Idaho Business Review, Boise articles from August 2005

Idaho Business Review, Boise archives from August 2005

Idaho's economy gets boost from construction industry.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Steven Anderson Hot may not be exactly the word for Idaho's economy this year, but the construction sector keeps warming things up month after month - as it has nationwide. The state's latest Economic Forecast turns projected...

Economists believe that real estate slowdown will be gradual in most places in Idaho.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Steven Anderson Bubble or no bubble, real estate's likely to taper off next year. But that doesn't mean Idaho's economy will slump. That's the view of several economists, who seem to agree that the slowdown will be a gradual...

Real estate agents see no signs of 'housing bubble' in Idaho.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Hot but not overheated - yet - describes the housing market in the Boise area and many other parts of Idaho. Home sales in Ada County jumped almost 24 percent in the second quarter from a year earlier, to 3,152...

Denver-based HyperSpace Communications acquires MPC Computers of Nampa, ID.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert MPC Computers changed hands last week when Denver-based HyperSpace Communications, a software firm with 13 employees, finalized its acquisition of the Nampa PC manufacturer. HyperSpace, which announced plans to buy...

Unemployment insurance to be aired in Boise this week.
August 1, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The biennial Unemployment Insurance National Tax Conference is slated this week in Boise. More than 400 unemployment insurance tax specialists and experts from around the U.S. are expected to attend the...

Boise Metro Chamber slates golf event.
August 1, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce plans the seventh annual Boise Metro Golf Classic Aug. 12 at SpurWing Country Club, on Chinden Boulevard west of Linder Road, Meridian. Morning groups tee off at 8 a.m.,...

Pocatello-based AMI opens India design center.
August 1, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Pocatello-based AMI Semiconductor took steps to expand last week, opening a design center in Bangalore, India and announcing financing plans to acquire the semiconductor division of Singapore electronics...

15 presenters sought for Intermountain Venture Forum in Boise.
August 1, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The Intermountain Venture Forum is seeking up to 15 presenting entrepreneurs for its Oct. 5-6 event at Boise Centre on the Grove. The seventh annual forum connects early-stage companies from around the West...

Idaho Dept. of Commerce & Labor plans seminars on global trade.
August 1, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The International Business Division of the Idaho Department of Commerce & Labor plans seminars on international trade opportunities around the state. The 10 "Local Communities, Global Customers" seminars will...

Harris Family LP wants Boise City Planning & Zoning Comm. to modify development agreement.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert The stalled Harris Ranch project is beginning to resurface. The Harris Family LP and Barber Mill Co. have asked the Boise City Planning & Zoning Commission to modify the development agreement for Harris Ranch - the...

Mooney takes reins as Farmers & Merchants State Bank's CEO.
August 1, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Mike Mooney, president and chief operating officer of Farmers & Merchants State Bank for two years - and a 31-year veteran of the banking industry - has succeeded Clarence Jones as president and CEO at F&M. F&M...

IdaTech extends Army assignment.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report IdaTech LLC recently signed a contract with the U.S. Army to further develop a portable fuel-cell generating system for military applications, the company announced. The Army contracted with the Bend-based...

Boise Airport mulls future growth options.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert The Boise Airport is considering scenarios to help it accommodate future growth, including relocating Orchard Street so it can add about 60 acres, building another concourse, or even moving the airport. Airport...

Mortgage defaults decline in Ada, Canyon counties.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson The number of mortgage default notices filed in Ada and Canyon counties fell by about 12 percent through late July, manual counts indicate. A strong home-sales market and increased use of approaches to avoid...

Sotheby's buys Sun Valley real estate firm.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Sotheby's International Realty Inc., which markets upscale residential properties, has acquired the assets of Associated Brokers of Sun Valley LLC. Darlene Young, previously an owner and broker with Associated,...

Idacorp earnings fall on decreased demand for irrigation water.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Idaho Power Co, parent Idacorp Inc. (NYSE:IDA) saw earnings drop by nearly 31 percent in the second quarter, on reduced irrigation loads and an increase in the number of shares since late 2004. Irrigation load...

