Business Journal-Portland articles from December 1998

Business Journal-Portland archives from December 1998

Sequent bolsters board, targets growth markets.(Sequent Computer Systems Inc)
December 4, 1998... Sequent Computer Systems Inc. has appointed two highly regarded financial and professional services veterans to its board, and, in doing so, has given Wall Street a clear indication of its strategic direction. The company announced Tuesday...

Big legal guns drawn in GST board dispute.(GST Telecommunications Inc)
December 4, 1998... The warring parties at GST Telecommunications Inc. have been busily lining up their top-gun attorneys from A-list California law firms. And as they do so, the party lines are becoming clearer. Example: According to one of the attorneys...

Port considering selling its shipyard for $38.8M.(Port of Portland)
December 4, 1998... The Port of Portland will float a proposal to sell the Portland Ship Yard for $38.8 million. Port officials have released the terms of the proposed deal to sell the 94-acre shipyard to Cascade General Corp., the shipyard's private operator...

Churchill defendants cop a plea, but not Reimer.(Churchill Companies Inc; former Churchill VP Steven Reimer)
December 4, 1998... As federal prosecutors attack the legacy of Vancouver's Churchill Cos. Inc. in a Spokane, Wash., courtroom, some of the defendants in the investment fraud case have agreed to plea bargains. Two investment promoters affiliated with Churchill...

Imagina switches focus to software development.
December 4, 1998... Imagina has been many things during its brief life, and now it's getting back to basics by focusing on software development. Founded in 1995, the company started as an internet service provider, then created, marketed and supported some...

Californian envisions Klamath Falls airline.(tax preparer Steve Maxham's planned commuter airline Oregon Express)
December 4, 1998... Hatching plans from his office in Whittier, Calif., tax preparer Steve Maxham wants to form a commuter airline based in Klamath Falls. Maxham has filed an initial application with the Federal Aviation Administration to operate Oregon...

Keith Kullberg.(profile of STEP Technology president)
December 4, 1998... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: Keith Kullberg Organization: STEP Technology Title: President What we do: STEP is a contract development center for advanced software solutions focused on three areas: internet solutions...

Honey, I ate the kids.(West Coast Bancorp Pres and CEO Vic Bartruff)
December 4, 1998... Can West Coast's Vic Bartruff make five banks work as one? Vic Bartruff knew he would eventually pull the trigger on West Coast Bancorp's five subsidiary banks. He just pulled it sooner than he expected. Studying the tea leaves this...

Local firms take work into international arena.(Portland, OR, architectural firm)
December 4, 1998... Yost Grube Hall has the most foreign contracts by far of any architecture firm in the city. Driven by Joachim Grube, the firm's German-born partner and principal force behind the overseas expansion, YGH is active in countries ranging from...

The muscle to thrive.(Oregon School of Massage)
December 4, 1998... The Oregon School of Massage accepts a challenge by acquiring a financially-strapped Salem school For Ray Siderius, the rub is the business. Siderius is president and owner of the Oregon School of Massage, an enterprise he started from...

Quickturn gets final word with Mentor.(Quickturn Design Systems Inc.; Mentor Graphics Corp.)
December 11, 1998... Pictures of Mentor Graphics Corp.'s chief executive officer are popular items at Quickturn Design Systems Inc., the target of a hostile takeover by Mentor. But Mentor CEO Wally Rhines probably wouldn't approve of the way a photograph of...

MedPartners to unload physician practice unit.
December 11, 1998... Dr. David Klubert had seen the writing on the wall. But that did not lessen the shock he felt when MedPartners Inc. president and CEO Mac Crawford called to say that the parent company planned to divest itself of its physician practice work....

Card Capture expands north, south of border.(Card Capture Services Inc.)
December 11, 1998... ATM distributor Card Capture Services Inc. has launched its first international foray by opening offices in Canada and Mexico. The privately held Portland company, which took in 1997 revenue of $27 million, said the two cross-border...

Ex-Microsoft exec Bill Miller joins local VC.(venture capital firm Olympic Venture Partners)
December 11, 1998... Trying to gain an edge in evaluating internet businesses, Olympic Venture Partners has brought on board former Microsoft Corp. executive Bill Miller as an investment partner. The other three partners at Olympic, a dominant venture capital...

