Business Journal-Portland articles from September 2000

Business Journal-Portland archives from September 2000

Honda hones in on Sandy Blvd. site.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... American Honda Motor Co. is in advanced-stage negotiations with developer Opus Northwest LLC to build a turnkey 180,000-square-foot facility next to the Columbia Corridor in Gresham. If all goes as planned, Honda will move its regional...

Sundance screens will be dark through 2000.(Sundance Film Center)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... Slowed by design deliberations, the Sundance Film Center slated for downtown Portland's Pioneer Place expansion will likely open early next year, some six months late, said sources familiar with the project. A Sundance official verified...

Port unearths evidence of pre-flight attendance.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Before airplanes, there were American Indians at Portland International Airport. At least the conclusion being drawn from what may be a major archeological find at the airport. Archeologists have uncovered wood planks, arrowheads, other...

PDC raises bar for YWCA/Safeway redevelopment.(Portland Development Commission)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... Efforts to redevelop west downtown's Safeway store and YWCA have taken a new turn, as a developer and city officials work on a proposal that would encompass three blocks instead of two. Local developer Doug Obletz has pondered his Museum...

Hayden Island pit is proposed site for contaminated spoils.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... A contaminated-spoils landfill has been proposed for Tomahawk Island, the segment of sand bar at the east end of Hayden Island in the Columbia River. But proponents may have an uphill battle. The project likely would be the first of its...

Internists to Providence: See ya later.(Cedar Creek Internal Medicine PC)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... A group of six primary care physicians has resigned from Providence Medical Group's Sunset office to found a practice. The doctors will launch Cedar Creek Internal Medicine PC downstairs from their former office at the Providence Medical...

Measure 9: Sneak attack on gays and our children.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... There's a scene early on in the Academy Award-winning film, "American Beauty" where the two Jims introduce themselves to their redneck neighbor, Frank Fitz. As they hand him a welcome-to-the-neighborhood basket of goodies, they mention to him...

What's left of Wilshire resolves several issues.(Wilshire Financial Services Group Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... Wilshire Financial Services Group Inc. (OTCBB: WFSG) and its founders and former officers Andrew Wiederhorn and Larry Mendelsohn have settled their disputes, including those related to the company's termination of the former executives last...

GST Telecommunications Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... GST Telecommunications Inc. announced an agreement for Time Warner Telecom to purchase substantially all its assets--excluding the substantial majority of GST's Hawaii assets and residual cash balances--for $690 million. The consideration...

Merix Corp.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
September 1, 2000... Merix Corp. (Nasdaq: MERX), the Forest Grove-based circuit-board maker, signed a lease agreement for a new printed circuitboard manufacturing facility that will employ up to 300 in Wood Village. The new facility will consist of a...

Will Vinton Studios.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Will Vinton Studios hired former Walt Disney executive Jeff Farnath as its first CFO. Farnath will be located at the studio's Los Angeles office, working alongside president Tom Turpin in developing the company's film, television, commercial,...

Tiffany & Co.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... The city of Portland appears to have won a design battle with Tiffany & Co. Tiffany, in officially announcing it would open a new store at Pioneer Place II, said it will incorporate into the store design two city-mandated touches: two show...

Tripwire Inc.(partnership with SecurityFocus.com)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Tripwire Inc., the Portland provider of integrity assessment solutions, created a partnership with SecurityFocus.com, a security information portal, to provide critical security industry content in an effort to expand the knowledge level and...

Rentrak Corp.(hires Arthur Andersen to consult on business spin off)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Rentrak Corp. (Nasdaq: RENT) of Portland said it has retained the accounting firm of Arthur Andersen LLP to file a private letter ruling request with the IRS regarding the proposed spin-off of Rentrak's e-fulfillment business as a nontaxable...

KEX.(coverage of high school basketball)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... "KEX High School Game of the Week" debuts tonight with Jesuit High vs. Lakeridge at 7 p.m. KEX will feature different high school games every Friday night. On-air hosts Scott Lynn and Jim Howe will be joined by prep coach and analyst Greg...

CORRECTIONS.(Correction Notice)
September 1, 2000... Last week's page 3 article on Oregon State University ran a photo of a different Ron Adams than the school's actual engineering dean.

Cascade AIDS, educators join 'No on 9' crusade.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... The election season--well, the politicking season, anyway--has reached full-swing status. The first clue is that business leaders are pondering several measures gracing November's ballot. While businesses continue to digest various tax-cut...

