Local BBQ named nation's best

Allen & Son barbecue restaurant in Chapel Hill has been cited by Esquire magazine in its March 2008 issue as offering the best chopped-pork sandwich in the United States.

The restaurant, which has been open since 1970, was cited in a 14-page special feature called "Encyclopedia of Sandwiches: The Best Sandwiches in America."

Allen & Son is on N.C. 86, about a mile north of Interstate 40, at Millhouse Road.

Panel will feature business women

A panel of business women from Panera, Sugarland and Bon's Home Cookin' will discuss doing business in downtown Chapel Hill at the monthly meeting of the Friends of Downtown, Thursday at 10 a.m. on the second floor of the Franklin Hotel.

The panelists will talk about their experiences, challenges and opportunities, and will take questions.

The Friends of the Downtown holds its regular meetings on the last Thursday of each month with speakers sharing knowledge on many aspects of downtown Chapel Hill. Meetings are open to the public.

Job fair set for high school students

The Foundation for a Sustainable Community will host a job fair for Chapel Hill, East Chapel Hill and Carrboro high schools on April 22 from 9:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.

The event is sponsored by Blue Cross Blue Shield of NC; Wal-Mart, Hillsborough and New Hope Commons; and PTA Thrift Shop.

The job fair is designed to help high school students find employment. A recent survey of all local high school students indicated that there are about 275 students interested in finding employment. Most are interested in part-time employment.

Employers who are seeking new staff are encouraged to participate in this event.

For information, call 967-7075, ext. 28, or e-mail kpfirrmann@sustainablefoundation.org.

Women in Business conference this week

The third annual Duke-UNC Women in Business Conference will be held Tuesday and Wednesday at the Fuqua School of Business at Duke.

The Carolina Women in Business (from UNC's Kenan-Flagler Business School) and the Association of Women in Business (from the Fuqua School) will host the conference.

The theme of the conference is "Game Changers of the 21st Century."

The keynote speakers will be Ping Fu, president and CEO of Geomagic and Inc. magazine's Entrepreneur of the Year, and Kellie McElhaney, executive director and adjunct assistant professor at the Center for Responsible Business, Haas School of Business at the University of California, Berkeley.

Conference panels will focus on entrepreneurship, corporate social responsibility, innovation and leadership.

In addition to all students and alumna of Kenan-Flagler and Duke's Fuqua School of Business, the conference is open to the general public.

For information or to register, see http://mbaa.fuqua.duke.edu/awib/conference.html.

State of Economy meeting scheduled

The Orange County Economic Development Commission will host its annual State of the Local Economy breakfast April 9 at The Carolina Club on the UNC campus. For information, call 245-2325.

Deadline nears for tourism grants

The Hillsborough Tourism Board is accepting applications for one-year grants to provide funding for tourism facilities, programs and services. All applications must be received by April 1 at 3 p.m.

The Tourism Board will award grants for applications for historic facilities and resources; events; marketing and promotion and capital improvements. The popular Last Fridays downtown arts and crafts events that take place on the last Friday of each month was started by one of these grants.

Grant applications are available on the town's Web site at www.ci.hillsborough.nc.us, or in the town clerk's office on the Town Hall campus at 101 East Orange Street. Applications are also available in the office of the Alliance for Historic Hillsborough in the Alexander Dickson House at 150 East King Street.

Occupancy tax will increase

The Orange County accommodation occupancy tax will rise from 2 to 3 percent effective July 1. The increase is the first since 1997.

The new rate means visitors staying at lodging properties in the Chapel Hill town limits will pay a 6 percent occupancy tax, while those outside of Chapel Hill, but still in Orange County, will pay a 3 percent occupancy tax.

The increased revenue, approximately $250,000, will bring the Chapel Hill/Orange County Visitors Bureau budget to $900,000. Money earned from the tax will be used for the Visitors Bureau's marketing campaigns, including an increased push on historic tourism.

Strowd Roses awards grants

The Strowd Roses Foundation announced the distribution of $106,050 in grants for the first quarter of 2008 to the following organizations: Chapel Hill-Carrboro Public School Foundation, Choreo Collective, Compassionate Passages, EmPOWERment, Hickory Grove Missionary Baptist Church Camp, Hidden Voices, Mallarme Youth Chamber Orchestra, Orange Community Housing & Land Trust, Student Action with Farmworkers, TABLE Ministries, Triangle Youth Ballet, UNC Campus Y, UNC School of Nursing, and Jackie Helvey (UniqueOrn Enterprises).

Funding is limited to projects operated in, or primarily to benefit residents of, the Chapel Hill and Carrboro communities.