The Business Journal-Milwaukee articles from October 1997

The Business Journal-Milwaukee archives from October 1997

Moen, Adelman seek insurance-buying pool for small businesses. (Wisconsin Senators Rodney Moen and Lynn Adelman)
October 31, 1997... Wisconsin businesses could buy health care coverage through an insurance-buying pool run by two state agencies under a bill proposed by two Wisconsin Democrats. Backed by small-business groups, the bill is aimed at making it easier for small...

Lease boosts industrial real estate market. (lease agreement between Iron Mountain Inc and Prentiss Properties)
October 31, 1997... Two publicly held companies that hadn't done a dime's worth of business in Wisconsin five years ago recently completed a lease agreement that could boost Milwaukee's industrial real estate market, especially near General Mitchell International...

An alliance of survival. (small distributors in Wisconsin forge alliances to offer one-stop shopping services)
October 31, 1997... Smaller distributors unite, take on national suppliers Small, independent distributors in Wisconsin are joining forces as large manufacturers try to cut purchasing costs and simplify the way they buy parts and supplies. The distributors...

Competing pipelines need environmental, landowner approvals. (Viking Gas Transmission Co's Viking Voyageur pipeline project in Wisconsin)
October 31, 1997... The Viking Voyageur project is now in the hands of federal regulators, but the big challenge of selling the proposed natural gas pipeline to the state Department of Natural Resources and local landowners lies ahead. Greg Palmer, president of...

Odor eaters: new devices promise to clean up bus fumes. (Milwaukee County Transit System's testing of pollution control technology)
October 31, 1997... Ten Milwaukee County Transit System buses are testing breakthrough pollution control technology that promises to rid city streets of smelly plumes of black, sooty smoke. Working in conjunction with its primary engine supplier, Detroit Diesel...

Letting go. (outplacement agency Thompson Consulting Ltd)
October 31, 1997... Outplacement services can soften the blow of terminations A couple of weeks ago, Dave Welnetz received a call from one of his clients. The businessman, who had worked with Welnetz before, had an employee who wasn't working out. The...

The Marcus Corporation. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... NEW YORK - MCS The Marcus Corp. has four operating divisions: motels; movie theaters; hotels/resorts; and restaurants. The company operates 143 Budgetel Inns in 28 states; four Woodfield Suites in three states; 297 movie screens in Wisconsin...

Filtering through companies to find winning stocks. (interview with Cleary Gull Reiland & McDevitt Inc research director Rick Eastman)(Interview)
October 31, 1997... Rick Eastman is a filter specialist. Eastman has researched companies that filter water for use in beverage products. He has visited plants that filter air waste before it is released into the atmosphere. Eastman has even researched filters...

Less discriminating. (employment insurance for small businesses)
October 31, 1997... Employment insurance improves for small business The Milwaukee insurance brokerage Fitzgerald, Clayton, James & Kasten Inc. thought it was ahead of the curve four years ago when it hosted a seminar on employment practices liability insurance....

After Musser leaves, OCI to continue health focus. (Wisconsin Department of Insurance Commissioner Josephine Musser)
October 31, 1997... When Gov. Tommy Thompson appointed Josephine Musser insurance commissioner in 1993, it was clear he wanted someone with a strong background in health care. At the time, health care reform - driven by President Bill Clinton's desire to...

A new era in housing: up to 100 manufactured homes set for central city. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
October 24, 1997... In what could be the start of a new era in Milwaukee housing, a crane lowered a bungalow home onto a 40-foot lot in one of the city's poorest neighborhoods. The home was set into place at 2152 N. 11th St. on Oct. 20 by All American Homes of...

Main street stock exchange. (Wisconsin companies offering direct investments)
October 24, 1997... More companies sell their stock direct to investors With an extra $50, just about anyone can buy a piece of Johnson Controls Inc. Not many stockbrokers will take such a small investment, but a call to the company's Glendale headquarters...

Rexworkers for hire. (Rexworks Inc.)
October 24, 1997... Frank Giuffre is searching for ways to save the 100 or more factory jobs that could disappear from Milwaukee after Rexworks Inc. is broken into pieces and sold. Giuffre is the plain-spoken president of Giuffre Brothers Cranes Inc., the...

