St. Charles County Business Record, MO articles from April 2004

St. Charles County Business Record, MO archives from April 2004

CitiMortgage shows up on BBB radar.
April 1, 2004... Byline: staff CitiMortgage Inc. in O'Fallon showed up on the Better Business Bureau's warning radar on Wednesday. According to a news release from the organization, consumers are urged to use caution when seeking a home mortgage loan or...

LMI Aerospace forms new bank agreement.
April 1, 2004... Byline: staff LMI Aerospace Inc., headquartered in O'Fallon, has amended certain loan agreements with its bank, Union Planters Bank, to extend the company's revolving line of credit and two-term loans through March 31, 2005, subject to...

Ameristar Casinos declares first cash dividend.
April 1, 2004... Byline: staff Ameristar Casinos Inc. announced on Wednesday that its board of directors declared a quarterly cash dividend of 12.5 cents per share payable on April 30, 2004, to stockholders of record on April 14, 2004. The company said...

Rock-Tenn Co. closes Wright City plant.
April 1, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask Rock-Tenn Co. has closed its laminated paperboard facility in Wright City. Rock-Tenn, a publicly traded company headquartered in Norcross, Ga., made the announcement Wednesday and said the plant closing was...

More St. Louis favorites added to WingHaven community.
April 1, 2004... Byline: Rachel Brown Real estate developer McEagle Development has brought another St. Louis County favorite to WingHaven in O'Fallon. Bristol's Seafood Grill, located at 2314 Technology Drive, adjacent to the Hilton Garden Inn at...

Nancy Matheny promoted to principal at St. Charles office of Brown Smith Wallace L.L.C.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff Nancy Matheny, CPA/ABV, CVA, was promoted to principal at the St. Charles office of Brown Smith Wallace L.L.C. Matheny's new role as principal acknowledges her long-standing status in the St. Charles community as academician,...

Scott Whiteside joins Shockley Commercial.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff Scott B. Whiteside recently joined Shockley Commercial/Industrial as a sales associate, marketing commercial properties. Whiteside was born and raised in St. Charles and has been a resident for 37 years. Whiteside owned and...

Gutting receives Trailblazer Award from Univ. of Missouri-St. Louis.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff For the past nine years, the University of Missouri-St. Louis has honored an alumna with the Trailblazer Award, a prestigious award that signifies that the alumna has been the first to occupy a position traditionally held by...

Emmaus Homes Inc. names Judy Alexander as new president and CEO.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff The board of directors of Emmaus Homes Inc., an organization of the United Church of Christ serving the mentally retarded and developmentally disabled, announced that Judy C. Alexander will serve as the new president and CEO....

Shea named member of Collaborative Family Law Association.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff Michael P. Shea of Shea, Kohl, Alessi & O'Donnell was recently accepted into the Collaborative Family Law Association. There are only 25 such attorneys in the St. Louis area; Shea is one of only three trained collaborative...

Hagen promoted to NE Community Action Corp.'s operations director.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff North East Community Action Corporation promoted Heather Hagen of St. Charles to the position of St. Charles County operations director. NECAC is a 12-county area not-for-profit social service, community health and public...

Class-action attorneys fees generate assorted judgments.
April 2, 2004... Byline: Mike Nixon The mathematical difference between court settlements, legal fees and what an awarded plaintiff eventually receives has left many laymen wondering where the justice lies between lawyers and their clients. The appearances...

Dr. Karl Wilson elected chair of the board of directors for the Missouri Foundation for Health.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff Dr. Karl Wilson, president and CEO of Crider Center for Mental Health, has been elected chair of the board of directors for the Missouri Foundation for Health. The foundation has been in existence for more than three years....

J. Phillip Norman appointed director for Habitat for Humanity of St. Charles County.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff J. Phillip Norman has been appointed development director for Habitat for Humanity of St. Charles County. In this role, he assumes leadership responsibility for Habitat's annual development plan, long-range fund-raising goals...

St. Charles Boeing gets more work.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff The Boeing Co. was awarded a $16 million modification to a previously awarded firm-fixed price contract to upgrade its Harpoon shipboard launch control systems, among other provisions. The contract combines purchases from...

321 Studios files appeal and emergency stay requests.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff St. Charles-based 321 Studios, which created the controversial DVD movie copying software, filed appeals and emergency stay requests to both the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and the U.S. Court of Appeals for...

