School turbine plans hit roadblock

Randolph Southern schools hit a snag in plans to install a wind turbine on school property because the developer is insisting on setbacks.

California-based Nordic, which is set to provide the turbine, hesitated to move forward due to the proposed turbine's proximity to school buildings. The company cited the closeness and potential for accident or injury for the balk.

Randolph Southern is looking into alternative sites for the turbine, since the windmill could bring additional revenue to the school district.

McDonald's hire

McDonald's will hire around 75 workers to staff a new operation in the Lima Marketplace in Fort Wayne.

The new restaurant is slated to open in July at the location on Lima Road just south of Dupont Road. The new location will include amenities such as TV and Wi-Fi, and will offer the chain's new McCafe line of coffee drinks.

Comcast news

Comcast will add a Spanish newscast to its video-on-demand library beginning this month.

The program will be produced by IndyVision TV LLC and will provide news coverage for Fort Wayne and other areas served by the company. Customers will be able to find the newscast in the on-demand library under "Get Local" and then "En Espanol."

Comcast will also be extending wideband services to business in Allen County. The telecom provider will provide up to 50 megabits per second for $189.95 per month, or 22 megabits per second for $99.95 a month.

Wal-Mart news

Wal-Mart same-store sales rose 1.4 percent during March, falling short of expectations.

Sales for locations open at least one year rose 0.6 percent for Wal-Mart locations and 6.2 percent for Sam's Club operations in the nation. Analysts projected an increase of 3.2 percent for Wal-Mart during the month.

The company expects April sales to be higher due to the Easter holiday falling in the April period instead of the five-week March period ending just short of the holiday.

Walgreens dividend

Walgreens declared a quarterly dividend of 11.25 cents per share, payable June 12 to shareholders of record as of May 21.

The drug-store chain company has paid a dividend in 306 consecutive quarters and increased more than 20 percent during the past five years.

Walgreens boasted sales of $59 billion in 2008 and operated nearly 6,800 locations in the U.S. and Puerto Rico.

CAFO expansion

A Fort Recovery chicken operation is applying to the Ohio Department of Agriculture with plans to expand to accommodate 1.2 million chickens.

James R. Wenning, 1500 Union City Road, applied for permits with the ODA to increase the size of existing barns and install a new, seventh building, bringing the total number of birds on the grounds to 1.2 million layer hens and 125,000 pullets, young female chickens, which are not included in the total count.

Manure production at the site after the expansion is estimated at 46,720 tons per year.

The permit, if granted, would be valid for five years before it would need to be renewed.

New owner

Hardesty Moving and Storage Company has recently changed ownership, being purchased by company employee Rickie Caldwell.

Caldwell, an employee of Hardesty since 1994, served as district sales manager for North American Van Lines, a client of Hardesty since 1955, before making the purchase.

He is a 1992 Jay County High School graduate and a grad of Ball State University. He currently resides in Redkey with his wife and two children.

The company is located at 3400 N. Commerce Drive, Muncie. The company can be reached at (765) 288-4413.

Event management

Ivy Tech Community College is offering a new concentration in event management through its hospitality administration department.

The focus will be on hospitality, travel management, convention and meeting management, meeting planning and tourism. Two classes, Introduction to Convention/Meeting Management and Travel Management are being offered in the fall.

To register for either class, call Jeff Bunting at (260) 481-2240 or e-mail him at [email protected].[[In-content Ad]]