Microfield Graphics begins search for more funds.
December 11, 1998... Microfield Graphics Inc. has raised a red flag and signaled that it is looking for money, At least that's the implication of a statement in a quarterly report filed by Microfield Nov. 16. The Portland company makes computer conferencing...

HealthFirst wants to leave PPI.(Physician Partners Inc.)
December 11, 1998... HealthFirst Inc. is trying to negotiate its way out of Physician Partners Inc., a joint venture created in early 1997 by the Portland doctors in alliance with physicians in Medford and Corvallis. Meanwhile, Physician Partners is trying to...

Safeco Corp. set to sell Washington Square Mall.
December 11, 1998... Safeco Corp. is selling a portfolio of four Northwest malls, including Washington Square Mall in Tigard, to a joint venture composed of the publicly-traded Macerich Co. and the Ontario Teachers' Pension Plan. The three other properties,...

AG's pact with Fleming could sour United deal.(Associated Grocers; United Grocers)
December 11, 1998... The region's leading food wholesaler, Associated Grocers, has teamed with national giant Fleming Cos. in a bid to strengthen business sapped by supermarket consolidations. But the move may have soured Associated's proposed deal with...

It's Boeing's weak margins that worry analysts.
December 11, 1998... On Wall Street, analysts are more worried about The Boeing Co.'s weak margins than its slowing production rates or big layoffs. While manufacturers' stock prices often rise on layoff news, Boeing's stock dropped nearly 7 points or 17...

Strategic connections: unfazed by a tough market, Praegitzer pushes ahead.(Corporate Strategies)(Praegitzer Industries Inc.)
December 11, 1998... Unfazed by a tough market, Praegitzer pushes ahead Praegitzer Industries Inc. stood out from most of its peers in 1998 for two very simple, but also very important, reasons: 1) It made money and 2) it increased revenue during a brutal year....

Cleaning with coconuts.(Small Business)(Bi-O-Kleen Industries Inc.)
December 11, 1998... James Rimer's brainstorm for a new business started when he thought about the many complaints he heard concerning cleaning products he once peddled to hospitals, restaurants and hotels. "People talked of headaches, rashes and a variety of...

Mentor boldly raises stakes.(Mentor Graphics Corp. in bidding war with Cadence Design Systems Inc. over Quickturn Design Systems Inc.)
December 18, 1998... Mentor Graphics Corp.'s bid for marketplace and courtroom rival Quickturn Design Systems Inc. went from hostile to dangerous this week when it decided to challenge the other bidder, Cadence Design Systems Inc. By increasing the stakes in...

GST law firm, director sued for malpractice.(GST Telecommunications Inc. sues director Stephen Irwin and Olshan Grundman Frome Rosenzweig and Owens)
December 18, 1998... GST Telecommunications Inc. has filed a $250 million-plus malpractice lawsuit against a current director and his New York City law firm. The Vancouver telecommunications company is alleging that Stephen Irwin, who has served as the board's...

AZ store decision offers glimpse of Korger plan.(Smitty's supermarket chain to be renamed Fred Meyer Marketplace stores)
December 18, 1998... Early fall-out from Kroger Co.'s planned acquisition of Fred Meyer is taking place in Arizona, the only market where the two companies' operations significantly overlap. The upshot is that the Fred Meyer appear in new markets. Plans now...

Nature's founder Stan Amy steps back as retailer begins expansion.(Nature's Northwest)
December 18, 1998... Natural foods grocer Nature's Northwest is readying a major expansion, even as long-time president Stan Amy lessens his involvement in the company. At the start of December, Amy relinquished the title of president to become chairman of the...

The greening of Neil Kelly; Tom Kelly believes the future lies with the natural step.(Neil Kelly Co.)
December 18, 1998... Tom Kelly figures he eventually would've gone to work for the Neil Kelly Co. even if he hadn't wrecked his father's car. What happened was this: The young Kelly was out driving the old man's car around, and accidently totaled it. His...

