Montgomery Business Journal - September 2009

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Contents

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24 10

30 46

20

5

Letter from the Publisher

6

Executive Editor’s Column

7

Calendar

10

Investor Profile: Alfa Insurance

13

Food for Thought: Q&A with Gregory Calhoun

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Investor Profile: Alagasco

18

Totally Focused: Chamber Launches Fourth Total Resources Campaign

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Member Profile: Jackson Thornton

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Member Profile: Hodges Warehouse + Logistics and Hodges Commercial Real Estate

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Coming Back Through The Alley: A New Shortcut for Business Success

30

Member Profile: Froggy Bottom Materials

34

Business Buzz

38

Members on the Move

40

Economic Update

42

Economic Intel

46

New Members and Ribbon Cuttings

SEPTEMBER 09 Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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THE NUMBER ONE BUSINESS SOURCE FOR MONTGOMERY AND THE RIVER REGION PUBLISHER

Randall L. George EXECUTIVE EDITOR

Tina McManama MANAGING EDITOR

David Zaslawsky COPY EDITOR/STAFF WRITER

Rebecca Flatt DESIGN

Copperwing Design PHOTOGRAPHY

Jamie Martin ON THE COVER: Jerry Kyser, CEO, Jerry Kyser Builders, Inc.

Montgomery Business Journal c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Post Office Box 79 41 Commerce Street Montgomery, Alabama 36101 Telephone: 334-834-5200 Fax: 334-265-4745 Email: mbj@montgomerychamber.com www.montgomerychamber.com/mbj The Montgomery Business Journal is published monthly except for the combined issue of November/December, by the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36104, (334) 834-5200, www.montgomerychamber.com. Subscription rate is $30 annually. Application to Mail at Periodicals Postage Rates is Pending at Montgomery, Alabama.

POSTMASTER send address changes to Montgomery Business Journal, c/o Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 79, 41 Commerce Street, Montgomery AL 36101, or email mbj@montgomerychamber.com.

The Montgomery Business Journal welcomes story ideas from its readers. Email to: editor@montgomerychamber.com. Subscriptions are a part of the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce dues structure. Subscriptions can also be purchased for $30 per year at www.montgomerychamber.com/mbjsub.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Letter from the Publisher

RIGHT UP YOUR ALLEY Guided by our Imagine A Greater Montgomery economic development strategy, the Chamber strongly believes one of the most significant and immediate economic development opportunities for Montgomery lies within the hospitality and tourism development industry. Now, with the establishment of our new convention center and additional hotel capacity enabling Montgomery to host major tradeshows and conventions, we are a long way down the road toward sustainable success in this economic development arena.

An essential component in this economic development model is the necessity for an entertainment district within easy walking distance of the convention center and our visitor’s lodging facilities. The idea of course, is to enable the visitor to have a wonderful time while in Montgomery and leave feeling good about their experience but with their pockets significantly lighter.

Interestingly, not only does this entertainment component improve the visitor’s experience, but it creates a new destination and an enhanced sense of “place” for our local residents as well. Attractions such as the Biscuits, the Riverwalk and its Amphitheater, the Renaissance’s performing arts theater and other existing venues are now being joined by “The Alley”, the newest addition to downtown Montgomery’s constellation of entertainment attractions.

In this issue we feature some of the key leaders who possess the vision and courage to make the investments necessary to help bring this downtown entertainment model to scale. Investments which they believe will not only prove profitable, but enable the city to capitalize on the significant economic impact of tourism expenditures. All of this while helping build a quality of life product that our citizens, young and old, throughout Montgomery and the River Region can enjoy.

I hope you enjoy this tour through The Alley. Be sure you personally experience the flavor of this new and unique Montgomery venue real soon.

Randall L. George, Publisher President, Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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EXECUTIVE EDITOR’S COLUMN I have worked in downtown Montgomery since 2001. And it has been exciting to be in the middle of the downtown revitalization. What has happened since 2001 is simply amazing - Riverwalk Stadium and Biscuits Baseball, the Civil Rights Memorial Center, the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center, the Convention Center and the Montgomery Performing Arts Centre, the Rosa Parks Museum and Children’s Museum, the Amphitheater and Riverwalk, Harriott II, the beautiful roundabout at the Court Square Fountain, the refurbished Davis Theatre... and these are just the ones I can think of off the top of my head.

The latest addition to downtown is The Alley. And in this month’s issue, you get to explore Montgomery’s newest hot spot. The Alley is unique it is the best of the old, made new. When you turn the corner from Commerce Street onto Tallapoosa, you will be surprised and perhaps amused by the water tower standing in the middle of the sidewalk.

Love or hate it, you instantly feel that you are entering something very unique.

For River Region residents, The Alley means new lunch and dinner choices, places to meet up with friends, and a great place to entertain out-of-town company. I can’t wait for my family to visit again so I can show it off.

Once you read the article and meet the businesses and visionaries behind the scenes, you will understand how important The Alley - and the entire entertainment district - is to Montgomery’s long-term growth.

I imagine that the crowds from the Air Force Information Technology Conference and the Buckmasters Expo last month, are back home talking about the fun they had in Montgomery’s Alley.

The writers attending the Travel Media Showcase this month are in for a big surprise! They will discover all Montgomery has to offer to conventioneers - and hopefully tell the world in articles for years to come.

Enjoy the September issue! It is full of interesting people and insightful local business news. I’ve got to get going - I’m meeting some friends at The Alley for dinner, drinks and live music! See you there?

Tina McManama,

EXECUTIVE EDITOR VICE PRESIDENT, MARKETING AND COMMUNICATIONS MONTGOMERY AREA CHAMBER OF COMMERCE

Calendar Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Events

SEPTEMBER

OCTOBER

9

60 MINUTE COFFEE Sponsored by Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center 8:00 a.m. @ 201 Tallapoosa Street, Montgomery Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

7

10

BUSINESS TAXATION WORKSHOPS Workshop I: 3:00 p.m.

Workshop II: 6:00 p.m. @ The Small Business Resource Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery Free to the public, no registration necessary

22

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DIVERSITY SUMMIT 9:00 a.m. @ The Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center Sponsored by Calhoun Enterprises 201 Tallapoosa Street, Montgomery For more information call Heidi Ellis at 334-240-6863 Chamber Members: $65 Non-Members: $75 Diversity Advocate: $650 EEOC Seminar Individual ticket: $35 Details and registration: www.montgomerychamber.com/diversity09

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24

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60 MINUTE COFFEE Sponsored by Huntingdon College 8:00 a.m. @ Delchamps Student Center Lobby 1500 East Fairview Ave., Montgomery Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

BUSINESS AFTER HOURS Sponsored by Lowder New Homes 5:00 p.m. @ Woodland Creek Clubhouse 8800 Lodge Drive, Pike Road Free event, exclusively for Chamber Members

LUNCHWORKS Sponsored by Aldridge Borden & Company 12:00 p.m. @ The Small Business Resource Center 600 South Court Street Details and registration: www.montgomerychamber.com/lunchworks

ENTREPRENEURIAL UNIVERSITY 13-week course, every Tuesday until 12/15/09 6:00 p.m. @ The Small Business Resource Center 600 South Court Street Registration deadline is September 11 Details and registration: www.montgomerychamber.com/eu SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION LOAN CLINIC 9:00 a.m. @ The Small Business Resource Center 600 South Court Street, Montgomery For details call Lisa McGinty at 334-240-6865 Free to the public, no registration necessary

A calendar of upcoming Chamber events, plus a link to post-event coverage, is available online at www.montgomerychamber.com/events. For more information call 834-5200.

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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Calendar

(continued)

Convention Calendar compiled by the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Convention and Visitor Bureau

SEPTEMBER 3-6 4-6 8-10 17-22

ASA Men’s Southern Slow Pitch National Championship

Alabama Open Horse Show

Travel Media Showcase

National Association of State Departments of Agriculture National Conference

OCTOBER 1-4 5-7 9-11 9-18 14-16

Navistar LPGA Classic

21-24

Junior League of Montgomery Holiday Market

24-25 25-26

Palomino Horse Show

28-30

Alabama Workforce Development Conference

Alabama Hospice Organization Annual Conference

Blue Gray Soccer Tournament

Alabama National Fair & Agricultural Exposition

Alabama Council on Crime and Delinquency

Alabama Association of School Boards

For more information on these events, call 261-1111.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Investor Profile

MEETING At Alfa Insurance, the donations to community organizations range from small to gigantic and sometimes giving back to the community literally means rolling up a sleeve and giving some blood.

More than 80 Alfa employees participated in two separate blood drives last year, generating a combined 141 units of blood.

The company’s underwriting department raised $3,900 for Adullam House in Wetumpka, which cares for inmates’ children.

Employees donated 800 gifts and $500 in cash for the Family Sunshine Center and last year 3,000-plus pounds of food was donated to the Montgomery Area Food Bank.

Then there was the 15-member Relay for Life Team which raised nearly $10,000 last year. Employees collect school supplies for students at Seth Johnson Elementary School, the school nearest Alfa’s company headquarters in Montgomery.

Employees also donated more than $4,000 to Christmas Clearing House last year.

Goodwill Industries brings a truck to the Alfa Insurance’s main campus regularly for employee donations.

Even the children of Alfa employees have raised money - collecting $2,700 for St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital during a bike-a-thon. The children who raised the money attend the company’s on-site day care facility.

But the primary benefactor of the employees’ generosity is the United Way. Alfa employees in the River Region pledged $404,505.84 last year to the United Way campaign.

What’s astonishing is that in addition to that $400,000-plus, the corporate donation was $400,000 in 2008.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

“We live here and we are part of the community and we are proud to be part of it,” said Jerry Newby, president and chief executive officer of Alfa Insurance. “Our people that work here are some of the best people in the world and many, many of them are very involved in the community.

“We have a lot of responsibility to give back to the community and be a part of what’s going on in this community and this area.”

And the company’s largesse is truly impressive. Alfa donated $1 million to the Alabama Shakespeare Festival in 2004 to continue Schoolfest. Annual corporate donations exceed $1 million, according to Jeff Helms, director of communications department for the Alabama Farmers Federation and Alfa Insurance.

The federation, which was founded in 1921, promoted the educational, economic and social interests of farmers. In 1946, farmers invested their own money in creating the Alabama Farm Bureau Insurance because they had difficulty getting fire insurance for their homes and barns.

The Alabama Farm Bureau Insurance later became Alfa Insurance. This year, Alfa has donated money to following organizations: • United Way • Montgomery Area Food Bank • Alabama National Fair • KidsFest at Jubilee CityFest • Montgomery Area Down Syndrome Outreach Group Buddy Walk

• Alabama Shakespeare Festival • Janice Capilouto Center for Deaf • Easter Seals • Hospice of Montgomery Here some of the company’s major donations the past few years: • $1.8 million for an endowed Rural Medical Scholars scholarship fund with University of Alabama at Birmingham • $250,000 for the Helen Keller School at Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind • $250,000 for Alabama 4-H • $250,000 for the American Village in Montevallo • $75,000 for Alabama Future Farmers of America • $20,000 a year for Alabama People Against a Littered State’s Clean Campus program • Various contributions to Camp ASCCA including $45,000 to renovate the pavilion • $250,000 for Children’s Harbor “The culture of this company is closely tied to the culture of those farmers who started it,” Helms said. “It’s about helping your neighbor. It’s about being there when you’re needed, which after all is what an insurance company is all about.

“This company has been blessed and it’s blessed to be able to give back to the community in which it operates and the state in which it operates.

• American Cancer Society • American Red Cross • Montgomery Nontraditional Equestrians

“Mr. Newby always says when I ask for a quote from him when we make a contribution to some organization - rather than saying ‘We’re proud to support a certain

THE

NEED

Jerry Newby is president and chief executive officer of Alfa Insurance.

by David Zaslawsky

cause’ - he always says, ‘We’re proud to be able to support this.’ He always wants the words ‘to be able to.’ I think that’s the way he views it and our board of directors view it.”

