Shenandoah Valley Business Journal

BUSINESS JOURNAL A Byrd Newspapers Publication

Shenandoah Valley

Volume 16, No. 2, Dec. 29, 2015

Valley Lawyers Honored As The 2015

Legal Elite

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

BUSINESS JOURNAL Inside This Issue Shenandoah Valley

The Shenandoah Valley Business Journal is a monthly publication of Rockingham Publishing Company, Inc., 231 S. Liberty St., Harrisonburg, VA 22801.

Focus Section: Legal Elite ■ List of Honorees . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 8

Other Business News

Editorial Staff

■ Movers and Shakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2

Editor and General Manager: Peter S. Yates

■ Serco Lands Contract For $95 Million . . . . . . . . .Page 4

Managing Editor: Jerry Blair

■ Valley Business Scene . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 2

Contact us By mail: Shenandoah Valley Business Journal P.O. Box 193 Harrisonburg, VA 22803

By email: svbjnews@dnronline.com

■ A Glowing Reputation . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 6

By fax:

■ Local Ledger . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 12

433-9112

■ Unemployment Rates Fluctuate . . . . . . . . . . . .Page 14

By phone: 574-6267 (news) 574-6229 (ads)

Columns

Staff writers: Vic Bradshaw

Harrisonburg, Va.

■ Real Estate by Tim Reamer . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 11

Contributing photographers: Nikki Fox, Daniel Lin

■ Investments by Matthew Frakes . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 13

On The Cover:

■ Investments by Gannon Irons . . . . . . . . . . . . . Page 15

Stock Image

McClung Recognizes Employees Of The Quarter

Website Features Latest Homes For Sale In City, County

Blue Ridge Bank Gets Cash To Fuel Growth

WAYNESBORO — Kevin Bowles and Brent Marshall were recently chosen employees of the quarter at McClung Cos., which provides graphic communication services.

Bowles is a graphic designer and Marshall is a bindery technician at the Waynesboro-based company. Established in 1992, the award is based on recommendations from fellow workers and recognizes McClung employees who display extraordinary dedication to their jobs.

Bowles has worked eight years at McClung and lives in Waynesboro, while Marshall has been with the company five years and also lives in Waynesboro.

HARRISONBURG — A local real estate agent has created a website featuring the newest residential listings in Harrisonburg and Rockingham County.

Scott Rogers, associate broker with Funkhouser Real Estate Group, announced in an email that he had launched newlistingsinharrisonburg.com. The site features the area’s most recent home listings, with photographs, pertinent details and an area map.

The site also allows users to sign up to receive an email alert when a house goes on the market. An application for mobile platforms also has been developed.

HARRISONBURG — Blue Ridge Bankshares (OTC Pink: BRBS) has completed the private placement of $10 million in subordinated notes and hopes to use some of the money to fuel growth.

The Luray-based parent company of Blue Ridge Bank plans to use part of the sale proceeds to redeem the 4,500 outstanding shares of Senior Non-Cumulative Perpetual Preferred Stock, Series A issued to the U.S. Department of the Treasury under its Small Business Lending Fund, according to a Nov. 23 press release. That money was used for corporate purposes and to support growth.

“The issuance of this debt allows us to take advantage of a favorable environment for community banks to access the capital markets,” said Brian K. Plum, Blue Ridge’s president and CEO. “We should be able to repay our SBLF preferred stock while also gaining addition-

— Vic Bradshaw — Staff Reports See MOVERS, Page 5

al capital to support continued organic growth and potential strategic opportunities that could develop.”

The notes were placed with accredited institutional investors and will mature on Dec. 1, 2025, unless redeemed earlier.

They’ll pay 6.75 percent interest for the first five years and a floating interest rate thereafter.

Blue Ridge Bank has operates offices in Harrisonburg, McGaheysville, Luray, Shenandoah and Charlottesville.

— Vic Bradshaw

Two Employees Buy Local Generator Company HARRISONBURG — The Power Connection, a local full-service generator supplier, has been bought by two former employees and is adding employees to service growth.

See SCENE, Page 12

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Harrisonburg, Va.

Serco Lands Contract For $95 Million

By VIC BRADSHAW Daily News-Record

HARRISONBURG — A company that’s been a fixture in the city since 2008 recently landed a new contract with its federal government client.

Serco Inc. announced Nov. 30 that it was awarded a contract to analyze and classify patent applications or reclassify existing patents for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office. Those activities are performed at the Reston-based company’s PGPubs Classification Services offices on Technology Drive just inside Harrisonburg’s northern border.

The deal, which calls for a one-year base period with four yearlong renewal options, could pay Serco as much as $95 million.

Serco has been handling initial utility patent classification and research work for the Patent and Trademark Office since it bought SI International in 2008, said Mike Goertzen, program manager at the site. SI International was fulfilling the early years of a 10-year contract for classification services when Serco bought the company and took over those operations.

