counties.)

While it's a given that changes to this coun-try's entire medical establishment will sooner or later occur, every one of us has reason to be on notice for what Congress and the Administration may end up doing. It's a given that some form of federally subsidized health care — extremists on the Right mark it a step toward "socialism" — will eventually reach Columbia.

Almost from the moment Social Security arrived in 1935, various proposals have been put forth to extend that program into health care. Those efforts led, for example, to the introduction of Medicare 30 years later. Private sector initiatives often termed "pennies-a-day" cooperative group hospital plans emerged before World War II, and, with tens of mil-lions of adherents today, the overall level of

satisfaction in that private sector appears to be holding.

Medical care costs money. While there will always be glaring examples of waste and fraud within the system, those who wax on with anecdotes of $5-a-night hospital stays or $50 procedures are naïve when it comes to the enormous advances that have surged through the various healing arts derived from ongoing research and the non-stop explosion of exciting technological developments.

Whatever Congress chooses to do could turn into an upheaval for the medical industry the Greater Columbia area has so carefully chosen to nurture, which has been our good fortune to retain and advance. Upwards of tens of millions of dollars have already been com-mitted — either already in progress or soon to be bid — for the next level of brick and mortar facilities. With that will come more jobs and an even greater level of importance as one of Columbia's major economic drivers.

"To pay attention" is one of my old mottos, and it's not too soon for all of us to stay well tuned to whatever Congress and the President end up doing because health care and its eco-nomic impact is of transcendent importance to each and every one of us around here. v

Al Germond

Al Germond is the host of the "Sunday

Morning Roundtable" every Sunday at 8:15

a.m. on KfRu. He can be reached at al@

columbiabusinesstimes.com

From the Roundtable

Health care reform has huge impact on Columbia, however it turns out

As the Boone County Commission begins work on the 2010 budget, I think it is important for all Boone County residents to understand the financial state of the county and what we are doing to weather the economic storm.

The FY2009 budget projected zero growth in sales tax. Six months into the year, our sales tax growth is at -3.26 percent. While -3.26 isn’t an alarming number to most, it is a troubling figure for the county, especially when we started the budget year $166,000 in the hole as a result of not meeting FY2008 projections.

Revenue from sales tax makes up 50 percent of the County’s General Revenue Fund, 75 per-cent of the Public Works budget and 100 per-cent of the Law Enforcement fund. The county’s other source of funding is property tax, but it is a relatively small piece of the overall budget. We levy 12 cents in general revenue and 4.75 cents in the Road and Bridge fund.

Normally, this is the most stable source of funding a governmental body can have for ongoing expenditures, but few things are proving to be stable in this tough economic climate. The county budgeted for a 2 percent growth in assessed valuation. However, at the close of this year’s books, the increased value of personal and real property combined was only .04 percent. At this point, the shortfall from those two main sources of revenue is a little over $500,000 for general revenue only. The combined total for all three funds is showing an estimated $1.15 million shortfall.

Another difficulty we face is the limit on discretionary spending. The General Revenue fund is the only fund that isn’t dedicated for a specific purpose and the only fund in which the Commission has discretion in budgeting. However, for every dollar entering the general revenue fund, 28 cents supports Policy and Administration, 2 cents Debt Service, 59 cents Law Enforcement and Judicial Services, 5 cents

Community Health and Public Services and the other 6 cents a multitude of things such as building upkeep and utilities, etc.

Costs have risen for everyday expenditures. To maintain day-to-day operations, depart-ments need to look for ongoing savings to meet the budgetary shortfall going into the next year. Unlike Columbia’s city manager, the Commission has little to no authority over the budget once it is adopted. There is no opportu-nity to force offices to cut costs when revenues don’t meet projections. Luckily, the county has great elected officials and department heads who put the best interest of the County first.

The Commission is developing changes that will streamline work flow and develop long-term solutions. One change is to place the Design and Construction division of Public Works under the management of the Planning & Building Inspection Director. This merger will provide the development community with one location for getting road, storm water and building permits.

This also allows us to have a division director for the Public Works Maintenance Department, similar to what we did with the Facilities Maintenance Department under a liaison Commissioner. We can eliminate a director salary and develop a Professional Civil Engineer position. One benefit of this position will be the ability to tackle small projects such as speed and sign studies, low water crossings and large culvert projects that have been lower priorities due to a lack of manpower.

Another long-term savings plan is to build a new facility on the Law Enforcement Campus that will house the County Clerk’s election equipment. The County had been leasing ware-house space for the county clerk’s election equip-ment on the open market. The three-year lease is expiring, and the county chose to send out a Request For Proposals to test the market. Only

two bids were received, one being the current facility and the other for a much larger facility. The leased facilities bid was $1 higher per foot than what the county is currently paying. In addition to the rent, the county paid the taxes, insurance and common area maintenance fees.

We decided a more cost-effective option was to find temporary storage for the machines in county-owned buildings and eventually build a new storage facility that the county would own.

The Sheriff’s Department had identified a long-term need and has committed to using civil process funds to help construct the new facility. The building will be paid for from an upfront contribution from the civil process fund and a yearly payment of $40,000. The existing funding level for yearly lease and ancillary charges will finish making the 10-year bond payment.

The space will be used to expand the Sheriff’s administrative offices so that it can accommo-date the Internet Crimes Unit, Proactive Unit and Drug Unit. There will also be space for records and evidence storage. The facility will include shared space for the Sheriff’s materials training and an area to meet the Clerk’s election staging needs. The ultimate benefit of having a county-owned facility is the elimination of the ongoing cost to general revenue once the bond debt is retired.

Despite some economic challenges, Boone County Government is committed to working hard to maintain the high level of service that residents have come to expect. We are always open to suggestions on how to streamline processes, eliminate waste and provide a user-friendly government for all Boone County citizens.

If you have something to share, don’t hesi-tate to call or e-mail the Commission office. v

County View

Budget shortfall requires new plans for long-term savings

Karen Miller. Miller is the District I

Commissioner for Boone County. She can be reached at kmiller@

boonecountymo.org

Karen Miller

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vOICES

I’ll never forget what Almeta Crayton told me standing outside St. Francis House one afternoon.

The First Ward Columbia city council-woman and I were looking at a long-empty eyesore across the street: a little brick building called the Heibel-March Store, which was jointly owned by two public agencies.

I asked Almeta why one of the owners, the City of Columbia, would let this officially designated Notable Historic Property sit and decay for over a decade.

“That’s the whole point,” she answered. “Let the neighborhood blight out, then take it. They did it before, and they’ll do it again.”

I later learned that “they” were a group of citizens called the Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority (LCRA), created about 50 years ago to “redevelop” the Flat Branch Creek area and 126 acres around Douglass High School in central Columbia.

Ostensibly empowered to clear blighted shantytowns and urban slums, the quasi-governmental authority made liberal use of eminent domain, a powerful tool that allows government to take land from private citizens for public use and “fair” compensation.

But “fair” is in the eye of the beholder. By enabling a massive land transfer from the black community to the white community, the Authority interrupted a well-trod path to pros-perity —land ownership — for a beleaguered group of citizens who 90 years earlier had loosed the shackles of slavery.

It also widened a racial rift that festers in Columbia to this day.

With such an inauspicious history, it seems surprising that the Authority might come back. But members of the Downtown Leadership Council have discussed just such a possibility, against a backdrop of eminent domain’s widely drubbed encore, as a way to secure land for a new Missouri State Historical Society museum.

Minutes from the Downtown Leadership Council’s Nov. 25, 2008, meeting show Assistant City Manager Tony St. Romaine said the group reviewed “the authority of the LCRA, (Land Clearance Redevelopment Authority). Community anxiety discussed regarding land clearance.” Show Me Blight

A creature unique to Missouri statutes — RSMo 99.320 to 99.330 — a Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority lurks in every com-munity, quietly awaiting activation by vote of a “governing body,” be it a city council, or, oddly enough, a Housing Authority.

Activating an authority requires meeting two legal tests:

That one or more blighted, or unsanitary, 1. areas exist. That the redevelopment of an area is 2. necessary for the health, safety, morals or welfare of the residents. Intentional or not, the first test creates an

incentive for development-hungry public offi-cials to “blight out” desirably located neighbor-hoods, often through deliberate neglect. Since no “absolute” definition of blight is possible, the law assumes that officials will know it when they see it — or when they help create it.

And since “morals” aren’t intrinsic to land, but to the people who own it, showing that landowners in the path of eminent domain are somehow immoral — shiftless and lazy, for instance — presumably meets the second test. The law, therefore, encourages unfortunate ste-reotypes that can become a permanent part of a community’s racial, cultural, and economic dialogue. A Sharp End

As recently as the late 1950s, businesses and restaurants catering almost exclusively to Columbia’s black community stretched along Walnut between Fourth and Fifth streets.

For entertainment, black entrepreneurs formed the Sharp End, a collection of pool halls, nightclubs and a movie theater that flourished amidst segregation: blacks weren’t welcome in white-owned establishments.

Except for work, “black people hardly went past Eighth Street,” 81-year-old lifelong Columbia resident Sehon Williams said in a 2004 interview.