Idaho Public Utilities Commission lowers water rate increase sought by utility.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The Idaho Public Utilities Commission last week approved a 7.68 percent rate increase for United Water Idaho, Inc., effective immediately. United Water, which serves about 75,400 customers in Ada and Canyon...

The Idaho Statesman sold to Knight Ridder chain.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The owner of The Idaho Statesman, Gannett Co., announced plans last week to sell the Statesman and other newspapers it holds to Knight Ridder Inc., another newspaper chain. Mike Petrak, Knight Ridder's vice...

Industrial flex building takes shape near I-84.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report SFP Investments LLC expects to finish the 29,370-square-foot TK Avenue Industrial Building at the end of September in east Boise. SFP plans office and industrial "flex" spaces of 4,900 square feet and larger....

Boise biotech company lands genome study grants.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Rick Carpenter Research grants for two major studies have enabled a Boise biotech company to get a jump-start on producing two technologies that could write new chapters in the understanding of the human genome. One will help...

California-based investors eye Boise real estate.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Fowler Property Acquisitions aims to buy more Boise real estate following its July purchase of the 300-unit Landing at Lakeharbor apartment complex off State Street. Also in Boise, the Larkspur, Calif.-based...

Chris King - Pocatello's semiconductor queen hopes to make AMI a $1B business.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert "Sometimes you find you have skills you never knew you had." That's the explanation Christine King uses to explain her trek from self-described "welfare mom" to engineer to head of AMI Semiconductor, Pocatello's...

Boise's air passenger volume jumps double digits in first half.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Boise Airport passenger volume climbed 10 percent in the first half of the year - to 674,279 enplanements, airport officials report - exceeding the average national increase of 4.1 percent. "We have a strong...

Public hearing nears for large planned community near Eagle.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson The Ada County Planning & Zoning Commission has set a Sept. 1 date to hear public input on Avimor, the 684-home community that SunCor Idaho LLC plans on 830 acres north of Eagle. Ada County Development Services...

United Cerebral Palsy of Idaho: Helping the disabled experience the world.
August 8, 2005... Byline: Angela Jones For more than 50 years, United Cerebral Palsy of Idaho has been helping Idahoans with disabilities succeed in daily life through means of assistive - and innovative - technology. UCPI provides resources for people...

California company to buy Boise-based Extended Systems.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Boise-based wireless technology firm Extended Systems recently announced that it is to be acquired by Dublin, Calif.-based Sybase Inc. Sybase is to pay $71.3 million in cash for Extended Systems. The...

Blue Cross of Idaho plans new building in Meridian.
August 8, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Blue Cross of Idaho plans to construct a fourth building on its Meridian campus to accommodate increased business from the State of Idaho's employee health benefits contract and other new customers. The planned...

Can we talk? Mediation as alternative to lawsuits finds favor in Idaho.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Mediation is becoming a more accepted practice in Idaho, since it allows people to resolve legal disputes with less cost and more control over the outcome than lawsuits bring. But a few mediators say mediation...

Avoiding the trauma of court - Mediation may save time, money, even relationships, say backers, practitioners.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Trials are tribulations, Idaho mediators say. They're expensive, time-consuming, and can be traumatic. "When you're in litigation, it eats at you. It consumes you," said Peter Desler, an attorney, mediator and...

Call centers dial in more lines, gain clout in Boise market.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Customer service call centers play an increasing role in the Boise-area job market. The players include expanded Citi Cards and Electronic Data Systems centers, new T-Mobile USA and Hewlett-Packard Co. operations, and...

$3.7M 'affordable' townhouse project slated downtown Boise.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Neighborhood Housing Services Inc. plans to build "affordable" townhouses for sale downtown. NHS recently acquired just under an acre on the south side of Grand Street between 14th and 15th streets. The nonprofit...

Intermountain Gas seeks 27% rate hike to cover costs.
August 15, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Intermountain Gas Co. aims to raise rates by an average of 27 percent starting Oct. 1, reflecting the higher prices that the Boise company has paid for natural gas supplies. In its annual purchased-gas cost...