He said Serco competed against six other finalists to land the contract, and he credited the work of its 190 local employees with making the new deal possible. They have exceeded the contract’s quality requirement for 37 consecutive months and achieved greater than 99 percent classification accuracy in two of the last eight months.

“I think the contract speaks volumes to the great work our staff has done,” said Goertzen. “Winning or renewing the contract was based on our excellent performance on our current contract.”

Year End Used Equipment Sale Going On NOW

Employees of Serco, the highly secure facility where people do work for the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office, hold a training meeting on Dec. 10.

Nikki Fox / DN-R

Brian Shull, the city’s economic development director, welcomed word of the new contract.

“This is great news for Harrisonburg,” he said. “Those are well-paid jobs, scientifically based jobs. This is a great employer to have.”

Goertzen said although the new contract will replace the previous deal, they will

overlap. It could take as long as six months symbols to choose from in the international for the transition to the new contract to be system and 160,000 in the U.S. system, he complete. said.

The vast majority of Serco’s patent-clasA single application could be placed into sification work, he said, will continue to be anywhere from one to 50 classifications, analyzing and making initial classificaand about 40 percent are reviewed by tion of utility patent applications more than one expert because and providing applicable rethey cross multiple areas of exsearch to help Patent and pertise. One word, Goertzen Trademark Office officials said, can change the way make their determinaan application is classiThis is great news tions. fied. for Harrisonburg.

However, the new The United States is contract provides an optransitioning to the in Brian Shull, portunity for Serco emternational classification city economic ployees to classify plants system, he said. Serco is development director or designs for the first helping with that process. time. It also includes some Goertzen said the local ofwork to reclassify existing fice is on track to process patents, which must be done as 415,000 applications this year. technology changes lead to the addiThe company plans to add 20 to 25 tion of classification categories. employees in February to handle the in“The classification system is a dynamic creased volume of applications it’s receiventity,” Goertzen said. “It changes and ing. adapts to technology.”

Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or The scientists and engineers Serco emvbradshaw@dnronline.com ploys have about 260,000 classification

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Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Steel Company Gets New President/CEO Movers

FROM PAGE 2

Liphart Steel Announces Changes In Top Management VERONA — Mark A. Teachey has been named president/chief executive officer of Liphart Steel Co. Inc., according to a release from the company.

Liphart, headquartered in Richmond, has a Valley Division in Verona.

Teachey succeeds Edwin C. Jennings Jr., who, after 46 years with the comTeachey pany and president/CEO since 1988, announced his retirement effective Sept. 30. Jennings remains chairman of the board and will stay on in a consultant capacity for an indefinite amount of time, the release states.

Teachey graduated from Virginia Tech in 1986 with a B.S. degree in civil engineering and joined Liphart at the Valley Division in 1987 as production coordinator. In 1991, he was promoted to production manager and in 1998 moved to the Richmond headquarters as engineering manager.

In 2002, he was promoted to vice president of operations. He was elected to serve on the board of directors in 2012 and the following year promoted to vice president and general manager.

— Staff Reports

Lawrence Cos. Inc. Chooses New VP Of Freight Operations WAYNESBORO — Lawrence Cos. Inc. announces the promotion of Kenneth Treat to vice president of freight operations, working out of the corporate headquarters in Roanoke.

According to a company press release, Treat has 32 years of transportation and logistics experience working with multiple less-than-truckload carriers in his career, as well as 15 years in the U.S. Air Force as a logistics readiness officer. He will be overseeing an operation that offers truckload, flatbed and logistic services to customers na-

tionwide, the release states.

Lawrence Cos. also announces the promotion of Scott McFetters to vice president of household good operations.

McFetters has 27 years of experience in the transportation industry and will be managing all Lawrence’s relocation offerings, including residential and commercial moving, Treat warehousing and local final-mile delivery services, according to the release.

Lawrence, which has an office in Waynesboro, is an employee-owned company based out of Roanoke.

— Staff Reports

Everence Financial Adviser Gets Securities License HARRISONBURG — Jacqueline Painter, a trust and financial adviser for Everence Financial, has earned a securities license to act as an investment advisor.

Painter, a Broadway resident, passed the exam to earn her license in November and has been registered by Everence Trust Co. as an investment adviser representative, according to a press release. She focuses on financial and retirement planning, socially responsible inPainter vestments, trust and estate planning, insurance planning, and charitable giving.

A graduate of Eastern Mennonite University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in business administration, she also is a certified credit analyst.

Everence Financial is a ministry of the Mennonite Church USA that helps people and organizations integrate faith with finances.

— Vic Bradshaw

congratulates Laura A. Evans on her selection to Virginia Business Magazine’s “Legal Elite” in Family Law/Domestic Relations for 2015 ….

... and introduces our newest attorney, T. Craig Batchelor.

T. Craig Batchelor has been practicing in Virginia and the District of Columbia for seven years, focusing on tax, estate planning, and business law.