PSU deal hints at PGE's post-deregulation strategy.(Portland General Electric develops energy tracking system)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Utility watchers seeking clues to how Portland General Electric will compete in the pending deregulation era need look only as far as the Portland State University campus. PGE has returned to school in testing a web-enabled energy-tracking...

Another software maker sets sights on Sunset C.(Merant Inc. signs Portland office lease)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Another two-story, tech-friendly office project is springing out of Hillsboro's Sunset Corridor this winter. Merant Inc., a 24-year-old global software firm with current offices in Beaverton, signed a 10-year lease this week for a...

NW timber companies get serious.(marketing campaign promotes lumber)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... In one of the largest marketing efforts ever undertaken by the wood-products industry, a band of North American timber companies--including Portland-based Willamette Industries, Louisiana-Pacific Corp. and nearby SDS Lumber Co. of Bingen,...

The Mix gets a boost from '80s music.(Portland's KVMX rises in the ratings)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... The decade of Duran Duran and U2 has spun a ratings boost for KVMX The Mix 107.5 in the summer Arbitron trend report released this week. Formerly The Beat, the station switched to a 1980s format last June, dumping its morning team of Gina,...

Endangered salmon slow construction in Sound.(Puget Sound)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Waterway construction projects throughout Puget Sound are being delayed for months because federal regulators are buried by a backlog of permits caused by salmon-protection rules. The number of pending applications at the Seattle District...

Future of channel-deepening project in limbo.(Columbia River)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... An unexpected twist in a proposal to deepen the Columbia River shipping channel could have a ripple effect on efforts by the Port of Portland to acquire property needed for the project. In July, the port began proceedings to acquire...

Clinton to veto new estate tax bill, ergonomic cuts?(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Montana rancher Lynn Cornwell traveled by tractor from the Capitol to the White House to deliver legislation to phase out the estate tax over the next 10 years. Cornwell then hopped into a brand-new Case tractor, borrowed from a dealership...

David Pollock.(profile of Stormwater Management CEO)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: David Pollock Organization: Stormwater Management, where our motto is, "Come rain, we shine!" Title: president and CEO What we do: Stormwater Management, founded as an LLC in 1995, provides methods...

Making a stand on Pill Hill.(veterans hospital faces funding cuts)
September 1, 2000... Facing a budget crisis, the VA hospital seeks more patients The Portland Veterans Affairs Medical Center has a credibility problem. Six years ago, the medical center's staff was turning several thousand patients away from its door,...

When will the Northwest finally let it all hang out?(use of brick in Pacific Northwest housing is overdue)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Propagating the popular 1970s funk-ism that "the funk is understood," The Commodores understood that their hit "Brick House" was a reference to a meaty, "let-it-all-hang-put" kind of woman. What The * Commodores couldn't have known was...

Oregon coalition plans to rank physicians' care.(Coalition of Health Care Purchasers)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Measuring quality in health care has hit full speed, if the Sept. 14 meeting of The Oregon Coalition of Health Care Purchasers is any indication. Three Portland-based studies are working to rank not only Oregon physicians but doctors...

Feds are an easy target, but businesses love 'em.(Digimarc will provide government with smart cards)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... It's easy to make fun of the government. The feds are almost as easy a target as in-laws. But let's not forget that the federal government also throws a lot of money at private industry, and a fair amount of it seems to be falling in Portland...

Gateway's 'training' campaign has great promise.(opens new Gateway Country store)(1)(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Computer retailer Gateway Inc. recently opened a Gateway Country store in downtown Portland, its fifth in the Portland metro area. The opening of the store at 204 S.W. Yamhill St. coincided with Gateway's launching of a nationwide marketing...

The last urban frontier.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Ask stakeholders in the North Macadam District if it is the most glorious, extraordinary development opportunity Portland has ever seen. Then count how many milliseconds pass before they say, "Without a doubt." Next, ask stakeholders in...

Some say the Greenway is just a moving target.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Beyond decades of industrial toxins cloaked beneath the North Macadam District's void-of-life soil, the most significant environmental concern looming in the 130-acre aspiring neighborhood involves the infamous Willamette River. At a time...

Commercial real estate hits the 'net' in big way.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Location always has been key to selling real estate, but now a new kind of address is becoming critical for commercial sales: the internet address. At least two major companies have started web sites listing commercial properties across...

