The St. Louis region and its companies make the national news.
Compiled by Lauri Johnson
FOUR ST. LOUIS ACCOUNTING FIRMS NAMED AMONG TOP 15 IN MIDWEST
Practical Accountant magazine has ranked BKD, RubinBrown, Brown Smith Wallace and Anders Minkler & Diehl LLP among the top 15 firms in the Midwest. BKD led the competition with $357.8 million in 2008 revenue, while RubinBrown claimed the No. 4 spot with $52.4 million. Brown Smith Wallace ranked No. 8 with $26.7 million, and Anders, Minkler & Diehl came in at No. 13 with $17.4 million.
Practical Accountant is a technical how-to magazine for growing local and regional accounting firms. A complete list of the top 15 Midwest firms can be found at www.webcpa.com.
“THE NEWSHOUR WITH JIM LEHRER” CHOOSES
ST. LOUIS AS SPOTLIGHT CITY
Gwen Ifill, Judy Woodruff, Spencer Michels and Paul Solman of PBS’ “The NewsHour With Jim Lehrer” visited St. Louis to gain insights on how President Barack Obama’s first 100 days in office have affected the community.
Over a two-week period, the four correspondents moderated forums and discussions that focused on issues such as the economy, education and science. Their observations were featured in “Spotlight City” segments that aired nationally on “NewsHour.” The final event was a town hall meeting that took place at KETC/Channel 9’s studio and aired during “NewsHour.”
The forums and other events were held at sites that included Lindenwood University in St. Charles, Mo.; Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville, Ill.; and the Donald Danforth Plant Science Center in St. Louis.
A television crew from KETC accompanied the “NewsHour” team at local events and produced four 30-minute and one 60-minute follow-up programs that were broadcast locally.
CLIENTS NAME ARMSTRONG TEASDALE A “GO-TO LAW FIRM”
Armstrong Teasdale LLP has been named a 2009 Go-To Law Firm by three of the Nation’s Top 500 Companies in a recent survey conducted by Incisive Media. According to Incisive Media, Armstrong Teasdale was named as the firm of choice by clients Smurfit-Stone Container Corporation for intellectual property and securities, by Thrivent Financial for Lutherans for litigation, and by T. Rowe Price for securities. As a result of this professional reference, Armstrong Teasdale was featured in FORTUNE magazine’s publication “The Go-To Law Firms of the World’s Leading Companies.”
Firms were chosen based on a survey of the general counsel of Fortune 500® companies coupled with in-depth research and analysis of various public filings and resources by Incisive Media.
WALTON CONSTRUCTION FEATURED IN
THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
Walton Construction Company was featured in The Wall Street Journal in the article “Opportunity Knocks and Uncle Sam is at the Door,” which detailed the potential impact of the new economic stimulus plan on small businesses. According to the article, the federal government aims to award 23 percent of all contract dollars across all agencies to small businesses each year.
According to the article, Walton is well-positioned for stimulus fund projects because of its established relationships and experience doing government contracting work. Walton currently receives about 60 percent of its revenue from public and government projects, including military construction. Most recently, Walton signed a contract for a $182 million renovation of the Army’s Fort Polk Barracks and began work on a $59.3 million Navy project to build new barracks at Parris Island in South Carolina.
CLAYCO HONORED FOR BUSINESS EXCELLENCE
Design and construction firm Clayco Inc. has been honored with an Annual Award for Business Excellence by The Business Ledger, a business newspaper that serves Chicago’s suburbs. The awards recognize 20 outstanding companies, agencies, institutions, organizations and associations each year as the best in business.
Headquartered in St. Louis, Clayco’s office in Chicago received the award in the large company category. Clayco celebrated the honor at the publication’s recognition ceremony at the Danada House in Wheaton, Ill. The full list of winners can be found on the publication’s Web site at www.thebusinessledger.com.
ST. LOUIS PUBLIC LIBRARY RECOGNIZED AS STAR LIBRARY
Library Journal has named the St. Louis Public Library one of five Star Libraries in Missouri in its 2009 Index of Public Library Service.
