WASHINGTON — U.S. sales of new homes fell slightly in October and September sales were slower than initially thought. The October sales pace was dragged lower by steep declines on the East Coast, partly related to Superstorm Sandy.

The Commerce Department said Wednesday that new-home sales dipped 0.3 percent in October to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 368,000. That’s down marginally from the 369,000 pace in September, which was revised lower from an initially reported 389,000.

Sales fell a sharp 32.3 percent in the Northeast and nearly 12 percent in the South.

The government said Sandy had a minimal effect on the housing data because it made landfall in the final days of the month. Still, the storm disrupted business activity from North Carolina to Maine.

States outside the area affected by the storm fared better. Sales surged 62.2 percent in the Midwest and were up 8.8 percent in the West.

“Sales probably would have been slightly stronger without the hurricane,” said Jim O’Sullivan, chief U.S. economist at High Frequency Economics. “Still, the report was disappointing.”

Sales were still 17 percent higher in October than the same month in 2011. Even with the gain, new-home sales are well below the annual rate of 700,000 that economists consider healthy.

“Over the past 18 months, new home sales have been on the gentle rising trend although they remain at a very depressed level,” said Steven Wood, chief economist at Insight Economics.

The modest improvement in the new-home market this year follows other reports that show the housing market starting to recover more than five years after the bubble burst. Home prices are rising, sales are up, and builders are starting work on more new homes and apartments.

The median price of a new home sold in October was $237,700.

That’s down 4.2 percent from September but 5.7 percent higher than October 2011.

The supply of homes for sale inched up to 147,000, slightly above the lowest level on records dating back to 1967.

The thin supply of homes for sale has helped drive this year’s housing rebound. The market has finally started to shed the excess number of homes built during the housing boom.

At the same time, more people are looking to buy or rent a home after living with relatives or friends during and immediately after the Great Recession.

And mortgage rates have been near record lows all year, making homes more affordable.

Though new homes represent only a small portion of the housing market, they have a disproportionate impact on the economy.

Each home built creates an average of three jobs for a year and generates about $90,000 in tax revenue, according to statistics from the National Association of Home Builders.

Sales of previously occupied homes are near five-year highs, excluding temporary spikes in 2009 and 2010 when a homebuyer tax credit boosted purchases. Builders, meanwhile, are increasingly confident that the recovery has legs.

A measure of their confidence rose to the highest level in six and a half years this month. And builders broke ground on new homes and apartments last month at the fastest pace in more than four years.

The Standard & Poor’s/Case-Shiller home price index, released Tuesday, found that prices rose in most major cities in September compared to August. They rose 3.6 percent in the third quarter compared to the same period last year.

There are still factors dragging on a housing recovery. Many Americans, particularly first-time homebuyers, are unable to qualify for a mortgage or can’t afford larger down payments.

The Georgia State University Economic Forecasting Center is predicting anemic job growth in Savannah for 2012 and 2013.

What would it have taken to change that forecast? Two words — housing demand.

Housing demand has far-reaching effects that aren’t always apparent. Certainly, construction employment is obvious for new housing.

And consider the laundry list of industries positively affected: Equipment rental, lumber, sheetrock and concrete; windows and doors; roofing, wall finishes, electrical and plumbing contractors; flooring, design services, furnishings, appliances; landscaping, and the list goes on.

This demand impacts manufacturers and retailers as well as builders, and clearly employment in those industries, which in turn means more tax dollars for the municipalities that participate.

We cannot forget all that stuff has to be transported to the job site, so that industry profits, as well.

Demand for existing housing is equally important, although its impact on the basic industries is obviously less. But cleaning up supply means housing values begin to climb, which also positively impacts the tax base for the city.

It also has a psychologically important effect on the homeowner as he or she begins to once again experience the ‘wealth effect.’ In both cases, lending is stimulated and that contributes to the banking industry.

The greater the wealth effect — housing is the largest asset most Americans hold — the more consumer spending on “things” other than housing we can expect.

Taken together, such rolling good times are a function of the economic multiplier of housing. But weak housing, depressed prices and high unemployment all conspire to make it rough on communities that depend so heavily on tax revenue to provide services.

In Savannah, we see the Pavlovian salivation of the city and county over tourism dollars that generate tax revenues from the lodging industry and provide almost unlimited ability for municipalities to raise taxes. Most certainly our elected officials are proud of their city and invite one and all to come, but they are equally in love with tourism tax revenues. Tourists don’t vote here.

Even the fiscal cliff is affected. There would likely be no cliff if we had vigorous housing demand, the employment it creates and the local, state and federal tax dollars it generates. There would likely be no squabbling over revenues because they would be substantially higher than they are currently or are expected to be in the next few years.

New housing stands out in particular when we consider the unemployment rate that is released for public consumption.

For October 2012, the national unemployment rate was 7.9 percent, but that is highly misleading. People older than 25 with college degrees are enjoying an unemployment rate of 3.8 percent, the lowest level of unemployment for that group since December 2008.

Those older than 16 with associate degrees or specialized skills have a 6.9 percent unemployment rate. Construction and extraction as a category are at 12.6 percent, higher than any other occupation group and higher than the national rate by almost 60 percent.

Regrettably, the rate for 16- to 19-year-olds is 20 percent, and for African-Americans in that age group, it is an appalling 40 percent. Is it any wonder why elected officials will jump at the promise of any construction project? Even folly?

There is, of course, the chicken or egg conundrum. We need strong employment to stimulate housing demand as much as we need strong housing demand to stimulate employment. Fortunately, the latest economic data releases confirm that we are slowly headed in the right direction.

So when do we climb out of all this? I have no idea. My gut tells me 2015 or 2016, but my gut is no better than yours. I think a clue to how long it will be is the clash in Washington over the cliff.

If Congress felt that housing demand would bounce back quickly, I don’t think you would be seeing an effort to construct a 10-year plan for deficit reduction. It would be shorter. Interestingly, in Spain authorities have proposed offering residency to foreigners willing to buy a house costing $200,000 or more.

Hmm, there’s that population growth thing again.

Russ Wigh is a professor of business. Email him at rdwigh@bellsouth.net.

It’s time for Generation Next 2013 nominations

If you know someone younger than 40 who’s an up-and-comer in the business world in the Savannah area, nominations are open for the 2013 Generation Next: Savannah’s Rising Stars of Business.

This is the third year for the awards sponsored by Business in Savannah (BiS) and Savannah magazine. The previous two have featured men and women who have achieved significant success prior to their 40th birthdays in a variety of businesses and who have made contributions to the community’s charitable and civic activities.

To nominate your rising star, please go to http://businessinsavannah.com/generation-next.

The deadline for nominations is Dec. 14. Winners will be announced in BiS on March 6.

Auto dealer presents its Christmas contest

CLAXTON — NeSmith Chevrolet Buick GMC will host its “Christmas On Us” contest with the Cumulus Savannah Radio Group to help underprivileged families in the community.

NeSmith Chevrolet is asking the community to nominate deserving local families who through their work, community involvement and character inspire others despite their own circumstances.

To nominate a family, visit http://cumuluscares-christmasonus.com/markets/savannah/register.

The contest will help five deserving families, one of which will be chosen to receive the all-inclusive “Christmas On Us” package with everything needed for the Christmas holiday, including a full Christmas dinner and gift cards to Target, Walmart, Toys-R-Us and other retailers, decorations and more.

The other four families will also receive a variety of gift cards.

New military zone designated

HINESVILLE — The Georgia Department of Community Affairs has designated Census Tract 101 in Liberty County as a military zone. Census Tract 101 includes MidCoast Regional Airport at Wright Army Airfield.

The designation will provide the greatest benefits available under law and regulation for the job tax credit program. These benefits include a tax credit of $3,500 per job for five years as long as the jobs are maintained and use of the credit against 100 percent of corporate income tax liability, with any excess credit then available to utilize against withholding.

“The military zone designation will be a valuable tool we can use to help recruit industry to the proposed development park at MidCoast Regional Airport at Wright Army Airfield as we try to add new jobs to the local economy,” said Allen Brown, chairman of the Liberty County Development Authority.

CHARLESTON, S.C. — Attorneys meeting behind closed doors are trying to settle a federal lawsuit challenging the $650 million deepening of the Savannah River shipping channel.

Former South Carolina U.S. Rep. John Spratt is overseeing two days of court-ordered mediation of the case scheduled for Thursday and Friday.

The Georgia ports want the channel deepened to handle the larger container ships that will be calling when the Panama Canal expansion is open to shipping traffic in 2015. The project would deepen the river and harbor entrance channel from its current 42 feet to 47 feet.

But environmental groups in both states have sued, saying the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers needs a South Carolina pollution permit for the project because the dredging will remove toxic cadmium and deposit it on the South Carolina shore.

