BCR's Daily Fishwrap Report for March 12, 2009

• That whole replace-the-old-industries-with-high-tech idea for North Carolina? Not this recession. NC's jobless rate hit a quarter-century high of 9.7% in January, with traditional industries like textiles and food manufacturing taking the hit at the same time that tech-stalwarts like IBM and Nortel were shedding jobs. N.C. now has the sixth-highest jobless rate in the nation. (H-S)
• $7 million in road resurfacing and widening projects -- including repaving part of I-540, N. Duke St., Hillandale/Fulton, Old Page Rd., NC 98 and widening Old Oxford Hwy. -- are on their way to Durham. The Durham-Chapel Hill-Carrboro MPO is expecting another $8.4m for transit (DATA will get half) and about $8 million in funding for local road projects, which the MPO will decide how to spend by May. In other DATA news, that earmark for bus turbocharger replacement we talked about recently came through to boot. (H-S #1, #2, N&O)
• The physician assistant program at Duke is hosting an open house today for its new home on S. Duke St., in the one time Blue Cross-Blue Shield building still owned by the insurer. As BCBS notes in the H-S story, the presence of the PA program in their building helps to add more primary care professionals in the state, helping to affordably deliver health care services.
• Duke's new police chief, John Dailey, is set to return on April 1 to the department where he worked from 1993-2001. Since '01, he's been the assistant police chief at NC State. (H-S, N&O)
• $789k is stimulus funding is expected to flow into programs for the homeless in Durham; although the Feds haven't promulgated the rules for use yet, there's some expectation that the funds may focus on helping to prevent or mitigate homelessness by providing direct housing assistance to get or maintain housing for the homess and at-risk. (H-S)
• The county has been asked to fund (up to $15k) a local witness protection program to reduce initimidation of witnesses, particularly by gangs. (H-S)

Comments

[Rob]

Is the new Duke PA location right across from JJ Henderson Towers? If so, I think it would be great for them to partner with a group like Duke's "Just For Us" and get some more primary care visits for the elderly in that complex.....