American Institute of Architects revamps services.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Architecture or the American Institute of Architects--it's hard to tell which leads the other. They're inseparable; their goals affect our livability in ways we are not aware of, and they're both undergoing massive changes as...

Hollywood, coolest of celebrities love Skyline's goggles.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... The deal sounded great to Dr. John Runckel and his son Rick. For the price of nothing they could place their Bugz line of winter protective in a movie. Not just any movie, but a big-budget, highly promoted Kevin Costner vehicle that might be...

Cool goggles getting hot.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Like a snowboarder who takes a tumble but emerges unscathed, Skyline Northwest is back on the board and ready for a smooth ride. Two years ago, the company had hit a slalom-free stretch, with its five-year-old line of Bugz winter-recreation...

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... ACCOUNTING Accountants Inc. added Shaylene Carter as direct hire staffing manager. Geffen Mesher & Co. hired Ben Merritt and David Brown as staff accountants; and Leslie Gifford as senior staff accountant. ARCHITECTURE ...

Farmington Village slated for liquidation by Burnham Pacific.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... San Diego-based Burnham Pacific Properties Inc., which owns several shopping centers in Oregon and Washington, announced, its intention to liquidate last month. Though company officials are tight-lipped about which properties will change hands,...

An inspired idea from the PDC.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... The Portland Development Commission is thinking big and we like it. The PDC is working with the folks behind the renovation of the downtown YWCA and adjacent Safeway store. If the new plan becomes a reality, the PDC will have made a solid...

Trucking's big rigs on a roll.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Even in this interactive age--when money and goods and services are no more than electronic impulses running through global computer networks--the backbone of the economy continues to roll like thunder down the highways and byways of America....

How pro sports teams are polluting the atmosphere.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... Bill Henderson, the author of the following guest opinion, claims to have e-mailed this piece to "every sports columnist in America" without receiving one response. "It's hard to get the respect of the [Seattle] Mariners director of travel when...

LETTERS TO THE EDITOR.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... New Marcus & Millichap manager will bring welcome diversity To the editor: I just read Brian Back's article about Bob Hildebran, printed on Aug. 25. Nice man, good information but Back didn't mention Jack Estes, who has taken...

A look at the region's Winners & Losers.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... SOLV and Intel SOLV, one of the states premier beautification agenices, has teamed up with Intel to sponsor the Washington County Clean and Green Project. They need volunteers. This means YOU! Trust us, it'll be a blast. Plus, you'll get a...

SLAPSHOTS.(Brief Article)
September 1, 2000... A great 'Vision of the Sea' *** Portlanders desiring to cruise Alaskan waters won't go wrong on Royal Caribbean's Vision of the Seas. The 2,000-passenger, two-year-old vessel offers the usual array of cruise-ship luxuries, including...

Portland Brewing offers shot'n beer.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Oregon products already don't come much more Scottish than beers and ales made by Portland Brewing Co. The new MacTarnahan's Scotch, though, has practically made the company Glasgow-ian. Portland Brewing won approval from the staff of the...

Hungry for The Pearl? Zefiro begets Bluehour.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... School reunions have nothing over this event. Local restaurateur Bruce Carey has assembled a staff of past lieutenants to manage his new venture, Bluehour, which opens Sept. 8 in the Pearl District. And as past employees of Carey's previous...

Payoff time comes for Precision's retooling.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Aerospace-parts manufacturer Precision Castparts Corp. has announced-plans to hire 250 workers at two of its operations here as demand is growing in two of its primary markets. The work force additions would seem to validate Precision's...

Al Reser selected as OEF's Entrepreneur of the Year.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... In this era of virtual products, companies and people, Al Reser is a maverick. And he owes it all to potato salad. Reser has been named Entrepreneur of the Year by the Oregon Entrepreneurs Forum. He was honored this week for crafting a...

Holiday shoppers unite! We're seeking your ideas.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... It's that time of year again--in fact, it's right around the proverbial corner. I can almost hear your wheels spinning: "Which corner? What time of year? Fall? The school year?" No, I'm referring to something much more, well, dreadful,...

High-ranking portfolio posts big returns for Randy Durig.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Randy Durig's stock picks are looking good. Very good. The portfolio operated by the Lake Oswego money manager has posted eye-popping numbers: 524.14 percent total return for the three years ended June 30, 2000; and a whopping 84.12 percent...