Alfa Insurance and the Alabama Farmers Federation support the company’s “Teacher of the Month” program. The company donates $1,000 to the teacher and another $1,000 to the school.

The company also participates in the state’s “Teacher of the Year” program, by donating the use of a vehicle for a year and the insurance on the vehicle so the winning teacher can drive throughout the state, serving as an ambassador for education.

Alfa Insurance not only gives huge sums of money to various organizations, but employees serve on a number of boards of directors and are given time for those activities, Helms said.

“The investment in the community has several different levels,” Helms said. “There is an investment in employees; investment in having the (company headquarters) here; and the corporate investment that has been made. But more important is that investment that our employees have made in being a part of this community - being an active, vital part of the community that we serve.”

ALFA INSURANCE FACTS NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES

2,600 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES AT MONTGOMERY HEADQUARTERS

1,000 NUMBER OF AGENTS IN ALABAMA

497 NUMBER OF AGENTS IN THE RIVER REGION

25 NUMBER OF SERVICE CENTERS

254; AT LEAST ONE SERVICE CENTER IN EACH OF THE STATE’S 67 COUNTIES NUMBER OF SERVICE CENTERS IN THE RIVER REGION

9 TOTAL NUMBER OF POLICIES

1 MILLION-PLUS TOTAL AMOUNT OF INSURANCE IN FORCE

$25 BILLION NUMBER OF STATES THAT ALFA OPERATES IN

12 NUMBER OF PROPERTY AND CASUALTY COMPANIES:

8 Source: Alfa Insurance

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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FOOD FOR THOUGHT Q & A WITH GREGORY CALHOUN Gregory Calhoun is president and chief executive of Calhoun Enterprises. He was recently interviewed by Montgomery Business Journal Managing Editor David Zaslawsky Montgomery Business Journal: How do you describe your company?

Calhoun: We’re a unique company because we have a lot of interests. We have different formats that we operate under. One of them is our retail supermarkets, which we started in 1984. We have what we call Calhoun & Associates, which we work with major corporations on diversity issues, dealing with procurement and crisis management. Then we have an insurance company that we call National Benefits Solution. We are one of the largest suppliers of Aflac Insurance in the country and we won the chairman’s cup in Paris about two months ago.

MBJ: How many employees do you have?

Calhoun: 352.

MBJ: What were your annual sales in 2008?

Calhoun: We were $100 million-plus.

MBJ: When did you first reach $100 million in annual sales?

Calhoun: It was ‘89.

MBJ: Because of the economic downturn, did the company experience much of a decline?

Calhoun: We had a minor decline, but the grocery business has been solid. We have seen an increase in that (area) because a lot more people are eating at home instead of eating out. Now people at the supermarket are taking $50 and buying groceries for the week.

MBJ: How many grocery stores do you own?

Calhoun: We have four MBJ: Calhoun Enterprises is comprised of five subsidiaries. Would you please give a brief description of each subsidiary? Let’s start with

Calhoun Foods. You said you have four stores.

Where are they located?

Calhoun: Two are in Montgomery; one in Selma; and one in Tuskegee.

MBJ: Are there plans for additional supermarkets?

Calhoun: Yes. MBJ: Where?

Calhoun: We’re looking at Alabama - one inside the River Region and one outside the River Region in White Hall.

MBJ: Calhoun Communication?

Calhoun: That’s a telecommunications company we own, where we sell phone cards to supermarkets on the West Coast.

MBJ: You’ve already mentioned Calhoun & Associates. The Calhoun Foods Distribution Center?

Calhoun: We operate mostly in the prison system, Cuba and sell food to institutions like VictoryLand. We partner with Kelly Food.

MBJ: Are your annual sales equally divided among the five subsidiaries?

Calhoun: It’s spread fairly equally between the five.

MBJ: Are you looking at any expansions or acquisitions beside the Calhoun Foods group?

Calhoun: We have a (partnership) with IMG that’s a spokes management company in New York. We are looking at being their diversity arm. We just signed Shaquille O’Neal and Judge (Greg) Mathis to that entity. In that entity, we’ll be looking at high-profile athletes to endorse products.

MBJ: You founded the company in 1984 and Calhoun Foods was your first business venture. How were you able to go from bagging groceries to buying your first store and how much did you pay for it?

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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Calhoun: First of all, I was a bagging clerk and worked my way through management with Super Foods’ Big Bear, which was owned by Hudson and Thompson. They did franchise stores to other owners who had been loyal employees. I was able to convince the owners that I could be an owner and they gave me an opportunity so I had to borrow $1 million for a loan package to buy my first store.

MBJ: That was scary wasn’t it?

Calhoun: Yes it was.

MBJ: How old were you?

When I was stocking groceries, you could walk down the aisle - the owner said, ‘Greg Calhoun worked on this aisle.’ I didn’t have to be there to boost myself. I let my work speak for me. My father taught me that. He was in the brick laying business.

MBJ: What do you attribute your success to in addition to the hard work?

Calhoun: Knowledge of business and making sure that I knew what I was doing. I learned every aspect of the grocery business - I worked in every department so I was knowledgeable. Next, I know how to work with people and get along with people. I learned how to delegate.

My business philosophy is to make sure you satisfy the customer through all means and that you

give 150 percent daily.

Calhoun: I was 32.

MBJ: That was a lot of money 25 years ago.

Calhoun: Huge amount of money.

MBJ: What is your business philosophy?

Calhoun: My business philosophy is to make sure you satisfy the customer through all means and that you give 150 percent daily.

MBJ: Is that how you were able to work your way up by giving that 150 percent?

Calhoun: Yes. My hard working, having a good family and my wife allowed me to put the hours in it took to get the job done. And my work was the type of work if I wasn’t at work, you could always tell my work because of the fact that I tried to make sure that I didn’t need to be there for you to see it.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

MBJ: With all the different type of businesses you have, did you have to bring in experts?

Some of the businesses are very different than the others.

Calhoun: If you really look at the businesses, they all target to the core - supermarkets because my telecommunications company is catering to supermarkets. The insurance company mainly caters to businesses, but my kids all have masters’ degrees in the areas that we do business. My son and my daughter are licensed (for our insurance) along with me.

MBJ: Your bio on the company Web site says you represent “the new minority business profession.” Would you please elaborate what that means to you?

Calhoun: To me that means I don’t do business the old-fashioned way. I use more

technology. I’m driven by the numbers, not the heart and feelings.

diversity important to you and in the business world?

MBJ: What do you mean the oldfashioned way?

Calhoun: I think in order to have a total city you have to have a diverse city. I’ve been a member of the chamber for many years and I’m back on the board (of directors) again. I thought as a minority company it just makes sense for a minority to sponsor the diversity summit.

Calhoun: I think we’re sliding right now. I think next year is going to bring a great return. I think your 401(k) is going to be a little stronger; people are going to start spending a little money. I think right now people are saving more than they ever have because they are scared to death and they know cash is king.

MBJ: How important is diversity to the business community?

MBJ: With that in mind, what are your projections for Calhoun Enterprises in 2010?

Calhoun: Very, very, very important.

Calhoun: My goal is to have a 5 percent increase from this year. We put things in place to make that happen. We’re still hiring.

We haven’t had a layoff.

Calhoun: The good-old-boy network. Race is an issue. I’m non-racial. I like all people. I am a true businessman. I’ve been blessed to be in business for 25 years. When I went into business, Linens ‘N Things was here in Montgomery and it’s no longer here. Circuit City is gone now. Winn-Dixie was owned by Mr. Davis and he lived here in Montgomery.

Now it’s owned by a Jacksonville, Fla., group.

The Bruno’s Family was big and now all their stores are closed. I have seen a lot of changes and I’m still in business - that’s a blessing.

MBJ: Also on the Web site it states: “A dream, a mission, a commitment.” Would you please elaborate what that means to you?

Calhoun: It was always my dream to be in business because my father was in business.

It was a commitment that I had to make in order to make this dream come true. I had to give a lot of time and effort and give up a lot of things that I would have liked to do like hang out with the guys, go places and take nice vacations. But I had to be committed to working sometimes 17 hours a day to make sure I achieved the goals that were set in front of me. My mission was to be a national leader in the business world. That’s why I created Calhoun Enterprises and started companies outside the state of Alabama and became a national player, consultant and entered the insurance business, warehousing business and now I’m doing business with Cuba.

MBJ: What type of business with Cuba?

Calhoun: I ship meat products to Cuba; chicken and canned vegetables.

MBJ: Do you get cigars in return?

Calhoun: I don’t smoke. I’ve never had a cigar.

MBJ: The Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce is holding its Diversity Summit in September. For the second year, Calhoun Enterprises is the presenting sponsor. Why is

MBJ: Why is it important?

Calhoun: Because you have an AfricanAmerican president. People now are not looking so much at the color, but looking at people who have the right skills. It’s important to have diverse people at the top at the forefront making the decisions. Instead of sitting around the table, they need to be able to sit at the table. I always tried to be one of those guys that put myself in the position to be able to sit at the table.

MBJ: Isn’t diversity good business? Doesn’t it improve profits?

Calhoun: It gives you a competitive advantage the more diverse you are. For me, I have to have more than African-Americans. I have to have whites and Hispanics, and my company does. I have to make sure that I think diversity, too. Out of the top 10 people on my staff, three are white.

MBJ: How would you describe the current business climate in the River Region and Alabama overall? Do you think the economy is starting to bounce back or stabilizing?

Calhoun: I think we’ve been fortunate because of the great interests here with Hyundai; Mercedes-Benz right down the road; Kia right over the state line with Georgia; and these are the types of cars that are selling. Years ago when the economy had trouble it would go down and come back up in a V shape. I think this economy went down will slide a little bit and then it’s going to come back up with a lot of opportunities.

MBJ: Are we in the sliding stage?

MBJ: No layoffs?

Calhoun: We downsized our North Carolina office, but outside of that we’ve been bringing people in on the retail side.

MBJ: If you add two stores, there will be even more hiring. What is the average number of employees per store?

Calhoun: With the new concept, there are 5080 employees per store.

MBJ: What is the new concept?

Calhoun: We are going to a different format.

We won’t be in a 50,000-square-foot store.

We are looking at 15,000-20,000 square feet.

MBJ: Will there be fewer departments in the store?

Calhoun: You might not have eight or nine or 10 different types of mayonnaise - you might have three. You still have the pharmacy, you still have the delis; you still have the chop and block. But you won’t have nine or 10 of the same item. You look at technology and see what (sells) and just put in what the people want - not what you want. •

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Investor Profile

Alagasco donated more than $70,000 last year.

AND THEY’RE JUST

GETTING WARMED UP

by David Zaslawsky

Richard Ray is Alabama Gas Co. division manager for the Montgomery/Selma regions.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

ALABAMA GAS CO. FACTS TOTAL NUMBER OF CUSTOMERS IN ALABAMA: Alagasco employees will perform the installation at “some greatly reduced labor rates.”

“We always consider customer service our most important effort,” said Richard Ray, Alabama Gas Co. division manager for the Montgomery/Selma regions. “We are very responsive to our customers. We listen to our customers.

“We do focus groups from time-to-time, bringing in customers and asking them what we are doing right and what we are doing wrong. And then we respond to that.”

The company has been responding to some customers’ problems paying their natural gas bill during the recession.

“If a customer will communicate with us that they are having difficulty paying the bill, we will get them in touch with service agencies where funds are available to help them,” Ray said, “and we stay in very close contact with community service agencies across this area.”

Alagasco provides an opportunity for its customers to donate $1, $2 or $3 a month in a program called “Operation Share.” The donations, which are added to a customer’s bill, go into a pool and are used to help those having financial problems.

Ray said the company also participates in the Low Income Heat and Energy Assistance Program, which he described as a government-assistance program for individuals having problems paying their utility bills.

Alagasco has introduced a number of rebate and conversion programs during the past 18 months. Ray said some rebates are offered on natural gas furnaces, natural gas water heaters and natural gas clothes dryers.

“We offer rebates to customers who make the decisions to continue to use natural gas appliances,” Ray said. “In addition to that, we also offer some conversion opportunities for customers who may choose to convert an electric water heater to a natural gas water heater.”

