A Look Inside:Construction & Home Improvement

Tax Highlights:Tips For StudentSummer Workers

Reimbursement Clauses: An Alternative to Non-Competition Agreements in Louisiana?

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Construction & Home Improvement

President’s Letter

Taste of elmwood spring Highlights

Taste of elmwood sponsors Thank You

A Look Inside: Construction & Home Improvement

Tax Highlights: Tips For student summer Workers

eBA event Highlights

Reimbursement Clauses

eBA Board

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It’s almost summer, and as we get ready to conclude our membership year, I would like to share some of the accomplishments we have had this year with the elmwood Business Association.

Part of the mission of eBA is to educate and keep our members informed of what is happening in our business community and to provide topics that can help you with your business. We kicked off our year last september with Jerry Bologna, executive Director of JeDCO, who shared his business outlook with the membership. In October, we put

together a panel of experts who spoke about the film industry. This continues to be an important topic for eBA and is one that we will continue to focus on, as our state faces issues with keeping this industry alive. In January, we got to hear from our newly elected Parish President Mike Yenni, and this month we will conclude with a report from Michael Hecht, CeO of GNO, Inc. We have also provided some other interesting topics, including an attorney who represented businesses through Hurricane Katrina, members of the Jefferson Parish sheriff ’s Office, who talked about identity theft and credit card fraud, the new owners of the New Orleans Zephyrs Baseball Team, and two experts in martial arts, who gave us some great tips to stay safe and prevent violent crimes.

In March, we sponsored our 13th Annual Taste of elmwood charity fundraiser. We had over 20 restaurants from the elmwood area with lots of delicious food. I would like to extend a big thank you to the restaurants and to the companies that sponsored this event through cash sponsorships and in-kind donations. Your support helped us to raise $2,700 for Families Helping Families of Jefferson. I would also like to thank our Chairperson, Lisa Taglauer, and the teams at elmwood self storage and Families Helping Families, for all of their hard work in putting on this event.

It’s membership renewal time, and I hope you will all continue your membership with eBA. And if you have not been a member for a while, please come back! We’d love to have you! If you missed some of these great events this year, I highly encourage you to become more active and come to our luncheons and networking events. It’s a great way to get more out of your membership and get to know the businesses in our area. Please also consider the opportunity to become active with our board. We always welcome committee members to help out with speakers, event planning, governmental relations, and membership development/marketing.

At the end of May, we said goodbye to our executive Director, Amy Nolan, who will be going to work full time for the American Cancer society. We thank Amy for helping us to streamline some processes, work with our board, and keep us organized this past year. Amy was a valuable asset to eBA and she will be missed. We are pleased and excited to welcome our new executive Director, Nicole Tusa Roberts. Nicole has a sales and marketing background and has worked with several businesses in the elmwood area. Please help her to feel welcome as she gets to know our organization over the summer.

Thanks to all of our members for making this a great year! I am looking forward to another successful year ahead and hope to see eBA grow in membership and participation. Please encourage your fellow businesses to get involved. Have a great summer, and we’ll see you back in september.

Donna Lowe 2016 President

l e t t e r f rom o u r p r e sI de n t

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tAs t e of e l m Wo od sp r I n G e V e n t H I G H l I G H t s

6.21 LuNCHeoN11:30am | Michael Hecht, GNO, Inc. | The Rose Garden$30 members/advance | $40 non-members/at door

JuLy/AuguST SummeR BReAkMeetings resume in September

9.13 LuNCHeoN11:30am | Jerry Bologna, JeDCO | The Rose Garden$30 members/advance | $40 non-members/at door

**Register at www.elmwoodba.org

Thank you to our 2016 taste of elmwood sponsors

Thank you to our 2016 taste of elmwood restaurants

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April’s Biz Catering

Coca-Cola

Community Coffee

Fox & Hound

Haydel’s Bakery

JJ’s Diner

Jimmy John’s

Jkater Catering

Langensteins

La madeleine

maurice’s Bakery

Nacho mama’s

Phil’s grill

Pinkberry

Reginelli’s

Roly Poly

Rotolos

The Rose garden

Shimmy Shack

Theo’s Neighborhood Pizza

Zea’s Café

Zoe’s kitchen

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A Trusted Name in Commercial Real Estate David Quinn, SIOR Gerard Henry, SIOR Keith Henry, SIOR Bert Duvic, CCIM, SIOR Debbie Vastola, ACoM

Property Management

Joe Gorman, CCIM Ben Derbes, CCIM Jimmy Newton, CCIM Jack Quinn Bryce French

5440 Mounes Street, Ste 100 New Orleans, LA 70123

504-733-4555W W W . M A X D E R B E S . C O M

Since 1934

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A l o oK I n sI de : C on s t ru C t I on & H om e I m p roV e m e n t

The elmwood Business Park is home to many businesses in the construction and home improvement industry. Our members range from construction material suppliers, to contractors, electricians, landscapers, home décor, furniture rental and sales, apartments, hotels, self storage, and many banks and lenders to assist with financing. so whether you are remodeling your office space, building an addition to your home, or in need of housing for temporary employees or visiting executives, the businesses in elmwood can serve your needs.

