ABC Supply Pays $1.2 Million for Airways Warehouse

American Builders & Contractors Supply Co. Inc. has paid $1.2 million for the warehouse at 2900 Airways Blvd. where the company operates a store.

The Beloit, Wis.-based company bought the 33,180-square-foot facility in a Jan. 14 special warranty deed from Hendricks Commercial Properties LLC, which had acquired the property in 2002 for $900.000.

Built in 1964, the Class C warehouse sits on 3.56 acres along the east side of Airways Boulevard between Democrat and East Brooks roads, and immediately west of Memphis International Airport.

The Shelby County Assessor of Property’s 2012 appraisal was $701,700.

ABC Supply, a wholesale distributor of roofing, siding and windows, has one of its two Memphis-area stores at the location. The other is at 4365 Winchester Road.

No financing was associated with the purchase.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Daily News staff

Fogelman Management Group Adds Seven Properties

Fogelman Management Group has been awarded seven management contracts totaling more than 1,700 units in Tennessee, Georgia, Kansas and Oklahoma.

These newly managed communities are: 330-unit Miller Creek at Germantown, 202-unit Blair Towers and 344-unit Ten Mile Creek in Memphis; 216-unit Quail Landing in Oklahoma City; 192-unit Miller Station at Peachtree in Atlanta; 177-unit Park Place at Town Center in Leawood, Kan.; and 251-unit Bella Palazzo in Overland Park, Kan.

This marks Fogelman Management Group’s entrance into the state of Oklahoma. Company president Mark Fogelman said in a statement that Oklahoma City is a “strong market with great economic fundamentals” and that the firm will continue to add units in the area.

Fogelman Management Group is now managing more than 19,000 apartment homes, valued at more than $1.5 billion and located within 14 states and 24 cities across the Southeast, Southwest and Midwest regions of the country.

– Sarah Baker

Rep. Todd Pleads Guilty to DUI, Gun Charges

State Rep. Curry Todd pleaded guilty Friday to drunken driving and gun charges and was sentenced to 48 hours in jail and the loss of his firearm for a year.

The Collierville Republican was arrested in October 2011 in Nashville after failing a roadside sobriety test. A loaded .38-caliber gun was found stuffed between the driver’s seat and center console.

Todd, who is best known for sponsoring a law that allows people with handgun carry permits to be armed in bars and restaurants that serve alcohol, told reporters after the court hearing that he has no plans to resign.

“I’ve always found that we’re molded and shaped by experiences in life, both good and bad,” Todd said. “And it’s my intention to use this experience over the last 15 months to become a more knowledgeable and effective representative of the people of this state.”

Todd’s sentence of 48 hours in jail on the drunken driving charge will be reduced by the eight hours he spent in police custody after his arrest. He will also have to pay a $350 fine, install an alcohol monitoring device in his vehicle, perform 24 hours of community service and attend alcohol safety school and a victim impact panel.

Todd was placed on one year of probation on the firearm charge, and will be barred from carrying a gun during that time. If he successfully completes the probation, he can petition the court to have his weapon charge expunged and the confiscated handgun returned to him.

Todd, 65, is a former Memphis police officer. He resigned as chairman of the House State and Local Government Committee following his arrest.

– The Associated Press

SunTrust Banks Posts Jump in Fourth-Quarter Net Income

SunTrust Banks Inc. said Friday that its fourth-quarter net income soared, helped by mortgage-related and investment banking income.

The Atlanta-based regional bank earned $350 million, or 65 cents per share, for the last three months of 2012, up from $71 million, or 13 cents per share, in the same quarter a year ago.

The results beat Wall Street predictions. Analysts, on average, expected earnings of 61 cents per share, according to FactSet. SunTrust operates mainly in the Southeast and Mid-Atlantic states.

Noninterest income, which includes fees for services and other sources of revenue, rose 40 percent to $1.02 billion from $723 million. It got a boost from $241 million in mortgage production income, which compared with a loss of $62 million in the prior-year quarter. That jump stemmed from a drop in the amount of money the bank set aside to buy back mortgages.

In addition, investment banking income jumped 29 percent to $112 million.

Net interest income, or earnings from deposits and loans, fell 3.6 percent to $1.28 billion from $1.32 billion, as a result of lower earning asset yields.

Total revenue rose 12 percent to $2.29 billion from $2.05 billion, while analysts expected $2.32 billion.

The company’s provision for credit losses, or the amount of money it set aside to cover soured loans, was relatively flat at $328 million.

– The Associated Press

Lauer Appointed To CBIZ Women Board

Linda Lauer, managing director and shareholder at CBIZ MHM Thompson Dunavant, has been appointed to the CBIZ Women’s Advantage Executive Board.

Lauer will serve a three-year term on the national board, adding to her leadership role with the local CBIZ MHM Thompson Dunavant Women’s Advantage, launched last year.

CBIZ Women’s Advantage celebrates the uniqueness of female business professionals. Internally, the program directs the development of its female professionals through focused leadership, mentoring and networking. Externally, it provides female decision makers access to a network of highly skilled, seasoned, professional women to assist their business needs.

– Andy Meek

Children’s Show Host Mr. Chuck Dead at 80

Chuck Scruggs, a pivotal figure in Memphis radio who found fame later in life as host of the WKNO-TV children’s program “Hello Mr. Chuck,” died Friday, Jan. 18, at the age of 80.

Scruggs came to Memphis in the 1970s from San Francisco to become the first African-American general manager of WDIA.

The first radio station in the country programmed specifically for black listeners with black radio hosts moved under Scruggs’ leadership into a more conventional block radio format. WDIA kept some of the hour-long programs that had been its staple during its formative years as well as the radio station’s public outreach programs. He was among the community leaders who organized to save the Lorraine Motel from demolition and was in the forefront of the drive that resulted in its transformation into the National Civil Rights Museum.

Scruggs debuted on WKNO in 1993 as a host who appeared between children’s shows that still air on the television station during middays. In 1995, “Hello Mr. Chuck” began and joined the midday lineup two years later. The program also aired on other PBS stations in Tennessee and in the northeast U.S.

With his trademark red shirt and captain’s hat and a gentle approach that coaxed answers from children, Scruggs was a celebrity with children who often responded to him at first sight as if they had always known him. He was also a trusted television companion by parents.

Scruggs was also the station’s education manager, and hosted early childhood seminars for parents and spoke on the issues of early childhood development.

- Bill Dries

Commissioner Not Surprised at More Traffic Deaths

State safety officials say they aren’t surprised that traffic fatalities were up statewide in 2012.

Safety and Homeland Security Commissioner Bill Gibbons noted that 2011 had the lowest number of Tennessee traffic deaths in nearly a half-century and officials knew it would be difficult to replicate.

The preliminary death count for last year was 1,019 people. That was up from 937 traffic fatalities in 2011.

Preliminary statistic show more than 24 percent of 2012 traffic deaths involved alcohol. More than half of those killed weren’t wearing seat belts.

– The Associated Press