447,000 NUMBER OF RESIDENTIAL CUSTOMERS:

398,000

Ray understands that customers have options. “We recognize a key fact in the natural gas industry is that we are a fuel of choice. We recognize that customers have a choice. Because of that fact, we believe that we have to do an outstanding job in the area of customer service to entice customers to choose natural gas.

NUMBER OF COMMERCIAL AND INDUSTRIAL CUSTOMERS:

“Natural gas, we believe, is a clean-burning fuel; it is a domestic fuel; it is a readily available fuel - there is an abundant supply of natural gas. We not only have to make customers aware of the environmental advantages of natural gas, but we have to help them make those energy decisions.”

MILES OF PIPES IN THE GROUND:

The company, which donated $70,000-plus in the River Region last year, also concentrates on community involvement and focuses its efforts in education and the military, Ray said.

TOTAL NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES:

He said Alagasco financially supports a host of activities and organizations in the River Region as well as participating in the “Adopt A School Program” and the “Military Appreciation Day at the Zoo.”

32,000 NUMBER OF CITIES AND COMMUNITIES SERVED:

NEARLY 200 NUMBER OF RIVER REGION CUSTOMERS:

78,000 22,100 2008 OPERATING REVENUE:

$654 MILLION 2008 NET INCOME:

$270 MILLION 1,140 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES IN THE RIVER REGION:

118 CUBIC FEET OF NATURAL GAS:

79.4 BILLION Source: Alabama Gas Co.

“I’ve been with the company 22 years and we have always put a great emphasis people who were my mentors and my peers in this company - on the fact that being a good corporate citizen is not only a financial responsibility, but it is a personal responsibility.

“I am a much better corporate citizen if I really believe that I have a responsibility to give back to pay my civic rent to help this community continue to grow and prosper. It’s a personal responsibility you have to take on to really be an effective corporate citizen.

That entails being out in the community, serving on the boards and just doing things on a personal level.”

He said there are currently programs that offer $100 to $300 for the conversion or retention of a natural gas furnace and

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

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Totally Focused Chamber launches fourth Total Resource Campaign

by David Zaslawsky

The Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce’s Total Resource Campaign (TRC) will be conducted in a shorter period of time.

In the past, the campaign ran for at least three months and sometimes three and a half months. Well, meet the abridged version, which is scheduled to start in early September, have an official kick-off Oct. 1 and conclude at the end of October.

Front, left to right: Carl Barranco, Guy Davis and Larry Puckett.

Back, left to right: Jimmy Stubbs, Gene Crane and Mac McLeod.

“We analyzed when the activity was happening,” said TRC chairman Guy Davis.

“The activity was happening the first two weeks and the last two weeks of the campaign and the middle period - you would have some stuff straggling in, but it was really a lull. All the volunteers have day jobs and we want to respect that and do this in a shorter period of time.”

Another change from the previous campaigns is the structure. Davis said that he expects fewer individuals to participate in the TRC. Some of the previous participants were not very involved in the campaign, he said.

“This year, we have focused on the folks we think want to do this and enjoy doing this,” said Davis, who recently joined The Cone Co. He was the former area president for BankTrust.

Patsy Guy, Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce vice president, member & investor relations, said, “Historically, we’ve had the vice chairmen and team captains. Each vice chairman would select team captains and the team captains would staff their teams.”

This year, each of the four vice chairmen will start with 10 past producers on their team and then recruit some new people, Guy said.

She expects each of the four teams to have 12-15 people.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

While there are changes, including new products, the TRC still provides businesses the opportunity to sponsor the chamber’s programs, events, publications and electronic media. During the campaign, the volunteers, who are raising the funds, also recruit new members.

The fourth annual TRC has veteran vice chairmen in Jimmy Stubbs, president and chief executive officer of River Bank & Trust; Carl Barranco, president and co-managing shareholder of Wilson Price Barranco Blankenship & Billingsley, P.C. Mac McLeod, president and chief executive officer of The Colonial Co.; Larry Puckett, president, Larry Puckett Chevrolet; and Gene Crane, Central Alabama regional president for Whitney Bank.

All have previously served as vice chairman.

Puckett also serves as the Chamber’s executive board liason.

“Our vice chairmen will be coordinating their teams and we think this new structure will really build that competitive spirit,” Guy said.

Guy said that the first three campaigns have helped the chamber analyze which products and sponsorships the members are interested in.

Davis said that the TRC sparks more involvement in the chamber. “I can’t tell you how many chamber members had not ever done anything for the chamber and then sponsored something. They got engaged with the chamber and then they discover that the chamber is the chief economic development engine in our community.”

“Someone may join the chamber because they are a banker or insurance guy and I asked them to join. But they discovered the value in being part of the chamber and in a

bigger sense it helps the community, it grows our community and it brings jobs here. There are so many things that people don’t get exposed to unless they get engaged.

“If there is one thing that has come out of this Total Resource Campaign process it has been diversifying the participation for sponsorships within the chamber membership because that was a problem.”

Davis also praises the TRC because it enables business leaders to budget money and time for the products they want to sponsor next year. There are no last-minute requests or pleas to sponsor an event. No surprises.

Guy said that a business can strategically examine chamber events and sponsor what’s in their best interest.

“An organization or business may want to target small business. Now, they have this menu of products and opportunities, and if the vision of the organization is to go after small business, they may want to deal with Entrepreneurial University or the Small

YEAR

GOAL

CAMPAIGN TOTAL

2006

$400,000

$553,365

2007

$600,000

$706,000

2008

$708,080

$669,907

Source: Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce

Business loan program. The TRC allows them (business executives) to pick that target market.”

One of the new products in this year’s campaign is the Montgomery Business Journal, the chamber’s monthly business publication, which made its debut in July.

Guy said the chamber may add a business expo to an after-hours event at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center.

“There will always be businesses that choose to be more engaged than others in the community, but if they have one place to put community dollars in a way that they can benefit from it as well - this would be the spot.”

“…they discovered the value in being part of the chamber and in a bigger sense it helps the community, it grows our community and it brings jobs here.”

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

19

Jackson Thornton celebrates 90 years in business

FIRM

In March 1919, H.C. Crane, a certified public accountant (CPA), began his practice with a primary goal of helping clients solve financial concerns. As the years passed, the firm continued to expand, growing out of office locations and hop-scotching through the downtown Montgomery area.

by Rebecca Flatt

FOUNDATION

Ned Sheffield, front; George Smith, back left; amd Landon (Lanny) Crane, back right

Usually, when a certain age is reached, the question of “how old are you?” can be taken personally.

But what if you are as vibrant, thriving and respected a 90 year-old as local certified public accounting and consulting firm Jackson Thornton? Then you proudly answer the question, and do it with a smile that keeps customers coming back time and again.

In the late 1970s, as the revitalization of downtown Montgomery began, Jackson Thornton became the first company to purchase property in the Lower Commerce Historic District. With the architectural input of Thomas A. Blount, the 1880s façade was retained to preserve the buildings historic features, transforming the dilapidated, rat-infested space into a restored, professional and beautiful office building.

“We provide services to businesses, but in order to get the wheel to roll, you have to have a lot of different spokes, or divisions,” says Diane Steinhilber, a CPA and principal at the firm.

In 1979, this historical district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places, and the old building that was once used as a mill store by the Teague Hardware Company was completed.

By 2001, the firm’s continuing education and training helped support clients in conference-type environments by providing programs, speakers, retreats and entertainment.

In the early 1980s, specialization within the organization began to grow. Jackson Thornton Utilities was launched specifically for industry. Professionals at the firm also began gaining extensive knowledge in other high growth industries including construction, manufacturing and health care.

Now, nine decades after its birth, Jackson Thornton is one of the top accounting and consulting firms in the Southeast. What makes the firm successful is its genuine interest in their 4,000 customers, and the quality of service they offered.

“We’ve been doing business with Jackson Thornton since 1982,” says Larry Puckett, owner of Larry Puckett Chevrolet in Prattville.

“When we bought the car dealership from the Durden family, they were using Jackson Thornton, and we were so impressed with the way they handled business that we continued using them as our accounting firm.”

“We are a family-friendly business,” says Jim Pope, principal and CPA at Jackson Thornton for more than 34 years. “I always have said that we are 90 percent public, and 10 percent accounting; the company is focused on being a people-centered organization.”

When most of its nearly 200 employees have a long history with the same company, it is a sure sign that Jackson Thornton keeps the right perspective, and also focuses on its workers.

Today, employees hold licenses in Florida, Georgia, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, New York and West Virginia.

“I have been working at Jackson Thornton since I graduated from college,” says Heidi Lee, a CPA and principal. “It’s the only job I have ever had.”

By the start of the millennium, Jackson Thornton had created two subsidiaries, Jackson Thornton Asset Management LLC and Jackson Thornton Benefit Resource LLC. In addition to these subordinates, the Valuation and Litigation Consulting Group was created in the early 1990s.

Earlier this year, the firm revamped its Web site. It now features a multimedia section devoted to career opportunities within all areas of the firm, including Jackson Thornton Technology, Asset Management, Health Care, Utilities and more. In addition, profiles of each of the firm’s 33 principals can be viewed, along with an indepth timeline of the company’s history.

BUSINESS NAME:

On Thursday, Oct. 15, the firm will celebrate this monumental achievement with a Tailgate-style anniversary extravaganza. The event will be at the historic downtown location, 200 Commerce St., beginning at 6 p.m.

JACKSON THORNTON YEARS IN BUSINESS:

90, OPENED IN 1919 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES:

200 LOCATION:

200 COMMERCE ST. PHONE NUMBER:

834-7660 WEBSITE:

WWW.JACKSONTHORNTON.COM

“We’ve been able to flourish and grow over the years by partnering with our clients and helping them achieve their long-term goals,” says Ned Sheffield, managing partner and principal. “In reaching our 90th anniversary, we want to continue emphasizing the values that have been a big part of our success, investing in our people so that they can provide top-notch expertise and showing gratitude by giving back to the communities we serve.”

Jackson Thornton has offices in Montgomery, Prattville, Wetumpka and Dothan, and Murfreesboro, Tennessee.

The company has received many awards and recognitions, including Jackson Thornton Technologies being recognized in the MSPmentor 100, a distinguished research report of the world’s most progressive managed service providers.

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

21

Member Profile

Left to right, Paul Hodges and Lance Hunter

Wide Open Space Hodges Warehouse + Logistics and Hodges Commercial Real Estate respond to customers’ needs.

by Rebecca Flatt

What began as a stockyard business in Louisiana now encompasses more than 5 million square feet of facilities in Montgomery, Dothan and Prattville.

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

where the Realtor represents only one party in a real estate sales transaction. A limited consensual duel agent involves a Realtor representing both the buyer and seller in the same real estate transaction, and requires the licensed broker to obtain a written consent of both the buyer and seller in order for him to act as their agent.

Hodges Warehouse + Logistics and Hodges Commercial Real Estate have been in business in the River Region for more than 40 years, with no plans of slowing down.

In 1869, William Henry Hodges started the family business with livestock marketing in Louisiana, Texas and Alabama. The business was managed by five generations, and in 1961 brothers Roy and Dick Hodges became the next generation to continue their namesake company. However, in the early 1970s, cattle production was declining in Alabama, and Hodges’ stockyards dramatically reduced in size.

As the cattle industry began to change, the brothers recognized the potential for new business endeavors. Vice President Paul Hodges explained that the family started acquiring property adjacent to various stockyard facilities in Montgomery County, leading to the development of Hodges Commercial Real Estate and Hodges Warehouse + Logistics.

The company now owns and manages more warehouse space in Montgomery than any competitor, and is run by Paul Hodges, chief executive officer Lance Hunter and eight of Hodges’ cousins. Today, 300 acres of farmland that was acquired in the 1970s is being commercially developed along the Eastern Boulevard near Lagoon Park. Beauvoir, one of Montgomery’s most prestigious gated communities, is also a Hodges development. The estate was purchased in 1972 by Roy Hodges.

