Business Journal-Portland articles from November 1998

Business Journal-Portland archives from November 1998

Space in North Macadam only for rich?(Portland, OR)
November 6, 1998... Without significant public subsidy to offset extraordinary pre-development costs, North Macadam will be developed with a decidedly high-end suburban flavor, according to a just-completed residential and commercial market evaluation. ...

GST's largess was earned, Warta says.(GST Telecommunications Inc. former CEO John Warta)
November 6, 1998... John Warta, then chief executive officer of GST Telecommunications Inc., enjoyed a good 1997. In a year when GST lost $113 million, Warta made more than $700,000 - all with the approval of the board of directors. Along with five other...

Export of Ohio-spawned Hondas makes Port happy.(American Honda Motor Co.; Port of Portland)
November 6, 1998... After getting off to a slow start this year, American Honda Motor Co. Inc.'s automobile exports have come roaring back at the Port of Portland. Honda Sabers and Inspires, models made in Marysville, Ohio, and sold exclusively in Japan, are...

Retail chains want to party at local independents' expense.(tightening competition among Portland, OR's party stores)
November 6, 1998... Another major player is about to crash Portland's party store bash, further tightening competition for the host and hostess' dollar. Party Concepts Inc., the Wisconsin-based retailer spun off this year from greeting-card maker Gibson...

Convention officials have to regroup.(public's rejection of funding for Oregon Convention Center)
November 6, 1998... Tourism and convention officials are now pondering alternatives for financing an expansion of the Oregon Convention Center, in the wake of the public's forceful rejection of an $82 million bond measure for the project. Officials said they...

Nike's accent on women extends to underwear.
November 6, 1998... Nike's swoosh is about to go under cover. The Beaverton-based sneaker and apparel company has teamed with Vanity Fair Corp. of Greensboro, N.C., to make and market bras and underwear with the Nike brand name. The six performance bras...

Financing woes stop Seattle, Bellevue skyscrapers.(real estate projects in Washington State)
November 6, 1998... Sudden disarray in the capital markets has put the brakes on several major Seattle-area real estate projects. Big developments such as the proposed downtown Seattle skyscraper called Madison Financial Center, and the Meydenbauer Place...

Freightliner rival Paccar just keeps rolling along.(record sales and earnings)
November 6, 1998... From the vantage point of Paccar Inc., there might as well not even be an Asian crisis. The Bellevue-based truck builder just turned in record sales and earnings for the third quarter, and is driving toward a second consecutive record...

Filterning Internet content paying off for RuleSpace.
November 6, 1998... RuleSpace, formerly known as Webco, just closed its initial funding round after meeting its goal of $1.1 million in investment. That positions the fast-growing internet content filtering company to accelerate its development and take its...

Steady Eddie's getting hot; Timberline Software's blocking and tackling pays off bigtime.(Corporate Strategies)
November 6, 1998... Timberline Software Corp. can't seem to do anything wrong these days. The 27-year-old maker of software for the construction and property management industries is enjoying a great 1998. The Beaverton-based company is basking in the glow of...

Firm takes screen savers to the limit.(Copernicus Software)
November 6, 1998... Copernicus Software found its salvation with screen savers. The 4-year-old Lake Oswego software company was founded by two refugees from Central Point Software and a publishing industry veteran with the idea of creating stock photo CD-ROMs. ...

Adidas tightens grip on U.S. market.
November 13, 1998... Cool could be coming to an end for adidas-Salomon AG. In most of its international markets the German company's momentum shows signs of slowing. But the footwear and apparel giant's lackluster worldwide showing stands in stark contrast to...

Bankruptcy of Warta firm could cost GST millions.(John Warta; GST Telecommunications Inc.)
November 13, 1998... A company run and controlled by GST Telecommunication's former CEO has declared bankruptcy, with GST facing the possible loss of millions of dollars it funneled into the venture. Magnacorn Wireless LLC, a Vancouver telecommunications...

Reser's, Salem distributor team to test limits of tortilla market.(Reser's Fine Foods Inc.)
November 13, 1998... Reser's Fine Foods Inc., a Beaverton-based food processor and distributor with over $200 million in annual sales, has joined forces with Salem's Puentes Brothers Inc. in an effort to take a larger bite out of the tortilla market. The...