In an earlier order, U.S. District Judge Richard Gergel asked all the parties in the federal suit “to participate fully and in good faith in court-ordered mediation.”

He also noted that an earlier South Carolina Supreme Court ruling that no state water quality certification has been granted for deepening the channel may raise difficult legal issues.

The state Supreme Court last month invalidated a federal clean water certification that had been issued by the state Department of Health and Environmental Control. The court ruled the state’s Savannah River Maritime Commission, not DHEC, had authority over river activities.

When the environmental groups sued over the state pollution permit the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers and the Georgia ports argued that no permit was needed because the water quality certification had already been issued. But under the Supreme Court ruling, that argument is now moot.

However, the corps has told Congress it now wants an exemption from the requirement that the state certify the project.

The corps has sent letters to Vice President Joe Biden, House Speaker John Boehner and eight other Washington lawmakers saying the project should be allowed to bypass environmental review by South Carolina.

Jo-Ellen Darcy, assistant Army secretary for civil works, said in the letters to 10 House and Senate leaders the project qualifies for such an exemption because Congress conditionally authorized the project in 1999.

She said the exemption is needed “in order to prevent inappropriate delays to this project due to pending litigation.”

As the volume of rolling cargo moving through Georgia’s deepwater ports has nearly doubled in the last three years, the Georgia Ports Authority board this month approved an additional $2 million for high-density paving at Savannah’s Ocean Terminal.

“This project will provide greater capacity in moving oversized roll-on/roll-off cargo at Ocean Terminal,” said GPA Executive Director Curtis Foltz. “It will yield better efficiency and lower long-term maintenance costs by providing a more durable surface for moving and staging these heavy cargos.”

The latest appropriation brings the total amount dedicated to high-density paving at Ocean Terminal to just less than $5 million.

The improved surface employs roller-compacted concrete, which is conducive to the heavy traffic and loads endured by paved surfaces in a shipping terminal. Unlike traditional concrete, RCC is relatively dry when poured. Using this type of concrete reduced the cost of the project and the amount of natural resources required and offered a slightly faster cure time.

The latest funding will expand outdoor paved areas to improve sorting and storage of cargo, including the cargo pressure-washing area and cargo staging areas.

These improvements follow similar infrastructure projects at GPA’s Colonel’s Island Facility in Brunswick, where roadways, bridges and staging areas were also strengthened to accommodate additional tracked and heavy equipment.

The number of rolling cargo units moving through Ocean Terminal and Brunswick’s Colonel’s Island has jumped from 293,265 in FY2009 to 569,984 in FY2012.

That number will continue to grow, Foltz said, as the Caterpillar manufacturing facility near Athens begins to come online, producing small track-type tractors and mini hydraulic excavators. Proximity to the state’s ports factored into the company’s decision to bring those jobs to Georgia, Foltz said.

IKEA hosts students

Students in the logistics program at Groves High School took a pre-Thanksgiving field trip to the massive IKEA Distribution Center to get an up-close look at the heartbeat of the logistics industry.

There, IKEA distribution center manager William Jackson showed the group how the need for speed and execution in moving product has turned the huge warehouse into “the embodiment of high-tech efficiency.”

The nearly 800,000-square-foot facility supplies 10 of IKEA’s 38 U.S. stores, as well as a store in the Dominican Republic, handling an average of 50 container — or tractor-trailer — loads a day.

“Product comes in from the ports in containers and goes out to our stores on trucks,” Jackson told the students. “Our job is to make sure that happens as efficiently as possible.”

In the 110-foot-tall area known simply as “the silo,” an innovative automated storage and retrieval system takes each incoming pallet, scans its label, weighs it, squares it on the conveyer belt and then moves it — via automated shuttle and crane — to its proper place among the long lines of boxes stacked 18 levels high.

When it’s time to ship, the system remembers where that particular pallet is, retrieves it and brings it down for loading. The silo holds up to 82,000 pallets, with each of the 13 automated cranes capable of moving 37 to 40 pallets an hour.

The logistics program of study at Groves High is designed to prepare students for employment in the field of business logistics, said Curtis Bean, who heads up the program.

“Our program — which is open to all high school students in Chatham County Public Schools — introduces the student to supply chain management, ecommerce, Occupational Safety and Health Administration safety standards and the Environmental Protection Agency standards for hazardous material handling,” he said.

“Our purpose is to offer insight into the process of product movement, from receipt of inventory to the delivery of the product to the consumer,” Bean said. “We hope to positively impact Georgia’s logistics workforce by promoting awareness of maritime, transportation and supply chain careers.”

The pathway consists of three classes: fundamentals of logistics, business logistics operations and logistics material management.

For more information, contact Bean at curtis.bean@savannah.chatham.k12.ga.us or call him at 912-395-2520.

Strike idles LA/Long Beach ports

Most of the nation’s largest port complex remained shut down Thursday as clerical workers strike the Los Angeles and Long Beach terminals.

Union spokesman Craig Merrilees said members of the International Longshore and Warehouse Union are honoring the picket lines.

Port spokesmen say seven of eight Los Angeles terminals and three of six in Long Beach are closed. In L.A., 14 ships in dock and in the harbor aren’t being serviced.

On Wednesday, dockworkers refused to cross clerical worker picket lines even though an arbitrator ruled the strike invalid.

The clerical workers have been locked in a contract dispute with more than a dozen shippers for more than two years. They claim terminal operators have been outsourcing their jobs overseas. Shippers deny that and say they’ve even offered to guarantee local jobs.

Senior business reporter Mary Carr Mayle covers the ports for the Savannah Morning News. She can be reached at 912-652-0324 or at mary.mayle@savannahnow.com.

SHIPPING SCHEDULE

These are the ships expected to call on Georgia Ports Authority’s Garden City and Ocean Terminals in the next week. Sailing schedules are provided by Georgia Ports Authority and are subject to change.

Terminal Ship name Arrival

GCT MSC FEDERICA Today

GCT MSC SORAYA Today

GCT ZIM CALIFORNIA Today

GCT MSC FLORENTINA Today

GCT KAAN KALKAVAN Today

GCT XIN NAN TONG Today

GCT ASIR Today

GCT CMA CGM AMBER Saturday

GCT CMA CGM L’ETOILE Saturday

GCT ARNOLD MAERSK Saturday

GCT EVER DAINTY Saturday

GCT APL JAPAN Saturday

GCT MSC SINDY Saturday

GCT MELINA Saturday

GCT OOCL BRITAIN Saturday

GCT CHARLESTON EXPRESS Saturday

OT TYSLA Sunday

OT SAUDI ABHA Sunday

GCT MADRID EXPRESS Monday

GCT YM EFFICIENCY Monday

GCT ATHENA Monday

GCT NYK METEOR Monday

GCT PORTLAND EXPRESS Monday

GCT SUEZ CANAL BRIDGE Monday

GCT ZIM TARRAGONA Tuesday

GCT MOL ENDEAVOR Tuesday

GCT CGM UTRILLO Tuesday

GCT MAERSK DERINCE Tuesday

GCT HANJIN SAN FRANCISCO Tuesday

OT TULANE Tuesday

OT ANGEL ISLAND Tuesday

GCT SEA-LAND CHAMPION Wednesday

GCT FOUMA Wednesday

GCT HYUNDAI INTEGRAL Wednesday

GCT MOL INTEGRITY Wednesday

OT TAMPA Wednesday

OT ATLANTIC IMPALA Wednesday

GCT MAERSK DUNEDIN Thursday

GCT MAERSK ROUBAIX Thursday

GCT ZIM BEIJING Thursday

ATLANTA — The Savannah economy will add jobs next year at a modest clip, according to a forecast the University of Georgia released Thursday at the kickoff of a series of luncheon presentations around the state.

The university’s Selig Center for Economic Growth in the Terry College of Business prepared the forecast, which calls for the Savannah area’s employment to grow by 0.4 percent in 2013. That would be a tiny improvement over the 0.2 percent pace for the current year.

The metro area would also lag the rest of the state’s 2.1 percent expansion and the nation’s 1.3 percent.

“Savannah’s long-term growth prospects are among the best in the nation because its unique ambiance and transportation infrastructure make it an attractive place in which to live and do business,” the economists wrote in the forecast. “Retirees will continue to be an important force, powering and diversifying the region’s economic development, but the Savannah area will benefit from the fact that its population is increasing in all age groups.”

When the bursting real-estate bubble halted the influx of retirees to the area, that hurt the local economy and is still cramping the local governments that rely on property taxes. Local governments — like the federal government — will continue to shrink their payrolls.

However, state government here has already cut more than 6,000 jobs and now spends 4.3 percent less than it did 10 years ago, according to Gov. Nathan Deal, the luncheon’s leadoff speaker. It also doubled its reserves just since he entered office.

“I think it exemplifies in very concrete terms that the state of Georgia is trying to be frugal,” he said.