But what keeps the company so successful, even during these challenging economic times? Providing property and warehouse space that best suits each individual business and the expansion of the real estate division to include buying, leasing and selling commercial and residential real estate properties keeps customers committed to the company.

Available Real Estate services cover various areas such as the latest trends and market analysis, residential sales and listings, vacant land for farming, ranching or hunting, and investment opportunities.

Hodges employs a team of professional agents committed to providing exceptional customer service, and information on every available property that meets a customer’s specific requirements.

“We don’t always have property or space that people are looking for, but we make it our mission to do everything we can to help customers find the space that best suits them,” Hunter says.

“We have acquired a breadth of offerings, and have an expansive portfolio.”

Transaction brokerage is an arrangement whereby the real estate licensee assists one or more customers in a real estate transaction, without being the agent, fiduciary or advocate of that party to the transaction. In this case, brokers and salespeople can act as mediators between buyers and sellers.

For warehouse and logistics needs, Hodges’ location in Montgomery makes it an attractive option from a distribution standpoint. It is a central hub with efficient access to the entire Southeast region. The business also prides itself on offering tailored storage facilities and programs specific to the personal needs of the client.

“We’ve enjoyed a close partnership with Hodges Bonded Warehouse for nearly 10 years, and it truly has been a team effort,” says client Cuyler Murphy with the Andersons ALACO Lawn Inc. “Even with our extreme variation in volume they move together with us never missing a beat, responding like clockwork, and offering assistance in every challenge. Hodges has gone the extra mile throughout our relationship.”

With all the challenges facing the economy today, Hodges has kept its head above water. “Now we’re seeing several local customers begin some nice expansions, which has been very positive,” Hunter says.

Hodges credits the business community for much of their success.

“Customers expect quality service, and we do our best to deliver.”

BUSINESS:

HODGES WAREHOUSE + LOGISTICS AND HODGES COMMERCIAL REAL ESTATE YEARS IN BUSINESS:

40 NUMBER OF EMPLOYEES:

30, PLUS 5 AGENTS LOCATION:

1065 N. EASTERN BLVD. PHONE NUMBER:

435-8888 WEB SITE:

WWW.HODGESWAREHOUSE.COM

The company offers different relationship levels between the customer and agent, including single agency, limited consensual duel agent, and transaction brokerage. A single agency is an arrangement

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

23

A NEW SHORTCUT TO BUSINESS SUCCESS

by David Zaslawsky

A countrywide group of about 150 lawyers attended a recent seminar in Montgomery conducted by the law firm of Beasley Allen.

The lawyers stayed at the Renaissance Montgomery Hotel & Spa at the Convention Center in downtown Montgomery. They ate dinner at Dreamland Bar-B-Que in The Alley and the next night had a dinner/cruise on the Harriett II riverboat on the riverfront.

“These folks loved it,” said Greg Allen, a shareholder in the Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C., firm. “They had no idea Montgomery had this to offer and they said, ‘we’re coming back.’”

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

25

That’s the goal of the downtown entertainment district, and one of the key components of that area, which also includes the Riverwalk, Riverwalk Stadium and the Riverwalk Amphitheater, is The Alley. And please do not call it The Alleyway or the earlier moniker of the Grocer’s Alley. It’s simply The Alley and business couldn’t be any better.

“I put together a pro forma and we probably doubled that,” said Mike Watson, owner of Alley Bar. He also owns the building and designed it. His day job is running 2WR HolmesWilkins as the architectural firm’s president and chief executive officer.

“The community has embraced the Alley Bar. Business has been phenomenal,” he said.

Bob Parker, general manager of Dreamland, said the company has exceeded its goals.

“Lunch has actually been a little bit busier than we thought.”

Kyser, who owns that building and the building that houses Dreamland, said his meeting facility “is doing better than I expected. We’ve had numerous high school reunions; we’ve had a lot of after-dinner rehearsal parties; we’ve had a couple of weddings and receptions; we’ve had numerous business meetings; and we’ve had a lot of fundraisers whether they are political or civic groups.” Kyser is president and chief executive officer of Jerry Kyser Builder Inc. Those three businesses will be getting some company soon - very soon. Kyser hopes to open a restaurant on the first floor of his Coosa Street building, which will also enable him to cater events at his meeting facility.

“It will be upscale, but have a casual atmosphere,” Kyser said about the restaurant, which will have a seating capacity of about 125 people. He expects to hire 35 people.

The restaurant, which is scheduled to open in September, will be open for lunch and the dinner menu will feature continental cuisine.

Business has also been booming at Jerry Kyser’s meeting facility at 129 Coosa St.

WHERE EVERYBODY KNOWS YOUR NAME Patrons flock to Alley Bar’s upscale décor, ambiance Football season is here and the Alley Bar is ready.

Watson quickly points out his products are not pricey.

That means getting up a little earlier for the employees, who are used to working night shifts. It means opening up around noon on Saturdays and Sundays.

His conversation piece has to be the shot room, which is kept at 35 degrees. There are fake fur coats available to keep you warm and oh yes, plenty of shots. The shots are located on four shelves and are priced $4, $6, $8 and $10 apiece.

There are eight flat-screen televisions and a roll-down projection screen to greet football fans and Alley Bar owner Mike Watson will have snacks and appetizers available.

The capacity is almost 200 inside and another 36 outside - if you don’t want to watch football - at one of the nine tables.

Watson has plenty of room for special events at what he calls the “back alley.” During the day it’s a parking garage, but it morphs into a giant entertainment venue at night and was the site of the bar’s highly successful dueling piano event.

When you walk inside, you can’t help but notice the upscale décor and ambiance, but

26

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

The $4 shots are premixed shots, some of which are found at other bars. The more expensive shots are various brand names.

Shot glasses are actually frozen ice and discarded into a trash can, but don’t melt.

“The community has embraced the Alley Bar,” Watson said. “I’ve heard from so many people that Montgomery was just waiting for something like The Alley project and the Alley Bar. This is what Montgomery really needed.

Those are two of the quotes you will hear the most in here.”

— David Zaslawsky

Mike Watson, owner of Alley Bar and the building, is also president and chief executive officer of architectural firm 2WR HolmesWilkins.

Ken Register and Joe DiMaggio Jr., the cousin of the baseball Hall of Famer, plan to open Sa Za Serious Italian restaurant in late September. Register, who has interests in Nobles, The Olive Room and the soon-to-bethree Down The Street restaurants, said he expects to hire 41 people. Sa Za will have a seating capacity of 110, which includes seating on the sidewalk under a canopy and part of the bar will be outside with tables and chairs.

“This is Mediterranean/Italian peasant food,” Register said. “Ninety percent of the recipes are Joe’s grandmother’s recipes.

They are the true peasant Italian. We have worked this menu to try to keep it affordable for anybody. It’s a different kind of Italian restaurant.”

Pizza will be a prominent part of the menu.

Register said that the restaurant will have two pizza ovens that heat up to 900 degrees.

“The pizza ovens were specifically designed

by Joe DiMaggio for this concept and made in Italy,” Register said.

Eating at Sa Za’s will be an experience, Register promised. “It’s a bohemian atmosphere with really good music. It will be lively - it will be a lot of fun.”

Sa Za’s will lease one of the buildings owned

by Allen, who is calling his venture Alley Station. That includes Sa Za’s and 16 loft apartments on top of the restaurant as well as a rooftop garden, a banquet facility and some shops on each side the walkway between the buildings. He is considering a

Cajun restaurant behind Sa Za’s in an approximately 2,000-square-foot space and is also mulling an offer of an entertainment venue there. Allen said he has talked with someone who wants to have a men’s and women’s clothing store. He has had preliminary talks about a jewelry store and a coffee shop.

“We looking for the right mix for that venue because the last thing I want is for someone to come in there and fail,” Allen said.

His loft apartments, which will be available in mid-October or early November, will range from 900 to 1,400 square feet. There will be both one- and two-bedroom apartments and all are rental units, according to Allen. He said the top of the range for rent will be $1,500 a month.

Allen said in addition to the rooftop garden, which sets apart his loft apartments, is a second-floor gym and a balcony over The Alley. And being downstairs from Sa Za and a two-minute walk from Dreamland and Alley Bar is not bad either.

His banquet facility will hold 350 people while Kyser can handle 150 people for a sit-down dinner or about 240 people for a stand-up meal. Allen said five wedding receptions are already planned for his facility.

Kyser is also planning loft apartments - his 10 units will be built on top of Dreamland and he anticipates the units being available in the fall. He will have one- and two-

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

27

bedroom loft apartments - all rental units.

Kyser said the apartments on the lower floors will average 800 square feet to 1,100 square feet. There are plans for two larger units on the top floor with one at 1,400 square feet and the other at 2,500 square feet. He expects rents to range from $900 a month for the smaller units to possibly $2,500 a month for the largest apartment.

Developers Bill Helms and Randy Roark of Helms Roark Inc. own a building at The Alley and have 8,000 square feet available.

Helms said they are looking at various possibilities with room for one to four businesses, which may include a restaurant.

The Children’s Museum of Alabama occupies a spot in The Alley and has invested $1 million in the building’s façade and “probably another $7 million in the building,” according to Montgomery Deputy Mayor Jeff Downes, who is chief of staff for Montgomery Mayor Todd Strange.

Downes estimated that the private sector has already invested $12 million to $15 million in The Alley project and the city’s investment in the common area was $1.6 million. He expects the private sector investment to reach $20 million to $25 million when the project is completed.

When asked how much revenue The Alley businesses could generate in gross sales, Downes said $10 a million a year - easily.

The Alley has also meant new jobs from construction work to the 76 that will be created with the opening of two restaurants and the 95 people already working at Dreamland (45 employees) and Alley Bar (50 employees). That’s 171 new jobs in an economy that has been shedding hundreds of thousands of jobs monthly. The July jobs

report was cheered because it was less than 250,000, the fewest number of jobs lost in a year.

“Economic development is more than just sales,” Downes said. “It’s the perception of the city. When you have an area that is happening and becoming a destination, it just does great things for the feel of your city and the perception of your city.

“There are people that never knew that this area existed and now they are experiencing it and they want to be a part of it. There are ideas that are popping up on a daily basis and we are regularly entertaining retail and residential possibilities in this direct area and area (nearby). That’s all the result of this multimillion dollar private and public sector investment to make something unique and different.”

But right now, the one element lacking at The Alley is retail, and Kyser would like to see specialty shops. “It needs to be something with a Southern flavor or a Montgomery flavor or something you can’t find or see in the usual shopping mall,” Kyser said. “We need specialty shops displaying our culture, our artwork.

There is so much history in Alabama that you need to capitalize on that, from the Civil Rights Movement to the Civil War to Martin Luther King Jr.” The city recently hired Ken Reynolds as retail development coordinator, a $50,000-a-year position.

“We do need somebody to wake up every single day focused on retail development,” Downes said, “and to court and develop relationships with all forms of retail possibilities.

“Economic development is more than just sales, it’s the perception of the city.”

– Jeff Downes, Deputy Mayor of Montgomery

28

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

“AIN’T NOTHING LIKE ‘EM ... NOWHERE” “When you mix tourists and residents then you create demand for retail. You can create a demand for retail when you create a diverse population that inhabits a certain area.

Prospective investors wanted to know what Dreamland Bar-B-Que would do when the Montgomery Biscuits were not playing their home games across the street at Riverwalk Stadium.

Bob Parker, general manager of Dreamland, promised those prospective

weekend. “If there’s a big convention, we’ll stay open and serve people who come late,” Parker said.

The restaurant is also building up another source of revenue - catering - and that comes in handy when your landlord, who is also an investor, has a meeting facility around the corner.

Of course, Dreamland does attract the baseball fans at Riverwalk Stadium with that smell. Parker said that he was at a Biscuits game “and I could smell it. With the Biscuits being in open air and right across the street and if the wind blows the right way - the smell is a draw.”

Parker said Dreamland complements the Biscuits because not everybody will eat at the stadium. “Why not get them downtown for six hours instead of three or four,” he said.

