Houston Business Journal articles from April 2000

Houston Business Journal archives from April 2000

Wireless merger puts PrimeCo on block.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Decision to sell Houston operation catches customers, executives by surprise The owners of PrimeCo Personal Communications are disconnecting the Houston operation and planning to sell it off as part of a complex mega-merger that will...

Medical mandate.(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Hospitals face costly new rules after Y2K compliance Susan Stone and the rest of the compliance team at Texas Children's Hospital spent long hours preparing for the year 2000. And although Y2K came and went without a glitch, Stone's group...

Fort Bend flip-flops on plant.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... A major Washington state energy marketer and Germany's largest independent power producer are proposing to build an 800-megawatt, gas-fired power generation plant in Fort Bend County. The Fort Bend Economic Development Commission...

Heart device breakthroughs beating strong in Houston.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Cutting-edge research in the development of heart devices has pumped millions of dollars and worldwide attention into Houston in the past month. MicroMed Technology Inc., manufacturer of the DeBakey VAD heart pump, has received $17.6...

The Old South sub shall rise again.(U.S.S. Hunley)
April 28, 2000... Engineers and divers with Houston-based Oceaneering International are preparing to raise a Confederate submarine from the bottom of Charleston harbor where it has lain for 136 years. The U.S.S. Hunley sank mysteriously on Feb. 17, 1864,...

Hakeem finds a new kind of kick.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Basketball is no longer the only unbeatable sport for Houston Rockets center Hakeem Olajuwon. Now he's getting involved with the Houston Hotshots indoor soccer team. Olajuwon and the Hotshots announced a joint marketing deal this week...

Fourth floor: Stock quotes and car ads.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... If elevator music gets on your nerves, get ready for elevator Internet. By the end of this year, Houston office workers will be able to follow news, weather, stock prices, traffic, sports and entertainment when Crescent Real Estate...

This little piggy went to Europe.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston has traditionally exported Texas barbecue to other countries for consumption by humans. But millions of piglets all over Europe soon will be chowing down on a special Houston food treat -- and it won't be barbecue. HumaTech Inc.,...

Wooden keels and classic wheels.(Houston Museum of Natural Science)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston has been on a recent roll in attracting rare shows like the jewels of the Kremlin exhibit currently on display at the Houston Museum of Natural Science. Now another one is wheeling -- and sailing -- into town. On May 6-7, Houston...

Merger postponed on account of Rainforest.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Someone is raining on Tilman Fertitta's parade. For months, the CEO of Landry's Seafood Restaurants Inc. has been negotiating to purchase Minneapolis- based Rainforest Cafe Inc., which recently opened a themed eatery at the new Katy Mills...

More news from the food and drink front.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Billington's Food Group is sweet on Houston. Last year, the United Kingdom-based company forged a marketing agreement with Sugar Land-based Imperial Sugar Co. to market its brown sugar in Houston supermarkets. Now Billington's is hitting...

Death care at a discount.(Service Corporation International.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Canadian newcomer offers cut-rate funerals for the departed Lawrence Little knows his discount death care operation won't bury funeral industry giant Service Corporation International when he opens shop in Houston this summer. But he is...

California company scouts city for new cancer treatment center.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Proton Therapy seeks tax abatement for proposed joint venture with M.D. Anderson A proposed regional cancer treatment center is considering making its home in Houston, bringing 60 new jobs and a significant amount of medical clout to the...

College system sells surplus properties.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston Community College System has closed on the sales of two of seven surplus properties and has revealed the results of sealed bids on the five remaining buildings. HCCS put the seven properties on the market at the end of last year...

Koch, Entergy merge trading units to create $1 billion firm.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Entergy Corp. and Koch Industries Inc., which announced a long-rumored merger of their commodity trading operations this week, are going after Houston energy giants Enron, Dynegy and Reliant in the wholesale gas and power markets. But...

Enron unit leaves Four Oaks for spec building in West Houston.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... EOTT Energy Partners is abandoning its 17-year-old offices in the centrally located Four Oaks Place on Post Oak Boulevard for completely new digs in West Houston. The Enron affiliate will be one of the first tenants at BriarLake Plaza,...

