St. Louis Business Journal articles from April 1997

St. Louis Business Journal archives from April 1997

Ralston checks out Clayton. (Ralston Purina Co.; Missouri)
April 7, 1997... Chromalloy building leads contenders for executive offices Ralston Purina Co. is checking out Clayton's Chromalloy building for 100,000-square-feet of office space for a possible relocation of its executive offices. The amount of office...

Downtown parking rates up as much as 30%. (St. Louis, Missouri)
April 7, 1997... Rates at some downtown garages have risen dramatically since the start of the year, as has the griping. A survey of 16 downtown garages indicates that as of Jan. 1, rates at nine of them rose by an average of about 9 percent for monthly...

University of Missouri joins NationsBank trust defectors. (NationsBank Corp.)
April 7, 1997... The University of Missouri plans to move $97 million of its endowment funds that are invested in stocks out of the hands of NationsBank investment managers. The university's board of curators will meet later this month to determine where the...

HMOs looking for life support. (St. Louis, Missouri health maintenance organizations)
April 7, 1997... United posts biggest '96 loss at over $30 million When it comes to making money, St. Louis health maintenance organizations need a referral. The gatekeepers of St. Louis' managed care plans reported widespread losses in 1996 as the HMOs were...

Pick weekend coming for agents Steiner, Lattinville. (sports agents Jim Steiner and Bob Lattinville)
April 7, 1997... For the weekend of April 19-20, Jim Steiner's living room will become an office, complete with fax machines and phone lines. Meanwhile, Bob Lattinville will kick back on his couch in front of the television with a six-pack of his favorite...

Bremer puts mark on local printing industry. (Bremer Press)(Company Profile)
April 7, 1997... Revenue in 1997 expected to reach up to $3.8 million Business Activity: Bremer Press has found a niche for itself in the crowded printing industry in St. Louis, providing high-quality, short-run printing. Manufacturing firms that need materials...

Monsanto Co. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 7, 1997... Robert Shapiro Chairman, president and chief executive officer Monsanto Co. provides hundreds of chemical and agricultural products for a wide variety of end-use markets including herbicides, nylon and acrylic fibers, consumer sweeteners,...

On the same team? McAvey, Harmon ready to talk. (Maureen McAvey, executive director of the St. Louis Development Corp.; Mayor-elect Clarence Harmon)
April 14, 1997... The future of St. Louis looks bright to Maureen McAvey. But McAvey's own future as head of the agency that works to bring new job opportunities and real estate development to the city is murky. McAvey and Mayor-elect Clarence Harmon have not...

Harmon taps A-B official as chief of staff. (Mayor-elect Clarence Harmon; Anheuser-Busch executive Mike Jones)
April 14, 1997... St. Louis Mayor-elect Clarence Harmon has named Anheuser-Busch executive Mike Jones, former alderman and city housing director and a longtime friend, as his chief of staff. Jones is Harmon's first appointment since winning the April 1...

Employees construct deal for Kloster Co. (purchase of Kloster Company Inc.)
April 14, 1997... Grebel, Jones buy out third generation, change name Two longtime employees of Kloster Co. have purchased the St. Louis-based construction company from the Kloster family. Richard Grebel and Douglas Jones recently completed their purchase of...

Sinclair & Rush's Castle Bay covers 70% of new clubs. (golf club covers)(Company Profile)
April 14, 1997... Sinclair & Rush didn't set out to launch a golf division. But the company's then chief financial officer, Gary Feigenbutz, who is also an avid golfer, saw an opening in uncovered golf clubs. Bingo. It became the roots of Sinclair & Rush's...

ProRehab vaults to $3.5 million.(Company Profile)
April 14, 1997... Owners get physical with injured athletes and workers at seven locations Business Activity: ProRehab is a rapidly growing rehab firm that provides a range of services from physical therapy, hand therapy, industrial rehab and sports medicine at...

Ensuring community. (General American Life Insurance Co.'s civic interests)
April 14, 1997... General American blends business and civic interests to build $2.7 billion company In the past year General American Life Insurance Co. made the Fortune 500 (No. 479), revamped its charter to allow the operation to sell stock and chalked up...

Developing St. Louis. (St. Louis, Missouri)(Company Profile)
April 14, 1997... Perkinsons' vision, persistence build Earth City flood plain A lot of real estate developers know what it's like to fly high and then crash suddenly into the ground. By most accounts, Dale Perkinson should have burned out after he lost $11...

From coal to cars, Capps was tops. (George H. Capps)
April 14, 1997... The late George H. Capps wore many hats. He worked for the FBI, sold coal, cattle and cars, and headed the development company that built Plaza Frontenac. He raised millions of dollars for numerous civic and charitable causes, as well as...

Union Electric Co. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 14, 1997... Charles Mueller President and chief executive officer Union Electric Co. provides energy to 1.3 million customers in Missouri and Illinois. More than 95 percent of the company's sales comes from electric sales with the rest from sales of...