Dreamland Manager Bob Parker

“When you combine office workers, tourists and residents you create that demand. The more that you develop that component, the less risk a retail operation is and the greater chance of them finding their way to their target areas. We want to use incentives to mitigate the risks so we can encourage the pioneers to (invest).”

Kyser, who is chairman of the Alley Owners Association, said, “Fortunately, we have a unique group of people at The Alley. They have been able to do what they’re doing without the economy being in good shape.

“Everybody considers everyone else as a partner not a competitor because what’s good for Dreamland and Alley Bar is good for my building.

“I think The Alley project is going to be - on a little different scale - just as important as the ballpark. It has all the things going for it to complement the Renaissance Hotel. I think the Renaissance Hotel in conjunction with the ballpark and the things the city is doing on the riverfront have given the private investor like myself an opportunity to come down there and participate.”

investors that the restaurant would not sit empty. He reminded people that Dreamland “is a very good restaurant with great service and great food. It’s not just the Biscuits that drive our weekends and nights.”

He also told potential investors that Dreamland is open every day, serves lunch and when the 700-plus downtown hotel rooms fill up with conventioneers and tourists, Dreamland will have plenty of business.

“The hotels feed a lot of people, but they don’t feed them every meal,” Parker said.

“The hotel guests don’t want to drive; they want to walk. They want to walk around and see the beautiful buildings down here.

We do really, really well with hotel guests.”

Oh, by the way, Dreamland’s patrons are a hearty bunch. Parker said the restaurant uses at least 350 pounds of pork daily and the average climbs to 600 pounds a day when you combine all meats. Dreamland also goes through 20 gallons of barbecue sauce a day and an average of 200 orders of french fries daily.

But unquestionably it was critical for Dreamland to open on the same night the Biscuits opened their home season back on April 9.

“We didn’t think it would be the best grand opening night ever at Dreamland,” Parker recalled. “We didn’t advertise - we just opened. The importance of being open that night was that if I wasn’t open and people walk by they think we aren’t open at night.

There were 7,000 people that came to the game that night.

“A lot of people come to the first game and don’t come again, but at least they know we’re open downtown and they can come in.”

You may not be aware of this, but Dreamland has a basement and some thoughts about how to utilize it. Parker said he is considering adding some dining space and maybe add some live music to complement the live music on the patio Thursday-Saturday.

“I’m not going to get everybody to come here, but a family that comes downtown twice a week may have barbecue one night and seafood or Italian the next,” Parker said.

— David Zaslawsky

Dreamland, which has not posted hours, stayed open until 1 a.m. on a recent

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

29

Member Profile

Susan Raybon has owned Froggy Bottom Materials for the past two years.

The Extra Yard Froggy Bottom Materials helps transform yards into something special.

by Rebecca Flatt

Two years ago, when Susan Raybon was given the opportunity to move from the healthcare industry to owning a business that involved being outside all day, she went for it and hasn’t looked back.

30

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

made from various agriculture materials such as hay, poultry litter, cottonseed meal and gypsum. Mushroom compost has a high water and nutrient holding capacity, and can be used for farming, gardening, lawn care and landscaping.

Raybon does buy many of the products locally, but in addition to Pennsylvania she also purchases materials from Tennessee, California, Colorado and Mexico.

Susan Raybon loves the outdoors, and is a self-proclaimed country girl.

Two years ago, when she was given the opportunity to move from the healthcare industry to owning a business that involved being outside all day, she went for it and hasn’t looked back.

Froggy Bottom Materials, Inc. has been in business in Montgomery for more than 25 years, providing top quality landscaping materials to most of Central Alabama. It was started in the 1980s by Gene and B.J. Shaver.

While going through a divorce, Raybon worked for the couple at Froggy Bottoms on a part-time basis. When health issues became a factor and they decided to sell the business, Raybon was an obvious choice for the potential buyer.

“They asked me if I would stay and run it full time,” Raybon says.

“We worked out a buy-out agreement, and two years later here I am.”

The business caters to landscapers, contractors and individuals looking to revamp their ordinary yard with anything from pavers to water gardens, which have become very popular and are available at a reasonable cost.

Froggy Bottom Materials recently became an authorized Belgard pavers dealer. These pavers are designed to provide many years of protection in all climates, enhancing the aesthetics and value of properties. A wide range of colors, shapes and finishes are available right on site at the business’ location on Cook Station Road.

With a name as unique as Froggy Bottom, many wonder where it originated. Legend says that in the early 1900s, the small community in east Montgomery County was named Froggy Bottom because it is an area of wetland with many croaking frogs. As the years went by, it became an old gravel pit and a sort of lover’s lane, where couples would go parking.

When the Shavers started the company, they named the business Froggy Bottom Materials in honor of this area. Also unique to Froggy Bottom Materials is that it is the only landscape material business in the area offering custom-blended soil. Delivered all the way from Pennsylvania, this product is blended with mushroom compost, the medium which results from the mushroom growing process. It is

Generally, customers come prepared with a landscape design, and Raybon and her team of five help fulfill that vision. She gives much credit to her employees James Duncan, Bryan Hutchison, Tommie Lee Johnson, Max Russell and Bo Bozeman, who all work full time.

One of her favorite aspects of the job is seeing pictures of the before and after.

“I enjoy helping customers fulfill that visual image of what they want their yard or property to look like, and actually making it happen,” Raybon says. “It’s fun being able to walk through and show them all of the products that are available.”

She gives individual estimates based on the size of the project, the chosen products and the amount of labor for installation. While the economy hasn’t had a negative effect on her business, the weather can pose a problem, especially when the materials are outside. But working five days a week, as early as 6 a.m. and as late as 4 p.m. gives customers a wide range of time to peruse the soils, pavers, stones, gravel and rocks. Spring is her busiest time of year, and gives a new boost of energy after the winter months can slow things down, but she rarely gets discouraged.

“I remember one day when we had 60 walk-in customers in 5 1/2 hours,” she says. “That was a great day!”

BUSINESS:

FROGGY BOTTOM MATERIALS OWNER:

SUSAN RAYBON EMPLOYEES:

5 YEARS IN BUSINESS:

25, OWNER FOR 2 LOCATION:

1010 COOK STATION ROAD PHONE NUMBER:

215-3704 WEB SITE:

WWW.FROGGYBOTTOMMATERIALSINC.COM

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

31

We’ve got a Black Belt.

And We’re Not Afraid to Use It. Alabama Black Belt Adventures capitalizes on region’s natural resources.

by David Zaslawsky

TYLER - The Alabama Black Belt Adventures hopes to lure business leaders and decision makers to the state as part of a unique economic development project.

Neal Wade

Thomas Harris

“The abundance of land and natural resources in the Black Belt is truly

unlike any other • in the world.”

Neal Wade, who as director of the Alabama Development Office is the state’s top economic developer, said, “We are going to have executives and business leaders from all over the world who are going to come here to hunt and come here to fish. They are going to use the resources here (in the Black Belt) and they may (have never) been in the state before. It introduces people to the state.

“And when they get ready to expand their business or when they get ready to move a business somewhere in the Southeast, they are going to remember Alabama in a positive way and that’s going to help us create jobs in this state.”

That’s right - utilizing the natural resources of the Black Belt will be a money-maker for the region and surrounding regions.

This is a different type of economic development as Wade noted during a news conference launching the Alabama Black Belt Adventures.

“What we are trying to do in this state is redefine the definition of economic development,” Wade said. “It’s not just recruiting industry, but it is trade; it is tourism; and it is growing jobs using Alabama’s great natural resources. We are going to seek out an area of the state that is hurting right now and this is going to be a very positive thing for us.”

The initiative will also preserve jobs, according to Thomas Harris, chairman of

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Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Merchant Capital and the driving force behind the project.

“These counties are really hurting and I think we can at least stop some of the bleeding with an organized marketing effort, a communications effort and an education effort,” Harris said. “I think we can turn this around and make it into a positive and preserve the rural landscape of the Black Belt.”

Rep. John Knight, D-Montgomery, said, “The Alabama Black Belt Adventures will make Alabama one of the top destination points in America to hunt, fish, to hike, bike ride, ride horses, bird watch and enjoy our many other outdoor recreational opportunities.”

Commissioner of Conservation Barnett Lawley said, “We are going to market this area (Black Belt) and the use of a natural resource is going to have an economic impact to every community within the Black Belt region. The abundance of land and natural resources in the Black Belt is truly unlike any other in the world.”

The state marched out its heavy hitters in the outdoor arena for the news conference - Ray Scott, founder of Bassmasters, and Jackie Bushman, founder of Buckmasters - both leaders of Alabama-based organizations.

“We are taking something that is so obviously evident and put the saddle on it,” Scott said. “People need to know about it first of all, and second, they need an invitation and then open the doors - they will come.”

Bushman said: “It doesn’t get any better than this. Where can you hunt something

seven months out of the year? Some states have eight or nine days of hunting.”

Harris said there are substantial economic impacts with South Dakota’s pheasant hunting season; duck hunting in Stuttgart, Arkansas; quail hunting in south Georgia; and deer and quail hunting in south Texas.

“We’ve got a chance to have more velocity in the recreational dollars than these other areas that are proven successes,” Harris said. “It’s going to all be about the execution and implementation of our mission.”

Another advantage the Black Belt has is being in a populated area; plus, it is easier to reach the area than some of the other hunting regions in the country, according to Harris.

He expects Montgomery Regional Airport will see an increase in passengers coming to the Black Belt for outdoor activities.

And then there’s the marketplace - a very large marketplace, according to Ed Mizzell, executive vice president of Birminghambased Luckie & Co., who is directing the marketing campaign for Alabama Black Belt Adventures.

“We have 18.5 million hunters in the United States who are passionate about their sport,” Mizzell said.

“There is a $30 billion economic impact, so this is a sizeable marketplace and we have the product here. We wanted to create a brand that would represent all the outdoor resources and the opportunities that we have to build tourism and stimulate economic development in this region of the country.

“Obviously, this is an abundant hunting and fishing destination and this could be a catalyst for economic development in this state and make a real difference in this area of the country.”

Luckie & Co. has developed a Web site, www.alabamablackbeltadventures.com, to promote the project. The site has four categories: The Black Belt, Hunting & Fishing, Outdoor Recreation and Attractions & Events.

Mizzell said his goal is to fill up the rooms at the 50 lodges scattered throughout the 23county Black Belt. More visitors mean more dollars spent in the region and surrounding areas. More visitors mean more opportunities for new businesses and for existing businesses to expand.

The lodges already have a dramatic economic impact in the region. An official with Southern Sportsman Hunting Lodge said his company spends around $200,000 a year on land leases, supplies and equipment. He said that $200,000 does not include wages.

“There are no shortage of natural resources and outdoor opportunities within the Black Belt,” Lawley said. “The resources are continually flourishing because of the soil.

There is no other place in the world that has the rich nutrients that this soil produces every year.”

The Black Belt gets its name from the dark soil.

Now officials have banded together with a $350,000 helping hand from the state Legislature to boost tourism and create jobs in the state’s mostdepressed regions.

“My goal is simple,” Knight said. “Take the God-given natural resources of the Black Belt and use them to help all the people of the Black Belt.”

But regions outside the Black Belt will also benefit. The Web site lists attractions throughout the state, including dozens of sites in Montgomery.

“If we can get everyone that came to hunt and fish in the Alabama Black Belt to stay over one extra night, they can see some of the destinations or attractions we have,” Mizzell said.

Harris, who said the key figures behind the program are Knight, Wade, Lawley and Tim Gothard, executive director of the Alabama Wildlife Federation, hopes to have 50 facilities listed on the Web site within one year. He speaks from experience. Harris helped develop the Alabama Quail Trail, which began about six years ago with 12 facilities; now there are 40-plus facilities.

“This is essentially the same type of initiative - marketing the assets that are already here,” Harris said. “We knew we could do it if we could just put all the pieces together. This is just so much bigger and involves a bigger product mix.

