Strictly Business

From Business Today:

The Statler Towers could end up in private hands after all. After several weeks of the threat of the city taking title to the landmark, developer Mark Croce indicated that he plans to go ahead and buy the giant abandoned building for $700,000, a price that could end up being the steal of the century. He still wants more than $5 million in public money to seal of the top floors of the building until market demand calls for their redevelopment. Stay tuned...

Rich Products has bought a piece of an ice cream icon. The Buffalo-based food company bought a maker of Carvel ice cream cakes. Celebration Foods of Connecticut makes the Carvel cakes sold in stores. Rich's also bought an Austrailian bakery VSE International. Terms of the two purchases were not revealed.

There were 2,000 more private sector jobs in Western New York this December compared to last year. That's the good news from the state Labor Department. It is the seventh straight month of year-over-year private sector job growth. Government jobs were flat for December. It's slow progress.

Ecology and Environment, a pioneer in environmental consulting, is starting to see benefits from its early moves into South America. One of its employees was named the minister of the environment in Chile. That was some of the good news CEO Kevin S. Neumaier shared at the company's annual meeting.

The Avant Building continues to attract premier tenants. The glass covered building that Uniland Development made using the bones of the former Dulski Federal Building, has attracted law firm Jaeckle Fleischmann & Mugel. The firm will join another top area firm, Damon Morey, in the new building.

The Genesee County IDA was giving out bonuses like it was a private company, according to an audit by the State Authorities Budget Office. The IDA gave $340,000 to 10 staff members from 2005 to 2009, despite having no policy authorizing such extra payments. The budget office wants the IDA to get the money back and to use it for job creating efforts, which is what the IDA is supposed to do.

Who is getting hired, promoted or honored?

Carvel cake anyone?