The survey measured more than 7,100 libraries across the United States, based on four public service indicators: circulation per capita, visits per capita, program attendance per capita and public Internet uses per capita. Only 256 of the libraries rated received a Star designation.
“The Star rating encompasses all of the characteristics that we strive to attain as a major urban public Library,” stated Waller McGuire, executive director of the St. Louis Public Library. “It is great to be ranked among our nation’s top libraries. Our dedicated staff goes above and beyond daily to keep our system functioning at an exceptional level.”
Library Journal gave the St. Louis Public Library three stars. The nationally ranked St. Louis Public Library has 17 locations across the city and sees more than 2.3 million visitors each year. The
St. Louis Public Library also is the only library in its category to be ranked among the nation’s top five large urban public libraries for five years, according to a study performed by Central Connecticut State University. This ranking contributed to St. Louis’ 2008 ninth-place ranking among America’s Most Literate Cities with populations 250,000 or larger.
SAINT LOUIS ZOO RANKED NO. 3 FOR KIDS, SAYS PARENTS MAGAZINE
The Saint Louis Zoo claimed the No. 3 spot in Parents magazine’s first-ever 10 Best Zoos for Kids survey. The survey results appeared in the May 2009 issue of Parents magazine.
“We are very proud to be recognized as a great place for children to learn about nature and to have fun,” stated Jeffrey P. Bonner, Dana Brown president and CEO of the Saint Louis Zoo. “We want to foster an interest in nature for kids that will last them the rest of their lives.”
The results are the culmination of a three-month study that examined 50 zoos nationwide. Parents focused on honoring zoos that offer a variety of hands-on, family-friendly activities while fostering appreciation, knowledge and excitement about the natural world. According to the Parents survey, the 10 Best Zoos for Kids are as follows:
1. Tampa’s Lowry Park Zoo, Florida
2. Brookfield Zoo, Illinois
3. Saint Louis Zoo, Missouri
4. Pittsburgh Zoo & PPG Aquarium, Pennsylvania
5. Fort Wayne Children’s Zoo, Indiana
6. San Antonio Zoo & Aquarium, Texas
7. Cincinnati Zoo & Botanical Garden, Ohio
8. San Diego Zoo, California
9. Houston Zoo, Texas
10. Bronx Zoo, New York City
Zoos are ranked based on their responses
to detailed questions about their facilities. The questions focused on accessibility of animal encounter exhibits for children, exclusivity of the exhibits, zoo shows, educational programs, staffing, zoo transportation, restaurant services and admission prices.
SAINT LOUIS CRISIS NURSERY FEATURED ON ABC’s “WORLD NEWS WITH CHARLES GIBSON”
Saint Louis Crisis Nursery, a nonprofit organization solely dedicated to operating 24-hour emergency nurseries, was featured on ABC’s “World News with Charles Gibson.” The program featured the Crisis Nursery in a story about laid-off workers who are using their new spare time to volunteer within their communities.
More than a dozen unemployed United Auto Workers from the Wentzville-based General Motors plant volunteered at the St. Charles Crisis Nursery, playing board games and reading books with 10 children who were staying at the nursery at the time.
“This was an amazing opportunity for our mission,” stated DiAnne Mueller, executive director of Saint Louis Crisis Nursery. “We want the nation to see what we are doing here in St. Louis. We are currently serving more than 5,500 children a year at five locations. We’re keeping those children safe and their families together during these very tough times for our country.”
The nursery has seen an increase in volunteers in past months as more people find themselves losing jobs or taking cuts in work hours. Fewer families may be able to make financial donations, but more are donating time as volunteers. That, Mueller
says, is the silver lining to a jobs crisis that is keeping Crisis Nursery locations busier than ever.
The nursery has grown from one original location to five separate nurseries throughout the St. Louis, St. Charles and Wentzville areas. In the past 23 years, Crisis Nursery has served more than 50,000 children.