Missouri, after all, had been a slave-holding state, and an entrenched class system made equal economic progress a slow march in the black community. Nonetheless, land owner-ship — vital to American prosperity — had become an essential part of that progress. Freed slaves settled the hardscrabble, poorly drained land around the growing downtown area that white residents had ignored.

But then the community grew, and they couldn’t ignore it anymore.

Failing twice at the polls in 1952, an ordi-nance to create an authority passed in April 1956, on the heels of a federal government “urban renewal” push and public housing construction binge.

Columbia’s first Land Clearance for Redevelopment Authority met that June, and for the next 10 years condemned mostly black-owned land all around the central city, paying about 50 cents on the dollar, according to Authority appraisal records.

The consolation prize: cheap public housing. Land clearance had taken the land, and a housing authority would rent it back. v

PART 2: Urban renewal, but for whom?

Mike Martin

Martin, a Columbia resident and science

journalist, can be reached at Mike.

martin@weeklyscientist.com

Citizen Journalist

Downtown Redevelopment: An unfortunate déjà vu? Part 1

We are in the midst of a sustainability shift. Nearly everyone cares about the future of this planet and also about the people on it. But not everyone is willing to analyze and even enhance a positive “bottom line” regarding the sustainability practices of business.

The triple bottom line ("people, planet, profit") describes a range of values and criteria for measuring business and societal success. If you are committed to delivering triple bottom line results for your business and our com-munity, there is advantage in understanding sustainability leadership. Sustainability lead-ership is the capacity to co-create a future in which people, organizations, and ecosystems all continually thrive.

In the current climate of economic upheaval and environmental decline, the time is right for strong and wise leaders to step forward and transform their businesses into sustainable businesses.

We see a number of examples here in Columbia, and we can be proud to have a number of sustainability leaders in our community.

The City of Columbia has launched a methane-powered electrical generation plant at the Columbia landfill. The methane is produced from garbage. The Columbia Fire Department is building two fire stations set to be certified by LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design). The renovated and expanded City Hall will also be LEED certified. The mayor, city council, city manager and staff all contribute to this growth in sustainable behaviors.

Teresa Maledy, president of Commerce Bank's Central Missouri Region, said, “Commerce is committed to improving sus-tainability. With the purchase of the old Boone National Savings on Broadway, we chose extensive renovation over demolishing and rebuilding the facility, recognizing that in older structures there is a great deal of embodied

energy already invested and worth preserving. For all renovations, here and throughout the company, we strive to have a comprehensive waste management program which helps keep the bulk of the demolition debris out of the landfills. In addition, the project uses Planet Reuse to recycle and repurpose building mate-rials that would otherwise end up in landfills, saving us time and money in the construction process.” ‘

At Missouri Employers Mutual Insurance, communications director Jennifer Peck lists sustainability activities in both the MeM build-ings and operations. Their four buildings (in Columbia, Springfield, Kansas City and St. Louis) each include compact fluorescent bulbs, auto-off lights (motion sensing), and skylights in the atrium area, allowing us to turn off over-head lights and use natural light only and a raised floor HVAC system – all to save energy.

MeM operations improvements, linked to sustainability, take advantage of computer

Guest Column

Building a sustainable business with sustainability leadership

Send your letters and comments to CBT via our Web site, www.columbiabusinesstimes.com, by mail to 2001 Corporate Place, Columbia, MO 65202 or by e-mail to editor@columbiabusinesstimes.com

Nick Peckham

Nick Peckham. Peckham is a Columbia

architect, inventor and writer.

(continued on Page 13)

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2009 CBT Entrepreneur of the Year:

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Sahba JalaliAdvanced Vision

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Mike Messer Shelter Insurance

David NivensMidwest Computech

How’s the Game going for you? What Tools are you using?

vOICES

The free market system of commerce works fairly well until government interferes with the process. Such is the case with the TIF applica-tions that have been heard by the Columbia City Council.

TIFs are an example of interference in the free market system. Interference by its very definition is negative. In family terms, it is clearly communicated with the single word: “meddling.”

For the city council to approve each of these applications, a host of acrobatic flips and tumbles have occurred. Beginning with the Tiger Hotel application, they have concluded that the treasure of downtown is in imminent danger of loss or dilapidation — quite a stretch for even the most imaginative among us.

In the case of the Trittenbach application, they have overlooked the applicants’ public testimony that the property they seek to rede-velop is among the most expensive real estate available within the city limits. Instead they focused on another of the applicants’ state-ments that contends the property is blighted. Blight is similar to pornography; it is not easily defined but readily recognized. It does not exist in downtown Columbia.

Further, City Council must now look Freddie DeMarco, Mike Keevins, the McClung Brothers and similar developers in the eye and with a straight face inform them that the risk and fear they have endured and the private investment they have made are secondary to these “catalyst” projects.

In essence, the City Council has declared the winners and the losers. After all, who can com-pete with the free money City Council will give to these applicants, money that accrues not a debt of interest or repayment. Interference is an unfair advantage that is the basis of a foul when fair play is expected. These TIF applica-tions grant an unfair advantage in the down-town real estate market.

An acquaintance of mine was asked about TIFs, and he responded: “They serve only to divide the business community.” City Manager Bill Watkins points to the decline of sales tax revenue and business licenses in downtown as evidence that this particular interference is necessary to stem that which he observes.

However, between the city and county governments, blame for the bulk of revenue declines can be laid at their feet. The Daniel Boone Building expansion itself removed two businesses from the private sector. In addi-tion, the county’s acquisition of the Johnston Building, the Johnston Paint & Decorating Building and the Guarantee Land Title Building are further examples of recent moves from the private sector to the public, tax-exempt sector of the downtown economy.

These acquisitions of prime real estate by public entities who pay top dollar fuels the exit of private enterprise that generates tax revenue. The downtown community is thus divided among those who accept the buyout and those less fortunate to hold properties that are not adjacent to public entities.

Finally, does it not reek of malfeasance that a city government may usurp the taxing authority of the Columbia School District and pay little of the cost of that decision? How is it that a state statute allows one taxing authority to give the tax revenue of another to a private third party?

Legal it may be, but unfair and wrong it is. Needs inevitably grow at a faster rate than resources. The millions of dollars given to these TIF applicants are resources that will be needed in the future to fund school dis-trict operations and only will come from real estate owners scattered throughout the school district. In the next 23 years, redevelopment would have occurred at both of these sites at some point. They would generate real tax dol-lars that are now to be transferred to private individuals.

The grand desire to have these projects has legitimized the convoluted process that did not involve the community as a whole. If the Police Civilian Review Board had been concocted in such a manner, the minority community would rightfully be marching in the streets.

Columbia has enjoyed a reputation of dis-tinction due to its commitment to that which is right, not that which is expedient. The endorse-ment of these TIF applications is a step toward rewarding those with the most wherewithal over those who roll up their sleeves and by the sweat of their brow nurse their projects to suc-cess. Welcome to our future. v

Larry Schuster

Larry Schuster is a former city councilman and political observer.

Soap Box

Winners & Losers: The City Council has chosen

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Voices ... continued from Page 11

technology for electronic delivery of policies, online insurance applications and online claims – an option used by 70 percent of MeM clients. Ms. Peck also said, “We use online meeting technology and videoconferencing capabili-ties to conduct meetings between our offices to eliminate travel, when appropriate. And recycle, recycle, recycle – we have bins throughout the building to recycle paper, and plastic in the kitchen/break areas.”

Jerry Taylor, the CEO of MFA Oil said, “Certainly MFA Oil is a leader in renewable fuels, both biodiesel and ethanol, which are made from crops grown here in the Midwest. Right now, our number one project is to put technology in place that will give MFA the ability to deliver the same amount of fuel with 20 percent fewer driving miles to deliver it. We also have begun the pro-cess of buying 20 propane-powered trucks per year to reduce our CO2 emissions. We are the 7th largest propane retailer in the country, so we come up with programs to help our customers save energy.”

Alicia Robinson, a public affairs specialist for State Farm’s Columbia Operations Center, said the company has embraced the State Farm Nationwide green initiative.

“The entire State Farm enterprise has made the decision to reduce expenses by reducing environmental impact,” she said. “One strategy to reduce CO2 emissions is ride-share. Another sustainability strategy is the installation of aerators on the wash room sinks. This resulted in water use reduction from 2.5 gallons per minute to 1.5 gallons per minute. Future State Farm plans include the installation of touch-less faucets that use only a half gallon per minute. In 2008, by using e-mail billing, State Farm mailed 46 million fewer payment plan notices. This saved 20,000 trees or 2 million pounds of paper. The leadership on these initiatives came from the corporate level.”

Kohl’s formal green initiative began in mid-2006 with the formation of a small task force to uncover existing and potential programs that promote environmental stewardship. The Green Scene program grew out of this effort in early 2007. In October 2008, Kohl's launched www.kohlsgreenscene.com to provide more informa-tion on our key environmental initiatives and accomplishments, said Kristen Cunningham, the company’s public relations director.

