Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN articles from May 2008

Finance and Commerce Daily Newspaper, MN archives from May 2008

Eden Prairie-based Compellent Technologies revenues double in first quarter.(Financial report)
May 1, 2008... Byline: Adam Johnson Eden Prairie-based Compellent Technologies, Inc. saw its revenues more than double in the first quarter of 2008 compared with the same time period last year, the company announced late Wednesday. Revenue totaled...

Commercial real estate will likely avoid housing's collapse reports St. Paul-based Advantus.
May 1, 2008... Byline: Mark Anderson Commercial real estate investors became edgy over the last year as they watched the blood flow in the residential mortgage market and wondered whether the same fate awaited them. They had cause for concern. The...

Startup connects Twin Cities minorities, businesses.
May 1, 2008... Byline: Kendall Anderson Orlando native Gareth Forde graduates from the University of Minnesota Medical School Friday. But he almost didn't make it - to Minnesota, that is. Like many Twin Cities newcomers who are racial or ethnic...

Welsh plans its first local senior housing project in Lakeville.
May 1, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard Welsh Cos. is slated this summer to kick off its first-ever senior housing project in Minnesota, a $32 million, 155-unit facility in Lakeville called Highview Hills. Welsh is partnering with Walker ElderCare...

Security guard union in the Twin Cities looks to expand after contract victory.
May 1, 2008... Byline: Adam Johnson Security guards turned heads in the Twin Cities last month when they won significantly reduced health care premiums in a new union contract. It was the kind of union victory that has become increasingly rare in...

Minnesota House votes to increase minimum wage.
May 1, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw The state House on Thursday approved a minimum wage increase that would exceed the federal minimum wage rate. The bill, sponsored by Rep. Tom Rukavina, DFL-Virginia, would establish a $7.90 per hour minimum wage...

National real estate associations team up on Capitol Hill.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Two national real estate associations joined forces last month to lobby federal lawmakers for action on several issues that will have substantial impact on their industry. Members of the Institute of Real Estate...

Young brokers in Minnesota raise funds for Camp Heartland.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff The newest generation of the Minnesota Commercial Association of Realtors, the Emerging Brokers group, raised $7,000 at its April 23 bowling tournament for Camp Heartland, an organization that serves children and families...

Ryan Companies US, Inc. launches in-house sustainability policy.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Ryan Companies US, Inc. has established a new sustainability policy that promises to minimize the environmental impact of each product while meeting their customers' needs and delivering durable, high-quality buildings....

High-tech recruiting for RNC volunteers in St. Paul.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Local planners for the Republican National Convention are partnering with Monster, the online career and recruitment resource, to attract and organize volunteers for the event that takes place in St. Paul on Sept. 1- 4....

NorthMarq announces Victor Marketplace sale in Hugo.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff NorthMarq Investment Services announced today the sale of Victor Marketplace, a 70,000-square-foot retail center at 14775 Victor Hugo Blvd. in Hugo. The retail center was bought by Victor Hugo Boulevard, LLC, for an...

Olson chosen to head up Golden Valley-based Mortenson Construction wind sales.
May 1, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Golden Valley-based Mortenson Construction has promoted Elling C. Olson to director of business development in the company's energy group. Olson joined Mortenson in August 2007 as a business development manager, but...

Slow ride for commercial real estate in Twin Cities.
May 2, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard While the residential real estate market is tottering, the state of the commercial real estate market boils down to a single, four-letter word: slow. Maybe that should be: slooooow. A few years ago, the pace...

Minneapolis PR exec. moonlights as music director for sports teams.
May 2, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger After his day as a PR executive is done, Steve Rudolph heads out of his Minneapolis office, intent on getting thousands of sports fans worked up. Rudolph's after-hours job as game day music director for the...

Minnesota Power requests rate increase for retail customers.
May 2, 2008... Byline: Finance & Commerce Staff Duluth-based Minnesota Power filed a rate-adjustment request with the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission on Friday, seeking an increase of $45 million in the electricity rates charged to its retail...

Deal reached for bridge victims.
May 3, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson An agreement by state lawmakers to compensate victims of the Interstate 35W bridge collapse was hailed Friday by political leaders on both sides of the aisle. But some observers are wondering whether the $38...

US Bancorp sees wealth in retirement.
May 3, 2008... Byline: Mark Anderson Tim Leach's expertise is in demand. Leach has spent the past 30 years helping the nation's well-to-do plan and execute the financial piece of their retirement and estate goals, most recently as chief investment...

