Joey McLaughlin talks about this week’s big baseness stories with the Springfield Business Journals’ Michelle Ownbey.

David Hilst recently sold his La-Z-Boy Home Furnishings & Décor stores to the corporate parent company, but he has hired eight of the former employees to launch a new business, Vyper Transportation.

Brezie’s Roasted Beans is a new addition to the Springfield area’s growing coffee scene, but it also offers breakfast and lunch options plus activities for kids.

An iconic Springfield restaurant is for sale, but the owner says she has no plans to close before a new owner takes over.

Tourism attractions that commemorate Springfield’s links to Historic Route 66 and Black history, as well as a mix of new residential sites, all accessible by improved sidewalks and some areas closed off to traffic, are part of a master plan for a three-mile section of Ninth Street and Peoria Road.