“The Columbia location is one of 220 Kohl’s stores nationwide that have earned EPA’s Energy

Star label for superior energy efficiency and performance,” she said. “On average, Energy Star-labeled buildings, such as this one, use 35 percent less energy than typical similar build-ings and generate approximately one-third less carbon dioxide. Like the rest of Kohl’s Energy Star-labeled stores, the Columbia location has centralized energy management control systems, occupancy sensor lighting for stockrooms, break rooms and offices and high-efficiency heating and cooling systems. This store, like all Kohl’s stores, has a dedicated recycling program.”

Kraft Foods on Route B in Columbia has made marked progress in three key areas. Spokeswoman Adrienne Dimopoulos said, “So far this year the Columbia plant has recycled over nine million pounds of materials in 19 categories from paper to pallets. The quality of the wastewater has improved 100 percent from 2005 to 2008. During this time, Kraft reduced the energy per pound of product by 5 percent.”

At the University of Missouri, Bruce Walker, dean of the Robert J. Trulaske Sr. College of Business said, “Sustainability is built into nearly

all the courses taught in the business school.”

These sustainability leaders will enlist others, through example and education, so that posi-tive responses to current circumstances take root and thrive, and influ-ence the future toward sustainability. The need for sustainability lead-ership is enormous. It is the responsibility of leaders who see the clear benefits of the triple bottom line to share this knowledge with others. This level of sponsorship of sustainability within

our workplaces and communities will position companies to take sustainability to a strategic level.

Strong leaders have an embodied ability to respond confidently, appropriately, and with directional clarity to all of the unexpected sur-prises that they’re subject to every day. They have the ability to build coalitions of support across diverse stakeholder interests, personality conflicts and resistance. They have the creativity, innovation, persistence and flexibility to suc-cessfully bring a new, more sustainable way of life into being.

The world needs women and men to become the most powerfully inventive and influential leaders in history. The prior view of leaders guiding firms to “win” has been supplanted by leaders shaping a society where success is the common trait. v

Missouri Employers Mutual

“These sustainability

leaders will enlist others,

through example and

education, so that positive

responses to current

circumstances take root and

thrive, and influence the

future toward sustainability.

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BUSINESS BRIEFS

July and August 2009

CBT CAlENDAR OF EvENTS ... continued from Page 3

5Exploring Entrepreneurship Start-up Class5:30 to 7 p.m., 222 Engineering Building West, MU College of Engineering This Missouri Business Development Program class is for those interested in starting a business. It costs $20, and registration is required. Contact Virginia Wilson for more information at 882-9952, WilsonV@missouri.edu.

Columbia Regional Airport Advisory Board Meeting12:30 p.m. at Columbia Regional AirportThe Technical Advisory Committee and Public Advisory Committee will hold a joint meeting to

discuss its plan. For more information, call the airport at 874-7508.Columbia Regional Airport Master Plan Public Forum4 to 7 p.m. at the Activity and Recreation Center, 701 W. Ash StreetThis public workshop will be held to discuss the airport master plan process with the public. For more information, call the airport at 874-7508.

6Planning and Zoning Commission Meeting7 p.m. at the Daniel Boone City BuildingFor more information, call the city planning department at 874-7239.

VA Mortgage Center moving to Ice ChaletVA Mortgage Center.com has outgrown its

offices near the Forum Boulevard-Chapel Hill Road intersection and plans to move to the vacant building on Grindstone Parkway that formerly housed the Ice Chalet and the Ice Chalet Antique Mall.

VA Mortgage has reached a preliminary agreement to buy the 43,000-square-foot building on a 6.3 acre site near U.S. 63, co-founder Brock Bukowski said. The closing is scheduled to take place in two months, and it will take another nine to 12 months to renovate the building, he said.

The Ice Chalet Antique Mall closed in October 2007.

Bukowski and his brother, Brant, founded the company, originally called Mortgage Research Center, in 2002, and in 2007 they had 86 employees. Now, VA Mortgage Center has about 250 employees working in the main office on Chapel Plaza Court and in two satellite offices in the Peachtree Plaza area.

Bukowski said they were unsuccessful in finding a suitable new building with 30,000 square feet or more of office space. “We didn’t want to do a remodel,” he said. “This (the move to the Ice Chalet building) is really by default.”

Census Bureau returns to Parkade Center The U.S. Census Bureau has leased a cus-

tomized 6,000-square-foot space in the Parkade Center on Business Loop 70 West.

The Census Bureau will have 52 employees in Columbia working to gather data for the census, which the federal government does every 10 years. The Parkade Center also housed the Census Bureau in 1999.

Benjamin Gakinya, manager of the Parkade Center, said the Census Bureau asked for high-tech security features for the office space, such as cipher locks. Construction is scheduled to be finished Aug. 5 and the government agency plans to move into the space in mid-August.

Howard, Randolph now enterprise zonesThe Missouri Department of Economic

Development has designated Howard and Randolph counties as enhanced enterprise zones.

Zone designation is based on the demo-graphic criteria, the potential creation for sus-tainable jobs in a targeted industry and the dem-onstrated impact on local cluster development.

Shelter recognized as top performerThe Ward Group, a consulting firm that

provides benchmarking and best-practices ser-vices to the insurance industry, has recognized the Shelter Life Insurance Company as a top-performing life insurer for the third consecutive year.

Ward Group also ranked the Shelter Insurance group among its top 50 performers out of over 2,700 U.S. property and casualty insurers analyzed for the annual ranking.

Columbia Mutual a ‘super-regional’ companyDemotech, a financial analysis and actuarial

services firm based in Ohio, announced that Columbia Mutual Insurance Company has qualified as a “super regional” this year. Out of over 2,700 property and casualty compa-nies, 149 met the objective criteria to be a super regional: at least $100 million of policyholder surplus, direct premium written of at least $25 million, and net written premium of at least $50 million.

Delta Acquires MethTrackDelta Systems Group, a Web database

system development company and provider of corporate PC and network support services, announced the acquisition of MethTrack LLC, an online system designed to help pharmacies comply with purchase logging requirements. The system helps fill a void in tracking who goes into retail stores and buys pseudoephedrine, which can be used to make methamphetamine, a psychostimulant. MethTrack (www.meth-track.com) is now a wholly-owned division of Delta Systems Group. Previously, Delta was a minority shareholder in the partnership. v

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PEOPLE YOu SHOULD KNOW

Tony MayfieldCommunity Bank President – UMB Bank

JOB DESCRIPTION: Market leader and Senior Lender for the Columbia region.

AGE: 41 YEARS LIVED IN COLUMBIA: 2.5 (1992-1994) during graduate school. I have been back in town since April 2009

ORIGINAL HOMETOWN: Jefferson City

EDUCATION: Bachelor’s degrees in economics and business administration, William Jewell College; master’s degree in business administration, University of Missouri-Columbia.

COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT: Board chair of Triality Inc., a Kansas City-based organization that helps people with disabilities; former vice chair/board member of Hillcrest Transitional Housing, a Kansas City-based organization

that helps move families from homelessness to self-sufficiency; Liberty Chamber of Commerce; Northland Regional Chamber of Commerce (Kansas City North); Clay County Economic Development Council; and Platte County Economic Development Council

PROFESSIONAL BACKGROUND: 18 years in commercial banking

A COLUMBIA BUSINESSPERSON I ADMIRE AND WHY: Norm Stewart – I watched him as I was growing up in Jefferson City. Coach Stewart’s work ethic, integrity, and his unyielding quest for excellence were attributes that I have tried to incorporate into my own personal and professional life.

WHY I’M PASSIONATE ABOUT MY JOB: Banking is not about money; it is about people. I try to live by the principle of being people-focused, whether it is with our customers, community members, my family, or the team at UMB. I treat my smallest customers the same as my largest customers, and that balance has yielded some

wonderful relationships over the years. I still have contact with many former customers to keep up with their families and accomplishments. This is a relationship business.

IF I WEREN’T DOING THIS FOR A LIVING, I WOULD: …be a professional cyclist. I love the teamwork, camaraderie, and passion for the sport. It is an individual sport, but you cannot win without a

great team. To me, that translates well into everyday life.

BIGGEST CAREER OBSTACLE I’VE OVERCOME AND HOW: Myself. My own fears, weaknesses and past mistakes have at times hindered me from being at my creative best. I try to have

key people in my life provide constant feedback in order for me to honestly evaluate my strengths and weaknesses. There really is freedom in learning the truth about one's self.

A FAVORITE RECENT PROJECT: Moving my family back to Columbia has been the most rewarding thing I’ve done lately. My two girls love to be with their grandparents, aunts,

uncles and cousins in Harrisburg and Jefferson City. It has been a very rewarding past six months getting them transplanted back close to their extended family.

WHAT PEOPLE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT THIS PROFESSION: Banking is about relationships. People should interact with their banker as a

trusted partner and counselor. If they don’t have that type of relationship with their banker, they should search until they

find it.

WHAT I DO FOR FUN: Spending time with my family, cycling, reading, playing guitar and singing, roasting coffee, and watching football.

FAMILY: Cori (married 15 years), Emma (9 and in fourth grade) and Clara (5 and in kindergarten).

FAVORITE PLACE IN COLUMBIA: Lakota Coffeehouse. It began a year or so before I started my MBA in 1994, and I learned grew to love their coffee.. I try to stop by there at least a couple of times a week now that I’m back.

