Houston Business Journal articles from April 1995

Houston Business Journal archives from April 1995

Empty buildings return to action on West Loop. (Houston, Texas)
April 7, 1995... Owners upgrade long-vacant 'see-through' office structures After years of sitting idle, a cluster of empty buildings on Houston's busy West Loop are making a comeback. Two of these "see-through" buildings are going through major renovations...

Med firm files IPO, plans national cancer network. (American Oncology Resources Inc.; initial public offering)
April 7, 1995... Changing times in the health care industry have encouraged a local medical management company to seek financing in the public sector. Houston-based American Oncology Resources Inc., which has strong ties to the Denver cancer treatment...

Two insurance companies plan Houston HMOs. (Home Life Financial Insurance Corp.; Great West Life and Annuity Insurance Co.; health maintenance organizations)
April 7, 1995... Two out-of-state insurance companies are invading the Houston market to begin new health maintenance organizations. New Jersey-based Home Life Financial Insurance Corp. has filed a name reservation with the Texas Department of Insurance in...

St. Paul Insurance firm settles in workers compensation case. (St. Paul Group)
April 7, 1995... Another national insurance company has settled with a group of Texas employers who claim they were overcharged in worker's compensation contracts. The St. Paul Group of Insurance Companies agreed to pay $16 million to remove itself from a...

Party Land opens new Houston store and scouts other franchise locations. (Party Land Inc.)
April 7, 1995... Party Land, an international party supply chain based in Pennsylvania, says it will open at least eight stores in the Houston area during the next year. The first outlet opened in the Memorial City Mall this week, and the company is currently...

New safety services company acquires Camco unit, 2 others. (Total Safety Inc.; Camco International Inc.'s Safety Technology and Oilfield Protectors division; Total Sulfide Services Inc.; Safety Concepts Inc.)
April 7, 1995... Total Safety Inc., a newly formed Houston company with growth on its mind, has acquired three safety service companies and is shopping for more. On March 20, Total Safety purchased the assets of Houston's Safety Technology & Oilfield...

Born into the business of death. (Service Corporation International founder Robert L. Waltrip)
April 7, 1995... Robert L. Waltrip has built a single funeral home in the Heights into the world's largest provider of death care services When most of the neighborhood kids wanted to become doctors, firemen and race car drivers, all Robert L. Waltrip wanted to...

Dealmakers in industrial market challenged by industry changes.(Focus on Commercial Real Estate/Construction)
April 7, 1995... As the industrial commercial real estate market changes, so does the work of the industry's professionals. Net absorption in the industrial market more than doubled from 3.5 million square feet in 1993 to 8.2 million in 1994. With positive...

Shopping center occupancy rate slated to continue improvement. (Houston, Texas)(Focus on Commercial Real Estate/Construction)
April 7, 1995... Future profitability in the shopping center market will rely heavily on the power center and access to capital. While Houston may be a step behind the progress of other U.S. markets, a historical comparison to national statistics shows the market...

Kirby Corp. (Proxy Report Excerpts) (Company Profile)
April 7, 1995... AMEX KEX 1775 ST. JAMES PLACE, SUITE 300, HOUSTON 77056 (713) 629-9370 Kirby Corp. is a marine transportation company engaged, through its subsidiaries, in the operation of vessels on the inland waterway system of the United States and in...

State near showdown in waste well. (Waste Water Inc.'s plan to put hazardous waste well in Guy, Texas)(A Toxic Battle Over Twin Lakes)
April 14, 1995... A 16-year battle over a hazardous waste disposal facility in Brazoria County is heading for a final showdown in Austin. Waste Water Inc. of Colleyville is seeking approval from state authorities to inject toxic waste into a converted natural...

Residents: 'we're afraid of accidents.' (Waste Water Inc.'s plan to put hazardous waste well in Guy, Texas)(A Toxic Battle Over Twin Lakes)
April 14, 1995... Almost 16 years ago, Doris McFadden and Laura Poncik sensed the first signs of trouble in their rural retirement community southwest of Houston near Rosenberg. The concerns began for residents of Twin Lakes subdivision in the tiny town of Guy...