Terry College Dean Robert Sumichrast said the state’s efforts to trim costs are one reason Georgia’s economy will outperform the national economy next year.

Low costs, tax advantages and friendly government policies will also contribute.

“I think Georgia’s economy will grow in 2013 and grow faster than the nation as a whole. That’s a change from what you’ve been hearing from me in the past five years,” he said. “... Don’t get too excited. We’re only predicting growth a little over 2 percent.”

For the first time since 2000, no sector of private employment will reduce jobs, even though the government sector will. The leisure/hospitality, professional/business services and manufacturing sectors are adding jobs at the fastest tempo. Exports will continue growing, but at a slower rate next year.

The UGA economists are betting Congress finds a way to avert most of the impact of the so-called fiscal cliff of steep, federal tax hikes and spending cuts scheduled for Jan. 1. But they say small-business owners will feel the sting of tax increases and will continue to have trouble getting money to expand.

The school will present the state, national and local forecast in detail Jan. 17 at the Westin Savannah Harbor Golf Resort & Spa.

Alabama firm wins Tybee Coast Guard project

The U.S. Coast Guard has awarded a contract for repairs to a multi-purpose building at Station Tybee Island to BES Design/Build, an Alabama firm with offices in South Carolina, Tennessee, Arkansas, and Washington, D.C.

The project will include the demolition of existing first- and second-floor finishes, floor and structural framing and sheathing, wall finishes, electrical/telecom cabling, plumbing fixtures and other incidentals. BES D/B will also install new steel joists and concrete floor over a metal deck on the first floor.

All existing floor and wall finishes will be replaced, and all interior wall finishes in the first and second floors will be repainted.

Once completed, the building will serve as the berthing unit headquarters. The men will be housed on the second floor, and the first floor will consist of the offices and the control room.

Staffing service opens Savannah office

The Reserves Network, a staffing service for the office, industrial, professional and technical personnel, has opened an office at 7307 Hodgson Memorial Drive.

This location is The Reserves Network’s fourth branch office in Georgia. Other offices are in McDonough, Morrow and Norcross.

The office staff includes regional director Summer Schwarzer and staffing supervisor Shane Lasseter.

“This new office gives us an opportunity to expand our services to the local companies and job seekers in the region,” Schwarzer says.

The Reserves Network operates more than 35 offices in Georgia, Ohio, Illinois, Kentucky, Indiana, North Carolina, Florida, Pennsylvania and Wisconsin.

For more information, call 912-777-3520 or email savannah@trnstaffing.com.

Averitt recognized as ‘Top Green Supply Chain Partner’

COOKEVILLE, Tenn. — Averitt Express, which has an operation in Savannah, was chosen as a “Green 75 Supply Chain Partner” by Inbound Logistics magazine for the third year in a row.

Inbound Logistics bases its Green Supply Chain Partners list on a company’s involvement in three areas: Participation in public-private partnerships; corporate sustainability initiatives; and collaborative customer-driven projects.

The magazine’s editors solicited more than 200 transportation and logistics companies to complete a questionnaire specifying their investments in sustainability — ranging from fuel-efficient equipment to corporate-sponsored recycling programs and everything in between.

“In our industry, it’s vital that we maintain our focus on environmental stewardship and sustainability,” said Gary Sasser, Averitt’s president and CEO.

Averitt has awarded $90,000 in fuel cards, a Smart Fortwo city car and a Ford F-150 4x4 truck to employees for their environmental friendly ideas.

To learn more about Averitt’s environmental responsibility, visit www.averittexpress.com/green.

WASHINGTON — American consumers have shown about as much appetite for the $1 coin as kids do their spinach. They may not know what’s best for them either. Congressional auditors say doing away with dollar bills entirely and replacing them with dollar coins could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.

Vending machine operators have long championed the use of $1 coins because they don’t jam the machines, cutting down on repair costs and lost sales. But most people don’t seem to like carrying them. In the past five years, the U.S. Mint has produced 2.4 billion Presidential $1 coins. Most are stored by the Federal Reserve, and production was suspended about a year ago.

The latest projection from the Government Accountability Office on the potential savings from switching to dollar coins entirely comes as lawmakers begin exploring new ways for the government to save money by changing the money itself.

The Mint is preparing a report for Congress showing how changes in the metal content of coins could save money.

The last time the government made major metallurgical changes in U.S. coins was nearly 50 years ago when Congress directed the Mint to remove silver from dimes and quarters and to reduce its content in half dollar coins. Now, Congress is looking at new changes in response to rising prices for copper and nickel.

At a House subcommittee hearing Thursday, the focus was on two approaches:

• Moving to less expensive combinations of metals like steel, aluminum and zinc.

• Gradually taking dollar bills out the economy and replacing them with coins.

The GAO’s Lorelei St. James told the House Financial Services panel it would take several years for the benefits of switching from paper bills to dollar coins to catch up with the cost of making the change. Equipment would have to be bought or overhauled and more coins would have to be produced upfront to replace bills as they are taken out of circulation.

But over the years, the savings would begin to accrue, she said, largely because a $1 coin could stay in circulation for 30 years while paper bills have to be replaced every four or five years on average.

“We continue to believe that replacing the note with a coin is likely to provide a financial benefit to the government,” said St. James, who added that such a change would work only if the note was completely eliminated and the public educated about the benefits of the switch.

Even the $1 coin’s most ardent supporters recognize that they haven’t been popular. Philip Diehl, former director of the Mint, said there was a huge demand for the Sacagawea dollar coin when production began in 2001, but as time wore on, people stayed with what they knew best.

“We’ve never bitten the bullet to remove the $1 bill as every other Western economy has done,” Diehl said. “If you did, it would have the same success the Canadians have had.”

Beverly Lepine, chief operating officer of the Royal Canadian Mint, said her country loves its “Loonie,” the nickname for the $1 coin that includes an image of a loon on the back. The switch went over so well that the country also went to a $2 coin called the “Toonie.”

Rep. Bill Huizenga, R-Mich., affirmed that Canadians have embraced their dollar coins. “I don’t know anyone who would go back to the $1 and $2 bills,” he said.

That sentiment was not shared by some of his fellow subcommittee members when it comes to the U.S. version.

Rep. Lacy Clay, D-Mo., said men don’t like carrying a bunch of coins around in their pocket or in their suits. And Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., said the $1 coins have proved too hard to distinguish from quarters.

“If the people don’t want it and they don’t want to use it,” she said, “why in the world are we even talking about changing it?”

“It’s really a matter of just getting used to it,” said Diehl, the former Mint director.

Several lawmakers were more intrigued with the idea of using different metal combinations in producing coins.

Rep. Steve Stivers, R-Ohio, said a penny costs more than 2 cents to make and a nickel costs more than 11 cents to make. Moving to multiplated steel for coins would save the government nearly $200 million a year, he said.

The Mint’s report, which is due in mid-December, will detail the results of nearly 18 months of work exploring a variety of new metal compositions and evaluating test coins for attributes as hardness, resistance to wear, availability of raw materials and costs.

Richard Peterson, the Mint’s acting director, declined to give lawmakers a summary of what will be in the report, but he said “several promising alternatives” were found.

DO DOLLAR COINS MAKE MORE SENSE?: Congress is taking another look at doing away with dollar bills in favor of dollar coins. Congressional auditors say it could save taxpayers some $4.4 billion over the next 30 years.

THE ADVOCATES: Vending machine operators like $1 coins because they don’t jam the machines. Backers say a $1 coin could stay in circulation for 30 years while paper bills must be replaced every four or five years on average. Canadians like their $1 coin dubbed the “Loonie” so much that the country added a $2 coin called the “Toonie.”

THE CRITICS: There was a huge demand for the Sacagawea dollar coin when production began in 2001, but it faded as time wore on. Men reportedly don’t like carrying a bunch of coins in their suit pockets. Others say the $1 coins have proved too hard to distinguish from quarters.

WASHINGTON — Americans cut back on spending last month while their income remained flat. The weakness in part reflected disruptions from superstorm Sandy that could slow economic growth for the rest of the year.

The Commerce Department said Friday that consumer spending dropped 0.2 percent in October. It was the weakest figure since May, and it compared with a 0.8 percent spending increase in September.

Income had risen 0.4 percent in September.

Work interruptions caused by the storm reduced wages and salaries in October by about $18 billion at an annual rate, the government said. The storm affected 24 states, with the most severe damage in New York and New Jersey.

Consumers may also be scaling back on spending because of fears about the “fiscal cliff.” That’s the name for automatic tax increases and spending cuts that will take effect in January if Congress and the Obama administration fail to strike a budget deal by then.

“The upshot is that although both incomes and spending will probably bounce back in November, the underlying trend is weak,” said Paul Dales, senior U.S. economist at Capital Economics.

