Parking Available At Arbitron

If you're looking for a parking spot near the park and ride in Owen Brown, you might try Arbitron. The Baltimore Sun reported Wednesday that the media research firm, now headquartered in Columbia is cutting jobs by 10 percent.

In a phone interview, company spokesman Thom Mocarsky said Arbitron is cutting 110 jobs, 80 of which are in the Baltimore area.

"It's the economy," Mocarsky said. "It's the changing marketplace. It's the need to re-evaluate and refocus the company." [Baltimore Sun]

787 of Arbitron's full-time employees, along with 269 part-time employees work in Columbia, 71 percent and 51 percent of employee totals respectively. According to the Securities & Exchange Commission, the jobs cuts are expected to save Arbitron $10 million in 2010. Arbitron will incur $8 million to $9 million in pre-tax expenses before the end of the first quarter, mostly related to benefits and severance packages pertaining to layoffs.