Business Journal-Portland articles from April 1999

Business Journal-Portland archives from April 1999

Car rental tax fuels OCC expansion.(Oregon Convention Center)
April 2, 1999... Despite concerns that they'll drive away rental customers, local auto rental firms have agreed to an industry tax hike to help finance an $85 million expansion of the Oregon Convention Center. The tax on car rentals - from 10 percent to...

Downtowners protest probation office site.(Portland, Oregon)
April 2, 1999... Downtown businesses are fuming over a planned new probation office at Southwest Fifth Avenue and Washington Street that could draw an estimated 200 corrections "clients" daily to the heart of the high-rent district. The Association for...

Courtships of In Focus, Lightware by Compaq Corp. end.(In Focus Systems Inc.)
April 2, 1999... It was good news, bad news for In Focus Systems Inc. on the partnering front. The U.S. leader in projection display systems landed Kodak as a partner, but lost a chance to partner with Compaq Computer Corp. Both In Focus and Lightware...

Pope & Talbot claims Canada violates NAFTA.(North American Free Trade Agreement)
April 2, 1999... Pope & Talbot Inc., a Portland-based wood products company, has filed a claim against the government of Canada for alleged violations of the North American Free Trade Agreement, company officials said. The company seeks damages and...

Seattle-based Car Toys finds its dream partner.
April 2, 1999... Car Toys has fueled up for future growth by taking on a minority equity partner, Boston-based TA Associates. The move is part of a recapitalization plan finalized this week by the Seattle-based retailer, which specializes in car audio systems...

In a rare case, attorney sued by doctor who lost.(dermatologist Timothy Brown files case against Daniel Gatti)
April 2, 1999... In what local legal officials are calling a rare case, a Portland dermatologist: has filed a $10 million defamation lawsuit against a Salem attorney who has successfully sued the doctor. Last month, Daniel Gatti, of Gatti Gatti Maier...

Computer equipment fraud hits Hewlett-Packard.
April 2, 1999... The Sacramento Valley Hi-Tech Crimes Task Force is close to, finishing a seven-month criminal investigation of allegedly widespread fraud in the sale of used computer equipment over the past six years. The fraud allegedly has hit hard at...

Randolph Miller.(chairman of Moore Co.)
April 2, 1999... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: Randolph (Randy) L. Miller Organization: The Moore Co. Title: Chairman What we do: Wholesale distribution and e-commerce fulfillment of various brands of consumer electronics, computer and...

Belt cinching trims the fat.(reorganization of Barrett Business Services Inc.)
April 2, 1999... Barrett Business Services Inc. divides to conquer its growth In November 1997, executives at Barrett Business Services Inc. thought they had put some unpleasant earnings surprises behind them. They implemented some accounting changes,...

Celebrated Hanna case finally closes.(Focus on Finance)(Hanna Car Wash International)
April 2, 1999... After eight years. the U.S. Bankruptcy Court has finally brought to a close the case of Daniel C. Hanna's car wash empire, one of the largest and most complicated bankruptcies in Portland history In late February, the court issued a decree...

Turning organics green.(Small Business)(profile on Organicare Inc. of Portland, Oregon)(Company Profile)
April 2, 1999... Paul Drake is a pioneer among lawn-care professionals. He quit managing a Los Angeles chemical company about 11 years ago and came to Portland to start Organicare Inc., an environmentally friendly lawn-care service. At the time, he had $3,000...

State politics play havoc with Port.(Port of Portland)
April 9, 1999... The changing of the guard at the Port of Portland commission continues to be stalled by a political battle between the governor's office and the Republican leadership in the state Senate. Gov. John Kitzhaber, in keeping with his policy of...

Short-haul strategy aims to long-haul prosperity.(Portland and Western Railroad)
April 9, 1999... Portland & Western Railroad will soon begin hauling cargo between Portland and Astoria on a rebuilt rail line it owns, leading the way for more industrial development on the North Coast. The railroad, a subsidiary of publicly held Genesee &...

