The Courtyard Gifts and Interiors, located at 4467 Arnold Lane, is a new business residing in a 200-year-old raised Acadian house surrounded by lush, mature landscaping and gardens. The old home, which features an addition designed by A. Hays Town, is filled with gifts offered by local artists and merchants.
Sealy & Company has signed a long-term lease with Houston Wire and Cable for its 22,200-square-foot service center/distribution facility at the Baton Rouge 6 building in Industriplex. The Sealy-managed Lightstone Group’s South Louisiana portfolio is currently 93.3% leased.
The Lincoln Theater, a civil rights landmark in Old South Baton Rouge, has been sold to the Louisiana Black History Hall of Fame, which plans to renovate it and turn it into a historical center and a tourist attraction. The Hall of Fame paid $345,000 for the building, money that it received from the state as part of the capital outlay program.
EST Group, which has about 20 employees in Baton Rouge, has been acquired by Curtiss-Wright Corporation for about $40 million in cash. EST, which makes heating and cooling systems used in the defense and energy industries, posted nearly $20 million in sales last year.
Morrison Companies, a Baton Rouge-based development firm, has helped broker a deal to build a Lowe’s store in West Monroe. The company worked with north Louisiana businessman James Davison to sell 15 acres of land to Lowe’s. Construction and opening dates for the store have yet to be determined, but the home improvement warehouse is expected to create up to 100 jobs.
The Shaw Group’s environmental and infrastructure division has been awarded contracts worth $158 million for maintenance and services at two Army bases in Alaska. The contracts, which cover Fort Wainwright and Fort Richardson, cover a variety of tasks, including building maintenance, snow removal and fire protection. The contracts, which will be included in Shaw’s second-quarter backlog, run through 2014. Shaw has had the contracts since 2004.
Marie DesOrmeaux Centanni of Centanni Communications has been hired by the Council for a Better Louisiana to help with communication and outreach efforts. Centanni previously served as press secretary for Gov. Kathleen Blanco. She worked as the capitol correspondent for WAFB-TV before joining the Blanco administration. CABL works to improve the quality of life for Louisianans by raising awareness of critical issues, promoting sound policy, fostering civic leadership and championing government accountability.
AppOne, a Baton Rouge-based company that serves as a bridge between used-car dealers and finance companies, is now expanding into the boat business. The company, part of Wolters Kluwer Financial Services, announced it had reached a deal with Tracker Marine Financial Services. Tracker Marine has several different brands of boats, which are sold at Bass Pro Shops and more than 500 independent dealers. Officials with Tracker Marine say the agreement will allow dealers to turn loans around faster.
AWARDS/HONORS
Jim Richardson, director of LSU’s Public Administration Institute and professor in its economics department, has been appointed to the Louisiana Coalition for Capital Board of Advisors. The organization is a broad-based coalition of leaders who support economic development and job creation through long-term access to capital for Louisiana ventures and small businesses.
Guy Barone of Xentech USA Inc. has been named secretary/treasurer of the Awards and Recognition Association. The ARA board directs and oversees association activities, including the planning of the ARA trade show and the development and support of member benefits, as well as publication of Recognition Review magazine.
Rhaoul A. Guillaume Sr. has been elected as a Fellow by the Membership Applications Review Committee of the American Society of Civil Engineers. Fellows occupy ASCE’s second-highest membership grade, representing a recognized level of professional distinction and achievement held by less than 6% of its members.
Jose Romagnoli, LSU’s Cain Chair Professor in Chemical Engineering, and co-researchers from the University of Sydney in Australia were awarded the 2008 Process Systems Enterprise Limited Model-Based Innovation Prize for their paper, “Model-based optimal strategies for controlling particle size in antisolvent crystallization operations.”
Retired NFL quarterback and four-time Super Bowl champion Terry Bradshaw, retired United Negro College Fund president and former Congressman William H. Gray, community leader and philanthropist Joy Nalty Hodges, longtime Louisiana legislator and educational leader Jimmy D. Long and former Wall Street Journal editor and author Ken Wells were named Louisiana Legends by Friends of LPB. The honor goes to the best and brightest of Louisiana’s sons and daughters who have distinguished themselves in a variety of disciplines and have brought honor to the state.
