"I have lived downtown as either a renter or homeowner ever since moving to Lexington in the mid-1990s to attend the University of Kentucky. Over the years, I have witnessed a gradual yet profound transformation of downtown. Everywhere I turn, I see new structures going up and old structures being renovated. Beautiful old Victorians are being brought back to life alongside new contemporary lofts and condos.
A decade ago, Main Street felt deserted after 5 p.m. — you could almost envision tumbleweeds bouncing down the empty streets. It now feels like I am living right in the middle of the action. I can find fresh, local produce at the Farmer's Market, check out Jimmy Stewart on the big screen at the Kentucky Theater, or wonder just how abstract art can get while on a bustling Gallery Hop. I live within walking distance to some of the best restaurants in Lexington and can watch the Fourth of July fireworks from my front yard.
Sandy Straub, vice president of business development with the Downtown Lexington Corporation, knows just how much things have changed: "With the amount of growth in downtown Lexington, there is something going on all the time. More and more restaurants are popping up everywhere you look. The art and music scenes have grown significantly as well over the past few years. One of the Downtown Lexington Corporation's events, Central Bank Thursday Night Live, is bigger than it's ever been. If you haven't been downtown in the past couple of years, you will be delightfully shocked at the changing face of what is truly the 'Heart of the Bluegrass.'"
Yet while the landscape has changed, downtown still maintains a cozy, welcoming feel. I know nearly all of my neighbors by name. One neighbor, an artist in his eighties, routinely asks me over to his house to try his jalapeno cornbread. Every Christmas, my neighborhood has a progressive dinner; we start out in one house for appetizers then move on to different houses for the main course and dessert. It feels like I have the best of both worlds — small town interconnectedness fused with the opportunities of a bigger city.
Certainly downtown living is no longer just for students or those in transition, a stop on the way to a home in the suburbs. Those across the demographic spectrum, including young professionals, are beginning to see downtown as a place to live — not simply a place to work and play. According to Harold Tate, executive director of the Lexington Downtown Development Authority (and my neighbor), "Young professionals want a new experience — to be part of all the activity. They want more options and young professionals have absolutely been instrumental in creating a more vibrant atmosphere downtown."
And young professionals who want to live downtown now have more opportunities than ever to find a home that suits their particular lifestyle needs and tastes. There are more than a dozen condominium and loft apartment developments in downtown Lexington currently in the works. These new apartments and condos range in both size (from 500 to 2,200 square feet) and price (from less than $160,000 to over $700,000).
But all of this development isn't just beneficial for those of us who live downtown. It is also good news for the Lexington economy. A thriving downtown is an integral component of economic growth for a city. As Phil Holoubek, developer for Main and Rose Lofts and Nunn Building Lofts, said: "Developing great downtowns is the single most important economic development strategy that any city can have."
Ultimately, I think that the recent efforts to revitalize downtown are just the beginning. As people recognize the unique blend of amenities and investment opportunities the area offers, we will see a seismic shift in the way people view living in downtown Lexington. More and more people will find that an energetic and evolving downtown is where they want to call home, thus setting the stage for even greater and more exciting future opportunities for growth.
To keep or not to keep
Document retention questions answered here
By Elizabeth Lucas
Guest Column
With today's businesses inundated with documents like never before, the question of what to keep has become more complex for business owners as well. Deciding where to start often stops individuals, particularly when discussing the development of a Document Retention Plan (DRP). When contemplating the fate of their swelling filing cabinets and computer archives, businesses should consider the following items: the kinds of documents, business processes are in place, access required, rules governing document archival and destruction, and responsibility for ensuring rule compliance. While this is not necessarily a comprehensive list, it is a list that will get you started on the path to developing a DRP.
Document retention plan team
Behind every great initiative is a solid, representative team. Form your organization's team utilizing employees from all organizational levels, representing all organizational needs. For most businesses, organizational needs can be divided into three succinct areas, including business process, information technology and management, and legal and compliance. Business process owners tend to be concerned with daily operations, including information access and retrieval. Information technology and management's focus is on system control and performance as well as system security. This team tends to be responsible for data back up, disaster recovery and data migration. The last group, the legal and compliance team, is concerned with document policy and procedures, litigation readiness, and document retention, archival and destruction. The legal group must be able to say unequivocally that the DPR is in place and is being followed by employees.
The team's primary goal is to develop a blueprint for the DRP containing flow chart procedures, litigation lead information (who will testify as to processes/procedures/directory structure/etc.) and document categorization information. Additionally, a training program for employees should be coordinated and implemented in conjunction with other organization training initiatives. Moreover, DRP team members should work with legal and compliance representatives to ensure compliance with the DRP.