Minimum wage bills are focus of Minnesota debate.
May 3, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw State House and Senate conferees this week plan to reconcile their versions of a minimum wage increase that Gov. Tim Pawlenty said goes too far. The House on Thursday passed a bill 82-45 that would increase the...

Exhibit to spotlight new Twin Cities projects.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Staff An exhibit in downtown Minneapolis will offer visitors a close-up view of high-profile construction projects and initiatives that will shape the Twin Cities. Titled Building Community: Visuals and Models of the...

More closures, openings for Crosstown project in Minneapolis.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Staff The revolving door of road closures and openings continues this week on the Crosstown reconstruction project. In Minneapolis, the Diamond Lake Road entrance ramp to southbound Interstate 35W will close from 9...

LEO A DALY in Minneapolis appoints Corrigan as senior associate.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Brief Architectural firm LEO A DALY has announced the appointment of Eugene E. Corrigan as a senior associate in the firm's Minneapolis office. Corrigan has more than 18 years of experience in finance and accounting,...

Work begins on Coon Rapids Northstar station.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Staff Public officials broke ground last week on the Coon Rapids-Riverdale commuter rail station, one of several stations that will form the backbone of the Northstar Commuter Rail. Past and present members of the...

St. Paul-based Shred Right acquires St. Joseph shredding firm.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Staff St. Paul-based Shred Right last week announced the acquisition of Safeshred, a company based in St. Joseph that has provided central Minnesota with off-site shredding services since 1997. Shred Right specializes...

St. Cloud truck route set in response to bridge closure.
May 6, 2008... Byline: F&C News Staff The Minnesota Department of Transportation announced last week that it has established a truck route around St. Cloud in response to the closure of the Highway 23 bridge over the Mississippi River. The bridge was...

Is ethanol to blame for food prices?
May 6, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw Rick Tolman has a challenging job: Countering charges from ethanol critics that the corn-based fuel isn't the only culprit behind skyrocketing food prices. Tolman, 56, is the CEO of the National Corn Growers...

Eagan-based Delta president testifies but doesn't satisfy.
May 6, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw Under a grilling Monday at the Capitol, Delta Air Lines President Ed Bastian told lawmakers that Northwest Airlines will be headquartered in Atlanta after the two airlines merge, but that he couldn't provide exact...

Minnesota Gov. Pawlenty reduces Health Care Access Fund request.
May 6, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger Gov. Tim Pawlenty, who once proposed using $250 million or more of the Health Care Access Fund (HCAF) to help balance the projected $935 million state budget deficit, cut his HCAF request to $48 million during weekend...

Minneapolis set to bail out Humboldt Greenway developer.
May 6, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard The city of Minneapolis plans to step in to bail out housing developer Ross Fefercorn, who is facing looming foreclosure and tax forfeiture on the unfinished second phase of the Humboldt Greenway project. ...

Duluth bridge safety concerns force lane closures.
May 6, 2008... Byline: Adam Johnson Minnesota's bridge capacity continued to shrink Tuesday as the Minnesota Department of Transportation closed two lanes of traffic on the John Blatnik Bridge in Duluth because of safety concerns. In a release, MnDOT...

Commercial/multifamily loan volume sets record in 2007.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Mark Anderson Commercial and multifamily lending grew 19 percent to a record $507.7 billion in new loans in 2007, according to the Mortgage Bankers Association's annual origination survey. Increases occurred in most property...

Declaration of Independence arrives at Minnesota History Center.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger For the first time in the 150-year official history of the land of 10,000 lakes, an original copy of the Declaration of Independence has come to Minnesota. The document, one of 25 remaining original copies printed...

Steep rise in Minnesota farmland prices posing a danger.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw A report released Tuesday by a St. Paul-based public policy group warned that steep increases in the value of Minnesota farmland could lead to a bust like the one in the housing market. Minnesota 2020, founded in...

Hennepin Co. to digitize 150 years of property records.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger No more driving to the county courthouse. No more leafing through dusty old records. Thanks to the Web, and the move to digitized records, looking up old legal transactions may soon be as easy as clicking your mouse. ...

'Endangered' Rochester building gets new life.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson Floral Hall isn't ready to wither up and die just yet. In fact, efforts to revitalize the decades-old exhibition hall in Rochester appear to be in full bloom, just days after the building made the Preservation...