Businesses in these industries can range from national companies, to small “mom and pop” operations, but they can all benefit from the networking and relationships built through organizations like the elmwood Business Association. Part of the mission of eBA is to protect, promote and encourage the businesses in our area, so we’d like to offer a few tips that are not only important for those in the construction/home improvement industry, but for many other types of businesses as well.

1. Have a website. If your business does not already have one, get a professionally made website. It is important for consumers to be able to find you online and access your website. Make sure to include basic information such as the days you are open, your business hours, and your address and phone number, and the types of products or services you offer, whether residential or commercial.

2. Signage. An inexpensive way to advertise your business is through signage. When you are on site at a job, ask the customer if you can display signs with your company’s name/logo and phone number. Also, have professional signs made that can be displayed on company vehicles with your phone number.

3. Phone Response. One of the most important things you can do is answer the phone. If that is not possible, have a voice mail response that gives your website where they can go for more information. Make sure to return calls promptly. Otherwise, many potential customers will simply call a competitor.

4. Door hangers. If you are doing work in a residential area, door hangers are a great way to let other residents know about your business and what you offer.

5. Business cards. Have a professional business card and hand them out wherever you go. Make sure they include

contact information, a website, and what products or services you offer.

6. Social media. establish a social media presence for your business through sites such as Facebook, Twitter, Pinterest and Instagram. Make sure you post to these sites on a regular basis. You can use social media to post photos of your work and advertise any specials you are offering. It’s also a great way to showcase testimonials from happy customers. Make sure you respond promptly to any comments, questions or concerns that get posted to your social media.

7. Stay in touch with your customers. Building a customer database is a good way to stay in touch with them via email marketing. Often times, customers become repeat customers and might need your service again in the future. Keep reminding them about your business so they will come back to you and refer you to others.

8. get to know businesses in the area. Visit with other businesses in the area and introduce yourself personally to the staff. Offer to provide them with promotional materials, flyers and coupons so they can send their customers your way.

9. Join industry associations. If you are not already doing so, consider joining business associations that will help you to network and promote your company. Organizations such as chambers of commerce, contractor/supplier associations and of course, the elmwood Business Association can be an important part of your success.

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J u n e lu n C H e on : f e At u r I n Gm I C HA e l H e C H t, p r e sI de n t & C e o of G n o, I n C .

Join us for our final meeting of the membership year, featuring Michael Hecht, President and CeO of Greater New Orleans, Inc., the economic development organization for southeast Louisiana. GNO, Inc.’s mission falls broadly into two categories: business development – attracting and growing businesses – and product development – creating better business conditions. under Michael’s leadership, GNO, Inc. was recently named the #2 economic development organization in the united states by Business Facilities magazine. Michael has been recognized as “One of the Ten People Who Made a Difference in the south,” “One of the 25 Most Powerful People in the 10/12 Corridor,” and “One of the Top 50 economic Developers in North America.” Don’t miss out on this informative presentation!

Please support Metro Center for Women & Children by bringing donations to our meeting:

This is also our annual membership meeting and election of our board of directors. We look forward to seeing you all there!

• Hygiene items• Diapers/baby wipes

• Pillows/twin or full sheets• Comforters

• Luggage/duffle bags• Umbrellas

• Car seats/boosters• Pack & plays

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tAx H I G H l I G H t s : t I p s f or s t u de n t su m m e r Wor K e r s

Written by Randy Martin, CPA

As summer quickly approaches and the temperature rises in our region, it is also a time that our children and our local students seek summer employment. Following are some useful tips concerning the hiring of these young men and women.

Hiring our childrenIf you own a business that qualifies as either a sole proprietorship or as a husband and wife owned partnership, you may be able to save money by reduced payroll taxes. Children under the age of 18 working for the aforementioned entities are exempt from FICA taxes and from federal and state unemployment taxes. This results in a payroll tax expense savings of about 8%. The exclusion from federal and state unemployment taxes extends until the child reaches the age of 21.

