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Market memos (March 19, 2008)

The Capital Times  —  3/19/2008 6:55 am

Controversial Dells resort gains approval from DNR

The $163 million Grand Cambrian Resort proposed for 112 acres adjacent to 1,300 acres of the lower dells of the Wisconsin River owned by the state Department of Natural Resources has been granted a construction permit by the DNR.

"We've been working cooperatively with DNR officials to ensure appropriate protections have been incorporated into the permit," Cambrian Development managing partner Mac R. McDonald said in a statement. "Agreements with both the city of Wisconsin Dells and now the DNR will minimize the impact with the 75-foot no disturbance zone and the minimum 120-foot set back from the high water mark. . . . A substantial amount of research and a great deal of thought has gone into the public's concern over erosion control and preserving the natural scenic beauty of the lower dells. We are confident that our development plans will be a model of balance between nature and commerce that the city of Wisconsin Dells and tourists can take pride in."

Environmentalists and other activists who opposed the resort contended that runoff from the site -- which previously served a commercial boat launch -- would seriously harm the Wisconsin River. They also cited concerns about guests damaging the adjacent natural area's rare plants and fragile rock formations.

The resort will have 323 town homes and hotel-style condos, with prices starting at $380,000, as well as multiple restaurants, a spa, two water parks and convention center.

Charter Communications sued over worker pay

Madison area cable provider Charter Communications is being sued in federal court here for allegedly failing to pay employees for some work they did.

Madison-based law firms Gingras, Cates & Luebke and Axley Brynelson announced that the suit, which was filed last August on behalf of a field technician, has been certified for class action status. The firms are seeking other workers to join in the case. For details, go to www.charterclassaction.com.

The firms said the suit seeks unpaid wages and overtime compensation for about 8,000 current and former employees.

The case involves Charter field technicians who were assigned a company vehicle they kept at home overnight anytime after March 15, 2005. Charter allegedly failed to compensate field technicians for a variety of tasks, including loading and unloading the company vehicle, travel time, gathering and stocking equipment, reconciling equipment inventories, vehicle cleaning and completing paperwork, which violates the federal Fair Labor Standards Act.

Suttle-Straus completes Accurate Response deal

Waunakee-based Suttle-Straus announced that it has completed the final phase of its May 2007 acquisition of Accurate Response of Middleton.

All operations that were in Middleton now have been consolidated at Suttle-Straus' Waunakee campus, which is comprised of two buildings with a total of 210,000 square feet. In 2007 the combined operations mailed nearly 100 million pieces of direct mail materials.

The move of the 50 Middleton employees that were working in Middleton now gives Suttle-Straus 267 employees operating on four shifts, six days per week.

BRIEFLY

• Memphis-based International Paper, a global supplier of packaging materials and uncoated paper, announced Monday that it is buying the containerboard unit of Weyerhaeuser Co. for $6 billion in cash. The sales includes 14,300 employees at dozens of locations, including a packaging plant in Manitowoc with 170 employees.

The Capital Times  —  3/19/2008 6:55 am