The depressed spending figures suggest that the economy is growing more slowly in the October-December quarter than it did in the July-September quarter. Consumer spending drives nearly 70 percent of economic activity.

Dales predicts U.S. economic growth will tumble from the 2.7 percent annual rate in the July-September quarter to a weak 1 percent in the October-December period. That’s too low to lower the unemployment rate, now at 7.9 percent.

Even discounting the effects of Sandy, income and spending gains would have been meager. Income would have risen a still-weak 0.1 percent. Spending would have been essentially flat, Dales estimated.

After-tax income adjusted for inflation fell 0.1 percent in October. And spending, when adjusted for inflation, dropped 0.3 percent — the biggest such decline in three years.

The saving rate edged up slightly to 3.4 percent of after-tax income in October, compared with 3.3 percent in September.

Many economists say growth will rebound in the New Year once the rebuilding phase begins in the Northeast.

And if President Barack Obama and Congress can reach a budget deal to avert to fiscal cliff, some economists, including Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, are predicting a strong year for the economy.

Still, the storm’s impact has slowed sales in the nation’s most densely populated region ahead of the crucial holiday shopping season.

The International Council of Shopping Centers said 18 major retailers reported sales rose 1.7 percent in November compared with the same period a year ago. The group had been expecting sales growth between 4.5 percent and 5.5 percent.

The economic damage from the storm may be starting to fade, though. Retailers are reporting solid sales over the Thanksgiving Day holiday weekend.

And applications for unemployment benefits have fallen from an 18-month high in the first week of November. That surge was driven by applications in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania and Connecticut.

Still, the increase in unemployment applications earlier this month will likely depress job growth for November. Many economists predict that net job growth for November will range between 25,000 and 75,000 — well below the 171,000 jobs that were added in October.

SPENDING DOWN: Americans cut their spending 0.2 percent in October. When adjusted for inflation, consumer spending fell by the most in three years. The weakness partly reflected disruptions caused by Superstorm Sandy.

FLAT INCOME: Income was flat in October. The government estimated that the storm cut wages and salaries by $18.2 billion at an annual rate.

OUTLOOK: The storm’s impact on spending and income could slow economic growth for the rest of the year. Consumer spending accounts for nearly 70 percent of economic activity.

Research in human economic behavior is most surprising when it is counterintuitive, such as the well-known result that — under certain conditions — minimum-wage laws and rent controls can make low-wage workers and renters worse off.

The result of economic research can also be headslappingly obvious, namely when it confirms our most basic observations. A recent example for exactly that phenomenon is a paper by economics professors Ulrike Malmendier (Berkeley) and Klaus M. Schmidt (Munich).

In the playfully titled study “You owe me” (available at: http://bit.ly/VbJkls), the two researchers set out to explore what they call the “dark side of pro-social behavior” in gift exchanges.

There exists an abundance of studies that show that gifts and gift exchanges can have beneficial effects by engendering cooperation and supporting efficient teamwork. In this sense, gift-giving — other than just being part of the social structure of society — also is a vehicle to influence behavior.

As the authors point out, the same mechanism could be used to the “detriment of a third party.” It won’t come as a surprise to many of us that, in this scenario, “pro-social behavior towards one person may come at the expense of another person.”

One statistic cited by the study, namely that the pharmaceutical industry “has been estimated to spend $8,000–$15,000 per year on each physician in the U.S. for marketing, including luxurious dinners, conferences at attractive locations and generous honoraria” demonstrates the likely efficiency of such gift-giving.

After all, if it wouldn’t pay off, profit-maximizing companies would probably have stopped that practice a long-time ago. The study does, however, go beyond the obvious by conducting a number of well designed laboratory experiments.

Apart from the informational and incentive effect of gifts, the authors have discovered evidence for an “additional and powerful effect of the gift per se.” Accordingly, even “small gifts strongly influence the recipient’s behavior in favor of the gift giver” even when the recipients are aware the gift is intended to influence them.

Not only that, but this added effect is significantly stronger when it comes at the expense of a third party.

A field of economics that has long studied such behavior in the political marketplace, “Public Choice,” describes such activities as rent-seeking.

A common form of rent-seeking is the combination of a few interested parties (those could be environmental groups or business in a certain industry), which then lobbies on behalf of a policy that would further their goals while having a large and widely-dispersed group of people bear the costs. Often, the costs to the individual are so small that no strong incentive exists to oppose the policy change.

What this study also adds to the discussion is the insight that common policy remedies to the “dark-side” of gift exchange may not have the intended effect. The authors test “disclosure rules” and “size limits” that are often implemented in ethics rules for politicians and government bureaucrats, and they show that neither can overcome the powerful effect to reciprocate.

Given the current fiscal-cliff discussion that has put influential lobbying groups into overdrive in the nation’s capital, this is cause for concern.

Not only are we reminded that money buys influence and access, we also learn that more detailed disclosure rules and limits on the size of gifts may not be able to curb this.

Dr. Michael Reksulak teaches economics and public finance in Georgia Southern University’s College of Business Administration. He may be reached by e-mail at mreksula@georgiasouthern.edu.

A growing gap in the market price of gasoline between the New York and Gulf Coast will likely make gasoline more expensive for Savannah area consumers in the coming months.

Ironically, the culprit may be cheaper gasoline coming out of the Gulf Coast refineries.

According to the Oil Price Information Service, deepwater ports traditionally supplied from offshore now face much higher costs than pipeline terminals that can leverage rising Gulf Coast refining capacity.

“There is a lot of product coming out of the Gulf Coast right now due to cheaper crude,” said Rob Demere, president and CEO of the Colonial Group, whose terminal supplies most of the area’s retail gasoline dealers.

“Unfortunately, most of what isn’t going into the pipeline is being exported – to South America, Mexico and the Caribbean.”

Savannah — like most coastal communities — is not on the Gulf Coast pipeline.

Since it began in 1921, Colonial Terminal has been buying gas internationally, Demere said, paying New York Harbor prices and selling to local wholesalers based on Gulf Coast pricing, which has traditionally been no more than 4 to 5 cents per gallon lower.

“For the last six months, however, the spread has been growing and now stands at nearly 30 cents,” he said. “Needless to say, we can’t continue to absorb that kind of difference and have to raise our rates accordingly.”

The higher price to wholesalers goes into effect today.

The result will be higher prices at the pump in Savannah, but how much higher is anyone’s guess.

“Honestly, we aren’t expecting to sell that much gas at these prices,” Demere said. “I’m sure a lot of retailers will be looking at bringing in gas from the closest pipeline terminals.”

In fact, he said, he has encouraged Colonial’s Enmark retail subsidiary to look at other options as well.

“But, for now, we’re between the devil and the deep blue sea.”

John Powell, senior petroleum market analyst for the U.S. Energy Information Administration, agreed.

“What historically has been a good relationship for Colonial — buying at New York Harbor prices and selling at Gulf Coast plus freight — has now completely flip-flopped on them.

Powell blamed the effects of Hurricane Sandy, which cut supplies in New York, along with the relative glut of crude in the Gulf.

Energy consultant Don Draisin, who procures gasoline contracts for a dozen retailers, including the Savannah-based Parker Companies, said the sudden increase will force affected companies here to look at trucking in pipeline gasoline, most likely from North Augusta, S.C.

“But that’s often easier said than done,” said Draisin, a veteran of more than 40 years in the oil industry.

“The pipeline is running at a high volume right now, which means it has very limited additional capacity to sell,” he said. “Then, there is the issue of finding more tankers to haul the product.”

Factoring in the drive time, it will take twice as many trucks to service the same customers from 126 miles away, he said.

Daisin said the public will begin to see prices at the pump go up when current gasoline inventories, purchased before the increase, are depleted.

How much is hard to say.

With an increase in the terminal price of 25-30 cents a gallon, a lot will depend on how much gas is trucked in, Powell said, adding it’s not likely the pump price will reflect the full increase.

He called the wide discrepancy between New York and Gulf Coast pricing “a short-term aberration.”

“I expect pricing to settle back down within the next few weeks.”

Daisin isn’t so sure.

“The sticker-shock price should be very temporary,” he said. “But I think we’ll see a price differential of at least 10 cents lingering for the long term.”

The potential for a major long-term differential makes the case, Demere said, for one of his lifelong hopes — the repeal of the Merchant Marine Act of 1920.

Better known as the Jones Act, the legislation requires that all goods transported by water between U.S. ports be carried in U.S.-flagged ships, constructed in the United States, owned by U.S. citizens and crewed by U.S. citizens and U.S. permanent residents.

The act, originally designed to protect the U.S. maritime industry, now makes such things as transporting gasoline by vessel from Gulf Coast refineries to Savannah nearly impossible, Demere said.

“There simply aren’t enough U.S.-flagged ships to make a dent in the need.”

In 2010, U.S. Senators Jim Risch and John McCain introduced a bill that would have repealed the Jones Act, which McCain claimed restricts shipping and raises costs to consumers. The bill failed to pass.

