Permit Filed for Marshalls Store at Centennial Commons

Michael Lightman Realty Co. has filed a $2.1 million building permit with the city-county Office of Construction Code Enforcement for a Marshalls retail store in Centennial Commons.

The 22,000-square-foot store will be built in the JCPenney-anchored center on the north side of Winchester Road at Tenn. 385 next to the Toys “R” Us and Babies “R” Us stores. The permit shows an address of 7660 Polo Grounds Blvd. and also lists Linkous Construction Co. Inc. as general contractor for the store. No architect is listed.

Marshalls is closing its store at 6441 Winchester Road in the Hickory Ridge Pavilion retail center to move into the new location.

Source: The Daily News Online & Chandler Reports

– Daily News staff

2 Brokers Take Majority Stake in Colliers Memphis

Two longtime members of Colliers International's Memphis office have taken a majority stake in the real estate company.

Andy Cates, executive vice president of brokerage, and Brad Kornegay, CEO of Colliers Management Services LLC, are now the majority shareholders in the two legal entities that make up the Memphis office.

“This is just the official passing of the torch to Andy and Brad, who have both been partners and actively involved in leadership for a number of years,” said president Gene Woods in a statement. “We’ve always seen the need for succession planning and have known for quite some time that these two highly capable individuals represented the future of our company.”

Woods, Dan Wilkinson and Bayard Snowden were the second generation of leadership at the company founded in 1946 as Colliers Wilkinson by Wilkinson’s uncle, Russell Wilkinson, and Snowden’s father, Robert Snowden.

Woods, Wilkinson and Snowden will remain involved with the company for the foreseeable future. Woods will remain involved in the operations of the brokerage office, while Kornegay will continue as CEO of Colliers Management Services.

Cates, who joined Colliers in 1998 and became a partner in 2005, said Colliers, a major player in the local industrial real estate sector for decades, will seek to increase its presence in the retail and office sectors.

“A couple of years ago, we began growing our office and retail presence, and we’d like to see those sectors become as successful as our industrial real estate practice,” Cates said.

– Amos Maki

Library Enhances Offerings at Small-Business Center

The Memphis Public Library & Information Center has announced enhanced offerings at its Small Business Center on the third floor of the Benjamin L. Hooks Central Library.

The First Tennessee Foundation and Start Co. are contributing to these efforts, investing funding, time and expertise for small-business owners and entrepreneurs. The First Tennessee Foundation has awarded the Memphis Library Foundation a $50,000 grant to enhance the Small Business Center’s collection of books and other materials ranging in topics from business development to social media marketing.

Start Co. mentors will host mentoring sessions at the Small Business Center starting April 8. Each Tuesday from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m., these mentors will offer free counseling to small-business owners and entrepreneurs, discussing ideas and helping address challenges.

– Andy Meek

University of Memphis Football Season Tickets on Sale

Kickoff is still months away, but season tickets for the University of Memphis 2014 football season are on sale.

Fans may also renew or purchase new season tickets online at gotigersgo.com/tickets or by calling the athletic ticket office at 678-2331.

Season ticket prices remain the same from the 2013 season: Box (chairback) seats are $250, prime (sideline) seats are $150, and Fun Zone seats are $55.

In addition to season tickets, the University of Memphis will offer a new Pick 3 plan for the 2014 season. Fans can select any three games on the home schedule for $79. Pick 3 plans will provide fans the same seat for three selected prime location seats (sideline).

The Memphis athletic ticket office also has group tickets available, with prices starting at $5 per ticket.

A limited number of stadium club seats and suites are also available for purchase. For more information about the premium seats, contact Stephen Green at 678-3306 or smgreen2@memphis.edu.

The Tigers will open the 2014 season against Austin Peay State University on Aug. 30.

– Don Wade

Harwood Center Observes Autism Awareness Month

April is National Autism Awareness Month, and the Hardwood Center will be the site of two events aimed at bringing more attention to autism.

Children who attend the Harwood Center will release balloons Wednesday, April 16, at 10 a.m. from the playground of Harwood’s Downtown site, 711 Jefferson Ave., on the University of Tennessee Health Science Center campus.

The balloon release will be followed on Friday, April 18, with Harwood’s annual “Opening Eyes to Autism” 5K run Downtown. Proceeds help offset the cost of children’s attendance at the center, making it more affordable for families.

Autism is a disorder that affects social and communication skills. Current statistics indicate that autism affects one child in 68, a significant increase over previous estimates. Programs such as those at the Harwood Center, which specialize in educational and behavioral teaching techniques, have had success in combatting the effects of autism.

More information about the Harwood Center, and the 5K run, is available online at harwoodcenter.org or by telephone at 448-6580.

– Don Wade

No Candidates Withdraw by Deadline

It appeared no candidates who made the April 3 filing deadline for the August state and federal primary elections and nonpartisan county elections withdrew by the Thursday, April 10, withdrawal deadline.

But the Shelby County Election Commission’s list of candidates posted after the noon deadline showed nine qualifying petitions as “pending” for candidates in several races for party state executive committee positions as well as Shelby County Schools board races.

The name of an additional candidate for a state Democratic Party position also showed up on the list Thursday, with a notation that the petition didn’t have the required number of signatures.

Meanwhile, state Democratic Party leaders voted to oust Mark Clayton from the Democratic primary for Tennessee governor, approving a resolution that says Clayton is not a bona fide Democrat. The resolution stems from Clayton’s work as a volunteer for an anti-gay group described as a hate group by the Southern Poverty Law Center.

Tennessee Republican Party leaders took the same action against Jim Tomasik, who was the challenger to Republican State Sen. Brian Kelsey of Germantown in the District 31 Senate primary. Kelsey has no Democratic or independent opposition.

Tomasik ran in last year’s special election for State House District 91 as a Libertarian Party candidate and took the state to court to have the Libertarian Party label on the ballot.

– Bill Dries

Producer Prices Rise 0.5 Percent in March

The prices companies receive for their goods and services jumped in March led by gains for food, clothing, jewelry and chemicals.

The producer price index, which measures price changes before they reach the consumer, rose 0.5 percent in March, the Labor Department said Friday.

Overall inflation remains relatively tame. Producer prices increased 1.4 percent during the past 12 months.

Wholesale food prices rose last month, led by a 30.4 percent leap in the costs of hogs and 12.4 percent increase in poultry. Those increases were partially offset by a 2.4 percent decline in gasoline prices and a 0.7 percent drop for electric power. Excluding the volatile categories of food, energy and retailer and wholesaler profit margins, core prices ticked up 0.3 percent.

Some of the higher prices were due to a "distortion caused by the unusually bad weather" in previous months, said Paul Dales, senior US economist at Capital Economics.

– The Associated Press