Coming back as a builder - Ex-TOK partner Hanson turns to home construction in Boise.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Once among Boise's young guns in residential real estate, Steve Hanson is back - this time wearing a hardhat. Now, 3 1/2 years after leaving the merger-enlarged Group One Realty, he heads Syringa Construction LLC....

Van Auker takes on ex-Eddy's bakery in Boise.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert The smell of rising dough hasn't permeated the Eddy's Bakery on Five Mile Road for more than two years. But the yeasty fragrance may come back, or be replaced by other food smells, now that the site has a new...

Hewlett-Packard Co., J.R. Simplot Co, log lower workforce numbers than 2004.
August 15, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Among major employers in the Treasure Valley, Hewlett-Packard Co. and J.R. Simplot Co. report decreases in employment from year-earlier levels. Hewlett-Packard currently employs 3,500 in Boise - down from 3,700...

Leasing pushes occupancy up at Washington Group Plaza in Boise.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Vacancy stands at a fairly tight 7 percent at Boise's 586,000-square-foot Washington Group Plaza as a result of several sizable recent leases. The four-building complex near Park Boulevard and Broadway Avenue is...

Historic Harrison mansion in Boise being restored.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Ken Levy SPECIAL TO THE IBR An imposing, 92-year-old Harrison Boulevard mansion that was once home to an Idaho governor is being restored and modernized at the same time. The interior of the Oakes mansion, named for...

Boise-based Internet startup links builders, homeowners.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Ken Miller Special to the IBR A new Boise-based startup will hit the Internet in September with a website to link homebuyers and homeowners with builders and trade contractors with the click of a mouse. Trey Langford, who...

Boise construction numbers robust through July.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Construction stayed strong around the Treasure Valley in July. Boise construction activity rose by 25 percent in dollar volume and by 14 percent in total permits last month, from year-ago levels, despite a drop in...

Grangeville gets first planned community.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson The 275-acre Crimson Ridge project marks the first planned community for Grangeville, the north central Idaho crossroads town of 3,300. "This area is nothing short of magnificent," Kevin Tomlinson, member of...

Boise-based Masonry Center Inc. grows through acquisition.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson The Masonry Center Inc., a Boise-based supplier of stone and tile products, has gained outlets in Pocatello and Missoula and increased annual sales by about 50 percent by acquiring Pocatello-based Mountain Tile &...

Hailey airport due for $1.7M terminal upgrade.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Pat Murphy SPECIAL TO THE IBR HAILEY - Another phase of Friedman Memorial Airport's current $16 million improvement program will get underway soon with the awarding of a contract for expansion and renovation of the Hailey...

Boise State University TECenter business incubator continues growth.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Ken Miller Special to the IBR Trey Langford knew he had a good idea for a business startup to help consumers as well as building contractors. He just wasn't sure how to put it all together. Langford is one of two-dozen...

Idaho History Center takes shape on Penitentiary Road in east Boise.
August 15, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Construction of the $4.3 million Idaho History Center is slated for completion in mid-October on Penitentiary Road in east Boise. Once the building is completed, the Idaho State Historical Society plans to vacate...

Courier services cruise in Boise's expanding market.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert If it has to be across town in an hour, you're probably going to have to call a courier. Courier services offer rush or same-day delivery service - mainly in Boise or to other cities in the Valley, though some have...

2 guys launch bike courier service in Boise.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Patrick Sweeney and Chris Scuglia say they'll take a bicycle seat over a desk chair any day. Two weeks ago they started Northstar Cycle Courier, a message and package delivery service via bicycle. The two...

Lewis & Clark enthusiasts fail to flock to Idaho in big numbers.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson The Lewis and Clark bicentennial has drawn some visitors to north-central Idaho this year, although the predicted wave of tourism apparently hasn't materialized. Five to 10 years ago, the state predicted a flood of...

Meridian veterinary firm MWI goes public with Nasdaq listing.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Steven Anderson MWI Veterinary Supply Co., a Meridian-based distributor of animal-care products, realized $76.8 million from a recent initial public offering of 5 million shares of common stock at $17 a share. The proceeds were...

Boise office and industrial building vacancies drop.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Office and industrial vacancy fell - but "unanchored" retail vacancy rose - in the first half of the year in the Boise area. The new Market Watch report by Boise-based Thornton Oliver Keller Commercial Real Estate...

