Business Focus
Briefs ?
Adam Clayton Powell III to
head Howard University station
(Special to the NNPA) - Adam Clayton Powell
III has been named general manager of Howard
University's public broadcast station, WHU-TV.
"We are delighted that Adam Clayton Powell III
will be joining us as general manager of WHU
TV." said Patrick Swygert, university president.
"He is an outstanding broad
cast journalist and educator.
Powell, son of the late con
gressman Adam Clayton Pow
ell II, will start his new posi
tion on April 16. He is a media
manager and analyst with
more than 30 years of experi
ence, has won awards for
media and journalism, includ
ing Associated Press awards
Powell 'or international and regional
reporting and major awards in
radio, including the Peabody.
"I am truly excited about the possibilities that
exist at Howard University television," Powell
said. "In joining this team, my colleagues and I will
have an opportunity to strengthen and advance a
great legacy, not only in public broadcasting, but in
continuing the many significant contributions of
Africap Americans in media."
Powell recently known co-produced the Para
mount/Showtime cable television drama "Keep the
Faith, Baby," a biography of his father.
WHU-TV was the nation's first African-Ameri
can-owned public broadcast station.
Southeastern Hospitality hotel
group acquires Brookstown Inn
The Brookstown Inn. a historical downtown
hotel, has been acquired by Southeastern Hospital
ity Services, a subsidiary of the Angell Group.
Speaking on behalf of local investors, Don G.
Aneell. chairman of the Angell Group, emphasized,
"This acquisition represents our belief in down
town Winston-Salem."
Angell said, "Winston-Salem created the
nation's first arts council in 1949, and that this his
torical property would now truly become 'The
Arts' hotel of our community."
Angell was especially appreciative of the sup
port offered by the city of Winston-Salem.
The Brookstown Inn is near the N.C. School of
the Arts, the Southeastern Center for Contemporary
Arts (SECCA), Winston-Salem State University,*
and Salem College. The property also is convenient
to the Winston-Salem business district and Wake
Forest University.
Anchored in history, the Brookstown Inn was
built in 1837 as a textile mill and is on the Nation
al Register of Historic Places. It is within a short
walk of the restored 1766 Moravian village of Old
Salem. The cozy inn exudes the essence of South
ern hospitality with exposed brick walls and wood
en beams. Its 71 guest rooms and suites are ideal
for the business traveler and feature early American
antique furnishings typical of the Old South. ?
The property will be cross-marketed with the
Wingate Inn under the direction of Kathy Moseley,
who will serve as general manager of both hotels.
The inn will focus on service and offers an ideal
setting for business meetings, conferences and
weddings.
First Citizens Bank was the lead local lender,
and the real estate transaction was closed by Chris
Ramm of the Meridian Realty Group, working with
attorney George Hollodick of Blanco, Tackabery,
Combs & Matamoros, P.A.
Southeastern Hospitality Hotels owns and oper
ates five other local properties: the Village Inn Golf
and Conference Center, and the Super 8 in Clem
mons: and the Ramada Plaza. Super 8 and Wingate
Inn in Winston-Salem.
Partnership will hold a workshop
on Planning Downtown Events
The Downtown Winston-Salem Partnership will
hold a workshop on Planning Downtown Events on
April 23 from 3-5 p.m. in the Arts Council board
room, 305 W. Fourth Street.
A resource panel of representatives from the
city. Forsyth County Health Department and the
state Alcoholic Law Enforcement Division (ALE)
will be available to discuss each of their individual
requirements and to answer questions.
Those attending the workshop will receive all
the information necejssary to have a smooth-run
ning. successful special event - whether it takes
place downtown or elsewhere in Winston-Salem. It
will be especially helpful to nonprofit, civic and
community groups that plan fund-raisers, parades,
rallies, concerts, etc.
The cost of the Planning Downtown Events
workshop is $5. which includes a 33-page resource
guide. The guide provides all necessary contact
information, copies of permits required, illustra
tions for vendors, and parking details. Call 724
1399 to register. 0
The mission of the Downtown Winston-Salem
Partnership is to be a unified voice that positively
influences public policy and private development
related to the revitalization of downtown Winston
Salem. and to identify, obtain and manage the
human and financial resources necessary to effec
tively carry out a revitalization program that bene
fits the entire community.
On the Mark
Target Stores unveiled its redesign and renovation of The King Center's new
Gift Shop/Resource Center this week along with Coretta Scott King. As they
unveiled the new Gift Shop/Resource Center, Rev. Bernice King, Coretta Scott
King and Laysha Ward of Target Stores (pictured left to right) donated a por
trait of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and a collection of his books to students from
Martin Luther King Jr. High School, accepted here by school principal Horace
C. Dunson Jr.
Denny's -
from zero
to hero
Denny's restaurant chain
buries racist image
BY PAGE IVEY
Till ASSOCIATED PRESS
SPARTANBURG, S.C. - A decade
ago. the restaurant chain Denny's was near
ly synonymous with racism.
Some of the restaurants were accused of
making blacks prepay, not serving them as
quickly as whites and sometimes not serv
ing blacks at all. In one case, black Secret
Service agents assigned to protect the pres
ident said they sat unserved until the whites
around them had finished eating.
What resulted was a class-action lawsuit
that was settled for $54 million in 1994 and
pushed Denny's to make an amazing trans
formation.
Today, approximately half of Denny's
parent company's 46.000 employees are
minorities, II percent Of them black. Thir
ty-two percent of the supervisory positions
are held by minorities, and for two straight
years Fortune magazine has named it the
"Best Company in America for Minori
ties."
