Houston Business Journal articles from February 1997

Houston Business Journal archives from February 1997

Power market surges in Houston. (Texas)
February 28, 1997... City becomes top trading center in race to cash in on electric commodity Chicago may be the center of trading for soybeans and pork bellies, but Houston is rapidly becoming the trading hub for another commodity electric power. Major...

Web paper folds after brief fling. ('Houston Daily News')
February 28, 1997... Houston Journal hoping to replace Daily News. The Houston Daily News, a World Wide Web-based newspaper billed by founder Paul Allen as the descendant of the late Houston Post, is itself dead. Allen's claim that the Daily News was backed...

Optimism high in Houston, new Gallup survey shows. (Houston Quality of Life Survey)
February 28, 1997... Houston residents could easily be described as optimistic about their city - but the more appropriate adjective might be downright giddy. That's the finding of the third Houston Quality of Life Survey conducted by the New Jersey-based Gallup...

Prudential halts work on major call center. (Prudential Insurance Co.)
February 28, 1997... Insurance firm breaks ties with project developer Prudential Insurance Co. of America is reconsidering plans for a massive $52 million call center in Sugar Land and has abruptly terminated all parties involved in the initial development of...

Digital color process makes big impact on street scene.
February 28, 1997... When JVI Image Graphics of Houston entered several of the company's commercial graphics projects in a national competition, JVI Vice President David Estes figured "we wouldn't have a chance." Company principals were stunned when someone from...

Churrascos owners hire COO to direct chain's growth recipe. (Churrascos Management Co. LLC)
February 28, 1997... A Houston company famous for plantain chips and chimichurri sauce has hired a gringo to head its operations. Citing a need to streamline operations, Churrascos Management Co. LLC., which operates two Churrascos, one Americas and New World...

Survey. (forecasts for printing products)
February 28, 1997... What do you forecast as the hot markets for printing products in the next five years, and why? Kathi Reynal Vice President, Characters As a pre-press supplier and digital printing facility, Characters has a ringside seat for watching the...

The GNI Group Inc. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
February 28, 1997... Nasdaq GNUC 2525 Battleground Road, Deer Park 77536 (713) 930-0350 The GNI Group Inc. is a fully integrated specialty chemical manufacturing and environmental services company. Total shares of common stock outstanding as of Sept. 4,...

Reality in the way. (Gallup Houston Quality of Life Survey)(Editorial)
February 28, 1997... Houstonians don't have an inferiority complex, despite what city officials might think. Local attitudes toward the city, its government, its neighborhoods and its schools are not only positive, but getting better. That's the conclusion drawn...

Muscles For Hire. (handyman services provider)
February 28, 1997... Handyman Kim Sawyer turned part-time jobs into a full-time business Starting a full-time handyman business was not what college student Kim Sawyer intended for his part-time, one-man service in 1978. But years later, after seeing a demand...

Jones Business Systems seeks shelter in Stafford; inventory tax drives fast-growing company right out of Houston.
February 21, 1997... One of Houston's fastest growing companies is leaving town in a huff. Calling Houston an "unfriendly" place to do business, Jones Business Systems, a company that previously ranked No. 1 on "The Houston 100" list, is packing up its 70...

NGC puts Destec's power on its 'energy store' shelf.
February 21, 1997... After months of searching for a white knight who would ride in and increase shareholder value, Destec Inc. was rewarded this week by accepting NGC Corp.'s offer of $21.65 a share. With the acquisition, Houston-based NGC, a natural gas and...

'Supercommunity banking.' (Sterling Bank)
February 21, 1997... George Martinez always believed in bank decentralization. Now his Sterling Bank is reaping the rewards of that philosophy. Six years ago, George Martinez was reading the American Banker when one story caught his eye and eventually changed the...

Small firm thrives on culture of employee freedom. (Alliance Engineering Inc.)(Growth Strategies)
February 21, 1997... Freedom and flexibility for employees is the central management theme at Alliance Engineering Inc., a company growing at a breakneck pace as it serves the energy industry. It is a philosophy inspired by company President Norbert Roobaert,...

