🏷️Dandy of a sale for Tandy Leather; Cards owner bids well for flight space; Noakes leaving; Powell, Black's arriving.

Fort Worth-based Tandy Leather Factory has an agreement to sell its corporate headquarters, including its primary distribution center and flagship store. The $26.5-million cash deal involves the company's subsidiary, The Leather Factory, and Colonna Brothers. The sale is projected to be finalized in January, and Tandy Leather plans to lease back the space until September.

Fort Worth City Council members voted, 9-1, to hire Jay Chapa to replace David Cooke as City Manager. Jared Williams did not vote and Chris Nettles voted against the hire of the former Deputy City Manager, who will start Jan. 25. Chapa will be the city’s first Hispanic City Manager and spent seven years working with Cooke. He will earn $435,000, plus a $600 monthly car stipend, Fort Worth Club membership, industry association memberships and more.

"It was always Fort Worth or nowhere": Fort Worth Chief of Police Neil Noakes announced plans to retire next May after 25 years and more than four leading the department.

United Way of Tarrant County has hired Adam Powell as its new President and CEO, effective January 13. He replaces Leah King. Powell, a seasoned non-profit executive, is recognized for his strategic leadership and ability to drive community impact. Powell most recently was with Communities in Schools of the Dallas Region. He began his non-profit career in 2007 as a resident assistant at Arlington’s Life Shelter. 

A U.S. judge blocked the $25-billion merger of Kroger and Albertsons, siding with the U.S. Federal Trade Commission that the deal would limit competition and harm customers. The merger, announced in 2022, sought to combine the 5th and 10th largest retailers in the country.

The New York Stock Exchange has started proceedings to delist the common stock of The Container Store Group. Trading in the common stock was suspended immediately. The Container Store has an offer from Bed, Bath & Beyond's owners, but it is contingent on The Container Store finding other funding by the end of January.

Football Arizona Cardinals owner Michael Bidwell is bringing his version of gridiron to Texas, according to the Dallas Business Journal. Gridiron Air LLC is expanding and launching maintenance operations at Perot Field Fort Worth Alliance Airport, after the company secured certification from the FAA. A supplemental certification means Gridiron doesn't have scheduled flights or sell individual seats, but rather charters the entire airplane, often to pro and college sports teams.

Fort Worth-based IntegerHealth Technologies has been granted a patent for its "Healthcare Occupational Outcomes Navigation Engine," a platform that measures the cost and quality of a patient's outcome into a single, actionable dollar value. Dr. Jack McCallum is the CEO.

Six Flags received a bull rating from Jefferies amid a valuation that is ''easy on the eyes." It initiated coverage on Six Flags Entertainment Corporation (NYSE: FUN) with a buy rating.

Grapevine video game retailer GameStop missed Wall Street’s third-quarter revenue expectations, with sales falling 20.2% year over year to $860.3 million. Its non-GAAP profit of $0.06 per share was above analysts’ consensus estimates. The stock was down 18 cents after hours. 

Southlake-based Sabre expanded its partnership with Thai Airways to include Fares Manager and Fares Optimizer solutions. It is expected to boost Thai Airways’ pricing capabilities and unlock revenue opportunities.

Fort Worth Metropolitan Black Chamber hosts movie people interested in doing a musical about the life of Opal Lee, leader of the movement to make Juneteenth (June 19) a national holiday. 

Elected Texas officials will face criminal charges or fines if they fail to disclose properties they own or rent to tenants. All property holdings must be on their annual personal finance statements, according to a rule passed by the Texas Ethics Commission.

This week, Texans able to escape city lights and smog will be able to witness the Geminids meteor shower, known as one of the largest and most dependable meteor showers in the world for centuries. It will be most visible on the night between Dec. 13-14 as the Earth makes its yearly trip through this space debris trail.

The U.S. Supreme Court appears inclined to limit the extent to which federal agencies must review the environmental impact of projects they regulate in a dispute over a proposed railway in Utah meant to carry crude oil that was challenged by environmental groups and a Colorado county.

Snippets:

• After delays, Roanoke ends Peabody Hotel partnership and unveils new construction plans. 

• Budget airline Avelo will expand to D-FW International Airport in March with two direct flights per week to and from New Haven, Ct.

• Thieves part of ring that stole $400,000 in Lego sets caught in Tarrant County.

Significant stats: Hillwood's AllianceTexas development has 58 million square feet of office, retail and industrial space within its 27,000 acres. It is home for 574 companies that are responsible for 66,198 direct jobs. It has generated an estimated $120 billion in cumulative economic impact, including $9.8 billion in 2023.

U.S. gas prices, averaging $2.98 per gallon, are at their lowest since 2021. The average American works just 5.4 minutes to afford a gallon, the lowest since 2015, outside of the pandemic.

America’s small-business optimism is surging post-election. The NFIB Small Business Optimism Index rose to 101.7 in November, surpassing its 50-year average for the first time in 34 months, driven by improved economic certainty following the election.

Small business development in the U.S. had been declining for 40 years before the pandemic hit. Since 2020, small businesses have been driving most of the nation’s job growth. But what constitutes “small”? And how many of these businesses are there? Small businesses (less than 500 employees per SBA) account for 99.9% of businesses nationwide. As of July, the U.S. had 34.8 million small businesses employing 59 million people and driving 61.1% of job growth since 1995.

Announcements:

• JTaylor: Promotes Catherine Rude to Partner. 

• Standard Meat Company: Hires Jill Hunter as Senior Director of Sales Operations. 

• Fort Worth: Hires Sonny Saxton as Director of Emergency Communications and Management.

• Amon Carter Museum of American Art: Selects artists Kristin Boyer, LaShonda Cooks, Dizzy Orbit, and Javier Sandoval to assist in planning and leading museum and community experiences. 

• Workforce Solutions: Adds Colton McDonald, IT Operations Manager; Jermaine Williams and Peter Chantharaj, IT Support Specialists.

• City of Irving: Hires Saul Garza as Communications Manager.

• First Bank Texas: Names Jacqline Gabler as Senior Vice President, Director of Marketing.

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