InterBusiness Issues - July 2007

Features

A Milestone Year for the Civic Center

Marc Burnett
Peoria Civic Center
This year will be remembered as a milestone year for the Peoria Civic Center. Not only did the venue celebrate a $55 million upgrade and expansion, it also celebrated its 25th anniversary as the place to be for live entertainment in central Illinois.

Best Places to Work in Illinois

by Sarah Cash
CEFCU and Methodist Medical Center of Illinois were recently selected as winners of the 2007 Best Places to Work in Illinois competition.

Green Building Makes Dollars and Sense

Don Forrest
Farnsworth Group, Inc.
This is the single most compelling and well-documented motivation for building green: Sustainable design and construction provides ongoing, long-term financial benefits that conventional, to-code buildings cannot.

Planning Effective Workspaces as Strategic Assets

Pete Simpson
Lincoln Office
Today, it’s necessary to look at workspaces in terms of the return on investment and the realization that planning and managing these spaces strategically can generate greater productivity and efficiency.
Also in this issue...

Caution for Gifts of S-Corp Stock

Bethany Hearn, CPA/ABV
Clifton Gunderson LLP
If gifting an S-Corporation stock is part of your estate plan, proceed with caution. The appraisal of the stock must properly address the tax affecting issue. If the appraiser fails to properly address this issue, the gift may be appraised at a value greater than you expect.

Measuring Website Effectiveness

Michelle Lefebvre
DLA Creative, Inc.
There are many ways web analytics can help you evaluate the effectiveness of your current site, plan for an updated site and measure your marketing efforts. When business owners combine their expertise with the skills of professional website marketers, it’s a recipe for great success!
Columns
Patrick Kirchhofer - Peoria County Farm Bureau
Mayor Jim Ardis - City of Peoria
W. Michael Bryant, Methodist Medical Center
William Prather, Peoria County Board
Dr. John Throop, The Summit Group
Lois Hamilton Ph.D., Saint Francis Medical Center College of Nursing
Jim McConoughey - Heartland Partnership
Mary Pille, Employers' Association
Michael Stephan, Heart of Illinois United Way
David Smith, Manpower Professional
Bashir Ali - Central Illinois Workforce Network