QualMed may be feeling like a stepchild.
November 13, 1998... QualMed of Oregon seems destined to remain the poor stepchild of its parent, Foundation Health Systems. Foundation has made it clear that the undistinguished Oregon operations aren't among its "core" offerings in California, Arizona,...

Law group set up for food-beverage industry.(Bullivant Houser Bailey)
November 13, 1998... It's not exactly what you'd call McService. But the idea behind Bullivant Houser Bailey's new food and beverage industry practice group is to provide speedier and more efficient counsel for clients, like McDonald's. "It's one-stop shopping...

Merger likely to strengthen Harris Transportation.
November 13, 1998... After hauling gasoline and jet fuel as an independent petroleum carrier for decades, Portland's Harris Transportation Co. has formed a joint venture with trucking giant Trimac Corp. The deal will create a new entity with 43 tanker trucks...

Despite losses, analysts applaud GST's third-quarter returns.(GST Telecommunications Inc.)
November 13, 1998... GST Telecommunications posted solid third-quarter numbers that may have helped convince Wall Street that the Vancouver telecommunications company is headed in the right direction. "We are focused on a winning strategy," said Joe Basile,...

Sonus sounds the charge.
November 13, 1998... Thirty-year-old Brandon Dawson slicks back his blond hair, perhaps to make himself look old enough to be in charge of the fastgrowing Sonus Corp., a publicly held consolidator of hearing clinics with $22 million in revenues last year. But...

Bowflex to muscle up with Nautilus.(Direct Focus Inc. to acquire Delta Woodside Industries Inc.'s Nautilus line of exercise equipment)(Brief Article)
November 20, 1998... Intending to put more muscle behind its direct marketing efforts, Vancouver's Direct Focus Inc. will buy the Nautilus line of exercise equipment for $19 million. Direct Focus, the publicly traded producer of Bowflex fitness machines,...

Old paperwork be damned at Regence.(Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon implements automated enrollment program)
November 20, 1998... Oregon's largest health insurer is piloting an automated enrollment program it hopes will offer it a competitive edge in reducing paperwork and eventually position it for internet-based commerce. Regence BlueCross BlueShield of Oregon is...

Deep E Co.'s dark shade of green turning a little brown.(shoe company's business strategy)(Company Profile)
November 20, 1998... Deep E Co. is about to deep-six its corporate strategy to grow slowly and stick with mostly green markets. The Portland-based, eco-sensitive shoe company has hired a new management team, begun an intensive marketing campaign and launched...

Industry rumors have Stroh trying to sell Blitz-Weinhard.(Stroh Brewery Co. to sell brewery in Portland, Oregon)
November 20, 1998... Stroh Brewery Co., owner of the landmark Blitz-Weinhard brewery in Portland, may have more fermenting behind the scenes than beer. The brewing industry is abuzz with speculation about Detroit-based Stroh's future - a future that could...

Port considers sale of shipyard to Cascade Gen.(Port of Portland to sell shipyard to Cascade General Corp.)
November 20, 1998... A deal that could lead to the sale of the publicly owned Portland Shipyard to Cascade General Corp. may soon be in the hands of Port of Portland staff, who have been discussing the proposal for more than a year. "If things keep going...

Projector maker Lightware teams up with Proxima.
November 20, 1998... Lightware Inc., a Beaverton-based maker of projection devices, is teaming up with industry heavyweight Proxima Corp. in a deal that will give it access to a fast-growing distribution channel and allow San Diego, Calif.-based Proxima to compete...

Flir System's strategy pays off in third quarter.(thermal imaging and broadcast systems manufacturer's income for 3rd qtr 1998)(Company Profile)
November 20, 1998... Flir System Inc.'s strong third-quarter numbers and a strategy that appears to be paying off handsomely has attracted Wall Street's favor, company officials and analysts say. The Portland-maker of thermal imaging and broadcast camera...

Itin's mini conglomerate.(Williams Control Inc. owner thomas Itin)(Company Profile)
November 20, 1998... Turnaround pro Thomas Itin is remolding Williams Controls Thomas Itin, a veteran of corporate turnarounds, has charted a course for Williams Controls Inc. that has the old-line truck and machine parts manufacturer looking more and more like...

