More than 100 people quietly participated in the effort to bring a new IBM technology deliver service center to Columbia. Among the reasons IBM chose Columbia was about $31 million dollars in state and local economic incentives. Today's Intersection discussion includes an explanation of how the deal was arranged, what drew IBM to Columbia, and the potential economic impact of the facility, which is expected to create 800 new jobs by 2012.

Picture
Panelists:
Mike Brooks, president, Regional Economic Development Inc.
Dave Griggs, chairman of the board, Regional Economic Development Inc.
Barbara Hoppe, Columbia sixth ward councilwoman
Additional media coverage on this topic:
IBM: From Chip to Tiger (Columbia Daily Tribune, May 22, 2010) — A good overview of the whole deal
IBM commits to bring at least 600 jobs to Columbia (Columbia Missourian, May 21, 2010) — Another helpful overview
COLUMN: IBM deal includes protections for Columbia residents (Columbia Missourian, May 20, 2010) — Columnist George Kennedy checks in with the city manager and explains why it's a good deal for the city
COLUMN: IBM going to have a hard time living up to hype (Columbia Missourian, May 20, 2010) — Columnist David Rosman offers a reality check
EDITORIAL: IBM, big gain, big cost — Hank Waters analyzes the deal
Additional coverage from the Columbia Missourian
Add Comment
 
 
The 2010 state legislative session ended Friday with a $23.3 billion budget in place — a budget that is just shy of reaching the $500 million in cuts that were sought by the governor. But many of those cuts were based on money-saving proposals that failed to be passed during the session. Does the legislature get props for reducing state spending? Or — as one Kansas City reporter wrote in Sunday’s paper— does the legislature get an “incomplete”? Two members of the House budget committee explain what happened and what it means. This one hour conversation will bring you up to speed on what our legislature has been doing for the past three and a half months.

Picture
Panelists:
Allen Icet, Republican, 84th district representative and chair of the Missouri House Budget committee(joining the program by phone)
Chris Kelly, Democrat, 24th district representative and member of the Missouri House Budget committee
Add Comment
 
 
Many residents of Columbia call our town an “oasis” – by that they seem to mean a more open-minded urban center in the middle of Missouri. But, how diverse are we really? Do we really mix with diverse groups or do we tend to “stick with our own”? Is whatever town we call home really welcoming for all kinds of people? Panelists and members of the community discuss these and other issues during a special live town-hall style Intersection program hosted at the Reynolds Journalism Institute.


Picture
Panelists:
Ibtisam Barakat, international author based in Columbia
Eduardo Crespi, director and founder of Centro Latino
Marie Glaze, human rights specialist for the City of Columbia
Nathan Stephens, director of the Gaines/Oldham Black Culture Center at MU
Roger Worthington, chief diversity officer at MU
Add Comment
 
 
In the late 1990s, in the aftermath of the Bosnian War, Missouri became an important resettlement site for refugees escaping the destruction in their home country of Bosnia. There are now an estimated 50,000 Bosnian immigrants living in St. Louis — plus several hundred who have settled in Columbia. Two mid-Missouri filmmakers who followed the story of one family over five years discuss the challenges encountered by their subjects and by other refugees.

Refugees in Columbia panelists Beth Pike and Kerri Yost photos
Panelists:
Beth Pike, independent television producer based in Columbia; co-producer and co-director of the film “Neither Here Nor There”
Kerri Yost, chair of the Department of Film & Media at Stephens College; co-producer and co-director of the film “Neither Here Nor There”
Add Comment