Missouri Supreme Court keeps mayoral candidate Shawn Brown's name on ballot.
April 2, 2004... Byline: staff The Missouri Supreme Court granted relief to mayoral candidate Shawn Brown's challenge of a decision by the city of St. Peters to exclude his name from the April 6 ballot. The high court ruled on Tuesday that Shawn Brown's...

St. Charles County's jobless rate remains steady.
April 2, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask St. Charles County continues to have the lowest jobless rate of any Missouri county in the St. Louis metropolitan area. The county's jobless rate stood at 4.2 percent in February. That is unchanged from a year ago,...

U.S. Small Business Administration decreases loan guarantee.
April 2, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour This year, the U.S. Small Business Administration reached its $9.5 billion limit for its 7(a) loan program, which required the agency to temporarily shut down the program. However, while popularity of the SBA's 7(a)...

O'Fallon-based MEMC's increases profits and sales while keeping work force the same.
April 2, 2004... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Doing more with less is an understatement regarding the nation's economy lately. While productivity is soaring to new heights, job creation remains slow. MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. in O'Fallon is a great...

St. Charles Business Briefs: April 5, 2004.
April 5, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask Royal arrival: Royal Canin USA will relocate its headquarters from St. Peters to Fountain Lakes Commerce Center in St. Charles. The premium pet food manufacturer will lease almost 13,000 square feet of the...

St. Charles businesses begin displaying "No Firearms Allowed" signs.
April 5, 2004... Byline: Haley Schumacher Many local businesses are displaying new signs in their windows this week, as a result of the St. Charles County Sheriff's Department accepting conceal and carry applications, which began March 20. The "No...

National Federation of Independent Business informs small-business employers about HIPAA.
April 5, 2004... Byline: James Monahan If you're a small-business employer, what you don't know about HIPAA could hurt you. HIPAA, or the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996, requires standardized electronic transmissions of...

Brown Smith Wallace offers two retirement seminars.
April 6, 2004... Byline: staff Full-service CPA and business consulting firm Brown Smith Wallace is offering two free seminars on retirement from 5:45 p.m. to 7 p.m. on Wednesday, April 7, at the Bogey Hills Country Club, 1120 Country Club Road in St....

Insurance reform, not tort reform, is key to controlling cost of med-mal insurance.
April 6, 2004... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Tort reform and extremely high medical malpractice insurance premiums are believed by many to be directly related. In fact, tort reform legislation for the state of Missouri has been said to be the only way of...

New Wentzville ordinance to favor local bidders.
April 6, 2004... Byline: James Monahan The city of Wentzville is revising an ordinance governing its purchasing procedures to give the Board of Aldermen greater leeway in awarding city contracts to local businesses. The board introduced on March 24 a...

Whittaker Builders opens contracts for live-work units.
April 6, 2004... Byline: staff Whittaker Builders Inc. recently announced it is accepting contracts on its live-work units in New Town St. Charles. The live-work units, a first for St. Charles, are designed for business owners/entrepreneurs. The first...

Novus International Inc. announces acquisition.
April 6, 2004... Byline: staff Novus International Inc. announced April 1 that it acquired Gudensberg, Germany-based Wolfgang Rothel Gmbh, the leading supplier of specialty feed ingredients. Novus, which operates its research center in St. Charles County,...

St. Charles pizzeria announces contest winner.
April 7, 2004... Byline: staff Renee Bruce, a letter carrier from O'Fallon, won a trip to Las Vegas, courtesy of Cecil Whittaker's Pizzeria. Bruce is the grand prize winner of the pizzeria's contest, which featured 25,000 game pieces which included food...

Wentzville home show proves popular.
April 7, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour Wentzville has become the latest mecca for homebuilders. So it was only fitting the Home Builders Association of Greater St. Louis held its Builders St. Charles-Warren-Lincoln County Home Show at the Wentzville Crossings...

Last business series seminar for Wentzville chamber.
April 8, 2004... Byline: staff The Wentzville Chamber of Commerce will hold its last "how to" seminar for small businesses from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. on Thursday, April 22, at Lindenwood University's Southern Air Campus, 1102 E. Pitman in Wentzville. The...

SBA to hear complaints in St. Louis.
April 8, 2004... Byline: staff The Small Business Administration Ombudsman Michael L. Barrera, members of the Regional Regulatory Fairness Board for Region VII and representatives of federal regulatory agencies will hear concerns and complaints about...

