New shops, restaurant on MLK

It's been less than a year since North Main Construction started work, but Centre Plaza on Martin Luther King Jr. Drive is now complete and will open as early as next week.

Food Lion's second store here nearing completion

Food Lion is set to open a new store at 2389 W. Highway 196 in Hinesville later this fall. The store will be Food Lion's second in Hinesville, and the city's fourth grocery store overall.

Scrapbooker makes her own memories

ST. CLOUD, Minn. - Judy Carter of Hinesville recently celebrated 10 years as a Creative Memories consultant as well as a significant birthday while visiting her home state of Minnesota and attending the 2008 Creative Memories National Convention, "Showcase," in Minneapolis.

Island Realty hires sales representative

Islands Real Estate and Appraisal Company is adding Sarah McCartney to its team. She joins the company as a licensed real estate salesperson. The company has offered real estate sales, rental and appraisal services to coastal Georgia for 20 years. McCartney, her husband, Carey, and their two children have a long-term connection to Liberty County.

Phone company change impacts workers; no customers

The area's phone company is in the final stages of transition from Coastal Communications to new ownership under CenturyTel, Inc.

Area woman fined for pirating software

Diane Goins, a Richmond Hill resident, recently was slapped with a judgment for producing and selling counterfeit computer programs. The Southern District Federal Court of Georgia hit Goins, 55, with a $250,000 fine for selling bogus versions of Corel software on eBay.

County named top location for business

Southern Business & Development magazine recently named Hinesville/Liberty County "One of the 250 Best Places in the South to Locate Your Company" in their 15th anniversary bonus edition.

Real estate transactions for Aug. 8

The following warranty deeds were filed with Liberty County Clerk of Court Barry Wilkes' office from July 21-25. The listings include the names of the sellers and buyers, the book and page where the deed can be found in deed books in the clerk's office, the transfer tax (which gives an estimate of the price paid, based on $1 per $1,000) and a description of the property, which may be the subdivision and/or Georgia Militia District where it is located. Refer to the accompanying map for the GMD numbers.

Program boosts account insurance at Heritage

Depositors with more than $100,000 no longer have to go to different banks to be covered by Federal deposit insurance.

Islands Realty opens new office

Glynn County resorts laying off workers

SEA ISLAND -- The largest private employer in Glynn County says it will immediately begin laying off 300 to 400 employees.

Governor opens consumer education site

ATLANTA - Governor Sonny Perdue announced today the Governor's Office of Consumer Affairs has launched a new Web site, www.ConsumerEd.com, which targets young adults to become smarter consumers. The Web site walks consumers through major purchasing and financial decisions, such as buying a car, purchasing a house, renting an apartment, making home improvements, dealing with credit and debt, managing money and avoiding foreclosure.

State mandates low-cost, free credit freezes

ATLANTA - Effective Aug. 1, low- and no-cost credit freezes will be available to all Georgians. A credit freeze allows consumers to bar access to their credit files with the three major credit reporting agencies, prohibiting identity thieves from fraudulently opening new accounts or lines of credit in a victim's name. Gov. Sonny Perdue signed the legislation into law May 13.

Program ups account insurance at bank

Depositors with more than $100,000 no longer have to go to different banks to be covered by federal deposit insurance.

Estimate Social Security benefits online

Michael J. Astrue, commissioner of Social Security, unveiled a new online calculator at www.socialsecurity.gov/estimator that will provide immediate and personalized benefit estimates to help people plan for their retirement. The Retirement Estimator is tied to a person's actual Social Security earnings record and eliminates the need to manually key in years of earnings information.

Are you part of the global 'baby shortage'?

Dropping birthrates and shrinking families are starting to have a negative effect on the global economy.

Port official sees bright future

GAINESVILLE -- Port of Savannah officials have their hands full with an ambitious deepening project, but they're also watching how the transportation funding debate plays out in the Georgia General Assembly.

Want success at work? Find a partner with these 5 personality traits

Companies across America want their employees' spouses to feel more included at the office, according to an article I wrote earlier this month.

Don't keep this secret from your spouse if you want a happier marriage

According to a new report cited by CNN Money, Americans lie to their spouses about what they spend their money on. The report said one in five Americans don't tell their spouse about a purchase of $500 or more. And 7.2 million Americans haven’t told their spouses about a secret bank account they have.

Property transfers Jan. 2-14

Property transfers filed with the Liberty County Clerk of Courts between Jan. 2 and 14 include:

Property transfers Jan. 2-8

Deeds filed with the Liberty County Clerk of Courts from Jan. 2-8 included:

Real estate agent earns certification

Jeanne Evans with Coldwell Banker Holtzman, Realtors in Hinesville has earned the nationally recognized military relocation professional certification.

Development class graduates locals

The board of the Georgia Academy for Economic Development recently announced the graduates from the 2014 Region 12 multi-day training program.

RH preschool owner honored by state

Richmond Hill resident Audrey Singleton, owner of the Richmond Hill Montessori Preschool, recently was recognized by the Georgia Child Care Association. For her 20 years of service to childhood education, fellow child-care facility owners who felt Singleton had made a commitment to the industry throughout the year nominated her for the honor.

Hinesville Rotarians review 2014, set goals for 2015

Hinesville Rotary Club members voted Tuesday to approve new officers for 2015-16.

Property transfers Dec. 22-29

The following warranty and quit-claim deeds were filed with the Liberty County clerk of courts office Dec. 22-29: