Crain's Chicago Business articles from October 2006

Crain's Chicago Business archives from October 2006

At Deadline.(Late News)(Abbott Laboratories Inc.)(Board of Trade Clearing Corp.)(ServiceMaster Co.)
October 2, 2006... 303 E. Wacker on the block Jones Lang LaSalle has been hired to market 303 E. Wacker, says Thomas Danilek, a senior vice-president with Hines Interests, which co-owns the building. The 28-story structure could fetch more than $160 million,...

The Sun-Times feels the Ebert effect; Web traffic down 25% with critic on sick leave.(News)(Roger Ebert)
October 2, 2006... Byline: GREGORY MEYER The Chicago Sun-Times' Web site underwent an overhaul last week, but a redesign isn't likely to make up for the loss of the paper's star attraction: movie critic Roger Ebert. Mr. Ebert, who is recuperating from...

On the Move.(People)(Lenox Advisors Inc. - Bradley C. Snyder)(Harris Financial Corp. - Zachary D. Lazar Jr.)(Duff & Phelps LLC- Matthew Lusardi)
October 2, 2006... EDUCATION Northwestern University, Evanston: Rebecca Hoffman, 35, to vice-president for institutional advancement at the Family Institute, from director of development and corporate relations at the Institute of Design at the Illinois...

Corrections.(Correction notice)
October 2, 2006... UAL Corp. CEO Glenn Tilton's name was misspelled in a Sept. 25 story. Appliance maker LG Electronics was misidentified in a Sept. 25 story about Sears.

Leo Burnett tests life after Cadillac; Departure of key client hits Detroit office hard.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: BILL SHEA Crain News Service With the last of its $225-million Cadillac advertising work now ended, Leo Burnett Detroit is left to chart an uncertain future. The office, which lost the Cadillac account in June to Boston-based...

This Week: Chase finds buyer for 30-site portfolio.(Late News)(J. P. Morgan Chase)(Toronto's Brookfield Asset Management )(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Thomas A. Corfman In a giant sale-leaseback deal worth more than $450 million, a fund managed by Toronto's Brookfield Asset Management is buying a roughly 5.3-million-square-foot national real estate portfolio from J. P. Morgan...

Growth without killing corporate culture.(People)(David Montross- Equis Corp.)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Lorene Yue Job: CEO, Equis Corp., a commercial real estate advisory and management firm, since July. Vitals: 49 years old; bachelor's degree, Hamline University, 1979, and MBA, University of Chicago, 1984. Started as a systems...

Why do they give? What sister cities means for Boeing and United.(Focus: Finance)(Boeing Co. - Sarah Garvey)(United Air Lines Inc.- Michael Whitaker)(Discussion)
October 2, 2006... Byline: CHRISTINA LE BEAU Corporations provide more than half of the funding for Chicago's sister cities program. In return, they get promotional billing and meetings with foreign dignitaries and business leaders. Is it worth it? We ask...

Chicago: city of sisterly love; It's more than pomp and circumstance.(Focus: Finance)
October 2, 2006... Byline: CHRISTINA LE BEAU Chicago's sister cities program started out as a chummy take on diplomacy, using performing arts exhibitions and student exchanges to deepen understanding of other cultures. But for the last 15 years, it's been...

Conventions.(Calendar/Datebook)(Calendar)
October 2, 2006... THIS WEEK OCT. 3: National Assn. for College Admission Counseling-Chicago Performing and Visual Arts College Fair, Northwestern University, public. OCT. 3-6: Illinois Library Assn. Annual Conference, Navy Pier, estimated attendance...

Shoe man hopes for toehold in China; Rejected by U.S. giants, designer looks overseas.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: ROBERT LOERZEL Lenn Hann had a problem with running shoes. As he began training for marathons, he complained about shoes that weren't up to the job. One day in 1995, his brother dared him: "If you think you can design something...

