14 FedEx drivers place in competition

May 22, 2015 at 12:00a.m.

SANDUSKY

Fourteen drivers representing FedEx Corp. operating companies were placed among the top finishers at the 2015 Ohio State Truck Driving Championship in Sandusky on May 15 and 16. The list includes Brett Brunkenhoefer of Youngstown, who placed first in the 3-Axle class, and Byran Elges of Youngstown, who placed first in the 5-Axle Sleeper class.

Severance tax

DALLAS

The Maguire Energy Institute and Cox School of Business at Southern Methodist University released a study detailing the dangers of enacting a steep severance-tax increase as proposed by Ohio Gov. John Kasich’s administration in February.

The study highlights the global factors contributing to the decline in worldwide natural-gas and crude-oil commodity prices, the deeply discounted price being paid to producers in the Appalachian Basin for natural gas and the steep decline curve of wells currently being drilled in Ohio’s Utica Shale. The study concludes that additional tax to the oil and gas activity in Ohio could depress the industry.

Allegiant debut

AKRON

Las Vegas-based Allegiant airline debuts in Akron/ Canton with the launch of its service to Tampa/ St. Petersburg, Fla., and Savannah/Hilton Head, Ga., offering Northeast Ohio travelers nonstop access to two vacation destinations.

The airline is offering one-way introductory fares as low as $73. Allegiant also serves Youngstown-Warren Regional Airport in Vienna.

Sterling House getting new name

YOUNGSTOWN

The Sterling House of Youngstown, 2300 Canfield Road, will celebrate its name change to Brookdale Cornersburg at 11 a.m. Thursday. The event will feature music, live entertainment, food and a ribbon-cutting ceremony at 2 p.m.

The name change will reflect its connection to Brookdale Senior Living Solutions, based in Nashville, Tenn., which has 1,150 communities in 46 states. Brookdale operates independent-living, assisted-living and dementia-care communities.

Chick-fil-A to have ground-breaking

NILES

A ground-breaking ceremony will take place at 4 p.m. Wednesday for the city’s first stand-alone Chick-fil-A restaurant, which will generate about 125 new jobs. It will be in the Howland Commons, 1885 Niles- Cortland Road SE.

The event will be hosted by the Howland Chamber of Commerce and will serve as the ceremonial official start of construction of the new restaurant slated to open this September.

Chick-fil-A will celebrate the grand opening of the new Niles restaurant by giving away a one-year supply of free Chick-fil-A meals (52 meals) to the first 100 adults in line on opening day.

The Niles Chick-fil-A is one of 88 new restaurants the chain plans to open across the country in 2015, creating more than 7,400 new jobs. ‚ã

Staff reports

Selected local stocks

STOCK, DIVIDENDCLOSECHANGE

Aqua America, .61, 26.71 —.07

Avalon Holdings,2.94—.10

Clear Channel, .46 22.71 .03

Cortland Bancorp, 15.45.00

Farmers Nat., .128.10 .00

First Energy, 1.44, 35.96.13

Fifth/Third, .5220.46—.01

FirstMerit Corp., .64,20.05 .14

First Niles Financial, .32,8.50.00

FNB Corp., .48,13.63—.02

General Motors, 1.2035.52.50

General Electric, .88,27.77.13

Huntington Bank, .20, 11.35—.01

JP Morgan Chase, 1.60,66.65.17

Key Corp, .26,14.93—.04

LaFarge, 18.22 .23

Macy’s, 1.25, 37.61—.60

Parker Hannifin, 1.92, 125.282.57

PNC, 1.92,95.06.02

RTI Intl. Metals,36.77—.08

Simon Prop. Grp.,5.20,183.81.22

Stoneridge 12.25 —.30

Talmer Bank, 15.86—.06

United Comm. Fin., .04 5.52.00

Selected prices at 4 p.m. Thursday. Provided by Stifel. Not to be construed as an offer or recommendation to buy or sell any security.