Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN articles from March 2009

Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN archives from March 2009

Minnesota check-printing firm Deluxe repositions business, buys web companies.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Arundhati Parmar Writing checks is so 20th century. No one knows that better than Deluxe Corp., whose bread and butter check-printing business has seen yearly declines as people increasingly switch to paying their bills...

Minnesota law students searching for jobs in bleak market.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Barbara L. Jones During the tough economic times of the early to mid-'80s, Bruce Springsteen sang, The times are tough now, just getting tougher. This old world is rough, it's just getting rougher. The baby boom generation...

'Meet in Minnesota' site aims to lure convention spending to state.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger With the economy sputtering, Minnesota officials responsible for attracting tourist dollars to the state will launch a new effort Wednesday to go after the most well- heeled visitors: meeting planners and...

Iowa seeks Minnesota workers for 'shovel ready' stimulus jobs.
March 3, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson Iowa highway contractors are putting out the welcome mat for idle Minnesota workers. With the federal stimulus package offering $358 million for shovel ready highway and bridge projects in Iowa, the construction...

Solar manufacturers say testing backlog is stifling industry growth.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson The Rural Renewable Energy Alliance's mission, as stated on its tax forms, is simple: to make renewable energy accessible to everyone. Simple, but not easy. Given current challenges in the solar-equipment testing...

Solar thermal testing labs rush to catch up with demand.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson Why are there only two solar thermal testing labs in North America when there's a two-year wait for testing services? Simply put, demand for such services is rising, but the testing capabilities are still mired in...

Associated General Contractors of Minnesota sets Safety Day for Thursday.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Associated General Contractors of Minnesota's annual safety day is set for Thursday at the Minneapolis Convention Center. The all-day event includes safety-related exhibits and programs on...

Bloomington-based Doran Construction completes Menards, airport hangar.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Doran Construction has completed construction of a Menards store in Hermantown, Minn. The project, which was completed in 22 weeks, involved demolition of a 145,000-square-foot store and...

Industry groups recognize Edina roundabout project.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report WSB & Associates recently won several industry design awards for its roundabout project at West 70th Street in Edina. Awards include the Project of the Year from the City Engineers Association...

Brainerd Airport in Minnesota gets $3.3 million federal grant.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Brainerd Airport has received a $3.3 million Federal Aviation Administration grant for a runway reconstruction. The grant will help pay for the second phase of the runway project. Last...

Minn. Dept. of Transportation selects Parsons Brinckerhoff to design St. Croix Bridge.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Minnesota Department of Transportation has selected Parsons Brinckerhoff to provide concept design and related services for the proposed $200 million St. Croix River Crossing between Stillwater...

RSP Architects hires Minnesota artist Terri Kwant for 'Dreambox' director.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce staff RSP Architects has hired Minnesota artist and designer Teri Kwant to direct its Dreambox operation. Kwant specializes in creating interactive public art spaces. Her work includes the main floor...

Minneapolis-based Target to open 27 new stores despite deepening recession.
March 4, 2009... Byline: Scott Carlson Even in the midst of the deepening recession, life goes on: Minneapolis-based discounter Target Corp. said Tuesday that it is opening 27 new stores this month, including its first two locations in Hawaii. At...

Commercial development: Environmental concerns increasingly important, but still expensive.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Burl Gilyard Everyone is trying to take the LEED these days. LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) has quickly become the acronym of choice in commercial real estate. But for developers, the popular buzzword...

Homebuilding in Twin Cities metro still dropping.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson Local homebuilding slowed to a trickle in February. Last month, residential contractors in the 13-county metro area pulled 107 building permits for 118 new housing units valued at $34.8 million, down sharply from...

Jeff Westgor: Minnesota entrepreneur built national network of hotel brokerage firms.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Mark Anderson Hotel Brokers International is a family affair. The network, a major player in the national hospitality trade, was founded by Windom, Minn., resident Wayne Westgor, and is now overseen by his son, Jeff, who was...

Minneapolis boat manufacturer to enter wind turbine blade business?
March 5, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis boat manufacturer Genmar Holdings Inc. may be negotiating with Dallas-based Ventus Wind Systems Group to get into the wind turbine blade business. Genmar announce last month that it would start building...