Lear Corp. acquires Grote & Hartmann.
April 8, 2004... Byline: staff Lear Corp., the world's largest supplier of automotive interior systems that operates a seating plant in Wentzville, announced Monday that it acquired the parent company of GHW Grote & Hartmann GmbH, a manufacturer of...

New hospital will help market county.
April 8, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask Attracting new development to O'Fallon has not been a problem during the past decade. The city has been the favorite spot of homebuilders during most of this time, with retailers following close behind. The decisions...

Globalization forum focuses on social impact.
April 8, 2004... Byline: James Monahan Globalization is about people, not exports. That was one comment that followed an Economic Policy Lecture held March 29 at Lindenwood University. Dr. Jo Kwong, director of institute relations at the Atlas...

Commentary; Witnesses and public deserve more than finger pointing on 9/11 issues.
April 9, 2004... Byline: Mike Nixon The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States - commonly called the 9/11 Commission - just held its ninth public hearing regarding the events that led up to the worst single terror attack ever on...

Local Exchange Club aids child abuse prevention.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff In an effort to address the problem of child abuse and create greater public awareness and participation, the Exchange Club of St. Charles County is participating in a National Blue Ribbon Campaign for the prevention of child...

City of O'Fallon, chamber of commerce hold ribbon cutting ceremonies.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff On Monday, March 1, the city of O'Fallon and the O'Fallon Chamber of Commerce held a ribbon-cutting ceremony for Daydreamers Salon and Spa located at 3082 WingHaven Blvd. in the Lakeside Shoppes of WingHaven. The spa offers...

Client Services eyes more sites on Truman Blvd.
April 9, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask Several more months will pass before Client Services Inc. will expand into its new office building on Truman Boulevard in St. Charles. But already the collections agency has its eyes set on a lot located next to the site...

Econ. Development Center holds memory seminar.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff The St. Charles County Economic Development Center will host a "Discovering Your Memory Power" seminar from 9 a.m. to 10 a.m. on Wednesday, April 14, at 5988 Mid Rivers Mall Drive in St. Peters. The seminar, featuring former...

SSM St. Joseph names new revenue integrity director.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff Stacy Portney has accepted the position of director of revenue integrity for SSM St. Joseph Health Center in St. Charles and SSM St. Joseph Hospital West in Lake Saint Louis, effective March 29. Portney comes to SSM St....

New medical practice established at Crossroads Regional Medical Center.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff Cindy Chu, M.D., has established her medical practice on the campus of Crossroads Regional Medical Center, a full-service medical center in Wentzville. Chu is a specialist who is board certified in both internal medicine and...

Bridgeway Counseling CEO honored for service.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff Janet S. Woodburn, president and CEO of Bridgeway Counseling Services, a multimillion dollar mental health corporation, was honored for her 25 years of service to Bridgeway by staff, community leaders, board members and...

Hazelwood & Weber announce new associates.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff Lisa M. Adams, Rebekah E. Bromberg, Jessica M. Lee-Messer and John A. Young have joined St. Charles-based Hazelwood & Weber L.L.C. as associates during the past year. Adams concentrates her practice in the real estate,...

SBC St. Charles workers involved in strike threat.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff Of the 500 employees that SBC Communications Inc. employs in St. Charles County, about 300 employees belong to the Communications Workers of America, the union group that gave SBC a 30-day notice to strike on Wednesday. Like...

State offers Rock-Tenn aid.
April 9, 2004... Byline: staff The state activated its Rapid Response Team on Thursday to help approximately 55 employees who were laid off as a result of the closing of the laminated paperboard products manufacturer Rock-Tenn Co. in Wright City. The Rapid...

Missouri state organizations offer conference for business students.
April 12, 2004... Byline: staff High school sophomores and juniors from across Missouri have until April 16 to apply for a five-day summer business conference from June 27 to July 1 at the University of Missouri-Columbia. The Missouri Business Week 2004...

Better Business Bureau investigates St. Charles-based Robert Blackford Consultants.
April 12, 2004... Byline: James Monahan The Better Business Bureau cannot right every wrong, but it can and does have an impact on the conduct of business. Recent consumer complaints concerning a local consulting firm offer a case in point. Last month...

Hallmark greeting card writers to visit St. Charles.
April 12, 2004... Byline: staff Two Hallmark greeting card writers will visit St. Charles from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m. on Tuesday, May 4, at Miss Aimee B's Tea Room, at 837 First Capitol Drive, during its visit to the St. Louis metro area. The purpose of the visit...