Once implemented, the DRP team is charged with reviewing, updating, and revising the plan on an annual basis.
Document assessment
The first step in developing a DRP is to identify and categorize your organization's documents. Simply put, your business records can probably be divided into two categories — business and legal. The types of documents include paper documents and electronically stored information (ESI). Paper documents are self-explanatory, whereas ESI could include photos, databases, web pages, chat, text messages, e-mail, native documents (e.g., Word, Excel, PowerPoint, computer-aided design (CAD) drawings) and audio files.
Every department will have different documents, therefore it is essential to ascertain all departments' documents. For example, marketing will have business slicks, frequently used language and return on investment (ROI) information while human resources will have payroll, personnel records, and worker's compensation information as well as other pertinent documents.
In addition to different departments, the DRP should take into consideration different groups of employees, namely the remote employee, or the organization's 24-7 employees. In the world of laptops, external thumb drives and cell phones in which we live, these tools provide an additional source of storage for business documents. The DRP should include information about how the documents stored on these devices are generated, revised, managed, retained and, eventually, destroyed.
Once the document types are identified, each must be categorized. The categorization of the documents at a minimum should include correspondence, financial data, calendars and contacts, database information, word processing documents, personnel records, and marketing and sales materials. The organization must identify where the documents are stored (e.g. individual laptops/PCs, network file servers, PDAs, cell phones, Blackberries, home computers or back-up systems) how the documents are maintained, and who has access (network and remote).
Document workflow
After the DRP team has compiled a flow chart for documents, the next logical step is to analyze each document against a series of questions. How are documents accessed? Who needs access, and what security do employees possess today and in the future? What documents require approval? How is the approval process handled? Is there a way to streamline the approval process to increase employee productivity? Is technology being used to accomplish these tasks? What areas of the organization need business process improvement? What is the plan for disaster recovery (for each document category or for the entire collection of organization documents)? What organizational information is shared internally or externally with other organizations/agencies (frequency and method of communication)? The answers to these questions for each category of records should be documented.
Document retention schedule
State, regulatory, and country (for multinationals) policies and procedures regarding document retention differ. Research is required following categorization of organization records to determine how long documents must be retained, in what format the documents must be retained, and what policies/procedures govern document destruction. The table below depicts some examples of document types and possible retention guidelines:
Type of Document
Retention Schedule
Audit Records
7 years
Bank Statements
3 years
Contracts
End Date of Contract plus Statute of Limitations (SOL)
Correspondence, General and Schedules
2 years
Correspondence, Legal and Important Letters
Permanently
Correspondence, Routine with Customers/Vendors
2 years
Employment Applications
3 years
Employment Records
Statutory Requirement, varies
Financial Statements (Year-end)
Permanently
Intellectual Property Records
Life of Patent plus SOL
Inventory Records
7 years
Invoices to Customers or from Vendors
7 years
Regulatory and Compliance Documents
Statutory Requirement, varies
Real Estate
Ownership plus SOL
Tax Records
7 years
These are just a few examples. There are, of course, many more. It is best to seek legal counsel regarding your organization's documents and corresponding retention schedules. In addition to document retention, there are rules and regulations governing document destruction. The DRP should address each document category both from a document retention and a document destruction perspective.
Document retention solutions
So what is the answer to the million-dollar question: What documents should my organization keep? It depends. Understanding what your organization has, where it's stored, who has access to it, what business processes are in place, what rules govern document archival and destruction, and who is responsible for ensuring rule compliance ultimately determines what documents must be kept and in what format the documents should be retained. Potential tools to assist in the retention and access dilemma include electronic records management systems (ERM), document and content management systems, paper-based systems, or any combination of these. Regardless of the tools utilized, the key to document retention is an effective, comprehensive, well-implemented plan to ensure the most secure future for both your essential documents and your company.
Elizabeth Lucas is practice manager in the litigation support area at VeBridge, a nationally recognized provider of document management, litigation support and digital asset management products and services, based in downtown Lexington.
You can't mandate good jobs
By John Garen
COLUMNIST: ECONOMIC ANALYSIS
Many in the media have noted the continually strong U.S. labor market and have marveled at how it continues to hum along. Despite concerns in some sectors of the economy, employment grew faster than expected in June. Total employment is at an all-time high of slightly over 146 million, and the unemployment rate remains very low at 4.5 percent. While life is not perfect here, the performance of the U.S. labor market is quite remarkable compared to most other high-income countries. For example, for the first quarter of 2007, the unemployment rate in Germany was 9 percent, 9 percent in France, 6.3 percent in Italy, 5.5 percent in England, and 7.3 percent for all European Union countries combined. Though the unemployment rates of some other European countries were not as high as these, the U.S. is consistently the lowest or among the lowest, of all countries worldwide. And this is done while maintaining one of the highest standards of living (and perhaps the highest) in the world.