4th Judicial District plans classes for public.
August 22, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The 4th Judicial District plans to offer a Citizens' Law Academy for individuals who are interested in learning about the legal system. The free 10-week class is slated for 6:30 to 8 p.m. Tuesdays from Sept....

Big project eyed near Rexburg.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson A commercial development of up to 2 million square feet is envisioned near Rexburg, where expansion of Brigham Young University-Idaho continues to fuel growth. Prospective developer Willard Price, an Idaho Falls...

Environmental cleanup work grows throughout Valley.
August 22, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Brown is the new green for some developers. Environmental engineering firms say they've seen an increase in work from builders planning projects on brownfields - sites that potentially have soil contamination -...

Land use, transportation planning event set for Sept. 19.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The Community Planning Association of Southwest Idaho and Boise State University are hosting "Planning Our Future: Growth, Transportation and the Issues Ahead of Us" Sept. 19 in the Student Union Building at BSU....

Western Aircraft to replace fixed-base operation terminal at Boise Airport.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Western Aircraft, which fuels and maintains commercial aircraft, plans to build a larger fixed-base operation (FBO) terminal at Boise Airport. Western will replace its existing 1,450-square-foot terminal with...

WRC Advertising heads for neighboring Boise building.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson WRC Advertising plans plans to move to the old Central Fire Station building at Sixth and Idaho streets in downtown Boise late next month. WRC leased the 5,000-square-foot second floor of the building, anchored by...

Meridian kidney dialysis center planned.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Idaho Nephrology Association, which provides dialysis for people with chronic kidney disease, plans to open a dialysis center in Meridian. The multi-clinic health provider has leased 5,000 square feet in the...

Khamu Solutions offers restaurants wireless order-taking.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Lora Volkert Steve Lipkin always wanted to own a sports bar. In 2001 he opened Stubs Sports Pub on Chinden Boulevard, west of Five Mile Road, leaving behind the demands of his sales job at Boise software firm Extended Systems...

Idaho-based Coldwater Creek beats Street in quarter.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Coldwater Creek Inc. reported net income of 7 million, or 11 cents per share, for its second quarter - up from $3.3 million, or 6 cents per share, a year ago. The Sandpoint-based retailer of women's upscale...

Apartment vacancy lowest in three years.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report The apartment vacancy rate tightened to 6.8 percent in Ada County in late July, the lowest in nearly three years, the quarterly Ada Real Estate Surveys report said. Average rent increased to 79 cents per square...

Hubble Homes won't sell to investors; Corey Barton sets limit.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Looking to buy a new Treasure Valley home for quick resale and quick profit? Don't look in any new subdivision built by Hubble Homes LLC. Meridian-based Hubble, the Valley's No. 2 builder in terms of annual...

Les Schwab plans tire-retread plant in Rupert.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report Les Schwab Tire Centers plans to open a tire re-treading facility starting later this year in Rupert, for its Idaho and Utah stores. Prineville, Ore.-based Schwab was expected to hire 18 to 20 people in late...

Commentary: Most often, spyware's a symptom of idle surfing.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Rick Edvalson The latest round of viruses and worms that took down the websites of CNN and others notwithstanding, the greatest bane of computer users in the last few years has been spyware. And the problem is growing. The...

Smart Growth projects in Idaho to be honored.
August 29, 2005... Byline: IBR Staff Report "We all know there's no smart growth in Idaho." That's what one Idaho real estate agent told Jon Barrett, one of the executive directors for Idaho Smart Growth. Barrett was talking to a real estate...

Lawyers Title Co. says service, not size, is its strength.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Brad Carlson Market share isn't everything at Lawyers Title of Treasure Valley, the smallest of the Boise area's real estate title insurance and escrow firms. "We're taking one bite out of the elephant at a time," said...

Boise limo' firms furnish automotive splendor.
August 29, 2005... Byline: Steven Anderson So who's got the nerve, the need, the charisma or the clout to show up in a limo? Everybody from 8-year-old kids to movie stars. All it takes is a modest amount of moolah and a phone call. Modest meaning...