Real estate.(Simkins Group builds distribution center for FedEx.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... The Simkins Group has broken ground on a build-to-suit distribution center for Federal Express Corp.'s ground division. The 108,900-square-foot building will be located on an 18-acre site on the Sam Houston Tollway just south of West...

NCI Building Systems Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... NCI Building Systems Inc., a Houston-based manufacturer of metal building systems and components, has moved into a new corporate headquarters at 10943 North Sam Houston Parkway West at Fallbrook. NCI was the first to build in the area dubbed...

Mia Reed & Co. Capital Fund I.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Mia Reed & Co. Capital Fund I has purchased the Richport Place Apartments from Quitman Hipp. The 62-unit complex on the south side of Richmond Avenue between Dunlavy and Woodhead sits on 1.5 acres of land. Brent Fredricks and Robert...

Private telecom services provider gets $17.5 million from investors.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston-based Orillion Corp., a provider of products and services to the telecommunications industry, announced this week that the company has raised $17.5 million through a private stock placement. The privately held company provides...

The Strategy Factory.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Angel investors are backing the latest product release from The Strategy Factory, which markets Web site development solutions to mid-sized businesses. The Strategy Factory completed its first round of financing last week by raising...

Compaq Computer Corp.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Compaq Computer Corp. signed a deal this week that will help put Mickey Mouse in space. Compaq and the Walt Disney Co. announced a 10-year alliance where Compaq will sponsor a new ride at Epcot. The attraction, called "Mission: Space,"...

Nextlink Communications Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Nextlink Communications Inc. began offering broadband Internet services in Houston this week, including digital subscriber line service. Nextlink offers local, long distance, Internet and Web hosting services to companies located in...

Nextel Communications Inc.
April 28, 2000... Nextel Communications Inc. announced this week that it will begin offering wireless Internet services in Houston. Nextel Online service will be available by mid-year in all 43 major markets served by the wireless phone company that's...

Weakened genes: High-level briefing batters biotech stocks.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Over a nine-day trading period, longtime Houston financier Gordon Cain saw his holdings in a local biotechnology outfit plunge nearly $150 million. From its initial public offering price of $22 on April 7, Lexicon Genetics Inc. dropped...

BJ Services Co.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Insiders at local oilfield service company BJ Services Co. this year have reportedly sold company shares for more than $40 million. The sale prices, from insider transactions in late January through March; ranged from $41 to $70 a share,...

Lyondell Chemical.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Led by Houston-based Lyondell Chemical, the Texas 100 stock index jumped 10.5 percent last month, according to a new release from the Texas Comptroller's office. The index, which encompasses large operations of Texas companies in six...

Metamor culling among four shops to roll out branding push.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Although tight lipped about its ad account now in review, Houston tech company Metamor Worldwide Inc. will soon choose one of four ad agencies vying to handle the company's first branding campaign. An official at Pile & Co. of Boston,...

Dancie Perugini Ware Public Relations.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Dancie Perugini Ware Public Relations has added Cushman & Wakefield to its client list effective April 1 and will handle several functions for the real estate firm, including media relations, advertising consultation, client and employee...

Houston Post.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Veteran "Post toasties," the self-designation of those who worked for the Houston Post when it was sold and immediately shut down, met last week-end for their first formally organized reunion. More than 200 former Post staffers attended, says...

Houston Country Club.
April 28, 2000... And speaking of the Post, it's time to roast its former editorial page editor Lynn Ashby. On May 4 at the Houston Country Club, Stages Repertory Theatre will host "Roasting Lynn Ashby." The event includes dinner and a program about one of...

The Creative Group.(recruiting Web designers)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... The Creative Group, a local staffing agency that specializes in marketing, advertising, creative and design personnel, is growing. Since October, the office has added two more to its staff and is already looking to hire more, according to Ami...

KTJM-FM 98.5.(playing tunes from the 1980s)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... KTJM-FM 98.5 "Jammin' Oldies" has been experimenting with adding more 1980s music into its play list lately. For about two weeks, the station aired morning show "The '80s at 8." But after that short time, the station pulled the morning...

