Lane optimistic about Saturn deal

Saturn dealer Eric Lane says he's excited about General Motors’ tentative deal to sell the brand to former racecar driver Roger Penske. Lane, vice president of Gerry Lane Enterprises, received an official announcement from the embattled carmaker this morning. “If you had asked me who I would have preferred GM to sell the Saturn brand to, Penske was my first choice,” Lane said. “They couldn’t have made a better choice. It’s great news for us.” Lane says Penske’s success in the auto industry—his company is the second-biggest car chain in the U.S.—as well as the racetrack speaks well for the future of the brand. “Roger Penske has been a success at everything he’s ever done,” Lane says. “I have no doubt this is just what Saturn needs to restore the brand to where it was before GM bought them out.” Penske says he expects to offer the 350 Saturn dealerships new franchise agreements and will retain all 13,000 Saturn employees for the immediate term. Initially, GM will continue to produce on a contract basis the Saturn Aura sedan as well as the Vue and Outlook SUVs. Lane plans to stick with the Saturn brand, which has been profitable for Gerry Lane since the dealership added it in 1992. The dealership sold 26 Saturns last month, Lane says, and in its heyday in the 1990s sold between 900 and 1,000 vehicles a year. “Our Saturn customers are very loyal,” Lane says. “I have customers who are on their eighth, ninth or 10th Saturn.”—Emma James

New bus service to connect downtown, LSU

LSU's new bus service will establish regular routes from downtown to campus, with shuttle stops every 20 minutes. Plans are to run the buses Monday through Friday, from 7:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., says Davis Rhorer, Downtown Development District executive director. Rhorer says the buses, which will be run by First Transit, will make several stops downtown, including going to Spanish Town. "They did a study of where students and faculty live, and tailored the routes to this," he says. Buses will also go into the Garden District and other areas. Rhorer says he's hoping officials add additional downtown routes, such as night or LSU football game-day shuttles. LSU transit officials plan to discuss the new service at Tuesday's DDD meeting. The routes will start in time for the fall semester.—Timothy Boone

Report: DOJ halted investigation into Stanford

The U.S. Department of Justice told the Securities and Exchange Commission to back off its investigation of billionaire financier Robert Allen Stanford, Fox Business News reports. U.S. Rep. Dennis Kucinich, D-Ohio, who has been investigating the investigation into Stanford's alleged Ponzi scheme, told the news network that the SEC halted its investigation several years ago after getting a stand-down order from someone in a DOJ agency. Stanford investors are upset over allegations that the SEC backed off its investigation, charging that they would have lost less money if the authorities had gotten involved earlier. Read the full report here.

Caldwell sees violation in GM dealer policy

Louisiana Attorney General Buddy Caldwell says he's found violations in the way General Motors is treating its dealerships. At a press conference this afternoon, Caldwell says the bankrupt automaker has sent letters to dealers imposing new restrictions that appear to violate Louisiana regulations. Caldwell's office will take part in a teleconference with other state attorneys general on Monday, to develop a strategy of making their case before the New York bankruptcy court that's handling the GM case.

Wade Shows, a lawyer representing individual dealerships in Louisiana, said the state has 65 GM dealers. Shows says all of them received one of two letters from the automaker, saying they will be either shut down or face new rules on sales figures and other matters.

This story has been updated since it was first published

Bethany leasing old CompUSA building

Bethany World Prayer Center is temporarily leasing the old CompUSA building next to the Mall of Louisiana as a recreational center for its youth ministry. Megan Bowen, a secretary for Bethany's 220 ministry, says the building has been set up with video games, TVs, indoor volleyball courts and pool tables. The space, which is open Wednesday through Saturday, has been re-dubbed the "220 Box" and is free for teens and young adults. "We've turned it into a hangout spot for teens," she says.

Bethany is leasing the building through July; the church hasn't decided yet if it wants to continue beyond the summer. "We’re just getting started," Bowen says. 220 comes from Galatians 2:20 which says, "I have been crucified with Christ; it is no longer I who live, but Christ lives in me; and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave Himself for me." The CompUSA building hasn't had a permanent tenant since early 2008, when the chain went out of business. Plans for Michaels to move its local arts and crafts store into the building fell through around Christmas.—Timothy Boone

Louisiana Senate debates $28B budget

The Louisiana Senate is weighing a $28.7 billion budget that's strikingly different from the spending plan backed by the House last month. The budget bill, as reworked by the Senate Finance Committee, contains fewer cuts to public colleges and health care by tapping into the rainy day fund and delaying a scheduled income tax break. The Senate began debate on the proposal this afternoon. If approved as expected, the move will set up a battle with Gov. Bobby Jindal's administration and the House, both of which oppose some of the financing plans used by the Finance Committee, such as delaying the rollback of $118 million in tax cuts. The budget bill would finance state government operations for the new fiscal year that begins July 1. Lawmakers are struggling to cope with a $1.3 billion projected drop in state general fund revenue next year.

Competition heats up in local TV news biz

Media platforms like podcasts and the Internet have taken a lot of the fun from the local news business. Money is tight, and competition is stiff. Entry-level reporters in the market make as little as $20,000 a year, and turnover is high. Advertising revenues are down, and stations are being forced to cut corners at a time when they are challenged to find new ways of reaching a dwindling audience. “Gone are the days when reporters would do one story that would air that night on the six o’clock news,” says WAFB General Manager Sandy Breland. “Now reporters are updating stories throughout the day on Web sites or for cell phone alerts and blogs. It’s a whole different ballgame.” Read 225’s story about the players, the stakes and their strategies by clicking here.

News roundup: N.O. council approves money for economic partnership ... ESPN spotlights Mainieri

Money for business: The New Orleans City Council has approved $2 million for a public-private economic development partnership. Council members and some business leaders hailed the idea, though it was largely a formality and the partnership is still being put together. Mayor Ray Nagin's administration had wanted to delay the vote to allow for more of the pieces to be in place. The board hasn't been set, and an agreement spelling out responsibilities of both sides hasn't been completed. But it did not oppose the council vote, and Nagin's intergovernmental relations director said the mayor is committed to the concept.

Big shoes to fill: ESPN.com has a profile of LSU baseball coach Paul Mainieri, now in his third season with the Tigers. After a slow start, Mainieri has returned the Tigers baseball program back to the national standing it had under legendary coach Skip Bertman. "More importantly, the swagger is back on the field and in the stands," Mainieri says. Read the profile here. The Tigers start a best-of-three Super Regional series against Rice at 6 p.m. today. The winner advances to the College World Series.