Bellweather Exploration Co. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
February 21, 1997... Nasdaq/NMS BELW 1331 LAMAR, SUITE 1455, HOUSTON 77010-3039 (713) 650-1025 Bellwether Exploration Co. is engaged in the acquisition, exploitation, development, exploration and production of oil and gas properties, principally in the onshore...

Rural banks flock to big city market; small suburban banks spread into Houston with new urban branches.
February 14, 1997... For a long time, Horizon Capital Bank in Webster was content with its small-town headquarters and a pair of limited retail branches in southeast Harris County malls. But things are changing fast for the 34-year-old financial institution....

Western Auto switching gears, stopping service. (Western Auto Supply Co.)
February 14, 1997... 230 mechanics to lose jobs as 23 area stores close bays Western Auto Supply Co. is junking the automotive service bays at its 23 Houston-area stores as part of an effort to focus on a separate, expanding parts business. The move is...

Impotency lifts Zonagen stock price. (Zonagen Inc.)
February 14, 1997... The stock price of Zonagen Inc. has nearly doubled since the beginning of the year, riding high on a wave of renewed interest in the field of medical treatment for impotency. The stock was trading in the $16 range earlier in the week - up...

A fresh start: broker becomes developer to resurrect retail project. (Allen Crosswell)
February 14, 1997... Longtime Houston real estate broker Allen Crosswell is getting into the development game by reviving an on-again, off-again mixed-use project. Crosswell is jump-starting the 135-acre Gulf Pointe Park project in southeast Houston at...

Anxious suitors await decision on winning bid to buy Destec. (Destec Energy Inc.)
February 14, 1997... Who's on the 'short list' for independent power firm? Houston's Destec Energy Inc., which placed itself on the sales block last fall, may reveal its chosen suitor as early as next week. Bids closed Monday for the independent power company,...

Amoco, Shell spinoff seeks tax abatement for major office lease. (Amoco Corp.; Shell Oil Co.)
February 14, 1997... On-again, off-again Altura Energy could employ 800 A soon-to-be-formed spinoff company of Amoco Corp. and Shell Oil Co. is planning to lease a huge chunk of space in the Energy Corridor if the City of Houston grants a tax abatement for the...

Local dealer jumps on bandwagon, plans to open used-car superstore. (Ramsay Gillman)(Column)
February 14, 1997... Houston car dealer Ramsay Gillman is taking on the Wal-Marts of the auto industry. Gillman, who owns seven dealerships in the Houston area and three in San Antonio - marketing Pontiac, Honda, Dodge, Mitsubishi, Suzuki, Acura and Diahatsu...

Losing luster. (Battle Mountain Gold Co. chairman of the board Karl Elers)
February 14, 1997... Karl Elers has guided Battle Mountain Gold through bonanza and meltdown. Now he may be out of work in the wake of a major merger. Karl Elers could be out of a job by the end of the week. And if the mass exodus of his fellow executives at...

Economic sanctions put in perspective.(Editorial)
February 14, 1997... After a year in the saddle as chief executive officer of Conoco Inc., Archie Dunham galloped gingerly into the U.S. political arena last week. He told 1,300 energy executives at a conference of Cambridge Energy Research Associates that the...

Total market research: better safe than sorry.
February 14, 1997... I am constantly amazed by the amount of money spent on marketing products and services without well-considered plans for the expenditure of these many thousands or millions of dollars. There is the famous story of a well-known toiletries firm...

Catering to the masses: Joe Abuso is discovering how fast growth can be too much of a good thing. (Abuso Catering Co. owner)(Growth Strategies)
February 14, 1997... Joe Abuso is discovering how fast growth can be too much of a good thing Joe Abuso is in a position many small-business owners would envy. In December, the owner of two-year-old Abuso Catering Co. actually had more activity than he could...