Ailing medical services company slashes staff, sheds office space.(Integrated Orthopaedics Inc.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston-based Integrated Orthopaedics Inc. is hoping that the integration of a new "less is more" strategy will boost sagging revenue and stock price. The company, which provides administrative services to physicians offices, reduced the...

Zonagen Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Zonagen Inc. is taking another field test. The Woodlands-based manufacturer of anti-impotence drugs announced on April 18 that it has submitted the final results of a two-year rat study that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has...

AmCare Health Plans.(dropped by state employees)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston-based AmCare Health Plans was one of four health maintenance organizations to be dropped from the state's health insurance program last week. AmCare, Aetna U.S. Healthcare Inc. (Houston's largest HMO), Humana Health Plan and...

First in the food chain.(Sysco)(Company Profile)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Charles Cotros has a full plate as the new chairman of food service giant Sysco Corp. It's fortunate that Charles Cotros has a half-century of experience in food distribution. The operational background should serve him well in keeping...

Chamber chief sees environmental balance in Bush, Gore policies.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Despite Al Gore's "far more inflammatory rhetoric," the environmental policies of a Gore administration would not differ greatly from those of a George W. Bush administration, predicts Thomas J. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber...

Engineers, OHSA at odds over ergonomics.
April 28, 2000... The American Society of Safety Engineers favors an ergonomics standard for the workplace, but not the one proposed by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration. OSHA wants to require employers to implement programs to reduce...

Estate tax calculator shows 'insidious impact'.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Individuals can calculate how much federal estate tax their heirs will owe by going to a new Web site, (www.noestatetax.org), launched by Americans Against Unfair Family Taxation. "We want every American to fully understand the insidious...

Profits back in fashion again.
April 28, 2000... When the stock markets began to recover earlier this week, the meager rebound was attributed in part to encouraging quarterly earnings reports. In other words, rattled investors who had been scorched by money-burning dot-coins found comfort...

Television anchors weigh in over titanic troubles.
April 28, 2000... "This emergency meeting of the National Broadcast Journalists Club will now come to order," Ted Koppel said, hammering his gavel loudly. The crowded room quieted down, except for the constant ringing of cellular telephones and muffled...

A contrarian view of buying low, selling high.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Francis Galton was a fascinating man. Although not nearly as famous as his first cousin and compatriot Charles Darwin, he had a profound impact on the world. Like Darwin, he was fascinated by genetics. Unlike Darwin, he was mesmerized by...

Taboo against coal clashes with electric reality.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... If ever there was a symbol of hope clashing with reality, it was the much-publicized national goal of producing 20 percent of our electricity from solar, wind and other renewable energy sources by now. Unfortunately, renewable energy's...

Pipe up.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has approved the Tulsa, Okla.-based Williams company's plan to expand its existing Transco pipeline system in New Jersey and Pennsylvania to meet the region's increasing demand for natural gas....

Crude contract.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Millennium Pipeline Co. LP has contracted with Oiltanking Beaumont to receive crude for the Millennium pipeline from Oiltanking's marine terminal in Beaumont. The Millennium 12-inch diameter, 200mile pipeline extends from Beaumont to Longview...

Bringing digital home.(ClearWorks.net)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Houston-based ClearWorks.net says it has inked a deal to deliver its bundled digital services provided by Clear-Works Communications and home system products provided by Clear-Works Home Systems into the Team Ranch community in Fort Worth....

ISP purchase.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Internet and telecommunications company First Capital International Inc. has completed its acquisition of AS ANET, an Estonia-based Internet service provider. The deal is expected to increase First Capital's revenue by about $500,000 per year.

Working out the logistics.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... ChemCross.com, a global chemical trading Internet portal, has selected Stamford, Conn.-based Optimum Logistics as its provider of online logistics services. ChemCross.com will incorporate Optimum's Internet-based system within its trading...

Milling expansion.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Houston-based Battle Mountain Gold Co. has signed a new custom milling agreement for its Holloway mine in Ontario, Canada. The agreement was made with the nearby Holt-McDermott mill owned by Barrick Gold Corp. It calls for an expansion of the...