Hiring studentsMany students who only work part-time or only work during the summer months have an option to avoid federal income tax withholdings on the earned wages. There are some conditions that must be met to qualify for this exclusion. The student must have not owed any taxes for 2015 and anticipate to not owe any taxes for 2016. To qualify, the student must write “exempt” on the W-4 form when applying for employment. There is another qualification, the student if claimed as a dependent on their parents tax return, must not have more than $350.00 in investment income and their total income can not exceed $1,050.00 for 2016 Accordingly, this benefit is very limited.

Contributions to a Roth IRAA more important consideration and often overlooked opportunity is the possibility of a contribution to a Roth IRA. You, meaning a parent of grandparent, can make a contribution into a child’s Roth IRA up to $5,500.00, but not to exceed the child’s 2016 earnings. This is a great way to contribute to a child or grandchild for their future benefit. As a Roth IRA, all withdrawals are tax free after that individual reaches the age of 59 ½. Also, up to $10,000 of the earnings can be taken out tax free by the child to buy a first home, and contributions can be taken out tax free at any time. Financially, a Roth IRA benefits those individuals that contribute at an earlier age due to the growth potential to be a tax free event. This is a great opportunity.

Have a great summer and hire our youth because they are tomorrow’s leaders and our source of social security benefits when we retire !

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e l m Wo od Bu sI n e s s As s o C IAt I on m e e t I n G H I G H l I G H t s

For our April 21 meeting, the elmwood Business Association invited two martial arts experts to share tips with us about personal safety. Myron Gaudet is a martial arts instructor who says he gets a great sense of satisfaction by empowering ordinary people to take personal responsibility for their own safety and security. He and Collin Murray, a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu black belt, gave an informative presentation to help all of us stay safe and prevent becoming a victim of violent crime. Thanks to Mushin Training Center for providing us with this great program!

All members of the elmwood business community are invited to join us for future meetings. Our next meeting is Tuesday, June 21, from 11:30 am to 1 pm, at the Rose Garden (5616 Citrus Blvd. in elmwood). Registration is available at www.elmwoodba.org. If you are interested in becoming a meeting sponsor, please call (504) 733-8900 or email elmwoodba@gmail.com.

A P R I L L u N C H e o N

C R A W F I S H B o I L

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JEFFERSON BUSINESS CENTER 520/524 Elmwood Park Blvd., Jefferson, LA 70123

520 Elmwood Park Blvd. Suite Total s.f. Office s.f. Warehouse s.f. 100 5,977 4,558 1,419 110 8,056 6,069 1,987 115 1,063 1,063 - - - 160 8,162 5,847 2,315 190 11,495 7,270 4,225 524 Elmwood Park Blvd. Suite Total s.f. Office s.f. Warehouse s.f. 110 4,534 4,534 - - - 120 3,898 3,898 - - - 130 3,898 3,898 - - - 150 10,000 6,046 3,954

AVAILABLE FOR LEASE - OFFICE/WAREHOUSE 22’ Clear Height Flexible Floor Plans Grade Level and Dock High Loading

Class ‘A’ Business Environment Easily accessible to CBD and Westbank

SEALY & COMPANY

150 James Drive East, Suite 140, St. Rose, LA 70087

Jennifer A. Lee, CCIM, SIOR 504.463.5600 jenniferL@sealynet.com

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Sofa & Chair Sets from . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$399.99

5-pc Dinette Sets from . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$299.99

5-pc Bedroom Sets from . . . . . . . . . . . .$599.99

Lamps from . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$29.99

TV Stands from . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .$69.99

Twin Mattress Sets from . . . . . . . . . . . . $149.99

Queen Mattress Sets from . . . . . . . . . . .$299.99

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neworleans.cortclearancefurniture.com© 2016 CORT. A Berkshire Hathaway Company. Instant Home To Go packages are not included in this sale event.

It’s our commitment to being your trusted source for high—quality, pre—leased furnishings that will be a great addition to your home or office, and our guarantee you’ll be completely satisfied with your experience and your purchase. Not to mention everyday savings of up to 70% off new retail prices that make giving your home or office a whole new look easy and affordable.Confidence in your purchase is what CORT Certified is all about.

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Our advertised discount of up to 70% off is for our previously leased furniture and reflects a discount from the price of the furniture if it were new, which we believe offers a tremendous value to our customers.

PROUD PARTNER OF

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r e I m Bu r se m e n t C l Au se s :An Alternative to non-Competition Agreements in louisiana?

A Louisiana court of appeal recently identified a way for employers to use reimbursement clauses to discourage competition by former employees.