How does the U.S. labor market do this? Consider how the U.S. fares on the degree of employment protection mandated by law. This entails the extent of procedural requirements, requirements of advance notice and requirements of severance pay in the event of a layoff or termination. According to a Department of Labor ranking of OECD countries in this regard, the U.S. ranks nearly dead last. How about on public expenditures on labor market programs such as public employment services, public training programs, business start-up incentives and unemployment insurance? Again, the U.S. is essentially dead last. (See http://www.dol.gov/asp/media/reports/chartbook/index.htm.) Minimum wage, as a percent of the typical worker's earnings, is lower in the U.S. than in most of Europe. Unions, which require firms to pay higher wages to their employees, are also much less important in the United States. Thus, despite a dearth of legal "protections" regarding employment security and high wages, the U.S. has more of both. It's clear that good jobs and favorable labor market conditions experienced in the U.S. — steady employment prospects with good wages — aren't created by mandate.
Good jobs emerge by firms producing goods and services that people want and producing them in an efficient way. Of course, figuring out what people want and how to produce it are not easy tasks. Firms continuously experiment with the introduction of new goods and with production methods. The successful ones pay off and thrive and the failures die off. This generates a lot of job creation and destruction. In fact, each quarter the U.S. economy historically destroys about 7.5 percent of its jobs, but creates about 8.2 percent new ones. This seemingly messy process pays off in many ways. It gets products made that people want. As a result, people are willing to pay for them, and this willingness to pay makes its way into workers' paychecks. Good jobs will be available as long as firms seek to produce goods that consumers want and workers can add productively to this goal. Note that this process does not guarantee employment with a particular firm over a specified time span but provides assurance that good jobs will be available.
Free and competitive markets are key in this process. They provide incentive for firms to pursue the goal of producing goods and services that people value and for workers to be productive in achieving this goal. Thus, the system of market competition generates the prosperity and the well-paying jobs with steady employment prospects. Policy makers often get the causation precisely backwards — they seem to think that mandated high pay and employment creates prosperity. This error in trying to mandate good jobs actually ends up destroying them. Surely, those favored few with the high wages, secure employment and great benefits that mandates bring are better off, but it comes at the expense of an economy that creates good jobs. Artificially high wages make it more costly to operate firms and serve consumers. High payroll taxes to fund government-operated employment services do likewise. Restrictions on worker layoffs and terminations make it more difficult for firms to adapt and evolve in the quest for finding products that consumers value. The whole value- and job-creating scenario described above unravels.
Similar comments apply to government programs that try to target industries where employment growth is alleged to be most desirable, or where it "ought" to be. Trying to replicate the activities of thousands of firms and entrepreneurs in determining where value lies is not something that governments do well. There is a lot of evidence to support this claim, starting with the former Soviet Union. Governments simply don't have enough information or the right incentives to find the myriad of goods and services that people enjoy. An equally important point is that government targeting of industries is essentially having the government choose the goods that we make and consume. This is contrary to allowing individual consumer and firm choices in deciding what to buy and sell, something of great value in free societies like our own. Relying on the market has the twin benefits of allowing individual freedom of choice and of being effective in generating prosperity.
A case can be made for a government safety net to assist laid-off workers in times of hardship between jobs and perhaps aid them in finding a new job. Beyond that, the appropriate government activity in the labor market is to support the conditions that enable free and competitive markets to thrive. That's the real road to good jobs.
John Garen is department chair and Gatton Endowed Professor of Economics at the University of Kentucky.
A healing community
One year after the Comair 5191 tragedy
kathy plomin
columnist: nonprofits
The tragic events surrounding the crash of Comair 5191 on the morning of August 27, 2006, touched our community in many ways. First responders and volunteers from organizations like the police and fire departments, American Red Cross, The Salvation Army and Hospice of the Bluegrass immediately went into action. Yet, most of us were left wondering who we knew and what we could do to help.
Community members responded with an outpouring of compassion as well as financial support to create a special fund for families. In our role as conduit for caring, United Way of the Bluegrass established the 5191 Care Fund. An oversight committee was immediately put into place. After several months of careful review as to how to best serve the long-term needs of the families and in accordance with IRS guidelines and other governance parameters, this oversight committee determined the best use of the funds was through a partnership with Hospice of the Bluegrass.
