Planning on using those growth plans?
There’s been a lot of talk about development in this town since I got here in the fall of ‘06 — smart growth, no growth, whatever you want to call it. And the talk has intensified now that we’re in campaign season. Bob McDavid’s entry into the race suggests some concern in the business community Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
Pizza and Crocodiles
As a self-confessed marketing & advertising junky, I love learning about unique ideas that help businesses become successful, especially small businesses! There are many lessons to be learned, and some of the greatest innovations are nothing more than ideas that have been taken from one industry, refreshed, and introduced successfully in another. For example, drive-through Read More …
By: Joe Schmitter
Indulge Your Inner Child!
Time for a fun break! If you have kids, you might want to wait until they can participate with you. Or, if you really need a quick pick-me-up, go ahead and indulge your inner child!
Call 1-800-295-0051. This is the Nestle Hotline. When asked if you want to continue in English or Spanish, wait quietly for Read More …
By: Joe Schmitter
United Way and the Future
This morning I participated in the Heart of Missouri United Way’s annual board retreat. This was my first board retreat for the United Way and to be honest, I wasn’t quite sure what to expect. In the past, I’ve been a part of a number of “retreats,” which have lasted the better part of a Read More …
By: Brent Beshore
Books 2.0
Rumor has it that the new Apple tablet will shortly arrive. Like the Kindle, the Apple tablet would be a way of reading text in a non-traditional way, by holding a screen instead of actual pages. Will it be a change-agent like the iPhone? Does this mean an end to books and newspapers? Will it Read More …
By: Brent Beshore
Conley Road extension on shaky ground
Have you ever found yourself at the eastern end of Business Loop 70, wishing you could just zip down past the Walmart to Broadway? Well, the city’s had that idea in mind for years, identifying an extension of Conley Road to Business Loop in its Major Thoroughfare Plan. The Missouri Department of Transportation has, too, Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
Large new commercial development in the works
If a rezoning proposal manages to wind its way through the city government, Grindstone Parkway could become an even more prominent commercial hub.
Red Oak Investment Company is applying to rezone 25 acres from agricultural to planned commercial on the south side of the street across from the Walmart. It would be one of the largest Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
McDavid gets business establishment backing
Which candidate for mayor has the backing of Columbia’s business establishment?
Boone Hospital Center trustee chairman Bob McDavid, almost exclusively, according to the list of people who signed petitions to put candidates’ names on the April ballot. (Here’s a link to the Missourian Web site with the transcribed lists: http://thewatchword.wordpress.com/2010/01/24/candidate-petitions-have-some-familiar-names/
Sid Sullivan got Planning & Zoning Chairman Read More …
By: David Reed
one responseP&Z plans to crack down on late zoning requests
With some huge projects on the Planning and Zoning Commission’s plate — the East Columbia Area Plan and the Comprehensive Plan to name a couple — they’ve opted to add one more: revising the commission’s bylaws to keep zoning requests from being changed at the last minute.
“This has been a burr under our saddles over Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
Columbia gets mentioned at U.S. Conference of Mayors
Columbia and Mayor Darwin Hindman got a shout-out Wednesday from First Lady Michelle Obama during the U.S. Conference of Mayors in Washington, D.C.
During a speech she gave on preventing obesity, which she called “one of the biggest threats to the American economy,” she singled out six cities and their efforts to fight it.
“It’s why Mayor Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
Conan (or NBC) The Destroyer
The Internet has had no shortage of public outcry over NBC’s late-night shake up. The viral communication happening over who should host The Tonight Show demonstrates a form of collective expression that is nearing a protest. Previous generations used picketing, petitions, or rioting as forms of expression. Now, we find ourselves able to gather, discuss, Read More …
By: Brent Beshore
one responseProposed change to city charter nothing but talk
A proposed change to the city’s charter giving the City Council more power over the city manager’s hiring decisions fizzled out Monday night, but not without first attracting some of the usual suspects of city activists.
The motion would have asked voters yet another question on the April ballot about changing the city’s charter. This one Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
one responseVisioning: light at the end of the tunnel
The Columbia Vision Commission gave its first report to the City Council on the draft implementation report of the city’s visioning process Monday night, something of a milestone in the long-running process to gather citizen input on the direction of the city.
Commission Chair Dan Goldstein stressed the “living nature of the document,” and said the Read More …
By: Jacob Barker
With Connectivity, Haiti Goes Viral
With the Haitian earthquake still fresh in everyone’s mind…I’ve been impressed with how information to help the victims has been virtually everywhere. Tweets, Facebook posts, TV commercials…I even got a text from the former Obama campaign about texting a donation to the Red Cross. Using a viral campaign as a way to greatly bolster humanitarian Read More …
By: Brent Beshore
one responseHow to dive in to Twitter without drowning
Earlier this week I made a post about Columbia businesses that get Twitter, and those that don’t. I did not anticipate the huge reaction this post would have. As one of the most read blogs from the Columbia Business Times it is apparent there is a huge interest in social media, especially Twitter, in Columbia, MO. Most Read More …
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