Portland Brewing girds kilts for war.(new marketing campaign for craft beer)
December 25, 1998... Portland Brewing Co. has developed a new pitch to sell its beers in the increasingly uncertain craft beer marketplace. Baseball cards featuring medal-winning athlete and company founder Robert "Mac" MacTarnahan - a canny promotion for...

GST investment set up to fail, lawsuit alleges.(GST Telecommunications Inc)
December 25, 1998... GST Telecommunications Inc.'s $15 million relationship with Magnacom, a company controlled by GST's former chief executive and board chairman, is again being questioned - this time in a new lawsuit filed by the Vancouver telecommunications...

Exchange rate, wage cuts lure filmmakers up north.(Oregon's film and video industry)
December 25, 1998... Oregon's film and video industry wants to bring back the lights, camera, action! from Canadian competitors, which are using powerful incentives to attract filmmakers north of the U.S. border. Movie and television producers from the United...

American sake brewer is on its own, ready to flavor its product.(Japan America Beverage Co)
December 25, 1998... Japan America Beverage Co. has undergone a restructuring that puts Americans in control of the Forest Grove sake brewery. Now the start-up company, founded by entrepreneur Griffith Frost in partnership with Momokawa Brewing of Japan, must...

Hot real estate market tough on affordable set.(Portland, OR)
December 25, 1998... The growing need for affordable housing in Portland neighborhoods has community development corporations and their funders questioning their ability to sustain a fundamental service as markets change and resources dwindle. For Karen Voiss,...

In Focus heralds new partnership with Microsoft.(In Focus Systems Inc)
December 25, 1998... In Focus Systems Inc. is hoping that Microsoft Corp. can do for In Focus projectors what it did for Hewlett-Packard printers. The Wilsonville projector company announced earlier this month that it had co-developed with Microsoft an embedded...

Portland Brewing girds kilts for war.(new marketing campaign for craft beer)
December 25, 1998... Portland Brewing Co. has developed a new pitch to sell its beers in the increasingly uncertain craft beer marketplace. Baseball cards featuring medal-winning athlete and company founder Robert "Mac" MacTarnahan - a canny promotion for...

GST investment set up to fail, lawsuit alleges.(GST Telecommunications Inc)
December 25, 1998... GST Telecommunications Inc.'s $15 million relationship with Magnacom, a company controlled by GST's former chief executive and board chairman, is again being questioned - this time in a new lawsuit filed by the Vancouver telecommunications...

Exchange rate, wage cuts lure filmmakers up north.(Oregon's film and video industry)
December 25, 1998... Oregon's film and video industry wants to bring back the lights, camera, action! from Canadian competitors, which are using powerful incentives to attract filmmakers north of the U.S. border. Movie and television producers from the United...

American sake brewer is on its own, ready to flavor its product.(Japan America Beverage Co)
December 25, 1998... Japan America Beverage Co. has undergone a restructuring that puts Americans in control of the Forest Grove sake brewery. Now the start-up company, founded by entrepreneur Griffith Frost in partnership with Momokawa Brewing of Japan, must...

Hot real estate market tough on affordable set.(Portland, OR)
December 25, 1998... The growing need for affordable housing in Portland neighborhoods has community development corporations and their funders questioning their ability to sustain a fundamental service as markets change and resources dwindle. For Karen Voiss,...

In Focus heralds new partnership with Microsoft.(In Focus Systems Inc)
December 25, 1998... In Focus Systems Inc. is hoping that Microsoft Corp. can do for In Focus projectors what it did for Hewlett-Packard printers. The Wilsonville projector company announced earlier this month that it had co-developed with Microsoft an embedded...

Portland's marketing divas.(Diva Marketing LLC)
December 25, 1998... Two women with impressive resumes merge the skills they honed at H-P and PrintPaks to offer marketing clout for hire. Stop by the Northwest Portland offices of Diva Marketing LLC and you'll probably want to stay awhile. The sea green...

Solid client list keeps the Divas marketing hard.(Diva Marketing LLC's clients)
December 25, 1998... Diva Marketing, a Portland-based firm that's approaching its first anniversary, already has something to celebrate: a client roster of diverse accounts. Some of Diva's current clients include: * JBL&K Risk Management and Consulting: Diva is...