The Business Journal-Milwaukee articles from September 1997

The Business Journal-Milwaukee archives from September 1997

Sharing advice. (Council of Growing Companies)
September 26, 1997... Support network of execs seeks solutions, helps peers Like many fast-growing, midsize companies, Wixon Fontarome Inc. welcomes advice on how to run between the corporate giants' legs without getting trampled. However, before it joined the...

Rebuilding the south side. (real estate development in Milwaukee, Wisconsin)
September 26, 1997... Planners hope to duplicate 3rd Ward success An ambitious plan to redevelop a large chunk of Milwaukee's near south side is gaining support among neighborhood businesses, property owners and community-based organizations. The creators of...

Unions' summer? (labor union elections in Wisconsin)
September 26, 1997... Organized labor elections rise in Wisconsin Unions in Wisconsin are rebounding this year after nearly two decades of decline. In the National Labor Relations Board's Milwaukee region, the number of union representations is up, and so is...

Credit agreements extend Case's reach. (Case Credit Corp.)
September 26, 1997... Case Credit Corp., the finance arm of Case Corp., Racine, is expanding its credit offerings, prompting one analyst to predict the subsidiary will boost corporate earnings by 20 percent or more in the next three years. An agreement allowing...

Closed for business: more funds close to new investors.
September 26, 1997... Few people would complain about having too much money. Fewer still would stop accepting it because they wouldn't know what to do with more cash if they had it. That attitude, however, is becoming more common among mutual fund portfolio...

Portico Emerging Growth Fund: the world according to 'GARP.' (interview with managers Todd Krieg and Matt D'Attilio)(Interview)
September 26, 1997... "Research," Todd Krieg said, "is what sets the Portico Funds apart from any of their competitors." Anyone could have surmised as much from the stacks of binders, mounds of bar charts and piles of graphs that he and Matt D'Attilio, co-manager...

Speed sells. (computer hardware manufacturer Genroco Inc.)
September 26, 1997... Genroco's computer components appeal to 'speed freaks' Genroco Inc. makes high-performance computer hardware for what company chairman and chief executive officer Carl Pick affectionately calls "the lunatic fringe." "It's the kind of guys...

Without a net: small businesses use credit cards for loans.
September 26, 1997... Nearly one out of four small businesses still don't have computers, and bank loans are becoming increasingly unpopular among the nation's smaller firms, according to a new national survey. Little more than a third of the small businesses...

Changes in the wind for Public Service Commission.
September 26, 1997... Respect does not come easy for the state Public Service Commission (PSC) since it began tackling deregulation issues affecting the telecommunications, natural gas and electricity industries. "A lot of the bad-mouthing of the commission is...

Milwaukee's Calatrava era takes wing. (construction of the Milwaukee Art Museum)
September 26, 1997... Art Museum project challenges local contractors to craft a stunning new landmark on the lake By the dawn of the new millennium, construction of the Santiago Calatrava-designed addition to the Milwaukee Art Museum will be complete, forever...

After construction, handle move with care. (Gustave A. Larson Co.'s transfer to a new business address)
September 26, 1997... Move to new site required planning, outside experts Frank Mirocha put his arms around his company's IBM AS400 mainframe computer, hugging it protectively as though it were his child. As vice president of operations for Gustave A. Larson...

Some districts make closed schools new again.
September 26, 1997... Rising enrollment for area school districts makes some school administrators glad they didn't sell the school buildings they closed when enrollment fell in years past. Cudahy's Kosciuszko Elementary School, 5252 S. Kirkwood Ave., was...

McDonald still preaches thrifty Wright stuff. (architect John Randal McDonald)
September 26, 1997... Wauwatosa native architect John Randal McDonald bristles at the characterization of himself as "the poor man's Frank Lloyd Wright." "Please don't use that term. Someone did once and it broke my heart," he said. McDonald designed 97 homes...

Airline business propels Applied Power. (noise reduction systems for aircraft)
September 19, 1997... Applied Power Midwest Express Holdings Inc. and Northwest Airlines Corp. are installing a cabin noise-reduction system for commercial jets developed by a unit of Applied Power Inc., becoming the first customers in what the Butler-based...

Pay dirt. (check cashers)
September 19, 1997... With few rules, check cashers charge huge sums Russell Cramer is willing to help people with a little extra cash until payday. At four locations of Money Express, which he owns, customers can borrow $100 against their next paycheck for a...

Bill reduces penalty for some forgeries.
September 19, 1997... Bankers know that few if any criminals who commit forgery ever receive a felony conviction, even though a felony is the only prescribed penalty for a forged or altered check. Most cases are pleaded to misdemeanor offenses. But a legislative...