“The Black Belt is 11 million acres so it’s a really big playpen,” Harris continued. “The climate is good; the fishing is year around and it’s spectacular. and the hunting in the Black Belt region lasts for seven months and that’s very unique. This is the perfect example of public and private partnerships.”

The next step may be marketing the Alabama Black Belt Adventures with the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail. Harris said he has already had talks with David Bronner, chief executive of the Retirement Systems of Alabama, which built the golf trail.

Harris said he talked to Bronner about a “Bird and Birdies” package.

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

33

Member News

BUSINESSBUZZ Various sources of information were gathered and analyzed to choose the winners in each category. Winners are determined based on the information gathered internally and from data provided by third parties.

LOCAL REALTORS RECEIVE NATIONAL GREEN DESIGNATION MONTGOMERY - Debbie Tucker Corbett, Sheila Woodham-Talley and Myra Pruit of Aronov Realty Brokerage Inc. have been awarded the National Association of Realtors’ (NAR) Green Designation.

The three received the prestigious designation after completing 18 hours of course work designed specifically for Realtors. The courses were created in collaboration with a multidisciplinary team of industry experts from across the country; ensuring designees gain comprehensive knowledge of green homes and buildings and issues of sustainability in relation to real estate.

Corbett, Woodham and Pruit learned what makes a property green, helping clients evaluate the cost/benefits of green building features and practices, distinguishing between industry rating and classification systems, listing and marketing green homes and buildings, discussing the financial grants and incentives available to homeowners and helping consumers see a property’s green potential.

NAR’s Green Designation was developed in response to growing consumer awareness of the benefits of resource-efficient homes and buildings. It is the only green real estate

34

Debbie Tucker Corbett

BEASLEY ALLEN LAW FIRM WINS $3.5 MILLION JUDGMENT FOR CLIENT MONTGOMERY - The law firm of Beasley, Allen, Crow, Methvin, Portis & Miles, P.C. represented a Clanton family who was awarded $3.5 million.

Sheila Woodham-Talley

Myra Pruitt

professional designation recognized by NAR. ARONOV’S AQUA RESORT WINS BEST OF PANAMA CITY BEACH AWARD MONTGOMERY - Aronov Realty was recently honored when the company’s newest beach resort, Aqua, was selected for the 2009 Best of Panama City Beach Award in the Condominiums category.

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

A Chilton County jury awarded the Sanderson family of Clanton $3.5 million for the death of James Sanderson, who was killed in 2008 in Elmore County, when the van he was driving was crushed between two logging trucks.

Beasley Allen attorneys Benjamin E. Baker and Portis represented the Sanderson family, including James Sanderson’s widow, Annie M. Sanderson, and children, Derek, Josh and Amy Sanderson.

ACTOR TO HELP FAMILY GUIDANCE CENTER CELEBRATE 50TH ANNIVERSARY MONTGOMERY - Award-winning actor Henry Winkler will come Oct. 5 to Montgomery to help Family Guidance Center of Alabama celebrate its 50th anniversary.

Henry Winkler

Winkler, a noted children’s book author, actor, director and producer, will be the guest speaker at Family Guidance Center’s 50th anniversary celebration at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival. Winkler starred as “The Fonz” in the long-running television show “Happy Days.”

The agency, founded in 1959, provides a wide range of services including therapeutic counseling, mentoring, parenting education, marriage enrichment, early childhood services, senior services and work force support services.

Family Guidance Center provides services throughout Alabama with offices in Montgomery, Troy, Dothan, Hayneville, Selma, Birmingham and Mobile. More than 25,000 families benefit from the agency’s services each year.

“Family Guidance Center is excited to welcome Henry Winkler to Montgomery as we celebrate this important milestone in our organization’s long history of service to

children, families and seniors,” said Walter White, executive director of the Family Guidance Center.

“Mr. Winkler’s background and life experiences have provided him with a special perspective on the importance of families.”

The event will help raise funds for the non-profit organization.

Tickets are on sale now at $50 per person and can be purchased online at www.familyguidancecenter.org or by calling the agency at 2704100 or (800) 499-6597. Tickets are also on sale at the Alabama Shakespeare Festival box office at 271-5353.

For information about Family Guidance Center of Alabama’s 50th anniversary, contact White at (334) 270-4100, (800) 499-6597 or wwhite @familyguidancecenter.org.

ARONOV HOMES RANKED NO. 1 HOME BUILDER IN READERS’ CHOICE SURVEY MONTGOMERY - Aronov Homes recently received the Montgomery Advertiser’s 2009 Readers’ Choice award for top Home Builder in the area.

Aronov Homes, which has consistently been rated among the top companies in the market, is proud to have received the 2009 1st Place Winner award.

“We are thrilled that Montgomery County selected Aronov Homes for this top honor,” said Donnie Summerlin, vice president of Aronov Homes “We work hard to ensure complete satisfaction for homeowners, and to fulfill our mission of building homes that are superior in design, quality and value.”

Aronov Homes builds new homes in the Deer Creek, Dexter Ridge and Windsor Hill communities in Montgomery and in The Villas at Brookstone community in Prattville.

The company has served new homeowners since the 1950s.

TROY UNIVERSITY NAMED AMONG THE TOP IN THE SOUTHEAST TROY - Troy University has been named among the best in the Southeast by The Princeton Review.

The designation marks the fifth year in a row Troy has been named to the list that includes only 640 colleges and universities nationwide and 141 colleges and university in the Southeast.

“This distinction underscores our philosophy at Troy that the most important thing we do is serve our students,” said Troy University Chancellor Jack Hawkins Jr. The inclusion is the result of a survey that asks students to rate their schools on several topics and report on their experiences.

Topics include: academics/ administration, life at the school, their fellow students, and themselves. Surveys are conducted on campuses and via the Princeton Review Web site at which students have the option of completing a survey online.

The 141 colleges The Princeton Review chose for its “Best in the Southeast” designations are located in 12 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, and West Virginia.

The Princeton Review also designated 218 colleges in the Northeast, 123 in the West, and 158 in the Midwest as best in their locales on the company’s 2010 Best Colleges: Region by Region section on its site. The 640 colleges named “regional best” represent only about 25 percent of the nation’s 2,500 four-year colleges.

SIX LOCAL BRADLEY ARANT BOULT CUMMINGS ATTORNEYS NAMED TO TOP LAWYERS LIST MONTGOMERY - Six Montgomery attorneys from the

Phillip H. Butler

William C. McGowan

Wendell Cauley

W. Stanley Gregory

Charles A. Stewart, III

Robert D. Thorington

law firm of Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP have been selected for inclusion in the 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America.

William C. McGowin, Charles A. Stewart III, and Robert D. Thorington.

In addition to listing six Montgomery attorneys, Best Lawyers includes Bradley Arant Boult Cummings attorneys from each of the firm’s other offices in Birmingham and Huntsville; Jackson, Miss.; Charlotte, N.C.; Nashville, Tenn.; and Washington, D.C. The firm had 139 lawyers included in the rankings.

“Bradley Arant Boult Cummings has a great tradition of providing excellent legal advice and representation to our clients,” said Beau Grenier, chairman of the firm’s board. “It is an honor to be so highly regarded by our peers and we do not take the recognition for granted.”

Listed for the Montgomery office are Philip H. Butler, Wendell Cauley, W. Stanley Gregory,

The 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America ranks Bradley Arant Boult Cummings as a top firm in 32 legal areas.

The 2010 edition marks the 27th year of publishing for The Best Lawyers in America.

SQUARE ROOT INTERACTIVE VOTED NO.1 IN READERS’ POLL MONTGOMERY - Square Root Interactive and Ektron ELITE Partner, won first place in the Montgomery Advertiser 2009 Readers’ Choice Awards Professional Service category for Best Web Design Agency in Montgomery County.

Square Root Interactive, a fullservice Web design and development agency, also received recognition in the same category for the Autauga and Elmore county awards.

CONTINUED ON PAGE 36

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

35

BUSINESS BUZZ (CONTINUED FROM PG. 35) “Receiving these prestigious awards illustrates that Square Root Interactive is a wellrespected Web site agency in the River Region,” said Andy Martin, president and co-founder. “It is an honor to know that our quality work is recognized in both our local community and around the country.”

The Montgomery Advertiser Readers’ Choice Awards winners are determined by newspaper readers submitting votes via paper and Web site ballots.

said Charlie Young, president and chief executive officer, ERA Franchise Systems LLC. “Weeks is one of our top brokers, and earning this honor reflects the superior service that ERA Weeks and Browning Realty Inc. offers to homebuyers and sellers in the Tri-County area.”

JUSTICE GROUP SELECTS BEASLEY ALLEN SHAREHOLDER AS PRESIDENT-ELECT

MONTGOMERY REAL ESTATE BROKER, FIRM RECEIVE PRESTIGIOUS HONORS

Alabama Association for Justice.

Gibson was recently appointed to the Alabama Judicial Compensation Committee by the Lt. Gov. Jim Folsom Jr. “It is a great honor to serve an organization of trial attorneys that represents individuals who have been injured by the misconduct and negligence of others,” Gibson said. “It’s our mission to ensure that everyone can get justice in the courtroom, no matter how small their stature and how powerful the interest they may be taking on.”

GOLF DIGEST NAMES BRONNER TO ALL-STARS OF PUBLIC GOLF

C. Gibson Vance

MONTGOMERY - Beasley Allen shareholder C. Gibson Vance has been selected to serve as president-elect of the American Association for Justice (AAJ).

Sherry Weeks

MONTGOMERY - Local real estate broker Sherry Weeks was recently recognized as one of the nation’s top ERA brokers by global real estate company ERA Franchise Systems LLC. Weeks accepted the President’s Circle designation for superior performance on behalf of ERA Weeks and Browning Realty Inc. The President’s Circle is an elite group of ERA branded companies that rank among the Top 50 (Gold Level), Top 100 (Silver Level) or Top 200 (Bronze Level) in either number of residential sales completed or total amount of completed sales in the ERA network. ERA Weeks and Browning Realty Inc. was named to the Top 200 level.

“This award recognizes success for what all ERA brokers strive to accomplish - building a team of real estate professionals that listens to customers’ needs and delivers the services they value,” 36

The election was announced at the organization’s annual convention held recently in San Francisco. AAJ is dedicated to preserving the civil justice system and making sure that powerful special interests are held accountable when they engage in misconduct or negligence.

As an executive officer of AAJ, Vance will serve as the national leader in the organization’s effort to educate the public and legislators on issues of critical importance to consumers and our nation’s judicial system.

Gibson specializes in personal injury litigation and consumer fraud cases for Beasley Allen.

He has been an active in the Montgomery County Bar Association, serving as its president in 2005. He also served as president of the Montgomery County Trial Lawyers Association and the Alabama Civil Justice Foundation. He recently also served as president of the

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

David Bronner

BIRMINGHAM - The August issue of Golf Digest lists the AllStars of Public Golf.

That prestigious list includes David Bronner, chief executive officer of the Retirement Systems of Alabama, which has its corporate headquarters in Montgomery.

Why would Bronner be on the same list as Tiger Woods, Lee Trevino, Nancy Lopez, Fred Couples and others? He developed the largest public golf course project in history, according to Golf Digest. That project features 26 courses at 11 sites on the Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail.

“Anytime you are compared to Tiger Woods, Lee Trevino and others for your impact on public golf is quite an honor,” Bronner said in a statement.

“The Robert Trent Jones Golf Trail is helping enhance the image of Alabama and has

attracted visitors and business investors from around the world,” Bronner said.

Others on the All-Star list include Hale Irwin, Ken Venturi and Calvin Peete.

CENTRAL PARK APARTMENT HOMES RECEIVES FOUR FIRST-PLACE AWARDS MONTGOMERY - Central Park Apartment Homes was recently awarded four first-place awards by the River Region Apartment Association.

Central Park was the only River Region apartment community that swept its age category with first-place awards for Best Clubhouse, Best Entrance, Best Pool Area and Best Model.

The awards were presented at the River Region Apartment Association Beautification Award Ceremony at Wynlakes Golf & Country Club. Central Park was selected out of 14 apartment communities.