Habersham Village holds open house

Habersham Village Shopping Center, on Habersham Street between 61st and 63rd streets, will holding its third annual Habersham Village Open House at 6-9 p.m. Thursday.

The merchants will be raising money and collecting for America’s Second Harvest of the Coastal Empire.

The event will include free food, beverages, door prizes and holiday music along with sales in each of the outlets.

The businesses include: The 5 Spot Neighborhood Kitchen and Bar, Investments South, TailsSpin Pet Supplies, Sweet Frog Frozen Yogurt, Bikram Yoga, Punch and Judy Children’s Boutique, River Street Sweets, Ogeechee River Coffee Co., Marco’s Pizza, Bar Food, Barberitos, and Habersham Beverage Warehouse.

SCAD awarded for architecture

The National Council of Architectural Registration Boards (NCARB) has awarded the Savannah College of Art and Design a 2012 NCARB Award for the Integration of Practice and Education. The $40,000 award will fund the development and implementation of innovative initiatives that integrate education and architectural practice.

SCAD’s winning proposal will develop interactive games to simulate architectural practice environments. The project, slated to begin during the Winter 2013 quarter, will bring together SCAD interactive design and game development students and faculty with industry professionals for a series of collaborations.

Nominees for awards needed

HILTON HEAD ISLAND, S.C. — The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce is seeking nominations for two awards.

The Alice Glenn Doughtie Good Citizenship Award and the Outstanding Organization of the Year Award will be announced at the 2013 Chamber Ballon Feb. 2 at the Westin Hilton Head Island Resort & Spa. Completed nomination forms must be received by 5 p.m. Thursday.

The good citizenship award, first presented in 1971, recognizes individuals who have performed “selfless community service in the spirit of brotherhood.”

The Outstanding Organization Award is presented to any civic, business, service or fraternal group in recognition of significant contributions to the well being of our Island community.

Nomination forms are available at chamber headquarters or online at hiltonheadchamber.org. Nomination forms for Zonta’s Woman of the Year are also available. For more information, call Connie Killmar at 843-785-3673 or email ckillmar@hiltonheadisland.org.

S.C. real estate office moves

BLUFFTON, S.C. — Celia Dunn Sotheby’s International Realty has moved its Bluffton office to 52 Calhoun St. The phone number remains the same: 843-836-3900. The office is on the Southwest corner of Calhoun and Lawrence streets, next to The Store in the heart of Historic Bluffton District.

It’s been about six months since Dick Blick Art Materials acquired Primary Art Supply, a locally owned business that had been on the vanguard of the Broughton Street resurgence.

I caught up last week with Primary co-owner Robyn Reeder and longtime employee Sebastian Edwards to talk about the transition.

Edwards is now a salaried Blick employee, and Reeder is a consultant.

Reeder admitted she initially was skeptical that Blick could do much better sales than Primary did. After all, Primary built a strong brand over the years, had a dedicated following and occupied a prime spot on the first block of East Broughton.

“We’re blowing Primary’s numbers out of the water,” Reeder said last week. “There’s this whole new customer base.”

Part of that is surely due to Blick’s sheer size in the newly renovated space at 318 East Broughton St.

Reeder also noted that Blick’s online presence and national reputation were obvious draws. The store attracts a large number of “crafters,” according to Reeder, and does not rely as much on SCAD students as Primary did.

Plus that block of Broughton typically offers easy on-street parking.

Reeder and Edwards were candid in talking about the adjustments to a more demanding business model.

“Primary didn’t have sales goals,” Reeder laughed. Now, all employees have incentives to exceed stated goals.

While Blick brought a more rigid business model, the company recognized the value of Primary’s history in the community.

On one wall are giant sculptures of tubes of paint that Edwards originally constructed for one of Primary’s signature window displays.

On another wall hang works by Savannah-based painter Panhandle Slim.

The upstairs gallery has been home to a variety of workshops and classes. From 6 to 8 p.m. on Thursday, Dec. 6, Blick will host a reception for a Holiday Pop Art Show by Zteven Zangbang. The show will continue into the new year.

Reeder has also discovered that her new block of Broughton hasn’t received the same attention as the one between Bull and Drayton. She’s working with the city to get trash cans, street trees, appropriate lighting and a paved lane.

Reeder and her business partner Amy Spurlock are still looking for a tenant for the old Primary space at 14 East Broughton St. They also own the building at 22 East Broughton Street, where Reeder’s vintage clothing store Civvies occupies the second floor.

In a great new development, Graveface Records & Curiosities on 40th Street plans to open a second store inside Civvies. More on that in 2013.

As I left Blick after talking to Edwards and Reeder, I was struck by how similar it all felt to similar conversations at Primary in years past.

I’ve written often in this column about the relationship between national chains and locally owned stores in the downtown economy. As is evident in the story of Primary, Blick and Civvies, that relationship is a complex and often complementary one.

Downsides of bringing St. Pat’s wristbands back

City of Savannah staff and the Savannah Waterfront Association want to bring wristbands back to the long St. Patrick’s Day weekend.

The $5 bands would allow wearers to drink on the street as far south as Broughton Street between Drayton and MLK.

Yes, wristband sales would help pay for entertainment stages, extra police and a variety of other needs.

But the wristband policy will create many problems.

First, keep in mind that those of us who frequent downtown bars and clubs can drink on the street any night of the week. Charging us to do something that we can legally do year-round will discourage us from going into the festival zone at all.

Of course, most bars will still do plenty of business without us — sometimes more than they can reasonably handle.

But establishments that appeal primarily to an older, local clientele are going to see fewer of their regulars.

And we should want to have older regulars among the visiting partiers. This is not rocket science. The more the crowd skews toward young people from out of town, the wilder the partying will be.

We can call it a “festival zone” or “entertainment zone” all we want, but many young adults are going to hear “party zone” or, more specifically, “drinking zone.”

Also, the proposed party zone includes a number of nicer restaurants. It’s easy to imagine that this move will hurt their dinner business.

More importantly, an expansion of the party zone requires more ID checkpoints for wristband sales. Those will eat up countless hours of security personnel and potentially create choke points.

When lines develop, there will inevitably be frustrations and altercations.

The proposed festival zone also includes a significant number of hotels and residences.

If the folks manning the checkpoints are overly aggressive, residents and hotel guests will repeatedly have to explain why they aren’t buying wristbands. Ditto for their visitors and for others who don’t plan on drinking outdoors.

Some folks will enter the zone with plans to drink only inside, not outside. But then they will end up feeling trapped and adding to the congestion in an overly crowded bar.

So I’ll make a prediction.

If we move ahead with this plan, we’ll hear repeated bemoaning of the “unintended consequences” both for law-abiding citizens and for police officers.

Some of those consequences might be unintended, but they’re entirely predictable.

City Talk appears every Tuesday and Sunday. Bill Dawers can be reached via billdawers@comcast.net and http://www.billdawers.com. Send mail to 10 East 32nd St., Savannah, Ga. 31401.

A healthy increase in economic activity for the second quarter in a row has prompted local economist Michael Toma to forecast continued improvement for the Savannah metro area through the middle of 2013.

Nearly across-the-board employment gains, coupled with tourism growth and solid port activity propelled the economy in the third quarter, according to Toma’s Economic Monitor.

The Monitor, prepared quarterly by the Armstrong Atlantic State University Center for Regional Analysis, which Toma directs, was released today.

The coincident index — which measures the current heartbeat of the region — grew a healthy 1.25 percent, Toma said. In addition to the coincident index, the leading index, which offers a short-term forecast of the region’s economic activity for the next six to nine months — rose 1.4 percent, capping the fastest three-quarter pace of improvement in three years.

Employment gains took center stage in the third quarter.

“Employers in the region went on a hiring binge during the third quarter, adding 3,100 jobs and raising total employment in the metro area to a seasonally adjusted 153,800,” Toma said.

The gains were on the service side of the economy, he said, with the health/education sector adding 1,000 jobs and leisure/hospitality up 800, while business/professional services and retail sales each added 500 jobs.

The growth was almost entirely on the private side of the economy, with nearly every major sector expanding its workforce, Toma said.

Government employment held steady during the quarter, while the goods-producing side of the economy treaded water, holding at 20,200 workers. Manufacturing added 100 workers, growing to 14,600, while construction lost 100 jobs, falling to 5,600.

“Jobs are definitely the big story this quarter,” Toma said. “A growth of nearly 2 percent in one quarter is really significant.”

While that would annualize to somewhere around 8 percent a year, Toma did not anticipate that growth rate holding steady.

“Basically, I think much of the restraint in hiring earlier this year was unleashed in the third quarter,” he said. “I don’t anticipate a jump as substantial as 2 percent every quarter. Instead, I think we’re moving into a different growth cycle, where we’ll see 1- to 2-percent growth a year, rather than zero to a half-percent.”