ACCOMPLISHMENT I’M MOST PROUD OF: My relationship with my wife, Cori, and the beautiful little girls we are

entrusted with, Emma and Clara.

MOST PEOPLE DON’T KNOW THAT I: went to college to be a vocal performance major with a goal of becoming a professional

tenor. I raced four marathons (including the Boston Marathon) and have finished the Pike’s Peak Ascent ½ marathon twice. I

play three musical instruments.

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An unprecedented number of students will start congregating at Columbia’s colleges and universities

next month and fan out to spend money in the city’s stores, bars and restaurants.

A survey of six institutions of higher education with campuses in Columbia found that total enrollment for the 2009-

2010 school year is expected to be 34,408, up from 32,969 the previous year. That’s an increase of 1,439 students, or 4.4 percent. Another 200 or so students will be attending Columbia Area Career Center.

And here’s a silver lining in the hair-suit some people call the Great Recession: College officials say the economic down-

turn is compelling a large percentage of the Class of 2009 to head straight into gradu-ate school and persuading many workers to enroll in classes to improve their chances of succeeding in a tight job market. «

Central Methodist University- Columbia campusFall 2008: 800 studentsFall 2009: 950 students expectedNumber change: 150 studentsPercent change: 18.75 percent

“At the present time, the economy is helping education because people need to go to school to keep their jobs,” said Judy Strodtman, extended studies coordinator, Central Methodist University.

Enrollment increases at Columbia's colleges and universities

William Woods UniversityUndergraduateFall 2008: 1,100 studentsFall 2009: 1,175 students expectedNumber change: 75 studentsPercent change: 6.82 percent

GraduateFall 2008: 2,250 studentsFall 2009: 2,500 students expectedNumber change: 250 studentsPercent change: 11.11 percent

Columbia campusFall 2008: 200 studentsFall 2009: at least 250 students expectedNumber change: 50 studentsPercent change: 25 percent

“In the past year, we have seen an increase in students pursuing our master of business administration degree as well as our MBA with the health management emphasis,” said Mary Ann Beahon, director of university relations.

Economic downturn a major factor in upward trend for grads and undergrads

Columbia College Overall enrollment, including day, evening, online, nationwide and graduateFall 2008: 14,081 studentsFall 2009: 14,925 students expectedNumber change: 844 studentsPercent change: 6 percent

Undergraduate Columbia day campusFall 2008: 1,169 studentsFall 2009: 1,239 students expectedNumber change: 70 studentsPercent change: 6 percent “We see more adults coming back to the classroom to complete a degree or to start a new one,” said Mike Randerson, vice president for adult higher education at Columbia College. “They are taking classes to shield themselves from layoffs or to retool to be more competitive in the job market. … There has been growth in our human services program, which is offered during the day, evening and online. Healthcare is another very sought-after degree.”

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turn is compelling a large percentage of the Class of 2009 to head straight into gradu-ate school and persuading many workers to enroll in classes to improve their chances of succeeding in a tight job market. «

MU enrollment through the decades

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(The number of high school graduates in Missouri is expected to begin a multi-year decline starting the spring of 2011 that will extend to 2015 and beyond)

“Nursing and other society-crucial programs are experiencing robust applications, and we're trying as hard as we can to educate as many master's and doctorate-level nurses,” said George Justice, interim dean of the graduate school. “Graduate programs that have specific occupa-tional outcomes continue to be very popular. … By any standards, our education, business and health professions graduate degrees are popular, but across the board we have been receiving large numbers of applications for most of our programs, including traditional academic disci-plines in the College of Arts and Science.”

Enrollment increases at Columbia's colleges and universities

10,1

96

21,0

82

23,2

46

24,2

20

22,8

98

29,3

94

Columbia Area Career CenterTechnical and industry classes2007: 135 students2008: 207 studentsNumber change: 72 studentsPercent change: 53.33 percent

Economic downturn a major factor in upward trend for grads and undergrads

Moberly Area Community College – Columbia campusFall 2008: 1,300 studentsFall 2009: 1,395 students expectedNumber change: 95 studentsPercent change: 7.31 percent

“Enrollment in all areas is up, said Ann Frey, director of Columbia higher education at Moberly Area Community College. “The computer programs, particularly the Internet classes, have increased a little bit since last year.”

Columbia College Overall enrollment, including day, evening, online, nationwide and graduateFall 2008: 14,081 studentsFall 2009: 14,925 students expectedNumber change: 844 studentsPercent change: 6 percent

Undergraduate Columbia day campusFall 2008: 1,169 studentsFall 2009: 1,239 students expectedNumber change: 70 studentsPercent change: 6 percent “We see more adults coming back to the classroom to complete a degree or to start a new one,” said Mike Randerson, vice president for adult higher education at Columbia College. “They are taking classes to shield themselves from layoffs or to retool to be more competitive in the job market. … There has been growth in our human services program, which is offered during the day, evening and online. Healthcare is another very sought-after degree.” Stephens College

Undergraduate Fall 2008: 754 studentsFall 2009: 760 students expected Number change: 6 studentsPercent change: 0.8 percent

Graduate and continuing studiesFall 2008: 371 studentsFall 2009: 420 students expectedNumber change: 49 studentsPercent change: 13.21 percent

“With the economy kind of difficult right now, we have seen a lot of people coming back and want-ing to complete a graduate degree, said Jennifer Deaver, director of recruitment at Stephens College. “Students, too, express that it’s time to do it.”

Sources: Judy Strodtman, extended studies coordinator, CMU; Jennifer Jonas, interim senior director of public relations, Columbia College; Amy Frey, direc-tor of Columbia higher education center, Moberly Area Community College; Amy Gipson, vice president for marketing and public relations and Jennifer Deaver, director of recruitment, Stephens College; MU Office of Institutional Research and Planning; Mary Ann Beahon, director of university relations, WWU; Karl Christopher, trade and industry coordinator and placement spe-cialist, Columbia Area Career Center

University of Missouri Total graduate and undergraduateFall 2008: 28,375 studentsFall 2009: 29,394 studentsNumber change: 1,019 studentsPercent change: 3.59 percent

ProfessionalFall 2008: 1,126Fall 2009: 1,113Number change: -13 studentsPercent change: -1.15 percent

UndergraduateFall 2008: 22,687 studentsFall 2009: 23,647 students expectedNumber change: 960 studentsPercent change: 4.23 percent

Graduate and continuing studiesFall 2008: 4,562 studentsFall 2009: 4,634 students expectedNumber change: 72 studentsPercent change: 1.58 percent

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Headed by Wade and Arden Boyer-Stephens, director of the Columbia Area Career Center, a task force formed in the fall of 2008 to begin the process of identifying gaps, exploring op-tions and setting goals. Other members of the committee include Greg Steinhoff, Bernie Andrews, Terry Barnes and Kristi Ray.

“We put together a little ad hoc group to see if we could take the first steps in the process — a group of people

who normally don’t talk to each other. We spent the first two or three meetings learning to talk to each other,” Wade said.

Group members agree that business, government and the existing educational communities all need to buy in to the process to create opportunities for adult workforce training.

Bernie Andrews, executive vice president of Regional Economic Development Inc., or REDI, ex-plained the economic development perspective. “A quality workforce is a critical component of any type of business,” he said. “The task force wants to make sure we have a dependable and larger pool of trained workers for the companies already here and will be able to promote this trained workforce to attract new businesses.”

Many of the task force mem-bers believe the addition of an adult workforce training center to Columbia’s current menu of offer-ings to companies looking to relocate here will be significant. “We feel that Columbia/Boone County has all the educational components needed to support economic development ex-cept for high-quality technical train-ing,” Boyer-Stephens says.

Typical programs might include mid-level management training, office administration, computer in-formation technology, electronics repair, industrial and manufactur-ing training, construction trades, research technology and health oc-cupations. The task force has identi-fied potential program offerings but will wait on data collected locally to determine specifically what mid-Missouri needs.

In addition to technical training, the task force envisions opportunities for helping the underem-ployed and unskilled, including offering coursework in GED preparation, adult basic literacy and, in general, sharpening employability skills.

Core values identified by the task force members are the cornerstone of the strategic plan. The core values of the organization structure stipulate that it be: demand driven, adult friendly, acces-sible, learner-centered, innovative, at the cutting edge and endorsed by business and industry.

Task force members have had contact with all existing mid-Missouri educational facilities in its preliminary discussions, including Moberly Area Community College and Linn Tech. “Existing in-stitutions are all now on board that this is what we need; we are not competing with them,” Wade says.

Currently, Linn Tech works closely with the Columbia Area Career Center, and avoiding duplica-tion of services is a priority for the task force. “We will not duplicate services/programs in whatever is developed for Columbia/Boone County,” Boyer-Stephens says.

Despite the task force members’ unanimous claim that Boone County needs to fill this education-al void, members also realize that data will have to be gathered to attract funding for the project.

Consequently, the existing task force will hold its final meeting July 28. The next goal is creating a survey for local employers and institutions to find out whether the anecdotal evidence the task force has gathered is accurate.