O'Fallon may add design review commission.
April 12, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour The city of O'Fallon tabled a bill at its Thursday night Board of Alderman meeting that would add a new Design Review Commission to its zoning code. The article will be voted on at the next meeting on April 22. The...

Interview with founder of The Newberry Group.
April 13, 2004... Byline: Wm. Stage After receiving a master's degree in business management from Webster University in 1979, Brenda Newberry worked for McDonnell Douglas as a logistics engineer and later for MasterCard. In 1996, with $1,000 and one...

Ameristar still dominates Missouri market.
April 13, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask While most casinos in Missouri and Illinois saw either declines or modest gains in revenues in March, Ameristar casinos both in St. Charles and Kansas City experienced double-digit increases last month, according to...

Count to visit wine importer in St. Peters.
April 13, 2004... Byline: staff Count Guy Tyrel de Poix of France, owner of S.E.R.V.E., Romania's first privately-owned wine-making company after the fall of Communism in 1989, will visit St. Peters later this month to sample the fruits of his partnership...

MO's Purchasing Managers Index indicates economic growth.
April 13, 2004... Byline: staff Missouri's Purchasing Managers Index reached its highest level in nearly a decade in March, thanks to strong scores in new orders, production and employment. The March PMI score for Missouri was 67.9, a sharp increase from...

Lindenwood Univ. performs economic impact study.
April 13, 2004... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Lindenwood University released a study earlier in the month that portrayed it as a major economic force in the community. In an economic impact study, performed in-house, Lindenwood concluded it has a $276.5...

GM Assembly Plant in Wentzville reports sales increase.
April 14, 2004... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Don't worry. General Motors Assembly Plant in Wentzville is doing fine. And that's good to know, considering the 3.7 million-square-foot assembly center maintains a work force of approximately 2,500...

Company marketing strategies are put to the test.
April 14, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour Does your company have an outside perception that matches the inside reality? Does your company set itself apart from the competition? Does your company understand the competition? Have you figured out a marketing...

Greater St. Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau to issue media credentials.
April 14, 2004... Byline: staff The Greater Saint Charles Convention and Visitors Bureau has sent out notice to the media announcing that it will be issuing media credentials to reporters interested in covering the National Lewis & Clark Signature Event in...

ESPW presents balancing workshop.
April 14, 2004... Byline: staff On Tuesday, April 20, ESPW will present an interactive workshop on "Balancing Work and Play." Participants will learn not only why it's important to keep both areas of their life in balance but also how to do it. The meeting...

Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital adds medical imaging.
April 14, 2004... Byline: staff Barnes-Jewish St. Peters Hospital purchased ScImage's Enterprise PACS offering, PICOMEnterprise. PACS is an integrated medical imaging information management solution that will provide the facility with image and document...

Hotel plans must be adjusted before approval.
April 15, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour Carostan Properties is hoping the height of its new seven-story hotel in WingHaven isn't too tall for regulatory officials. One of the arguments against the $17 million Clarion Choice Hotel International is that it...

New Frontier Bank closer to opening second branch.
April 15, 2004... Byline: James Monahan New Frontier Bank's expansion plans are proceeding on schedule. Six months ago, the bank announced its plans to build its second branch in St. Charles County inside the popular WingHaven community in O'Fallon....

MEMC Electronic holds silicon workshop in Oregon.
April 15, 2004... Byline: staff St. Peters-based MEMC Electronic Materials Inc. will co-sponsor the Understanding Silicon Materials Technical Workshop on May 5 to 6 in Portland, Ore. The workshop will feature high-level discussions of the latest...

Court delays phone leasing judgment.
April 15, 2004... Byline: staff The U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia agreed to delay its order to give the local telephone companies time to work out private commercial agreements for leasing the networks at wholesale prices. Legal fights...

Verizon completes national broadband roll out.
April 15, 2004... Byline: staff Verizon has completed the deployment of the company's national broadband network and plans to offer advanced data and voice services to large business, government and education customers, starting later this month. The new...

Retirement resistance adds to tight employment market.
April 16, 2004... Byline: Mike Nixon Vacation season is fast approaching, and for many aging Americans who will be taking time off work to travel or just relax around the house, a question easily emerges concerning the possibility of that temporary break...

NISC says its jobs won't go overseas.
April 16, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask There has been a great deal of talk recently about American companies outsourcing jobs to India, China and other countries. But there is one business in St. Charles County that has tried that approach and found it to be...

