STATE
Kentucky Ranks 20th in Nation for In-Sourced Jobs

With 84,700 Kentuckians working for U.S. subsidiaries of companies headquartered abroad, Kentucky ranks 20th in the nation in terms of the total number of “in-sourced” jobs, according to figures released by The Organization for International Investment (OFII).

Of those jobs, 55 percent are in the manufacturing sector, totaling 47,400 employees.

Foreign-owned companies that employ a large number of Kentuckians include Arkema Inc., BASF, Bridgestone Americas, Denso US, E.ON North America, Inc., Food Lion, GlaxoSmithKline, L’Oreal, Michelin, Novelis Corp., Panasonic, Pernod Ricard USA, Siemens, Sodexho, Square D, Toyota, Unilever and Volvo.

While in-sourcing companies have been strong and steady employers in Kentucky over the last decade, the international competition for investment is becoming increasingly more intense. Over the last one-year period, in-sourcing employment in Kentucky fell by 3,200.

“These new data show that Kentucky can’t assume global companies will always continue to invest and employ people in the state,” said Todd Malan, president and CEO of OFII, a Washington, D.C.-based business group representing U.S. subsidiaries of foreign companies.  “The challenge for policymakers is to ensure the state remains a competitive location for investment.”

LONDON
New Business Incubator Focuses on High-Tech Start-Ups

Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation has launched a small-business incubator that is focusing on technology businesses or those that leverage technology in their business model.

The incubator is located at KHIC’s headquarters in London and is large enough to house three companies. According to KHIC, small businesses generally spend between 18 months to 36 months in an incubator setting before graduating to their own facility.

Business owners who locate their company in the incubator receive coaching and mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs and also have access to mentors and advisors during the development process. Business owners also participate in a formal entrepreneur management development training program.

In addition, capital is available to the incubator businesses that accomplish specific items in their business plan.

Bob Wilson, director for the Center of Entrepreneurial Growth in the Tennessee research corridor and a consultant for KHIC, is overseeing the incubator. Wilson has experience in operating two other successful business incubators in the past – ORNL in Oak Ridge, Tenn., and in Knoxville at the University of Tennessee campus – and has worked with more than 70 start-up companies.

“It is important to take companies in the community that have the best opportunity for success and put all possible resources behind them,” Wilson said. “Kentucky Highlands has engaged in that for years. This is the next piece of that equation.”

Kentucky Highlands Investment Corporation was founded in 1968 to stimulate economic growth in nine counties in southern and eastern Kentucky. KHIC now serves 22 counties in the region and has created more than 10,000 jobs.

WILLIAMSBURG
Datatrac Growth Creates 250 New Jobs

Datatrac Information Services, Inc. has renovated a 57,000-square-foot former Wal-Mart in Williamsburg to accommodate its newest operation, which involves state-of-the-art digital conversion and archiving.

The expansion is the result of a contract with the Department of Homeland Security, U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services and Office of Records Services. As part of the multi-year contract, Datatrac will assist U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services’ with its efforts to create, standardize, and implement digitization processes and technologies, providing the foundation for electronic capture and management of critical agency data.

The new facility will bring more than 250 new jobs to Williamsburg.

Founded in 1987, Texas-based Datatrac provides information technology services and solutions to federal government organizations. The company currently has facilities handling federal contracts in Corbin and Barbourville.

LOUISVILLE
UPS to Hire 1,200 Workers to Meet Anticipated Seasonal Demand

In anticipation of the usual holiday rush, UPS is in the process of hiring some 1,200 extra workers in the Louisville area to meet the demand. Approximately 1,000 people will be needed at the company’s Worldport operations in Louisville, while another 200 will be hired as truck drivers and drivers’ assistants. According to UPS figures, the heaviest day of the holiday period is expected to be Dec. 22, when the company predicts Worldport will handle some two million packages, twice its usual daily amount.

LOUISVILLE
Entrepreneur Programs at NKU, UofL Rank Among Nations Best

A ranking of the nation’s top entrepreneurial colleges compiled by Entrepreneur magazine and The Princeton Review ranks the entrepreneurship programs at Northern Kentucky University and the University of Louisville as being among the best in the nation.

