Jindal returns to national political scene

Gov. Bobby Jindal is re-emerging on the national political scene. Jindal is scheduled to be a guest on Sean Hannity's Fox News political talk show at 8 p.m. tonight, and he'll make appearances Tuesday on morning talk shows on Fox News and CNN. A Jindal-penned editorial complaining about federal government spending and opposing the Democrats' health care revamp plans appeared today on the Web site Politico. "The plan the House Democrats are developing is a radical restructuring of health care in America. You may like it, you may not, but it is just that; there is no denying or sugarcoating it," Jindal writes. Read the editorial here. The governor's spokeswoman, Melissa Sellers, says Jindal will be talking about health care during his appearances. Jindal had repeated requests from national TV shows during the regular legislative session but waited until the session was over before accepting, Sellers says. The Louisiana governor, considered a possible GOP presidential contender, largely has been missing from national appearances over the last few months.

Six Flags N.O. proposal delayed for month

A request from a Baton Rouge company to get $100 million in bonds to revive the shuttered Six Flags New Orleans theme park has been put off for a month. Southern Star Amusement founder Danny Rogers says the request was reset from Tuesday to August at the request of the city. Rogers says the delay will not impact the company's plans to reopen the park by May 2010. Southern Star is seeking GO Zone bonds, which were set aside for storm rebuilding. The State Bond Commission also must approve the application. The company recently opened an office in New Orleans East near Six Flags, which has been shuttered since Hurricane Katrina.

Entergy expects 2Q profit fall

Power provider Entergy Corp. says it expects second-quarter earnings to miss analysts' forecasts, driven by outages at its wholesale nuclear power plants and an impairment charge for trust funds covering the eventual closure of nuclear plants. Entergy also lowered its full-year earnings guidance, citing, in part, declining power prices, as well as expenses and items connected to its planned spinoff of five wholesale nuclear power stations into a separate company, Enexus Energy Corp. Entergy estimated second-quarter earnings of about $1.13 per share, compared with $1.37 per share last year. Analysts polled by Thomson Reuters on average forecast earnings of $1.48 per share. Analysts typically exclude one-time items. Entergy lowered its full-year earnings to between $6 per share and $6.60 per share, citing lower power prices and other trust impairment charges. Previously, Entergy had indicated that earnings could approach the lower end of guidance ranging between $6.56 per share and $7.16 per share.

Fish City Grill closes

Fish City Grill, one of the first restaurants to open in the Perkins Rowe lifestyle center, has closed. The restaurant, which opened in April 2008, shut down June 1. Brian Mercer, who co-owns the local franchise, says he could not comment on the closing because of pending litigation. Officials with Fish City, a Dallas-based chain, say the local restaurant’s performance was clouded by problems with Perkins Rowe. Perkins Rowe has been at the center of more than 40 lawsuits and liens, filed by customers who claim the development didn't pay its bills. Officials with JTS, which developed Perkins Rowe, say they were disappointed to see Fish City Grill close and note that the other restaurants in the center have had strong sales. "All of our restaurants' sales far exceed their respective company averages and in some cases, are tops in their chains," says Paula Biggs, a spokeswoman for JTS, in a statement. A replacement tenant for the Fish City site should be announced in several weeks.

GOHSEP prepares for hurricane season

Louisiana has planned for the worst-case scenario during the 2009 hurricane season, says Mark Cooper, director of the Governor’s Office of Homeland Security and Emergency Preparedness. GOSHEP, in conjunction with the Red Cross and other states, has increased its capacity for sheltering evacuees to 50,000, up from 37,000 last year, says Cooper, who spoke to the Baton Rouge Press Club today. Of those evacuees, approximately 14,000 can be sheltered in Louisiana, primarily in Shreveport, Alexandria and Monroe. Cooper says another 26,000 can be housed out of state in Georgia, Tennessee, Texas, Arkansas and Kentucky, with additional space for another 10,000 if necessary. Cooper says FEMA is working with other states to determine if they would be willing to offer shelter as well.

Also new to the state are three type three urban search and rescue teams based in Baton Rouge, New Orleans and Shreveport, Cooper says. Similar teams in Texas took almost a day to deploy when the Louisiana teams, under the Department of Wildlife and Fisheries, could be in a problem area in two to six hours. New initiatives taken up by the state this year include $7.5 million that will be used to upgrade existing facilities and encourage the construction of new multi-purpose buildings that could be used as shelters if necessary, Cooper says. An additional $60 million in hazard mitigation funding will purchase generators for critical care facilities statewide and parish use. — Emma James

AppOne offering warranty service

AppOne, a Baton Rouge-based company that connects lenders with independent automobile and marine dealers, has joined with the Penn Warranty Corporation. The move allows vehicle dealers in the AppOne network to sell warranty service plans. It also reduces risk for Penn Warranty, because AppOne controls the distribution of funds at vehicle closings and can insure timely and accurate warranty payments. Penn Warranty works with about 20,000 independent auto dealers.

