Westport’s Richard J. Harrington will step down as president and chief executive officer of Stamford-based Thomson Corp. following today’s agreement on terms for a merger of Thomson Corp. with Reuters Group PLC.
Richard J. Harrington: his company once owned Westport News. Thomson Corp. photo

‘‘For Thomson, it is a defining moment in our journey to become the information provider of choice for the world’s business and professional markets,’’ said Harrington, 60, following announcement of agreement of the mega deal involving two of the world’s leaders in the information business. He will step down when the merger is completed.

The cash and stock transaction values Reuters at $17.2 billion. Holders of each Reuters share will be paid $6.99 in cash and 0.16 Thomson-Reuters PLC shares.

Thomson would control about 70 percent of the shares in the new company, Thomson-Reuters PLC. The combine will be headed by Tom Glocer, 47, who is now chief executive of Reuters.

The chairman and chief executive officer of Westport-based Terex Corp., Ronald M. DeFeo, said today the company was honored to be listed as the No. 4 best performing company on the 2007 Barron’s 500 survey.
Ronald DeFeo: “Best is yet to come.” File photo

“All of us at Terex are honored to receive this recognition because it reflects the many years of dedicated work by our team members worldwide as well as the confidence shown in us by our customers and our investors,” DeFeo said in a statement.

“While we have grown into one of the world’s preeminent construction, mining and infrastructure equipment manufacturers, we continue to view Terex as a young company with significantly more potential in front of us than past successes behind us.”

DeFeo added: “We have successfully taken disparate product lines and weaved them into a well-rounded product portfolio. There is, however, more work to be done in this process and, as we have said before, the best is yet to come.

TD Banknorth said Friday it will close one of its four branches in Westport, once part of the old Westport Bank & Trust Co., as part of a restructuring plan that will shutter 24 branches and cut 400 positions.

There was no official word on which Westport office will close, but a bank source said it would be the one at 420 Post Road West. The other branches are located at 90 Post Road East, 1111 Post Road East, and 50 Charles St.

Customers will be notified of specific branch closings in mid-April, with most offices tentatively scheduled to be closed during the third quarter, the company said.

The four Connecticut branches to be closed employ a total of 14 people, a company spokeswoman said. The employees, who were given the news Thursday, will be reassigned to other branches where possible.

HSBC recently opened a new branch in downtown Westport, and it’s one of many new banks that are opening in town recently. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow/WestportNow File
By Jennifer Connic

If Westporters think there are a lot of banks coming to town, they’re not off in their thinking.

Westport already has 26 banks that either exist or have received approval, said Planning and Zoning Director Laurence Bradley, and there is the potential for a total of 30 based on the proposals that have not received necessary approvals yet.

Based on a map available in the Planning and Zoning Department, 10 of the banks are located downtown.

Barbara Sweet, Westport Weston Chamber of Commerce executive director, said the number of banks in Westport is a good sign for the economy.

It will be shopping as usual at Westport’s Super Stop & Shop and company supermarkets throughout the region following approval today of a new contract by workers.

Union locals representing 43,000 Stop & Shop supermarket workers in southern New England, including about 5,000 in Connecticut, voted to approve a new three-year contract, averting a threatened strike that would have hit consumers in Massachusetts, Connecticut and Rhode Island.

The Quincy, Mass.-based grocery chain and the United Food and Commercial Workers went into protracted negotiations to resolve differences over health care contributions, pensions and wages.

Stop & Shop’s “goal during the negotiating process was to reach agreements with competitive terms that will allow us to remain the leading supermarket in the marketplace,” the grocery chain said in a statement. “We believe these new contracts meet our goal and provide significantly improved wages and benefits.”

An HSBC bank branch has opened at 19 Post Road East in the one-time Westport Public Library building that now also houses Starbucks. Another HSBC branch is scheduled to open soon at 1050 Post Road East, current home of Swanky Frank’s. There are about two dozen bank branches in Westport with an additional six in the planning stages, according to town officials. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Workers at Westport’s Super Stop & Shop awaited word today on whether their union would call a strike against the grocery chain.

Reports said the sides edged closed to an agreement Wednesday on providing ‘‘affordable, quality health insurance’’ for union members.

‘‘We’re not going to get into any specifics, but we are moving in a direction that is positive,’’ said James Riley, secretary-treasurer of Local 328 of the United Food and Commercial Workers International Union.

About 5,000 Connecticut workers are represented by Westport-based Local 371 of the United Food & Commercial Workers International Union.

Westport’s Wild Oats natural and organic food market at 399 Post Road West may soon become a Whole Foods market.
Westport’s Wild Oats store at 399 Post Road West may soon become a Whole Foods store. (CLICK TO ENLARGE) Dave Matlow for WestportNow.com

Under a deal announced Wednesday, Whole Foods Market Inc., a much larger chain, will pay $565 million for Wild Oats Markets Inc.

Whole Foods said it will pay $18.50 per share in cash for Wild Oats and assume the rival’s debt, reported to be $106 million as of Sept. 30.

Wild Oats has annual sales of $1.2 billion and operates 110 stores in 24 states and British Columbia, Canada. West Hartford is its only other Connecticut location.

Whole Foods has annual sales of $5.6 billion with 193 stores in North America and the United Kingdon, including Greenwich and West Hartford in Connecticut.

Westport’s Terex Corp will join the Standard and Poor’s 500 Index, it was announced today.

The change will be effective after Tuesday’s close of trading.

Terex, a manufacturer of construction, road-building and mining equipment, will replace Navistar International Corp. whose common stock is scheduled to be delisted by the New York Stock Exchange prior to the open of trading on Wednesday.

Headquartered at the Nyala Farms Corporate Center on Greens Farms Road, Terex will be added to the S&P 500 GICS (Global Industry Classification Standard) Construction & Farm Machinery & Heavy Trucks Sub-Industry index.

Tom Riordan: joins Terex from SPX Corp. File photoWestport’s Terex Corp., which makes construction, road-building and mining equipment, today named Tom Riordan to the newly created position of president and chief operating officer, effective Jan. 1.

Riordan, 50, previously served as executive vice president and chief operating officer at Charlotte, N.C.-based SPX Corp.

He will report to Chairman and Chief Executive Ronald M. DeFeo.