Star Gazer.(The Business of Life)(Susan Wagner-Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Kevin Davis Susan Wagner, 41, vice-president of programs and exhibits, Adler Planetarium and Astronomy Museum Duties: "My job is to help us interpret the science and to hook the visitor so when they're looking at something they...

Working hard-on a baby; Fertility patients juggle lives always 'on call'.(The Business of Life)
October 2, 2006... Byline: SHIA KAPOS Timing is everything in treating infertility. And for professional couples, seizing the moment to conceive can be maddening. Blood tests, ultrasound exams and medical procedures don't adapt to busy work or travel...

Welcome, customers - but please go away soon.(The Business of Life)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Lisa Bertagnoli The time: 8:30 on a Saturday evening. The place: Cafe Bacci at 20 N. Michigan Ave., which closes at 9 p.m. The unappetizing scene: Employees mopping the floor and spraying glass display cases with cleaning solution...

Hospitals racing for edge in Lake; Rival systems map plans for growing western area.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: MIKE COLIAS Lake County has emerged as the latest battleground for health systems vying to build a hospital in the suburbs. Advocate Health Care executives have met with officials from Round Lake to discuss constructing a...

Kirkland rainmaker exported to N.Y. Bernick to bolster attorney ranks in East Coast outpost.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: STEVEN R. STRAHLER Kirkland & Ellis LLP has dispatched top litigation partner David Bernick to New York on a mission to burnish and expand its 240-lawyer office there. Chicago-based Kirkland wants to raise its East Coast...

Moscow, Russia; Does Chicago play in Red Square? Da, sister.(Focus: Finance)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Christina Le Beau In April, when Kemer Borisovich Norkin, an adviser to Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, attended a conference at the University of Illinois at Chicago, he noticed the sprawl of buildings at Chicago Technology Park near...

Shanghai, China; And don't forget Shenyang, either.(Focus: Finance)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Christina Le Beau In March, UAL Corp. CEO Glenn Tilton was wooing Shanghai Airlines Co. to join the Star Alliance, which lets passengers travel seamlessly on 18 different airlines. Mr. Tilton gave Shanghai Airlines Chairman...

Chairman's lead role: stepping up diversity.(The Business of Life)(Lester N. Coney- Goodman Theatre )(Interview)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Mary Cameron Frey The Goodman Theatre was founded in 1925 as a gift to the Art Institute of Chicago, given in honor of playwright Kenneth Sawyer Goodman by his family. In 1977, it became a freestanding not-for-profit theater that...

Is it necessary to donate to every charitable request by co-workers?(The Business of Life)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Darci Smith Don't feel obliged to give to a cause you don't support, but do consider how a donation will add to your "reservoir of goodwill'' with co-workers, says Jackie Sloane, president of Sloane Communications Inc., a...

Natural gas costs plunge; Lower prices this winter mean big savings for local businesses.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: STEVE DANIELS Steel executive Bradley Corral can thank Mother Nature for a better outlook this fall. The vice-president of Chicago Heights Steel, a family-owned specialty mill, has seen his company's cost of natural gas-used to...

Mayor, take the wheel as CTA veers off course.(Opinion)(Chicago Transit Authority)
October 2, 2006... Mayor Richard M. Daley has a crisis on his hands at the Chicago Transit Authority. It's a crisis every bit as pressing as the one he faced a decade ago with the city's schools. If he doesn't move as decisively to address it, his legacy as...

Old Republic is old reliable for returns, dividend; old republic international corp. friday close: $22.15.(Markets)(Advisory Research)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Rachel Koning Beals The pick: Advisory Research began buying its 2.3 million shares of Old Republic a year ago, paying an average of $20 to $21 each. Mr. O'Brien holds stocks for an average of four years. He's buying shares at...

Boeing targets benefits; Battling with UAW over right to make health plan changes.(News)(United Auto Workers)(Boeing Co.)
October 2, 2006... Byline: PAUL MERRION Boeing Co. and the United Auto Workers are fighting over the company's right to make changes in a health plan for retirees of its Rotorcraft helicopter division in Pennsylvania. But first, they must battle in...

