Idaho Business Review, Boise articles from June 2004

Idaho Business Review, Boise archives from June 2004

Property assessments climb 7% in Canyon County.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Canyon County commercial and residential property appreciated at an average rate of about 7 percent from 2003 to this year, as countywide valuation grew by an average of 5.9 percent to nearly $7.4 billion. Among...

After 58 years, Boise-based Ennis Fine Furniture remains a family affair.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert In 48 years at Ennis Fine Furniture - more if you count odd jobs starting at age 11 - one of company President Dick Ennis' greatest achievements was getting his family involved. Ennis' six children - Rick, Jim,...

Site sought for arts facility in Ada County.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert "It's wildly ambitious," Mary Cenell said of her family's plans to build a music academy, jazz performance center, conservatory and guest cottages for visiting performers in Ada County. No location has been secured...

Boise Metor Chamber to honor small businesses.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert A night-vision goggle supplier, a heating and air conditioning contractor, and a communications equipment and service company are to receive the Boise Metro Chamber of Commerce's 2004 Small Business of the Year awards....

Boise-based Albertsons' net sinks to 10 cents a share.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Albertsons' fiscal first-quarter earnings dropped 79 percent, to $36 million, or 10 cents per share, on sales down 2.3 percent to $8.7 billion, the Boise-based food and drug chain said last week. The company...

Boise-based Karcher Mall gets new owners, new management firm.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert Karcher Mall, which has faced high vacancy rates for some years, is under new management. Karcher Mall was purchased May 7 by a holding company called LB Nampa Mall Holdings LLC. The new owners hired Jones Lang...

Construction of Idaho's first Hooters delayed; new site sought.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Steve Martin Construction of Idaho's first Hooters restaurant has been delayed, but the chain's Idaho developer said the eatery is expected to open before the end of the year - at a different but undisclosed site. Travis...

Boise-based Idaho Self-Storage to add 160 units near River St.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Owners of the former Bekins Moving & Storage facility off South Ninth Street, who acquired the property last year and opened Idaho Records Management, recently added Idaho Self-Storage Downtown. They plan to expand...

Great Falls, Mont.-based Davidson cuts Idacorp rating, outlook.
June 7, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson D.A. Davidson & Co. downgraded Idacorp Inc. stock recently, citing a state-approved rate increase for Idaho Power Co. that was lower than expected, and a weaker outlook for streamflows. Davidson downgraded Idacorp...

Labor market begins to tighten, staffing firms say.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert As businesses continue to hire and unemployment decreases in the Treasure Valley, a few staffing agencies have started to see a shortage of qualified candidates. "We're kind of in a labor crunch right now," said...

Eagle Road corridor -- next locus for dining?
June 14, 2004... Byline: Steve Martin Dining options along the rapidly growing Eagle Road corridor between Overland Road and State Street remain limited, but developers and leasing agents predict the 8-mile stretch will fill in with eateries within a...

Boise mayor hopes to restart Harris Ranch.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert Boise Mayor Dave Bieter hopes to get Harris Ranch back on track. The big mixed-use development, shelved last year after only 400 of a planned 3,000 homes were built, could be an example of the "smart growth" the...

AutoZone targets Overland & Roosevelt for 4th Boise store.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson AutoZone, a nationwide auto parts chain, plans to open its fourth Boise store, which will be its 11th in southern Idaho, at Overland Road and Roosevelt Street in late September. The store will occupy a remodeled...

Demand for exec housing grows.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson As U.S. corporations transfer executives or relocate experts only for the duration of a single project, demand has increased nationally for short-term executive housing, and the Boise area is no exception. U.S....

Commentary: Surging into summer's potential power disruptions.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Rick Edvalson Summer has apparently started off with a bang. Already, the electrical power to our office has failed twice. Clients in the Boise downtown area have also reported several power outages just in the last month or so....

Pottery Barn plans 1st Idaho store.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Steve Martin Pottery Barn, a San Francisco-based retailer of home furnishings and kitchenware, plans to open its first Idaho store in Boise Towne Square this fall. Leigh Oshirak, a spokesperson for Pottery Barn, confirmed last...

Pier 1 slates second Treasure Valley store.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Steve Martin Pier 1 Imports, a Texas-based retailer of handcrafted furniture and accessories, plans to open its second Treasure Valley store by late October in the Meridian Crossroads shopping center at Eagle Road and Fairview...