Opponents of rural power network blast approval of 668-mile system.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger An administrative law judge has approved a utility-supported routing of 668 miles of high-voltage electric transmission lines - a system known as CapX2020 - setting off fierce criticism from power line opponents. ...

Hastings rejoins Bloomington-based Frauenshuh Cos.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Sherry Hastings returned to the Bloomington-based Frauenshuh Cos. in mid-February. Most recently, Hastings served as the local executive vice president for the Brussels-based WingField Corp. Before...

Commercial real estate veteran Michael Houge launches St. Paul-based Chief Real Estate Co.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Commercial real estate veteran Michael Houge announced that he recently sold his interest in Minneapolis-based Upland Real Estate Group and has launched a new firm, the St. Paul-based Chief Real...

Minneapolis-based developer The Lander Group relocates, repositions building.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Minneapolis-based developer The Lander Group has moved to the corner of 38th Street West and Nicollet Avenue in south Minneapolis, to a building it once touted for a condo redevelopment. The 38 LLC...

Bloomington-based NorthMarq announces that 12 Twin Cities office buildings earn Energy Star rating.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Bloomington-based NorthMarq announced that 12 Twin Cities office buildings managed by the firm earned Energy Star ratings from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). All told, 112 buildings...

City of Minneapolis weighs redevelopment of abandoned church site.
March 5, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Minneapolis City Council is set to vote on Friday, March 6, on authorizing city planners to analyze a proposal for tax increment financing (TIF) to aid redevelopment of a south Minneapolis site....

Home warranty bills advance in Minnesota Legislature, despite opposition of builders.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson A pair of bills under consideration at the legislature would make it easier for homeowners to pursue warranty claims against their builder, but those in the home-construction business say the proposed changes would do...

St. Louis Park-based MoneyGram reports 4th-quarter improvement.(Financial report)
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report St. Louis Park-based MoneyGram International, Inc. reported fourth-quarter income of $122.9 million, a big turnaround from a $1.2 billion loss for the same period in 2007. Those results include...

American Express OnePoint is new Elavon offering.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Elavon, a subsidiary of U.S. Bancorp based in Atlanta, is the first company to market the new one point program from American Express. OnePoint enables Elavon and its third-party sales channels...

Milwaukee-based M&I Bank opens in Rogers, its 8th metro branch since 2007.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report M&I Bank, Minnesota Region, has opened a new branch office at the intersection of Diamond Lake and Rogers Drive in Rogers. The new office will provide full banking services, with ATMs,...

Twin Cities accounting firms announce merger.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Brooklyn Center-based accounting and advisory firm Kern, DeWenter, Viere, Ltd. announced this week a merger agreement with Davich, Wilson, Morrow & Associates. The merger will expand KDV's...

Survey: Twin Cities accounting, finance hiring will slow.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Over 90 percent of chief financial officers in the Twin Cities said hiring will be flat during the second quarter of 2009, according to the quarterly financial hiring survey conducted by Robert Half...

Minnesota-based Heartland Credit Union's O'Connell named top credit union CEO.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Heartland Credit Union CEO Pam O'Connell was recently named CEO of the Year by Credit Union Times, a national trade publication. O'Connell has served Heartland for nine years, and this month's...

Downturn means less money for community lending in Minneapolis.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Mark Anderson The recession began on Wall Street. During the past six months, it migrated to Main Street. Now, it's reached all the way to Lake Street. The link between those very different addresses was a lot closer than many...

Twin Cities ad agencies, clients catch stimulus fever.
March 6, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger While it remains to be seen whether the Obama administration's economic stimulus plan will pull the nation out of recession, the phrase stimulus package has already become a linguistic success. Or so it would seem,...

Minnesota bill would offer contracting preferences to disabled soldiers.
March 7, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson When Tim Murphy was deployed to Iraq in 2005, the small Bloomington-based information technology firm he and a business partner had started six years earlier suddenly lost -- as he put it -- 50 percent of its...

Minnesota's stimulus money will create work for state auditors.
March 7, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw The federal stimulus money is expected to create a lot of work for state auditors who regularly pour over the state's financial books in search of fraud and mismanagement. Legislative Auditor James Nobles told a...