He also serves as a business consultant with HealthCare Consulting Incorporated and Employee Benefit Services (HCI-EBS) where he assists clients with tax planning, financial accountability, business sales and purchases, personnel issues and strategic long-term planning. A native Floridian, Craig came to Virginia to attend the College of William and Mary for undergraduate school and then continued his education at the University of the District of Columbia David A. Clarke School of Law. He lives here in Harrisonburg with his wife Caitlin, a dentist, with Caitlin Batchelor Dentistry.

Located in the

217 South Liberty St., Suite 202 Harrisonburg, Virginia 540-437-1966 www.evanslawva.com

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

A Glowing Reputation

Harrisonburg, Va.

HVAC Company Known For Work Done In Shenandoah Valley

By VIC BRADSHAW

Its employees install and maintain the systems that move water and hot and cold air through many commercial and instiMOUNT CRAWFORD — If you’re not in tutional buildings in the Shenandoah Valthe construction industry or don’t know ley and beyond.

“The common theme [over the years] one of its 310 employees, you might not be that comes to mind is our ability to get familiar with Riddleberger Brothers Inc. the job done on time, on But if you’ve been in budget and provide qualalmost any public school The common theme ity work,” Daniel Blossin Harrisonburg or Rock... that comes to mind er, its president and ingham County, or one of is our ability to get CEO, said Monday at many other large buildings in the region, you’ve the job done on time, Riddleberger’s Mount Crawford headquarters. likely been touched by on budget and “We have a lot of longRiddleberger’s work. provide quality work. tenured employees, a lot The company, which of skilled craftsmen, and has celebrated its 75th Daniel Blosser, developed a reputation anniversary all year, bepresident and CEO for quality workmangan in 1940. That was ship.” the year Roy RiddlebergBecause of that reputation, Riddleberger joined his brother Ike Sr. in Ike’s yearer has installed and maintained crucial old plumbing and heating business.

Today, it is one of the state’s top mechanical contracting companies.

See GLOWING, Page 7

Daily News-Record

“

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Riddleberger Brothers Inc. welder Triston Sly of Clover Hill welds a flange onto a section of pipe.

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

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Worked On The Rotunda At U.Va. Glowing

FROM PAGE 6

infrastructure for schools, hospitals, research labs, recreational facilities and other types of buildings from Lexington into West Virginia to the north and west and eastward to Manassas and Culpeper.

Its employees even are entrusted with updating the plumbing and heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems in The Rotunda, the University of Virginia’s nearly 190-year-old treasure that’s being restored.

Blosser said the plaster and wood inside the structure make temperature and humidity control crucial.

“That will probably be our signature project,” he said. “It was a pretty big win for us.”

Saving Taxpayers Money Blosser, who has been with Riddleberger since 1987, said the groundwork for its success was laid long before he arrived.

“The one thing I recall my bosses saying is, ‘If you don’t have time to do it right, you do it over,’” said Blosser, who started in the field with the company.

“I’ve seen times when we’ve torn it out and did it over at our expense.”

Steven Reid, director of maintenance for Rockingham County Public Schools for nearly 18 years, said he’s seen that philosophy in practice. In addition to working on new school buildings, Riddleberger has maintained equipment for the division since before he took the post.

“Throughout the years, whenever there are issues that come up,” he said, “they’re not afraid to take responsibility for what they’re responsible for and help with solutions for the things that that they aren’t.”

He said Riddleberger’s employees are responsive, knowledgeable and take pride in their work, saving county taxpayers money by helping stretch the lifecycle of equipment as long as 50 years.

They’ve also invested in the next generation. Marshall Price, director of Massanutten Technical Center, said Riddleberger has provided technical assistance, materials and other resources to help the school grow construction-related programs.

Tony Biller, president and CEO of Harrisonburg general contractor Nielsen

Daniel Lin / DN-R

Riddleberger Brothers Inc. chief metal mechanic Timmy Merrbach of Mount Sidney applies a lock to the edge of sheet metal used in ventilation ducts that allows various pieces to easily fit together.

Builders Inc., said Riddleberger has been formation modeling, which converts bluea subcontractor or partner on many of the prints to 3-D models and is required for up to 60 percent of its jobs now.

107-year-old company’s jobs.

“We’ve been pretty flexible and “Their guys really know their adapted to changes well,” he trade,” he said, “and they’re gosaid. “Especially in the last ing to have the staff to get it 15 years or so, we’ve had done and do it right the to change a lot.” first time, stand behind We’ve been pretty Bobby Mills has been their work. They get the with the company since job done right at a fair flexible and 1966, so he’s worked price.” adapted to through many of those Changed With Times changes well. changes. For the last Riddleberger’s built five years, he’s been one its reputation on school of the service technicians Daniel Blosser construction jobs, Blosser working the maintenance said. However, when work in contract for Rockingham that sector slowed, it added County’s 23 schools.