Since November of 2006, Hospice of the Bluegrass has provided support and assistance to grieving family members here in the Bluegrass and through an extensive national network. Hospice understands that grief is very unique and what one individual finds comforting and helpful another may not.
"Since grief is so personal and individual, our goal is to provide choices to families. The support from the community through the 5191 Care Fund allowed for many choices," stated Sherri Weisenfluh, Hospice of the Bluegrass associate vice president of counseling services.
Over the past 11 months, Hospice of the Bluegrass has made over 190 contacts with the families. Local programs have included individual grief counseling, family support groups, child support groups, educational materials and a four-part holiday series on how to cope through the holidays. Hospice also facilitated support for several families living outside the Bluegrass area with their local hospice. In addition, Hospice of the Bluegrass has provided community support and education through presentations, materials and a special seminar planned for August 27, 2007, with Dr. Kenneth Doka, an internationally recognized grief and loss expert.
"It has been such a privilege to work with the families," said Mary Kay Fedorchuk, Hospice of the Bluegrass social worker. Family members needing additional information on grief support services or private events surrounding the anniversary may contact Fedorchuk at (859) 277-2700, or at mkfedorchuk@hospicebg.org.
As we approach the one-year anniversary, this community will continue to take care of those who lost a loved one early on that August morning in 2006. Last year, our response as a community was quick, heart-felt and emotional. Over the past 11 months, the response has been supportive and healing. The best gift we can give the family members, and each other, is to recognize that life is such a gift and can be taken at any given time. The loss that family members are feeling will never go away, but hopefully, the grief counseling and support through Hospice will continue to help.
As we witness on a daily basis, our community's caring power is tremendous, as was evident through the 5191 tragedy. I am sure that as the one-year anniversary approaches, we will all remember the loss of lives and family members left behind.
We invite you to come together as a caring community for a memorial service honoring those who died on Flight 5191 on Sunday, August 26, 2007, at 2:30 p.m. at Southland Christian Church. For more information, call Marianne Blodgett at the Office of the Mayor at (859) 258-3117.
counterculture: Delivery not hampered by new twist
The sale of retail clothing is not often a matter of life or death, but sometimes it can be treated that way, as seen in this tale shared by Len Cox, owner of the Lexington clothier Graves, Cox on Main Street.
As a young man learning the trade that his father introduced him to, Cox worked in various parts of the country acquiring the knowledge needed to run a multi-store men's apparel operation. Prior internship positions in Roanoke, Va., and Durham, N.C., led him to a clothing establishment called Magee's in Lincoln, Neb. The task of creating a loyal customer book was an important part of his training, and Len took it seriously. It was late in the week, and an obviously rattled customer dashed in the front door of the shop. His daughter was getting married on Saturday night, and he had taken care of a number of last-minute duties, including paying the caterer, checking on the limousine, confirming hotel reservations, and safely delivering the dress to the home of the bride-to-be. The last task brought to his attention the shocking realization that he had not arranged for something for the father of the bride to wear. He approached Len in a panic, hoping that a quick suit purchase could be altered and ready in time for the Saturday nuptials. Ordinarily, that rapid of a turnover would be out of the question, but weddings do seem to bring out the best in people. An appropriate suit was found and marked for alteration, and plans were made for the suit to be delivered to the country club late Saturday afternoon. A few late night hours with the tailor were arranged.
Saturday morning arrived, and Len was on the lookout for the suit to arrive, altered and pressed and ready for him to deliver to the club. The weather looked wonderful as he glanced out the display windows from his station behind the sales counter, and he checked his watch, calculating his necessary departure time. By the time the suit arrived hours later, the skies had darkened and the winds had picked up a bit. A Kentucky boy, he was unaccustomed to the weather trends of Nebraska and was only curious when the sirens began to sound. Tornados were not unusual in this part of the country and no one local took the sirens lightly, be they drills or actual sightings. The store management was concerned. But the suit now hung on the clothes rack near the desk, and the wedding ceremony was fast approaching. Len grabbed the hanger by the hook and walked out the front door, heading to his car. Shop owners along the street were locking their establishments' doors, pulling down the shades and heading for cover. He headed to the country club. The families were gathered, having arrived earlier for the rehearsal, and the shaken wedding party was surprised as Len walked through the large double doors of the club house and into the decorated dining room, carrying the black suit bag that contained the elegant garb for his customer. The sirens could be heard in the background.
The severe weather drill eventually passed, and the ceremony went off without a hitch. Len had earned a loyal customer with his efforts. As the years have passed, Len has had his share of other opportunities to gather a loyal client base. From his store In Lexington, he has made numerous trips to the airport, delivering custom-altered clothes to his clients as they head off on business trips and vacations. "It's about doing what you have to to make folks feel good about their purchase," he said. And a tiny smile creases his face. "One time, a lady called me from the ER. She'd taken her husband to the emergency room, and he was being checked into the hospital. She needed pajamas for him. I delivered them to the ER." Customer service encompasses a kind heart as well as a keen sense for business.