Louisville’s graduate-level IMBA program – The MBA for Entrepreneurial Thinking – was ranked No. 10, ahead of programs at Penn State, UCLA, UNC, Wake Forest, the University of Illinois, the University of Virginia and Babson College, among others. UofL also is one of the few institutions in the world to offer a PhD in entrepreneurship.

NKU’s undergraduate program at the Fifth Third Bank Entrepreneurship Institute was ranked No. 23.

More than 700 schools were included in the survey conducted by the Princeton Review. Ranking criteria included the entrepreneurial emphasis of a school’s curriculum, mentoring, experiential learning, faculty credentials, and the success of graduating students and alumni.

Only 50 schools – 25 undergraduate and 25 graduate schools – made the list.

STATE
Fletcher Announces Adventure Tourism Plan for Eastern Kentucky

Gov. Ernie Fletcher has announced a comprehensive adventure tourism initiative for eastern Kentucky that is designed to provide select counties with the resources to plan and market local tourism initiatives.

Adventure tourism is one of the most rapidly growing segments of niche tourism and includes activities such as canoeing, backcountry cycling, and rafting.

“East Kentucky has already seen remarkable success in adventure tourism — from the Black Mountain Recreational Park in Harlan County to the development of the Skyward Trails System to the Elk Restoration Zones,” Fletcher said. “This initiative is designed to provide a strategy, to promote tourism and to capitalize on the natural environment for this growing industry in this region of the state.”

The plan includes more than $700,000 in funding from the Appalachian Regional Commission and an additional $70,000 from the Kentucky Department of Tourism.

STATE
New Web Site Provides Businesses with Disaster-Planning Assistance

The Kentucky Office of Homeland Security has launched a new Web site to help businesses throughout the state prepare their employees, operations and assets in the event of an emergency.

The material available at www.ProtectYourBusiness.ky.gov is specifically aimed at small to medium-sized businesses and provides practical steps and templates that include information on creating an evacuation plan, fire safety, including employees throughout the process, considering people with special needs, protecting business investments by securing facilities and equipment, and reviewing insurance coverage.

According to the U.S. Small Business Administration, small businesses represent more than 99 percent of all employers, provide approximately 75 percent of the net new jobs added to the economy, and represent 97 percent of all U.S. exporters.

Unfortunately, according to statistics from the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 40 percent of small businesses never reopen after a major disaster strikes.

STATE
College Enrollment Increases But Still Falls Short of U.S. Average

Figures released by the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education indicate that the state’s system of public and independent colleges and universities has set an enrollment record, with 239,445 students enrolled for the fall semester. That figure represents a 1.7 percent increase over the 2005 fall enrollment.

Kentucky State University posted the highest one-year increase in undergraduate enrollment at 5 percent, followed by Northern Kentucky University (4.8 percent), University of Kentucky (3.4 percent) and the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (2.8 percent).

Total enrollment in the public sector has increased 31 percent since 1998, the first year of postsecondary education reform. The enrollment leader is KCTCS with an increase of 69 percent. Western Kentucky University has led the state’s four-year institutions in enrollment growth during the same period with an increase of 25.6 percent.

While the numbers are certainly encouraging, Council on Postsecondary Education President Tom Layzell said the state will still need “to pick up the pace to reach the national average in education attainment by 2020.” In order to reach the national average by that year, the Council projects that 33,669 bachelor’s degrees will need to be awarded in 2020 – an 89 percent increase over the 17,811 bachelor’s degrees awarded in 2004-05.   

Layzell said the degree targets serve as a starting point for additional planning efforts, including the development of a new funding model. Over the next year, the Council will develop initial cost estimates to better understand the long-term investment needed to double degree production.