“The next step will be to have a skills gap analysis conducted to see what skill sets are needed for the present and the future,” Boyer-Stephens says.

However, there is no funding for such an analysis. Finding funding for the analysis will be the task of the incoming members, Wade said. Depending on the level of inquiry, the cost of performing

Director Arden Boyer-Stephens, center, discusses textbook orders with her staff.

Columbia Area Career Center recently added a new wing that houses teaching classrooms for health-related professions, life science laboratories and even commerical kitchens for the culinary arts.

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Adult Tech Training ... continued from Page 1

State issues new Missouri Career Guide

Story courtesy of MissouriConnections.orgPreparing for a career involves many steps and choos-

ing from many possible directions, so it can be hard to know where to begin. The new, improved Missouri Career Guide 2009-2010 provides an inviting starting point.

"This guide covers it all, from exploring career interests and strengths to how to make a great impression when meeting with prospective employers," said Marty Romitti, director of the Missouri Economic Research and Information Center (MERIC). "It offers help both to students and adults hoping to attain higher education, as well as those who are active job-seekers. And it does it all in just 32 pages, so it's not overwhelming."

Visitors to Missouri Career Centers can pick up copies of the Career Guide, which came out the second week of June. High school counselors will receive copies this fall when at-tending their statewide conference, and the guide will also be distributed at Adult Education and Literacy Centers, college and career fairs, events for laid-off workers and other places where job-seekers look for career information. Distribution will be impressive, with 140,000 copies being printed.

"This valuable guide is another way Missouri is working to provide help for its unemployed citizens," said Department of Economic Development Director Linda Martínez.

The guide begins with a one-page round-up of career, education and financial planning resources in Missouri. Following sections include exploring careers, money man-agement, job-seeking tips, career and education services, and forming a plan of action.

"It just has everything in it," said Jan Speck, senior coun-selor at Windsor High School in Imperial. "Having all of this information at students' fingertips is a really helpful thing."

Al Babich, a career counselor at Manual Career and Technical Center in Kansas City, added that the guide will also fill a gap for adult job-seekers.

"Students have access to a lot of this information in school, but adults don't usually have this information," he said. "For adults, this publication is a concise, valuable guide to the re-sources available to them."

The state agencies involved in producing the Missouri Career Guide include the Department of Economic Development, MERIC, the Division of Workforce Development, the Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and the Department of Higher Education. Also in-volved are the Missouri Center for Career Education and the Missouri Chamber of Commerce and Industry. Funding for printing comes from a Workforce Investment Act federal grant.

The Career Guide is accessible online at www.MissouriCareerSource.com and www.missourieconomy.org v

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the needs assessment could be expensive. One bid has come in at between $40,000 and $120,000.

While the current task force has laid the ground work, the proj-ect is still very much in the conceptual phase. “We are not even talking about buildings or campuses or capital campaigns yet, but we will be looking for funding for data development to underpin the strategic plan,” Wade says. Yet he is optimistic that people will support funding of the project. “It’s very simple. A community succeeds or fails on the quality of its workforce.” v

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SPECIAL SECTION | Continuing eduCation

The Columbia Business Times is mid-Missouri’s leading source of news and information about local business.

eGet breaking news, recap of top local business

stories and a preview of our print edition.

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By Mina Mineva

In the spring of 2008, the Columbia Area Career Center’s trade and industry coordinator realized the economy was deteriorating. So he decided to restructure the curriculum.

“I was thinking, ‘Nobody is going to be able to afford to take these classes just for personal enrichment,’ so I started gearing them more toward entry-level jobs,” Karl Christopher said.

For example, students in the beginner’s welding class used to focus chiefly on learning how to repair and construct objects themselves at home rather than how to apply their new skills as professional welders.

Christopher said he visits every class and talks to each student, doing a kind of in-formal research. He asks them who they work for and why they’re in the class. “While I used to get ‘I want to learn to do this or that,’ now it’s, ‘I want to learn to do more at work.’ The students were realizing this, and the companies started paying for some of the classes.”

During the first term after the redesign of the technical classes, enroll-ment decreased by 11 students to 63. But in the following semester, fall 2008, the enrollment jumped to 142 adults.

“There is an opportunity here that wasn’t there before,” Christopher said. “Except for us,

here at the career center, who else is going to of-fer such classes? There are no other resources for people to go to.”

The original purpose of the career center, lo-cated next to Rock Bridge High School on South Providence Road, was to provide vocational and technical classes to high school students. But during the evening, the classrooms and their

technology were not being used. Thus, the center start-ed to offer evening classes for adults.

As the adult programs grew, people started in-quiring about day classes. Because high school stu-dents occupy all of the class-rooms during the day, the career center coordinators decided to build an addi-tional building specifically for adult technical training.

After five months of con-struction, the 2,000-square-foot building opened on June 15. The new addition

cost about $350,000 and was funded by a state construction-matching grant. The grant is a part

of a 2004 school bond is-sue for $5.3 million.

In the summer, the career center usually has fewer courses than during the school year. Currently, the center of-fers just one technical adult class, the Plumbing Apprenticeship.

The plumbing program is a blended course of online, classroom and laboratory lessons. The

Career Center expands, gears adult classes toward job training

Trade and Industry Coordinator Karl Christopher shows off 3-d models that the students produce in the computer-aided design and drafting lab.

Because high school

students occupy all of

the classrooms during

the day, the career center

coordinators decided

to build an additional

building, specifically for

adult technical training.

Columbia Area Career Center4203 S. Providence Road

(573) 214-3800 www.career-center.org

Classes price range: $249-$1,399

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(continued on Page 22)

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By Joanna Schneider

The job market is tight, and so more adults are going back to school, education officials say. For many Columbia residents, hitting the books is made possi-ble through the flexible hours, tu-ition reimbursement and internal education programs provided by their employers.

Kimberly Moore, a 41-year-old Shelter Insurance employee, re-cently completed her undergrad-uate business degree at Columbia College. To do this, Moore used the flex-time hours and under-graduate tuition reimbursement the company provides.

When Moore started at Shelter in 1999, she had sophomore sta-tus college credit but wanted to complete her degree. In 2007, with hopes of professional ad-vancement, Moore enrolled at Columbia College. Shelter let her modify a typical workday sched-ule, allowing her to arrive at 7 a.m. and leave at 3:30 p.m. so she could attend classes.

Shelter will reimburse 100 percent of industry-related class-es, up to six hours per semester. Moore took advantage of this re-imbursement, enrolling as a full-time student (six hours per eight-week session) and working as a full-time employee.

“These benefits are a huge support to employees wanting to go back to school and complete their education,” Moore said. “It would have been much more dif-ficult otherwise.”

Moore, who now works in the claims department, was in the ac-counting department previously and saw how many education reimbursement checks the com-pany was sending out. “So many of our employees do take advan-tage of these phenomenal oppor-tunities,” she said.

Jim Schepers, Shelter’s man-ager of compensation and per-sonnel administration, said the company requires three years of employment and a “C” grade or better in all classes for which em-ployees seek reimbursement. The company does not pay for books or fees.

The most important thing is that employees “grow with the company, and education is the key to that,” Schepers said.

In addition to backing em-ployees who are seeking under-

graduate and graduate degrees, Shelter encourages workers to get industry training certifica-tions and reimburses them for the costs of required class work.

Another Shelter employee, Meghan Fitzpatrick, 24, is work-ing on her master’s degree in business administration from Columbia College. While she is not eligible for tuition reim-bursement because advanced degrees are not included, Fitzpatrick regularly uses the company’s flextime program to create extra study time and accommodate an evening class schedule. Without these flexible hours, getting to 5:15 p.m. class-es would be nearly impossible, Fitzpatrick added.

“I finished my undergraduate (coursework) in 2007, and with the current economy, I know I need to do everything I can to make myself more marketable,” Fitzpatrick said. “These flex-ible hours help immensely and make school and work a possi-bility. Finishing my workday at 3:30 p.m. means I have time to look over my notes and study. On test days, I may even be able to schedule things so I can leave a bit earlier.”

University Hospital reim-burses employees for 75 per-cent of tuition costs, up to six hours per semester taken at the University of Missouri. Like Shelter Insurance, University Hospital employees are eligible for non-traditional schedules that allow flexibility and conve-nience during class enrollment.

As a clinical supervisor in the Burn Intensive Care Unit at University Hospital, Mary Creger, 36, works long hours. Most of the hours are in the evening and on the weekends, which allows her to take class-es during the day. She’s using tuition reimbursement plus a special scholarship granted through the Burn Intensive Care Unit to complete her on-line dual master’s degree in Nursing Education and Clinical Nursing through the MU School of Nursing.

“These programs through the hospital allow me to balance work, school and family,” Creger said. “I have been a nurse for 10 years and wanted to build on

Columbia employers support continuing education

Meghan Fitzpatrick

Mary Laffey

(continued on Page 22)

Mary Creger

Kimberly Moore

Delores Shearon

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SPECIAL SECTION | Continuing eduCationPlumbing Class ... continued from Page 20 Education Companies ... continued from Page 21

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students taking the course are seven men who work as full-time plumbers and electricians. In every case, their employers approached them and asked them if they would like to take the class tuition-free.