If you have tales of outstanding service — either having received or offered the valued commodity — please drop me a line. Word of mouth, and press, are invaluable and can encourage the efforts of those who do it well.
Higher Education Matters
GED opens portal to greater opportunity
By Jane Schoenfeld Shropshire
Columnist - Higher education
I've received several calls this summer from people in search of GED preparation and testing; perhaps you know of some people too, whether young adults or older, who never earned a high school diploma but would like to work toward a comparable credential. The GED, originally developed for returning WWII veterans who had not completed high school, has been obtained by millions since then. The certificate of General Educational Development, while not a diploma, is awarded to test-passers who have demonstrated a knowledge base equivalent to that of the top 60 percent of high school graduates. Test-takers must be at least 16 years of age and if younger than 19, must present proof of withdrawal from school. The test covers a wide range of content areas and skills: reading, writing, mathematics, science, social studies, communication, information processing, problem solving and critical thinking. Over 95 percent of all colleges and universities in the U.S. recognize the GED as a viable credential, and most employers do likewise.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, 18 percent of the nation's adult population — over 39 million people above the age of 16 — have not completed high school. In Kentucky, 24 percent of adults lack high school diplomas, a figure exceeding the national average. Here are companion statistics to contemplate: nationally, 34 percent of adults without a high school diploma live at or below the poverty level, and holders of high school diplomas or GED certificates earn 40 percent more than those without either credential.
Moving up the food chain, median earnings for those with "some college" are 22 percent higher, with baccalaureate degree holders' median earnings a full 70 percent higher, than median earnings for those who stopped at the high school diploma or GED.
The good news is that Kentucky residents have a myriad of resources to draw on if they would like to move ahead. In fact, Kentucky Adult Education offers free assessment and test preparation services in adult education centers in all 120 counties. The first step on the path to a GED is an assessment lasting three to four hours. Bluegrass Community and Technical College, also known as BCTC, offers it to Fayette County residents. Assessment results are generally available on the same day and may lead to a state-mandated pre-test if they show promise for passing the GED exam. Once the pre-test is passed, the student can sit for the GED exam. The test must be taken at a state-approved site; it is a traditional "paper and pencil" affair and cannot be taken online or through a commercial provider.
If assessment results don't indicate readiness for the pre-test, self-paced classes are recommended to help prepare for it. BCTC has open labs Monday through Thursday of each week, from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m., with instructors on hand. When an instructor feels that a student has progressed sufficiently, a second assessment is offered. If arrangements at BCTC don't suit, consider GED classes (although not the test itself) at home: KET offers the GED Connection Program, using television as the instructional medium; Kentucky Virtual Adult Education offers online preparation (register at the Go Higher Kentucky Web site). Outside of Fayette County, GED resources in the Bluegrass area include Eastern Kentucky University in Richmond; Jessamine County Adult Education in Nicholasville; and Franklin County Board of Education in Frankfort. However or wherever you prepare, once a new assessment shows satisfactory results, you'll move on to the pre-test which, if passed, clears the way to move on to the GED test itself.
Over 12,000 Kentucky residents took the GED test last year; 75 percent passed. Those who have passed receive a certificate to hang on the wall, similar to a diploma. The state issues official transcripts when needed, whether to college admission offices or to potential employers. These transcripts indicate the test-passer's test center, scores and form, as well as personal identifying information.
The GED is a terrific way to get on track for college studies or to improve one's employment prospects. An educated workforce is a more valuable workforce in so many ways; if you are a business owner or manager, you know quite well that your employees who persisted through higher levels of schooling not only know more, but they know more about how to learn.
Jane S. Shropshire guides students and families through the college search process, drawing on over a decade of college admission experience. Send questions or suggestions to JShrop@att.net or visit Shropshire Educational Consulting, LLC at www.ShropEd.net.
Russian delegates find warm welcome at Lexmark
By Betsey Pigg
Guest writer
As a global company, Lexmark regularly interacts with business leaders and executives from all over the world. So when the Kentucky World Trade Center (KWTC) and Kentucky Community and Technical College System (KCTCS) partnered to bring a group of Russian business people to Lexington recently, Lexmark accepted the invitation to host the visitors for a day.
KWTC and KCTCS are working to help some of the delegates establish operations in Kentucky, build international relationships and identify suppliers for their businesses. Through the Open World Progra"