U.S. Bank primed to sell more DT property.(downtown Portland)
April 9, 1999... For the second time this year, U.S. Bank is selling a full block of downtown Portland buildings. The most recent block, which includes the 12-story Wells Fargo Building, will hit the market next month. It is bounded. by Southwest Sixth...

NW Natural's status in flux following regulatory slam.
April 9, 1999... Wall Street is worried about NW Natural's long-term viability as an independent company following a recommendation by Oregon Public Utility Commission staff that the gas distribution company sharply decrease its revenue. "If upheld, (the...

Group intends to go rural with cellular phones.
April 9, 1999... A consortium of small telephone and utility companies is expecting to find profits - and strength - in numbers as it embarks on an ambitious $60 million plan to bring cellular phone service to rural Oregon and Washington. Washington Oregon...

Analysts not worried about GST's legal battles.(GST Telecommunications Inc.)
April 9, 1999... Wall Street is beginning to pay attention to GST Telecommunications Inc.'s mounting legal battles, but so far the attention has not turned to concern. Recent research reports from Wall Street analysts have devoted a few paragraphs to the...

Boeing computers set to leave 20th century behind.(Boeing Co.'s Commercial Airplane Group)
April 9, 1999... After a temporary delay, The Boeing Co.'s Commercial Airplane Group is back at the task of streamlining its ancient, convoluted tangle of computer systems that track jetliner production parts. The daunting conversion to a simpler, more...

Alessandro Mina.(president and CEO of Cameraworld.com)
April 9, 1999... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: Alessandro Mina Organization: Cameraworld.com (Camera World Co.) Title: President & CEO What we do: Sell cameras, camcorders, TVs and electronics; we are also transforming a retail business into an...

Intel's Mr. Paranoia.(Craig Barrett, CEO of Intel Corp.)
April 9, 1999... Craig Barrett succeeds by looking over his shoulder Craig Barrett wants to register a formal complaint. "I hate your typing," says Barrett. "It's driving me nuts. . . . Let the record show that he's typing on a noisy Mac." Intel...

Just how far out of line is US West's service?(US West Oregon)
April 9, 1999... US West Oregon had one of the worst service records in the nation in 1997, and that's no surprise to anyone who's noticed how often "poor service" and "quality problems" precede any mention of the behemoth phone company. Critics have...

800.com hits the jackpot.(major investment firms to invest in the Internet retailer)
April 16, 1999... Major Northwest and Silicon Valley investment firms, including Paul Allen's Vulcan Ventures, will invest $16 million in internet retailer 800.com. The investment is said to be the largest round of venture capital ever received by a Portland...

Breaking up (ships) is hard to do - safely.(includes related article on approval by the Port of Portland)(Cascade General Inc.'s attempt to be part of the ship decommissioning mission of the US Navy)
April 16, 1999... Cascade General Inc., operator of the Portland Ship Yard, wants to be part of a U.S. Navy program to develop new ways to turn decommissioned warships into scrap metal and end the nightmarish problems associated with the ship-scrapping industry....

Methadone clinics getting serious as heroin use up.(Portland, Oregon)
April 16, 1999... Because the Portland area is home for a growing number of heroin addicts, methadone clinics have increased and are becoming more mainstream. They are now operated more on conventional business models, rather than the traditional social service...

Office Depot negotiates for Future Shop's former digs.
April 16, 1999... Office Depot appears headed for the downtown core. Nobody directly involved in the deal would discuss the discount retailer's impending arrival. But sources aware of the negotiations said the world's largest seller of office products will...

Miller Nash boss says no to merger rumor.
April 16, 1999... Rumor has it that Miller Nash, or at least a few of the firm's major practice areas, will merge with Perkins Coie. John Burns, Miller Nash managing partner, said there is no truth to the rumor whatsoever. There have been no discussions...

Mentor's '98 affair with Quickturn costs $19.3M.(Mentor Graphics Corp.; Quickturn Design Systems Inc.)
April 16, 1999... Mentor Graphics Corp.'s unsuccessful pursuit of a "nit" cost the company $9 million in direct acquisition costs and another $10.3 million in ongoing patent litigation with the acquisition target, according to Mentor's recently filed 10-K...