Auto theft: costs are high for both insurers, victims.(Focus on: Insurance Report)
February 14, 1997... If you drive a Chevy truck - and that includes Astro and Lumina minivans, Suburbans and Blazers as well as pickups - you'd be well advised to be sure it is fully insured - and protect it with an alarm or other security device. These makes top...

Texas is in 'slow lane' for changes in auto insurance.(Focus on: Insurance Report)
February 14, 1997... Industry forecasts predict changes in auto insurance lines in coming years - changes driven by both profitability and technology. But Texas appears to be caught in the slow lane when it comes to implementing some of the more aggressive...

Aon consolidates insurance operations in Texas. (Aon Corp.)(Focus on: Insurance Report)
February 14, 1997... The acquisition of three former Houston competitors by a large Chicago-based insurance broker, Aon Corp., exemplifies the trend toward consolidation in the insurance industry. With these acquisitions, Aon, a $22 billion company, has created...

All's quiet on insurance industry legislative front.(Focus on: Insurance Report)
February 14, 1997... The insurance industry hopes to iron out a few legal wrinkles amid hopes the current legislative session will be fairly low-key for it change after some bruising battles in recent years. BANKS AND INSURANCE The industry's top priority will...

Disaster continuity plan may soften Mother Nature's blow.(Focus on: Insurance Report)(Column)
February 14, 1997... The recent tornado in Pasadena and the flooding experienced in neighborhoods during the last few weeks has brought the topic of disaster continuity planning to the forefront for homeowners and business professionals alike. Additionally,...

Probability of monster storm striking Texas increases.(Focus on: Insurance Report)
February 14, 1997... The chance that the Texas coast will experience a tropical storm or hurricane has been increasing and will continue to increase over the next few years, according to meteorologists at the Weather Research Center in Houston. The center is a...

Energy executives in demand again; companies, headhunters lure top talent with signing bonuses, stock options.
February 7, 1997... When Unocal created Spirit Energy 76 as a new independent oil operation, the company lured away David Johnson, then senior vice president of exploration at Vastar Inc. Johnson, who was recruited to head up exploration at the newly formed...

The Engineer of the Year credits client service for company's success. (George C. Love)(Engineers Week Guide)
February 7, 1997... George Love remembers the day in February 1994 when he and several colleagues opened their own engineering firm. "We started from ground zero," he recalls. "We had no office and no equipment. We sat around a card table on folding chairs with...

Stirring sugar. (sugar firm Imperial Holly Corp.)(Company Profile)
February 7, 1997... After years of taking financial lumps, Imperial Holly President Jim Kempner has the 154-year-old sugar company marching to a different beet Imperial Holly Corp. may be the oldest continuously operating company in Texas, but the past decade...

Nanny service expands in all directions. (Ron Daniels' home care services business)
February 7, 1997... When the first of Ron Daniels, three sons was born in 1989, so was a new business entity. Daniels created Loving Home Care, formerly known as Today's Nanny, after seeing a need in the nanny placement field. He and his wife, Sheila, had a...

Texaco case gives impetus to 'inclusive' management.(Focus On: Education and Training)
February 7, 1997... Two recent high-profile discrimination cases Texaco and Avis - have sent many companies scrambling to get diversity training for their employees, Houston corporate trainers say. But many companies take a "Band-aid" approach to diversity...

Quanex Corp. (Proxy Report excerpts)(Company Profile)
February 7, 1997... 1900 WEST LOOP SOUTH, SUITE 1500, HOUSTON 77027 (713) 961-4600 Quanex Corp. is a leading manufacturer of value-added specialized metal products made from carbon and alloy steel and aluminum. Total shares of common stock outstanding as...

On the job. (hiring mentally deficient people)(Small Business Monthly)
February 7, 1997... Everyone benefits when companies give mentally challenged people a chance to be productive and independent When Bruce Ure and his partner Jerry Gonzales opened Classic Car Care, a self-service car wash in Missouri City, about two years ago,...