Foreign affair: international funds differ on use of outside stock pickers. (international stock funds of four Milwaukee-area mutual funds)
October 24, 1997... Strong Capital Management Inc. has two mutual funds that take investors from Milwaukee to the world. The firm's Asia Pacific and International Stock funds only buy companies based outside of the United States. Four other local mutual fund...

Retooling job training: custom program fits training to manufacturing job needs. (Wisconsin companies)
October 24, 1997... Almost anyone who has tried to find skilled workers in today's tight labor market can identify with Patrick Cherone. Not long ago, the company he runs, Wisconsin Machine Tool Corp., placed "help wanted" ads in the newspaper. Yet few of the...

Manufacturing jobs have image problems. (Wisconsin)(Retooling Job Training)
October 24, 1997... It's not easy to find skilled industrial workers in today's tight labor market, but it's even harder to find potential manufacturing workers in area high schools. That's the view of Mary Lee Reichel-Rieley, dean of Milwaukee Area Technical...

Executive Drive is hot spot for office space. (Brookfield, Wisconsin)
October 24, 1997... During recent lease negotiations with GE Medical Systems, Inland Cos.' Mike Fardy found himself in a situation real estate developers dream of: Not only was GE motivated to take 30,000 square feet in one of Inland's Brookfield office buildings,...

ALS looks for new growth with acquisition of competitor. (Alternative Living Services Inc.; Sterling House Corp.)
October 24, 1997... Alternative Living Services Inc.'s acquisition of another large assisted-living company will create opportunities for expansion into other long-term care businesses, ALS chief executive officer William Lasky said. The acquisition of Wichita,...

Manpower leases more space in Glendale. (Manpower Inc.; Wisconsin)
October 24, 1997... To ease overcrowding brought on by a major expansion of its own staff, Manpower Inc. recently leased 53,000 square feet at the former Oster/Sunbeam Appliance Co. plant in Glendale. The multibillion-dollar temporary help service is "in a...

Volume Focus Fund opens to investors.
October 24, 1997... Heritage Capital LLC, a Milwaukee money management firm, is preparing to take investments on its first hedge fund, the Volume Focus Fund. The state approved the fund on Oct. 13. A minimum investment of $25,000 is required, said Steven Uyhely,...

Bill would bar PSC members from political activities. (Wisconsin Senate; Public Service Commission)
October 24, 1997... A bill that prohibits members of the state Public Service Commission from participating in political activities has been introduced in the state Senate. Sen. Rod Moen, a Whitehall Democrat and chairman of the Senate Utility Regulatory...

Bill would create oversight for hospital takeovers. (Wisconsin)
October 24, 1997... A coalition of state legislators, the attorney general's office and hospital industry officials are working on a bill that would allow more state oversight of nonprofit hospitals' conversion to for-profit status. According to a recent draft,...

Mile High entrepreneurs. (Mile High Adventures & Entertainment)
October 24, 1997... Singles club adds adventure to Milwaukee's dating service market Jerry and Michael Spredemann are in the singles business, but-they sound more like camp counselors than matchmakers. For almost two years, the father-and-son duo has run Mile...

Study says MPS should tighten focus of school-to-work program. (Milwaukee Public Schools)
October 24, 1997... Three years after the school-to-work concept began as a major reform initiative at Milwaukee Public Schools, a study by an independent evaluator shows that teachers, parents, businesses and even school board members still don't agree on what...

Nonprofit is the (Racine) Raiders way, baby. (football clubs)
October 24, 1997... Green Bay has 12 national championship titles. Racine has eight. Green Bay has rabid fans. So does Racine. Green Bay showcases oodles of multimillion-dollar superstars on ABC, Fox, NBC and TNT. Racine's superstar volunteers (players,...

Bridge to the valley. (Milwaukee's Menomonee River Valley)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... Redesigned Sixth Street viaduct may spur redevelopment of city's old industrial core Redevelopment of Milwaukee's Menomonee River Valley depends upon giving people who have never been there a reason to go there for the first time, said...

Gateway for Brookfield's final frontier. (Wisconsin; industrial park)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... Siepmann fashions non-Blue Mound-esque light industrial park Brookfield's building boom, concentrated along a four-mile stretch of West Blue Mound Road the last decade or so, is moving to Capitol Drive, an area some call the city's final real...