GEORGETOWN
First Camry Hybrid Rolls Off Toyota Assembly Line in Georgetown

Toyota Motor Manufacturing, Kentucky, Inc. (TMMK) celebrated the production launch of the Camry Hybrid last month, the company’s first hybrid vehicle produced in North America. The vehicle is already receiving accolades, ranking No. 3 on a recent listing of the most fuel efficient cars, released by the Environmental Protection Agency and the U.S. Department of Energy. The addition of hybrid production represents a $10 million investment at TMMK, which will build approximately 48,000 Camry Hybrid vehicles per year. TMMK was established in 1986 and is Toyota’s largest plant in North America. It employs approximately 7,000 people and currently builds the Camry, Avalon and Solara. The plant has the capacity to build 500,000 vehicles annually.

LEXINGTON
Tradition Meets High-Tech as Keeneland Adds Video Tracking

Keeneland has become the first racetrack in the United States to feature a new video race technology known as Trakus.

The new technology uses sensor chips carried in saddlecloths and antennas positioned around the racetrack to track each horse in a race electronically and digitally in real time. During a race, the live video of the race is displayed on the center screen of the track’s new LED tote board. The left margin of the screen lists the complete running order (first to last by number) of the field, continually changing to reflect the current race order. Keeneland has dedicated an in-house channel exclusively to Trakus’ live racing and replay broadcasts so that patrons can view races in various formats, including a split screen with the live race video together with Trakus animated tiles that help viewers to more easily follow their horses.

Trakus technology also enables fans to view race replays from a variety of perspectives, including overhead and rail angles. In addition, the graphics include a race progress meter and instantaneous speed in miles per hour for the lead horse or other horses.

The hi-tech addition was part of the track’s major renovation project, which was unveiled to the public last month during Keeneland’s Fall Meet.

LOUISVILLE
Texas Roadhouse Earns Ranking on Forbes' 'Best Small Companies' List

Texas Roadhouse, a Louisville-based chain of casual steakhouse restaurants, has earned the distinction of being named to Forbes magazine’s annual listing of the nation’s best small companies.

In order to qualify for inclusion on the list, companies must have had a share price of more than $5 as of Sept. 29 on a three-month average volume of 10,000 shares. The companies must have also carried profit margins of greater than five percent with positive sales and profit growth, on average, over both the last five years and the last 12 months.

Texas Roadhouse opened its first location in 1993 and has since grown to 235 locations in 43 states.

NutriSystem, a Pennsylvania-based company that markets weight-loss programs, was recognized as the top small company in the nation.

BOONE COUNTY
New Distribution Facility to Bring 500-Plus New Jobs to Richwood

GSI Commerce Solutions, a Pennsylvania company that provides distribution services for online retailers, is building a 541,000-square-foot distribution center in Richwood.

The $12 million facility is expected to bring more than 500 new jobs to the area, according to company officials. Hourly wages will range from $10.50 to $28.85.

GSI handles sales and customer service for some 50 clients that offer online sales, including Dick’s Sporting Goods, Linens ‘n Things, Estee Lauder/Gloss.com, Bath & Body Works, PBS, Radio Shack, Palm, Major League Baseball, NASCAR and Zales Jewelers. The company saw more than $440 million in revenue for 2005, with 2006 figures projected to grow by about 30 percent to somewhere between $567 and $587 million.

GSI currently has two other distribution centers in Kentucky, located in Louisville and Shepherdsville. The company also operates call centers in Florida and Wisconsin.

STATE
Global Survey Shows Kentucky Has Positive Image with Public

Kentucky’s brand image ranks eighth among U.S. states, according to the results of a new international survey. Kentucky finished ahead of 42 other states in the Anholt State Brands Index, a first-of-its-kind global online survey created by government advisor Simon Anholt and powered by Global Market Insite, Inc., a provider of global market intelligence solutions.

An eight-page overview of the index, titled “How the World Sees the States,” says Kentucky ranks first among all states in “affordable and satisfactory accommodation,” or perceived value of decent housing. Kentucky also ranks in the top three for food and for making people feel welcome.

“Outside the U.S., there are only about 10 to 15 states that name-check with people. Kentucky is one of those states that everyone has heard of,” said SBI report author Simon Anholt.

