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GAY SAN DIEGO October 8-October 21, 2010


FROM PAGE 19 CHICAGO


and bask in the sights. Shops and boutique stores tug at your wallet. From Hugo Boss and Kenneth Cole to Niketown or The Water Tower, you are in good hands here. We were just tripping down the street and stopped for a light only to notice we were standing there with Rod Stewart. Two things: Rod is really short, and do not forget to moisturize, moisturize, moisturize. Looking a little haggard there, Rod. A couple of suggestions for things to check out during a quick visit: grab an elevator and take the ride up the John Hancock Center to the luminous Signature Room. Whether for a meal or just for cock- tails, this milestone of engineering stands over 1,000 feet up, putting you at the daunting 95th floor (don’t look down unless you can


handle it). You can see four states spanning over 80 miles across the horizon. You want a view of the town, you got it. Want to see the city from its ground floor, take an architectural tour down the Chicago River, and yes they still dye it green for St. Patrick’s Day. Here you will float by museums, buildings to be revered and all that makes Chicago a beauty to behold. Make sure you hit the Tribune


Tower while you’re there. Pieces of the Sphinx, The Alamo, The Par- thenon and many other wonders of the world are cemented into the façade (ah, the old days of robber barons when you could just stick a piece of the Pyramid in your knap- sack and head on home.) As a city, Chicago couldn’t be


gayer. C’mon. the shopping on Michigan Avenue, the Broadway caliber theatre productions. What more could a refined gay man ask for? How about Boystown, especially Halsted Street (located


Impacting the bottom line with tax credits


By Joe Whitaker


Are you taking advantage of the tax credit programs avail- able to you? Many small businesses (and some large businesses) have realized that managing and reaping the benefits of tax credits can make the difference in these tough economic times. Not all of these programs are new. Some of them are established and have been used since 2006. For example, enterprise zones were created in California to


stimulate business investments and to increase job opportuni- ties in areas of high unemployment. An enterprise zone is a geographically designated area in which businesses can receive substantial state tax breaks and other benefits. The San Diego Regional Enterprise Zone was established


in 2006. The “One Zone” is a regional economic development program incorporating portions of San Diego, Chula Vista and National City.


An investment of $1.7 billion has been made in the San Diego-area enterprise zones. More than 20,000 jobs have been generated and thousands of qualified businesses have received technical or financial assistance from it.


Included under this program are: Sales or use tax credit: A tax credit against the purchase of new manufacturing, assembly, data processing or communica- tions equipment equivalent to the amount of sales or use tax, or up to $1.55 million annually.


Hiring credit:


A tax credit on the wages to qualified new employees over a five-year period (up to 50 percent in the first year, 40 percent in the second year, etc.). This credit could exceed $37,000 per employee and is retroactive to late 2006.


Accelerated depreciation deduction: This is an option to accelerate depreciation on business


property. A business may treat 40 percent of the cost of quali- fied property as a business expense in the first year it is placed into service, or a maximum deduction of $20,000 per year, whichever is smaller. Net interest deduction for lenders:


This component allows lenders a deduction on the net interest earned from loans made to enterprise zone businesses, including business loans, mortgages and loans from noncom- mercial sources.


Other advantages include: • No-cost job referral service used to find qualified employees whose wages can be claimed as tax credits


• Development permit expediting and assistance • Tax savings for enterprise zone employees • Access to specialized technical and financial assistance pro- grams.


• You may be eligible for one or more of these programs. Call me for assistance.


Joe Whitaker operates H.R. Tactics, a full-service human re- source consulting firm in Mission Hills, providing a broad range of human resource support, products and solutions for small to mid-sized companies with fees designed to put affordable human resources in reach. He can be contacted at 804-4551 or e-mail at hrtactics@cox.net.


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TRAVEL/NEWS


in the East Lakeview area)? Forget refined, let’s have us some fun. A must stop is the legendary Sidetrack bar (3349 N. Halsted). A staple in Boystown for over 30 years, Sidetrack is arguably Chi- cago’s premier video bar. Sporting seven rooms and a cool rooftop beer garden, Sidetrack will satiate whatever itch you may have. Danc- ing, cocktails and boys, boys, boyz! We all know that after a few drinks food is a necessity. Thank goodness Las Mañanitas (3523 N. Halsted) is just a stumble away. It has the usual Mexi- can food assortment to fill the tummy for round two at the bars. They also have killer margaritas (wait, I thought we were here for the food?). Need a gay-friendly place


to stay? Chicago holds many a venue to accommodate, but our shout out goes to the Kimpton hotel group. They have four loca- tions downtown to pamper you in luxury: Hotel Burnham, 1 West Washington; Hotel Palomar, 505 N. State Street; Hotel Monaco, 225 N. Wabash Ave; and Hotel Allegro, 171 W. Randolph. Not only are they gay friendly but also pet friendly (you know how we are) and all offer a free wine happy hour to start the night off. The beds are like clouds and the pillows are like rainbows (no pun intended). Plus the staff and service are always spot-on. All locations also feature great in-house restaurants in case you need to just stay at “home” for the night, or to have a bite before your disco nap. You’re gonna need it in this town. Plan on sleeping on the plane so you won’t miss a thing on the ground. My kind of town, Chicago.


Enjoy! FROM PAGE 18 SUICIDES


“All that said, I’m also aware that the school system is in the midst of their worst budget crisis in decades and that people who can are going to have to step up to provide some resources for some interven- tions.”


Rudy Parra, a district counselor with San Diego Unified’s Race, Human Rela- tions and Advocacy depart- ment, said district employees currently receive training through the regional office of the Anti-Defamation League on cyber-bulling and other harassment issues. “I think they’re the premiere


organization right now in the nation dealing with cyber-bully- ing,” Parra said. “We’re trying to teach (staff) how easy it is for kids to do cyber-bullying. There’s not a lot that the school can do, that’s the sad thing, because of the jurisdictions, because of the policies and the free speech (issues).” Parra said there have been no incidences of antigay bulling reported to the district this year, though he said he could not be certain exactly how much antigay bullying occurs because it is usually dealt with on campus.


“I’m not saying that it


doesn’t exist,” he said. “I’m sure it does, but then the schools deal with it individually. ... I don’t know when (it would become) an issue for our office, unless the counselors feel that they don’t know how to deal with it or they don’t have any


Retired Naval Officer Bill Kowba told GSD that “don’t ask, don’t tell” is “a policy that is outdated.” Of same-sex marriage he said “differ- ent family settings can work. Far be it from me to throw stones at anybody.”


www.gay-sd.com


experience. We’ve had calls where they ask for references. We always forward information on where the next seminars are going to be.” Parra said the district


has no record of how many schools have gay-straight al- liances, though he said there could be fewer this year due to budget cuts.


Jacobs said she has heard


a similar concern that some GSA’s may have gone by the wayside due to budget cuts. “It’s one of the things we’re


going to be exploring,” she said. To read GLSEN’s full cli- mate survey, visit glsen.org.


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