New symbol.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Ambulatory surgery center owner and manager Surgicare Inc. is now being traded on the Over the Counter Bulletin Board under the ticker symbol "SXCR." The Houston-based company formerly traded exclusively in Texas, but will now be accessible...

Broadband investment.
April 28, 2000... El Paso Energy Communications Co. has made a $50 million investment in return for a minority interest in VeloCom Inc., a Denver-Colo.-based international broadband communications company. The investment gives El Paso Energy Communications a...

New center.
April 28, 2000... Houston-based Integrated Orthopaedics Inc. has opened a new ambulatory surgery center in New Orleans. The facility, Westbank Ambulatory Care Center, contains three operating rooms and one minor procedure room. The center will begin operating...

New discovery.
April 28, 2000... Spinnaker Exploration Co. has made a new field discovery of natural gas in the Texas portion of the federal waters in the Gulf of Mexico at High Island Block A-7. The block spans approximately 5,760 acres and is situated in 40 feet of water,...

Distribution deal.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Vector Energy Corp. and Atlas Enerji AS of Anakara, Turkey, have struck a deal to develop gas distribution systems in five cities in Turkey. The agreement also allows for the installation of a fiber-optic system for the distribution of...

Rodizio Grill: A mighty meaty Brazilian blast from the past.
April 28, 2000... Faded food fads can sometimes make surprising reappearances. Beef Wellington and Tournedos Rossini, the apex of culinary elegance several decades ago, are as hard to come by these days as a bottle of Jade East after-shave. Green Goddess salad...

Getting Your 15 Minutes of Fame and More: A Guide to Guaranteeing Your Business Success.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... By Edward Segal The book provides steps on how to gain fame, as well as steps on how to handle it. In bit-sized chapters - peppered with revealing anecdotes and quotes from notables in the worlds of business, high technology,...

Writing a new chapter.
April 28, 2000... Digital Tome asks its customers to play some good books When a pair of computer professionals, Van Collins and Jim Shiflett, found themselves drowning in less than desirable careers, they banded together to try something a little...

Downtown developers tackle the challenge of preservation.
April 28, 2000... Houston's past is quickly becoming its future. Over the past five years, downtown Houston has emerged as a booming center for commercial, retail and restaurant, residential and entertainment development. Although Houston is known for...

Health care facilities reflect change in healing philosophy.
April 28, 2000... The philosophy of health care today is shifting from the state of sickness to the state of wellness, and thus from curing to healing. This trend is revolutionizing the design and function of today's health care facilities. A new era in health...

Developer pitches high-rise project near baseball stadium.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... A planned residential highrise spurred on by construction of the newly opened Enron Field is Deal of the Month. Sam Lutfak, of GOYA Enterprises, is developing Ar'talia at 1515 Rusk that will include 96 flats and 21 two-story lofts....

TMC purchases Nabisco facility.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Although treats are no longer made at the old Nabisco bakery, the Texas Medical Center thinks it has quite a cookie. The TMC is under contract to purchase the 21-acre site at the corner of Almeda Road and Holcombe Blvd. Bob Parsley and Gary...

High-tech firm moves to updated office towers.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... PentaSafe Security Technologies Inc., which manages software and operating systems, signed a five-year lease to occupy 89,000 square feet of Class A space in TPMC Realty Corp.'s newly renovated Park Towers at 1233 West Loop South. James...

Design strategies must balance cost and quality-of-life issues.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... In the future of officing, the most successful companies will be those that balance quality-of-life issues with costeffective workplace design. Escalating commercial real estate occupancy costs are forcing Houston corporations and...

LARGEST AREA COMMERCIAL BUILDING CONTRACTORS.(Statistical Data Included)(Directory)
April 28, 2000... LARGEST AREA COMMERCIAL BUILDING CONTRACTORS (Ranked by Total 1999 Houston-Area Billings) Total Last Name ...

Chemical plant achieves goal of ISO 14001 certification.(Baker Petrolite Houston Blend Plant)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... The Baker Petrolite Houston Blend Plant for the blending, packaging, storage and distribution of specialty chemicals for the oilfield and industrial markets has achieved ISO 14001 certification. The certification, which supports...