Trouble-shooting. (property management firm Team Management)
September 19, 1997... Would-be cop now polices troubled residential property Ten years ago, after earning an associate degree in law enforcement, Susan Volz embarked on a career as licensed private detective, sleuthing around southeastern Wisconsin, thinking she...

HMOs to set up hotline. (health management organizations)
September 19, 1997... Responding to consumer worries about the quality of health maintenance organizations, the Association of Wisconsin HMOs and a Madison advocacy group are creating a telephone hotline to take questions or complaints about HMOs and other health...

Area mutual fund families scramble with rising Fidelity fees. (Fidelity Investments)
September 19, 1997... If Fidelity Investments goes ahead with plans to increase the fees it charges mutual fund families to offer portfolios through its mass marketing efforts, Milwaukee-area fund families may be forced to juggle their sales techniques. Some...

Spice company Wixon Fontarome expands just in time.
September 19, 1997... The need for more space is being driven by Wixon's growth, the result of a new inventory management system. Wixon Fontarome Inc., a St. Francis firm that makes seasonings and spices, has leased 98,000 square feet at the former J.H....

Lawmakers introduce bankruptcy reform bill in Congress.
September 19, 1997... Banks and credit lending institutions scored a major lobbying victory Sept. 17, when a bill to curb bankruptcy abuses was introduced in Congress. U.S. Reps. Bill McCollum, a Florida Republican, and Rick Boucher, a Virginia Democrat,...

Manufacturing sector spurs state's growth. (Wisconsin)
September 19, 1997... Wisconsin's gross state product increased 15.6 percent from 1989 to 1994, the most among five other Midwestern states. "People don't usually think of Wisconsin as a high growth state, but our 3 percent a year increase is an indication we have...

Training center makes difference on northwest side.
September 19, 1997... The Wisconsin Works (W-2) welfare reform program is evolving quickly into a higher life form by engaging the support of well-entrenched organizations that have years of experience placing welfare recipients in jobs. Northwest Side Community...

A beacon in the Medicare darkness. (home health care training provider Beacon Health Corp.)
September 19, 1997... Mequon company shines in home health care training To many nurses in the home-health care field, understanding Medicare rules is like walking through fog: The path ahead isn't clear, and you can only hope you're going in the right direction....

Open markets boost trade - and corruption, group claims. (Transparency International)
September 19, 1997... The breakdown of trade barriers among countries is prying open new markets for goods and services - but it's also spawning rampant corruption in countries around the world, according to a German nonprofit organization that tracks international...

Power struggle: utilities lining up to bend governor's ear. (Gov. Tommy Thompson)
September 19, 1997... A power struggle is brewing as Wisconsin's utilities and policymakers prepare their proposed plans to correct the state's electricity reliability problems. Three separate task forces will hand their plans to Gov. Tommy Thompson Oct. 1....

Trunzo survived Miller Park financing jungle. (interview with Robert Trunzo, Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park Board chairman)(Interview)
September 19, 1997... Two years ago, Robert Trunzo accepted Gov. Tommy Thompson's invitation to chair the Southeast Wisconsin Professional Baseball Park Board. When he did so, Trunzo, vice president of development for Continental Properties Co. Inc., Menomonee...

'New' Smith seeks Wall Street attention. (A.O. Smith Corp.)
September 19, 1997... A.O. Smith shed its automotive business to pursue a 'new vision.' The unit's news owner, Tower Automotive, views Smith's old Milwaukee plant in a new light A.O. Smith Corp. executives want Wall Street to see how confident they are that the...

Tower: team approach to boosting Milwaukee. (Tower Automotive Inc.)
September 19, 1997... At a 7:30 a.m. meeting, labor and management employees at Tower Automotive Inc.'s Milwaukee plant gathered around a conference room table off the factory floor and frankly discussed work issues. Welder Phil Burr complained to management that...

Equity funds investing in manufacturers.
September 19, 1997... Private equity funds gain on strategic acquirers but its not a return to the LBO era Thirty-two billion dollars is circling the American economy seeking a home - and some of it is finding its way into area manufacturing companies. That's...

Ghost of Lopez haunts auto suppliers. (former General Motors Corp. purchasing head J. Ignacio Lopez de Arriortua)
September 19, 1997... Ex-GM purchasing czar's pricing strategy still in effect Five years ago, General Motors Corp. struck fear in its suppliers when its purchasing czar, J. Ignacio Lopez de Arriotua, launched a massive campaign to cut the automaker's costs....

Medicare HMO competition heats up. (health maintenance organization; Humana Inc. and Blue Cross and Blue Shield United of Wisconsin seek approval to offer Medicare plans to senior citizens)
September 12, 1997... Wisconsin senior citizens eligible for Medicare soon may have more than one choice if they want health care coverage from an HMO. Two health insurance companies, Blue Cross & Blue Shield United of Wisconsin and Humana Inc., have applied...