Minnesota's "Ten Most Endangered Historic Places".
May 7, 2008... Byline: Finance & Commerce Staff In addition to Rochester's Floral Hall, the Preservation Alliance of Minnesota's 15th annual list of Ten Most Endangered Historic Places List includes: * St. Louis County Jail in Duluth. Built in 1923,...

Conservative group blasts Minnesota taxation.
May 7, 2008... Byline: Betsy Sundquist Minnesota must avoid raising taxes to plug budget shortfalls if the state wants to stop hemorrhaging both residents and businesses, a conservative policymaker warned Tuesday. You simply can't afford to raise...

Minneapolis-based Dolan Media 1Q revenue up 16.3 percent.(Financial report)
May 7, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard Minneapolis-based Dolan Media Co. on Tuesday reported first-quarter net income of $4 million on revenue of $41.5 million, a 16.3 percent gain from the same period in 2007. We are very pleased with our start to the...

Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors: Home value 'plunge' may be overstated.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson A new report from the Minneapolis Area Association of Realtors makes a case that home values aren't in such bad shape after all - at least for traditional sellers. The report, released Tuesday, looks at the impact...

Hennepin Co. approves transit hub study in Warehouse District.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger and Burl Gilyard The Hennepin County Board has voted to spend $150,000 to study whether demolition and/or development are needed around the Warehouse District transit hub in Minneapolis to accommodate the dramatic...

Minneapolis-based Finance and Commerce announces Top Project winners.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Michael Krieger Finance and Commerce has selected the recipients of its first Top Projects award. This award is reserved for 25 of Minnesota's finest construction projects completed in 2007. Selections were based on a variety...

Highland Bank's Wilmer is New Brighton-based SPEDCO's top banker.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Ken Wilmer, a senior vice president and commercial banking manager at Highland Bank, was honored by New Brighton-based SPEDCO as its Banker of the Year for 2007. SPEDCO is a nonprofit...

Bloomington-based United Properties, NorthMarq Capital complete reorganization.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Bloomington-based United Properties has completed a reorganization of its commercial real estate business, aimed at boosting its investment and sales business through the national platform of its...

MetroMSP.org showcases development sites in Minneapolis and St. Paul.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Business and civic leaders in Minneapolis and St Paul will announce today the launch of a new Web site, Metro MSP.org, to help pitch the region as a business locale. The site will provide...

Bloomington-based NAI Welsh represents Hamline University in business school lease.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Bloomington-based NAI Welsh represented Hamline University in negotiating a 33,000-square-foot, 10-year lease at the 1600 Tower in St. Louis Park, located near I-394 and Highway 100 this month. ...

Evenson to lead UGL Equis Minneapolis-St. Paul office.
May 8, 2008... Byline: F&C News Brief Mark L. Evenson has joined UGL Equis as senior vice president and managing director of the company's Minneapolis-St. Paul office. Evenson moved to his new job from the managing director post with The Staubach Co....

Minneapolis-based Griffin Cos. joins Coldwell Banker Commercial.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Coldwell Banker Commercial Affiliates has added Minneapolis-based Griffin Cos. to its national affiliated network. Griffin has served the Twin Cities and surrounding markets for almost 40...

Buettner joins Bloomington-based Welsh Capital.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Mark Buettner has joined Welsh Capital as an associate. His duties will include originating and placing commercial real estate loans with a variety of lenders. Prior to joining Welsh,...

Twin Cities apartment market grows again in the first quarter.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Twin Cities rental market continued to improve during the first quarter, recovering from the effects of a sluggish job market that plagued the region in late 2007, according to the quarterly...

Demand surges for Minneapolis firm's fair trade apparel.
May 8, 2008... Byline: Kendall Anderson Like most Peace Corps volunteers, Kristin Johnson was moved by living alongside some of the world's poorest people. Unlike many of her fellow volunteers, Johnson combined her feelings of empathy with business...

Active home listings in Twin Cities metro drop in April.
May 8, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Report The number of active home listings in the Twin Cities metro area dropped in April, the first monthly decline of 2008, according to the Saint Paul Area Association of Realtors. Association officials interpret...

Minnesota: Small towns, big retail.
May 9, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard In the Twin Cities metro, retailers are struggling and retail development has slowed to a trickle. But in outstate Minnesota, retailers and developers are mining untapped markets in Cambridge, North Branch,...