Investment watcher.(The Business of Life)(Chief Executive Officer's choices)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Dan Weissmann Leandra Knes Johnson, 50, is president and CEO of PPM America Inc., which manages more than $70 billion in investments. She leaves magazines off her reading list entirely, favoring newspapers and newsletters with...

Wine, dine: Pairings made easy at Bin 36; Just-right accents-plus a special lunchtime perk.(The Business of Life)(Restaurant review)
October 2, 2006... Byline: LAURA BIANCHI Nearly seven years after wedging into what seems like a sliver of space across from the House of Blues, Bin 36 continues to attract a sizable business clientele with its wine-friendly attitude, upscale ambience and...

Galway, Ireland; A long history and ever-deepening ties.(Focus: Finance)(Galway committee for Chicago Sister Cities)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Christina Le Beau The Irish have given plenty to Chicago-and not just the Daley family or the pubs all over town. Chicago's early years coincided with the wave of Irish immigrants who fled famine to work in Chicago's stockyards and...

Vibes Media taps into teen obsessions; Game tests users' dating acumen via text messages.(News)(new game on Virgin Mobile)
October 2, 2006... Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON Two teen obsessions, dating and text messaging, are at the heart of a new promotional game created by Chicago's Vibes Media for Virgin Mobile USA, a cellular operator with a youthful following. The "Back-2-School...

For The Record.(Briefs)(Harris bank)(Chicago Board Options Exchange)
October 2, 2006... Harris is making its first major acquisition outside the Chicago area with a $290-million deal to buy privately held First National Bank & Trust. Kokomo, Ind.-based First National has 32 branches and $1.3 billion in assets. The branches will be...

McD's raises dividend amid threat.(Briefs)(McDonald's market share)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... McDonald's raised its annual dividend 49% to $1 a share and boosted the amount of money it plans to return to shareholders in dividends and stock buybacks to at least $10 billion through 2008 from a previously stated level of about $5 billion...

Is this charity? AG, hospitals debate; At issue: whether 5K runs, heart screenings fit the 'free care' bill.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: MIKE COLIAS Loyola University Medical Center spent nearly $50,000 last year on free cancer and heart-disease screenings for 1,200 people at its Maywood campus. To the industry, it shows how non-profit hospitals like Loyola earn...

PRECIOUS CARGO: FLYING BOXES PAYS MORE THAN FLYING PEOPLE; 'Freight dogs' become top dogs as salaries, job security beat glamour of flying for airlines.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON The thought of abandoning a pilot's career at United Airlines was so traumatic for Larry Ashby that he shed 12 pounds in two weeks, fretting over the decision to join United Parcel Service Inc. In the past,...

The Sisterhood.(Focus: Finance)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Sources: Chicago Sister Cities International Program Inc., City of Chicago Chicago has 25 sister cities. Here's when they were founded and how we've leaned on each other: Accra, Ghana (1989) After Chicago sister cities...

Dems keep powder dry; Nat'l GOP spends bigger in race for Hyde's old seat.(News)(Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee)
October 2, 2006... Byline: PAUL MERRION Despite a lopsided onslaught of GOP attack ads, the race for the seat of retiring U.S. Rep. Henry Hyde, R-Wood Dale, remains as tight as ever, suggesting Democrats have a shot at winning the west suburban Republican...

NY'S KIND OF TOWN; $550-mil. Citadel Center buy would be Big Applers' latest bite of Loop.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: THOMAS A. CORFMAN A private investor from New York is close to a deal to acquire the Citadel Center office building for $550 million, joining a growing number of Manhattan real estate entrepreneurs targeting the Loop for deals. ...

Builders Bank sues over loan losses; Suit alleges sham leases inflated collateral.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: STEVE DANIELS Chicago's Builders Bank, which suffered a $4.5-million loss in 2002 on a pile of bad commercial real estate loans, is suing a group of south suburban developers for fraud in connection with those losses. Builders,...