“The Central Park Apartment Homes’ staff and residents are the real award recipients,” said Fran Fleischman, assistant vice president for Aronov Realty Management Inc., the managing agent for the community.

“The hard work of the on-site team, along with the support of our residents makes Central Park stand out above the competition,” Fleischman said.

Central Park Apartment Homes offers one-, two- and threebedroom apartments. Residents enjoy park benches scattered throughout the community to promote neighborly conversation, picnic areas and barbecue patios for outdoor dining opportunities, shaded outdoor pavilions as well as fountains and waterfalls.

For information on Central Park Apartment Homes visit: www. centralparkmontgomery.com.

MEMBERS ON THE MOVE JACKSON HOSPITAL HIRES CHIEF FINANCIAL OFFICER MONTGOMERY - Jackson Hospital has named Peter Verrecchia, 48, as a vice president and its new chief financial officer.

“Peter’s broad knowledge of health care finance will help Jackson Hospital continue its mission as a community-based not-forPeter Verrecchia profit hospital,” said Don Henderson, president and chief executive officer of Jackson Hospital.

“The main challenge for Jackson is to continue to grow our service volume in a cost effective manner while maintaining our mission of delivering high quality health care services to our community,” Verrecchia said.

Originally from New Jersey, Verrecchia and his wife of 20 years, Maria, relocated to Montgomery from El Paso, Texas, where he served as a chief financial officer for Tenet Healthcare Corp. Prior to working in El Paso, he spent nine years as a chief financial officer with Community Health Systems in Philadelphia.

Verrecchia received his bachelor’s degree in accounting from Rutgers University in New Jersey and his master’s degree in finance from Drexel University in Philadelphia. He has been a certified public accountant since 1985.

GREATER ALABAMA FINANCIAL GROUP NAMES FINANCIAL SERVICE REP MONTGOMERY - Hank Coleman has joined Greater Alabama Financial Group as a financial service representative.

Hank Coleman

He is a Troy University graduate with a bachelor’s degree in finance. Coleman is a general securities representative and is licensed to offer life and health products in

Alabama and California.

Greater Alabama Financial Group, an office MetLife, offers a broad variety of financial products and services including life, disability income, long-term care insurance and annuities, mutual funds and investment products.

ALABAMA LAW FOUNDATION NAMES PRESIDENT, BOARD MEMBERS MONTGOMERY - The Alabama Law Foundation announced that David R. Boyd is the new president for 2008-2009.

David R. Boyd

38

His main goal as president is to take a “wellness checkup” of the foundation’s resources and goals to identify “strengths and weaknesses and plan for the future.”

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Boyd is a partner in Balch & Bingham LLC, practicing in the firm’s Montgomery office. Boyd has served as chair of the Alabama Board of Bar Examiners, a member of the State Bar’s Board of Bar Commissioners, State Bar vice president, and chair of the State Bar’s Disciplinary Commission. He is a Fellow of the Alabama Law Foundation and a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. Boyd is listed in The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA: American’s Leading Lawyers for Business, and Alabama Super Lawyers.

Acknowledging his long record of service, the Alabama State Bar awarded him the William D. “Bill” Scruggs Service to the Bar Award in 2006.

In addition to the new president, the Alabama Law Foundation named three new board members, and two members were appointed to serve another term. New board member Thomas N. Carruthers, Jr., a partner in Bradley Arant’s Birmingham office, specializes in corporate law. Joseph A. Fawal joins the board for the first time.

Fawal’s law firm, Fawal & Spina, is located in Birmingham and he specializes in small businesses.

New board member Alyce Manley Spruell is managing member of Spruell & Powell, LLC in Tuscaloosa. Spruell’s practice focuses on employment and corporate law, primarily for small businesses.

Patrick C. Davidson, of Adams, Umbach, Davidson & White LLC in Opelika, is appointed to serve another term.

Also serving a second term is Walter E. McGowan of Gray, Longford, Sapp, McGowan, Gray & Nathanson, located in Tuskegee.

BAPTIST HEALTH APPOINTS CEO OF BAPTIST MEDICAL CENTER EAST MONTGOMERY - Peter Selman has been appointed the chief executive officer for Baptist Medical Center East.

Before joining Baptist Health, Selman served as the chief executive officer for DeKalb Regional Medical Center in Fort Peter Selman Payne and previously served in the same role for Appling Healthcare System in Baxley, Georgia.

Originally from the Mississippi Gulf Coast, Selman has a master’s degree in health services administration from the University of Alabama at Birmingham. He attended the University of Alabama where he received a bachelor’s degree, as well as a master’s degree in marketing and public relations. Selman has more than 10 years of senior leadership experience.

“Baptist Medical Center East is a great organization and my family and I are looking forward to becoming a part of the Montgomery community,” Selman said.

BANKTRUST ANNOUNCES MONTGOMERY AREA PRESIDENT MONTGOMERY - William Bradley Armagost has joined BankTrust as Montgomery area president.

With 18-plus years of banking experience, Armagost has served in both executive and senior positions in the Montgomery area.

Brad Armagost

He is a graduate of the University of Alabama and has completed the BAI Graduate School in Banking and Financial Management at Vanderbilt University and The Stonier Graduate School of Banking at Georgetown University.

THE CONE CO. HIRES FINANCIAL SERVICES VETERAN MONTGOMERY - R. Guy Davis Jr., who has spent 20 years in the financial services industry, has joined The Cone Co. Inc. Davis, a native of Montgomery, graduated from Jefferson Davis High School. He received a bachelor’s degree in finance Guy Davis from Auburn University. He also is a graduate of the Southwestern Graduate School of Banking at Southern Methodist University.

The Cone Co. is a full-service insurance agency providing risk management, employee benefits, insurance brokerage and surety bonding products that are individually tailored for clients.

WAKA, CBS-8 HIRES GENERAL ASSIGNMENT REPORTER MONTGOMERY - Anjuli Lohn has joined the CBS-8 News Team as a general assignment reporter.

Lohn served as a reporter and anchor at the University of Florida’s television station WUFT-TV in Gainesville. She interned at two Anjuli Lohn stations while in college: WFLA in her hometown of Tampa and WTVF in Nashville, Tennessee.

“Anjuli is a solid reporter who will make an early impact in covering news and community events in the CBS-8 coverage area,” said Jim Caruthers, general manager of CBS-8. “We are excited to have her join our team.”

Lohn, who received a degree in telecommunications at the University of Florida, has been reporting in Central, South and West Alabama for CBS-8 News.

“I look forward to meeting many of the CBS-8 viewers and telling the stories that mean the most,” Lohn said.

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

39

Economic Times are Changing Regions Financial Corp. Chief Economist Bob Allsbrook: Recession Changed Society Culture

by David Zaslawsky

Crunching numbers and looking for trends is one thing, but Regions Financial Corp. Chief Economist Bob Allsbrook is writing a whole new chapter about forecasting.

He has examined the psychological impact of the severe recession and how it has changed culture and society.

“Never before in my career have I talked like this,” said Allsbrook, who has been an economist for 25 years. He is considered the authority on the Southeast and was a college professor prior to working for Regions.

He said that because of the dramatic socialeconomic shift, “I think we are going to have a long-term change in our economy. I believe these changes are going to last the next 20 years. The economy has taken a dramatically different course because of what’s happened in the last year.”

What Allsbrook has seen are consumers staying at home instead of going on vacations to the beach; traveling by car instead of plane; buying their coffee at McDonald’s instead of Starbucks; and changing the oil on their vehicle every 6,000 miles vs. 3,000 mile changes.

He said that some people are now shopping at Target who never would have before, and he recalled the story of one person who traded in his Porsche for a Mini Cooper and bragged about it. “Conspicuous consumption is an embarrassment now in our society,” Allsbrook said.

He noted that the consumer spending rate is -2 percent and said that will continue because of the bleak employment outlook.

Allsbrook said in most recessions, consumer spending may fall to zero and stay there, but not turn negative.

The change is so pronounced that Americans have returned to an old behavior brought on by the Great Depression: save money and pay down debt. That translates into below-average growth, Allsbrook said.

He forecasts a long-term economic growth rate of 2 percent a year, but that is sluggish by historical standards after a recession when the growth rate during recovery is usually 5 to 7 percent, “The recession is about over now,” Allsbrook said. “The worst is behind us; less worse is the situation now; it’s going to get better and then more better, but not great.”

There will not be a robust recession recovery because of the following factors weighing on consumers: declining incomes, high unemployment rate, increased savings, low confidence, required monthly payments and the inability to refinance mortgages to pay debts.

Businesses are also facing challenging times with high inventories, low capacity use, weak output; little capital spending and new orders that “are neutral at best,” according to Allsbrook.

He said manufacturing capacity is down to a historical low of 65 percent and he forecasts a -1 percent rate for manufacturing output the rest of the year and into 2010.

ON TAXES AND REGULATIONS: “I think taxes and regulations (will increase) for at least 20 years.”

ON INFLATION: He is calling for above-average inflation rate of 5 percent a year, which is a result of government spending.

ON THE TAX CREDIT FOR BUYING A NEW HOUSE: Said that consumers need a $15,000 tax credit instead of the current $8,000 incentive to spur new home sales.

ON CREDIT CARD DELINQUENCY RATES: Said that the rates are “the highest we’ve ever seen in the modern economy” in part because consumers can no longer refinance their mortgage to pay down the credit card debt.

ON FED CHAIRMAN BEN BERNANKE: “There is no question that Fed Chairman

“In a year or so demand will stabilize and then we will have to produce more goods because we’ve worked those inventories off,” he said.

Bernanke prevented a world depression.”

“In this new economy what do we do to be successful - to grow, to stay in business?

What specifically should we do in our business and in our personal financial planning? Where are the business opportunities? The question now is what are we going to do to thrive going forward?”

full percentage point to the gross

He said that how companies respond to the changing economic environment “depends on your individual case and your unique company.”

and others will again seek work when the

ON CASH FOR CLUNKERS PROGRAM: Said that the program has added a domestic product.

ON THE UNEMPLOYMENT RATE: Said the unemployment rate dropped in July to 9.4 percent because 400,000 people gave up searching for work and those 400,000 economy improves, driving up the unemployment rate.

ON THE $787 BILLION STIMULUS PLAN: Said that he was disappointed because it did not contain an increased investment tax credit and accelerated depreciation for business owners.

40

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

41

ECONOMIC INTEL

Food Prices Decline Shoppers save money on beef, dairy products Declines in prices on beef products, coupled with continued savings in the dairy case, brought the average cost of 20 market basket items down almost 2 percent at Alabama markets.

According to the Alabama Farmers Federation’s monthly food price survey, the market basket averaged $50.68 the first week of July, down 92 cents from a month earlier.

Steaks and ground beef declined as America fired up the grills to celebrate the Fourth of July holiday. T-bone steaks fell 53 cents to $8.12 per pound and ground beef was down 17 cents to $2.27 a pound. Chuck roast, however, jumped 9 cents to $3.20.

Pork prices were mixed with pork chops up a nickel to $3.18 a pound and bacon up 9 cents to $4.13 a pound. Boston

42

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

butts, however, were down 19 cents to $1.52 per pound. Whole fryers were unchanged at $1.23 per pound, but chicken breasts fell 4 cents to $1.98.

Prices in the dairy case continued to plummet as America’s struggling dairy farmers face an unprecedented crisis amid a sagging economy. Over the past year, the average price paid to farmers is less than half their cost of production. For the second straight month, milk fell a nickel to $2.70 per half-gallon, and butter was down 4 cents to $3.43 a pound.

Cottage cheese, which fell 23 cents last month, was up 5 cents to $2.56 a pound. Ice cream, perhaps buoyed by Independence Day weekend, was unchanged at $3.72 a half-gallon.

Eggs also dropped, falling 17 cents to $1.15 a dozen.

Meanwhile, on the produce aisle, prices were mixed as tomatoes climbed a nickel to $1.64 a pound and lettuce was up 8 cents to $1.39 per pound. Red potatoes, unchanged last month, fell five cents to 84 cents a pound. Sweet potatoes were down a penny to 93 cents a pound.