Partners make an Impact on Cold Springs Park. (Impact Property Management)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... Apartment firm survives threats, bad tenants to help restore some glory to once-grand area Impact Property Management's initiation to buying and managing apartments in Milwaukee's Cold Spring Park neighborhood included threats on the...

'Affordable' homes quest succeeds in Hartford. (Wisconsin)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... City hopes to meet need for employees in growing industrial base Two subdivisions to be developed in Hartford are considered important first steps toward solving the community's affordable housing shortage, employers and developers agree....

New management twist: Ogden tries RV park. (Ogden Condominium Management; recreational vehicle)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... A Milwaukee-area property management firm that runs office towers, apartment buildings and shopping centers is branching out into a new arena: an RV park. Ogden Condominium Management, a division of Glendale-based Ogden & Co. Inc., took over...

Ament to appoint County Grounds panel. (Milwaukee County Executive F. Thomas Ament)(Focus on Real Estate & Development)
October 24, 1997... A Wauwatosa alderman hopes the appointment by Milwaukee County Executive F. Thomas Ament of a citizen panel on developing the County Grounds helps define the county's thus-far murky position on the issue. "We have not seen any kind of...

Palermo sizes up Field's. (Anthony Palermo; Milwaukee, Wisconsin Marshall Field's office building)
October 17, 1997... A few years ago, Anthony Palermo was relatively unknown in Milwaukee real estate circles, despite owning some of the most valuable properties in the United States. Palermo's holdings still include several properties on Rodeo Drive in Beverly...

City seeks role in Field's sale. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin; Marshall Field's building)
October 17, 1997... Dayton Hudson Corp. won't donate the downtown Marshall Field's building to the city of Milwaukee, but the retailer has agreed to allow city officials to participate in the process of deriding the property's fate. That process will begin...

Clean air rules to drive electricity prices up. (Wisconsin)
October 17, 1997... Wisconsin utilities could spend $123 million a year for the next 20 years to reduce nitrogen oxide emissions tinder a plan proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency, utility industry researchers warn. If the latest round of clean air...

Mind of an embezzler. (former Narada Media controller Wendell Doman)
October 17, 1997... If Wendell Doman is to be believed - and Narada Media's owners say he can't be - his embezzlement of $1.1 million from the new age record company was a simple matter of getting what he was owed. Doman, in an interview the day before he began...

Planning for the sunset. (succession in small, family-owned businesses)
October 17, 1997... Business owners should prepare companies for succession By the time Raymond Olesen was ready to retire, his three sons knew well how to run the family-owned business. Eric, Dale and Mike Olesen were prepared to take ownership of the O&H...

HMO performance improves with state monitoring system. (Wisconsin)
October 17, 1997... Several Wisconsin health maintenance organizations and other managed care plans have shown improvements in service since the state began using a "report card" to monitor the medical care for state employees three years ago. "We try to get...

Pension Board would drop lawsuit - if it had a quorum. (Milwaukee Employee's Retirement Annuity and Pension Board)
October 17, 1997... The Milwaukee Employee's Retirement Annuity and Pension Board has enough votes to drop its lawsuit against the city - if it could just keep members in their seats. Twice in the last week, the four-person Pension Board majority has been...

Local funds ride the bull. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin mutual funds)
October 17, 1997... Mary Lisante is cautious about touting the 19 percent return her Strong Mid Cap Fund posted during the third quarter. Even with the solid three-month numbers, the year-to-date statistics on the Menomonee Falls-based fund put it at just 21.15...

Midwest Express to build hangar at Mitchell International. (Midwest Express Airlines Inc.; General Mitchell International Airport)
October 17, 1997... With eight new aircraft on order, Midwest Express Airlines Inc. is moving forward with plans to build a 70,000-square-foot hangar at General Mitchell International Airport. The $8 million project, which will be built on a site adjacent to the...

Catch the Web: Internet banking takes off in Milwaukee.
October 17, 1997... About 17,000 Milwaukee-area account holders have taken their banking into cyberspace, paying bills, balancing their checkbooks and transferring funds from a personal computer at home or in the office. Most banks say the number of on-line...