Nike's apparel troubles shared by many others.
April 16, 1999... Even with reorganization on the way, Nike Inc. could have a tough time convincing consumers that its clothes make the athlete, too. The Beaverton-based company is expected to restructure its retail and apparel divisions by next month....

Borders' founder targets internet grocery market.(Louis Borders, co-founder of the Borders Books an Music retail chain)
April 16, 1999... The virtual grocery industry seems on the verge of exploding on the West Coast. And Portland may be host to one of the key turf battles. Louis Borders, co-founder of the Borders Books & Music retail chain, is set to launch an ambitious...

Trader Joe's is trading up; the off-beat retailer adopts new merchandising tactics.(Company Profile)
April 16, 1999... After gingerly stepping into Oregon four years ago, specialty retailer Trader Joe's Inc. is embarking on a round of expansion here. It's not that the quirky, Southern California grocer was taking a break from growth. But it had focused...

Hilton ready to build on bus site.(Hilton Corp. to expand the Portland Hilton Executive Tower)
April 23, 1999... Plans Tot Hilton Corp. to expand its downtown hotel into the state's biggest public lodging house are beginning to crystallize, according to joint venture partner Melvin Mark Development Co. Melvin Mark president Dan Petrusich this week...

Stealth target may fill gap in Mentor's product line.(Mentor Graphics Corp. acquires CLK Computer-Aided Design Inc.)
April 23, 1999... Mentor Graphics Corp. wanted to keep its latest acquisition tinder wraps, but the wrapping paper tore enough to give a glimpse of what's inside the package. What's there could he tantalizing, said a trio of analysts who follow the...

Will retailers strike back as new Star Wars debuts?(includes related articles)
April 23, 1999... The May release of licensed Star Wars merchandise, and, oh yes, an accompanying blockbuster film, has local retailers thanking their lucky stars. They're ready to do battle for their piece of the estimated $2 billion worth of Star Wars-related...

Movin' on up: Port hires board member.(Port of Portland hires Robert Cook as manager of navigation services)
April 23, 1999... The Port of Portland has hired an expert in the arcane craft of dredging and lost a commissioner in the process. Port officials confirmed that Robert Cook, a port commissioner since October 1995, has resigned his unpaid position to take a...

Bar pilots want free ride and extra income.(Columbia River bar pilots)
April 23, 1999... The Columbia River bar pilots and steamship operators, who depend on the pilots' skills to guide their ships through dangerous waters, have clashed in a titanic dispute over money. Licensed and regulated by the state, the bar pilots charge...

Gunderson expands its barge business to East.(Gunderson Inc. enters Gulf Coast and East Coast markets)
April 23, 1999... For the first time in its 83-year history, Gunderson Inc.'s marine department is barging into the Gulf Coast and East Coast markets. The Portland subsidiary of The Greenbrier Cos., which is best known for building rail cars, has until...

Manufacturer of wafer tools get $3M infusion.(Cascade Microtech Inc.)
April 23, 1999... Cascade Microtech Inc. is expanding its manufacturing capacity thanks in large part to Hewlett-Packard Co. The Beaverton-based maker of wafer probe tools used by the semiconductor industry plans to use much of the $3 million investment it...

Washington Federal ready for Pinkerton to retire.(Washington Federal Savings CEO Guy Pinkerton to be replaced by Roy Whitehead)
April 23, 1999... Washington Federal Savings has promoted newcomer Roy Whitehead to president and confirmed that he's in line to succeed Guy Pinkerton as CEO when the 64-year-old retires. "I'll stick around until he's totally familiar with the way it's been...

BofA ready to launch online bill-paying service.
April 23, 1999... Forget about that annoying pile of paper bills. Bank of America is testing a system that will eventually allow consumers to view and pay bills through the bank's online banking service. The pilot program began in late March and will soon...