Mills has spoken with people who hospital and higher education to its work for other mechanical contractors portfolio to keep growing.

In recent years, Riddleberger has em- and left with the impression that he’s braced green technology and building in- with one of the best.

“

“They’ve treated me good,” he said. “As far as needing materials for jobs and vehicles to drive, they’ve always been firstclass.”

Riddleberger was locally owned until 2008.

That’s when Jim Young sold the company to Houston-based Comfort Systems USA, a publicly traded company that, according to its website, takes in $1.3 billion annually. Riddleberger is its wholly owned subsidiary.

Comfort Systems owns the company, but the Riddleberger name and legacy continue.

“Comfort allows us to maintain our own identity,” Blosser said. “Here in western Virginia, the big green ‘R’ brand carries a lot of identity.”

Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or vbradshaw@dnronline.com

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Harrisonburg, Va.

An Elite Group Virginia Business Magazine named 35 lawyers from Harrisonburg, Rockingham and the surrounding area as

Legal Elites Civil Litigation

Alternative Dispute Resolution

Criminal Law

Derek J. Brostek

Humes J. Franklin III

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Staunton

P. Marshall Yoder

Charles F. “Frank� Hilton

John C. Holloran

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

The Law Offices of John C. Holloran Harrisonburg

The Hon. John J. McGrath Jr. (Retired)

Business Law Mark Wayne Botkin

Kevin M. Rose

Jeffrey R. Adams

Matthew Von Schuch

BotkinRose PLC Harrisonburg

BotkinRose PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Family Law And Domestic Relations

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

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Labor And Employment

Laura Ann Evans Evans Law Group PLC Harrisonburg

David A. Penrod Hoover Penrod PLC Harrisonburg

Lauren R. Darden

Melisa Gay Michelsen

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Litten & Sipe LLP Harrisonburg

Thomas E. Ullrich

Cathleen Patricia Welsh

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

Intellectual Property

Construction Law

Laura Ann Thornton

Daniel L. Fitch

Gregory Thomas St. Ours

Laura Thornton Law Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Bankruptcy And Creditors’ Rights Dale Alan Davenport

Hannah White Hutman

Stephan William Milo

Bill Shmidheiser

Hoover Penrod PLC Harrisonburg

Hoover Penrod PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

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Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Legal Services And Pro Bono

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Taxes, Estates, Trusts And Elder Law

Harrisonburg, Va.

Real Estate And Land Use

Trisha A. Culp

John Warren Flora

Lisa Anne Hawkins

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

John E. Whitfield

Donald E. Showalter

James L. Johnson

Blue Ridge Legal Services Inc. Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Legislative, Regulatory And Administrative

Health Law Glenn M. Hodge

Jeffrey Grant Lenhart

J. Jay Litten

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

Litten & Sipe LLP Harrisonburg

Young Lawyers S. Tarpley Ashworth Jr.

Andrew Seth Baugher

Matthew W. Light

Litten & Sipe LLP Harrisonburg

Lenhart Pettit PC Harrisonburg

Wharton Aldhizer & Weaver PLC Harrisonburg

Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

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Interesting Thoughts From Interesting People T

here is a good chance you don’t like your job. If you do, count yourself among the fortunate, because according to a 2006 study conducted by the University of Chicago, only about 47 percent of employees claim as much.

A separate survey completed by Gallup estimated only 13 percent of employees are psychologically committed at work. That’s a tough pill to swallow as an employer or employee.

There are a myriad of reasons people dislike their jobs and books that claim to help you trick yourself into loving your job — though nothing yet in pill form for the same to the best of my knowledge.

Malcolm Gladwell made an attempt to identify the reasons people were energized by their work in his book “Outliers.” Spoiler alert: He boiled it down to three qualities the work must have — complexity, autonomy, and an identifiable relationship between effort and reward.

In other words, your work must have some recognizable meaning — at least to you.

I count myself among the lucky 47 percent in this regard but feel like I’ve also been awarded a bonus. One of the benefits of my work is the opportunity it provides to engage smart and interesting people.

Recently, I had the chance to meet an absolutely inspiring person conducting amazing work. Ken Rutherford is a professor of political science at James Madison University and director of the Center for International Stabilization and Recovery.

Ken is a land-mine survivor, co-founder of the Landmine Survivors Network, and global advocate and renowned leader in the International Campaign to Ban Landmines, all of which led to the 1997 Mine Ban Treaty, a Nobel Peace Prize and 2008 Cluster Munitions Ban Treaty.

The list of accomplishments is long and will continue to grow longer, but his greatest source of pride seemed to be reserved for his family. All this, coupled with a candid, compassionate and genuinely grateful approach made the story all the more powerful. While there is no direct connection to commercial real estate, the work Rutherford is doing was entirely too fascinating not to mention given this opportunity.

Here are two more smart people and the thoughts they shared with me.