United States Leather seeks to restructure $130 million in debt.
October 17, 1997... A sense of deja vu is haunting some owners of United States Leather Inc. debt these days. Less than 18 months after being taken over by its major creditor, the Milwaukee tanning firm has proposed another restructuring plan to cut its debt...

Community banks leery about new lending reviews. (Wisconsin)
October 17, 1997... Tom Sheehan was surprised by the Community Reinvestment Act examination he received last year. The review of lending practices to low-income borrowers and disadvantaged business owners was conducted under standards that did not actually go into...

A better meter reader. (Innovatec Corp.'s radio frequency meter system)
October 17, 1997... Milwaukee companies collaborate on 'cell phone for data' A three-man company working in a nondescript office along the banks of the Menomonee River in downtown Milwaukee is about to delight U.S. utility executives by introducing a...

Bankrupt and viable. (Intra Community Communications)(Focus on Communication Technologies)
October 17, 1997... Bernell Ross . . . Problems with billing, securities and reorganization don't "reflect on the competency of management." Intra Community battles creditors, missteps in local phone start-up Overwhelmed? Or great potential? Both descriptions...

Can Java thrive? (Wisconsin Color Press)(Focus on Communication Technologies)
October 17, 1997... Upstart Microsoft competitor gains some acceptance among Milwaukee-area business While the makers of the lava computer language product are suing over unfair competition, some local users say Java is finding a place in the market on its own...

Local governments spend millions on computers. (year 2000 problem; Milwaukee, Wisconsin)(Focus on Communication Technologies)
October 17, 1997... Year 2000 problems force replacement of old systems; outsourcing not an option in Milwaukee Mirroring the efforts of their counterparts across the country, some of the area's largest municipalities are spending millions of dollars to replace...

HDTV backlash: much ado about politics. (high definition television)(Focus on Communication Technologies)
October 17, 1997... Federal lawmakers' recent attack on broadcasters for reneging their commitment to high-definition television (HDTV) could have been avoided if certain broadcast executives had measured their words, one local broadcaster said. The problem...

Project targets Harambee area. (nonprofit organizations team up for Historic King Drive Cluster Development Project in Harambee neighborhood)
October 10, 1997... With widespread private-sector support, an alliance of central-city nonprofit organizations is mounting a major development initiative aimed at revitalizing housing and commerce within 16 square blocks of the city's Harambee neighborhood....

Purchase raises antitrust concerns; state, federal regulators study Journal-CNI acquisition. (Journal Communications Inc's acquisition of Community Newspapers Inc may be in violation of antitrust regulations)
October 10, 1997... State, federal regulators study Journal-CNI acquisition State and federal antitrust investigators are studying Journal Communications Inc's acquisition of Community Newspapers Inc. (CNI). Kevin O'Connor, assistant attorney general of...

Going public: Eastman defends PSC against smears, political intrigue and ignorant lawmakers. (Daniel Eastman speaks out on behalf of the Public Service Commission)(Interview)
October 10, 1997... Daniel Eastman joined the three-member state Public Service Commission in September 1995 - just in time to become embroiled in the most tumultuous 18-month period in the agency's 92-year history. Two investor-owned utility merger cases and a...

Rising from the ashes: precautions can help businesses overcome disasters. (business interruption insurance saves PDQ Tooling Inc)(Company Profile)
October 10, 1997... Precautions can help businesses overcome disasters When a neighbor reached Rick Wier at the bowling in 1993 to tell him about a fire at his company, Wier wasn't all that worked up. Just two weeks earlier, the company had a similar scare, but...

Hunzinger awarded $8 million Art Museum concrete contract. (Hunzinger Construction Co and James McHugh Construction Co contracted for Milwaukee Art Museum addition)
October 10, 1997... The Milwaukee Art Museum board has awarded the concrete contract for the museum's Santiago Calatrava-designed addition to a team consisting of Hunzinger Construction Co., Brookfield, and James McHugh Construction Co., Chicago. With a value...

Equipment manufacturers still riding tall in saddle. (Case Corp and Gehl Co see rise in profits)
October 10, 1997... Healthy worldwide agricultural and construction markets should propel solid third-quarter earnings growth for many Milwaukee-area capital equipment manufacturers. Analysts see few signs of a downturn for companies such as Case Corp. and Gehl...

