2016 July Issue

By ALAN J. ORTBALS    Online advertising has been on a roll for years but it’s beginning to run into some strong headwinds, according to PageFair, a web-based company that proclaims a mission of sustaining the open web.    In 2013, Internet advertising revenues in the United States totaled $42.8 billion, a 17 percent increase over the…

By DENNIS GRUBAUGH    EDWARDSVILLE — The developer of one of two properties being transformed into Amazon fulfillment centers says the region is getting noticed by the logistics industry.    Having the Amazon name attached to the warehousing operations in Gateway Commerce Center has significance for future development, says Mike Towerman, president of TriStar Properties, Gateway’s developer…

No, state’s pending legislation will damage election integrity By HANS VON SPAKOVSKY    The bill passed by the Illinois legislature to automatically register individuals to vote from state databases will damage the integrity of the voter registration system. It may result in the registration of large numbers of ineligible voters, as well as multiple or duplicate…

Yes, state has an opportunity to become national leader in promoting democracy By ANDY MANAR    The national debate over how elections are run typically breaks down on party lines, with Republicans supporting voter ID laws and limiting early voting opportunities and Democrats supporting efforts to expand the electorate and make it easier for eligible voters…

IBJ: How did you get your start in law? Kurowski: I received my law degree from Saint Louis University and started with a small Belleville firm in 1978. I was 29 years old and four years out of law school when I started my own firm as a solo practice in 1983 in a 125-year-old…

By DENNIS GRUBAUGH    BELLEVILLE — Wendy Pfeil’s new job looks a lot like her last one. The address hasn’t changed and neither have the faces of her colleagues.    Pfeil in June was appointed as executive director of the Greater Belleville Chamber of Commerce, assuming the position of John Lengerman, who retired after eight years at…

IBJ staff report    SPRINGFIELD — An immediate budget crisis was put to rest on the last day of June, but everyone in the mix acknowledges there is a long way to go to get Illinois out of its financial hole.    There was a giant sigh of relief when the Illinois General Assembly passed — and…

  By DENNIS GRUBAUGH    SCOTT AFB — A big party is on the horizon for one of the most important employers in the region.     Scott Air Force Base is turning 100 years old in 2017 and planning is already underway.    To be sure, the installation is a survivor, having dodged multiple base-closing rounds through…

By DENNIS GRUBAUGH    EDWARDSVILLE — Two planned Amazon fulfillment centers mean a hiring boom in Edwardsville this month, but they also cement the region’s growing reputation as a logistics and distribution center, which could be just as valuable in coming years, local leaders say.    The road to the big announcement this past month was filled…