Tourism also continued its solid run through the year, with hotel/motel tax receipts up 4 percent for the quarter, running 7-percent ahead of 2011’s year-to-date pace.

Employment in the hospitality sector increased to 20,800 workers and ridership on the trolleys and tour buses is up 6 percent from last year.

Forecasting index continues upward trend

Improving labor market conditions and substantial growth in residential home-building permits provided the lift for Toma’s short-term forecast.

“The seasonally adjusted number of new residential homes permitted for construction increased sharply, rising 34 percent over the previous quarter,” he said, adding that the 295 permits issued represented the highest quarterly total in four years.

“Permit issuance is 15 percent over last year’s pace and is on track for 2012 to be the best year since 2008.”

Mark Konter, president of the Home Builders Association of Greater Savannah, said his organization is seeing a “reasonably smooth upturn on both the production and sales sides.”

“Permits and closings have been rising all year,” said Konter, principle of Konter Homes, one of Savannah’s longest-running homebuilders.

“It’s what we like to see — a controlled, steady rise that represents sustainable growth.” Toma agreed, adding the Savannah area should expect continuing improvement in the economy into the second quarter of 2013. Assuming, that is, “the President and Congress don’t engage in a little ‘Thelma and Louise’ economics by driving over the fiscal cliff together.”

The absence of a resolution that avoids the automatic tax increases and expenditure reductions would almost certainly throw the country back into a recession, he said, citing AASU economist and colleague Nicholas Mangee’s estimation that the provisions embedded in the fiscal cliff amount to a reduction in the economy of roughly $600 billion, or 4 percent of GDP.

It’s a scenario Toma hopes we won’t see.

“If I had to guess, I think recognition of the potential damage the fiscal cliff would do will likely cause those in charge to at least put a Band-Aid on the problem until a long-term solution can be hammered out,” he said.

GET THE MONITOR

The Economic Monitor is available by email and at the Center’s website: http://www.armstrong.edu/Liberal_Arts/economics. If you would like to receive the Monitor by email, send a “subscribe” message to CRA@armstrong.edu.

ABOUT THE INDICATORS

The Coastal Empire Economic Indicators are designed to provide continuously updating quarterly snapshots of the Savannah Metropolitan Statistical Area economy. The coincident index measures the current economic heartbeat of the region. The leading index is designed to provide a short-term forecast of the region’s economic activity in the upcoming six to nine months.

HIRES/PROMOTIONS

CAITLIN DALLY

New job title: Vista AmeriCorps Wealth Building Associate

Company: Step Up Savannah

Duties: Dally will work with the Step Up wealth building director to develop and expand financial literacy programs.

Related work experience: Dally worked as an associate at Responsible Endowments Coalition, University of San Francisco, and for Ashoka Seattle’s Youth Venture program with Seattle Youth Violence Prevention Initiative.

Education: Dally earned a B.A. in international studies from the University of San Francisco.

MIRANDA KAYE STERN

New job title: Vista AmeriCorps Workforce Development Associate

Company: Step Up Savannah

Duties: Stern will work with Step Up’s workforce action team to expand the capacity of the Chatham Apprentice Program, develop a volunteer GED tutoring assistance program and help develop the Centers for Working Families.

Related work experience: Stern worked as a project partner at Revitalizing Outer Southeast CDC in Portland, worked with youth to create a “photovoice” project documenting residents’ concerns and researched and wrote a Best Practices Guide for Social Equity and Sustainability in the Northwest.

Education: Stern earned a B.S. in community development from Portland State University.

BETSY HARRIS

New job title: Private Duty Coordinator for Chatham, Bryan and Effingham Counties.

Company: Coastal Home Care, Inc.

Duties: Harris works to ensure superior service delivery to her client base by scheduling direct care staff to meet their needs.

Related work experience: Harris recently spent eight years in Alaska working on behalf of children and families for the state. She brings 12 years of experience in social services, credentials in early childhood education and psychology and extensive experience working on behalf of families.

JESSICA PIZAREK

New job title: VISTA AmeriCorps Policy and Communications Associate

Company: Step Up Savannah

Duties: Pizarek will work with Step Up’s communications and policy director to augment public policy research initiatives, develop advocacy positions and assist in all areas of social media and other communications campaigns.

Related work experience: Pizarek worked as a graduate associate in New York City in its Housing and Neighborhood Study and with the Forgotten Navajo People Community Development Corp. and U.C. Berkeley’s 2048 Project.

Education: Pizarek earned a M.A. in education policy and social analysis from Columbia University and a B.A. in social welfare and poverty alleviation from U.C. Berkeley.

MANDY LIVINGSTON

New job title: Marketing and Public Relations Manager

Company: Paula Deen Enterprises

Duties: Livingston will serve as the face of the Lady and Sons, Uncle Bubba’s Seafood & Oyster House and the Paula Deen Retail store in networking with potential clients, tour group operators, local tourism organizations and community. She will also create and execute annual sales and marketing plans for The Lady and Sons, Paula Deen Retail and Uncle Bubba’s.

Related work experience: Livingston was previously the director of marketing and public relations at the Mighty Eighth Air Force Museum.

Education: Livingston earned a bachelor of science degree in public relations from Georgia Southern University.

RANCE JACKSON

New job title: General Manager

Company: The Lady & Sons

Duties: Jackson will oversee and coordinate the planning, organizing, training and leadership necessary to achieve objectives in sales, costs, co-worker retention, guest service and satisfaction, food quality, cleanliness and sanitation.

Related work experience: Jackson previously worked as a food service specialist in the U.S. Army.

Education: Jackson attended the University of South Carolina.

TAYLOR DEEN

New job title: Communication and Public Relations Representative

Company: Paula Deen Enterprises

Duties: Deen will be responsible for social media and corporate communications for The Lady & Sons, Uncle Bubba’s Seafood & Oyster House, Paula Deen Retail Store and The Deen Brothers.

Related work experience: Deen completed an internship at Paula Deen Enterprises.

Education: Deen earned a bachelor of science degree in communications from Auburn University.

CHESARE BULLOCK

New job title: Human Resources Business Partner

Company: Target IW - T3810

Duties: Bullock will join Target’s executive team and will support talent planning and development.

Related work experience: Bullock brings experience in human resources and recruiting.

Education: Bullock earned a bachelor of arts degree in communication from Peace College, Raleigh, N.C.

JEREMIE SOMMERS

New job title: Realtor

Company: Weichert, Realtors - Coastal Properties

Duties: Sommers will be on the sales team at Weichert, Realtors — Coastal Properties.

Education: Sommers earned a bachelor of science degree in business management with a minor in economics from SUNY Fredonia State.

MARGARET HINCHEY

New job title: Assistant District Attorney

Company: Chatham County District Attorney’s Office

Duties: Hinchey has accepted a full-time ADA position with the DA’s Office in the “Early Intervention Program.”

Related work experience: Hinchey served as a law graduate practice intern this fall and also interned at the DA’s Office in the summer of 2011, serving the Juvenile and State Courts.

Education: Hinchey earned her BA degree in English with a minor in education from The University of the South in Sewanee, Tenn., and her Juris Doctorate from Mercer Law in Macon.

GEORGE H. HEARN

New job title: Senior director of trade development for carrier and non-container sales

Company: Georgia Ports Authority

Duties: Hearn will guide all client development and sales functions for these business areas, including sales planning, sales administration, tariff structure, and associated service functions to be provided in addition to the sales efforts.

Related work experience: Hearn served as the vice president of sales for the eastern region and gulf for US Lines. Previously, he held senior positions at American President Lines Ltd. as vice president and managing director of the eastern, southern and western regions.

NOAH ABRAMS

New job title: Assistant District Attorney — Superior Court

Company: Chatham County District Attorney’s Office

Duties: Abrams will prosecute felonies in the Superior Court Division.

Related work experience: Abrams was the assistant district attorney in Clayton County in Jonesboro in the crimes against women Unit. He also was the assistant solicitor general in the Office of the Solicitor General of Fulton County in Atlanta and assistant district attorney in the EIP Division in Chatham County.

Education: Abrams earned a BA degree in philosophy and English from Vanderbilt University. He received his Juris Doctorate from the University of San Francisco School of Law.

SUSAN POWERS

New job title: Innkeeper at The Kehoe House and The Gastonian

Company: HLC Hotels

Related work experience: Powers has been a member of the HLC team since 1995. She was promoted to general manager at Masters Inn Tifton in 1998 and transferred to Masters Inn Garden City in 2000 where she served as general manager for five years. In 2005, she was promoted to innkeeper at Eliza Thompson House.

