The Illinois Department of Labor (IDOL) announced the launch of Back to Business Illinois, a free, voluntary service to connect small businesses of 250 employees or fewer with consultants who will help them evaluate and address workplace safety and health issues related to COVID-19. The consultants will create a plan for small businesses that promotes [...]
By Holly Whisler Springfield business MB Heating & Cooling realized that many of their employees were facing a dilemma: go to work, or stay home with kids who are learning remotely. General manager Doug Gholson explained that last spring, the company had a plumber and an installer who could not work a full week because [...]
Family Video has notified employees that all Springfield locations will be closing this month, with the exception of the store at 1802 North Grand Ave. The locations at 1614 S. MacArthur, 2919 S. Sixth St. and 3201 W. Iles are slated to close on Sept. 19. Family Video is the last video rental chain in [...]
As businesses in the Springfield area continue to cope with ripple effects of the pandemic, including declines in tourism, the Springfield Convention & Visitors Bureau has launched a new program to encourage people to patronize businesses in the community. The SPI 7 in 7 competition consists of seven categories with seven activities each that can [...]
Scooter’s Lawn Care, a full-spectrum lawn and landscaping company, has acquired Lawn Perks, effective Sept. 1. Lawn Perks, based in Chatham, also provides both residential and commercial services. Jacob Godar, owner of Scooter’s Lawn Care, headquartered at 3805 N. Dirksen Parkway in Springfield, said the acquisition will allow the company to do “even more of [...]
Veterans, active military and their spouses will be eligible to receive free training at Lincoln Land Community College for a career in truck driving, thanks to a federal grant just announced. LLCC is one of 20 institutions in the nation and the only one in Illinois to be awarded a U.S. Department of Transportation Commercial [...]
Forty-six million dollars in grant funding has been awarded to more than 2,600 small businesses throughout Illinois who have been impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic, including $590,000 earmarked for 35 businesses in Sangamon County. The funding comes from the Business Interruption Grant (BIG), which is part of the federal CARES Act. Twenty-four Springfield-area businesses received [...]
Sikich announced that it has signed an asset purchase agreement to acquire the operating assets of Heinold Banwart, Ltd., a public accounting firm based in the Peoria area. The move expands Sikich’s presence in central Illinois. “The Heinold Banwart team adds valuable talent to our group and strengthens our position as a leading service provider in [...]
IDES says federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program is ripe for abuse By Peter Hancock, Capitol News Illinois phancock@capitolnewsillinois.com The Illinois Department of Employment Security said Wednesday it has been affected by a nationwide fraud scheme involving the federal Pandemic Unemployment Assistance program. That program, enacted as part of the federal CARES Act, provides 100% federally [...]
By Karen Ackerman Witter Mark Vasconcelles and Mark Henderson share more in common than having the same first name. They are both sons of engineers who learned from their fathers at a young age how to hold a survey rod and went on to lead the firms their fathers started. Vasconcelles’ father founded Vasconcelles Engineering [...]