Datebook.(Calendar/Datebook)(Calendar)
October 2, 2006... THIS WEEK OCT. 2: Career Resource Center Inc. presents Resume Preparation and Presentation. 10:15 a.m. Career Resource Center, Grove Cultural Campus, 40 E. Old Mill Road, Suite 105, Lake Forest. Fee: $40. (847) 295-5626. OCT. 3: Score...

Candidates should use TV time to air issues, not hide behind ads.(Opinion)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Cynthia Canary This fall's elections have become the most hotly contested in years, with control of Congress, and many statehouses, hanging in the balance. Predictably, television will get blamed-and in some cases, justifiably...

A Mixed Message; If 'Nobody Doesn't Like Sara Lee', then why aren't executives buying stock?(Markets)
October 2, 2006... Byline: JULIE JARGON Some Sara Lee Corp. shareholders are wondering why they should invest in the company when its top executives aren't. Brenda Barnes bought 20,000 shares, or 4% of her roughly 500,000-share total, when she was named...

Metal Mgt. back in the scrap yard; Out of bankruptcy, into new acquisitions.(News)
October 2, 2006... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Metal Management Inc., a scrap dealer that built itself into a national powerhouse via acquisitions in the late 1990s, then got overextended and fell into bankruptcy, is back doing deals again. In May,...

Crain's announces three staff promotions.(News)(promotions)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Todd J. Behme has been named deputy online editor for Crain's Web site, ChicagoBusiness.com. Mr. Behme, 39, has been a copy editor at Crain's for the past two years. A graduate of Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, Mr. Behme...

Restaurant biz pares itself down; Cafe Concepts shrinks from 10 outlets to two.(News)(Cafe Concepts)(Company overview)
October 2, 2006... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY After an aggressive expansion around Chicago, the owner of Pronto Roma and several other Italian-themed restaurants is now pulling back. Five years ago, Westmont-based Cafe Concepts & Management Inc. owned 10...

Looking for Mr. Goodcents? Sandwich chain seeks place in a stuffed market.(News)(Mr. Goodcents Subs & Pastas)(Company overview)
October 2, 2006... Byline: JOHN T. SLANIA Do Chicagoans have the appetite for another sandwich chain? Joe Bisogno is betting they do. He's bringing his Mr. Goodcents Subs & Pastas franchise, a regional favorite west of the Mississippi River, to the...

Tony's tale; GOP NOMINEE FOR COUNTY BOARD PRESIDENT BRINGS INDEPENDENCE, HISTORY OF FEUDS.(News)(Tony Peraica)(Biography)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Greg Hinz "It's the law of the jungle,'' said Tony Peraica, turned sideways in the front seat as his driver headed to the next campaign stop. "When the dogs are barking, you have to bark louder or they'll bite you.'' Tony...

Jewel maps big rollout; Aiming at Dominick's, Wal-Mart with at least a dozen new stores.(News)(Supervalu Inc. making big plans)(Jewel food stores)
October 2, 2006... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY The new owner of Jewel food stores is revving up the chain's biggest Chicago-area expansion in decades, taking aim at archrival Dominick's Finer Foods LLC and shoring up defenses against Wal-Mart Stores Inc. ...

Smoother sisters; Cutting red tape from a sprawling city program.(Focus: Finance)(Chicago Sister Cities International Program Inc)(Interview)
October 2, 2006... Byline: CHRISTINA LE BEAU In the last 15 years, Chicago Sister Cities International Program Inc. (CSCIP) has gone from quaint culture-builder to official force. Today, it has a $1-million budget, 12 staffers, 900 volunteers and 24...

Need to Know.(Focus: Finance)(services of Chicago Sister Cities )(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... 500 - the number of foreign visitors Chicago's sister cities program hosted in 2005. 40 - The number of events Chicago's sister cities put on in 2005. 3,000 - The number of people who attended those events. Each sister city...

The econometrics of having sisters; What closer ties mean to a city's bottom line.(Focus: Finance)(Interview)
October 2, 2006... Byline: CHRISTINA LE BEAU Sister cities programs have long existed on the goodwill of mayors who liked playing cultural ambassador. But one organization, the Phoenix Sister Cities Commission in Arizona, released an economic impact study...

