Heard on the Street

A TREE-MENDOUS PROPOSAL

A tree disguised as a communications tower? That idea was brought up either for real or in jest, it was hard to tell at the Jan. 22 City Council meeting. Councilman Tom Carlson held up a newspaper clipping from Arkansas where it was proposed to use tall pine trees to disguise cellular communication towers. Carson added that in Florida, palm trees are being considered, and cactus is the camouflage of choice for the Southwest. A 200-foot tall cactus? Could Springfield's stately oaks and elms do the trick? Watch this space for more.

GAS PRICES INVESTIGATED

Missouri's new governor, Bob Holden, has asked Attorney General Jay Nixon to investigate escalating natural gas prices. "Many questions exist about why these prices have risen so sharply and whether efforts have been made to ensure Missourians are being charged an appropriate price for the product," Holden said in his letter to Nixon last week. The Attorney General's Office has authority to investigate under Missouri's Merchandising Practices Act and the state's antitrust law. "I applaud the governor's decision to address this issue," Nixon said in a news release. "As an initial matter, we will focus on the wholesale market, because the retail price is regulated by the Public Service Commission." To help citizens affected by extraordinarily large heating costs this winter, the governor also announced that $19.6 million in federal funds is available to aid the more than 172,000 eligible Missouri families to pay heating bills. Applicants should contact their local Division of Family Services office to see if they are eligible.

RECORDS WORKSHOPS BEGIN

Local city and county representatives interested in preserving local records are invited to a grant-writing workshop Feb. 7. Sponsored by the Secretary of State's Office, the workshop will focus on requirements for the grant program and the application form. A second focus will cover microfilming projects. The competitive grant program is offered to local governments or political subdivisions with taxing authority. Records eligible for microfilming projects are permanent, long-term or of historic value. There is no charge for the workshop held at the Nature Center Auditorium in Springfield.

SELL YOUR PRODUCTS ABROAD

Does your company have a product to export? Learn the ins-and-outs of exporting at three seminars this spring, the first in February. Sponsored by the Small Business Development Center's office at Southwest Missouri State University, the first class will be taught 2-5 p.m. Feb. 8, 15 and 22 at Glass Hall on SMSU's campus. Shirley Waltos, licensed by the U.S. Treasury Department as a customs house broker, will teach the first seminars on export documentation and shipping. Participants will be instructed in how to fill out documents, how to understand the new export regulations, how to use and apply correct international trade terms, how to select an international freight forwarder, and how to understand the responsibilities and liability that accompany exporting, and how to pass title. The second class, Export Letters of Credit and Drafts will be offered in March. The April series will concern Export Marketing and Sales.