The course starts out with the basics, like how to use hand tools and power

tools, so most of the information is fa-miliar to the plumbers. Still, a couple of them had to retake one exam because they didn’t attain the minimum score of 80 percent.

“When we go through stuff, I realize that I don’t know as much as I thought,” Chris Walker said.

But it’s been a self-esteem builder. Central Missouri Plumbing, where Walker works, offered the opportunity to only five of its 40 plumbers. “Not ev-eryone was offered to take the class, so I took it as a compliment,” said Walker, who has been a professional plumber for two and a half years. “It’s a nice

touch from the boss-es that are willing to pay, especially with the tough economic times.”

The other two students, Dustin Key and Clayton Strong, work for Midway Electric. Their em-ployer asked all of its employees to take a course in the career center.

Key, who started working as an elec-

trician about a year ago, said the class has been very useful especially in learn-ing motor patrols and electrical theory — “all stuff I didn’t know,” he said. “I am happy Midway Electric asked us to take a course because it’s helpful, and I don’t have enough money to take a class on my own.” v

Justin Schulte reviews hand tools in his plumbing apprenticeship at the Columbia Area Career Center.

my education. I plan to graduate in May 2010 and combine my interests of teaching and patient care.”

Other employers such as the Columbia Public Schools do not provide tuition re-imbursement but do encourage continuing education through the use of a directly correlated pay scale. Employee salaries are tied directly to education and perfor-mance, explained Mary Laffey, assistant superintendent for human resources.

Teachers can move up the eight-tiered pay scale by obtaining advanced de-grees and participating in in-house career development programs and workshops. Sixteen hours of in-house development hours equals one graduate level credit hour. Additionally, the Columbia Public Schools offers a teaching fellowship with sti-pend for teachers earning their master’s degree.

Dolores Shearon, marketing director for MU Extension, said employees like those at Shelter, University Hospital and the Columbia Public Schools seem to be taking greater advantage of continuing education programs in the economic downturn.

MU Extension administers the university’s continuing education programs. Shearon said MU enrolls approximately 100,000 continuing education students per year and offers online courses, MU In The Evening, non-credit professional educa-tion courses and traditional classroom courses.

“With the current economic conditions, it is important for job seekers to set them-selves apart,” Shearon said. “Showing you have stayed up to date helps you shine to prospective employers and advance in your current position. It demonstrates a commitment to lifelong learning.”

The trend is expected to continue when the economy recovers. The U.S. Department of Education estimates that during the next 10 years, adult learning will represent the fastest-growing segment of higher education. v

The U.S. Department of Education estimates that during

the next 10 years, adult learning will represent the fastest-

growing segment of higher education.

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COLuMBIA’S ECONOMIC INdICATORS

Economic Index ... continued from Page 5

Value of Building Permits – detached Single Family Homes June 2009: $5,654,000June 2008: $2,475,000Change (#): $3,179,000Change (%): 128.4%

Building Permits – Residential Additions/Alterations June 2009: 48June 2008: 55Change (#): -7Change (%): -12.7%

Value of Building Permits – Residential Additions/Alterations June 2009: $633,952June 2008: $639,298Change (#): -$5,346Change (%): -0.8% Building Permits – Commercial June 2009: 25June 2008: 26Change (#): -1Change (%): -3.8%

Value of Building Permits – Commercial June 2009: $1,862,599June 2008: $9,502,912Change (#): -$7,640,313Change (%): -80.4%

Building Permits – Commercial Additions/Alterations June 2009: 19June 2008: 22Change (#): -3Change (%): -13.6%

Value of Building Permits – Commercial Additions/Alterations June 2009: $1,080,040June 2008: $5,116,912Change (#): -$4,036,872Change (%): -78.9%

units Sold in Boone County – detached Single Family Homes June 2009: 226June 2008: 241Change (#): -15Change (%): -6.2%

Volume of Sales in Boone County – detached Single Family Homes June 2009: $40,389,280June 2008: $41,570,580Change (#): -$1,181,300Change (%): -2.8%

Median Price of Home Sales in Boone County June 2009: $149,750June 2008: $154,000Change (#): -$4,250Change (%): -2.8%

units Sold in Boone County – detached Single Family Homes First Half 2009: 816First Half 2008: 981Change (#): -165Change (%): -16.8%

Volume of Sales in Boone County – detached Single Family Homes First Half 2009: $138,185,059First Half 2008: $170,240,390Change (#): -$32,055,331Change (%): -18.8%

Median Price of Home Sales in Boone County First Half 2009: $151,900First Half 2008: $150,000Change (#): $1,900Change (%): 1.3%

Foreclosures in Boone County June 2009: 36June 2008: 28Change (#): 8Change (%): 28.57%

COLuMBIA REGIONAL AIRPORTPassengers on Arriving PlanesJune 2009: 2,229June 2008: 437Change (#): 1,792Change (%): 410.1%

Passengers on departing PlanesJune 2009: 2,166June 2008: 422Change (#): 1,744Change (%): 413.3%

uTILITIES Water Customers June 2009: 44,447June 2008: 43,960Change (#): 487Change (%): 1.1%

Electric Customers June 2009: 44,937June 2008: 44,591Change (#): 346Change (%): 0.8%

Sewer Customers – Residential June 2009: 40,034June 2008: 39,530Change (#): 504Change (%): 1.3%

Sewer Customers – Commercial June 2009: 3,573June 2008: 3,519Change (#): 54Change (%): 1.5%

Compiled by David Walle. Contributors include: Lori Fleming, Karen Johnson, Linda Rootes, Sarah Talbert and Carol Van Gorp

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largest population increase of the seven scenarios: an addi-tional 3,511 people for a total 2015 population of 182,499. The smallest increase in popu-lation is with the addition of 1,000 retirees.

Employment. For the base-line study, it was assumed that Boone County would gain em-ployment (i.e., full- and part-time jobs) at an annual rate of 1.9 percent per year from 2005 to 2015 (or 20.7 percent overall). That is an increase from 108,750 jobs in 2005 to 131,272 in 2015. Non-high tech manufacturing jobs shows the largest project-ed growth in employment over the baseline estimates, an addi-tional 2,476 jobs. The “retirees” scenario would result in the smallest projected increase.

Number of unemployed people. The number of unem-ployed people in the county is expected to increase by 429 people from 2005 to 2015. None of the seven scenarios would affect unemployment significantly.

Economic Index-CPAC ... continued from Page 5

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Demand for housing. The demand for housing is project-ed to increase by 12,944 hous-ing units between 2005 and 2015 to 70,422. Non-high tech manufacturing would have the largest impact on housing (an additional 1,398 units).

Housing value. Boone County's median housing value is projected to increase by $2,810 in real 2005 dol-lars between 2005 and 2015 to $125,569. None of the seven scenarios would be expected to change the value significantly.

Household income. Median household income is projected to increase by $1,810 between 2005 and 2015 to $44,943. None of the scenarios make a substantial impact on median household income beyond the growth projected in the base-line. According to the U.S. Census, Boone County‘s 2004 median household income was $41,417, which was $532 higher than the state’s.

Retail sales. Taxable retail sales are projected to increase to $2.7 billion by 2015, an overall increase of 24 percent in the 10-year period. Taxable retail sales are projected to be $2.74 billion in 2015 under the non-high tech manufacturing scenario.

Public revenues and expen-ditures. Both public revenues and expenditures are projected to increase between 2005 and 2015, but the projections show that demand for public ser-vices (expenditures) is likely to grow at a faster pace than rev-enues in the baseline and in all scenarios. Under baseline con-ditions, expenditures are pro-jected to increase 2.3 percent per year over the next 10 years, and revenues are projected to increase 2.1 percent per year. Non high-tech manufacturing and insurance scenarios are projected to result in the high-est revenues. v

eConomiC INdEx

Columbia shown in green as compared with peer cities.

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Smart Thinking » Cathy atkins

He who can sell… wins

It happened again: Yet another conversation with a frustrated business owner lamenting a dramatic loss of sales to an outside competitor. By "outside," I mean "out of state." Someone who wasn't even on the radar a year ago is now eating their lunch.

In each instance, the theme is the same. These competitors are aggressively pursuing new business markets. Only here's the rub: they're doing it with inferior products. These businesses have slapped together a product on the cheap and are selling it to cus-tomers who think that they're getting a great deal.

These business owners are shocked and frustrated. They've worked hard, built a reputation in the marketplace, and put a tremendous amount of effort, money, and pride in delivering a superior product. They've been able, historically, to depend on word-of-mouth and reputation to sell that product for them.

And now, it's a whole new ball game.One question could be...do customers really care about quality?

Or maybe it's the perception of quality that's the issue? The one thing I do know is this: these local businesses are being outsold.

In the book "Ready, Fire, Aim" by Michael Masterson (a great book, if you can get past the thick layer of self-aggrandizing com-mentary), his Rule Number Two of Entrepreneurship is:

"There is a direct relationship between the success of a business at any given time and the percentage of its capital, temporal, and intellec-tual resources that are devoted to selling."