ThrustMaster's iConference to join internet.
April 23, 1999... ThrustMaster Inc. is beginning its first foray outside the game world with an internet conferencing product aimed at the home- and small-business markets. And at first blush, Wall Street likes what it sees. iConference will be introduced...

Alternative success story.(newspaper Willamette Week profitable again after years of losses)
April 23, 1999... After years of red ink, Willamette Week is back in black As it celebrates its 25th year on the Portland journalistic scene, Willamette Week, with its iconoclastic brand of journalism, is thriving. Just look at the numbers. For WW's fiscal...

No middle ground when it comes to Willy Week.(the Willamette Week newspaper)
April 23, 1999... For 25 years now, Willamette Week has nurtured a love-hate relationship with Portlanders. Talk to anyone who reads or has been the subject of a piece in the "news-with-an-attitude" weekly and you'll get a strong opinion. Politicians, often...

Naito asks state to fix feuds.(Tarlow Jordan & Schrader attorney Steve Naito's legislative proposal on protecting the rights of minority shareholders)
April 30, 1999... Fresh from a bitter court battle with his late father's brother, Steve Naito is now butting heads with his fellow members of the Oregon State Bar. Naito, an attorney with Tarlow Jordan & Schrader, has submitted a proposal to state...

Lim says, Why not a superport in Astoria?(Sen. John Lim's bill urging for a task force to study alternatives to the Columbia River channel deepening project)
April 30, 1999... Sen, John Lim, R-Gresham, has sponsored a bill that calls for a governor-appointed task force to study alternatives to deepening the Columbia River navigation channel, including building a seaport just east of Astoria near Tongue Point. ...

As Second Story's go, this one is worth repeating.(Second Story Interactive Design)
April 30, 1999... Brad Johnson and Julie Beeler of Second Story Interactive Design are among the best in the world at telling a story using the web, say their clients. But the two principals are most interested in a different story - the "second story" from...

Blockbuster buys Moyer's video chain, seeks more.(Blockbuster Video; Moyer's First Stop Video)
April 30, 1999... Blockbuster Video is mounting a show of strength in the Pacific Northwest, taking on rival Hollywood Video in Hollywood's own backyard. After January's buy-out of its Northwest franchisee, Blockbuster Entertainment Group has acquired the...

E-commerce company gets $3M infusion.(Chrome Data Corp.)
April 30, 1999... Chrome Data Corp., an Oregon City-based company that has developed technology for true consumer-based e-commerce in the auto industry, has landed a $3 million round of financing from New York-based Holding Capital Group Inc. The money, in...

Lawsuit challenges Oregon's referendum process.
April 30, 1999... Larry Tuttle wants to return power to the people. Tuttle and other proponents of the state initiative process, including the American Constitutional Law Foundation and Don McIntire, the author of Measure 5, have filed a lawsuit in the U.S....

Microsoft seeks $600M stake in Sapient buyer.
April 30, 1999... Microsoft Corp. would invest more than $600 million in Atlanta's WebMD if its pursuit of a minority stake in the online health care company succeeds, more than twice the amount of money reported in news stories earlier this month, said a WebMD...

Hayden Island complex to be made into condos.(Columbia Point Apartments)
April 30, 1999... A group of investors purchased Hayden Island's Columbia Point Apartments this week for $14 million, and will invest an additional $3 million to convert the 10-building, 175-unit development to condominiums. The group, including Ken Novak,...

Bent on widening The Hoop: investors, change in focus lead to ambitious expansion plans.(The Hoop USA)
April 30, 1999... Investors, change in focus lead to ambitious expansion plans The Hoop USA is back on the court, and ready to play. In a big way. Following an 18-month effort to revamp its business plan, company president Larry Steele said this week the...

Thinking big, staying small.(MacKenzie Kesselring Inc.)
April 30, 1999... Lisa MacKenzie and Leslie Kesselring were e-mail maniacs before many of us could even figure out how to log on. They had to be. As partners in MacKenzie Kesselring Inc., a high-tech public relations shop, their offices were more than 750...