St. Louis Business Journal articles from August 1996

St. Louis Business Journal archives from August 1996

Albertson's shops 20 sites to open 10 stores. (Albertson's Inc.)
August 5, 1996... Is there room for one more? Here's the breakdown of the number of supermarkets in metro St. Louis. Schnucks 70 Shop'n Save 33 National 23 Dierbergs ...

Are St. Louis stadiums safe from terrorists?
August 5, 1996... Busch had bomb threat day after Olympics blast While 27,401 unsuspecting fans took in the Cardinals-Expos baseball game on a recent Sunday afternoon, Busch Stadium security personnel and St. Louis police officers combed the stadium for a bomb....

Family ties bring dollars to St. Louis. (family reunions)
August 5, 1996... Committees, members, bylaws - sounds more like an annual meeting than a family reunion. Grady Davis, coordinator of the Cottrell/Kimbrough family planning committee, has been organizing his family's reunions for the past 14 years. And, like...

The word in office design is functional, not flashy.(The Functional Office)
August 5, 1996... When the elevator doors open on the sixth floor at 1910 Pine St., your first impression is that someone creative is at work. A rounded teal wall leads to the reception area, where two sharp, red and black chairs sit on a recycled asphalt floor....

Intranet replaces water cooler for office communication.(The Functional Office)
August 5, 1996... Not a day goes by without a new business opening up shop on the Internet. Increasingly, many firms are finding they can use the same technology to set up internal communication networks within their companies. These "intranets" allow workers...

Clarks on hook for $3 million in project. (Robert and Michael Clark of Clayton Construction Company inc.)
August 5, 1996... Construction executives provide guaranty for Perkinson's loan Robert G. Clark wants to be known as a construction executive not as a developer. "That would make our bonding company nervous," said Clark, president of Clayco Construction Co....

Ecumenical Housing sets up for-profit management arm. (Ecumenical Housing Production Corp. established EHPC Property Management Co.)
August 5, 1996... The nonprofit Ecumenical Housing Production Corp. is establishing a for-profit subsidiary that will manage rental property for homeowners. EHPC Property Management Co, a wholly owned subsidiary of Ecumenical Housing Production Corp., initially...

High resolution: DPI pictures graphic growth. (Digital Partners Inc.)(Company Profile)
August 5, 1996... Business Activity: After three years in the business world, Marina Koronis decided she wanted to go out on her own. Encouraged by family, friends and former clients, Koronis founded Digital Partners Inc. Digital Partners provides the graphics...

Dispute has company, St. Louis U. vying for kidney center. (St. Louis University; Renal Treatment Centers Inc.)
August 12, 1996... A dispute between St. Louis University and a Pennsylvania-based firm that provides dialysis treatment to patients suffering from chronic kidney failure is landing on the doorstep of the Missouri Health Facilities Review Committee. Both St....

Maritz's profit hits $25.2 million.
August 12, 1996... Travel division boosts $1.8 billion company Maritz Inc. - a company that built its reputation on motivating employees - saw its 1996 earnings jump to $25.2 million on revenue of nearly $1.8 billion. But the privately owned service business's...

6 Creve Coeur buildings go to Chicago group. (office buildings; Golub St. Louis Investors)
August 12, 1996... A Chicago investment group recently assumed a $32 million debt for a six-pack of office buildings in the Creve Coeur area market. The transaction was a direct deal between Golub St. Louis Investors, a Chicago-based limited partnership, and the...

Rubin brews bottled tea, but risks landing in jam. (Republic of Tea Inc. owner Ron Rubin)
August 12, 1996... In the risky, bottled tea business, Ron Rubin is getting ready to roll the dice. The entrepreneur from southern Illinois who last year bought The Republic of Tea in Novato, Calif., is preparing to unveil a bottled version of the specialty...

Parnell leaves Truman after flap with Miller. (Truman Bank President and CEO Ben A. Parnell III; Chairman Richard Miller)
August 12, 1996... Ben A. "Todd" Parnell III, president and chief executive officer of Truman Bank, exited the bank last week over a disagreement about the future of the institution. Parnell, who is credited with dramatically increasing the size of the bank's...

