Blumenthal could take hit in troubles of Stanford group - Charlotte Business Journal:

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This week, federal authorities brought fraud chargesagainsrt ’s Houston headquarters, leaving the Charlotte office and othera across the country facing a barrage of questions and Locally, Stanford helped establish its name around town by becoming title sponsor of the Blumenthal’s Broadway Lights Series threwe years ago. “We’re going to have to do some says TomGabbard , Blumenthal president and CEO. “uI can’t offer any assessment.” Stanford’s deal is wortb $120,000 annually to the Blumenthal, precious revenure for any arts group, but even more so in the currentr economy.
Talks on extending the deal forthe 2009-10 season had begu n but have not been completed, Gabbardc says. “This news took us by surprise. We had no indicationb they weren’t going to continue.” Another local firm with a Stanfordx connectionis , a finance and technology firm in Southu End. Stanford is a client of and investofr inOpen Finance, and two Stanford execs serve on the firm’s board. Open Financed spokesman Warren Smith says Stanford is not one ofOpen Finance’w larger clients, and the firm doesn’t expect Stanford’s woes to have any significantg impact on its business.
Smith says it’ s too early to say if the news will result in any changesx for the OpenFinance board. Chuci Weiser , chief financial officer for Stanfor dGroup Holdings, and Fred Farm , chief operationzs officer, are both Open Finance board members. Readyh to run? It looks that way for former exec LauriWilkse . In October, she left the compan after 15 years, citing a wish to spend more time with her familh before taking on anew role. Sourced say Wilks is preppin g a fall run for City Council as a eyeingan at-large seat.
Two of the four at-larger seats will be vacatecd this fall as Democratr Anthony Foxx and Republican John Lassiter run for Expect an announcement from Wilks in the next six For now, she declines to comment on her Baseball Hall of Famer Cal Ripken Jr., in town last week for a speecjh at the ’ annual wintee banquet, inspired Dan Rajkowski . As the Knights’ GM introducedr Ripken, he paid tribute to the forme BaltimoreOrioles shortstop’s record 2,632 consecutive games played a feat unlikely to be matches any time soon.
Mulling the accomplishmentsw of baseball’s Iron Man, Rajkowski reflecteed on his years-long political and legal battlwe to secure an uptown stadiunm forthe Knights. “I’ve speny 2,632 straight days trying to get a new ballparoin Charlotte,” he said. “But I’m stil trying.” As for Ripken, he offered a few reflections on his 1980 seasojplaying minor-league baseball in Charlotte — and the realities of beingv 49. A clip of Ripken circling Camden Yards the nighyt he brokeLou Gehrig’s consecutive-games-played streak led him to ward off a standinfg ovation at the Charlotte Convention Center.
“Do not get any ideae I’m going to take a lap aroun the room,” he said. Steel met Stahl as CEO Dan DiMicco talkerd with 60 Minutes aboufthe “Buy American” provisions in the stimulus package the steek industry — and DiMicco personally pushed so hard for. The interview ran Sunday. DiMiccp told correspondent Lesley Stahl the stimulus needes to create jobs in theUnitexd States, not overseas. And steep needs stimulus. “When the credit crisis hit ... the flow of moneh shut off,” he said. “Ig was like dominoes fallinyg — baboom, baboom, baboom.
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