Bill Adair, editor of the fact-checking Web site Politifact.com, received the 2009 Manship Prize for New Media in Democratic Discourse from LSU’s Manship School of Mass Communication. The Manship Prize honors a media or political professional who has used new media in creative and groundbreaking ways to enhance communication among candidates, campaigns and/or public institutions and the public. Adair has covered national politics, Congress and aviation safety for 20 years.
Interactive E-Solutions, a Baton Rouge-based provider of managed computer services, has been recognized by MSPmentor in its worldwide review of managed service providers. The research report identifies and ranks the world’s most progressive managed service providers. IES ranked No. 19 based on annual managed service revenue, revenue growth year-to-year in both dollars and percentages, devices managed in raw numbers as well as percentage growth year-to-year comparisons, full-time technicians and revenue income per capita by technician.
Louisiana Public Broadcasting received a My Source Community Impact Award for Education from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting. The My Source Community Impact Awards for Education were created by CPB to give recognition to public television stations for their commitment to providing educational services to learners of all ages and abilities, all races and backgrounds, from preschoolers to senior citizens, as well as for the services the stations provide to teachers, parents and caregivers.
The Greater Baton Rouge Industry Alliance, a trade association made up of more than 60 petrochemical, energy, paper, nonferrous metals and liquid storage terminal companies that works to improve industrial safety, workforce education and community awareness of industry, announced its 2009 board of directors. Officers are Marcus Lewis, Rhodia Inc., chair; Mike Cohen, BASF, vice-chair; and Rich Bedell, Marathon Petroleum, secretary/treasurer. Members at large include Sharon Cole, Dow Chemical Company; Les Dupre, Air Liquide; Paul Guilfoyle, ExxonMobil; Joey Hagmann, Placid Refining; John Pacillo, INEOS Fluor; Eric Phillips, Rubicon; Kelly Serio, Formosa Plastics; and Bill Wuensche, ALON Energy.
Bill Borne, the founder, chief executive officer and chairman of Amedisys, has been appointed to the Dean’s Advisory Council of the LSU E.J. Ourso College of Business.
Andrew Schwarz, a professor in LSU’s Department of Information Systems & Decision Sciences and the vice president of technology for the Association for Information Systems, has been awarded the AIS Technology Legacy Award. Known as the ATLAS award, this distinction is given to those individuals who have made significant contributions to the intellectual infrastructure of the association.
Entergy Corporation received the Emergency Recovery Award from the Edison Electric Institute for excellence in the restoration effort in the wake of hurricanes Gustav and Ike. Entergy also received the Emergency Assistance Award for outstanding efforts to assist fellow utilities with restoration efforts during winter 2007-08. Entergy replaced more than 85,000 miles of distribution lines and 6,000 miles of transmission lines after the 2008 hurricanes, which left about 1.6 million customers without electricity.
Robert Twilley, an associate vice chancellor of research and economic development at LSU, has been selected to serve on the National Academies of Science Committee on Independent Scientific Review of Everglades Restoration Progress. The congressionally mandated panel operates within the NAS Division on Earth and Life Studies as part of the Water Science and Technology Board.
The University Medical Center Respiratory Therapy Department has earned Quality Respiratory Care Recognition from the American Association for Respiratory Care. The QRCR designation ensures quality respiratory care in a hospital and helps patients and families make informed decisions about the quality of the respiratory care services available at the institution of their choice. About 700 hospitals receive the QRCR designation, which places UMC among the elite for respiratory care in the nation.
Leon Hirsch, vice president of Land and Business Development of Woodside Energy, has been appointed to LSU’s E.J. Ourso College of Business Dean’s Advisory Council. Hirsch earned his bachelor’s in business from LSU in 1973 and his certified professional landman license in 1980. He worked as a landman and manager of land for Amoco and BP for 30 years and was a founding partner and has served as vice president of Explore Enterprises, where he was responsible for all land, commercial and business development activities.
NOMINATIONS
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana is seeking nominations for its Angel Awards, which recognize Louisianans performing extraordinary volunteer work for the state’s children. To nominate someone, go to Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Louisiana’s Web site, bcbsla.com, and click on Community. Nomination packets also are available by calling 1-888-219-2583 or e-mailing Angel.Award@bcbsla.com.
PHILANTHROPY
ExxonMobil planted 100 trees, including a new centennial live oak tree, in the greenbelt area of its north Baton Rouge complex to kick off its 100th anniversary .
