Developer asks deferral on East Brainerd rezoning
A developer has asked for a deferral in a request to change zoning on an East Brainerd Road tract where a neighborhood shopping center is eyed.
Chad Hagle of Texas-based Aventine Development filed for the deferral with the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency on the property at East Brainerd Road and Morris Lane.
While the case to change zoning from residential to commercial on the nearly 7-acre parcel was to be heard Nov. 14 by the Planning Commission, the filing sets a new date of Feb. 17, 2023.
A site plan submitted earlier to the Regional Planning Agency shows more than 50,000 square feet of new space built to house potential restaurants, small retail shops, office users and other services.
Siskin hospital plans therapeutic gardens
Siskin Hospital for Physical Rehabilitation announced Thursday it plans to construct a series of therapeutic gardens on its main campus in downtown Chattanooga.
Siskin plans to reshape several outdoor areas of the hospital campus and its existing Leisure Park to create multipurpose healing gardens filled with a variety of herbs, plants, and flowers, all chosen with therapeutic and calming effects in mind. Textured walking paths and raised-bed planters situated at various heights will provide accessibility for individuals who use adaptive equipment and mobility devices.
Garden spaces will provide opportunities for patients to participate in innovative physical and occupational therapies in outdoor settings. Art installations, sculptures, and gathering spaces are also planned in the gardens for patients, visitors, and employees.
The Healing Gardens at Siskin Hospital, once completed, will be open to the community. The capital campaign to construct the gardens has already raised more than $1.1 million in pledges and contributions from local foundations, businesses, and individuals.
IRS hires more staff to upgrade service
The IRS said Thursday it has hired an additional 4,000 customer service representatives who are being trained to answer taxpayer questions during the 2023 tax filing season.
It’s part of the new hiring made possible when congressional Democrats gave the IRS an $80 billion boost through the flagship climate and health care law signed this summer. It is meant to help rebuild an agency that hadn’t seen additional funding in decades.
The IRS is still working out how it will spend the extra $80 billion, but has emphasized that resources will be focused on improving customer service and scrutiny of high-income earners. The newest hires are being trained in taxpayer rights and technical account management issues.
Last tax season, the IRS answered so few taxpayer phone calls that a bipartisan group of lawmakers wrote to agency officials to complain that calls were only being answered 9% of the time.
Treasury and IRS officials have said they want to put an end to poor customer service.
Amazon shares drop after earnings report
For much of this year, Amazon’s growth slowed and losses mounted as it faced high costs and changes in people’s shopping habits with the ebbing of the coronavirus pandemic.
On Thursday, the e-commerce giant signaled that its business was rebounding. But it cautioned that growth would be slow, possibly falling to its lowest level since 2001.
The company posted $127.1 billion in sales for the third quarter, up 15% from a year earlier, showing that high inflation has not pummeled consumer spending. It also returned to profitability, making $2.9 billion after two quarters of losses.
Amazon projected that sales might slow to as low as 2% in the current quarter, which includes the vital holiday shopping season. That estimate, which fell far short of Wall Street’s expectations, includes a forecast that the strong U.S. dollar will continue to depress international sales.
Amazon’s stock dropped more than 19% in after-hours trading.
Apple boosts sales, profits in quarter
Apple managed to boost both its sales and profit during a summertime quarter that depressed the fortunes of most other major tech companies, but that doesn’t necessarily mean the iPhone maker will be immune to a potential recession.
Even though Apple fared reasonably well, the July-September results released Thursday signaled that the world’s most valuable company is facing some of the same economic headwinds that hammered the profits of Microsoft and the corporate parents of both Google and Facebook.
Apple’s fiscal fourth quarter revenue rose 8% from the same time last year to $90.1 billion. That was an improvement from the scant 2% uptick in revenue during its April-June quarter when supply problems caused by pandemic-related factory shutdowns dinged its sales.
The Cupertino, California, company’s profit for the most recent quarter totaled $20.72 billion, or $1.29 per share, up by less than 1% from the same time last year.
Both the revenue and earnings per share were slightly above analyst estimates. But on the downside, sales of Apple’s most popular product, the iPhone, and another big moneymaker, and the services division, were both lower than analysts had been anticipating — a sign consumers may be cutting back amid the highest inflation in 40 years.