The Economics Of Medians There are at least six Facebook pages es-

Real Estate

Tim Reamer tablished purely for the purpose of expressing how much the users hate medians. That strip of grass or concrete separating lanes causes pain to businesses by limiting access for customers, affects site-selection decisions, and transfers millions of dollars of real estate value to intersections where medians don’t exist.

It is logical to assume medians have a detrimental economic impact on business — it just might not be true.

Brad Reed, transportation planner with the city of Harrisonburg, is full of useful information, including two studies that suggest not only do medians not hurt business, if properly planned, they may actually contribute to economic vitality.

Corridors with planned raised median construction in three Texas communities, Odessa, McKinney and Houston, were studied over the course of three years for the Texas Department of Transportation. Surveys were sent to, and interviews conducted with, business owners before, during and after construction.

As you might reasonably expect, business owners along these corridors felt strongly the construction of a new median would negatively impact their business, and they were right. During the construction of the medians, business did fall nearly acrossthe-board with restaurants and gas stations hit particularly hard.

It was after completion that something counterintuitive was demonstrated within the follow-up surveys and interviews. With the exception of auto repair shops and gas stations, the sales, traffic volume, employment and property values went up while the percentage of traffic accidents dropped.

Restaurants, retailers, and personal service providers were all among the beneficiaries of what was reported as improved traffic flow and safer access. As it turns out, customers may be willing to exchange a little time to access a business differently if it results in increased safety — unless they are in need of fuel and a Snickers.

It is an interesting result, and my hope is access management continues to be studied

in this way because perception is difficult to overcome. My experience on this issue, especially as it relates to site selection, would suggest that perception is strongly against medians.

Why You Should Love Your Accountant I’ll warn you up front, the Internal Revenue Code Sections 162 and 263 have the winning combination of being both complex and unbelievably boring — even by accounting standards. That said, there is the potential for tax savings if you do nothing more than tear this article out, take it to your accountant, and say, “Tell me more about this.”

Billy Robinson of Brown Edwards provided me with what seemed like 600 pages of information on tangible property regulations. This makes sense, because it took a decade of effort before the IRS released the final regulations (IRC Sections 162 and 263).

They provide the guidelines taxpayers must follow when deciding if costs incurred to acquire and improve tangible property can be capitalized or are deductible expenses in the year incurred.

The distinction between the two largely rests on a new concept introduced through the TPR called a unit of property. All determinations as to whether to capitalize or expense an expenditure is made with respect to the specific UOP to which it relates.

Simply, under the UOP concept a building is broken down to the structural components by which it is comprised to include the flooring, windows, doors, HVAC, plumbing and electrical systems among others. Each of these represents a different and unique UOP even though they are in the same building.

Capitalization is required if an expense related to the UOP satisfies the betterment, adaptation, restoration, aka BAR, test. Funny, because I would be thinking about drinking, too, if it were my job to establish or interpret these rules.

Under this standard, betterment means the improvement of a defect that existed be-

fore acquisition or a material increase in size or capacity. For example, if you had 10 tons of HVAC and increased it to 20 tons of HVAC, capitalization would be required.

Adaptation is defined as changing the property to a new or different use. Lastly, restoration references the rebuilding or replacement of a UOP after the end of its useful life.

The takeaway here is this — expenses associated with improvements that don’t represent a significant portion of a major component or UOP are now deductible.

An expenditure made with respect to real estate that is reasonably expected to be incurred at least twice in the 10-year period beginning when the UOP is placed in service is deductible.

All the expenses that meet the requirements going as far back as 1987 are now deductible.

Disposition of property may be one of the biggest changes. Taxpayers can recognize a loss when property is permanently retired, abandoned or destroyed — the amount of the loss is the adjusted tax basis. There’s more, but there is also a limit to how much I can endure.

So drive this article to your accountant, thank them profusely for saving you money, and pay them whatever they ask for undertaking this torturous activity on your behalf. It’s well worth it.

Tim Reamer provides commercial real estate brokerage and consulting services with Cottonwood Commercial and specializes in retail representation, investment property (multifamily | commercial | NNN), and development projects. Learn more at www.timreamer.com.

Star Heating & Cooling Inc. Independent TRANE Comfort Specialist Sales & Service

• Reliable Home Comfort • Energy Saving Systems • Residential & Commercial • Get Filtered Air Up To 99.98% Clean 1169 S. High St., Harrisonburg, VA 540-433-1102 www.trane.com

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

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Purchased The Business Oct. 1 Scene

Harrisonburg, Va.

Local Ledger

FROM PAGE 2

According to a press release, co-owner Benjamin Brubaker and co-owner and President Jordan Rohrer bought the business on Oct. 1. The company sells, installs and maintains more than 1,300 generators in a 100mile radius of Harrisonburg.

Located at 2132 John Wayland Highway, the company is adding employees to install and maintain generators.