Pawn shops: As recession deepens, Twin Cities cash-for-goods outlets become alternative to banks.
March 7, 2009... Byline: Dan Emerson As is often the case during a recession, Twin Cities pawnbrokers have been seeing increased customer traffic in recent months. But not all of those customers are cash-strapped individuals seeking a small loan to pay the...

General Mills, Best Buy among companies using 'crowdsourcing' sites to foster innovation.
March 10, 2009... Byline: Arundhati Parmar Call it Suggestion Box 2.0. Large corporations that hope to encourage innovation - something that can be all too easily stifled beneath their layers of hierarchy and lengthy decision-making processes - are...

Minnesota Department of Transportation to award contracts for stimulus projects.
March 10, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson A series of federal stimulus projects in Minnesota are about to graduate from concept to signed contract. On Friday, the Minnesota Department of Transportation plans to award contracts for a series of highway...

Acquisitions spur growth for Eden Prairie software firm Amcom.
March 10, 2009... Byline: Arundhati Parmar Recession or no recession, when there's an emergency, people want help right away. Hence the downturn-defying growth of Amcom Software, which in two years has seen revenue surge to $34 million from $11.2...

Minnesota Twins 'take it outside' in advertising opener.
March 10, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger It may not look that way out your window, but spring has to be just around the corner - the Twins are once again advertising on television. In a new TV ad humorously promoting the Twins' move to Target Field in 2010,...

Local-government interests oppose Minnesota's 'Sensible Communities' legislation.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw A bill moving through the Legislature seeks to bring Minnesota's land-use practices in line with ongoing efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. But the so-called Building Sensible Communities legislation is...

Sprinkler requirement for new houses off the table in Minnesota, for now.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson Minnesota's home builders are cheering a recent decision by state officials to extinguish - at least temporarily - a proposed code change that would have required new homes to be equipped with fire sprinklers. In...

Mid-size legal firms weathering recession.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Barbara L. Jones Whether it's due to having a profitable niche practice or, conversely, a broader practice that is not concentrated in one area, some of Minnesota's mid-size law firms report that they are weathering the...

Minneapolis rates as an energy 'star'.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report By at least one measure, Minneapolis is among the top cities in the nation when it comes to energy-efficient buildings. In 2008, 102 buildings in Minneapolis earned the U.S. Environmental...

Minneapolis-based Braun Intertec opening office in Cedar Rapids, Iowa.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Braun Intertec is opening a regional office in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. The new office will serve the state's growing industries, according to the Minneapolis-based engineering and environmental...

35W bridge in Minneapolis a finalist for national design award.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The new 35W bridge in Minneapolis is a finalist for the American Council of Engineering Companies' Engineering Excellence Awards, a national event that's billed as the Academy Awards of engineering....

Minneapolis-based National Wind announces plans for Renville County wind farm.
March 11, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Minneapolis-based wind energy developer National Wind LLC on Monday announced plans to develop a 40-megawatt community wind project in Renville County, 100 miles west of Minneapolis. National Wind...

Corner of Washington & Hennepin avenues in Minneapolis, scene of vacant buildings, projects on hold.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Burl Gilyard For years, Minneapolis boosters touted the corner of Hennepin and Washington avenues as a key gateway to downtown -- a ripe-for-development address close to the Mississippi River and adjacent to the emerging North Loop...

Home sales up in Minneapolis, prices still falling.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Burl Gilyard If a buyer signed a purchase agreement for a local home in February, odds are the home was a foreclosed or otherwise distressed property. New numbers compiled by the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors (MAAR)...

Growing number of companies are incorporating sustainability strategies in individual office spaces.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Anna Pratt URS Architects, which is located in downtown Minneapolis' Fifth Street Towers, wants its office to reflect its values for sustainability, inside and out. The group chose this location in part because of the...

Minnesota company makes the case for green ROI.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Dan Haugen Greening your company is about making an investment in the planet's future. And like picking stocks, sorting through the daunting number of green product claims out there today can be time-consuming and downright...

Green construction lawsuits are on the rise.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Dick Dahl The meteoric rise of the green-building industry seems like a feel-good tale suited for the Disney Channel. Builders, contractors and tenants all want to be part of projects that are energy efficient. Owners find that...

