MetroLink
Rolls Through St. Clair County
As well
wishers wave, a MetroLink train
carrying governmental dignitaries, breaks
through a ceremonial ribbon at the College Station
at Southwestern Illinois College in Belleville, Ill.,
on May 4. The 17.4 mile extension will now
deliver service to the southern area of the region.
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The MetroLink
extension into St. Clair County, Ill., is open for passengers. The
extension more than doubles MetroLink's presence in the region,
adding 17.4 miles to the 17 miles of the original line, which runs
from Lambert International Airport east to 5th and Missouri in East
St. Louis. This also launched the new feeder bus service in St.
Clair County.
Bi-State Development celebrated the official opening the first weekend
in May. As the first trains moved the trail eastward, Station Area
Committees at each station on the new alignment cut ribbons to celebrate
the opening of their stations. Station platforms were filled with
area residents, along with local, state and national legislators
and VIPs took part in the festivities at each new station.
"In the
years to come, this new transit system through the heart of St.
Clair County will be recognized as a critical tool, bringing economic
opportunity and greater mobility to the people of our region,"
said U.S. Rep. Jerry Costello (D-IL), whose leadership was instrumental
in making the St. Clair County MetroLink extension a reality
Pulling into
College Station, on the campus of Southwestern Illinois College,
participants applauded their new connection to the west.
"This
is a big day for St. Clair County," said Delores Lysakowski,
chairperson of the St. Clair County Transit District. "Our
new system will not only make commuting easier but will open up
the county to accessible, affordable, convenient transit."
Stations on
the new St. Clair County extension include Emerson Park, Jackie
Joyner Kersee, Washington Park, Fairview Heights, Memorial Hospital,
Swansea, Belleville and Southwestern Illinois College. The extension
connects residents and visitors in St. Louis to those in St. Clair
County, Ill. MetroBus routes in St. Clair County are fully integrated
with the MetroLink system, allowing coordinated transfers between
bus and train.
John Baricevic,
St. Clair County Board Chairman, said, "With completion of
this system, our communities enter a new era of connectedness,
not only for St. Clair County, but for the St. Louis area as a
whole."
Solution Consultants Acquires E-Comm Solutions;
New Management Team Announced
Solution Consultants Inc. (SCI) and E-Comm Solutions, LLC,
are joining forces to penetrate a new market region. As part of
the management team of E-Comm Solutions, R. David FitzGibbon assumes
the role of managing principal and Jeff R. Morgan will serve as
the director of sales.
FitzGibbon joined SCI in 1989 and has served as a senior marketing
consultant and manager of corporate placement services, a wholly
owned affiliate of SCI. Prior to his tenure at SCI, FitzGibbon
held various IT leadership positions at corporations throughout
the St. Louis area. He spent three years teaching and administering
seminars at Washington University's Center for the Study of Data
Processing and has also served as a technical support analyst
for Wang Laboratories.
Morgan brings
more than eight years of IT client solution sales experience in
the St. Louis area to his new role as director of sales. He earned
several awards for outstanding sales performance with Ceridian
Employer Services and Xerox Connect. Morgan has served as a national
accounts representative, senior e-business advisor, and president
of E-Comm Solutions.
SCI is an
enterprise commerce solutions provider and E-Comm Solutions specializes
in web-based technologies provided by Microsoft and IBM and develops
business solutions centered around the Internet, intranet and
extranet. In addition to the Chesterfield location E-Comm has
a branch office in Memphis, Tenn.
SCI is located
at 1350 Elbridge Payne Road in Chesterfield. The company is the
third largest technology-consulting firm in the St. Louis metropolitan
area, and has been the recipient of the RCGA Fast 50 Technology
Award for five consecutive years. SCI employs approximately 200
consultants and serves more than 50 local industries and corporations.
E-Comm Solutions joins Innovations, an interactive net solutions
provider for web design, PC support and networking, technical
writing, and training, as an affiliate of SCI.
Horner & Shifrin Illinois Offices Move to High Technology Corridor
Horner & Shifrin, Inc., engineers, architects and planners,
has relocated its Illinois office to Fairview Heights. Located
in the Market Place office development immediately south of I-64,
just 1/4-mile west of IL Route 159, the office is part of the
region’s newest information technology belt.
With a total of 1,840 square feet, the new office accommodates
13 staff members. The St. Louis and Fairview Heights offices are
connected by means of a secure, dedicated, high-speed T-1 line
to allow real-time sharing of information, drawings and documents.
This will be the fourth Illinois location Horner & Shifrin has
occupied in the firm’s 68-year history. Horner & Shifrin has a
total of 90 professionals and staff and provides engineering,
architectural and planning services to municipal, state and federal
government agencies, industries and institutions. Throughout the
years, the firm has completed more than 600 projects in Illinois.
And The Winners Are “Sold On St. Louis”
Nearly 400 turned out to honor the 2000 Sold On St. Louis
award recipients during a luncheon, held recently at the Downtown
Marriott Pavilion. Proceeds benefit the RCGA’s Campaign for a
Greater St. Louis. Marc Cox of KMOV was the honorary emcee for
the event.
Award recipients include individuals and organizations that have
“through word, deed or normal conduct of business, substantially
contributed to the growing national awareness of the St. Louis
region as a desirable location for business and family.” This
year’s winners were: The City Museum, World Wide Technology Inc.,
Joe Edwards, Bill and Nancy Laurie, Bruce H. Aydt, Jack Buck and
John P. Ferrara.
The Sold On St. Louis committee also recognized the support from
the sponsors: the St. Louis Post-Dispatch; Devereux-Murphy; Mid-America
Regional Information Systems, Inc. (MARIS); Bank of America; First
American Title; Rubin, Brown, Gornstein and Co.; First Bank; Laclede
Gas Company; Paige Sports Entertainment; Paric Corporation/McEagle
Development; RCGA; Prudential Alliance, REALTORS®; TrizecHahn
Office Properties L.L.C.; St. Louis Union Station; UMB Bank and
U.S. Title Guaranty Company.
Gundaker Acquires Laura McCarthy Realtors
Gundaker Realtors has acquired Laura McCarthy Realtors Inc.
from owner Tom Ryan who has retired. With the acquisition the
McCarthy firm has become Laura McCarthy Company, a division of
Gundaker Realtors. Kathy Beilein, formerly co-manager of McCarthy’s
Clayton office, has been named vice president and general manager
of the Laura McCarthy Company.
With the exception of Ryan’s retirement, McCarthy will continue
operations as it has since opening for business in 1944. This
acquisition strengthens Gundaker’s position in the upscale residential
real estate market, a specialty for McCarthy.
The Laura McCarthy Company currently has a sales staff of more
than 100 agents who operate at office locations in Clayton, Kirkwood
and Town & Country. Gundaker was founded in 1968 and has 30 offices
and 2,300 sales associates serving metropolitan St. Louis.
AXA Foundation Bonus Goes to Midwest United Way Agencies
United Way Agencies throughout three midwestern states will
split a $25,000 grant from The AXA Foundation, after AXA Advisors
Gateway Region recorded the company’s highest participation level
in last year’s United Way campaign.
AXA Advisors Gateway Region raised more than $37,000 in 2000 for
the United Way, with total U.S. contributions from the financial
services company topping $4.1 million in corporate and individual
donations.
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