"You will hear us all say here that that
lawsuit was one of the best things to happen
to Denny's," said Ray Hood-Phillips, chief
diversity officer for Denny's parent. Advan
tica Restaurant Group Inc.
"Although it was a historic low point, I
think there were huge opportunities. We
had no place to go but up."
As part of the lawsuit settlement, the
company agreed to operate under a U.S.
Justice Department consent decree and
signed a Fair Share diversity pledge with
the National Association for the Advance
ment of Colored People.
Through the agreement, the company
increased the dollar amount of contracts
with minority suppliers from zero in 1992
to $100 million a year. That accounts for 17
percent of the company's supplier purchas
es.
Meanwhile, the number of black fran
chisees has increased from one in 199.7 to
64 this year. About 42 percent, or 450. of
the company's franchised restaurants are
currently owned by minorities.
Photo courtesy of Denny 's
After being hit by massive discrimination lawsuits in the 1990s, Denny's is making a
place for everyone at their table.
"Denny's has stepped to the front." said
Leighton Hull, a black franchisee who owns
14 Denny's restaurants in California.
Hawaii and Indiana.
Much of the credit has been given to Jint
Adamson. a former Burger King executive
and turnaround specialist who in 1995 was
brought in as CEO of Spartanburg-based
Advantica.
Adamson set about changing the percep
tion that discrimination was an accepted
part of the corporate culture. He did it by
making inclusiveness and diversity parts of
the way of doing business.
Every employee, from executives to
wait staff, received training that empha
sized respect for differences among people.
Programs were implemented to recruit
minority franchisees and managers. And
management began to deal honestly with its
problems instead of trying to explain them
away.
"The way 1 gauge whether people are
serious is what they do at the top - not w hat
they do w ith waitresses and cooks, but w hat
they do with the board and the big salary
positions," said Darrell Jackson, a black
South Carolina state senator who did some
public relations work for Advantica during
the height of its problems and was
approached by Adamson to join the board.
Jackson said he remembers one trip he
took to Naples. Fla.. with Adamson to help
address concerns of residents and the
NAACP. Jackson said there were problems
at the local restaurant, but that Adamson
managed to convince the people that the
company would not tolerate discrimination.
"He held off what could have been a
public embarrassment," Jackson said.
"There were problems, but they realized it
was not at the corporate level."
Jackson said that although Adamson has
left Advantica - he's now leading the reor
ganization of financially troubled Kmart -
the infrastructure is in place to keep Advan
tica on track. Women and minorities make
up almost half the company's senior leader
ship team.
The next step. Hood-Phillips said, is to
broaden the company's reach to include
social projects. Advantica plans to donate
$1 million a year for human rights or civil
rights organizations. This year, the recipient
will be the National Civil Rights Museum
in Memphis, Tenn.
"This is what leaders do," Hood
Phillips said.
But while Advantica has been success
ful in dealing with diversity, that success
has not yet translated into profits.
The company, which also owns the
smaller Coco's and Carrows restaurant
chains, still carries a large debt load from a
1989 leveraged buyout that affects its abili
ty to get the most out of its restaurants, said
Andrew Ebersole. a securities analyst with
KDP Investment Advisors in Montpelier.
Vt.
See Denny's on A9
Hotel sues over
canceled meeting
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ?
DENVER - The Adam's Mark Hotel in Denver is
suing a group that canceled hundreds of reservations
there after the Justice Department sued the hotel's
parent chain for discrimination.
In 1998. the American Association of Colleges
for Teachers Education booked 1,100 rooms for nine
days for a March 2001 meeting. The association can
celed a year before the meeting was scheduled.
The cancellation came after the Justice Depart
ment and the National Association for the Advance
ment of Colored People sued the hotel's chain and
parent company, HBE Corp.
"When the Justice Department sued them, we
concluded we couldn't continue the contractual rela
tionship with them," said David" Imig, president of
the college association.
The Justice Department and NAACP sued after
five black guests attending a reunion in Daytona
Beach. Fla., said they were overcharged, forced to
wear wristbands to enter an Adam's Mark hotel and
made to carry their own luggage.
The company later agreed to submit to four years
of monitoring by the department to settle the suit.
See Hotel on A9
Firefighters union backs Bowles
-^SUPPORT
Crskine Bowles addresses firefighters.
SPECIAL TO THE CHRONICLE
CHARLOTTE - The Profes
sional Firefighters of North Caroli
na. the state chapter of the Interna
tional Association of Firefighters
(IAFF). announced their endorse
ment of Erskine Bowles' candidacy
for the U.S. Senate. Present for the
announcement were David Anders,
president of the state chapter of
IAFF: Mike Spath. president of the
Charlotte chapter; firefighters from
across the state and local support
ers. all wearing "Firefighters for
Bowles" T-shirts.
The IAFF often remains neutral
in primary elections; however.
Anders said it was important to
throw its support behind Bowles.
"Erskine is a leader who has proven
that he knows how to get things
done." staled Anders. "We trust
him to go to Washington and fight
for us and all working families. He
brings the right experience to the
job. He has run a successful busi
ness. brought more prosperity to the
rural parts of our state and helped
balance the federal budget while
serving as White House chief of
staff.
"He also led the government's
response to the Oklahoma City
bombing, so he understands the
needs of emergency responders and
the resources we need to face these
new threats to our security. He is
absolutely the best candidate to rep
resent us and all of North Carolina."
The IAFF endorsement brings
with it support at the grassroots
See Firefighters A9