More than Goodwill.(Focus: Finance)(Brief article)
October 2, 2006... Byline: Source: Phoenix Sister Cities Commission Phoenix Sister Cities Commission studied how its programs generate money for the local economy. Here's a look at some of its findings: International visitors: Each year, 8,900 sister city...

Scandal might've been averted; First signs of misconduct should trigger inquiry.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: PAUL MERRION Whether or not U.S. House Speaker J. Dennis Hastert survives the House page scandal, corporate personnel experts say the situation wouldn't have become a crisis had Rep. Hastert and other Republican leaders properly...

Need to Know.(Focus: Small Business)(briefs: achievements and awards of band singers)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... 15: Number of Billboard Top 40 hits Chicago artist R. Kelly created in the 1990s, the most of any male artist during that decade. 18.3 million: Number of albums sold by The Smashing Pumpkins, who started in Chicago in 1988. 77: Number...

Correction.(Corrections)(Correction notice)
October 9, 2006... A Sept. 25 story incorrectly reported an analyst's estimated value of some Tribune Co. assets. WGN-AM and the Chicago Cubs together could be worth $500 million or more.

At Deadline.(Late News)(briefs: mergers, cases and rules to tighten congressional pages)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Park National snaps up Lisle bank Chicago's Park National Bank, owned by River Forest billionaire Michael Kelly, has a deal to buy United Community Bank of Lisle, confirms United CEO Jim McMahon. He wouldn't disclose the price but...

This Week: A buyer for Allerton, Holiday Inn on Ohio?(Late News)(Oxford Lodging buys Holiday Inn City Centre)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Alby Gallun San Francisco's Oxford Lodging is buying the 495-room Holiday Inn City Centre and is the likely buyer of the Mag Mile's 443-room Allerton Crowne Plaza, sources say. Oxford, which recently bought Inn of Chicago at 162 E....

Seeking to diversify funding sources.(People)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Lorene Yue Job: CEO, Abraham Lincoln Centre in Chicago, since Sept. 5. Vitals: 55 years old; bachelor's degree in management and business administration, Troy State University, Troy, Ala., 1985; master's degree in management,...

Storms disrupt ComEd move to hike rates.(Opinion)(Commonwealth Edison Co)
October 9, 2006... Commonwealth Edison Co. fired the first shot last week in a showdown with Michael Madigan over electric rates-right through its own foot. The utility's poor performance in restoring power after last week's storms played right into the...

At their fingertips: a changing skyline.(The Business of Life)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Kevin Davis When trade associations bring in big business and lots of visitors, the Chicago Convention and Tourism Bureau often thanks them with a memento of the city: "a nice piece of Chicago art,'' says Rose Horcher, managing...

Outstanding-or just odd? Office iconoclasts work their quirks: If they're brilliant, it's OK; some are simply strange.(The Business of Life)
October 9, 2006... Byline: LISA BERTAGNOLI You can choose your friends, but you can't necessarily choose your colleagues. That leaves those who consider themselves normal sometimes having to witness unusual behavior that ranges from odd-but-benign to...

House Hustler.(The Business of Life)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Kevin Davis Steven H. Baumann, 47, president and CEO, Westar Properties Inc., Oak Brook Duties: Oversees a real estate brokerage firm that specializes in auctions of residential and commercial properties that sell for...

Privately held GreatBanc puts itself on market; Company could fetch $200 mil., experts say.(News)(GreatBanc Inc hires Sandler O'Neill and Partners L.P. to handle its sales)
October 9, 2006... Byline: STEVE DANIELS GreatBanc Inc., one of the Chicago area's more obscure banks for its size, is for sale. The privately held company-parent of three separate banks in north suburban Skokie, northwest suburban Algonquin and south...