Regional reports collected by volunteer shoppers across the state July 1-10 showed the market basket averaged $49.80 in Northeast Alabama, $49.95 in the northwest corner of the state, $50.03 in the central counties and $53.22 in South Alabama.

Alabama Farmers Federation conducts the informal monthly market basket survey as a tool to reflect retail food price trends.

Unemployment Data Metropolitan Area

Civilian Labor Force JUN r JUL r 2009 2008 167,687 172,225

Unemployment Rate JUL p JUN r JUL r 2009 2009 2008 10.00% 10.00% 5.50%

Montgomery MA

JUL p 2009 167,392

Autauga

23,845

23,888

24,547

9.40%

9.40%

4.90%

Elmore

34,889

34,996

36,001

9.10%

9.20%

4.80%

Lowndes

4,934

4,997

4,896

18.30%

19.20%

11.00%

Montgomery

103,725

103,805

106,782

10.10%

10.00%

5.60%

Birmingham-Hoover MA

519,109

521,402

534,657

9.90%

10.10%

4.90%

Huntsville MA

200,321

200,738

206,088

8.30%

8.10%

4.10%

Mobile MA

186,066

186,308

187,421

10.80%

10.70%

5.60%

2,128,251

2,147,366

2,180,981

10.60%

10.60%

5.50%

156,255,000

155,921,000

156,300,000

9.70%

9.70%

6.00%

Alabama U.S.

p Preliminary r Revised The numbers are not seasonally adjusted. Estimates prepared by the Alabama Department of Industrial Relations in Cooperation with the Bureau of Labor Statistics, based on 2008 benchmark Montgomery MA is Augtauga, Elmore, Lowndes and Montogmery counties. Birmingham - Hoover MA is Bibb, Blount, Chilton, Jefferson, St. Clair, Shelby and Walker counties.

Huntsville MA is Limestone and Madison counties. Mobile MA is Mobile County .

Montgomery Building Starts Building Permits Current Month

Building Valuations

Last Month JUL 09

Last Year JUN 09

Current Month JUL 08

Last Month JUL 09

Last Year JUN 09

JUL 08

New Construction

19

31

37

$1,989,400

$10,326,000

$52,534,800

Additions and Alterations

79

88

79

$4,627,000

$4,194,600

$1,960,400

Others

47

43

44

$3,579,000

$855,400

$738,400

145

162

160

$10,195,400

$15,376,000

$55,233,600

Total

Source: City of Montgomery Building Department

Montgomery Metro Market Home Sales Current Month JUN 09

Last Month MAY 09

Month over Month % Change

Last Year JUN 08

Year over Year % Change

Statewide JUNE 09

360

292

23.29%

381

-5.51%

3,911

Median Selling Price

$134,500

$135,300

-0.59%

$153,000

--12.09%

$127,993

Average Selling Price

$154,226

$153,083

0.75%

$167,587

-7.97%

$156,852

92

95

-3.16%

93

-1.08%

161

3,148

3,104

1.42%

3,493

-9.88%

41,417

Total Home Sales

Average Days on Market Total Homes Listed

Source: Alabama Center for Real Estate (ACRE), The University of Alabama

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

43

National Retail Sales Monthly and Quarterly Retail Store Target

Costco

Year

May

June

July

2009 2008

-6.1% -0.7%

-6.2% 0.4%

-1.2%

2009 2008

-1.0% 5.0%

-1.0% 5.0%

6.0%

Family Dollar

2009 2008

Dollar General

2009 2008

Best Buy

JCPenney

Retail Store Kohl’s

Gap

6.2%

Year

May

June

July

2009 2008

-0.4% -7.2%

-3.8% 2.3%

-10.4%

2009 2008

-11.0% -7.0%

-10.0% -5.0%

-6.0%

CVS

2009 2008

13.3% 5.4%

Rite Aid

2009 2008

0.6% 1.3%

-0.6% -0.4%

-0.6% 1.2%

2009 2008

-6.2% 1.9%

Walgreens

2009 2008

1.0% 3.9%

3.4% 3.4%

2.0% 4.1%

2009 2008

-8.2% -4.4%

McDonald’s

2009 2008

2.8% 4.3%

4.3%

3.5% 3.4%

-8.2% -2.4%

-6.5%

6.1% 3.1%

U.S. same store sales compiled from 10-Q and 10-K forms (excluding fuel sales) Source: RetailerDaily.com

Sales Tax Collections Current Month JUL 09

Last Year JUL 08

Year over Year % Change

YTD 2009

YTD 2008

Year over Year % Change

Montgomery County

$3,209,284

$3,338,065

-3.86%

$31,853,644

$41,507,395

-23.26%

City of Montgomery

$7,294,849

$7,896,176

-7.62%

$50,258,473

$55,506,201

-9.45%

Pike Road

$159,668

$54,691

191.95%

$907,718

$477,265

90.19%

Autauga County

$592,087

$758,984

-21.99%

$4,241,070

$4,724,664

-10.24%

Elmore County

$713,556

$727,953

-1.98%

$5,540,348

$5,391,210

2.77%

Wetumpka

$472,377

$507,784

-6.97%

$92,801,254

$107,606,735

-13.76%

$440,423.40

$418,238.76

5.30%

$4,132,301

$4,107,625

0.60%

Millbrook

Year-to-Date is January through the current month.

Sources: Montgomery County Commission, City of Montgomery, City of Pike Road, Autauga County Commission, City of Prattville, Elmore County Commission, City of Wetumpka, City of Millbrook

44

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Montgomery Regional Airport Current Month JULY 09

Last Year JULY 08

Year over Year % Change

Air Carrier Operations

1,036

1,005

3.1%

Total Operations

5,356

6,608

Enplanements

16,246

Deplanements Total Passengers

YTD 2009

YTD 2008

Year over Year % Change

6,501

6,936

-6.3%

-18.9%

40,251

43,069

-6.5%

15,936

1.9%

87,653

100,977

-13.2%

16,596

16,672

-0.5%

89,260

101,797

-12.3%

32,842

32,608

0.7%

176,913

202,774

-12.8%

Source: Montgomery Regional Airport (MGM) Dannelly Field

Air Fares Roundtrip airfare comparisons from Montgomery, Birmingham and Atlanta airports to key destinations.

Destination

Montgomery

Birmingham

Atlanta

Baltimore (BWI)

$321

$193

$207

Boston (BOS)

$291

$235

$248

Charlotte, NC (CLT)

$229

$226

$197

Chicago (ORD)

$330

$299

$248

Cincinnati (CVG)

$289

$175

$225

Dallas-Fort Worth (DFW) $280

$225

$278

Denver (DEN)

$300

$335

$269

Detroit (DTW)

$267

$308

$231

Houston (HOU)

$318

$277

$266

Indianapolis (IND)

$300

$234

$197

Las Vegas (LAS)

$379

$264

$308

Los Angeles (LAX)

$300

$339

$242

VEHICLE

JULY 2009

Memphis (MEM)

$314

$274

$214

ACCENT

7,634

6,740

40,562

34,924

Miami (MIA)

$325

$322

$207

SONATA

13,381

11,409

73,862

77,336

Nashville (BNA)

$216

$158

$277

ELANTRA

13,616

10,454

53,520

72,432

New Orleans (MSY)

$224

$155

$228

TIBURON

151

1,102

8,497

6,069

New York (JFK)

$337

$237

$198

SANTA FE

6,793

6,868

40,266

44,278

Orlando (MCO)

$261

$217

$157

AZERA

306

808

2,257

12,251

Philadelphia (PHL)

$328

$338

$270

TUCSON

1,106

1,521

8,658

13,268

Pittsburgh (PIT)

$297

$233

$238

ENTOURAGE

32

482

3,375

3,514

St Louis (STL)

$300

$216

$229

VERACRUZ

519

700

7,289

7,048

Seattle (SEA)

$384

$272

$262

GENESIS

2,015

619

11,953

649

$1,200

$1,045

$1,038

45,553

40,703

250,239

271,769

$278

$209

$196

Washington D.C. (DCA) $374

$237

$210

Courtesy of Montgomery Regional Airport

Seoul, Korea (SEL) Tampa (TPA)

Hyundai Sales

TOTAL

JULY 2008 YTD 2009

YTD 2008

Source: Hyundai Motor America

Date of travel: Sept. 21-27. Date of pricing: Aug. 9.

Source: travelocity.com

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

45

Ribbon Cuttings & Ground Breakings

HERE WE GROW AGAIN

CRAVING FOR FASHION MATERNITY APPAREL

I H S SERVICES/MR. APPLIANCE

KREBS ARCHITECTURE & ENGINEERING

1951 Mulberry Street, Montgomery, AL, 538-8406 Leondra Lawery, Owner Maternity Shop

2603 Highland Avenue, Montgomery, AL 36107 264-1217 Mark McKee, Owner Heating & Air Conditioning Services

312 Catoma Street, Suite 100, Montgomery, AL 36104 271-0986 Danny Holmberg, Vice President Engineers - Specialized

New Members Advertising HEARD IT FIRST PROMOTIONS Maurice Brock 400 East Boulevard, Suite 301 Montgomery, AL 36117 334-356-0413

Advertising Agencies MEDIA STORM INC. Aaron Carr 2400 Presidents Drive, Suite 250 Montgomery, AL 36116 334-386-5917

Apartments STURBRIDGE COMMONS APARTMENT HOMES Yvonne Hawkins 8700 Seaton Blvd.

Montgomery, AL 36116 334-270-0111 THE MARK APARTMENTS Denise Lawrence 5701 East Shirley Lane Montgomery, AL 36117 334-244-0772 TURTLE PLACE APARTMENTS Tammie White 455 Eastdale Road South Montgomery, AL 36117 334-272-5404

Associations/ Non-Profit

Government Rel/Lobbying

MADD-ALABAMA MOTHERS AGAINST DRUNK DRIVING Peggy Batey 2101 Eastern Boulevard, Ste.210 Montgomery, AL 36117 334-277-7722

MILLER DEVELOPMENT GROUP, INC. Deborah Miller 3 South Jackson Street Montgomery, AL 36104 334-264-5537

Communications Equipment COMTEX TELECOMMUNICATIONS, INC. Ty Glassford 4121 Wall Street Montgomery, AL 36106 334-271-4000

Document Scanning BUSINESS SYSTEMS & CONSULTANTS Rick Romano 520 South Perry Street Montgomery, AL 36104 334-262-0511 SHELTON REPROGRAPHICS Steve Crum P.O. Box 1403 Millbrook, AL 36054 334-657-5852

Employment Agencies INDUSTRIAL STAFFING OF ALABAMA Stephanie Holley 901 S. Hull Street Montgomery, AL 36104 334-263-0370

46

Montgomery Business Journal September 2009

Heating & Air Conditioning Services IHS SERVICES/MR. APPLIANCE Mark McKee 2603 Highland Avenue Montgomery, AL 36107 334-264-1217

Insurance Companies/ Services VIVA MEDICARE PLUS Swede Scarborough 1425 I-85 Parkway Montgomery, AL 36106 334-272-8884

Legal Services Attorneys FRITZ & HUGHES LLC Michael A. Fritz 7020 Fain Park Drive, Ste. 1 Montgomery, AL 36117 334-215-4422

Hotels/Motels

Political Consulting/Media

RAMADA Rakesh Patel 1185 Eastern Blvd.

Montgomery, AL 36117 334-356-3335

MOWERY CONSULTING GROUP, LLC David Mowery 260 Commerce Street, 4th Floor Montgomery, AL 36104 334-207-9906

Individuals

Retail Shops/ Distribution

MADURIA SEARS 24 Covington Street Montgomery, AL 36104 334-953-5049

CRAVING FOR FASHION MATERNITY APPAREL Leondra Lawery 1951 Mulberry Street Montgomery, AL 36106 334-356-3741

PRSRT STD US Postage PAID Permit # 77 Montgomery AL

Post Office Box 79 Montgomery, AL 36101