In eRA Helicopters, LLC v. Amegin, the Louisiana Third Circuit allowed an employer to enforce a liquidated damages provision in its former employee’s employment contract. The contract stated that if the employee terminated his employment as a pilot during the first two years of his employment, he would be required to eimburse the employer $80,000 that the employer had spent on flying lessons for the employee.

When the employee quit before spending two years with the company, the company sued to reclaim the $80,000 in training expenses. The employee argued that he should not have to pay because the financial burden imposed by the reimbursement requirement essentially operated as an illegal non-competition agreement requiring the employee to continue working for the employer for at least two years.

It is surprising that the court sided with the employer. Louisiana courts have long disfavored non-competition agreements, and they are illegal unless they strictly conform to statutory standards. And in the past the Louisiana supreme Court has rejected a non-competition agreement that required the employee to pay liquidated damages if the employee accepted employment with a competing business.

But even against that legal backdrop, the court rejected the employee’s argument that the financial burden imposed by the reimbursement requirement was tantamount to a non-competition agreement. A key factor in reaching its decision was the fact that the primary purpose of the liquidated damages provision was for the company to recoup the investment that it made in its employee, not necessarily to

discourage competition. The employee was free to compete provided he pay for his training.

The court thus distinguished liquidated damages provisions designed to enforce a non-competition obligation (which would be illegal) and liquidated damage provisions that might have the incidental effect of discouraging competition by requiring reimbursement of training costs. While it is too soon to tell the full significance of this one decision moving forward, it certainly suggests that these “reimbursement clauses” might provide a powerful disincentive for employees to compete without being subject to the rigid statutory requirements that apply to traditional non-competition agreements.

Update on New “White Collar” Exemption Overtime Rule

In the last issue, we reported on the u.s. Department of Labor’s pending changes to the regulations governing the “white collar” exemptions under the Fair labor standards Act. The new regulation will now issue in May or June and be effective 30-90 days after publication.

Drew Burnside, a shareholder, represents employers through the New Orleans office of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C.drew.burnside@ogletreedeakins.com or (504) 648-2609

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The elmwood Business Association Newsletter is published quarterly by the elmwood Business Association. The views expressed herein do not necessarily reflect the views of the elmwood Business Association or its Board of Directors. Any official positions taken by the Association will be specifically identified as such.

Articles, letters to the editor, news releases, and ads are welcome. send copy to: The elmwood Business Newsletter, P.O. Box 23642, elmwood, LA 70183, or email elmwoodba@gmail.com or call the eBA office at (504) 733-8900.

For more information about the elmwood Business Association or to become a member, please visit our website at www.elmwoodba.org.

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e BA 2 0 1 5 - 2 0 1 6 B oA r d of dI r e C tor sDoNNA CASADABAN LoWePresident

Harry Kelleher & Co., Inc.5720 salmen Ave., 70123504.828.0400dlowe@hkelleher.com

JAmeS “BuCk” PeCoTSecretary

Cort Furniture5035 Bloomfield st., 70121504.733.8381James.pecot@cort.com

geoFF ARTIgueSTreasurer

Home Bank5700 Citrus Blvd., 70123504.736.5140Geoff.artigues@home24bank.com

keNNy BeRTuCCIGovernment Committee Co-Chair

Bertucci & Labiche1321 Hickory Ave., suite 100New Orleans, LA 70123504.733.3933Kenny.bertucci@lpl.com

AL gARDeSProgram Committee Co-Chair

elmwood Self Storage & Wine Cellar1004 s. Clearview, 70123504.737.7676agardes@lauricellaland.com

CHRISTIAN RooNeyGovernment Committee Co-Chair

Priority Floors5403 Powell street, 70123504.733.8188christian.rooney@priorityfloors.com

CINDy HARTMembership/Marketing Committee Co-Chair

1st Lake Properties/Clearwater Creek826 s Clearview Pkwy., 70123504.734.0074cindyh@1st-lake.com

moNIque DANAHAyProgram Committee Co-Chair

Crescent Transport, Inc.P.O. Box 10681New Orleans, LA 70181504.733.3737monique@crescenttransport.com

kAReN DuFFyMembership/Marketing Committee Co-Chair

First NBC Bank1105 s. Clearview Pkwy.Jefferson, LA 70121504.671.3518KDuffy@FirstNBCBank.com

NICoLe RoBeRTSExecutive Director

elmwood Business AssociationP.O. Box 23642elmwood, LA 70183504.733.8900elmwoodba@gmail.com

JImmy BAumEx-officio/JEDCO Liaison

Home Bank5700 Citrus Blvd., suite KHarahan, LA 70123504.736.5140jimmy.baum@home24bank.com