Pop Culture's Wacky Workers.(The Business of Life)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Movies, TV shows and cartoon strips have turned quirky workers into memorable characters. "The Office'' Boss David Brent (played by Ricky Gervais) is the oddball in this BBC TV series. Brent's bungles include disco dancing at an office...

Shareholder democracy finally in sight, if SEC does the right thing.(Opinion)(new regulations for stockholders)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Marc J. Lane Chicago attorney and corporate governance expert Marc J. Lane is president of Marc J. Lane Investment Management Inc. Corporate shareholders are poised to reclaim their authority over the boardroom. Within months,...

What would Olympics really bring Chicago? Backers see gold in the games, but to Crain's, it looks more like bronze: a $5-billion impact.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: GREGORY MEYER So what kind of economic lift would a 2016 Olympics give the Chicago area? City Hall pegs the benefit at $8 billion to $10 billion. Patrick G. Ryan, who's leading the Olympic bid committee, puts it at $6.5...

Dimon move is paying off for Chase; Acquisitions yield gains, but profitability still off.(News)(J.P. Morgan Chase and Co. (New York, New York))
October 9, 2006... Byline: TOM FREDRICKSON Crain News Service A year ago, J. P. Morgan Chase & Co. announced that Jamie Dimon would take over as CEO at the end of 2005, six months ahead of schedule. The effect was immediate. News of his promotion lit a...

Blue burbs; COMPETITIVE STATE SENATE RACES COULD EXPAND DEMOCRATS' NORTH SHORE BEACHHEAD.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Greg Hinz For more than a decade, the dynamic that truly has driven Illinois politics, at least in the all-powerful Chicago media market, is the steady conversion of once-solid Republican suburbs into baby-blue Democratic outposts....

What's a quick way to sense if a Web site is a legitimate resource or just propaganda?(The Business of Life)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Darci Smith Scroll around to determine if you've landed on a marketing site masquerading as research. Such sites may offer useful but biased information, says Frank Cervone, director of information technology for the Northwestern...

A tax swap of sorts; Biz rattled over guv's pick to lead property levy review panel.(Property Tax Appeals Board)
October 9, 2006... Byline: GREG HINZ To the irritation of much of Illinois' business community, the Blagojevich administration has installed a new, potentially hostile head of a state agency that business has come to depend on to try to keep its property...

Pol takes aim at hospitals; Suffredin seeking $200 million a year to fund county system.(News)(tax exemptions for hospitals on recommendations from local governments)
October 9, 2006... Byline: MIKE COLIAS AND GREG HINZ A Cook County commissioner wants to squeeze as much as $200 million a year from local hospitals to help fund the county's cash-starved health system. Commissioner Larry Suffredin says he'll introduce a...

DIVIDED ON CORUS; In tug of war between long-term investors and short-sellers, bank's earnings report will help determine who's right.(Markets)
October 9, 2006... Byline: STEVE DANIELS A 34% drop in Corus Bankshares Inc.'s stock over the past five months has been good news for some. For the better part of a year, short-sellers have accounted for more than half the outstanding shares of Corus'...

Navistar rolls into war zone; Bid to replace Humvee worth billions, but savvy competitor looms.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: BOB TITA Navistar International Corp. is going to war. Three years after entering the military truck business for the first time since World War II, the company has orders for 12,000 trucks worth about $1.5 billion over the...

Madigan wants new electric rate freeze.(Briefs)(new bill to freeze electric utilities rates)(Brief article)
October 9, 2006... House Speaker Michael Madigan wants a special session of the General Assembly to act on a bill to freeze Illinois electric rates until 2010. That would open the door to possibly overturning the recent state-supervised power auction that...

Conventions.(Calendar/Datebook)(Calendar)
October 9, 2006... THIS WEEK OCT. 10-11: Freightliner Regional Sales Tour, Crowne Plaza Chicago O'Hare, estimated attendance 125. OCT. 10-12: Midwest Roofing Contractors Assn., Renaissance Schaumburg Hotel and Convention Center, estimated attendance...