I wholeheartedly agree. Too many small business owners (0-$5M) get overly excited about their products or services. They expect the selling to either take care of itself or to be relegated to someone else. Selling is either a foreign concept, or worse, is in some way beneath them. This mindset, as many are experiencing now, is both arrogant and ignorant. It will drive some very good businesses into financial ruin.

I'm not minimizing the importance of quality. Build the best product you can, price it accordingly, and then sell - sell - sell. Never lose your edge in active sales and never allow your compa-ny culture to lose its sales tint. Stay engaged in the active pursuit of new customers. Business is not a time to rest on your laurels. It's not a time to rest, period. Save the "good guys always win" mentality for the movies. In business, he who can sell...wins. Only active sales efforts will get them in the door. Quality will keep them ringing the register.

And by the way, advertising is not sales. But that's a discussion for another column. v

© 2009 Sandler Systems, Inc. Catherine Atkins President of Savant Business Development Systems, an authorized franchise for Sandler Training. catkins@sandler.com

Build the best product you can, price it

accordingly, and then sell - sell - sell. Never

lose your edge in active sales and never allow

your company culture to lose its sales tint.

Stay engaged in the active pursuit of new

customers. Business is not a time to rest on

your laurels.

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Customer Service » Lili Vianello

An OINK by any other name still won’t buy kid’s shoes

Most people have heard of the YUPPIE. You might even be a YUPPIE. But if you aren’t a YUPPIE, what are you? Are you a YAPPIE? (My dog Mia certainly is.) Perhaps you are a ZUPPIE or a WOOPIE. You might even be a GLAM.

But what is a YAPPIE, a ZUPPIE and a WOOPIE. And what on earth is a GLAM, and why should you care?

YAPPIE = Young Affluent ParentZUPPIE = Zestful Upscale Person in his or her Prime

WOOPIE = Well-Off Older PersonGLAM = Graying, Leisured, Affluent, Middle-Aged

The list goes on forever. But the definition of each acronym isn’t nearly as important as what it means for you and your business. All of these acronyms represent people with lifestyles based on different interests and needs. Lifestyles, values and attitudes are a good way to divide people into groups with similar interests. These groups make perfect niche marketing targets, and niche market-ing is very important in today’s cluttered marketplace.

As an example of lifestyle segmentation, an OINK couldn’t care less if your company is offer-ing a discount on children’s shoes. A NILKIE, however, might drop everything to buy them. Why? Because OINK stands for “One Income, No Kids,” while NILKIE stands for “No Income, Lots of Kids.” While an OINK has no use for children’s shoes, a NILKIE may need great deals on children’s shoes, and a discount makes your shoes even more attractive.

Why would a company selling children's shoes waste valuable time and money targeting an OINK with its message? Well, it wouldn’t want to. However, lots of businesses spend advertising dollars targeting people who may not be interested in what they have to offer. This happens when a niche market has not been specifically defined or when a niche market is not accurately targeted.

But where do you start? Identifying the primary media usage of your target group can be a great beginning point. Find out what television shows they watch, what radio stations they listen to, what magazines they read and what Web sites they visit. Place your ads accordingly.

Television offers many opportunities for niche targeting. An advertiser could target prospects with specific show selections. Another option is to select specialized networks whose entire audienc-es share commonalities. Networks like The History Channel, Food Network, and Discovery Health provide advertisers with audiences that have specific interests and needs.

If you want to tell people about your great new golf tees, you can advertise on ABC and reach a lot of people with your message. If you were to advertise on ESPN, you would also reach a lot of people, and they would likely be sports fans. Better, right? If you want to reach an even more specific group of people, golfers for example, you might consider placing your advertisement on The Golf Channel. While you might reach fewer people on The Golf Channel than on ABC, a higher percent-age of the people you are reaching should be interested in purchasing golf tees. And, because the numbers watching are smaller, the dollars spent will usually be as well.

Like television, different radio stations attract different kinds of people. As I’m sure you already know, the people listening to a Country radio station are different than the people listening to an Alternative music station. But have you considered the more subtle differences between listeners of The Eagle versus listeners of KFRU? Both are Talk format stations, but most listeners are loyal to one or the other. What defines why a listener chooses one station over the other? And what hap-pens when you spend your money to buy a very specific show? I have a client who swears by the minimal investment we make for him on Saturday morning’s “Fix It Show.” Its audience of home fixer-uppers is a perfect match for his construction-related business.

Magazines also offer a wide variety of niche marketing opportunities. Going back to the golf tee example, a great place to run your print ad would be in a golfing magazine, such as Golf Digest, rather than a general sports magazine such as Sports Illustrated. Sports Illustrated would deliver your audience, but not as cost-effectively as a more narrowly defined audience.

The Internet has opened a new realm of opportunities for reaching niche audiences. Savvy use of key words, paid ad placements and cross promotions are the most common tools advertisers use to deliver targeted marketing messages to interested prospects or lead pre-qualified searchers to their Web site.

It’s not always easy to find a vehicle that perfectly matches the niche you are trying to reach. But a little time and effort spent investigating the options may be well worth your while. Of course, if you already have enough responsibilities demanding your attention, Visionworks can help. Either way, the goal is to maximize the impact of your advertising investment. If you can achieve that, you are on your way to becoming a “VIMP” (Very Intelligent Marketing Professional). v

Lili Vianello is president of Visionworks Marketing & Communications, a Columbia-based full service advertising, marketing and public relations firm. Contributions to this article were made by Visionworks staff members. Visit them online at www.visionworks.com

It’s not always easy to find a vehicle that perfectly matches the niche you

are trying to reach. But a little time and effort spent investigating the

options may be well worth your while.

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PuBLiC RECORdDeeds of Trust more than $185,000 $6,500,000 TIGER PLACE LLCREGIONS BANKLT 3 BLUFF RIDGE PLAT 1-F

$820,000 J J K L LLCPROVIDENCE BANKLT 5F-1 COLUMBIA INDUSTRIAL DEVELOPMENT CORP 2-B

$500,000 C T S INCPROVIDENCE BANKLT 1D ROCKBRIDGE SUB BLK 9

$488,500 COTTLE LAND INVESTMENTS LLCCOMMERCE BANKLT 5 PT FF WELLINGTON GORDON & M R CONLEY'S SUB

$488,500 COTTLE, BRICE & MELISSACOMMERCE BANKLT 5 PT FF WELLINGTON GORDON & M R CONLEY'S SUB

$417,000 DOLAN, MARK A & BRENDA SMID AMERICA MORTGAGE SERVICES INCLT 104B PT VISTAS AT OLD HAWTHORNE PLAT 1A

$395,700 BRIGHT, SHAWN & LYLAHSECURITYNATIONAL MORTGAGE COSTR 35-50-11 //SE SUR BK/PG: 418/61 FF W/EXCEPTION

$393,200 MARSHALL, RONALD D & MICHELLE DPIONEER MORTGAGE INCSTR 10-48-14 //N SUR BK/PG: 1148/398 AC 5.450

$330,000 COLBERT, STEPHEN HUBBARD & CARY DEEPARAMOUNT BOND & MORTGAGE CO INCLT 155 HERITAGE ESTATES PLAT NO 1

$325,000 WEINER, STEVEN S & DEANNA CMID AMERICA MORTGAGE SERVICES INCTHE LT 8AA HIGHLANDS PLAT 7-A

$318,000 ELIAS, EVE & RUFKAHR, CLIFFORDBOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANKLT 398 THORNBROOK PLAT NO 12

$292,000 FALES, ROGER CLAYTON & SCHULTE, ABIGAIL NICOLEBOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANKTHE LT 420 CASACADES PLAT NO 4