Salamone named assistant manager for Metro Lofts.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff Lincoln County resident Julie Salamone has joined Conrad Properties Corp. as assistant manager for Metro Lofts Apartments at 4535 Forest Park Ave. in St. Louis. In her new position, Salamone will assist with leasing and...

Deane honored as zeBlooms top seller.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff zeBlooms, a home party planning company, recently recognized Kim Deane of St. Charles as one of the company's top sellers for the first quarter of 2004. zeBlooms' independent advisers, like Deane, bring handcrafted floral...

SSM St. Joseph receives donation for adolescent psychiatry.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff Leo Marshall of Marshall Ford in O'Fallon started the ball rolling in a fund-raising campaign to rejuvenate a recreation room in the acute care adolescent psychiatry department at SSM St. Joseph Health Center in St. Charles....

St. Peters receives budget, safety awards.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff The city of St. Peters received the Distinguished Budget Presentation Award from the Government Finance Officers Association for a fifth consecutive year. The city also received a safety award for its Spencer Creek Wastewater...

St. Charles-based National Property Inspectors franchisee honored with Circle Award.
April 16, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour Robert Gould, owner of National Property Inspectors in St. Charles County, recently received the President's Circle Award for outstanding sales in his division. Gould received the award from the NPI franchisor, a home and...

St. Charles-based LMI Aerospace reports sales decrease.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff St. Charles-based LMI Aerospace Inc., a leading provider of assemblies, kits and detail sheet metal, and machined components, reported a 6.8 percent decrease in net sales for the year 2003 compared to 2002. LMI's net income...

St. Charles Community College to hold annual job fair.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff The St. Charles Community College will hold it annual job fair from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday, May 7, at the college campus, 4601 Mid Rivers Mall Drive in Cottleville. The event is free and open to the public. Job Fair 2004...

Nash joins St. Louis-based CLB Designs.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff Linda Nash has joined St. Louis-based CLB Designs as the director of business development. A resident of St. Charles with nearly of 25 years in the interior design industry, Nash is responsible for expanding the firm's...

Arnold reappointed to Missouri Emergency Response Commission.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff Chief Robert "Steve" Arnold of O'Fallon was reappointed by Gov. Bob Holden on Wednesday to the Missouri Emergency Response Commission. Arnold is currently the fire chief of the Pattonville Bridgeton Terrace Fire Protection...

St. Charles Community College Foundation awards grants.
April 16, 2004... Byline: staff The St. Charles Community College Foundation recently awarded $9,000 in grant money for seven projects initiated by SCC staff and faculty to benefit students. Campus services was awarded a $2,200 grant for training students...

St. Charles Business Briefs April 19, 2004.
April 19, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask That's entertainment: For all the growth O'Fallon has experienced during the past decade, the city still does not have a movie theater. That may be changing in the near future, according to Libbey Simpson, O'Fallon's...

First National Bank adds O'Fallon branch.
April 19, 2004... Byline: James Monahan In 1997, First National Bank of St. Louis opened its O'Fallon branch at the intersection of Highways K and N. Since then, deposits there have grown to $50 million. Building on that success, on Monday, April 19,...

Companies to observe Administrative Professional Day.
April 19, 2004... Byline: Amy Amour This week, companies across the nation will observe Administrative Professionals Week, with a special acknowledgment on Administrative Professional Day on Wednesday, April 21. The annual event, originally organized as...

St. Charles County's labor market rebounds in March.
April 20, 2004... Byline: Mike Trask St. Charles County and other portions of the St. Louis metropolitan area saw the job market rebound nicely in March, according to the latest figures released by the Missouri Department of Economic Development. The...

LMI Aerospace must improve its operating.
April 20, 2004... Byline: Kathleen T. Brady Improve operating performance. That's what it's going to take to keep one manufacturing company in St. Charles County afloat. When LMI Aerospace Inc. filed its 2003 fiscal year report on Wednesday, April 14,...

Interview with executive chef at Ameristar Casino.
April 20, 2004... Byline: Wm. Stage Jeff Astemborski, 37, joined Ameristar Casino St. Charles in June 2002 as assistant executive chef and was soon promoted to executive chef. He oversees the casino's seven diverse dining venues, 11 kitchens and...

Partners for Progress wins award.
April 20, 2004... Byline: staff Partners for Progress of St. Charles County has been awarded the 2004 International Crystal Award of Excellence for its "St. Charles County in the News" print campaign. Partners for Progress was selected as a first-place...