Twin Cities' Carlson Hotels growing again at high end.
May 9, 2008... Byline: Mark Anderson Carlson Hotels Worldwide, the Twin Cities' biggest hometown hotelier, is making good on its 2007 pledge to burn the carbon out of its development business and open more hotels, especially in its upscale Radisson and...

Minneapolis-based KKE Architects expands presence in southwest.
May 9, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson KKE Architects is expanding its presence in the southwestern U.S. by adding two offices in Arizona - not in spite of but because of the recent downturn in the housing market there. On Tuesday, the...

New site pitches local commercial real estate online.
May 9, 2008... Business and government leaders, including Steve Mahle (pictured), Medtronic’s executive vice president, and Doug King, chairman of the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce, gathered on Thursday morning to announce the launch of a new...

Minnesota's Health Care Access Fund amendment moves forward.
May 9, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw The state Senate Finance Committee approved a constitutional amendment Thursday that would prevent lawmakers or the governor from tapping into a special health care fund to balance the budget. A Minnesota statute...

Bill Moyers, Dan Rather to headline 'media reform' conference in St. Paul.(Conference news)
May 10, 2008... Byline: Bob Geiger Less than three months before the Republican National Convention convenes in St. Paul, a decidedly more liberal group is gathering in the Twin Cities -- the June 6-8 National Conference on Media Reform. The event is...

Minnesota's historic Aw-Gwah-Ching site nears date with wrecking ball.
May 10, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson Fresh air, open spaces and good food. When it came to treating tuberculosis in the early part of the 20th century, that's just what doctors ordered. And that's probably why the state of Minnesota built the...

Victims' fund won't end I-35W bridge litigation.
May 10, 2008... Byline: Barbara L. Jones The recently passed bill creating an I-35W bridge victims' compensation fund should resolve the question of the state's potential liability to victims of the bridge collapse, but won't end bridge-related litigation...

Growth on menu for St. Louis Park-based Granite City Food & Brewery Ltd.
May 13, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard Many restaurants are seeing sluggish sales because of the tough economy, but St. Louis Park-based Granite City Food & Brewery Ltd. is tapping new growth. Granite City recently inked a deal with Bloomington-based...

Steenland says NWA 'front-line' employees in the Twin Cities safe.
May 13, 2008... Byline: Becky Hurley None of the thousands of frontline Northwest Airlines employees will lose their jobs as a result of the merger with Delta Air Lines, Northwest's CEO continued to insist Monday. We are committed to no layoffs, CEO...

Minneapolis officials, activists debate convention protest rules.
May 13, 2008... Byline: Kendall Anderson September's Republican National Convention (RNC), one of the nation's highest-profile events, could attract as many as 30,000 protesters to the area -- and not only to downtown St. Paul, where the convention is...

Eastbound Interstate 394 in Minnesota to close this weekend.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff A bridge-repair project will force the closure of eastbound Interstate 394 between Minnesota Highway 100 and Interstate 94 this weekend. The closure, which will begin at 7 p.m. Friday and end at 5 a.m. Monday, will...

Crews begin laying tracks to link Hiawatha, Northstar in Minneapolis.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff The downtown Northstar Commuter Rail connection entered a new phase of construction Monday as crews began laying light-rail track that will connect the existing Hiawatha Light Rail Line with the Northstar project. ...

DBIA program in St. Paul focuses on Northstar project.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff The Design-Build Institute of America (DBIA) will offer a panel discussion on the Northstar Commuter Rail project at its upcoming breakfast program. The program, taking place May 21 at the Midland Hills Country Club,...

MnDOT to host open house about Hastings bridge.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff The Minnesota Department of Transportation announced it will host an open house May 22 to discuss the current repair project on the U.S. Highway 61 Mississippi River bridge in Hastings. Area residents and business...

Drug-testing class for employers to be held June 4 in St. Paul.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Minnesota Occupational Health and the Associated General Contractors of Minnesota will sponsor a class June 4 on performing drug testing at AGC's St. Paul office. This session is for anyone performing reasonable...

Saint Paul Heritage Preservation Award winners announced.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff The Saint Paul Heritage Preservation Commission and the Saint Paul chapter of the American Institute of Architects on Friday announced twelve honorees for this year's Heritage Preservation Awards Program. The awards,...