Amdocs programs growth. (increased hiring by Amdocs Inc.)
April 21, 1997... Software firm bringing state 300 new jobs Amdocs Inc., a software firm for the telecommunications industry, is preparing to hire 300 additional computer programmers as it launches a major expansion of operations at its corporate headquarters in...

More than kid's stuff. (growth of toy manufacturer Trendmasters Inc.)
April 21, 1997... Trendmasters doubles sales to $119 million Light years ago Trendmasters Inc. was a dream. Today it is a dream factory - one that is making waves in the $14 billion toy industry with new products and licensing deals that have revived...

Mastering business. (Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville's weekend and evening MBA program)
April 21, 1997... Now in its 20th year, SIUE remains Metro East's only MBA program Southern Illinois University at Edwardsville doesn't have the glitz of a weekend at Fort Lauderdale or getaway to the slopes of Vail. But for many of the 311 students enrolled in...

West Pointe, Southwest drive growth with new branches. (bank expansions in southwestern Illinois)
April 21, 1997... Banks are busy branching out in Southwestern Illinois. Southwest Bank and Central Bank plan facilities in Belleville by the end of the year or early next year. West Pointe Bank and Trust Co. expects to open a branch in Columbia this fall. Union...

Window dressing. (aluminum window manufacturer Winco Products Corp.)(Company Profile)
April 21, 1997... Winco's third generation provides framework for $18 million in sales Business Activity: Winco, a third-generation, family-owned business, is the oldest manufacturer of aluminum windows in St. Louis. Originally founded as the maker of...

Negotiating the minefield of copyrights on the Internet. (copyright problems on the Internet)
April 21, 1997... Copyrights and the Internet is like a minefield on a frontier. The mines are out there, but very few people are sure where they are. The unwary are apt to step on a (legal) mine at any time. The Internet, like any frontier, changes daily. But no...

Internet jurisdiction and laws know no boundaries. (cases involving advertising on the World Wide Web)
April 21, 1997... Try out the Internet's three-step courthouse hyperlink: (1) Create a business Web page, (2) post it on the Internet, in search of customers and sales, and (3) hypertravel instantly to a distant city to face a disgruntled customer in court....

Internet commerce raises many liability concerns.
April 21, 1997... To early users and enthusiasts, being on the Internet five years ago probably felt like flying with the Wright Brothers - exciting, free, uninhibited, risky and unpredictable. To users today, surfing the Internet may feel more like taking an...

Hospitals' net income up 32%.
April 28, 1997... But excess beds, Medicare cuts could eat into gains The short term financial prognosis is healthy at most St. Louis area hospitals, despite fears that government spending cuts and the growing presence of managed care could eat into theft bottom...

Magna's problem loan tied to John Connors. (Magna Bank)
April 28, 1997... A $12.5 million problem loan at Magna Bank apparently stems from loans involving John Connors' business ventures, according to people familiar with the loans. On April 16, Magna said it had set aside $12.5 million to cover potential loan...

Pool dives in. (real estate agent Nancy Pool)(Real Estate)
April 28, 1997... 76-year-old real estate agent teams with niece to sell $27 million worth of homes in two years What do you say about someone who's managed or owned seven radio stations, raced thoroughbred horses and, at an age when most people are opening...

Urban Land Institute comes to call.
April 28, 1997... 1,800 real estate and land use leaders visit St. Louis for ULI's Spring Council Forum April 30 May 2, 1997. ULI striving to make a 'visible difference' The 125 members of our ULI St. Louis district Council enthusiastically welcome the Urban...

Symphony hopes to secure $500,000 in sponsorships. (St. Louis Symphony Orchestra)
April 28, 1997... The Saint Louis Symphony Orchestra has invested $10,000 in an organization called TOPS in the hope of attracting $500,000 in corporate sponsorships annually. TOPS - The Orchestra PartnerShip - is a consortium of orchestras in the 25 largest...

Texas home builder finds St. Louis area tough to crack. (D.R. Horton Inc)
April 28, 1997... D.R. Horton seeks to double revenue in '97 The St. Louis home building market has Texas-based D.R. Horton Inc. stymied an unusual predicament for a company that has steamrolled through the rest of the United States. In 1996, D.R. Horton of...

Zoning issues: the latest cross to bear for wireless firms.
April 28, 1997... A cross atop a church in Des Peres could soon be doubling as a cellular telephone antenna. Meanwhile, Creve Coeur is expected to OK the top of the SSM Building on Lindbergh Boulevard for a cellular antenna on Monday, April 28. "We use roof...

Designing ways: KRJ builders.... (educational and health-care facilities designer firm Kromm, Rikimaru and Johansen Inc)(Small Business)
April 28, 1997... Business activity: Kromm, Rikimaru and Johansen Inc. specializes in designing educational and health-care facilities. The firm has designed nearly 300 facilities for 26 school districts. KRJ has served Francis Howell School district since 1990,...

Julius Merriweather has moving business rolling.(Small Business)
April 28, 1997... Ever since he spearheaded a project to raise money so his eighth grade class could take a trip to Washington, D.C., Julius Merriweather has wanted to own his own business. After being around his father's moving company for most of his life,...