Director of green economy initiative to oversee entrepreneurial development

AdvantageWest, the economic development partnership for the 23 counties of Western North Carolina, announces the promotion of Matt Raker to the position of Vice President of Entrepreneurial Development & AdvantageGreen. The move comes after the resignation of Pam Lewis, who is leaving her position as Senior Vice President of Entrepreneurial Development to join the Asheville Area Chamber of Commerce and the Economic Development Coalition for Asheville – Buncombe County (EDC) as Director of Entrepreneurship.

Entrepreneurial development and the green and clean energy jobs initiative AdvantageGreen are two main areas of jobcreation focus for AdvantageWest. The other areas of focus are the advanced manufacturing segment and agribusiness. AdvantageWest also maintains the Western North Carolina Film Commission.

A piece of American history will soon travel on North Carolina highways as the “Miracle on the Hudson” jetliner gets closer to wrapping up its trip from New Jersey to its permanent home at the Carolinas Aviation Museum in Charlotte. The US Airways Airbus A320 was on its way to Charlotte from New York’s LaGuardia Airport on Jan. 15, 2009 when a bird strike shut down its engines right after takeoff. Capt. Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger III managed to land the plane in the Hudson River, and all 155 passengers and crew were rescued by a flotilla of boats.

The transfer of the plane’s fuselage to its final home at the museum has been a monumental task. The company that had been storing the plane in a warehouse near Newark, NJ since it helped haul it out of the water built a special 120-foot hauling trailer with six steering axles for the job.

The Department of Agriculture today released its annual report, Expenditures on Children by Families, finding that a middle-income family with a child born in 2010 can expect to spend about $226,920 ($286,860 if projected inflation costs are factored in) for food, shelter, and other necessities to raise that child over the next 17 years. This represents a 2 percent increase from 2009. Expenses for transportation, child care, education, and health care saw the largest percentage increases related to child rearing from 2009. There were very small changes in housing, food, clothing, and miscellaneous expenses on a child since 2009.

The report, issued annually since 1960, is a valuable resource for courts and state governments in determining child support guidelines and foster care payments. It is based on data from the Federal government's Consumer Expenditure Survey, the most comprehensive source of information available on household expenditures. For the year 2010, per child annual child-rearing expenses for a middle-income, two-parent family range from $11,880 to $13,830, depending on the age of the child.

June Tassillo has joined RE/MAX Elite in Franklin.

Tassillo has earned the reputation of being a top-producing real esate agent in her first few years in the business.

“June’s energy and enthusiasm for real estate are a tremendous assest to this office,” said Ron Winecoff, cobroker/owner of RE/MAX Elite.

Tassillo was born and raised in Glen Falls, N.Y., but has lived in Franklin for nearly 20 years, building an extensive list of clients.

Formerly of Classic Properties, she specializes in everything from luxury homes to foreclosures.