Quindel stood ground in stormy Teamster duty. (Barbara Zack Quindel; International Brotherhood of Teamsters)
September 12, 1997... Barbara Zack Quindel was hardly surprised last month when she was roundly criticized for her handling of the most recent Teamsters union presidential election. It was all part of her job as the court-appointed watchdog of the ejection. "You...

The great sellout. (merger and acquisition activities among small businesses)
September 12, 1997... Many entrepreneurs find time is right to sell shop Entrepreneurs sell their businesses for all sorts of reasons. Some, like Chris Hubertz, sell because their company simply grows too big. Hubertz, 38, founded Plastronics Plus Inc., an East...

Beam them up. (Laser Force)(Company Profile)
September 12, 1997... Entrepreneurs turned layoffs into laser business It isn't often that business owners recall fondly the day they were laid off from a job. But Chris Smart and Michael Michalski remember spotting a golden opportunity in their pink slips....

St. Michael Hospital to expand emergency room.
September 12, 1997... St. Michael Hospital will begin construction late this year or early next year on a $4.3 million expansion and renovation of the hospital's emergency department. It will be the first major renovation to the Milwaukee hospital's emergency...

Race to build natural gas pipeline through state is on. (Wisconsin Public Service Commission's approval of the Viking Voyageur project)
September 12, 1997... A transcontinental race to build a natural gas pipeline through or around the state to Chicago is picking up speed, thanks to a recent Wisconsin Public Service Commission opinion and a multinational corporation's decision to pump $127 million...

Manpower Inc. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
September 12, 1997... NEW YORK - MAN Manpower Inc. is the largest non-governmental employment services organization in the world, with more than 2,500 offices in 43 countries. The company is engaged primarily in temporary help, contract services and employee...

Brookfield Square hopes mall card strikes a chord. (Brookfield Square Shopping Center; credit card)
September 12, 1997... Brookfield Square Shopping Center is trying to encourage loyalty among its patrons by offering a credit card that rewards shoppers with vouchers. The card bears the mall developer's name and gives customers certificates for 2 percent of...

'Midprice' hotel boom pushes forward.(Focus On: Hotels, Conventions & Travel)(Industry Overview)
September 12, 1997... Recent surveys show demand may be declining Doug Seymour was surprised to see two hotel development plans cross his desk at the Oak Creek City Hall in the same month. "From everything that we've been reading, occupancy rates have been...

Wispark takes hotel development into own hands. (Wispark Corp.)(Focus On: Hotels, Conventions & Travel)
September 12, 1997... After rebuff from national developers, industrial park firm develops midprice hotel National hotel developers are not convinced that Wispark Corp.'s LakeView Corporate Park can support a midprice lodging and convention center, but LakeView...

From potato peeler to the top of the Hyatt. (Hyatt Regency-Milwaukee)(Focus On: Hotels, Conventions & Travel)
September 12, 1997... Consider this the next time you visit the Hyatt Regency-Milwaukee hotel downtown: The man who rims it today started in the hotel industry as a potato peeler. "I knew the way for me to get into a hotel was to start at any level and I didn't...

Public sector increases aid for hotel projects. (Milwaukee, Wisconsin)(Focus On: Hotels, Conventions & Travel)
September 12, 1997... The hospitality industry across the country will see the public sector partnering more and more with private developers to build full-service hotels. This was one of the findings of hospitality consultants at the Phoenix office of E&Y...

Securities scams on rise. (in Wisconsin)
September 5, 1997... The state Division of Securities has cited 328 firms this year for illegally selling investments or ownership stakes in companies without first being licensed or registering the securities in the state. Each year, the state cites 500 to 700...

Totally free? Check again. (misleading advertising of Wisconsin banks)
September 5, 1997... Dozens of banks in Wisconsin advertise "free" checking accounts, but few are truly free of fees and restrictions - a violation of the Truth in Savings Act of 1993. About 15 percent of banks in the state claim to offer free checking, but far...

Apartments planned at Brill Bros. site. (Firstar Community Investment Corp and Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin to develop apartment complex in Milwaukee)
September 5, 1997... Firstar Community Investment Corp. and the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Wisconsin are moving forward with plans to develop a $6.5 million, 70-unit apartment complex on Milwaukee's near south side, although city officials have turned down...

A taste for business: do you have what it takes to be an entrepreneur? (starting a business in Wisconsin)
September 5, 1997... Lisa Crum has wanted to be an entrepreneur for as long as she can remember. Crum, 29, first thought about starting her own business while working as head baker for a small Milwaukee bread company. She knew how to bake, but didn't have the...