'Dull' describes most Midwestern bank earnings.
October 10, 1997... For the last four quarters, banking analysts have had difficulty predicting earnings for Firstar Corp., with projections varying by as much as 10 cents a share, as the company emerged from its two-year restructuring. Not this time. "They...

Port plans $1.5 million steel-handling terminal. (terminal construction for Port of Milwaukee)
October 10, 1997... The Port of Milwaukee is in talks with two of its waterfront tenants and the Milwaukee Common Council to build a $1.5 million terminal dedicated to handling steel. The new terminal at Jones Island depends upon signing a long-term lease with...

Dentacare to expand to 12 states outside Wisconsin. (Dentacare to operate as a limited services health organization)
October 10, 1997... Dentacare, one of the oldest managed dental care organizations in the country, is expanding its market outside of Wisconsin for the first time. Dentacare is a product line of Compcare Health Services Insurance Corp., a Milwaukee-based health...

Bradford prescribes growth for Family Health Plan. (David Bradford takes over as president and CEO of Family Health Plan Cooperative)(Company Profile)
October 10, 1997... Among David Bradford's top goals for Family Health Plan Cooperative is to get the West Allis-based health maintenance organization growing again. Bradford, 43, was named the HMO's president and chief executive Oct. 1, after serving four...

Banks combine charters. (chartered bank management)
October 10, 1997... For years, banks have subscribed to the theory that more is better. Many financial institutions have known they could save money if they reduced the number of chartered banks they operate. But most banks believed that providing local...

Building connections: penetrating the good ol' boy network is crucial for consulting business. (Cook Consulting and Management)(Company Profile)
October 10, 1997... Penetrating the good ol' boy network is crucial for consulting business When Larry Cook rolled into town several years ago, he brought with him a thorough knowledge of the construction business. And that gave him precisely half what he...

State ready to transfer food stamps to cards. (Deluxe Electronic Payment Systems Corp to administer electronic benefits transfer of food stamp program)
October 10, 1997... The state of Wisconsin is in the final stages of signing a contract with Deluxe Electronic Payment Systems Corp., Glendale, to administer an electronic benefit transfer program for food stamp recipients. Wisconsin will have its program in...

America Online sues 'spammer' in Strong Funds case. (Over the Air Equipment Inc sued by Strong/Corneliuson Capital Management Inc and America Online Inc)
October 10, 1997... Invitations from cyber strippers have landed Over the Air Equipment Inc. in court again. The Las Vegas Internet pornography company faces the legal wrath of America Online Inc. (AOL), the giant Dulles, Va., provider of on-line services....

Doing the job hop: robust job market opens revolving door for professionals.
October 10, 1997... Robust job market opens revolving door for professionals Tom Dixon is no carpenter, but he sure knows how to build bridges, nail down jobs and climb ladders. By moving from ad agency to ad agency to agency as a copywriter and creative...

Gray areas smudge contract employment; Microsoft, Hygrade cases show risks of tapping 'contractors' to fill jobs. (differences between employees and independent contractors)
October 10, 1997... Microsoft, Hygrade cases show risks of tapping 'contractors' to fill jobs A lawsuit pending in U.S. District Court in Milwaukee may help settle the issue of whether people hired to do a job are employees or independent contractors....

Displaced managers seek support in job search; participants in Job Forum face new challenges in 1997's economy.
October 10, 1997... Participants in Job Forum face new challenges in 1997's economy At age 59, Jim Weber finds himself jobless and a healthy economy gives him only some solace. Weber, who recently left auto parts maker Tower Automotive Inc., Milwaukee,...

Employers' choice: temp firms or PEOs. (professional employer organizations fulfill human resources functions)
October 10, 1997... Some employers overwhelmed by the alphabet soup of employment regulations from ADA to FICA to OSHA are deciding that the solution may be to remember just one set of initials: PEO. The professional employer organization (PEO) is the logical...

Complicated benefits packages require simple presentation. (managing employee benefits communications)
October 10, 1997... Twice a year, the management of Charter Manufacturing Co. of Mequon holds face-to-face meetings with employees to tell them about their benefits. The hour-long meetings happen, regardless of whether there have been benefits changes....