Raines Road Warehouse Sold Back to Bank
The 30,000-square-foot warehouse at 5665 Raines Road in Hickory Hill North sold for $500,000 to BancorpSouth following a foreclosure.
The bank bought the Class A warehouse Aug. 14 on the steps of the Shelby County Courthouse from substitute trustee Jerry P. Spore of the Jackson, Tenn., law firm Spragins, Barnett & Cobb. Spore was appointed substitute trustee July 10.
The previous owner, Hickory Ridge Properties LLC, defaulted on a $791,945 loan through BancorpSouth dated June 22, 2005.
Jacques Belet signed the trust deed as chief manager of the borrower. American Lift Truck Services LLC, the lone tenant in the building, is a “Belet Company,” according to its Web site. No other information on either entity was immediately available.
Built in 1999, the warehouse sits on 2.5 acres on the south side of Raines Road in the Raines Business Center Planned Development Phase 3. The Shelby County Assessor of Property’s 2009 appraisal is just shy of $1 million.
Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports
Minglewood Plaza Owners Seek Restaurant Approval
The Memphis-Shelby County Board of Adjustment is scheduled today to hear a request from the owners of Minglewood Plaza, a mixed-use development in the heart of Midtown whose key feature is a mid-sized performance hall.
The owners of Minglewood want to add a restaurant to their development, but they don’t want to have to develop a new surface parking lot and add a corresponding amount of parking under the current zoning requirements.
“This site has practical difficulty in conforming to the parking requirements of the existing zoning regulations because it was constructed at a time when transportation was mainly walking and transit and so was developed without the land required to develop surface parking,” reads a planning staff report about the Minglewood application.
The Board of Adjustment will meet today at 1 p.m. at City Hall, 125 N. Main St.
Consumer Sentiment Improves More Than Expected
Consumer sentiment rose more than expected in August and expectations hit the highest level since the recession began, indications that Americans’ pessimism about the economy may be lifting.
The New York-based Conference Board reported Tuesday its Consumer Confidence index rose to 54.1 from an upwardly revised 47.4 in July. Economists surveyed by Thomson Reuters had expected a slight increase to 47.5.
Still, the index is well below 90, the minimum level associated with a healthy economy. Anything above 100 signals strong growth.
Economists closely monitor confidence because consumer spending accounts for about 70 percent of U.S. economic activity. Consumer sentiment – fueled by signs the economy is stabilizing – has recovered a bit since hitting a record low of 25.3 in February.
Many analysts expect the economy to grow 2 to 3 percent in the current July-September quarter, spurred by a more stable housing market and the Cash for Clunkers program, which has boosted auto sales.
Consumers’ expectations for the economy over the next six months rose to 73.5 from 63.4 in July, the highest level since December 2007, when the recession began. The consumer confidence survey was sent to 5,000 households and had a cutoff date for responses of Aug. 18.
Sal Guatieri, an economist at BMO Capital Markets, said the jump in the expectations index meant consumers likely will spend more in the months ahead.
The housing sector also received positive news. The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller’s U.S. National Home Price Index rose 1.4 percent in the second quarter from the January-March period, the first quarterly increase in three years. Home prices, while still down almost 15 percent from last year, are at levels last seen in early 2003.
Little Kids Rock Expands To Memphis Schools
Little Kids Rock, a national nonprofit music program, has expanded into 12 schools in the Memphis area.
Thursday and Friday at the Teaching and Learning Academy, LKR will instruct participating teachers in its curriculum and donate 300 new Fender guitars, software and materials.
Through funding from Hot Topic Foundation and Trans-Siberian Orchestra, the schools that will benefit from the LKR program are Colonial Middle School, Snowden School, Cypress Middle School, Southside Middle School, Lester School, Craigmont Middle School, South Park Elementary School, Cordova Middle School, Ridgeway Middle School, North Elementary and Oakhaven High School.
Founded in San Francisco in 2002 by elementary school teacher David Wish, LKR provides free instruments and instruction to underfunded public schools.
The program has served more than 85,000 students at more than 1,000 schools in 20 cities.
Kathy Bates to Speak At Foundation Luncheon
Academy-Award wining actress and director Kathy Bates will reflect on her career and her battle with cancer at the 8th annual Methodist Healthcare Foundation’s Cancer Center Luncheon Nov. 20 at The Peabody hotel.
A native Memphian, Bates has been honored numerous times for her work on stage, screen and television, including a 1991 Academy Award for Best Actress and a Golden Globe for her portrayal of an obsessed fan in “Misery.” She also has won multiple Emmy, Golden Globe and SAG Award nominations.
Tickets are $100. Proceeds from the luncheon will benefit Methodist Hospice Residence. Call 516-0500 for tickets and table reservations.
Ex-TSEA Head Wants Reinstatement, $300K
Zoyle Jones is suing to be reinstated as the president of the Tennessee State Employees Association following a determination by Nashville prosecutors that he did nothing wrong by charging the state and the employees group for the same trips.
He is also suing for $300,000 in damages from the state Correction Department for comments Commissioner George Little made to the media after demoting Jones from his state job in February.
Jones had been stripped of his role as president of the TSEA in January.
Assistant District Attorney Rodney Faulk wrote in an Aug. 17 letter that there are no state laws prohibiting travel reimbursement from the state while also receiving payment from a private entity for the same trip.
Faulk said there is no proof Jones didn’t engage in legitimate state business while on his trips.
The Correction Department and the TSEA are declining comment on the lawsuits.