Maplewood-based 3M to acquire Quest Technologies.
May 13, 2008... Byline: F&C Staff Maplewood-based 3M announced Monday that it will acquire Quest Technologies Inc., a Wisconsin manufacturer of environmental monitoring equipment, including noise, heat-stress and vibration monitors. Quest Technologies...

Minnesota Power planning major wind project.
May 14, 2008... Byline: Adam Johnson Duluth-based Minnesota Power plans to purchase a major transmission line from North Dakota, phase out a contract to buy coal-based electricity and add several hundred megawatts of wind generation over the next several...

Legislature passes Minnesota pension bill.
May 14, 2008... Byline: Charley Shaw The state House and Senate on Monday night passed an omnibus pension bill that would reorganize the state's pension funds if their finances continue to deteriorate. The Senate passed the bill 46-16. The House...

Economists read the same tea leaves, arrive at different conclusions.
May 14, 2008... Byline: Mark Anderson Strictly speaking the economy still hasn't fallen into recession, at least not according to the classical definition of an economy that's spent six months in decline. But Mike Doyle says we'll be there soon and,...

Towering over Islip.
May 15, 2008... Byline: LIBN Staff Federal bucks, to the tune of $16.4 million, have found their way to Islip's MacArthur Airport to build a new air traffic control tower. And not a moment too soon. When the current tower was constructed, John...

Bath & Body Works signs at North Branch Outlets in Minnesota.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Bad & Bath Works Outlet has leased 3,200 square feet in the North Branch Outlets for a shop it will open by the end of May. Bath & Body Works has expanded its concept outside of the traditional...

Colliers International named top CRE outsourcing firm.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Colliers International, the affiliate of Colliers Turley Martin Tucker, was the highest-ranked commercial real estate firm on the annual Global Outsourcing list compiled by the International...

NorthMarq will market Genmar Holdings sites in Florida and Oregon.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Genmar Holdings, Inc., a Minneapolis-based manufacturer of recreational boats, has appointed NorthMarq Corporate Solutions to lead the disposition of its office and manufacturing properties in...

Coldwell Banker Burnet showcases 157 Minnesota homes.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Coldwell Banker Burnet's will showcase one of Minnesota's favorite residential dreams - a home on the lake - in its Spring Waterfront Home Tour on Sunday, May 18 The tour will include 157...

Architectural historian Brian McMahon recalls travel along St. Paul's University Avenue.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Architectural historian Brian McMahon will share a look at the transportation history of University Avenue in a program on Thursday, May 15 at 7 p.m. in the Hamline Midway Branch Library at 1558...

New Jersey-based contractor sues Minnesota-based Northwest Airlines.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Arundhati Parmar A longtime de-icing and anti-icing fluid supplier has sued Northwest Airlines, charging that the Eagan-based airline wrongfully terminated contracts and owes it more than $5 million. New Jersey-based Octagon...

Minneapolis-based nonprofit PRG gets into 'out' housing.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report The Spirit on Lake Housing Cooperative in south Minneapolis isn't your average housing development. Its owners are marketing the project to older members of the gay, lesbian, bisexual and...

Twin Cities luxury home tour to tout stability in high-end market.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Brian Johnson The housing market is struggling and the economy is limping along at a snail's pace. Not exactly the best time to launch a showcase of $1 million-plus homes, right? Actually, the timing is great, according to...

WisDOT lags behind peers when setting safety as hiring priority.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Sean Ryan Editor's note: The following story kicks off an occasional series inspired by the April 2 gas-line explosion in Oconomowoc and the discovery that the Wisconsin Department of Transportation does not check safety records...

Ryan Companies adds bank to its portfolio in Minneapolis' Midtown.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Ryan Companies US, Inc. has completed M&I Bank's new Lake Street office in just four months, continuing an investment in Minneapolis' Midtown renaissance that began in 2005 with the Midtown...

Twin Cities-based United Properties to develop Inver Grove Heights business park.
May 15, 2008... Byline: Finance and Commerce Staff Report Twin Cities-based commercial real estate developer and investor United Properties has received preliminary municipal approval to develop Inverwood Business Park at Hwy. 55 and Barnes Avenue in Inver...

Ford readies RFP for St. Paul plant site.
May 16, 2008... Byline: Burl Gilyard The Ford Motor Co. plant in St. Paul is not slated to close until the fall of 2009. Environmental analysis of the site is not expected to be done until sometime in 2010. The city of St. Paul won't have a development...