Qsent's vision of future is to e-plan ahead.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Qsent Inc.'s co-founder and chief executive doesn't expect to get rich in a big hurry. Instead, he'll make money dimes at a time. Patrick Cox, a co-founder of Metro One Telecommunications Inc., has just taken the wraps off of his latest...

ESPN.com nabs Nike as new store for its e-mall.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * In an unusual pairing of broadcasting and commerce, ESPN.com and Nike.com announced they will team up online this fall. The sports network and shoe giant will launch a web-based "Nike store" on ESPN's site. Nike thus becomes the first anchor...

Gordon McFadden.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * ZuluSports.com (www.zulusports.com) announced that Gordon McFadden, former president of the Nike All-Conditions Gear Division, joined the company's board of directors. McFadden brings more than 25 years of management experience in the outdoor...

GemStone Systems Inc.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * GemStone Systems Inc. said its multi-tier application server software was chosen as the architectural platform for Fractal.cz, a Czech B2C and B2B web site for purchasing airline tickets and other travel services via internet and wireless...

Freightliner LLC.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * Freightliner LLC has notified some of its bus and fire/emergency vehicle customers of a defect in their brake system. Customers who have vehicles manufactured between March 1998 and August 2000--equipped with air brakes and Bendix Anti-Lock...

Assisted Living Concepts Inc.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * A $30 million cash settlement was made in the securities class action lawsuit filed against Assisted Living Concepts Inc. [AMEX: ALF], according to the law firms of Stoll Stoll Berne Lokting & Shlachter PC, Bernstein Litowitz Berger &...

Multnomah County.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * Multnomah County has created what it calls the nation's first Living Wage Review Board. The county, said board chairwoman Beverly Stein, hopes to review hundreds of county contracts and recommend ways to expand the scope of "living wage...

Express Services.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * Personnel company Express Services donated some $340,000 to the Children's Miracle Network 2000 Annual Telethon. The company is the parent of 13 Portland-area Express Personnel Services offices. The Portland office is one of 400 EPS locations...

TriQuint Semiconductor Inc.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... * TriQuint Semiconductor Inc. of Hillsboro closed escrow for its purchase of a wafer fabrication facility in Richardson, Texas from Micron Technology Texas LLC. The facility, located on 38 acres, will provide both additional clean-room floor...

CORRECTIONS.
September 8, 2000... * The Top 25 Oregon executive search firms list, published June 30, ranked Furlong Search Inc. number 9 with a $60,000 salary minimum. According to James Furlong of Furlong Search Inc., the salary minimum is $180,000.

A real wheeled wonder?(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Bill Smith rolls out a lot of new products at Huffy Bicycle Co. that are based on hunches. Sometimes his ideas fall flat-like the bike made of recycled materials that Miamisburg, Ohio-based Huffy introduced in 1997. Other times, his ideas...

New Seattle Weekly boss ready to rattle Stranger.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Seattle's largest alternative paper, Seattle Weekly, hopes to use the arrival of a new publisher and the impending departure of its editor as an opportunity to rebuild and improve. Meanwhile, its smaller (but no longer that much smaller) rival,...

Checks not yet in mail for GST's many creditors.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... GST Telecommunications Inc.'s proposed $690 million sale to Time Warner Telecom Inc. is solid, but not yet cast in stone. The Vancouver telecom company likely won't become part of Time Warner Telecom any earlier than late October, and the...

U.S. Bancorp's settlement finally ends privacy suits.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Still smarting from a year-old debacle over customer privacy issues, U.S. Bancorp said it has resolved class-action suits and finalized a privacy agreement with 30 states. The Minneapolis-based financial-services holding company said it...

Telecom start-up aims for multifamily dwellers.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... With $4 million worth of venture capital in hand, MetStream Communications. The will compete with large cable companies by offering smaller-scale broadband services to apartment and condo residents. MetStream CEO and co-founder Scott Smith...

Deduction of health premiums would aid uninsured.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... A new survey of small businesses found that 57 percent were not aware they could deduct all of the health insurance premiums they pay for their employees. Educating small employers about this favorable tax treatment--and the positive...

'DELAY TACTICS' ALLEGED.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... The Society of Human Resource Management accuses the Department of Labor of "engaging in delay tactics" by filing a motion to dismiss a lawsuit that challenges a regulation allowing states to use 'unemployment insurance funds to pay workers who...