American builders might increasingly look overseas for new design model.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Sam Bennett As the building industry searches for the next big thing, the likelihood increases that builders, developers, architects and engineers will continue pushing the boundaries of what constitutes sustainable design - and...

Minnesota: Stock market collapse, job losses mean less tax revenue in 2010-2011.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw How bad is the state's economic forecast? It's so bad, says State Economist Tom Stinson, that the state may actually take in less revenue during the 2010-2011 biennium than it's collecting in the current budget...

Minnesota-based Management Resolutions tapped for receiverships.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Eagan-based Management Resolutions, a division of JBL Companies, announced that it was recently named the court-appointed receiver for several properties, including: *An auto service center,...

Oh Baby! expands at Galleria shopping center in Edina.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Oh Baby! store has expanded, redesigned and relocated its store within the Galleria shopping center in Edina. The store offers locally designed children's clothing, furniture and accessories....

Minnetonka-based NAI Welsh completes three real estate deals.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Minnetonka-based NAI Welsh announced that the firm recently completed three notable real estate transactions, including an investment sale and two lease deals: *Welsh vice president Kevin Doyle...

Minnetonka-based NAI Welsh announces that Eric Dueholm earns LEED AP certification.
March 12, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Minnetonka-based NAI Welsh announced that Eric Dueholm, a vice president with the firm, recently earned LEED Accredited Professional (LEED AP) certification from the U.S. Green Building Council...

Minnesota's TCF, U.S. Bancorp aim to quickly buy their way out of TARP program.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Mark Anderson The Twin Cities' two biggest hometown banks have been among the most vocal critics of the U.S. Treasury's program to buoy capital levels and stoke confidence in the nation's banks. But while many banks may share...

Minnesota credit unions recognized for service.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Minnesota Lawyer Staff The Credit Union National Association included 28 Minnesota credit unions on its recent list of REAL Deal organizations that deliver top service to communities and members. REAL Deal certification...

Minneapolis-based Fair Isaac Corp. becomes FICO, adds mortgage product.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Fair Isaac Corporation has adopted the brand FICO as its corporate identity. The Minneapolis-based firm provides analytics and technologies that businesses and consumers use to make business...

Minneapolis-based First Commercial Bank promotes two.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff First Commercial Bank announced two promotions this week. Daniel Mazur was promoted from business development associate to senior business development associate. Mazur is a native of Middleton, Wis., and...

St. Louis-based MoneyGram, Visa partner on prepaid card services.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff MoneyGram International and Visa Inc. announced on Tuesday that Visa's newest prepaid load product - Visa ReadyLink - will be added at MoneyGram's 40,000 agent locations in the United States. The...

Turnaround association adds four Minnesota board members.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff The Upper Midwest Chapter of the Turnaround Management Association named four new members to its board of directors this week. Tim Donaldson is an executive with Minnetonka-based Alliance Management...

Golden Valley-based General Mills' Belton joins U.S. Bancorp board.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff U.S. Bancorp recently appointed Y. Marc Belton, an executive vice president with General Mills, Inc., to its board of directors. Belton, 49, joined General Mills in 1983 and now is a leader in its...

Woodlands bank opens on Franklin Avenue in Minneapolis.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff The Woodlands National Bank opened its first Minneapolis location at 1113 East Franklin Ave. in early March. The new office will be a full-service branch, providing personal and commercial bank...

Banker Beeson hopes to help Univ. of Minnesota navigate budget difficulties.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Mark Anderson For Rick Beeson, joining the University of Minnesota's 13-member Board of Regents is just the next step in a long, close relationship. In fact, it's a family affair. Beeson's mother and father graduated from the...

Minneapolis city government aid cuts spur talk of overhaul.
March 13, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger Faced with diminishing returns from the recession-battered Minnesota state government, Minneapolis city officials say their local government aid relationship with the state has become miserable. That's why...

Minnesota gets $186 million in stimulus for energy efficiency.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw It isn't just about highways and bridges. The recently passed federal American Recovery and Reinvestment Act will also provide more than $131 million to weatherize low-income homes in Minnesota. That's a steep...