Pint-size profit potential; Northfield Laboratories' blood substitute on way to FDA review.(News)(Northfield Laboratories Inc to gain approval for blood substitute PolyHeme)
October 9, 2006... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY After 25 years of research and development, Northfield Laboratories Inc. appears to be on the last lap in its quest to gain approval for its blood substitute PolyHeme. The company completed a final nationwide test...

Tech, health care stocks soar in 3Q; Dow, S&P see best run in nearly a decade.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: H. LEE MURPHY Spurred by improving sales and earnings, investors bid up local technology and health care stocks in the third quarter. Shares in Allscripts Healthcare Solutions Inc. soared 28% in the period ended Sept. 29 after...

A little funky, and outrageous; How a local classical group is creating new fans.(Focus: Small Business)(interview with Jim Hirsch and Paul Freeman )(Interview)
October 9, 2006... Byline: STEVE HENDERSHOT The Chicago Sinfonietta isn't your father's classical music group. The first concert of the 2006-07 season began with an appeal for those in the audience to turn their cell phones on for the beginning of a unique...

UAL, Michelin tussle over tires; Supplier wants out of contract; airline sues.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: JULIE JOHNSSON A contract blowout with Michelin Aircraft Tire Co. could leave United Airlines short of tires for most of its fleet. Michelin threatened to stop providing tires to the nation's second-largest airline after...

For The Record.(Briefs)(appointments, facility closure and acquisitions)
October 9, 2006... Mayor Richard M. Daley appointed state Sen. Miguel del Valle to be city clerk. If the City Council approves, he will fill the vacancy created when James Laski was convicted of taking $48,000 in bribes in the hired truck scandal. Niles...

Pump Room feels surprisingly fresh; Storied favorite presents a very modern menu.(The Business of Life)(Restaurant review)
October 9, 2006... Byline: ANNE MOORE The Pump Room deserves to be known for its future rather than its star-studded, smoke-filled, Booth One past. Photographs from that era line the entry, providing a time capsule of 20th-century movie and TV stars who...

Facing Facts.(The Business of Life)(Recommended readings)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Christina Le Beau Carol Lavin Bernick, 54, chairman of beauty care products maker Alberto-Culver Co. in Melrose Park, keeps her reading simple: "I'm a bullet-point person.'' Her browsing list: "The Discipline of Market Leaders:...

Building on books: Full crowd for library awards.(The Business of Life)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Mary Cameron Frey Robert A. Wislow, chairman and CEO of U.S. Equities Realty LLC, headed the team that designed and built the Harold Washington Library Center, which opened on Oct. 7, 1991. This week, he joins Dia S. Weil, retired...

WHAT IS HASTERT WORTH? Should scandal depose Denny, Ill. would lose mainstay of D.C. clout.(News)
October 9, 2006... Byline: PAUL MERRION WASHINGTON-How important has Speaker of the House J. Dennis Hastert been to Illinois business? Just ask Chicago's futures exchanges. Last month, the exchanges were fretting over U.S. Senate amendments that...

Sweet sounds; WHERE MUSIC MEETS THE BOTTOM LINE.(Focus: Small Business)
October 9, 2006... Byline: Thomas Mucha Chicago has always sounded good. Our city is, of course, home of the blues (the real deal, not those Jake and Elwood posers shaking their tail feathers at Bulls and Bears games). Jazz has an important history...

On the Move.(People)(briefs: new appointments in electric utilities, financial services and real estate industry)
October 9, 2006... ARTS/ENTERTAINMENT Newberry Library, Chicago: Michelle Miller Burns, 38, to vice-president for development, from director of planned giving at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. FINANCIAL SERVICES Cabrera Capital Markets Inc.,...

Gas seller pursues truck and auto niche market; Short-haul drivers are in Road Ranger's sights.(News)(Road Ranger LLC expands its stations)
October 9, 2006... Byline: BOB TITA Gas station operator Road Ranger LLC is moving into the fast lane when it comes to expansion. The company wants to boost the number of stations it operates nationwide to 100 by 2008, from 48 stations currently....