October 7, 2016 at 8:06 p.m.

Turkey barns top building projects

Business Roundup

Another confined feeding operation topped construction projects issued building permits by the Jay/Portland Building and Planning Office in September.
Will Taylor and Laurann Schoenlein were issued a permit for four turkey confined feeding buildings in the 1000 West section of county road 200 South. Construction cost is $1.2 million.
In all, September’s projects totaled $1,609,700.
Other permits were issued to Rick Imel for a $5,000 grain bin at 2588 E. Division Road; Gerald Burkhalter for a $10,000 pole building at 1914 W. 550 North; Scott Grieshop and Grishop Family Farms LLC for a $25,000 grain bin at 6293 E. 500 South; John and Mary Overman for an $89,900 grain bin at 5605 E. 100 South; Sharon Lindsey for a $28,000 pole building at 6065 E. 900 North; and Melissa Campofiore for a $1,000 lean-to at 5451 E. 400 South.
Also to Sarah Brinkerhoff for a $1,900 fence at 144 E. Adams St., Portland; Fort Recovery Industries for a $54,000 parking lot at 710 E. 100 North; Medler’s Furniture for a $2,000 sign at 524 N. Meridian St., Portland; and Secret Systems LLC for a $900 sign at 201 N. Meridian St., Portland.
Also to Henry D. Graber for a $40,000 home and barn at 2615 W. Indiana 18; Robert Betts for a $28,000 residential addition at 5657 S. 200 West; Stephen Flynn for a $40,000 residential addition at 570 N. Meridian St., Redkey; Robert Daniels for a $1,200 porch remodeling project at 405 W. Pleasant St., Pennville; Greg and Kim Ball for an $8,000 open patio cover at 9170 W. 500 South, Benjamin Hammond for a $1,800 deck at fence at 304 E. Walnut St., Portland.
Also to Reige Hughes for a $16,000 pole building at 3287 S. Indiana 167; George Phelps for a $2,000 carport at 130 E. Baker St., Portland; David A. Stoner for a $14,000 pole building at 2889 S. Como Road; Charles Botts for a $6,000 storage building at 5305 S. 800 West; West Walnut Street Church for a $7,000 garage at 204 W. Walnut St., Portland; Curtis McLaughlin for a $10,000 garage at 1007 W. Arch St., Portland; and Michael Kaufman for an $18,000 garage at 8354 S. 700 East.

Sponsors sought
Plans are underway for this year’s WinterFest, and Jay County Chamber of Commerce is looking for sponsors for a number of events.
Potential sponsorships include Christmas at the Courthouse - $200, kids’ breakfast - $100, holiday concert - $200, Little Miss WinterFest - $100, holiday home tour - $125, carriage rides - $100, and free movies at the Ritz - $175.
For more information about sponsoring any of those events, contact the chamber at (260) 726-4481.

Expanding
Mercer County Community Hospital in Coldwater, Ohio, has announced a $24 million expansion of its west wing.
Work on the project is expected to begin in early 2017 and will involve a three-story extension that will house patient rooms, new space for surgery, and an outpatient center. The addition, totaling 54,000 square feet, is expected to open in 2018.

Tyson settles
Tyson Foods Inc., parent company of Tyson Mexican Original in Portland, has agreed to pay $1.6 million to about 5,700 rejected job applicants to settle hiring-discrimination claims brought against the company by the U.S. Department of Labor.
The Labor Department alleged that Tyson’s hiring processes and selection procedures at six facilities violated a federal order prohibiting discrimination based on sex, race or ethnicity. The $1.6 million will go to 5,716 applicants who were rejected at facilities in Rogers and Russellville, Arkansas; Houston, Amarillo and Sherman, Texas; and Saint Theresa, New Mexico.
Tyson issued a statement Tuesday saying it disagrees with the allegations but chose to pay the settlement to avoid the cost of going to trial.
“We’re disappointed by the … claims, since we work hard to comply with all hiring laws and to treat all job applicants fairly,” said Lola Hithon, Tyson’s vice president of employment compliance, a prepared statement.
Tyson said the allegations were based not on complaints from the applicants but on a statistical review of job applications from six to nine years ago. The company said all of the applicants were rejected for “legitimate, nondiscriminatory reasons.”

Moody’s pleased
The bond rating company Moody’s Investor Services this week assigned a Ba3 rating to a $666 million bond issue by Ardagh Holdings USA Inc., a subsidiary of Ardagh Group, parent company of glass container plants in Dunkirk and Winchester.
Moody’s took a favorable view of Ardagh’s progress in integrating assets it acquired from Ball Corporation. But that stable rating is based on Moody’s expectation that Ardagh won’t be entering into further debt-financed acquisitions in the near future and will instead be reducing its debt over the next 12 to 18 months.

Better brew
McDonald’s is planning to buy all of its coffee from sustainable sources by 2020, Bloomberg reported this week.
At the moment, about 37 percent of McDonald’s coffee comes from certified sustainable sources. Bloomberg reported that to increase that figure the company is working with Conservation International, the same non-profit that helped Starbucks reach a level of 99 percent “ethically sourced” coffee.
Coffee producers have been under pressure to adopt sustainable farming methods which have less impact on the rainforest.

Report coming
First Merchants Corporation will report its third quarter financial results at 2:30 p.m. Oct. 25 via a conference call and web cast.
To participate, call (877) 507-0578 or go to http://services.choruscall.com/links/frme161025.html during the time of the call.

Two winners
Two customers of Ardagh Group have been awarded Clear Choice Awards by the Glass Packaging Institute.
Robert Mondavi Winery’s 50th Anniversary Wine and Sir Kensington’s Organic Mayonaisse were both honored for glass containers manufactured by Ardagh Group’s North American glass division.

Sells cans
Ball Corporation, once based in Muncie and a historic producer of glass jars, has announced an agreement to sell its specialty tin manufacturing plant in Baltimore to Independent Can Company for about $25 million. The plant employs about 50. Ball is now based in Colorado.

New ER
Lutheran Health Network, which has a Lutheran Air helicopter based at Portland Municipal Airport, plans to open a new, stand-alone emergency room in Fort Wayne next week.
Lutheran ER Statewood will open at 7 a.m. on Tuesday at the northwest corner of Coliseum and State boulevards.
Plant closing
The Magnetation pellet plat in Reynolds will soon shut its doors, leaving its staff of 165 out of employment, The Lafayette Journal and Courier reported this week..
The news comes after Magnetation LLC announced that a bankruptcy court authorized a motion to shutter operations and dissolve the company's purchase agreement with AK Steel. A facility in Grand Rapids, Minnesota, will also cease operations.
Katherine Burks, the plan's human resources representative, told the Lafayette newspaper she did not know when employees would be given notice. She declined to comment further about the situation.
Randy Mitchell, president of White County Economic Development, told the Journal & Courier in September the fate of the Reynolds facility is uncertain, especially due to the specialized nature of its infrastructure. The plant manufactures iron ore pellets, and Mitchell said it is unlikely the town will find another buyer in need of such equipment.
Magnetation said it is committed to finding a buyer for the property. 
A statement issued on the company's Facebook page said, "We are hopeful that a buyer of the plants will be secured so that all stakeholders can look forward to a better future."
 
PORTLAND WEATHER

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