SHEILA SCOTT

New job title: Innkeeper at Eliza Thompson House

Company: HLC Hotels

Related work experience: Scott joined The Marshall House in 2008 and in 2009 was named assistant general manager. Previously, she worked for the British Consulate in Orlando and was an instructor at the Southeastern Academy of Travel and Tourism in Kissimmee, Fla.

HALLIE MOBLEY

New job title: Assistant General Manager at The Marshall House

Company: HLC Hotels

Related work experience: Mobley joined HLC at Olde Harbour Inn in December of 2009 and was promoted to assistant innkeeper at The Gastonian and Kehoe House in 2010.

Education: Mobley earned a bachelor of science degree in theater marketing and management from Armstrong Atlantic State University.

KAREN SAWERS

New job title: Assistant Innkeeper at The Gastonian and Kehoe House.

Company: HLC Hotels

Related work experience: Sawers has served as concierge and guest service representative at The Gastonian since July of 2009.

WESLEY OLLIFF

New job title: Vice President, Commercial Relationship Banker

Company: Colony Bank

Duties: Olliff will help expand the banking relationships of new and existing clients for the Savannah market.

Related work experience: Olliff has six years experience in community banking and finance.

Education: Olliff earned a bachelor of business administration degree in management from Georgia Southern University.

NICOLE WALKER

New job title: Teller

Company: Colony Bank

Duties: Walker will be responsible for handling a variety of transactions and cross-selling bank products and services.

Related work experience: Walker is a customer service professional with diversified experience.

WENDY BURCHFIELD

New job title: Director of Business Development

Company: Weichert Realtors - Coastal Properties

Related work experience: Burchfield began her real estate career in 2009 after 22 years as a corporate executive with Avon Products, Inc.

NANCY DAVIS

New job title: Premier Aussie Specialist

Company: Edgewood Travel

Duties: Davis will consult with clients about travel to Australia.

Related work experience: Davis has traveled to Australia more than 18 times and is one of only 120 people in North America registered as a Premier Aussie Specialist.

Education: Davis completed training through Tourism Australia.

HONORS/AWARDS

Attorney approved as mediator and arbitrator

The Conner Law Group managing partner Mike Conner has been approved as a mediator and arbitrator by the Georgia Commission on Dispute Resolution and the Supreme Court of Georgia.

SCORE names new board member

The Savannah chapter of SCORE has announced that Robert Donlon will serve as the new vice president of finance. Donlon is president of The Bookkeeper of Savannah, LLC, a company that helps small businesses by keeping their monthly financials in order.

Crisis Intervention Team coordinator honored

The Crisis Intervention Team coordinator for Savannah-Chatham Metropolitan Police Department has been named Georgia CIT Coordinator of the Year.

Dorothy Cave was presented the award at the National Alliance on Mental Illness conference in Sea Island in November.

CASA Swears Fall 2012 class

Seven volunteers have joined the Savannah/Chatham CASA team. Judge Patricia Parker Stone presided over the brief ceremony, her first since being sworn in as presiding judge of Juvenile Court in late September. The volunteers are Ella Hutchinson, Monica Jackson, Jessica Kulper, Misha Lewis, Michael Mixso, Thamicka Morgan and Brandy Trappio.

Savannah CEO receives national designation

John Patterson, chairman & CEO of JCB Inc. has been elected 2013 CE Chair of the Association of Equipment Manufacturers, the North American-based international trade group for companies that manufacture equipment, products and services used worldwide in the agricultural, construction, forestry, mining and utility sectors.

J.T. Turner director receives designation

Mark Fitzpatrick, director of preservation with J.T. Turner Construction, was recently elected as the chairman of the board of directors of the United States Green Building Council Georgia Chapter for 2013. Georgia has a state chapter with branches in Savannah, Atlanta, Augusta, Macon and Athens.

Photoshop Basics

Photoshop Basics introduces the different tools for editing photographs and will cover layers and basic editing to improve images. The class will be held Tuesdays and Thursdays, until Dec. 6, from 6:30-8:30 p.m. at the Coastal Georgia Center, 305 Fahm St.

For more information, go to www.ceps.georgiasouthern.edu/conted/cesavannahmenu.html, email jfogarty@georgiasouthern.edu or call 912-644-5967.

Annual Meeting and Networking Luncheon

Special awards, networking and the election of officers are featured at the Pooler Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Bureau, Inc. Annual Meeting and Networking Luncheon Thursday, Dec. 6, 11:30 a.m. at Savannah Quarters Country Club, 8 Palladian Way, Pooler.

Register and pre-pay by Nov. 21 and cost is $15 for Pooler Chamber members and $18 for non-members. After Nov. 21 add $5 to cost per person. For more information contact office@poolerchamber.com or 912-748-0110.

Business After Hours

The Hilton Head Island-Bluffton Chamber of Commerce December’s Holiday Business After Hours will be held at The Old Oyster Factory. Enjoy a festive time on Thursday, Dec. 6 from 5:30-7 p.m. and enjoy casual networking, great food, and complimentary beer and wine along with great door prizes and more. The cost to attend is $10 for chamber members and $20 for non-members. For more information, go to www.hiltonheadchamber.org.

Foundation to host historic tax credit training session

Historic Savannah Foundation will offer historic tax credit training to teach members of the community how to use tax incentives to rehabilitate historic properties. The sessions will cover state and federal government incentives, including a property tax assessment freeze.

The sessions will be held from 4-7 p.m. Dec. 6 and from 9 a.m.-5 p.m. Dec. 7 at Kennedy Pharmacy, 323 E. Broughton St. The cost is $75. Student registration is $55. To register and for more information, go to www.myhsf.org/advocacy-education/lectures-and-workshops/.

ONGOING

Downtown Business Professionals Chapter
of BNI

When: 11:30 a.m. every Thursday

Where: Hilton Savannah DeSoto, 15 East Liberty St.

Information: For information, call Kevin Brown at 912-447-1885 or email rkbrowndc@msn.com.

Pooler Business Network

When: Every first and third Thursday, 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m.

Where: Western Sizzlin, U.S. 80 in Pooler

Information: RSVP to Jason Torres at jasonjtorres@gmail.com.

The Islands Chapter —
BNI group

When: Each Thursday at 8 a.m.

Where: Johnny Harris banquet facility, 1652 East Victory Drive

Information: Contact Kathy Salter at studio@dalyandsalterphoto.com.

Savannah Women’s
Business Network

When: Every second and fourth Wednesday, 11:15 a.m. to 1 p.m. for lunch.

Where: The Exchange Tavern on Waters Avenue

Cost: Cost for lunch

Information: RSVP to Kari Brown at kcbrown@colonybank.com.

Historic Savannah
Chapter ABWA

When: 6-7:50 p.m. second Thursday.

Where: Candler Heart & Lung Building, room 2

Cost: Free

Information: Call 912-925-4980 or email blynneroberts@yahoo.com.

Toastmasters Club

When: Noon each Tuesday

Where: Savannah Mall across from “Hill of Beans” Coffee Shop.

Information: Call 912-844-9139 or go to www.sbcsouthsidetm.com.

New leaders graduate from training program

Fourteen leaders from throughout Savannah’s neighborhoods graduated Monday night from Step Up Savannah’s “Neighborhood Leadership Academy” during ceremonies in the Student Union at Savannah State University.

The 14 established and emerging leaders successfully completed a 12-week community leadership training program.

The program’s graduates are: The Rev. William Eason; Erma J. Fulcher; Marvin Heery; Whitney Hunter; Diane Jackson; Mattie B. Johnson; Beatrice Mikell; Imani Mtendaji; Joseph Parker; Queen Reeves; Moncello Stewart; Laurentina Watkins; Erika Wiggins; and Gloria J. Williams.

The Neighborhood Leadership Academy was made possible by a grant from The Charles A. Frueauff Foundation.

Gas prices flat in metro Savannah

Average retail gasoline prices in Savannah have not moved in the past week and were at $3.29 a gallon Sunday.

The national average fell 3.7 cents a gallon to $3.39, according to gasoline price website SavannahGasPrices.com.

Prices Sunday were 13.3 cents a gallon higher than the same day one year ago and are 6.7 cents higher than a month ago. The national average has decreased 11.3 cents a gallon during the last month and stands 10.0 cents higher than a year ago.

“While the national average continues to fall, we’ve done the math. The yearly average in 2012 is all but guaranteed to set all time record highs,” said GasBuddy.com Senior Petroleum Analyst Patrick DeHaan. “Gasoline prices would need to average no more than $2.35 a gallon for every day left in 2012 for the national yearly average to drop below 2011, something that appears impossible.”

Christmas gasoline prices are expected to average between $3.25 and $3.35/gallon, DeHaan said.

A night for heroes at Bass Pro

Bass Pro Shop will open its doors Sunday night, Dec. 9, from 7-9 p.m. for “local heroes” to have an evening of activities, shopping, discounts and drawings.

All local heroes — members of the military and public safety workers such as police and firemen — and their immediate families are invited to attend. Badges or other identification will be needed.