Finding the right college an expensive proposition: Independent School Placement charges $1,250 to help in search. (Independent School Placement Service)(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Independent School Placement charges $1,250 to help in search Anyone thinking about college - or paying for it - already knows sticker shock. If you send your student away to school, the price tag could run from $10,000 to more than $27,000...

Prime seeks replacement for KPLR to air the Blues. (Prime Sports Network; KPLR-TV Channel 11, St. Louis, Missouri)
August 12, 1996... For the first time in nearly a decade, Blues fans won't find their team's games on Channel 11. Negotiations have broken down between KPLR-TV Channel 11 and Prime Sports, the regional cable channel which recently bought the exclusive broadcast...

$47 billion in aid for students who fit the bill. (financial aid for college students)(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Do you play the bagpipes? Can you lasso a steer? Does your family tree include one of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence? If so, and you happen to be looking for a college scholarship, you may be in luck. Those are just some...

Students dissect career choice in medical summer program. (Practical Anatomy and Surgical Technique Workshop summer camp)(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Tina Hixson, who will be a senior this fall at Lafayette High School, has her eye on a career in medicine. Bryan Lind, a senior at Vianney High School, wants to be a physical therapist or athletic trainer. Both got a taste of what to expect in...

Toll on a new bridge would mean tolls on all bridges. (planned toll bridge across Mississippi River)
August 12, 1996... The latest plan for a new bridge across the Mississippi River isn't floating with the local trucking industry. The method of paying for a new bridge has not been determined, but the only option that has been seriously considered is charging...

'Appliance store' look covers dorm rooms, drains wallets.(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Tuition isn't the only rising cost associated with going to college. To bring the comforts and conveniences of home with them, students are heading to campus with televisions, VCRs, microwaves, refrigerators, stereo systems, computers and, in...

Avioli tells FDA reformers to put patients' safety first. (bone disease researcher Dr. Louis Avioli)
August 12, 1996... As Congress considers the reform of the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, Dr. Louis Avioli, a leading researcher of bone disease, hopes safety isn't forsaken in the name of speed. The FDA, which ensures the safety and quality of $1 trillion...

Changes make getting loans easier for wealthy parents. (educational loans)(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Recent changes in federal requirements are making it easier for students with wealthy parents to qualify for financial assistance for college. Two major sources of financing an education have been the Federal Family Stafford student loan and...

Washington U. hires agency to lobby for MetroLink route. (Development Programming Associates)
August 12, 1996... Washington University has hired a transportation consultant to help them persuade MetroLink planners to choose a route north of Forest Park for the cross-county extension. M. Fredric Volkmann, the Washington University vice chancellor for...

For-profit schools take bite out of public institutions.(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... Vatterott projects '97 revenue at $12.5 million Taking stock in education doesn't just mean showing up for class. Staking a claim in the market for intellectual capital is also getting a serious look from Wall Street investors. The New York...

RCGA adamant: don't tighten area's ozone standards. (St. Louis Regional Commerce and Growth Association)
August 12, 1996... A recent U.S. Environmental Protection Agency hearing in St. Louis has community leaders concerned that the agency may tighten the nation's ozone standards. But the EPA says there is no cause for alarm just yet. The EPA is required by Congress...

Athletic scholarships: tickets to play or learn?(Education & Professional Development)
August 12, 1996... For many prospective college students, an athletic scholarship can be a free ticket to higher education. But once there, student-athletes are challenged to find balance between their two separate lives. Rich Grawer, athletic director at Clayton...

Unity knew of Swift's desire to leave months ago. (James Swift, former president and CEO of Unity Health Systems)
August 12, 1996... The decision by James Swift to retire as Unity Health System's president and chief executive officer did not catch the organization off guard. Swift, 50, said he had talked to Run Ashworth, executive vice president and senior operating officer...

All ears, no hands: Spectrum expects $2 million-plus revenue for telephone headsets. (Spectrum Technologies)(Company Profile)
August 12, 1996... Business Activity: Spectrum Technologies is a family-owned firm that distributes telephone headsets and is the only area distributor that handles ACS Wireless Inc. products exclusively. Customers include some of the largest corporations in the...

