Monthly Archives: January 2010

By Maria Saporta

At breakfast this morning at the Commerce Club, the Georgia Chamber of Commerce rolled out the red carpet for Steve Ballmer, CEO of Microsoft.

And Ballmer responded by saying Atlanta actually is the 10th largest high tech center in the country. He remembered coming to Atlanta five years ago to attend a breakfast sponsored by the Technology Association of Georgia, and he was impressed that it attracted 700 people that early in the morning.

Although Microsoft doesn’t have its headquarters here, Ballmer said Atlanta is an important base for the information Continue reading →

By Maria Saporta

Georgia House Speaker David Ralston was the special guest at today’s board meeting of the Metro Atlanta Chamber of Commerce.

And from the folks who attended the meeting, the word was that he impressed business leaders with his interest in moving beyond the dysfunctional (my word) politics of the last couple of years.

“He gave us a very nice overview of their agenda,” said Bill Linginfelter, this year’s Metro Atlanta Chamber chairman and Regions Bank’s area president for Georgia and South Carolina. “He seemed excited about the prospect for a transportation bill (coming out of this year’s legislative session).”
Continue reading →

By Maria Saporta

Sometimes restaurants become friends of the family.

So when one of those restaurants goes out of business, it closes a chapter of memories.

That’s the way it is with the Old Spaghetti Factory on Ponce de Leon Avenue.

Yesterday, I got a call from my best friend, Francie, saying that the Spaghetti Factory was going to closing its doors at the end of the week.

It just so happens that her children’s grandparents — Joyce and Candler Lasseter — have been going to the Spaghetti Factory every week for years.
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By Maria Saporta

When General David Petraeus came to speak today at the Atlanta Press Club/Commerce Club luncheon, he came with star power.

About a dozen photographers and television stations were on hand to hear his every word on Afghanistan, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan — all among the 20 countries under his purview in the U.S. Central Command.

Petraeus impressed the 600 people attending the lunch at the Intercontinental Hotel in Buckhead with the depth of his knowledge and analysis of one of the most complicated regions Continue reading →

By Maria Saporta

A whirlwind of activities surround the opening of the legislative session and the annual events of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce.

Since our esteemed media outlets will provide the straight-forward news, I thought I would share with you some of the highlights of these last couple of days (at least from my point of view).

First, former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee (and a former Republican presidential candidate) gave a mostly non-partisan speech as the keynoter on Monday evening at the Georgia Chamber’s annual meeting.

Huckabee, a hold-over from the days of Continue reading →

By Maria Saporta

It was the last “State of the County” address that Cobb Chairman Sam Olens would ever give to the Cobb Chamber of Commerce.

But folks attending the breakfast Monday morning would not have known that from just hearing Olens’ speech.

Olens played it straight — giving Cobb Chamber members a rundown of the county’s operations and progress in public safety, infrastructure, education, the county’s budget, its quality of life as well as acquisition of parks and green space.

The only indication that this would be his last “State of the County” breakfast was Continue reading →