The SBI measures each state’s brand based on six criteria: Presence (contribution to culture/science), Place (physical aspects), Potential (job/education opportunities), Pulse (urban lifestyle), People (welcome/diversity) and Prerequisites (basic qualities). The index was computed based on the responses given by more than 21,000 people, both within the United States and in 15 other countries around the world. Buoyed by Hollywood, the travel industry and/or their much larger populations, the more famous states – California, Florida, Hawaii and New York – rank first through fourth, respectively, in overall image. 

LOUISVILLE
Louisville Lands Five-Year Contract for Ironman Event

Louisville has been awarded a five-year contract to host the Ford Ironman Louisville. The inaugural Ford Ironman Louisville is scheduled for August 26, 2007 and will serve as a qualifier for the 2007 Ford Ironman World Championship taking place on October 13 in Hawaii.

Ironman consists of a 2.4-mile swim, a 112-mile bike and a 26.2-mile run. Athletes must complete the three disciplines in succession within the 17-hour time frame. The 2.4 mile swim for Ford Ironman Louisville will take place in the Ohio River and the bike and run course will take athletes throughout various areas of Louisville to include not only downtown but also Prospect, Clifton, the city of LaGrange, Clarksville, Ind. and Butchertown.

Ironman President and CEO Ben Fertic noted that Louisville possesses “all of the key elements that an Ironman venue demands: scenic, rolling hills, community support and several beautiful parks.”

The event is expected to result in 15,000 hotel room nights being booked in the city, and an estimated economic impact of $10-$15 million for the Louisville community.

INDIANA
Cummins to Hire Up to 800 for Production of Clean-Diesel Engines

Cummins Inc. has announced that it will produce its new family of light-duty, clean-diesel engines at its production facility in Columbus, Ind., where it has operated since 1926. Columbus also serves as headquarters for the company.

Preparations for the manufacturing lines are scheduled to begin in mid-2007 and are expected to create 200 additional jobs by the end of next year. Cummins expects the new line to employ at least 600 to 800 people within two years of the product launch. The plant currently employs around 630. The company expects to begin manufacturing of the engines by 2010.

Cummins officials say the new engines will increase fuel efficiency by 30 percent or more.

OHIO
New Airline Chooses Columbus for HQ, Expects to Hire 880+ Workers

Skybus Airlines, a new airline that is marketing itself as “the next generation of low-fare airlines,” has announced plans to launch its operations at Port Columbus International Airport.

Skybus has committed to establish a new corporate headquarters, aircraft hangar and flight operations facility at Port Columbus. In addition to the creation of 886 jobs, the project is expected to generate at least 7,800 additional non-airline jobs and $3 million in new payroll taxes, creating an annual economic impact of at least $1 billion.

Ohio Lt. Gov. Bruce Johnson, who also serves as state development director, lauded the project as the “best economic development project in central Ohio in a decade.”

The Ohio Department of Development is providing a $16 million incentive package to assist in the launch of the airline.

TENNESSEE
Governor Declares State's First Sales Tax Holiday a Success

Reporting the statistics of the state’s first annual “sales tax holiday,” Tennessee Gov. Phil Bredesen declared the event to be a “resounding success.”

Over the course of the three-day tax holiday, which was held Aug. 4-6, no state or local sales taxes were charged on most school supplies or clothing priced $100 or less per item or on computers priced at $1,500 or less. The holiday also included items purchased via mail, phone or Internet.

Bredesen’s 2006-07 budget included funds to hold local governments harmless from lost sales tax revenue from the holiday. While calculations aren’t yet final on local government payments, preliminary figures indicate that $3.7 million dollars will be distributed, based on a 7.6 percent increase in sales tax collections. Local governments will also benefit from increased sales of taxable items during the holiday.

Business Briefs

CALVERT CITY

• International Catalyst Technologies has announced that it is planning to close its manufacturing plant in Calvert City, where it produces emission controls for engines. The company plans to close the plant in approximately five months and will move its operations to ICT plants in Canada and Japan in order to take advantage of more technologically advanced equipment. The shutdown will result in the loss of 35 jobs.