Crepery restaurant to open in old McDonald's space.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert Square, a 'crepery' restaurant planned to open Aug. 1, is to occupy the former downtown Boise McDonald's location vacant for a year and a half. Russ and Jason Crawforth, brothers who plan to co-own the restaurant,...

Kinro plans to double size of Nampa plant.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert Kinro Inc., which makes windows and doors for manufactured houses and RVs, plans to more than double the size of its Nampa plant. Kinro bought 7 acres of ground on Kings Road in Nampa, just south of the Pacific...

Idaho Pizza plans Twin Falls restaurant.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert An Idaho Pizza Co. branch is planned on Kimberly Road east of Locust Street South in Twin Falls. Todd and Candy Coltrin, who own two Idaho Pizza Co. restaurants in Boise and one in Jerome, plan to open the Twin...

Zip's Drive-In eyes Boise market.
June 14, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert A Northwest hamburger chain plans to enter the Boise market soon, according to a conditional-use application filed with the City of Boise planning department. Zip's Drive-In, which fields 30 fast-food restaurants...

Boise construction activity mixed.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Total construction value and the commercial building segment increased in Boise in May, but year-to-date figures remained down from 2003. The value of all construction projects in Boise last month rose by 12...

Homebuilder finds niche with insurance-claims contracting.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Ken Miller For Walt Holton, creating a new Holton Homes subsidiary to deal exclusively with insurance-related contractor work was a natural fit. The 10-year-old Nampa-based homebuilder had the employees, subcontractors and...

Lowe's may anchor Ustick/Eagle project in Meridian.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson A 168,000-square-foot Lowe's home-improvement store will anchor a development proposed for the northeast corner of Eagle and Ustick roads in Meridian, according to the project developer. Developer Smith Brighton,...

Coldwater Creek moves to boost 'tradable float'.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson North Idaho's Coldwater Creek Inc. last week declared a 50 percent stock dividend - effectively a 3-for-2 stock split that will increase the number of shares outstanding by half. It was the third time in the last...

Micron eyes switch to bigger silicon wafers for DRAM lines.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Steven Anderson Micron Technology Inc. has no immediate plans to convert its primary memory-chip lines in Boise from 200-millimeter to 300mm silicon wafers, a spokesman for the computer memory giant says. But Dave Parker,...

MPC Computers CEO addresses global outsourcing.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert When companies and consumers focus on cost, not value, they encourage exportation of U.S. jobs overseas, MPC Computers CEO Mike Adkins told a Boise audience last week. Adkins, speaking at a Boise Metro Chamber of...

IPO factors to be discussed at seminar on June 23.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson How businesses can generate capital and grow by methods other than an initial public offering of stock is to be discussed at a seminar this week in Boise. Hawley Troxell, a Boise law firm, plans to present the...

Zions Bank Small Business Index rises.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson The Zions Bank Small Business Index rose to 100.1 in May, from a revised 98.1 in April (1997 = 100). Idaho unemployment, the most heavily weighted component, was estimated at 4.6 percent in May, up from a revised...

Work begins on revamped 2-story bank bldg. in Meridian.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Farmers & Merchants State Bank last week began building the long-planned replacement to the Meridian office that it opened in 1968. The two-story, 16,500-square-foot building, to be completed by year's end at the...

Meridian leads in home resales in first quarter.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Meridian led the Boise area in home resales in the first quarter, according to a zip-code-based analysis of Multiple Listing Service data by Re/Max International. Meridian (zip code 83642) led the area with 408...

Albertsons restructuring move has Idaho impact.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Albertsons Inc. plans to eliminate about 50 jobs in Idaho, Utah and Montana in a move to restructure management. The region is the second to undergo "a de-layering of store management," Stacia Levenseld said....

Wells Fargo doubles Mexico remittance network.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Wells Fargo & Co. has effectively doubled the network that enables U.S. account holders to transfer money from the U.S. to Mexico instantly. A new partnership with HSBC Mexico, one of that country's five largest...

Capital City Development Corp. to get EPA 'brownfields' grant.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson A $200,000 grant to Capital City Development Corp. will fund environmental assessments and an effort to inventory "brownfield" sites with potential petroleum contamination in CCDC's three redevelopment districts in...