The evening will include a Christmas Village that is Santa’s Wonderland and has items such as slot-car racing, laser and soft gun arcades, remote control cars and trains. Heroes and their families also can have a free picture made with Santa Claus.

The store will offer a 10 percent discount on regularly priced items and special sales throughout the store along with drawings for Bass Pro Shops gift cards beginning at 7:30 p.m.

For more information, go to basspro.com/santa.

DETROIT — Superstorm Sandy gave an extra boost to already strong U.S. auto sales last month, although carmakers warned that uncertainty over the “fiscal cliff” could undo some of those gains.

Most major companies, from Toyota to Chrysler, posted impressive increases from a year earlier. Only General Motors was left struggling to explain its 3-percent sales gain and large inventory of unsold trucks.

Americans were already willing to buy a new car or truck last month because they’re more confident in the economy. Home values are rising, hiring is up and auto financing is readily available. Also, the average age of a vehicle on U.S. roads is approaching a record 11 years, so many people are looking to replace older cars.

Sandy just boosted that demand. The storm added 20,000 to 30,000 sales industry wide in November, mostly from people who planned to buy cars during the October storm but had to delay their purchases, Ford estimated. People who need to replace storm-damaged vehicles are expected to drive sales for several more months. GM estimates that 50,000 to 100,000 vehicles will eventually need to be replaced.

November sales, when calculated on an annual basis, are likely to be 15 million or more, the highest rate since March of 2008, according to LMC Automotive, a Detroit-area consulting firm. That’s higher than the 14.3 million annual rate so far this year, even though November is normally a lackluster month due to cold weather and holiday anticipation. Both GM and Chrysler predicted November sales would run at an annual rate of 15.3 million.

If sales end up at 15 million for the year, it would be a vast improvement over the 10.4 million during the recession in 2009. Sales would still fall short of the recent peak of around 17 million in 2005.

But the ongoing “fiscal cliff” negotiations between Congress and the White House could still derail the industry’s recovery. The term refers to sharp government spending cuts and tax increases scheduled to start Jan. 1 unless an agreement is reached to cut the budget deficit. Economists say that those measures, if implemented, could push the U.S. economy back into a recession.

“Exactly how much growth we can expect next year will depend in part on how Congress and the president resolve the fiscal cliff issue,” said Kurt McNeil, GM’s U.S. sales chief. “Markets and consumers hate uncertainty.”

McNeil and other GM executives tried to explain the automaker’s disappointing performance. GM’s biggest brand, Chevrolet, reported flat sales over last year despite new products like the Spark minicar. Silverado pickup sales fell 10 percent.

GM’s sales have been trailing the industry all year. They were up 4 percent through October, compared to the industry-wide increase of 14 percent.

GM said its competitors resorted to higher than usual incentives last month to get rid of 2012 model-year trucks. GM, which had more 2013 trucks on its lots, was only offering an average of $500 per truck, or a third of what others were offering. GM has been trying to hold the line on costly incentives, which can hurt resale value and brand image.

“We want to be known for great products, not great incentives,” McNeil said.

But some analysts think GM will be forced to offer more deals in December to clear out higher-than-forecast inventory.

Asian brands also got a boost from some unusually big discounts, said Jesse Toprak, senior analyst for automotive pricing site TrueCar.com. TrueCar estimated that Hyundai and Kia, which were admonished by the U.S. government in late October for overstating gas mileage, increased incentive spending by nearly 30 percent. Nissan spending was up 45 percent to $4,273 per vehicle, by far the highest incentives in the industry.

Toyota said its 17-percent sales increase was partly due to post-Sandy demand. Honda was up 39 percent thanks to strong sales of the new Accord sedan and clearance deals on the outgoing Civic, which was replaced by a new 2013 Civic at the end of the month.

Luxury cars saw their usual yearend surge as holiday commercials started crowding the airwaves. Porsche’s sales rose 71 percent to 3,865, a record month for the automaker. Infiniti, Acura, BMW and Lexus all reported big gains.

Edmunds.com analyst Jessica Caldwell said luxury brands have historically targeted their customers at this time of year because of holiday bonuses. That’s no longer a driving factor, she said, but it’s still a good time of year for people to buy 2012 model-year luxury vehicles because dealers are trying to clear them out.

The latest addition to Savannah’s skyline is finally a hub of more than just construction activity.

The Cay Building, the six-story office and retail complex on Ellis Square under construction since May 2011, is complete. The last of the building’s three retail tenants will open for business on Monday.

Built above the city of Savannah’s Whitaker Street parking garage, the Cay Building features 75,000 square feet of leasable space, marble and brass finishes, a brick-and-cast-stone facade and a streetscape complete with brick pavers, granite curbs, an ornate clock and palm trees.

“John Cay wanted to leave a legacy for Savannah,” said Jay Andrews, the complex’s leasing agent and one of the original leaders of the project. “He succeeded.”

The Cay Building’s touches took time. The building superstructure was in place more than a year ago, and developers originally targeted a spring 2012 opening. But materials issues led to a delay, and Cay decided to invest in improving the streetscape, which is city property.

The building’s anchor tenant, the U.S. attorneys, moved into the upper four floors in September. Two second-floor office tenants, Palmer & Cay and Cay Insurance Services followed in October. Another federal agency, the Inspector General of the Department of Health and Human Services, has leased second-floor space, and another 4,000 square feet remains available.

The first of the retailers, Veri Berri frozen yogurt, opened last month. Moe’s Southwest Grill begins operations Wednesday, and First Citizens bank will open its branch on Monday.

“It was worth the extra bit of wait,” said Chris Brown, whose Moe’s store will be open late on the weekends and will be one of two Moe’s franchises in the country to offer breakfast. “Everything was done first class.”

The Cay Building is accessible by elevator to the Whitaker Street garage. The Cays received the rights to 62 spaces in the garage in allowing the city to build under their property. The parking was the main reason the building landed the U.S. Attorneys’ lease, Andrews said, and Cay’s desire to bring “true Class A” office space to downtown led him to incorporate the building’s distinct architectural and finishing touches.

The building catches the eyes of passersby, according to First Citizens local market president, Reeves Skeen. The South Carolina-based bank designed a “next generation” branch for the building, incorporating a video wall and an open floor plan rarely seen in retail banking locations.

“Our main focus for 2013 is brand awareness and this branch is the first stage of that,” Skeen said. “This shows our commitment to the community. Now people can see us and experience us. It will be hard to miss us in a location like this.”

Readers of this newspaper have recently seen conflicting predictions about the local economy’s prospects for 2013.

Last month, Rajeev Dhawan of the Economic Forecasting Center at Georgia State University predicted “dim growth prospects” for our area in the coming months but foresaw fairly decent job growth of 1.7 percent by the end of 2013.

Last week, the University of Georgia’s Selig Center for Economic Growth in the Terry College of Business predicted anemic job growth — well under 1 percent — for the Savannah area in 2013.

Last weekend, the Economic Monitor published by the Armstrong Atlantic State University Center for Regional Analysis, directed by Michael Toma, noted an uptick in economic activity and predicted the good news would continue at least through the first half of 2013.

So who’s right?

I’ll admit to being a little baffled by the numbers from UGA’s Selig Center. The latest report seems only to be looking at data from the first half of 2012. The Georgia State forecast also seems too gloomy, at least for the first part of 2013.

As I’ve noted in this space off and on all year, Savannah has experienced a surge in new investment throughout 2012. In the last few months, employment numbers have been reflecting that robust trend.

Since employment is a lagging indicator of economic activity, we have every reason to expect that the good news will continue in the first part of 2013.

Both the UGA and AASU predictions sensibly note the dangers of the “fiscal cliff.”

But keep in mind that there’s no “cliff.”

Bill McBride at Calculated Risk — one of the more reasonable voices in the world of economic reporting — has begun using the phrase “austerity slope” to describe the constellation of spending cuts and tax increases scheduled to begin in 2013.

No matter what political course we take, it seems likely that measures to rein in the federal debt and deficit will almost certainly be a drag on the national economy next year.

But the local economy still has some significant momentum that seems likely to continue into the beginning of 2013, no matter what happens in Washington.

I’ll be back in a few weeks with some broader predictions for 2013.

Sandfly merchants hosting open house on Thursday

Last week, I mentioned holiday events by merchants in the Downtown Design District and those around Wright Square.

On Thursday, Dec. 6, Sandfly merchants will host their annual Holiday Open House from 5-9 p.m.

The event will feature specials and various promotions at nearly 20 shops and restaurants. It should be a great night for regulars in the area and for those eager to check out a new retail district.

City Talk appears every Sunday and Tuesday. Bill Dawers can be reached via billdawers@comcast.net and http://www.billdawers.com. Send mail to 10 E. 32nd St., Savannah, GA 31401.