Blue Cross Blue Shield is moving back into previous location
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) is expanding its office space in Springfield. A representative for the company confirmed today (Jan. 17) that they are finalizing a lease for approximately 30,000 sq. ft. of space at 3200 Robbins Road to accommodate about 200 employees. BCBSIL previously leased space at the…
Building permit roundup – Jan 17
BY NAN KORDING Read which building permits were approved by the City of Springfield between Jan. 8, 2018, and Jan. 14, 2018. Rock Island Economic Growth Corp has obtained a commercial demolition permit for 501 E. Capitol Ave. The permit covers the non-structural interior demolition of the former First United Methodist Church. The contractor is…
2018 ‘Best Places to Work’ recipients announced
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Springfield Business Journal and United Community Bank have announced the recipients of the 2018 “Best Places to Work.” Midwest Family Broadcasting, Resource One and Staab Funeral Home are being honored with awards this year, and Lincoln Land Community College and Orthopedic Center of Illinois, both prior recipients, are receiving awards in the…
Mary Starmann-Harrison elected chair-elect of Illinois Health and Hospital Association Board
Mary Starmann-Harrison, president and CEO of Hospital Sisters Health System in Springfield, has been elected chair-elect of the Illinois Health and Hospital Association’s (IHA) 2018 Board of Trustees. Starmann-Harrison will become chair of the Board in 2019. The Board of Trustees is the policymaking body for the Association, representing more than 200 hospitals and nearly…
Kyle Sitko transitions from banking to family business
Dr. Kyle Sitko has recently joined Sitko Chiropractic, the practice where both his father and brother also work as chiropractors. A Springfield native, Sitko received his MBA from Benedictine University in Lisle, Illinois, and worked with the McDonald’s Corporation in Oak Brook before moving back to Springfield in 2010. He then spent five years as…
Former Atlantis Pools building sold
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Atlantis Pools, based out of Alton, Illinois, closed their Springfield location in December 2016, citing poor sales in the local market. The freestanding building at 3014 Montvale Dr. has been vacant since, and was listed for sale for nearly a year at $299,000. Kyle Killebrew, a broker with The Real Estate Group,…
Athens Bancorp, Inc., NBP Financial Services consolidate holding companies, banks
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY The board of directors of Athens Bancorp, Inc., parent company of the Athens State Bank, and the board of directors of NBP Financial Services, parent company of the National Bank of Petersburg, have announced that the parties have signed a letter of intent outlining the terms of a consolidation of the two…
Building permit roundup – Jan 10
BY NAN KORDING Joseph L. Black has obtained a commercial remodeling permit for 2402 W. Jefferson. The permit is for the addition of a new bath and office. The contractor is Joseph L. Black of Springfield, and the project is valued at $15,000. Monarch Cabinets has obtained a commercial electrical permit for 3145 Hedley Road.…
Central Illinois Builders of AGC names 2018 officers and Board directors
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Steve Halverson from Halverson Construction in Springfield has been elected president of Central Illinois Builders of AGC for 2018. Mike Sunley of O’Shea Builders, who is serving as secretary/treasurer, is the other officer from Springfield. Mike Landgrebe of Landgrebe Interior Construction and Steve Povse of Kerber, Eck & Braeckel, LLP were both…
Sarah Beuning hired as general counsel at ICASA
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Sarah Beuning has been hired as general counsel at Illinois Coalition Against Sexual Assault (ICASA). Since 2006, she had served as general counsel and director of human resources for Tom Lange Company, Inc. in Springfield. “I got to the point where I was ready for a new challenge and wanted to do…
Passavant Area Hospital expands women’s health care services
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Passavant Area Hospital has expanded women’s health care services offered on the hospital’s campus with the opening of a renovated facility dedicated to women’s health. The Passavant Women’s Health Center, which opened Jan. 2, allows women in the Jacksonville area greater access to obstetric and gynecologic care, including care related to high-risk…
Constitution Drive strip center sold
After nearly five years of vacancy, the strip center on Constitution Drive, just south of Target, should be seeing quite a bit of activity soon. In 2013, the two largest occupants moved out when Carpet Weavers relocated to Prairie Crossing and Friar Tuck expanded to a new building on West Wabash. Since then, the 28,400…
Building permit roundup – Jan 3
BY NAN KORDING The following building and zoning permits were approved by the city of Springfield between Dec. 25, 2017 and Dec. 31, 2017: William Hammond has obtained a commercial remodeling permit for 1311 S. Sixth St. The permit covers a tenant improvement remodel for AT&T. The contractors are Crestwood-based Healy Construction Services, Inc., and…