— Vic Bradshaw

Home Sales

Unemployment Oct. 2015 Harrisonburg 5.0% Rockingham County 3.7% Page County 5.5% Shenandoah County 3.8% Augusta County 4.0% Staunton 4.2% Waynesboro 4.5%

Sept. 2015 4.6% 3.7% 5.4% 3.9% 3.9% 4.0% 4.5%

Oct. 2014 5.8% 4.3% 6.2% 4.4% 4.3% 4.7% 4.7%

Source: Virginia Employment Commission

Business Smarts Seeking Presenters HARRISONBURG — The Shenandoah Valley Small Business Development Center, the Harrisonburg-Rockingham Chamber of Commerce and the Service Corps of Retired Executives are seeking presenters for their Business Smarts workshop series in 2016.

The workshops are held from 7:30 to 9 a.m. on the second Friday of every month at American National University. According to a press release, presenters are sought for the February through December sessions.

The sessions pass on strategies a business owner could use to enhance his operation or professional life. Among the potential topics are customer support, human resources, finance, legal issues, marketing, sales, operations, technology, and balancing work and life.

Proposals must include a suggested workshop title; a brief description of its content and desired outcomes; the applicant’s name, position and business affiliation; contact information; three to four sentences about his or her professional experience or education relevant to the topic; and availability.

People also are encouraged to submit potential topics or speakers.

Labor Force Harrisonburg Rockingham County Page County Shenandoah County Augusta County Staunton Waynesboro

Oct. 2015 23,994 40,185 11,436 20,929 35,656 11,605 9,765

Sept. 2015 23,819 40,555 11,632 21,149 36,067 11,613 9,770

Oct. 2014 24,460 40,813 11,656 20,984 36,801 12,027 10,085

Source: Virginia Employment Commission

Building Permits* October 2015 Permits Estimated Issued Cost

Harrisonburg 2 Rockingham County 46 Page County 4 Augusta County 15

$310,000 $8.75M $475,185 $1.8M

Median Price Harrisonburg Rockingham County Page County Shenandoah County Augusta County Staunton Waynesboro

Nov. 2015 $210,500 $175,000 $134,250 $192,000 $182,350 $159,000 $127,750

Nov. 2014 $177,000 $185,000 $157,450 $163,000 $215,000 $176,200 $129,900

Pct. Change + 18.93 — 5.41 — 14.73 + 17.79 N/A N/A N/A

Days On Market Harrisonburg Rockingham County Page County Shenandoah County Augusta County Staunton Waynesboro

Nov. 2015 45 52 239 140 79 58 45

Nov. 2014 72 68 246 159 54 104 63

Pct. Change — 37.5 — 23.5 — 2.85 — 11.95 N/A N/A N/A

Units Sold Harrisonburg Rockingham County Page County Shenandoah County Augusta County Staunton Waynesboro

Nov. 2015 27 51 16 41 60 25 22

Nov. 2014 25 43 12 35 62 30 33

Pct. Change + 8.0 + 18.6 + 33.33 + 17.14 N/A N/A N/A

Sources: Funkhouser Real Estate Group; RealEstate Businesss Intelligence

October 2014 Permits Estimated Issued Cost

0 16 N/A 16

Retail Sales (in millions)

$0 $3.8M N/A $2.7M

Source: censtats.census.gov/bldg/bldgprmt.shtml *Permits are for residential construction only, single- and multifamily buildings, as recorded by the U.S. Census Bureau. The figures do not reflect the actual number of units associated with each permit issued for multifamily construction.

October 2015 $110.49M $54.64M $16.55M $36.95M $49.96M $35.52M $44.66M

Harrisonburg Rockingham County Page County Shenandoah County Augusta County Staunton Waynesboro

See SCENE, Page 14

BUSINESS JOURNAL Shenandoah Valley

Source: Virginia Department Of Taxation

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Harrisonburg, Va.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

13

Challenges Arise For Dual-Income Couples T he typical American family reflected in iconic television shows of the 1950s and 1960s, in which the husband went off to work each morning and the wife happily played out the role of homemaker, is firmly in the minority. By 2012, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that six in 10 families with children have two working parents.

What’s more, most Americans feel they need dual incomes in order to reach their financial goals.

For a major goal like retirement, working couples must be especially vigilant to coordinate their planning efforts in a way that supports their combined accumulation objectives. As you and your spouse execute your joint retirement strategy, keep some of the following tips in mind.

IRA Contributions And Deductibility In 2015, you and your spouse can each contribute $5,500 to a traditional or a Roth individual retirement account if you have sufficient taxable compensation or earned income from self-employment. If you are 50 or older, you can direct an additional $1,000 to your IRAs for a combined total of $13,000.

Your eligibility to contribute to a Roth IRA is dependent on your filing status and modified adjusted gross income for the year. You also may be able to deduct all or a portion of your traditional IRA contributions if you satisfy Internal Revenue Service guidelines.