CHARITY WATCHDOGS TO MERGE.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Two national organizations that provide independent reviews of charities for donors and the public have agreed to merge. The Council of Better Business Bureaus' Foundation, which houses the Philanthropic Advisory Service, plans to join...

BUILDERS PUSH HOUSING TAX CREDIT.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... The National Association of Home Builders is optimistic that Congress will expand the low-income housing tax credit program as part of an omnibus tax bill in the final days of this session. The House already has passed legislation to expand...

Jonah Edelman.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... PERSONAL INFORMATION Name: Jonah Edelman Organization: Stand for Children Title: Executive director and organizing director What we do: We're a national membership organization whose mission is to create a strong citizen voice...

Dressed to impress.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Columbia Sportswear's IPO bad its skebtics, but not now When Columbia Sportswear went public in spring 1998, critics from Portland to Miami howled. Portland analyst Scott Coyers called the initial public offering a Boyle family...

Oregon Ballet has the Nerve to get itself wired.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... The Oregon Ballet Theatre will soon dance into our living rooms. TV-radio promotional spots and print ads, created by Nerve Inc., start airing next week. The "Leaping from Tradition" branding campaign coincides with the ballet company's...

LIVENGOOD'S CHANGEOVER CONTINUES.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... A new name and move deserves a new ad campaign. So goes the thinking of Livengood/Nowack, which added vice president Scott Nowack to the ad agency's title two months ago. The agency's direct mall campaign has been using attention-getting...

SPANISH HEAD SITE REMADE.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... The Inn at Spanish Head claims it was "built to take your breath away" and the photographs of its ocean views on its newly redesigned web site live up to that billing. Dodge Schmitgall Inc. has created virtual tours and create-...

SORRENTO HIRES YOUNG & ROEHR.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Sorrento Networks has hired Young & Roehr Group to handle its advertising and media, communications planning, co-op development and direct marketing. The San Diego-based company makes telecom optical networking equipment for interoffice...

COLLECTIVE INC. DOES TYEE WEB SITE.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... There's another newcomer to the Pearl District. Collective Inc. moved into the Otis Elevator Building on Northwest Everett Street, giving them more than double the company's previous square footage on Southwest 21st Avenue. At the same...

Occasio gives Wamu a 'favorable opportunity'.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Washington Mutual's new-fangled branches in Las Vegas do more than remake the savings bank's image. Company officials say the new approach should allow them to enter new markets much more affordably. Wamu's new branch concept, called...

TAMING STOCK OPTIONS.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Net Worth Strategies, a Bend-based maker of financial software, introduced a product designed to simplify the calculations and tax ramifications related to employee stock options. The new software, called StockOpter, is intended not for...

CHAIRMAN IN PLACE.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Eugene businessman Robert Ballin will serve as chairman of the hoard for Pacific Continental Corp. and its subsidiary, Pacific Continental Bank. Ballin, who is also chairman of insurance brokerage Willis of Eugene, has served on Pacific...

NEW NAME UP NORTH.(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... InterWest Bancorp's previously announced consolidation of its subsidiary banks and thrifts will take place under the name of Pacific Northwest Bank. InterWest, now based in Oak Harbor, Wash., will also move its headquarters to Seattle,...

Grubb & Ellis' drafting of Talbot includes a bonus.(Tom Talbot)(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Sounding much like the head football coach of a well-funded franchise, Bradford Fletcher says Grubb & Ellis Co. has fared well in its September 2000 draft. After all, the firm has recruited industrial broker Tom Talbot--formerly a...

HERE COMES INNOVACOMM.(InnovaComm Technologies signs office space lease)(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... In a deal that nudges Tualatin Corporate Center III occupancy to 75 percent, InnovaComm Technologies Inc. has signed on to a 35,000-square-foot lease for its new Portland base of operations. InnovaComm, a self-described "contract designer...

Program takes pets who need homes into the workplace.(Oregon Humane Society program)(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Virginia Dagg, volunteer service manager of the Oregon Humane Society, heads up the Animals in the Workplace program to promote adoption of dogs and cats. Mixing suits and skirts with slobbering hairballs can be interesting and fun at the same...

Fido likes the rinse cycle.(self-washing dog shop No Cats Allowed)(Brief Article)
September 8, 2000... Working for her husband's contracting business as an office assistant, 44-year-old Christy Braidwood wanted to venture into business for herself but couldn't decide what direction to take. That changed when she visited a self-washing dog shop....