Minneapolis firm Periscope renames strategic marketing division.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis firm Periscope has renamed its strategic marketing division. Now called Insight & Innovation, the department conducts qualitative and quantitative research to provide the shop's clients with relevant business...

Mike Caguin elevated at Minneapolis-based Colle + McVoy.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger Four months after its previous creative director left to join Minneapolis marketing firm Space150, Colle + McVoy has promoted Mike Caguin to the position of executive creative director. Before the promotion was...

Ruling: RBC Dain Rauscher must pay $5.6 million to Twin Cities veterinarian.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Scott Carlson An arbitration panel has awarded $5.6 million to a retail customer of stock brokerage firm RBC Dain Rauscher Inc., now known as RBC Wealth Management. Dr. Katherine Knutson, a Twin Cities veterinarian, sued RBC to...

St. Paul seeks Xcel debt break to build 'The Pond'.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw and Burl Gilyard The City of St. Paul is asking state lawmakers to forgive $32.75 million on a loan that helped pay for the Xcel Energy Center hockey arena in downtown St. Paul. St. Paul Mayor Chris Coleman and...

Pensions: Investment-management fees draw scrutiny at Minnesota Capitol.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Charley Shaw Minnesota legislators are wondering if the state is getting the best bang for its buck by paying money-management firms to handle state pension dollars. The questions come at a time when the foundering stock market...

Will Steger named co-chairman of HIRE Minnesota coalition seeking jobs for poor, minorities.
March 14, 2009... Byline: Scott Carlson Over the past two decades, Minnesotan Will Steger has become one of the world's leading advocates for preserving the Arctic, a passion that has won him international recognition. Now, the famous North Pole...

Furloughs with forethought: Avoiding employment law traps.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Michelle Lore With few signs of an economic recovery any time soon, corporations are increasingly looking for cost-cutting measures short of layoffs - among them, the idea of asking workers to take time off without pay. But are...

3M: Manufacturing giant becomes technology-driven powerhouse.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Scott Carlson When 3M Co. signed an agreement last week to become the exclusive Canadian distributor of fiber optic management products for Plymouth-based Clearfield Inc., the announcement caused nary a stir on Wall Street. ...

Minneapolis-based National Wind plans 150-megawatt wind energy project.
March 17, 2009... Byline: Bob Geiger Minneapolis-based National Wind LLC plans to develop a 150-megawatt wind energy project in Big Stone County, and has opened an Ortonville office to foster community involvement in the project, called Little Rock Wind...

Recession cutting into Minnesota exports.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Scott Carlson As the recession took hold in Minnesota during the last quarter of 2008, the state exported $4.2 billion in manufactured goods - a drop of $126 million, or 3 percent, from the same quarter a year earlier. Still,...

St. Paul-based American Petrographic Services employee earns certification.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Dale Hunt, a petrographer for St. Paul-based American Petrographic Services, an affiliate of American Engineering Testing, has received his geologist-in-training certification. Hunt assists in...

Kevin Nelson to oversee maintenance of St. Paul's streets.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The city of St. Paul has selected Kevin Nelson to lead its street maintenance operation. Nelson, who will replace recently retired Gary Erichson, has been with the city for 21 years. He most...

Minnesota state Senator Tom Bakk wins 2 awards from building associations.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Sen. Tom Bakk, DFL-Cook, has won the Building Association of Minnesota's President's Award for his work during the 2008 legislative session on implementing a statewide building code for all...

Minnesota Associated Builders and Contractors seeks prevailing wage 'time out'.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson The Minnesota Associated Builders and Contractors (ABC) says the state can save tens of millions of dollars in construction costs during tough economic times by temporarily removing prevailing wage requirements from...

University Ave. businesses in St. Paul want streetscape improvements in light rail project.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson University Avenue business owner Jack McCann has seen lots of pretty pictures that depict what the street in front of his shop will look like -- in theory, at least -- once the proposed Central Corridor light rail is...

Disabled riders in Twin Cities have different view of streetscape 'enhancements'.
March 18, 2009... Byline: Brian Johnson Some of the proposed betterments in the Central Corridor streetscape plan aren't necessarily better than the basic plan, as far as some riders are concerned. Rozanne Severance, who serves on the Met Council's...