For example, if you file a joint tax return, and neither spouse is covered by an employer-sponsored retirement plan, traditional IRA contributions are generally fully deductible up to the annual contri-

might affect returns. Would it make sense to consolidate some accounts to help minimize these costs?

Investments

Matthew R. Frakes ment accounts should work in unison to bution limit.

If you both are covered by an employer- help you pursue a specific accumulation sponsored retirement plan, traditional IRA goal. However, with job changes so contributions will be fully deductible if prevalent, it is likely that a couple may your combined adjusted gross income is have multiple retirement accounts, in$98,000 or less. The amount you can cluding 401(k), 403(b), or 457 plans, deduct begins to phase out if the combined rollover IRAs and possibly defined beneAGI is between $98,000 and $118,000, and fit plans.

Because of the range of investno deduction is allowed if it is equal to ment options offered under or exceeds $118,000. such plans, it is important Similarly, if one spouse is to keep the big picture in covered by an employermind in order to mainsponsored retirement tain a coordinated inplan and the spouses file Like any investment vestment strategy. As a joint federal income portfolio, you review your actax return, the spouse counts, ask the followwho is not covered by retirement ing questions: an employer-sponsored accounts should Is your overall asset retirement plan may work in unison. allocation in line with qualify for a full tradiyour objectives and risk tional IRA deduction if the tolerance? combined AGI is $183,000 or Are the portfolios adequateless. ly diversified? Are they overweightDeductibility phases out for combined incomes of between $183,000 and ed (or underweighted) in any one asset $193,000, and is eliminated if your AGI on class or individual security?

Do the portfolios complement your a joint return equals or exceeds $193,000.

Note, however, Roth IRA contributions are other investments (e.g., taxable investment accounts, real estate and other asnot income tax deductible. sets)?

Coordinating Multiple Accounts Consider the fees associated with Like any investment portfolio, retire- your retirement accounts and how they

“

Retirement Distributions Couples nearing retirement must decide the timing of retirement account distributions in light of their income needs, tax situation and market dynamics. Among the issues to consider are: Tapping taxable and tax-deferred accounts. Conventional wisdom suggests that tapping taxable accounts first enables your tax-deferred accounts to continue compounding longer — and potentially growing larger — over time.

However, there are also those who argue that waiting longer to tap tax-deferred accounts could result in larger required minimum distributions.

Converting a traditional IRA to a Roth IRA, allowing you to put off distributions as long as possible or receive tax-free income.3 If one or both spouses are covered by a defined contribution and/or a defined benefit pension plan, you will typically be given several pay-out options to consider. These may include: A single life or joint life annuity.

Typically the distribution method of choice for DB plans, a single life option, pays out a fixed benefit for your lifetime; the joint life option continues paying some portion of the benefit upon death to another party, typically the surviving spouse.

DC plans may also offer the option to annuitize, convert all or a portion of the See CHALLENGES, Page 14

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SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

Unemployment Rates Fluctuate

By VIC BRADSHAW Daily News-Record

HARRISONBURG — Unemployment fluctuated throughout most of the region in October as the jobless rate rose or fell in four of five localities, according to data released Dec. 7 by the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics.

The biggest change was in Harrisonburg, where the unemployment rate rose to 5 percent from 4.6 percent in September.

Despite the rise, that rate still came under the 5.8 percent in October 2014 and was the best rate for the month since 2008.

Rockingham County was the lone anomaly locally as its rate held at 3.7 percent from September to October.

Its unemployment rate was 4.3 percent in October 2014.

Combined, the rate for the Harrisonburg metro area was 4.1 percent, up 0.1 percentage point from September but well below the 4.9 percent jobless rate of the previous year.

Neighboring counties saw modest increases or decreases.

Shenandoah County’s unemployment rate dropped 0.1 percent to 3.8 percent in October, considerably better than the 4.4 percent rate recorded in October 2014.

Page County’s jobless rate was 5.5 percent, up from 5.4 percent in September.

The county’s rate was 6.2 percent the previous October.

In Augusta County, unemployment hit 4 percent in October, up 0.1 percentage point from September. Joblessness in the county was at 4.3 percent the previous October.

Both Virginia and the U.S. saw slight drops in unemployment in October.

Statewide, a 4.2 percent jobless rate was recorded in October, down from 4.3 percent in September. Virginia’s rate was 4.9 percent in October 2014.

The national unemployment rate for October was 5 percent, 0.1 percentage point below September’s mark and 0.7 percentage point down from the previous October.

Local rates are not seasonally adjusted.

Contact Vic Bradshaw at 574-6279 or vbradshaw@dnronline.com

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Proposals Must Be Submitted By Email Scene

FROM PAGE 12

Proposals should be submitted with the subject line “Business Smarts Proposal” to Joyce Krech of the SBDC at krechjh@jmu.edu by 5 p.m. Jan. 6.