CARROLLTON

• Airgas, Inc. has announced that it will build an air separation unit in Carrollton to supply Dow Corning Corporation and to meet increasing demand for bulk and packaged gases in the region. Airgas will build the plant on Dow Corning’s property in Carrollton and will employ approximately 20 people to handle production and distribution. When completed in late 2008, the plant will have the capacity to liquefy at least 350 tons per day of nitrogen, oxygen, and argon. Its expandable design will support additional pipeline customers and liquid production.

ELIZABETHTOWN

• The Elizabethtown City Council has voted 5-1 in favor of a smoking ban. The ordinance bans smoking in public spaces and workplaces, including outdoor arenas and stadiums.

FAYETTE COUNTY

• The U.S. Department of Education has awarded a $900,000 grant to the Fayette County school district to be used to teach Chinese and Japanese. The Foreign Language Assistance Program grant will fund daily instruction in the languages for four elementary schools and two middle schools in the district.

FRANKLIN

• A Canadian company that manufactures coverings for the trucking industry is opening a new facility in Franklin. Quick Draw Tarpaulin Systems is locating its operations in a 35,000-square-foot industrial building that previously housed Novitec Industries. Quick Draw Operations Director Randy Bondy has said the company is planning to eventually expand the 11-acre site to bring in other manufacturing options. The Franklin plant will handle mounting tarps onto tractor trailer trucks brought to the facility and will employ up to 15 people within the first few months. As operations expand, the plant could employ more than 80, said Bondy.

HIGHLAND HEIGHTS

• Northern Kentucky University has launched a new initiative designed to provide nonprofit organizations with management support services and assistance. The Institute for Nonprofit Capacity Building is part of the university’s Scripps Howard Center for Civic Engagement and Nonprofit Development.

INDEPENDENCE

• FedEx Freight has started construction on a new 48,000-square-foot service center in Independence’s Enterprise V Park. The new facility will be staffed with 60 employees, who will transfer from the company’s service center in Fairfield, Ohio.

LEXINGTON

• Keeneland has cataloged 5,026 horses for its annual November Breeding Stock Sale, a 14-day auction that began November 6. The total number cataloged for this year’s event exceeds last year by 549 horses. 
• The owners of the Allegra Print & Imaging franchise in Lexington have acquired Bluegrass Colorfast Printing, LLC, an independent printing company. Allegra owners Cliff and Vicki Toner said the acquisition provides their company with a stronger presence in the community while also offering customers advanced capabilities, including a four-color digital printing press. Allegra offers traditional and advanced printing technologies including full-color printing, graphic design services, digital color copying, high-speed copying, online file transfer, mailing services, variable data capabilities digital color signs, posters and banners, complete finishing services, promotional products and project consultation.
• Passengers at Blue Grass Airport will be able to view live Keeneland racing during the track’s October and April meets. The airport has added a dedicated flat-screen television for the viewings in The Club at Blue Grass, which also features amenities such as complimentary snacks and beverages, personal workstations with data ports for computer usage, wireless Internet access, newspapers and periodicals, a smoking lounge, photo copier and fax machine. Admittance to the club is free of charge to all travelers who have an airline club membership with any of the major airlines serving Lexington. Those without a membership to an airline club can obtain one-day passes for $5. Bulk admittance coupons are also available for corporate partners and frequent customers.

LEXINGTON/LOUISVILLE

• The law firm of Frost Brown Todd LLC has formed a strategic alliance with Hubei Sunshine Law Firm, located in Wuhan, Hubei Province, China. The alliance is the first for any U.S. and Hubei-based law firm and is designed to create a seamless legal service for U.S. companies doing business in China, especially the Hubei Province, and for Chinese companies doing business in the United States. FBT has over 370 attorneys in Ohio, Kentucky, Indiana, and Tennessee; the Hubei Sunshine Law Firm has 40 attorneys in Wuhan, Ohio’s Chinese sister province. Wuhan, the capital of the Hubei Province, is situated in the central region of China. With a population of more than eight million residents, the city is the center of industry, finance, commerce, culture, education, science and research, and is also known as a national shipping and communications hub.

