“It’s not fast food, it’s good food,” is how Terry Fandel, co-owner of the Scoreboard, described his sports-themed restaurant.

Fandel said he and his wife, Cheryl, take pride in the homemade recipes they serve at the restaurant that they say keep customers coming back for more.

In May 2009, Verizon and Frontier announced the proposed sale of 4.8 million landlines in 14 states for $8.6 billion.

Connecticut-based Frontier Communications is trying to acquire 600,000 Illinois phone lines from Verizon Communications Inc., mostly in rural areas, including Dunlap.

Lisa Tapia, the administrative law judge reviewing the proposed deal of Verizon-Frontier, recommended the Illinois Commerce Commission reject the deal.

At the beginning of last month, Jim Maloof was a very happy man.

Jim, founder of Jim Maloof Realty, on a memo from his son, Michael, president of the real estate company wrote, “Good news in Central Illinois.” The memo , announced that at the end of February, pending sales were up 60 percent from the same period a year earlier,

Give Corey Moodie the chance and he will hack into your business computer system and savor every minute of it.

“I love it,” Moodie said.

But, in the world of hackers, Moodie wears a white hat.
Moodie recently earned the designation of “ethical hacker” and is one of two people performing this duty at Pearl Technology in Peoria Heights.

By DeWayne Bartels
TimesNewspapers
The economic forecast for the Greater Peoria Area offered last week at Weaver Ridge by business leaders was stormy. But, they said, there is a rainbow at the end of the storm, and it is coming into focus.
“Life is not about waiting for the storm to pass. Life is about learning to dance in the rain,” said Keith Steffen, CEO of OSF Saint Francis Medical Center, one of the speakers at the forum sponsored by the Heartland Partnership.

 

If you like what you’re seeing at www.peoriatimesobserver.com, you could read even more about North Peoria through our printed paper.

Confidence is a trait many business owners have in short supply of today. Linda Kepple, operating principal of Keller Williams Premier Realty in North Peoria, is an exception.
At the end of 2009, Kepple’s three-year-old company had 11.5 percent of the Central Illinois real estate sales market. Within three years, Kepple said she expects to have 44 percent of that market share.

Elaine Hopkins made her name as a reporter for the Journal Star, but for 18 years, the North Peorian has also carried the title of publisher of “Downstate Story,” a literary publication.
The latest copy of the small book, recently released, containing 10 original short stories with original illustrations.

HiBeam Internet & Voice announced Dec. 1 it is offering high-speed Internet and phone services in portions of North Peoria, Dunlap, Chillicothe, East Peoria and Washington. Morton is in the company’s future plans.
“HiBeam understands that technology matters, but that’s not what we’re about. We want to make communications simple. Our goal is to help the people of Peoria and surrounding areas enjoy the benefits of high speed Internet and voice services,” Christopher J. Benyo, chief of customer operations for HiBeam, said. “We’re excited to bring a new, customer-friendly choice in Internet and voice to this area.”

When Vickie Clark, COO of the Economic Development Council, updated the Peoria City Council on the agency’s efforts for the third quarter of 2009, it was delivered in an upbeat manner. The now infamous advertising slogan, “It’s Better Here,” however, was not uttered to the council, which is trying to trim $14 million from its budget.
The three words, however, are still in use because Clark pointed out the study shows the Peoria Metropolitan Statistical Area is outperforming many areas of the nation.

North Peoria plastic surgeon Dr. Harrison Putman III recalls the two women’s faces very clearly, even though it was years ago he worked on the two domestic violence victims.
“One had multiple nasal fractures. The other one had been cut in the face with a butter knife,” said Putman, who works with the Facial Plastic Laser & Surgery Center.
Putman did reconstructive surgery on both women.
“The thing that’s important is, when you fix injuries from domestic violence, it also helps heal psychological wounds,” Putman said.

The Greater Peoria Area is not in great economic shape, but it is better than a lot of other Illinois markets is the message Ed Scharlau, vice-chairman of Busey Bank, brought Oct. 6 to the Peoria Country Club.

“Respect your elders” very soon could move beyond the notion of manners and include economics in the Greater Peoria Area. 
Aging baby-boomers could be a key element in the Greater Peoria Area’s future financial health, according to Ed Scharlau, vice-chairman of Busey Bank. Scharlau, while in Peoria last week, said this area needs to position itself as a mature market area.  
“In the past, youth was the hero. Now, age is in charge,” Scharlau said.
 

TimesNewspapers picked up 14 awards Friday in the Illinois Press Association’s “Best of the Press 2009” editorial contest, three of which were first-place awards.

In February, Ryan Jansen and Tom Pemble found themselves unemployed.
The pair had worked together in a large corporation. Jansen was an industrial designer. Pemble was a corporate recruiter. Pemble had hired Jansen for that company.
Instead of viewing their unemployed status as a roadblock, they saw it as an avenue to an opportunity in Peoria’s emerging green marketplace — an avenue paved in concrete.

With more people having to settle for stay-cations this year, instead of dream vacations to Europe, people are increasingly on the look-out for exciting and unique things to do close to home.
Fairchild’s and Her Majesty’s Tearoom in Dunlap provide not only a one-of-a-kind experience, it also, quite literally, brings all things British to you.

June is having an exceptional year, despite an economic downturn, said owner and executive chef Josh Adams.
The Peoria Heights restaurateur brags that in the past six months, the restaurant has had only five or six slow nights. 
“It has exceeded our expectations,” Adams said.

In late February, when corporate bank bailouts captured more media attention than the healthcare debate, South Side Bank was busy preparing to open the doors of its new branch at 4520 N. Sheridan Road.

When Steve Smith retired as Peoria County Jail superintendent Nov. 30, he had no plans to become a businessman.
But, that is exactly what he has become as owner of The Booksmith, a store specializing in old, rare, new and used books. In effect, he has gone from booking people to selling books.

Junior Achievement of Central Illinois, located in Peoria Heights, received the 2008 Chairman’s Community Service Award from Caterpillar Inc. More than 70 employees from Caterpillar’s Global Finance & Strategic Services Division volunteered nearly 400 hours to serve as Junior Achievement classroom consultants for students in Peoria School District 150 and various other schools during the fall 2008 semester.