Report: MediaNews bids on Calif. paper
Denver-based ap, the nation’s fourth-largest newspaper conglomerate and owner of The Denver Post, has bid to acquire the Santa Cruz Sentinel in northern California, the San Jose Mercury News reported.
The Mercury News, which is also owned by MediaNews, did not cite a source for the report. MediaNews officials did not return phone calls from The Post seeking confirmation.
The Sentinel is one of six papers up for sale by Ottoway Newspapers, a subsidiary of large newspaper chain Dow Jones. If the bid is successful, the Sentinel would join MediaNews’ strong portfolio of newspapers in the greater San Francisco Bay Area.
Station offers discount on gas after Buffs’ wins
Boulder motorists will have something to cheer about each Sunday this fall – especially after wins by the University of Colorado’s football team.
A local gas station, PDQ Gas & Food, is offering 20 cents off each gallon of gas from 6 a.m. to noon on the day after every CU victory. Last week, the station at 5200 Manhattan Circle was selling a gallon of regular unleaded for $2.55.
Considering the team’s losing record so far, some customers doubt they’ll receive many discounts, said Tom Tomass, the station’s assistant manager.
“My boss doesn’t think (the Buffs) have a chance to win too many (games), but I think they are going to win the rest of them,” Tomass said. “We wanted to support the team.”
The promotion means the station will sell each gallon of gas at a loss, but Tomass said the idea is to drive more customers inside the store to purchase higher profit-margin items, such as soda or snacks. “Even if we take a loss, it exposes more people to the place,” he said.
Contest seeks blasts from Boulder’s past
To trumpet what they consider a new era in shopping for Boulder, promoters of the soon-to-open Twenty Ninth Street retail complex are looking for blasts from the past.
The “Times They Are A’ Changin’ Contest” asks Boulderites to submit their best “vintage vestige of the Boulder lifestyle.” Suggested entries include “well-worn Birkenstocks, torn tie-dyed shirts … well-loved love beads – even pup tents with little pep left.”
The center will award gift cards for the top three entries, which can be dropped off between 11 a.m. and noon Sept. 28 at the southwest entrance of the Macy’s at 28th and Walnut streets.
Want to win? It might take more creativity than the suggested entries, as it takes only a quick trip down the Pearl Street Mall to prove those styles are still alive and well in Boulder.
Empty pockets felt around the globe
Take heart. You’re hardly the only one strapped for cash at the end of every month, according to a survey of consumers in 40 markets worldwide.
Nearly 22 percent of Americans responding to the AC Nielsen Online Consumer Confidence Survey reported they’re out of money after covering basic, monthly living expenses, such as food and housing.
The only country to fare worse? Portugal, where 23 percent of respondents said they have no dough to spare.
The survey, conducted online in June, polled nearly 22,000 people.
In the Netherlands and the United Kingdom, 17 percent of people say they experience similar budget crunches every month. Sixteen percent of Canadians, French and Turks report similar woes. Ditto for 15 percent of Germans, Hungarians and South Koreans.
The average reported by all regions surveyed: 13 percent.
If there’s a bright spot for Americans, it’s that they tend to direct what spare cash they do have into savings and paying off debts, according to the survey.
About four out of 10 people surveyed said they were using extra cash to pay down credit- card debt, while 38 percent said they were stashing funds in a savings account.
Given that the nation’s savings rate – the equivalent of income less spending – has been negative since mid-2005, someone must be fibbing.
