Newspaper Page Text
Business & Industry
eZ n
Forsyth County News Thursday, March 18,2004
Business notes
Steve D. Voshall
... has earned membership in the
Million Dollar Roundtable (MDRT).
the premier association of financial
professionals, for the fourth consecu
tive year.
Voshall. CLU. ChFC. is president
of Financial Benefit Group in
Cumming.
Achieving
membership in
g ' MDRT is a distin-
M guishing career
milestone, attained
w fl only by those who
have demonstrated
exceptional profes
w sional knowledge.
« expertise and client
Voshall service.
Voshall also is a
financial planner with ESI Financial
Advisors, which is a Registered
Investment Advisor. He is a
Registered Representative with
Equity Services Inc., a Chartered
Financial Consultant (ChFC), and a
Chartered Life Underwriter (CLU).
He is a graduate of the University
of Georgia w ith a bachelor's degree
in business adminstration in risk
management and insurance w ith a
concentration in estate planning.
Voshall is a member of the South
Forsyth Rotary Club, board member
of the Forsyth County United Way.
and is a member of the the Atlanta
Estate Planning Council Inc.
Sugar Plum Cottage
... has opened in Cumming at 422
Pirkle Ferry Road, off exit 15 of Ga.
400. The new business offers a wide
variety of children’s special occasion
and casual clothing for boys up to
size 7 and girls up to size 6x, as well
as baby shower gifts, children’s room
decor, nursery bedding, and person
alized Mommy bracelets. Owners are
Amy Bramblett and Melanie Harper.
For more information, call (770)
889-8699.
Jay L. Tinter
... of Cumming has been recog
nized nationally by the American
Angus Association for having three
registered Angus cows included in
the Association’s 2004 Pathfinder
Report.
Only 2.099 of the more than
34.000 American Angus Association
members are represented in this
year's report.
The Pathfinder Program identifies
superior Angusa cow based upon
recorded performance traits that are
economically important to efficient
beef production, including early and
regular calving and heavy weaning
weights.
Buckhead Brewery & Grill Inc.
... announces the purchase of its
sixth location in Coastal Dunes Mall
in Myrtle Beach. S.C.
The company is known for its
restaurants' distinctive post-and
beam, log cabin architecture creating
an Aspen Lodge atmosphere built
from Wisconsin hardwood with rock
fireplaces and antler fixtures.
It currently operates four loca
tions. including Cumming.
Alpharetta, Stockbridge and
Peachtree City. It is planning another
Atlanta-area location by the end of
this year, and has targeted sites in
Nashville, Tenn., and Charlotte,
N.C., for future locations.
Applications now are being
accepted
... for Guaranteed Rural Rental
Housing Program loans. Deadline is
May 14.
The program, administered by
USDA-Rural Development, is
designed to increase the supply of
moderately-priced housing in rural
areas and to foster risk-sharing part
nerships with public and private
lenders. Funds may be used to build
new housing, purchase and improve
land needed for development.
Complete program details are
available in the Feb. 6 Federal
Register.
“Responses to the feb. 6 notice
will be accepted until May 14, or
after if all the funds haven’t been
allocated," said Wayne Rogers, pro
gram director of Multi-Family
Housing for USDA-Rural
Development.
For more information, call (706)
546-2164.
Better Business Bureau
... will present its annua) 888
e See NOTES, Page 2B
Unemployment recovering slowly
January 2004 had a slight increase from December, decrease from one year ago
From staff reports
Forsyth County’s unemployment
rate increased slightly to 3.0 percent in
January, up from 2.8 percent in
December, the Georgia Department of
Labor reported.
However. January's rate was still a
major decrease from the January' 2(X)3
rate of 4.0 percent.
Forsyth County had a labor force
of 63.515 in January, of which 61.620
were employed and 1.895 unem
ployed.
Fewer residents were in the labor
force and employed in January com
pared to December.
Within the December labor force
ot 65,316 were 63,505 employed and
1.811 unemployed.
Rates for surrounding counties
include:
• Cherokee. 3.2 percent. A labor
IOBf k*> zj
L 4 1
Photo/Audra Perry
Steel girders are erected for the framework of a small strip shopping center being built on
Veterans Memorial Boulevard in Cumming. Grading on the site began in January and the con
crete pad was poured this week.
KSL deal will have no impact on Lake Lanier Park
By Alvin Peabody
FCN Regional Staff
BUFORD A Florida-based
real estate investment trust has
unveiled plans to pay $1,366 billion
for 100 percent of the outstanding
stock of KSL Recreation Corp.
In addition, CNL Hospitality
Properties Inc. will assume $794 mil
lion in KSL's long-term debt.
The transaction is set for comple
tion in mid-April.
KSL is a La Quinta, Calif.-based
owner and operator of luxurious des
tination resorts, including Lake
Lanier Islands Resort in south Hall
County.
The CNL-KSL deal will have no
impact at the 1,100-acre resort, said
Ray Williams, president and chief
executive officer of Lake Lanier
Islands.
“There will be no employee lay
offs or cuts in services or activities,"
said Williams.
"KSL will continue to manage the
resort, just as it has done in the past,”
force of 87,883 included 85,060
employed and 2,823 unemployed.
• Dawson, 2.6 percent. A labor
force of 11,394 included 11,094
employed and 3(X) unemployed.
• Fulton, 4.9 percent. A labor force
of 427,659 included 406,726
employed and 20.933 unemployed.
However. Roswell recorded a 1.9
percent jobless rate and Alpharetta a
1.8 percent rate in a separate report on
cities. Atlanta recorded a jobless rale
of 6.7 percent.
• Gwinnett. 3.8 percent. A labor
force of 389,111 included 374.501
employed and 14,610 unemployed.
Lawrenceville recorded a 5.1 per
cent jobless rate and Snellville had a
3.7 percent rate.
• Hall. 3.1 percent. A labor force of
79,461 included 76,964 employed and
2.497 unemployed.
Gainesville recorded an unemploy-
New shopping venue
Lake Lanier Islands Resort
Address: 6950 Holiday Road
Opened:l974
Size: 1,100 acres
Owner: State of Georgia
Management: KSL Recreation
Corp.
Features: Hotels, confer
ences, golf course, horseback
riding, water park, lake houses
and boat rentals.
he said.
Opened in 1974, the state-owned
resort employs 260 area residents
year-round and another 300 workers
during tourism season. It has about
1.2 million annual visitors.
“I was glad to know that the
resort hasn’t been sold to an outside
entity,” said Matthew Brandy, a fre
quent resort patron.
“The islands are an important
asset to the state as well as the peo
ple of this region." he said.
In 1996. KSL entered a 50-year
agreement with Georgia to operate
4
ment rate of 3.7 percent.
The Athens metropolitan statistical
area recorded the lowest rate among
the state’s major metro areas at 2.7
percent. The Columbus area had the
highest rate at 4.9 percent.
The unemployment rate in the
metro Atlanta area for January was 4.2
percent, a slight rise from 4.1 percent
in December. During the same one
month period, jobs in the metro
Atlanta area declined by 31,600, or 1.5
percent.
Meanwhile, the unemployment
rate in Georgia for January was 4.1
percent, a slight rise from 4.0 percent
in December. During the same one
month period, jobs in the state
declined by 62.800, or 1.6 percent.
"Much of the decline in jobs in
January was due to seasonal factors
that occur each year at this time," said
State Labor Commissioner Michael
the resort, including the beach and
water park, the 216-room Emerald
Pointe and Conference Center, an 18-
hole golf course, boat rental opera
tions and campgrounds.
The state is guaranteed a $3.2
million annual rental fee and 3.5 per
cent of revenues generated in excess
of S2O million each year. A state
appointed. nine-member Lake Lanier
Islands Development Authority
tracks revenues and approves capital
expansion projects.
"KSL has a good track record and
we’re confident that such will be the
case in the foreseeable future,” said
Frank Turk, a 21-year authority
board member.
Over the years, the resort has
become a major tourist and business
attraction. Tourism is vital to Hall,
which is anchored by the 28,000-acrc
lake. The industry employs more
than 8,000 people in the county,
which ranked 1 Ith in the state in
tourism dollars generated.
CNL is an affiliate of CNL
Thurmond. “For example, cutbacks in
retail trade and other service-related
industries following the holiday shop
ping season accounted for nearly all of
the job loss.
"However, some of the job losses
are permanent, such as those we con
tinue to see among some of Georgia’s
major companies,” Thurmond contin
ued. “These losses not only affect
workers whose jobs are being termi
nated, but make it even harder for
Georgians who have been out of work
for months to find employment.
“This weakness in the critical area
of job creation continues to hamper
our recovery. Job cuts scheduled for
the near future, along with the thou
sands of long-term unemployed, make
it clear that a higher rate of job cre
ation is needed to sustain a solid
recovery.”
First-time
unemployment
claims down
from January
From staff reports
The Georgia Department of
Labor has announced that 36,968
laid-off workers filed a first-time
claim for unemployment insurance
benefits in February, a decrease of 47
percent from January when 70.271
claims were filed.
Initial claims are considered to be
a leading economic indicator,
because they measure newly laid-off
workers.
The decline was expected
because the number of claims filed
each year in February is significant
ly lower than in January, when a
large number of claims are filed
because of layoffs following the
holiday shopping season.
For the last five years, the drop
in claims from January to February
has averaged nearly 50 percent.
The number of claims filed in
February is 6,360 fewer than those
filed in February a year ago.
“While we're encouraged by the
decline in initial claims in
February,” State Labor
Commissioner Michael Thurmond
said, "the fact remains that we still
have about 178.000 unemployed
workers in Georgia. We need to cre
ate more jobs to help the long-term
unemployed, as well as new entrants
coming into the job market.”
The seven metro areas of the
state and their decreases in initial
unemployment insurance claims
from January to February are as fol
lows:
• Albany, dow n 479, or 50 per
cent. from 951 to 472.
• Athens, down 377, or 50 per
cent. from 758 to 381.
• Atlanta, down 8,104, or 34 per
cent. from 24.004 to 15.900.
• Augusta, down 791. or 38 per-
See CLAIMS, Page 2B
Financial Group Inc., which has over
$9.5 billion in assets, representing
4.000 properties in 49 states and
Canada.
“This is certainly a good fit
between CNL and KSL," said Helen
Fincher, president of the Gainesville-
Hall Convention & Visitors Bureau.
The CVB’s budget is partly fund
ed from lodging tax generated from
the resort’s Emerald Pointe and
Renaissance Pinclsle hotels.
"It’s a good sign that shows that
KSL will continue to be a healthy
entity," said Fincher.
CNL’s Chief Executive Officer
Thomas Hutchison HI noted that
KSL's properties are "renowned for
their high levels of service in meet
ing the needs of their guests. Th[e
associates of KSL have been an
essential ingredient in establishing
this preeminent reputation and w<e
look forward to a seamless transition
with them."
Alvin Peabody is a staff writer far
The Times in Gainesville.