Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: THURSDAY, April 22, 1993 TAG: 9304220053
SECTION: BUSINESS PAGE: B5 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: LENGTH: Medium
Connex Pipe Systems, an Ohio company negotiating for a Botetourt County plant site, has applied for a state air pollution permit for the discharge of paint solvents and particulate emission.
The company's plan for annual discharge of 10 tons of solvents and 10 tons of particulate do not rank it as a big polluter, said Don Shepherd, Roanoke regional director of the air pollution control division of the state Environmental Quality Department. A major polluter would discharge 100 tons a year, he said.
Shepherd said the Connex request for a temporary exception to pollution regulations is being reviewed by the agency's headquarters in Richmond. "I don't see anything insurmountable" in the request, he said.
Connex, a Marietta, Ohio, pipe fabricator, is continuing negotiations to acquire a Troutville building owned by the Charles Oakey family. - Staff report
Union accepts latest Allied Signal offer
HOPEWELL - Members of Teamster Local 101 voted Wednesday to accept the latest offer from Allied-Signal Inc. and return to work.
The vote was 704-546, said Sandra Epps, secretary-treasurer for the local. The union had recommended that members reject the offer.
Under the new contract, hourly employees at the Chesterfield County fibers plant and technical center would pay less for health insurance and receive pay raises of 3.5 percent to 4 percent over three years. Workers have been on strike since March 2.
U.S. to impose trade sanctions on Europe
WASHINGTON - The Clinton administration said Wednesday it will impose trade sanctions against the 12-nation European Community after failing to reach full agreement on a bitter trade dispute involving government contracts.
However, U.S. Trade Representative Mickey Kantor said the sanctions would be significantly scaled down from what had first been threatened, because the two sides resolved differences over the sales of electrical generating equipment.
Both sides agreed to remove restrictions on the sale of turbines and other large electrical equipment to government-owned utilities. However, they were unable to resolve a dispute involving the sale of telecommunications equipment to state-owned enterprises in Europe.
While Kantor did not have a specific figure, he indicated the sanctions would cover about half the original amount of annual federal contracts, or $25 million, a relatively minor amount in world-trade terms.
Microsoft to install gay-partners policy
Microsoft Corp., a Redmond, Wash., software developer, said Wednesday it will offer health-care benefits to its employees' same-sex partners and eligible dependents.
The policy, which takes effect July 1, is modeled after those of several companies that began offering benefits to gay partners in September 1991. Employees will have to submit a legal affidavit stipulating they are involved in a "committed, exclusive relationship" that includes financial interdependence with their partner. - Seattle Times
Piece Goods Shops seeks court shelter
WINSTON SALEM, N.C. - Piece Goods Shops Co., one of the nation's largest fabrics and crafts specialty retailers, has filed for bankruptcy protection to reorganize its debts.
Craven B. Page, chairman and chief executive, said Piece Goods filed under Chapter 11 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code because creditors were unwilling to refinance its debt.
A filing at the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Greensboro didn't disclose specifics, but Page said Piece Goods has assets of more than $152 million and debts of more than $120 million.
Piece Goods operates 318 stores in 20 states, including three in the Roanoke area. Page said he doesn't think the company will have to lay off any of its 3,300 employees or close any stores. - Associated Press
Briefly . . .
\ Roanoke Electric Steel Corp., Roanoke-based maker of specialty steel products, has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 12 cents per common share, payable May 25 to shareholders on May 7.
\ First Union Corp., Charlotte, N.C., parent of Roanoke-based First Union National Bank of Virginia, has declared a quarterly cash dividend of 35 cents per share of its common stock, payable June 15 to shareholders on May 28.
\ Federal-Mogul Corp., Southfield, Mich.-based operator of an engine bearings plant in Blacksburg, has made a public offering of 6 million shares of stock at $19.375 in simultaneous U.S. and international offerings. Proceeds will be used to repay debt and for general corporate purposes.
by CNB