Outside Erie

Ray Grabowski, Jr. of the Lake Shore Railway Historical Society recently penned the following about his organization’s latest acquisition — and its desire to get GE Transportation more involved in preserving Erie’s locomotive history.
I’ve maintained in the past that Erie has the ability to capitalize more on its railroading history — a sentiment that has […]

Successful economies aren’t built by luring existing businesses to set up shop in one’s borders.
Instead, they are built from within — one strong business at a time.
And those strong businesses almost always start with a single entrepreneur and an idea.
During Erie’s heyday, entrepreneurs found fertile ground for their ventures.
In recent decades, the conditions have been […]

The choice for Erie’s 2008 Business of the Year is not an easy one.
After all, 2008 was far from a good year for many companies. The economic meltdown might not be quite as severe in Erie as it is in some other parts of the country. But it is nonetheless putting the squeeze on […]

We continue to get some great nominations for our “Globie Awards” — GlobalErie’s attempt to recognize the best in Erie in 2008.
Thus far, we’ve asked for your nominations for Erie’s Person of the Year and Business of the Year.
Today, we ask for your suggestions for Erie’s “New Development of the Year”.
The rules are the same […]

Thanks to everyone who has offered nominations for the annual GlobalErie Person of the Year award. I’ll be accepting nominations for the next few days, so please feel free to share your thoughts.
Along the same lines, I’d like to solicit your suggestions for Erie’s Business of the Year.
The idea is to highlight a business that […]

The USA Today has an interesting feature on the air quality at schools nationwide.
As part of its package, it has an interactive database that allows readers to see where individual schools rank nationally in terms of air quality.
Not surprisingly, many Erie schools grade quite poorly.
The lower the percentile, the worse the air.
Check out the air […]

I received a news release from the Manufacturer & Business Association yesterday pointing to the group’s annual awards dinner next Wednesday.
As always, the Association offers awards to Erie-area businesses that have achieved longevity milestones. And, as always, I’m amazed at the sustained success of many of the region’s small companies.
Consider, for instance, Trost & Steinfurth […]

Investors and employees at Erie’s GE Transportation have likely seen the Fortune magazine article that paints a bleak picture of the company’s future.
Here’s a letter to the editor posted on GE.com in response to the piece:

“GE under Siege” (Oct. 27 edition) did a disservice to Fortune readers by failing to provide balance and perspective on […]

If you think the debate over plans to build a tires-to-energy plant on the Lake Erie shore has been intense, brace yourself for what could be an even more caustic battle over the possibility of wind farms on the Great Lakes.
The Washington Post reports on the early efforts to develop offshore wind farms in Michigan, […]

Erie’s largest employer is getting some financial help from the world’s richest man.
Billionaire investor Warren Buffett said today that his company, Berkshire Hathaway, is putting $3 billion in new capital into General Electric Co. — the corporate behemoth that has been struggling with its capital recently.
This could bring good things to life for Erie investors, […]