Sixteenth Street group hopes to transform brownfields. (Milwaukee's Sixteenth Street Community Health Center)
September 5, 1997... Milwaukee's Sixteenth Street Community Health Center is heading an initiative aimed at reclaiming multiple brownfields sites in the Menomonee River Valley and has rounded up an army of public and private sector partners to assist in the effort....

Wisconsin corporate insiders selling out.
September 5, 1997... Corporate insiders at Wisconsin public companies are putting the motto "buy low, sell high" to work these days, as they cash in on the hottest stock market in decades. The insiders are selling a lot more shares in the companies they run than...

Giddings & Lewis workers consider joining Steelworkers. (United Steelworkers of America)
September 5, 1997... Only months after thwarting a hostile takeover attempt, managers at Giddings & Lewis Inc. must confront a challenge era different sort: a union organizing drive. Workers at the machine-tool maker's main factory in Fond du Lac will vote Oct....

Banta subsidiary sells Milwaukee division. (KCS Industries Inc)
September 5, 1997... A Milwaukee subsidiary of Banta Corp. plans to sell a business division to a management buy-out group, and the new owners are considering laying off some of the approximately 100 employees who work there. KCS Industries Inc., wholly owned by...

PSC shakeup possible, as lawmakers grill regulators. (possible restructuring of Wisconsin Public Service Commission)
September 5, 1997... Now that the criminal investigations are over, the state Senate's regulation committee is preparing to hold overdue confirmation hearings on two Public Service Commission board members. The hearings promise to be lively discussions because of...

Pewaukee company to move to Brookfield. (Medical Systems Consulting Services to relocate to Brookfield, Wisconsin)
September 5, 1997... Medical Systems Consulting Services, an 8-year-old company that reconditions and resells medical diagnostic equipment, has paid $1.3 million for a 57,000-square-foot building at 1505 Commerce Ave., Brookfield. The company's move from its...

Going solo: employees walk tricky line when leaving to start own company. (experience of Wisconsin entrepreneur David Aushwitz)
September 5, 1997... David Aushwitz has been managing money for many of the same clients over the last nine years or so. He has posted steady returns with the millions of dollars entrusted to him as a certified financial advisor. Aushwitz, however, has not been...

Dayton Hudson Corporation. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
September 5, 1997... NEW YORK - DH Dayton Hudson Corp., based in Minneapolis, is America's fifth-largest general merchandise retailer and consists of three main operating segments: Target, which generates 70 percent of the corporation's revenue, is an upscale...

From retirement to cherry-picking. (interview with Maier Hauswirth Investment Advisers Pres and CEO Roy Hauswirth)(Interview)
September 5, 1997... In early 1995, Roy Hauswirth was ready to leave the active money management role he had as president of Ziegler Asset Management, West Bend, and live a more leisurely lifestyle in semiretirement. His plans included some private consulting,...

Wireless e-mail mobilizes data: another link binding professionals to the office.
September 5, 1997... As if business professionals need another shackle binding them to the never-ending work day, the rise of wireless e-mail services gives dedicated e-mailers another remote link to the office. Wireless e-mail transcends its users' reliance on...

Employers need rules for office e-mail; attorneys suggest policies to prevent employer liability.
September 5, 1997... Employers that don't establish rules for employees on proper use of electronic mail systems are asking for legal trouble, warn employment attorneys. Still, some area employers believe their existing policies requiring employees to act...

The virtual case for document management. (document management at Wisconsin companies)
September 5, 1997... Technology improves for filing, retrieving documents Even a company that makes paper realizes that paperwork can slow down its operations. Appleton Papers Inc. logs $1 billion in annual revenue making and selling paper but was getting...

Symphony fans could get carded. (Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra offers MSO Visa Card)(The Business of the Arts)
September 5, 1997... The Milwaukee Symphony Orchestra recently tuned in to the affinity card business and is hoping to bring in additional revenue with a credit card that will donate a portion of each charge to the arts organization. The MSO Visa card, which...

Corporations pick up slack for growing Latino Arts. (Wisconsin businesses provide financial support to state's only Hispanic arts center)(The Business of the Arts)
September 5, 1997... At a time when government funding for the arts is at a low point, Latino Arts Inc., the only Hispanic arts center in Wisconsin, has watched its operating budget grow. The corporate world has picked up the slack. according to Walter Sava,...

New Koss program is music to employees' ears. (Koss Corp's music lessons for employees)(The Business of the Arts)
September 5, 1997... Koss Corp. employees soon may find the stereophones they produce amplifying the volume of their own performances. Koss now offers its employees lessons at the Wisconsin Conservatory of Music as an employee benefit. The classes will be free...