VOL. 35 | NO. 19 | Friday, May 13, 2011
As many as 13,000 home businesses might be violating Metro law. That could soon change.
Gabe Sizemore is breaking the law. So, potentially, are 13,000 of his neighbors. Every time a client, musician or engineer visits Sizemore’s small Hermitage recording studio, he is violating a Metro ordinance written before the widespread use of home computers and e-commerce.
Home sales tumbled in April in much of the Nashville area as would-be buyers, frustrated by the difficulty of qualifying for a mortgage loan or unable to sell their existing house before buying another one, increasingly gave up and became renters.
GREEN BUSINESS
Looking to make some extra money while studying architecture at the University of Tennessee-Knoxville, Bobby Bandy, 43, started a small recycling company. But when he left school he left that behind, focusing on his architecture career.
REALTY CHECK
Last week, 115 local and regional business and community leaders visited Toronto as part of the Nashville Area Chamber of Commerce’s Leadership Study Mission. This year’s trip marked the 20th of these ventures and focused on positioning Nashville as a global city.
GET A JOB!
You are likely to hold many positions during your career. You also will receive many raises. But like most people, you probably don’t know how to ask for a raise or the best compensation package.
BOOK REVIEW
You catch more flies with honey than vinegar.
NEWSMAKERS
Allen Kaiser, M.D., professor and vice chair of Clinical Affairs for the Department of Medicine, chief of staff for Vanderbilt University Hospital and associate chief medical officer for Vanderbilt University Medical Center, has been named chief of staff for the Vanderbilt Health System.
I SWEAR
A few weeks back I advocated the use of puns. Within days, maybe hours, of that column’s appearance, I received an email from David R. Yale, the “Pundit of Double Entendres,” as he is referred to on the title page of his book.
KAY'S COOKING CORNER
As I was musing over what to write about today, it occurred to me that I haven’t done a food quiz in a while, so what better time than now? Hope you enjoy it!
STATE LEGISLATURE
NASHVILLE (AP) — Tennessee lawmakers on Wednesday backed off trying to force Amazon.com to collect sales taxes on transactions in the state, at least for this year.
NASHVILLE (AP) — Sen. Bill Ketron has distributed a DVD to his fellow senators that claims Nashville Muslims radicalized a Memphis man who shot an Army recruiter after converting to Islam.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A proposal that would require Tennessee's employers to prove their employees are legally authorized to work in the U.S. is headed for a full House vote.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A proposal that would remove the cap on charter schools in Tennessee is headed for floor votes in both chambers.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A Tennessee proposal that seeks to prevent "material support" for terrorist groups has been amended to more closely resemble a federal law.
NASHVILLE (AP) — A proposal to prohibit the teaching of homosexuality in Tennessee public schools has been delayed in the Senate, but a measure to study the issue is advancing.
REAL ESTATE
WASHINGTON (AP) — Fewer people purchased previously occupied homes in April. Activity among first-time homebuyers increased and foreclosure sales declined, but those factors weren't enough to signal a recovery in the weak housing market.
NEW YORK (AP) — Fixed mortgage rates fell this week to the lowest point of the year, offering incentive for homeowners to save money by refinancing their loans.
NATIONAL BUSINESS
NEW YORK (AP) — LinkedIn's stock nearly doubled in its market debut because of huge investor demand for the first major U.S. social networking company to go public.
NEW YORK (AP) — A private research group's forecasting gauge suggests some bumps in the U.S. economic recovery this summer.
Oil prices inched above $100 a barrel Thursday thanks to the effects of a stronger dollar, but gains were limited by the International Energy Agency's warning that expensive crude was hurting the global economy.
Sears Holding Corp. may need to go back to the drawing board. The company's dependence on appliances and what seemed to be growing strength at its Kmart stores failed it in the first quarter, as the retailer reported a bigger-than-expected loss in contrast to a profit a year ago.
TOKYO (AP) — Japan's economy shrank in the first quarter, veering back into recession as factory production and consumer spending wilted in the aftermath of March 11 earthquake and tsunami.
NEW YORK (AP) — Investigators cut out a piece of carpet in a painstaking search of a penthouse suite for DNA evidence in IMF chief Dominique Strauss-Kahn's sex assault case, law enforcement officials said Wednesday as he made a new bid to get out of jail.
BILLINGS, Mont. (AP) — Former billionaire Tim Blixseth said he will pursue court sanctions against the Montana Department of Revenue after a federal judge tossed a bankruptcy petition the state filed against him seeking $57 million in alleged unpaid taxes.
NATIONAL POLITICS
WASHINGTON (AP) — Senate Republicans may hand President Barack Obama his first defeat on a judicial nomination, as they appear to have sufficient votes to sustain a filibuster against liberal law professor Goodwin Liu.
WASHINGTON (AP) — The federal government is rolling out a new official language of sorts: plain English.
WASHINGTON (AP) — With a re-election campaign looming, President Barack Obama is pushing Congress to overhaul the immigration system, but lawmakers seems to have little appetite to take on the issue.