For more information, contact Krech via email or Sheena Armentrout at sheena@hrchamber.org.

— Vic Bradshaw Beiler

Rhodes

Leap

Smith

Nielsen Builders Inc. Adds Four To Its Staff HARRISONBURG — Nielsen Builders Inc. recently added four local men to its staff.

Harrisonburg resident Tyler Beiler, who earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from Bridgewater College, was hired as a project manager. The former star wide receiver gained experience in the construction industry in between stints with the NFL’s Pittsburgh Steelers, San Francisco 49ers and Jacksonville Jaguars and coaching at Bridgewater.

Mitchell Leap, a city native and resident, was selected as a junior estimator. He attended Eastern Mennonite High School and earned a bachelor’s degree in health and physical education from Eastern Mennonite University before working in education with in the Harrisonburg and Rockingham County school systems.

Bridgewater resident Jeremy Rhodes, a Turner Ashby High School graduate, was named an assistant project manager. He earned a bachelor’s degree in engineering from James Madison University and in-

terned at Valley Engineering.

Justin Smith, who lives in Mount Crawford, was chosen as a project manager for the company’s Small Projects Division. He attended Ferrum and Bridgewater colleges and has 18 years of experience in residential and commercial construction, including estimating.

Nielsen Builders is a Harrisonburgbased general contractor that provides a broad array of construction services for clients.

— Vic Bradshaw

Social Security Available At Age 62 Challenges

FROM PAGE 13

account balance to a guaranteed stream of income for life.

A lump-sum payment. Typically an option for both DB and DC plans, in which the full value of the account is paid out upon retirement. It is up to you to then decide whether and how to reinvest the proceeds.

Social Security You can begin receiving Social Security payments as early as 62, although delaying the election increases the month-

ly total. Married couples may want to consider first tapping one spouse’s benefit and delaying the other one’s until age 70, which maximizes the income and may substantially increase the couple’s total Social Security payout over a lifetime.

Determining when and how to claim Social Security benefits is a complex matter involving many variables.

Article by Wealth Management Systems Inc. and provided courtesy of Matthew Frakes, a Morgan Stanley financial adviser in Harrisonburg.

SHENANDOAH VALLEY BUSINESS JOURNAL

Harrisonburg, Va.

Tuesday, December 29, 2015

15

Time For New Year’s (Financial) Resolutions T

he countdown to 2016 has just about begun. If you’re like many people, you might be mulling over some New Year’s resolutions, such as hitting the gym more, learning a new language or taking a cooking class. All are worthy goals, but why not add some financial resolutions as well?

For example: ■ Pay yourself first. Even if you aren’t living “paycheck to paycheck,” you probably don’t have much trouble spending your money — because there’s always something that you or a family member needs, always a repair required for your home or your car, always one more bill to pay.

But if you are going to achieve your long-term goals, such as a comfortable retirement, you need to invest consistently.

So, before you pay everyone else, pay yourself first by having some money automatically moved from your checking or savings account each month into an investment.

■ Take advantage of your opportunities. If you have a 401(k) or similar plan at

Investments Gannon Irons

work, take full advantage of it. Contribute as much as you can afford — or at least enough to earn your employer’s match, if one is offered — and choose the mix of investments that give you the potential to achieve the growth you need at a level of risk with which you are comfortable.

■ Focus on the long term. In the short term, you might be excused for not wanting to invest. The headlines are typically scary, the financial markets are frequently volatile and the future often looks murky.

Yet, if you can look past the uncertainties of today and keep your focus on to-

morrow, you will find it easier to follow a disciplined investment strategy that gives you the opportunity to meet your longterm goals, such as a comfortable retirement.

■ Don’t be driven by fear. When the market is down, investors tend to react with fear. Specifically, they rush to sell their investments, afraid that if they don’t “cut their losses,” they might sustain even bigger ones.

If you can get past this feeling, you may find that a down market can offer you the chance to buy quality investments at good prices.

WHARTON ALDHIZER & WEAVER PLC ATTORNEYS & COUNSELLORS AT LAW

Charles F. Hilton

Daniel L. Fitch

James L. Johnson

Jeffrey R. Adams

■ Forget about the “hot stocks.” You’ll hear friends, co-workers and talking heads on television tout today’s “hot stocks.” But by the time you might hear about them, they may have cooled off — and, in any case, they might not be appropriate for your needs.

Forget about “getting rich quick in the market” — it probably won’t happen. True investment success requires patience and persistence.

■ Cut down on your debts. It’s easy to pile up debts, but a lot harder getting rid of them. Yet, if you can reduce your debt load even moderately, you’ll free up money you could use to invest. So look for ways to conserve, cut back and consolidate — it will be worth the effort.

Making these resolutions — and sticking to them — can help you as you work toward achieving your financial goals.

This article was written by Edward Jones for use

by Edward Jones financial adviser Gannon Irons Harrisonburg. To contact him, call 433-4907.

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