Owner: 'It's really a very simple deal.' (Waste Water Inc. President Harvey Greenwald; plan for hazardous waste well in Guy, Texas)(A Toxic Battle Over Twin Lakes)
April 14, 1995... Harvey Greenwald is pulling out all the stops to get his company's hazardous waste facility up and running near the tiny Texas town of Guy. Since taking over Waste Water Inc. six years ago, Greenwald has conducted a series of legal and...

Nasty business: BFI fights for toehold in New York trash. (Browning-Ferris Industries Inc.; New York, New York)
April 14, 1995... Houston's Browning-Ferris Industries Inc. has found that trash hauling in New York City is a particularly nasty business. There was the severed dog's head that appeared on a BFI employee's doorstep two years ago, when BFI first entered the...

Legislators push bills to change law, assist Waste Water in well dispute. (Waste Water Inc.'s plan to put hazardous waste well in Guy, Texas)
April 14, 1995... Harvey Greenwald is getting some help from friends in politically high places in his effort to put a hazardous waste well near the Texas town of Guy. Stymied by developments in the Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission, the president...

Cornpone, cusswords and country class: celebrity surgeon Dr. Red Duke combines hayseed image with healing personality. (James Henry Duke)(includes related article)(Profile)
April 14, 1995... The boots, the jeans and the trademark Texas twang are for real. So are the wire-rimmed spectacles, messy mop of hair and ragged Yosemite Sam-style mustache. In fact, everything about Dr. "Red" Duke seems to be as advertised. And if you...

Small businesses are favorite targets of white-collar crime.(Small Business Beat)(Column)
April 14, 1995... Small business owners have to overcome a variety of hurdles, and one of the biggest is white-collar crime. Crime against small companies accounts for 80 percent of all crimes against business, according to a recently published book called...

Maritime company makes waves in global shipping market. (IMC Maritime Group)(Small Business Profile)(Company Profile)
April 14, 1995... Company: IMC Maritime Group. Business: Cargo shipping. Founded: 1989. Employees: 6. Sales: $13 million. Background: Presad Menon knows what it's like to sail the seas, but these days he prefers to keep his feet on the ground....

Too much tort reform would harm small business.
April 14, 1995... I know something most people don't know about tort reform. Unless legislators in Austin quickly change laws now under consideration, tort reform would destroy many of your rights as the owner of a small business. Most people assume tort reform...

Varying versions of MSOs represent latest trend in 'managed care.' (management services organizations)(Quarterly Health Care Report)
April 14, 1995... The old saying "Physician, heal thyself" could now be rewritten as "Physician, market thyself." As one of the nation's largest untapped markets for managed care, Houston's health care landscape will definitely undergo more change. Ultimately,...

Several hospitals near end of high-dollar expansion efforts. (Houston, Texas)(Quarterly Health Care Report)
April 14, 1995... Several of Houston's hospitals are adding on and building up in an effort to make themselves more competitive in the ever-turbulent health care industry. With health care reform now on the back burner, Memorial Hospitals, The Methodist...

Doctor-turned-inventor creates breakthrough orthopedic device. (Terry Clyburn)(Quarterly Health Care Report)
April 14, 1995... Inventor of Clyburn Fixator also discovered a way to combine work and play Dr. Terry Clyburn is a tinkerer by nature. From refurbishing a 1923 Model T Ford to repairing the plumbing and wiring at his house, the St. Joseph Hospital...

Doctors should give managed care contracts thorough examination.(Quarterly Health Care Report)(Managed Care Contracts)(Column)
April 14, 1995... Like it or not, the age of managed care is upon us. And as the pool of patients not enrolled in managed care dwindles, it forces more and more physicians to restructure their practices. The day of the one-doctor office is nearly over (unless it...

Hospitals in heated competition for coveted primary care doctors.(Quarterly Health Care Report)
April 14, 1995... Primary care doctors are finding the prognosis is good for their fields of family practice, internal medicine and pediatrics. Patients aren't the only ones seeking their services. Hospitals and managed care are after them. So are public...