Roger Huebner promoted with Central Illinois Builders
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY On Jan. 1, Roger Huebner became the new executive vice president of Central Illinois Builders (CIB), an association dedicated to improving professional standards in the construction industry. Huebner is responsible for the overall operation of CIB, labor relations and membership services. Huebner has worked for CIB since February 2016 as director of…
Mallory O’Brien promoted at Resource One
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Mallory O’Brien, who has been employed at Resource One for four years as a designer, has been promoted to Project Manager. O’Brien has a degree in interior design from Maryville University in St. Louis and previously worked for KSID Interiors and Distinctive Designs before accepting a position at Resource One in January…
Jerry Peck named senior vice president of governmental relations for CBAI
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Jerry Peck has been hired as senior vice president of governmental relations for the Community Bankers Association of Illinois (CBAI). He replaces Kraig Lounsberry, who began his tenure as CBAI president on Jan. 1. “I have known Jerry for more than 10 years,” Lounsberry stated. “He is well-known and well-liked at the…
The Outlet awarded The Young Philanthropists’ 12th annual grant award
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY The Young Philanthropists giving circle at the Community Foundation for the Land of Lincoln has announced the recipient of its 12th annual grant award. Sangamon County nonprofit organizations were invited to submit grant proposals in the fall of this year for the competitive grant to support programs for children and youth. The…
O’Shea Builders open Champaign project office
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY As of January 1, O’Shea Builders has opened a new project office in Champaign that will house operations for several of O’Shea’s large-scale projects in the Champaign market. Located at 502 W. Clark Street, the office is a block away from Champaign School District Unit 4’s Central High School, one of four…
VELE enlivens Springfield food scene
New occupant of former Café Brio space is full of possibilities BY THOMAS C. PAVLIK JR. It’s an exciting time for foodies in Springfield, especially in terms of new downtown eateries. And VELE is one that I’ve been particularly excited about, since Justin Richardson from New Berlin’s The Garden is in charge of the kitchen.…
Planner Norm Sims, retiring, still has a lot of ideas
The former SSCRPC executive director reflects on a career in public administration BY SCOTT FAINGOLD When Norm Sims retired as executive director of Springfield-Sangamon County Regional Planning Commission on Dec. 29, it capped off a public administration career that began in 1974 in the research program at the Kentucky Department of Education, “transferring the fruits…
Inside the sale of H.D. Smith
Founded in Springfield in 1954, the drug distribution company sells for $815 million BY DAVID BLANCHETTE Most area residents may not realize that H.D. Smith is America’s largest, privately held national wholesale distributor in the pharmaceutical industry. But it’s no secret how the Springfield-based health care distribution business achieved that status. “We have a focus…
MacArthur Boulevard Association presents 2017 awards and charitable contributions
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY The MacArthur Boulevard Association (MBA) presented awards and charitable contributions at their annual meeting on December 14. MBA held four Bites on the Boulevard events during 2017, with as many as nine food trucks at a single event. “We hope that this event over the past three years has done its part…
Matt Denney named director of Senergy Technologies
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Matt Denney recently accepted a position as the director of Senergy Technologies, a division of Senergy Electric Company, Inc. Based in Williamsville, Senergy Electric was founded in January 2014 by Matt Giacomini. Last year Senergy merged with Cardinal Technology Solutions, founded by Brandon Keafner, who is now a co-owner of Senergy Electric.…
Amy Voils named executive director at M.E.R.C.Y. Communities, Inc.
BY MICHELLE OWNBEY Amy Voils is the new executive director at M.E.R.C.Y. Communities, Inc., replacing Joan Hysler Queen, who recently retired. Prior to that, Voils was the executive director of Helping Hands. “When I heard that Joan was retiring, I had a friend who reached out to me and encouraged me to apply,” said Voils.…
Building permit roundup – Dec 20
BY NAN KORDING The following building and zoning permits were approved by the city of Springfield between Dec. 11, 2017 and Dec. 17, 2017: Mill Creek Alzheimer’s Center has obtained a commercial building permit for 3319 Ginger Creek Dr. The permit is for installation of a new storage shed. The contractor is Overland, Missouri-based Tuff…