LOUISVILLE

• Iron Triangle Payment Systems, a Louisville-based credit card processor, has been approved to receive $3.2 million in incentives from the state in relation to its plans to expand. The company anticipates hiring more than 200 people in Louisville as part of the expansion plan. Iron Triangle is investing $2.4 million for a center that will provide technical customer service calls and related support. The jobs will have an annual payroll of some $5.2 million. The company recently completed its purchase of National Processing Co. and is now doing business under the National Processing brand.
• Caterpillar Logistics Inc. is closing its Louisville distribution center early next year, leaving some 166 workers out of a job. The company learned last spring that its contract with Sprint PCS was not being renewed and informed its employees at that time that the Louisville facility would eventually close.
• Suregene, LLC, a company founded by a University of Louisville geneticist, has received a $497,000 phase one Small Business Innovation Research grant from the National Institutes of Mental Health to perfect a test aimed at early detection of schizophrenia. The test, based on genetic variations linked to the disorder, could be useful for people with a family history of the disease, said researcher Mark Brennan. Schizophrenia, a severe and disabling brain disorder that affects 2.4 million Americans, has an economic impact of about $60 billion a year. Although the disorder often can be successfully treated, some patients suffer residual symptoms as long as they live.
• corecubed, a Louisville-based integrated marketing communications agency, has added a new office in Cincinnati to service clients in the Midwest. The focus on Southwestern Ohio complements the company’s existing relationships in Northern Kentucky and Indiana, said corecubed founder Merrily Orsini. The new office will be led by Marketing and Public Relations Strategist Shara Clark and will focus on providing communications services, including web design, identity development, marketing and public relations services.
• Churchill Downs Incorporated has launched free online race replay videos for racing content at all of its live facilities. The delayed videos will appear online across CDI’s network of Web sites and will be available to all customers who are logged on to the CDSN network. “Online video replays of our races have long been one of the top requests of our customers,” said Jeremy Borseth, senior director of channel services and Internet operations for CDI. “With fast-access Internet connections now widely available and online multimedia features becoming standard on many sites, we felt this was an ideal time to implement the necessary technology to provide race replays online.” Replay videos appear online approximately 10 to 15 minutes following the conclusion of a live race.
• The Genlyte Group Inc. has reached an agreement to acquire the assets of Carsonite International Corp., a South Carolina company that manufactures safety-oriented signage and markers for the highway and utility/telecommunications industries. The acquisition agreement entails a cash price of $2.85 million plus approximately $1.6 million for inventory and accounts receivable. Genlyte President Larry Powers said the acquisition offered strategic benefits for his company, which sells lighting and lighting accessory products, and would specifically complement the products offered by Genlyte’s Shakespeare Composite Structures division.
• The University of Louisville’s School of Dentistry has received a go-ahead to start a residency program offering specialized training in the dental care of children and special-needs patients. The two-year program will allow the university to do a better job caring for the oral health of children in the state, said Wood Currens, interim dean of U of L’s dental school. “Roughly one-third of Kentucky’s children have untreated tooth decay,” Currens said. “This residency program will enable us to train more dentists to address this serious issue and other dental problems unique to children.”
• The Kentucky Public Service Commission has approved the sale of property owned by the Louisville Gas & Electric Co. (LG&E) to the Louisville Arena Authority, Inc. The Arena Authority will pay LG&E $10 million for the property and an estimated $63 million to relocate LG&E facilities, notably a major electric substation and gas transmission lines. Two outmoded natural gas-fired electric generators on the site will be abandoned. LG&E will bear the cost of relocating its electric transmission control facilities, which were due for replacement with newer technology. The relocation is estimated to cost $15.5 million, but the company has stated that it will not seek a rate increase solely for the purpose of recovering the cost in its electric rates.

NEWPORT

• The City of Newport has selected Covington-based Corporex to redevelop a 13.9-acre parcel of land in the city’s northwest section that has been the site of subsidized housing for nearly five decades. Plans for the redevelopment call for the construction of a riverfront amphitheater, high-rise office buildings, hotels, shops, and more than 1,000 town homes and condominiums. According to Corporex, the planned office space alone has the potential of bringing some 5,000 new jobs to the city. A time frame for the project has not yet been released.

