Archive for September 2011
Are employee benefits helping or hurting your business?
Are employee benefit costs killing your company? Author and benefits consultant Wendy Lynch says that for many businesses, they are. Lynch spoke last week during an annual benefits seminar conducted by LaMair-Mulock-Condon Co. (LMC), a …
DMACC serves Perry with VanKirk Academy
Perry residents now have a new option for college classes.
Des Moines Area Community College (DMACC) last month completed construction on a 15,000-square-foot facility in Perry, the VanKirk Career Academy. The academy will serve high …
Read MoreOUR VIEW: Bring on the football spending
The Christmas shopping season is the next big key to economic recovery, but let’s not rush to get there. First, we’ll stimulate the economy by proving that Americans are still happy to spend lavishly on …
Climate change a ‘fundamental threat’
Relatively few insurers have formal policies in place to address the increasing risks that may be brought about by climate change, according to a new report issued last week by Ceres, a Boston-based nonprofit sustainability …
Bad loans continue to hold down bank earnings
The number of unprofitable Iowa banks continued to shrink in the quarter that ended June 30, but the need to shed bad loans continued to be a drag on earnings, according to data from the …
Obama set to propose payroll tax cuts for small businesses
President Barack Obama will propose a reduction in payroll taxes for small businesses tonight during his nationally televised address, Bloomberg reported.
The payroll tax reduction for employers will apply only to small businesses, according to …
Read MoreSchools receive $20 million grant to study renewable energy
The National Science Foundation has awarded a five-year, $20 million grant for a research project at Iowa colleges and universities to build the state’s research capacity in renewable energy and energy efficiency.
The core of …
Read MoreMHEG closes equity fund with $39.75 million
Midwest Housing Equity Group Inc. announced today the closing of Iowa Fund VI with a total of $39.75 million in equity for affordable housing.
The equity raised in the fund will assist in the development …
Read MoreOpus closes loan for Des Moines facility
Opus Development Corp. announced today the closing of two loans with TCF Bank totaling more than $32 million.
One of the loans, worth $11.5 million, will fund a project for a 300,000-square-foot industrial facility for …
Read MoreARAG announces hiring, promotion
ARAG announced today that Dennis Healy has been hired as vice president of group sales, and Mark Hennessey has been promoted to chief operating officer.
Healy is a 20-year veteran of the insurance industry.
Hennessey …
Read More