Work begins on strip mall near Emmett Albertsons.
June 21, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert A strip mall, to include room for eight or nine tenants, is being built around Emmett's existing Albertsons store. Steed Construction, Eagle, began work June 1 on the 10,400-square foot strip mall - tentatively...

Bigger, flashier exhibits increase funding and patronage at Boise Art Museum.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert The hometown Boise Art Museum has in recent years been putting on bigger, flashier, more significant exhibits, leading up this year to a name straight from art history textbooks: Degas. While such big exhibits...

BoDo Partners to begin construction of $62M in additions to Boise's 8th Street Marketplace.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert Construction of $62 million in additions to 8th Street Marketplace in downtown Boise could begin in August, redeveloper BoDo Partners says - about a year after the project originally was slated to start. BoDo on...

Boise-based D.A. Davidson & Co. plans move to ex-bank.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson D.A. Davidson & Co. plans to move its Boise office from The Grove to the sixth floor of the ex-First Security Bank building at Ninth and Idaho streets, which is being redeveloped by Jim Tomlinson. Davidson occupies...

Boise-based Bown Crossing's first retail tenant to be cafe with European theme.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Steven Anderson The Marketplace at Bown Crossing has signed its first retail tenant, a cafe to be called Kessler's, and its developer says the aim is for a "European feel" to the establishment. Justin Harvey, a newcomer to...

6,600-ft structure slated in Boise where bldg. burned in '03.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Steven Anderson Construction of a 6,600-square-foot office building is to start soon on a west Boise site where fire destroyed a structure of similar size early last year. Gary Bates, real estate broker with Michener...

Idaho Housing and Finance Assn. passes 50,000-loan mark, works with Valley Habitat group.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson The Idaho Housing and Finance Association recently issued its 50,000th mortgage loan, and entered an agreement to buy mortgages on homes built by Boise Valley Habitat for Humanity. Boise resident Norma Baker took...

Micron Technology reports increased sales for third quarter.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Micron Technology Inc. last week reported earnings of $90.9 million - 13 cents per share - for its third quarter ended June 3, compared to a net loss of $214.9 million, or 36 cents a share, a year earlier. ...

Class-action lawsuit filed against Idacorp.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Another shareholder class-action suit has been filed against Idacorp Inc. The suit, filed by New York-based law firm Wolf Haldenstein in U.S. District Court in Boise, claims Idacorp violated federal securities laws...

Idaho Tech Launch. a venture capital event, slated in Sun Valley.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Lora Volkert When technology startups look for backing, they should first find out what kind of funding they need, says technology services consultant Rick Ritter. An upcoming workshop in Sun Valley will give companies a...

Shari's closes eatery near Boise State University.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Steve Martin Shari's, a 24-hour family-style restaurant chain, has closed its Boise restaurant at Broadway and Boise avenues in the Capitol Village retail center, recently acquired by Boise State University. Dick Olsen,...

Stock markets boosted by improving economy.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson Better economic news over the past three months provided firmer footing to U.S. stock markets, but a long-term approach with some caution mixed in remains the best way to approach equities, three financial...

IRA, 401k plans offer countless retirement choices.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Ken Miller With surveys showing Americans pessimistic about having enough to retire on or delaying retirement altogether, it's more important than ever for investors young and old to take a more active role in managing their nest...

Diversity of mutual funds reduces investing risk.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Ken Miller Despite some black eyes in recent months due to questionable trading practices by some fund managers, mutual funds remain a key component of financial portfolios for about half of all American households, and for good...

Mixed-use, 5-bldg. complex planned at Boise-based Hidden Springs.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson A five-building complex containing commercial space and townhomes is proposed for the Hidden Springs community north of Boise. The Marketplace at Hidden Springs will include 20 retail / office spaces and 20...

Commentary: Google's Gmail - a hefty, free gigabyte of mailbox.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Rick Edvalson Just when it looked like my days of using free Web-based email were over, Google has renewed my hope. Like hundreds of millions of other people, I began using Web mail with free accounts at Hotmail, Yahoo Mail and...

Aircraft support equipment manufacturer finds niche.
June 28, 2004... Byline: Brad Carlson After 15 years in business, Aero Specialties has carved out a niche selling, renting, manufacturing and re-manufacturing ground-support equipment for commercial aircraft. Now the airline industry has taken a turn...