Hyping Houston: early boosters stretched the truth in selling city. (Houston, Texas)(Houston Heritage)
April 14, 1995... The Jan. 4, 1845, edition of the Illustrated London News contained the engraving pictured above. It was entitled "Houston, Texas." This same image also appeared in German newspapers and was used to encourage settlement in Texas. It apparently...

American Indemnity Financial Corp. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 14, 1995... NASDAQ/NMS AIFC 2115 WINNIE, GALVESTON 77550 (409) 766-4600 American Indemnity Financial Corp. is a Galveston-based holding company comprised of a group of regional property and casualty insurance companies. Total shares of common...

Builders to revive 'foreclosure city;' new homes going up in Glen Iris. (Majestic Homebuilders Inc.; Glen Iris subdivision in Houston, Texas)
April 28, 1995... A new home building firm will begin construction this summer on more than 100 homes in a southwest Houston neighborhood once known as "foreclosure city." Majestic Homebuilders Inc., a 1-year-old Houston company formed by three veteran...

Long-distance reseller going public; Nationwide prepares for national expansion. (Nationwide Long Distance Inc.)
April 28, 1995... Another local long-distance company hopes to finance its expansion on the information superhighway by way of Wall Street. Nationwide Long Distance Inc., which two months ago acquired Vadacom Inc., filed April 10 with the Securities and Exchange...

'The king of trash gas.' (Redman Energy Corp.)
April 28, 1995... Redman Energy is about to double in size by going after dangerous gas nobody else wants Jeff Voncannon considers himself the king of "trash gas." He is president and chief executive of Redman Energy Corp., which specializes in exploration...

Labor lawyers leave A&K to start new office. (Andrews and Kurth L.L.P.; Houston, Texas office for Littler, Mendelson, Fastiff, Tichy and Mathiason)
April 28, 1995... An entire legal section at Houston's Andrews & Kurth abandoned that firm this week to create a local office for a San Francisco law firm. Four former Andrews & Kurth partners, as well as associate attorneys and staff personnel, opened a...

TNRCC reverses decision in controversial waste well case; new conclusion allows company to proceed with permit application. (Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission; Waste Water Inc.)
April 28, 1995... The Texas Natural Resource Conservation Commission staff was ordered last week to reverse its conclusions in a controversial Brazoria County case. The new conclusions, filed in Austin Tuesday, allow Waste Water Inc. to proceed with its...

Compaq Computer supplier plans new production plant in Stafford; Progressive Manufacturing will employ up to 50 people. (Compaq Computer Corp.; Stafford, Texas; Progressive Manufacturing Company Inc.)
April 28, 1995... Progressive Manufacturing Corp., an Illinois supplier to Houston-based Compaq Computer Corp., will open a production facility this summer in Fort Bend County to be closer to its major client. The family-owned manufacturing firm produces...

Regulations state what home businesses can and cannot do.(Small Business Monthly)
April 28, 1995... Deed restrictions may surprise some entrepreneurs who think they're home free You've decided to pursue the American dream: Open a business of your own. To minimize your start-up costs, you opt to operate out of your home. You post a sign in...

San Antonio firm buys Bell building for conversion to data storage facility. (San Antonio, Texas; Orion Partners Inc.; Southwestern Bell Corp.)(Real Estate Beat)(Column)
April 28, 1995... A San Antonio-based partnership has purchased the former Southwestern Bell building in the 3100 block of Main Street for conversion into a multiuse data storage facility. Orion Partners Inc. purchased the 500,000-square-foot building from...

Local computer industry buzzes with intense acquisition activity.(Focus on Hi-Tech)
April 28, 1995... In the world of hi-tech, the attitude of hardware and software companies seems to be "eat or be eaten." Only the fittest and leanest companies are surviving as competitors continue to gobble each other up and take over each other's product...

Adams Resources & Energy Inc. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 28, 1995... AMEX AE 6910 FANIN, HOUSTON 77030 (713) 797-9966 Adams Resources & Energy Inc. is engaged in the business of oil and gas exploration and production, crude oil marketing, petroleum products marketing and tank truck transportation of petroleum...