Small delivery services cry foul over U.S. Postal centers. (Postal Service's Pack and Send Centers)
August 12, 1996... The U.S. Postal Service has worked hard over the years to improve its inefficient image. Some of its $54 billion in annual revenues is designated for nifty advertising campaigns aimed at drumming up business, while building goodwill with...

Hometown guys. (Tom Eagleton and Bob Costas)
August 12, 1996... This is a column about a couple guys from St. Louis. They have appeared in the news quite frequently. I just want to add my two cents to a little of who they are and what they are, and possibly what they mean to our community. First, there...

Venture, Thermadyne pensions underfunded. (St. Louis, MO, companies with pension plan funding shortfalls)
August 19, 1996... Ralston plan has largest surplus Underfunded nest eggs Some St. Louis companies with underfunded pensions Ratio of assets to obligations ...

Opus considers plan for Maryland Heights project.
August 19, 1996... Opus Corp. is back in town again. This time, the Minneapolis-based real estate developer is considering a Maryland Heights tax increment financing project, which has $20 million in public subsidy waiting to be used but no developer. Julie...

Union Planters sinks roots here with buyout, has plans to grow. (Union Planters Corp.'s entry into St. Louis, MO)
August 19, 1996... Union Planters Corp., a Memphis-based bank holding company, wants to shake up the St. Louis banking market. By the end of this year or early next year, Union Planters will have $223 million in assets at six locations in the St. Louis area,...

Home Depot shops for tax subsidy from St. Charles. (St. Charles, MO)
August 19, 1996... Home Depot is asking for $3.9 million in tax subsidies from the city of St. Charles to help spur an $18 million development in the Cave Springs area. The entire project will be a redevelopment of Cave Springs Shopping Center at Mexico and Old...

UE, others face dwindling space for nuclear storage. (Union Electric Co.)
August 19, 1996... Union Electric has enough capacity to store spent nuclear fuel until 2004, but where it goes after that is still unclear. The federal government had been mandated by Congress to begin accepting the nation's high-level nuclear waste by 1998....

Under control. (Update Systems Inc.)
August 19, 1996... Grossmans rack up sales of $2 million putting power at industry's fingertips Business Activity: Jim and Jane Grossman's business is a study in perseverance. "It took nine years to turn a profit," Jim said. "If someone had told me that in the...

Stiritz, Maritz put stock in Boatmen's. (Boatmen's Bancshares directors Bill Stiritz and Bill Maritz)
August 26, 1996... Total value of share purchases almost $2 million Boatmen's Bancshares directors Bill Maritz and Bill Stiritz are stocking up on the bank company's shares, buying almost $2 million worth of shares during the past few months. Maritz, chairman...

Brilliant idea: invest little, receive a lot. (Sidney N. Brilliant's management)
August 26, 1996... Somewhere during Sidney N. Brilliant's transformation from aluminum siding salesman to luxury condominium visionary, he developed a formula for big time real estate projects: Think big, invest little of your own money and stand at the front of...

1 million sought to take part nationally in DebateWatch '96.
August 26, 1996... Civic Progress has committed $250,000 to encourage debate after the debate. The group of leaders from St. Louis' largest corporations is funding DebateWatch '96, a program launched by the Commission on Presidential Debates as a pilot in 1992....

Cards, conventions make it a hot summer for hotels.
August 26, 1996... Like the Cardinals, downtown hotels are enjoying this summer much more than last. Between the success of the Redbirds, the city's full convention schedule and a steady rise in recreational and corporate travel, the local hotel industry is...

Edison Brothers' woes lead to jump in banks' bad loans. (Edison Brothers Stores Inc.; St. Louis, MO banks)
August 26, 1996... The financial problems at Edison Brothers Stores Inc. contributed to a nearly 50 percent increase in problem loans at St. Louis banks in the past year. Figures compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis showed a 48.8 percent increase in...

id chain closing despite strong sales in St. Louis. (American Specialty Corp.'s id clothing stores; St. Louis, MO)
August 26, 1996... The id clothing stores, a missy sportswear chain with seven stores in the metropolitan area, are going out of business. The mall-based stores, which feature modestly priced clothing for younger women, are the latest casualty in what continues...