OWENSBORO

• Owensboro-based Wells Health Systems has sold 11 of its health care facilities in western Kentucky to Harborside Healthcare, a Boston company that specializes in skilled nursing and long-term health care facilities. The facilities consist of a total of 763 beds in eight rehabilitation and long-term care centers, two Alzheimer’s disease specialty facilities and an assisted living center. The properties are located throughout western Kentucky in Bardwell, Bowling Green, Brownsville, Elizabethtown, Lewisport, Madisonville, Owensboro, Paducah, and Woodburn. Financial details of the transaction were not disclosed.
• A private group of Owensboro businesses and individuals is in the process of conducting a telephone survey to gauge public opinion on the feasibility of merging the city and county governments. The group is headed by Owensboro Mayor Tom Watson, who has publicly endorsed the idea of a merger. Watson has emphasized that the survey, which is being developed by a Washington, D.C. polling firm, is being funded by private money, with no tax dollars involved. Watson told the Owensboro Messenger-Inquirer that even if the survey shows the public to be uninterested in a merger, the process would still provide a good gauge of residents’ opinions on services.

PADUCAH

• After months of discussion, Paducah city commissioners have approved a smoking ban by a 3-1 vote, with one abstention. Businesses excluded from the ban include retail tobacco stores and warehouses, and facilities operated by private organizations that are not open to the general public. The ban will take effect April 1.

PERRYVILLE

• As the host of the National Civil War Re-Enactment last month, Perryville saw more than 37,000 visitors descend upon the small community, contributing an estimated $3 million to the local economy. The re-enactment is held each year, but this year’s designation as a national re-enactment brought in some 3,800 re-enactors, as compared to the 800 or so that the event usually draws. Next year’s national re-enactment is scheduled to take place at Mill Springs near Somerset on Sept. 29-30.

RADCLIFF

• Lincoln Trail Behavioral Health Services has broken ground for an expansion that will add 39 beds, bringing the total number of beds at the psychiatric hospital to 116. The expansion will create a children’s wing - a first for the hospital – that will accommodate patients ages four through 11. The hospital expects to add approximately 75 new jobs as a result of the expansion, which is expected to be complete by June. Lincoln Trail Behavioral Health was recently acquired by Universal Health Services Inc., which owns Ridge Behavioral Health System in Lexington and Rivendell Behavioral Health Services Kentucky in Bowling Green.

SOMERSET

• Construction has begun on a new multi-tenant facility in Somerset’s Valley Oak Technology Complex, a 150-acre business park owned by the Somerset-Pulaski County Development Foundation. The park is being developed to help attract technology-intensive businesses to the region. The new 20,000-square-foot Enterprise Center will accommodate six companies with up to 75 people each and is expected to be completed and accepting tenants by Sept. 2007. The goal of the Enterprise Center is to facilitate faster startup and growth of technology companies so that they can become a part of the community fabric.

WALTON

• Messier Bugatti has started construction on a new production facility for aircraft wheels and carbon brakes in Walton. The plant is being built on a site that is located next to the company’s A-Carb plant, where it manufactures carbon discs for aircraft brakes. The new $14 million plant is expected to be operational by early 2008 and will employ some 100 people within two years.

