THURSDAY
FANCY FELINES: Cat show comes to High Point. 1B
New Breed to close; 60 jobs lost
January 7, 2010 125th year No. 7
RETREAT: County board will revisit familiar issues. 1B
www.hpe.com High Point, N.C.
SAFE LANDING: Former Southwest star finds home with Eagles. 1D
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ARCTIC REFUGE
ENTERPRISE STAFF REPORT
GREENSBORO – High Point-based New Breed Logistics announced this week the company will close its Mail Transport Equipment Service Center on Gallimore Dairy Road in western Greensboro, eliminating 60 jobs. New Breed said the closing comes at the request of the U.S. Postal Service, a major client of the company. The closing of the center is expected to be completed by the end of March, New Breed indicates. The Gallimore Dairy Road operation brought New Breed and its chief executive officer, Louis DeJoy, to Greensboro in 1992. At the time, New Breed had fewer than 100 employees nationwide and $7 million in annual revenues. Today, the company reports it has nearly $600 million in annual revenues and more than 6,800 employees serving a variety of industries. Joe Hauck, New Breed’s vice president of marketing and communications, said business with the Postal Service remains strong despite the closing. The company reports it recently was awarded a new contract to operate a postal facility in Denver and has extended existing contracts for operations in Ontario, Canada, Chicago and Omaha, Neb. “We expect the Greensboro postal facility closing to have almost no effect on our earnings and revenue growth, which has averaged more than 20 percent per year for the past decade,” Hauck said. All Gallimore Dairy Road employees were offered severance packages, including companypaid health care coverage based on the employee’s length of service. New Breed, which reports it hasn’t received financial assistance or incentives from state or local government agencies in the Triad, will continue to employ nearly 400 workers in the GreensboroHigh Point area.
INSIDE
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MEASURING PROGRESS: Randolph EDC issues report. 1B OBITUARIES
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DON DAVIS JR. | HPE
Salvation Army emergency shelter day manager Twanna Craft (left) and volunteer Thomassona Massey are shown in the emergency shelter.
Frigid temps hit homeless hard; shelters see increased load day and we try to let people in as much as we can.” The Salvation Army typically HIGH POINT – Frigid conditions sees 40 to 50 people in its W. Green have filled local shelters beyond Drive shelter each night but has their normal levels recently as been averaging about 67 individutemperatures have plummeted als over the last couple of weeks, into the teens at night and barely reached freezing during the day. Open Door Ministries representatives said they had 88 people on Monday night and 79 on Tuesday stay at their N. Centennial Street facility, which includes a 74-bed Pamela Smith dormitory and space for 10 more Case manager, Leslie’s House people in its treatment dormitory. “It stretches us, obviously, but we bring in additional staff. It according to Twanna Craft, day works pretty good for the most manager for the shelter. part. People are pretty well beThe 86-bed facility for single haved,” said Steve Key, Open women and families also houses Door’s executive director. “Our men, and has not reached its capolicy during normal weather pacity, said Capt. Tony Perez. conditions is that everybody The Salvation Army also is helpleaves in the morning and comes ing families coping with rising back at night, but now our main heating bills. Agency representalobby upstairs is open during the tives said with budgets already BY PAT KIMBROUGH ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
‘We’re seeing a great need.’
stretched to their limits, even small increases in home heating bills can be disastrous. “We’ll probably see a great increase in electric bills in the middle of this month and into next month,” Perez said. “Last February, we gave out a little more than $15,000 for utility-bill assistance and heating assistance.” Pamela Smith, case manager for Leslie’s House, a shelter for single women without dependents in High Point, said the 21-bed facility has been at and above capacity in recent days. Staffers have made cots available at the house for overflow crowds. “We’re seeing a great need,” she said. “It does put a strain on things because we extend the hours when it’s (extremely cold). We do accommodate the ladies and try to give them a place to come in off the streets.” pkimbrough@hpe.com | 888-3531
November unemployment remains high Guilford County’s unemployment level inched down from 11.2 percent in The N.C. Employment Security Commission reports TRIAD – The employment October to 11 percent in that the state job service agency paid $4.64 billion in picture in the greater High November, as did Davidunemployment benefits to North Carolinians out of Point area hasn’t changed son County’s rate from work from December 2008 to November 2009. The significantly for the past 13.1 percent to 13 percent. benefits include $241.1 million in Guilford County, several months, presentRandolph County’s rate $101.4 million in Davidson County and $77.3 million ing the classic good newsedged up from 11.2 percent in Randolph County. bad news dilemma. to 11.4 percent, according The good news is that to the ESC. The ESC recently received access to millions of dollars jobs aren’t disappearing at The region reflected the in extended jobless benefits because of action taken the blistering pace of early state’s mixed job market late last year by Congress and President Barack 2009, when the recession during November. JobObama. The ESC reports this week it has begun gripped employers across less rates increased in 60 to pay out the funds to eligible out-of-work state the spectrum of the econcounties, declined in 31 residents. omy. The bad news is that and remained unchanged job growth isn’t making in nine. a noticeable dent in the “Job losses in North unemployment numbers, little from October to No- the N.C. Employment Se- Carolina appear to have meaning that it remains vember in the city of High curity Commission. bottomed out in July, but tough for people seeking a Point and surrounding The city jobless rate was few improvements have steady paycheck. counties, according to fig- 11 percent in November, occurred since then. LoJobless rates changed ures released this week by unchanged from October. cal labor markets are just BY PAUL B. JOHNSON ENTERPRISE STAFF WRITER
Dr. John J. Walker was appointed the first medical director of Cornerstone Health Care. Walker will continue to practice half of the time with High Point Gastroenterology.
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drifting along the bottom of the recession,” said John Quinterno, a principal at South by North Strategies Ltd., a Chapel Hill-based research firm specializing in economic and social policy. Compared to one year ago, jobless rates were higher in every North Carolina county and metropolitan area, Quinterno reports. “Right now there is a tremendous amount of idle labor in North Carolina. Even though conditions have stabilized in recent months, what growth is occurring is insufficient to bring down joblessness ...,” Quinterno said. pjohnson@hpe.com | 888-3528
L.E. Boyles, 80 Jean Conrad, 80 Estella Cranford, 93 Raymond Evans Jr., 80 Woodroe Haywood, 97 Mary Hill, 84 Ray Jones, 85 William Lookabill, 64 Samuel McCombs, 57 Bill Newton, 57 Judy Owens, 61 Hazel Phillips, 84 Jesse Porter, 81 Aaron Queen Sr., 52 Robin Roach, 50 Joan Somers, 77 Robert Swing, 68 Virginia Thompson Davie Wade Sr., 57 Obituaries, 2A, 2-3B
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