Its a flight from risk.(real estate development in Portland, Oregon)(Industry Overview)
November 20, 1998... Dozens of real estate projects under way in the greater Portland region will come to fruition in a much different environment than they were conceived. The underlying forces that have been driving Oregon's economy are subsiding "big time."...

Sunset Corridor project will serve as gateway.(Standard Insurance Co. and Melvin Mark Companies to jointly develop office campus in Portland, Oregon)
November 20, 1998... Standard Insurance Co. and Melvin Mark Companies are teaming up to provide the Sunset Corridor with the area's first Class A, urban-style office campuses. Sunset Center, a 23.5 acre master-planned, corporate office complex, broke ground on...

Accidental entrepreneur.(Champion Distributing Co. owner Andy Hess)
November 20, 1998... When Marsee Baking CEO Brad Barnett orchestrated the acquisition of 10 Bernie's Bagels locations In January, he left himself with a very full plate. He also left Andy Hess, Bernie's general manager for Portland, without a job. So they...

Freightliner mines U.S. Army for $122M.
November 27, 1998... The U.S. Army Reserve's initiative to rebuild as many as 2,000 aging truck tractors has helped deliver a $122.8 million contract to Portland's Freightliner Corp. Freightliner officials say the deal could be the beginning of similar...

Seeking happier holidays, Nordy's adjusts inventories.(department store Nordstrom)
November 27, 1998... As the holiday shopping season starts in earnest, local department store leaders Nordstrom and Meier & Frank are seemingly running just to stay in place. Despite low interest rates and a recent rebound in the stock market. consumer...

Local microbrewers try to raise the bar.(campaign to upgrade Oregon beer)
November 27, 1998... Oregon microbrewers want to stop the menace of second-rate suds. Spearheading the campaign to upgrade Oregon beer is the Oregon Brewers Guild, a trade group that represents more than 80 percent of the state's microbrewers. The guild has...

Alternative medicine software firm is off to a healthy start.(HealthNotes Inc.)
November 27, 1998... A Portland start-up is last positioning itself as a prominent source for information about nutritional supplements and herbal remedies. Need an answer about uses of ginseng, the latest research on echinacea or the lowdown on St. John's...

Copier firm TRM now seeks a CFO.
November 27, 1998... TRM Corp.'s boardroom shakeup continued this week with the replacement of the company's chief operating officer. TRM said in a news release that Paul Brown, currently chief financial officer, becomes COO effective Dec. 1. He replaces Jim...

A-Fem rethinking next move as president exits.(A-Fem Medical Corp.)
November 27, 1998... A-Fem Medical Corp.'s president Peter Burke has resigned from the small Portland company. Burke's departure is part worklife-related and part lifestyle driven. He wanted to head East in search of a bigger corporate challenge-and the woman...

Fred Meyer charged about battery renewal system.(stores)
November 27, 1998... It's full steam ahead for Full Power Battery Renewal as the Beaverton-based company expands its relationship with Fred Meyer Inc. The company, which has a patented process for bringing rechargeable batteries back to life, finished a...

Wayne Drinkward.(Hoffman Construction Co. president)
November 27, 1998... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: Wayne Drinkward Organization: Hoffman Construction Co. Title: President What we do: The Northwest's leading commercial builder, working in negotiated team environments with project owners and...

Off to a flying start: start-up law firm Barran Liebman attracting attention.(Barran Liebman LLP)
November 27, 1998... Start-up law firm Barran Liebman attracting attention Paula Barran, Rick Liebman, Ed Harnden, Richard Hunt and Nelson Atkin spent two decades practicing law at Lane Powell Spears Luhersky. In August, they struck out on their own and...

Don't shop 'til you drop.(Focus on Holiday Gifts)(online catalogs)
November 27, 1998... No more bah humbugs. Now you can avoid the shopping malls altogether if you wish. It's easier than ever for armchair shopper's to fill the holiday stockings. No longer are nose-hair clippers and collector plates the standard of mail-order...

But will it spellogy success?(Amazeinc's Spellogy)
November 27, 1998... The founders of Amazeinc knew they were headed in the right direction the day a 17-year-old discovered he could learn to spell. The boy, a resident at a facility for juvenile offenders, told teachers his spelling skills were zero rated on a...