$277,950 JOHNSON, REBECCA A & GARY WLANDMARK BANKLT 106 LIMERICK LAKES PLAT1

$274,918 SHIEBANY, GHOLAMALI S & JULIET LU S BANKSTR 27-49-14 /NE SUR BK/PG: 1737/373 AC 10.108

$247,435 FURRER, JASON L & JENNIFER LFLAT BRANCH MORTGAGE INCLT 9 SMITHTON RIDGE PLAT 1

$245,725 WALKER RENOVATIONS LLCTHE CENTRAL TRUST BANKLT 19 FF WESTMOUNT ADD

$242,800 SEES, GREGORY M & CYNTHIA LMISSOURI CREDIT UNIONSTR 14-47-13 /NW SUR BK/PG: 1157/196 FF TRACT 10A

$238,705 LANZA, BRENDA SBANK OF AMERICASTR 4-49-12 /NW SUR BK/PG: 1145/125 AC 5.070

$230,000 WIEDMEYER, CHARLES E & BIRGIT SSUNTRUST MORTGAGE INCLT 140 STONERIDGE ESTATES PLAT 1

$230,000 VOSHAGE, MERIT L & KANDRABANK OF AMERICALT 16 KINGS MEADOW SUB BLK 5

$226,400 GREIM, MICHAEL & TINALANDMARK BANKLT 14 PL 1 COUNTRY WOODS SUB

$225,000 RELAX INVESTMENTS INCMID AMERICA BANKLT 103B WOODLAND SPRINGS PLAT 3

$223,378 WASSON, MARK E & KASSIEFLAT BRANCH MORTGAGE INCLT 1 A CEDAR HILL ESTATES

$220,802 MCNEELEY, CHRISTOPHER A & MICHELLE LMID NATION MORTGAGE CORPTHE LT 104A VILLAGE OF CHERRY HILL PLAT 1-A

$210,000 PREVOST, DONALD J & MURPHY, KATHLEEN TJEFFERSON BANK OF MISSOURISTR 7-47-14 //SW SUR BK/PG: 2798/42 FF TRACT 2

$208,950 LUDWIG, SAMUELMORTGAGE INVESTORS CORP.STR 13-46-12 /SE/NE SUR BK/PG: 3231/103

$208,581 HECKEMEYER, JIM & KAREN DREGIONS BANKLT 33 BLUEGRASS SOUTH ESTATES

$207,000 BASSETT HOMES LLCLANDMARK BANKLT 8 SUNRISE ESTATES SUB BLK 9

$200,000 MCCLELLAND, R DENNIS & DALE BQUICKEN LOANS INCLT 364 THORNBROOK PLAT NO 11

$198,400 BROWN, JUSTIN L & STEPHANIE MPEOPLES BANK & TRUST COLT 35 STONECREST PLAT NO 1

$198,000 SMITHSON, CLIFFORD R & ADAMS, GREGORYCOMMERCE BANKLT 14 PL 1 GRAND OAKS SUB

$196,000 HUHTANEN, KURT & CHARLOTTE

MISSOURI CREDIT UNIONSTR 23-47-13 //E SUR BK/PG: 530/653 FF TRACT B

$195,000 FOREST RIDGE PROPERTIES LLCBOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANKLT 307 FOREST RIDGE PLAT 3

$194,800 LEA, RONALD & ELIZABETHWELLS FARGO BANKLT 30 BOONE'S POINTE

$194,213 GRANT, JULIA M & TRACYBANK OF AMERICASTR 8-48-13 /SE/NE SUR BK/PG: 279/57 FF PARCEL 1

$192,403 MITCHELL, ANDREA B & KRISTOPHER TLANDMARK BANKTHE LT 204A VINEYARDS PLAT NO 2-A

$190,660 MARSH, SAMUEL A JR & JULIE RBOONE COUNTY NATIONAL BANKTHE LT 162 CASCADES PLAT 2

$187,000 WAHLE, STEVEN & JESSICAWELLS FARGO BANKLT 47 BOONE'S POINTE

$186,854 ETTERS, WILLIAM J & JAMIE MBANK OF AMERICALT 69 DEERFIELD PLAT NO 5

$185,000 CRUM, JOSEPH D & SHEILA KFIRST FINANCIAL CREDIT UNIONLT 3 FOXCROFT NORTH SUB

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Construction permits for the month of June.

Jim Alabach100 Brickton $570,559 New commercial stores

Jeff and Sherri Hayes5001 Bates Creek $300,000 New single family detached

Beacon Street Properties LLC5002 Thornbrook $255,000New single family detached

John Hansman Construction4504 Reedsport $250,000 New single family detached

Beacon Street Properties LLC4607 Thornbrook $245,000 5005 Newbury$150,000New single family detached

Ross and Lindsey Hrdina5206 Beacon Falls $245,000New single family detached

Singleton Builders LLC2406 Bremerton $240,000 New single family detached

Paragon Construction Inc.2301 Roslyn $230,000 New single family detached

Con-Tech Construction2903 N. Garth $225,000 New single family detached

On Point Construction5008 Stone Mountain $206,0005004 Bates Creek $205,000New single family detached

Eibel Properties LLC5104 Newbury $200,000New single family detached

Robert Akin Construction and design LLC5607 Lanterman’s Mill $200,000New single family detached

Tom darrough Construction LLC1404 Stablestone $180,000 New single family detached

River Birch Apartments Westill2841 S. Providence 2843 S. Providence 2845 S. Providence 2847 S. Providence 2849 S. Providence 2851 S. Providence $175,000 eachNew single family detached

Beacon Street Properties LLC5112 Newbury$152,000New single family detached

Shepherd’s Company1313 Lakeview $145,000New commercial public works

The Kroenke Group505 E. Nifong $137,500 Commercial alteration nonresidential

Con-Tech Construction 4000 Cotton Wood 5404 Axis5401 Axis $135,000 eachNew single family detached

JQB Construction401 Ryefield 2505 Bellingham 2507 Bellingham $120,000 New single family detached

Millbrooke Enterprises Inc. 3811 Flatwater $120,000New single family detached

BCI LLC5610 Spike Buck $115,000 New single family detached

Millbrooke Enterprises Inc.4040 Range Line $114,734Commercial alteration nonresidential

Hetzler Homes Inc. 5312 Gasconade $113,000 New single family detached

John Ott220 N. Tenth $109,506 Commercial alteration nonresidential

On Point Construction5009 Whitefish $105,000 New single family detached

JQB Construction2503 Bellingham $100,000 New single family detached

Little dixie Construction Co.508 E. Nifong $98,500 Commercial alteration nonresidential

Steve Herigon Construction Inc. 3804 Clydesdale 507 Copperhead $90,000 each3502 Tuscany 3302 Tuscany 3518 Napoli$75,000 eachNew single family detached

Muzzy Builders Inc.1311 Pearl $90,000New single family detached

Show me Habitat for Humanity701 Ridgeway 705 Ridgeway 516 Jackson $90,000New single family detached

Arnie Fagan810 E. Broadway $80,878 Commercial alteration nonresidential

Novelty Construction Inc.3200 Vandiver $76,892 Commercial alteration nonresidential

Timber Ridge Builders Inc.5811 Freeport 5809 Freeport $74,000 New single family detached

The Kroenke Group503 E. Nifong $71,000 507 E. Nifong$66,500Commercial alteration nonresidential

B-Sib LLC601 W. Business Loop 70 $70,000 Commercial alteration nonresidential

ConstruCtion PERMITS

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By Christina George

Mel Toellner began his business 13 years ago when he and his wife and children became inter-ested in Missouri birds as a family activity. The business has expanded to fill a 70,000-square-foot warehouse in Mexico, Mo., home of Songbird Essentials, and a retail store in Columbia’s Chapel Plaza Court.

The company sells its products to 2,500 bird stores and is the biggest supplier of bird prod-ucts in the world. Songbird Essentials stocks 7,000 products from 197 different suppliers, including its own brand, Songbird Essentials. Ninety percent of the Songbird Essentials line is made in Missouri, with many of the products manufactured in sheltered workshops.

Songbird Station, near the corner of Forum Boulevard and Chapel Hill Road, replaced the original location in the Forum Shopping Center. The expanded store includes products for wild-life and pets as well as furniture, native plants, decorative items and a line of free trade accesso-ries, including handbags and necklaces.

Toellner recently spoke to a group at Songbird Station, an event organized by Columbia Home & Lifestyle magazine. Here are some of his tips for attracting the hummingbirds and other attrac-tive wildlife to backyards:

Native plants attract bugs, the “good” bugs — spiders and fruit flies — that are sources of protein for butterflies and hummingbirds. To grow fruit flies, die-hard birders put out plates of ripe fruit. Another tip for attracting butterflies is to create a warming area: Start with black plas-tic. Place a flat white rock to hold heat on top of it, and then sprinkle it heavily with a mix of sand and coarse salt for the butterflies whose metabo-lisms require a lot of it. (The plastic keeps the salt from leaching into the yard.)

One of Songbird Essential’s products is a hanging tray of cotton with a high percentage of oil. Hummingbirds (and Baltimore orioles) like

to pick and line their nests with this cotton. The oil ensures that water is not absorbed into the nest. Providing a source of misting water helps too, because the hummingbirds use it as a show-er to remove pollen from their feathers. You can place hummingbird feeders anywhere, and put-ting them close to the house is fine.

The state bird of Missouri is the Eastern Bluebird, and bluebirds like to be out in the open. Put up houses for them, no less than 100 yards apart, with an opening of no more than an inch and a half. A raised floor is helpful for drainage. Heated water baths in the winter are important, so bluebirds can fluff their feathers to keep warm. Bluebirds don’t migrate. In the winter, one of their primary foods is the bit-tersweet plant, which ripens in late January or early February. Don’t quit feeding them in the spring. All the migratory birds are arriving, and they need food for their babies. The next seed crop won’t be available until fall.

Toellner cheerfully and vehemently encour-ages residents to trap or kill sparrows. Why? Because they will kill bluebirds and build their nests on top of them. According to Toellner, there are two birds in America you can dispense with: sparrows and English starlings. They are not native and not protected by the Migratory Bird Treaty Act.

Don’t feed millet and corn to your backyard birds because it will attract sparrows. Native birds like sunflower seeds. Orioles love oranges (cut the orange in half, and present it fleshy side out). Robins and woodpeckers will eat apples. Cardinals like ground trays of bird food.

To deter squirrels, use safflower seed as feed because squirrels don’t like it, and use feeders that have cages or other devices to keep out blackbirds and squirrels.

To minimize the risk, don’t hang feeders less than four feet high; any lower is an easy jump for cats. Toellner said cats kill more songbirds than anything in the world. v

Customizing backyard wildlife

Mel Toellner shows cotton nesting material for hummingbirds.

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