Texas slated to receive grants to target crime in HUD housing.(Department of Housing and Urban Development.)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Texas housing authorities and apartment owners are slated to receive more than $11.1 million in grants totaling $261 million to fight drug abuse and other crimes in public housing and privately owned housing subsidized by the Department of...

Property tax software's new version is released.(PTS Corporate property tax software 4.0)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Burr Wolff, a provider of state and local tax recovery and consulting services, compliance outsourcing and enterprise software products, recently released Version 4.0 of its PTS Corporate property tax software. It contains new features...

Golf course opens at Sienna Plantation.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... The 18-hole daily-fee Sienna Plantation Golf Club designed by Arthur Hills of Arthur Hills & Associates opened for play recently in the Missouri City master-planned community. A full-service pro shop and golf learning center are nearing...

Nieman named director of Real Estate Commission.(Mia Tredici Nieman)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Mia Tredici Nieman was recently named division director for licensing and education at the Texas Real Estate Commission. A licensed real estate salesperson since 1986, Nieman was previously with the Texas Natural Resource Conservation...

Laws provide remedies for property nuisance cases.(Civil Practice and Remedy Code)(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Crime-infested properties, including apartment complexes, can be closed down for such offenses as prostitution, drinking by minors or drug deals through suits proving that the owner of a property knowingly allowed illegal activities to occur,...

CM at risk takes its place as construction cost saver.(Construction management.)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Legislation allowing alternative approaches for bidding school construction projects - including construction management at risk - is making a big difference to both builders and school districts. In 1995, the 74th Texas Legislature gave...

LARGEST AREA OFFICE FURNITURE COMPANIES.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... LARGEST AREA OFFICE FURNITURE COMPANIES (Ranked by 1999 Local Office Furniture Sales) Company 1999 1999 Last Address ...

Interim housing residents seek all the comforts of home.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Many business executives, at some time in their careers, experience interim living. Perhaps they are relocating to a new city for a job. Or working on a special assignment that necessitates calling a city, other than their own, "home" for a...

Association bars door against proposed 'forced entry' rules.(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Texas building owners, property managers and homeowners. associations are grappling with proposed rules promulgated by the Texas Public Utilities Commission regarding private property rights. Various cable, wireless and telephone...

Speaking of innovations: Portable voice recorders going digital.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Small-business owners have been using portable voice recorders for years to record their latest marketing brainstorm or that crucial decision-making meeting. In the market for one today? You probably won't be surprised to discover that these...

Pontiac Bonneville: 'Big boy' of family sedans begs for attention.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Two on the Road Pontiac Bonneville Full-size sedan Base price: $24,295 Mpg: 19/30 Lu: Like most of its brethren, the new Pontiac Bonneville cries for attention -- and in some circles gets it. The big boy of the...

American College of Healthcare Executives.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... The Greater Houston Chapter of the American College of Healthcare Executives has received the ACHE 2000 Affiliated Group Award. This award recognizes outstanding contributions to ACHE and the field of healthcare by ACHE's officially...

Aspiring Youth of Houston.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... Aspiring Youth of Houston has received a $10,000 donation from the Union Pacific Foundation to support the Aspiring Youth After-School Program.

Toyota.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... The Toyota Families in Schools program in the Houston Independent School District has received one of three grants from the Barbara Bush Texas Fund at Mrs. Bush's annual fundraiser, A Celebration of Reading. Other winners included Reach Out...

National Science Foundation.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
April 28, 2000... The National Science Foundation has awarded a $220,000 scholarship grant to the Houston Community College System for students majoring in computer science, engineering and math-related fields. The two-year, $5,000 scholarships begin in the...

Affordable Telecommunications Technology Corp.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Affordable Telecommunications Technology Corp. has announced that it has acquired Cameras Etc., a Texas-based company specializing in marketing digital cameras and accessories to the oil, gas and medical industries. Affordable...

Association Management Inc.(Brief Article)
April 28, 2000... Association Management Inc. has been selected to provide community association management services to the Centerfield Improvement Association Inc. with effect from April 1.

EOTT Energy Partners L.P.
April 28, 2000... EOTT Energy Partners L.P. has declared a distribution of 47.5 cents per common unit for the first quarter of 2000, payable on May 15 to unitholders of record on April 28.