Sternberg book explores history of Goudchaux’s/Maison Blanche

Longtime Baton Rouge entrepreneur Hans Sternberg tells his story in We Were Merchants: The Sternberg Family and the Story of Goudchaux’s and Maison Blanche Department Stores, due to hit bookshelves in September from the LSU Press. Co-written with James E. Shelledy, a professor at the Manship School of Mass Communication at LSU, the book is based on 30 years of Sternberg’s journal entries and chronicles his time as chairman and co-CEO of Goudchaux/Maison Blanche from 1965 to 1992. At its peak, Goudchaux’s/Maison Blanche employed over 8,000 workers in Louisiana and Florida. Sternberg also writes about his family’s long-time history of work in the mercantile industry and why he chose to sell the business in light of difficult economic times, ultimately ending that tradition. “Everybody’s got a story to tell,” Sternberg says. “Ours was a little different. There were elements there that were fairly unique and I could tell a story that I really want my grandchildren to know.” Sternberg is now chairman and CEO of Starmount Life Insurance Company. He and his wife Donna have four children and nine grandchildren.— Emma James

News roundup: Westdale student wins national chemistry challenge ... LSU professor is keynote speaker at international computer science conference

The right chemistry: Daniel Hulgan, who was a student at Westdale Middle School last year, has won the national You Be the Chemist Challenge. Daniel topped 15 students at the nationwide event—held in Philadelphia earlier this summer—that quizzed students on their knowledge of chemistry concepts and important discoveries. Daniel had an advantage in his background: Both of his parents and a grandparent are chemical engineers. For winning the award, he gets a $5,000 savings bond, a $500 gift certificate to the Discovery Channel Store and a Texas Instruments calculator. He will start ninth grade at Baton Rouge Magnet High this fall.

Brush up on your Chinese: Stephen David Beck, interim director of the LSU Center for Computation & Technology, will deliver a keynote address at IEEE’s 4th International Conference on Computer Science and Education. The conference, held this weekend in Nanning, China, serves as a forum for scientists and educators to collaborate and discuss the newest technology for computing and engineering.

Business Report planner: LSU chancellor speaking at 'Breakfast to Business' ... YWCA plans awards breakfast ... Carbon capture briefing set

Tuesday: LSU Chancellor Michael Martin will be the guest speaker at the LSU Executive Education's monthly “Breakfast to Business” seminar, which starts at 7:30 a.m. at Café Americain. Martin will talk about the impact the recent legislative session had on LSU, and the university's importance to Baton Rouge businesses. Registration for the event is $25. For more details, click here.

Wednesday: The YWCA's 16th Annual Racial Justice Award Breakfast will be held at 7:30 a.m. at Juban's. Awards will be presented to LSU's Office of Equity, Diversity & Community Outreach and to Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church and its Walter C. Dumas Scholarship Committee and Charitable Foundation. Loretta King, associate attorney general for the U.S. Department of Justice's Civil Rights Division, will be the guest speaker. Admission is $25. To RSVP, e-mail cartwrightp@ywca-br.org.

Thursday: Jones Walker will sponsor a breakfast briefing on carbon capture from 8:30 to 11 a.m. at LSU's Energy, Coast & Environment Building. Participants include Don Briggs, president of the Louisiana Oil & Gas Association; David Dismukes, associate executive director of LSU's Center for Energy Studies; and Jim Welsh, state commissioner of conservation. For more information, click here.

Friday: Kristy Hebert of Advance Innovative Education will be the guest speaker at Forum 35's monthly luncheon, which starts at noon at Juban's. Admission is $15 for members and $20 for guests. For more information, e-mail teepell@mac.com.

Sunday: The Capital Area Court Appointed Special Advocates will kick off their playhouse fundraiser at 7:30 p.m. at the Mall of Louisiana. The event features music, food by Serrano's and an auction. Tickets for the fiesta are $50 and can be obtained by calling 379-8598. A playhouse that will be raffled off to benefit CASA will be on display at the mall through Aug. 16.

See the full list of upcoming events here.