STATE

• Kentucky’s Personnel Cabinet is concluding a survey of state agencies to determine how best to handle the large number of retirements that are expected in the next several years. State figures indicate that 8,000 to 11,000 of the state’s 34,000 workers will be eligible to retire by September 2008. The commonwealth typically sees around 4,600 state workers retire each year.
• The board of the directors of the Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) has approved two new programs. An associate degree in applied science in surgical technology will be offered at Bluegrass Community and Technical College in Lexington, Bowling Green Technical College, Jefferson Community and Technical College in Louisville, Madisonville Community College, and West Kentucky Community and Technical College in Paducah. An associate degree in applied science in medical assisting will be offered at Bluegrass Community and Technical College.
• The Rural Utilities Services, a department of the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA), recently named four Kentucky communities as recipients of the competitive Community Connect Grants. The federal grants, totaling nearly $1 million, will create vital broadband networks for rural communities that do not have high-speed Internet service. Communities awarded the grants are Berry (Harrison County), Columbus (Hickman County), Concord (Lewis County) and Monterey (Owen County). The Community Connect Grants will be used to create a technology center in each community equipped with 10 computer workstations that will enable residents to access high-speed Internet free of charge. The grants will also provide free broadband access to critical community facilities such as fire, law enforcement and emergency response facilities. 
• Kentucky Employers’ Mutual Insurance (KEMI) has reduced its workers’ compensation insurance rates for certain classifications related to the equine, restaurant, mercantile, and medical industries, with rates dropping an average of 14 percent. “Based upon an actuarial review of KEMI’s experience within the equine, restaurant, mercantile, and medical industries we determined that these industries are successfully controlling their own destiny and are deserving of rate relief,” said Roger Fries, KEMI’s president and CEO.
• A new economic impact study of Kentucky State Fair Board events posted growth in key economic measures, generating $453 million annually in fiscal impact on local and state economies. The 2005 study, conducted by Paul Coomes and Barry Kornstein of the University of Louisville’s economics department, shows a 6.4 percent increase in economic activity since 2001. The Kentucky State Fair Board operates the Kentucky Exposition Center (KEC) and the Kentucky International Convention Center (KICC). Total receipts collected by the Kentucky State Fair Board amounted to $40.3 million – an increase of 17 percent from 2001 – with non-residents accounting for 54 percent of those receipts. The new dollars supported approximately 7,150 local jobs with an annual payroll of about $146 million.

INDIANA

• Whirlpool Corporation has notified employees at its Evansville plant that approximately 500 workers will be laid off next month as the company works to adjust production to better align with market demand. The Evansville plant’s primary product is the top-mounted refrigerator, which has seen declining sales in recent years. The Evansville plant currently employs around 2,100 employees.
• Hitachi Cable Indiana Inc. plans to hire approximately 150 new employees at its plant in New Albany, Ind., to help fulfill a two-year contract with General Motors Corp. The company has been commissioned to produce electric cable for GM’s hybrid vehicles. The new production line is expected to begin in March. The New Albany plant currently employs some 450 people.
• Orthopedic device manufacturer Biomet Inc. has announced a $21 million expansion of its plant in Warsaw, Ind. that will result in the addition of 260 new life sciences jobs. Biomet was established in 1977 in Warsaw and now employs approximately 6,300 people at 18 manufacturing facilities throughout the world.

OHIO

• Nestle FoodServices North America has begun construction on its new Culinary Innovation Center in Solon, Ohio. The 67,300-square-foot facility will serve as the epicenter for the company’s development of new culinary products for its food service customers, which include restaurants, colleges and universities, schools and businesses. The facility will house a combination of chefs, food technologists and management, totaling 130 people.

TENNESSEE

• Michigan-based Kenwal Steel Corporation is building a 100,000-square-foot facility in Lebanon, Tenn., to help serve the company’s growing customer base in the South. The plant will process a full range of flat-rolled steel products and is expected to be operational by June 2007. The facility will employ up to 70 full-time employees.
• DURA Automotive Systems has announced plans to invest $3 million to expand operations at its facilities in Lawrenceburg, Milan and Gordonsville, Tenn. The Milan DURA plant produces a variety of cable products for the automotive industry, while the Lawrenceburg DURA plant produces glass modules, backlites and liftgate modules. The Gordonsville facility produces power seat adjusters. Officials with the Michigan company said the expansion will create a total of more than 200 new jobs.
• Texas Home Health has moved its corporate headquarters from Silsbee, Texas to Brentwood, Tenn. Texas Home Health President and CEO Judy Bishop said her company selected the middle Tennessee area because of its reputation as “one of the real health care leaders in the United States” and because the company is looking to expand its existing business in the region. Texas Home Health has 9,000 employees and services 14,000 clients in Texas, Tennessee and Georgia. The company had 2005 revenues of $170 million.

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