Idaho Business Review, Boise articles from May 2007

Idaho Business Review, Boise archives from May 2007

Union pickets Idaho contractor after owner refuses to unionize.
May 2, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff The rat fliers are back - this time, across the street from the Royal Plaza condominium project and at the Idaho Independent Bank building. The Pacific Northwest Regional Council of Carpenters has hired people to picket...

EPA settles with N. Idaho golf developers.
May 2, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff Two north Idaho developers recently settled with the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency for violating storm water provisions of the Clean Water Act. The agency said in a statement that Black Rock Development settled...

Future of American Red Cross office in N. Idaho uncertain.
May 2, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff A money shortage is making the future uncertain for the local office of the American Red Cross of Greater Idaho. Our income is not sufficient to pay for the $2 million budgeted expenditures, agency CEO Dick Rush wrote in...

Idaho governor names commerce director.
May 3, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report James M. Ellick, a veteran of Silicon Valley's phenomenal growth and sustained high-tech success, has agreed to become director of the Idaho Department of Commerce, Gov. C.L. Butch Otter said in a...

Boise-based Washington Group International awarded $310 million copper mining contract.
May 3, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Washington Group International won a contract to restart copper mining operations at Pinto Valley Mine near Globe, Ariz. The Boise company said in a May 3 statement that BHP Copper Inc., an...

Idaho jobs total grows in first quarter.
May 3, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Idaho non-farm jobs in the first quarter increased by 3.6 percent from a year earlier to an average of 637,100. The national growth rate was less than 1.6 percent. The state Commerce & Labor...

Idaho unemployment remains low.
May 4, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Idaho's unemployment rate remained at a record low 2.8 percent in April, according to the Idaho Department of Commerce and Labor. Though 3,000 people joined the workforce last month, jobs grew by 3.6...

Coalition for Regional Public Transportation meets after Idaho Legislative session.
May 4, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Members of the Coalition for Regional Public Transportation met April 27 for the first time since the end of the Legislative session. This year's effort to pass legislation, which would have let the...

Boise's evolution as high-tech region continues.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Eddie Kovsky The emergence of Boise in the last two decades as a hub for innovation, entrepreneurship and high-tech has happened without the existence of the kind of infrastructure that usually portends success. Thirty years ago...

Bid Briefs.
May 7, 2007... Irving Middle School bleacher replacement is planned in Pocatello. Details are available from Pocatello School District Clerk Nathan Hill, 3115 Pole Line Road, Pocatello, 83201-6119. A bid opening is scheduled at noon May 9. Cost estimate:...

Contracts Awarded.
May 7, 2007... Layton Construction Co., Boise, was awarded a contract for a medical unit at the Ada County Jail at 7200 Barrister Drive, Boise (negotiated). Cost estimate: $5,828,998. Auroresky Investments, Boise, is the owner, builder, developer and...

Building Permits.
May 7, 2007... BUILDING PERMITS CITY OF BOISE PERMIT/TYPE    OWNER    BUILDER    LOCATION    VALUE 01010-new    Ebright Family Trust    Secured Earth...

Coalition for Regional Public Transportation discusses strategies for passing legislation in Idaho.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Members of the Coalition for Regional Public Transportation met April 27 for the first time since the end of the Legislative session. This year's effort to pass legislation, which would have...

Want a long-term parking spot in downtown Boise? Get in line.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Lora Volker Waiting lists for parking garage passes and disappearing surface parking lots are becoming an issue for office tenants considering a move to downtown Boise. Max Clark, Capital City Development Corp.'s parking and...

Robert Weed Plywood buys manufacturing plant in Weiser.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Robert Weed Plywood Corp. plans to begin manufacturing operations in Weiser by the end of the month. The Bristol, Ind.-based company is taking over the Weiser Products Inc. plant and renaming it...

More Idaho nonprofits aspire to Sarbanes-Oxley accountability standards.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Brad Carlson More nonprofit organizations are trying to comply with the Sarbanes-Oxley Act even though the complex federal law primarily applies to sizable, publicly traded corporations. Sarbanes-Oxley, or SOx, was the federal...

Large companies use various strategies to ensure public doesn't find out about relocation plans.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Lora Volkert Boise Economic Development Manager Jeff Jones said private companies have forced him to sign non-disclosure agreements to prevent him from talking about his negotiations with them. Large companies use...

Ada County vacancies drop at small rental properties.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Vacancy at small Ada County rental properties hit lows early this year, according to a survey of 2,200 rental units conducted by the Southwest Idaho Chapter of the National Association of...

Corrections.
May 7, 2007... The renovated Hotel 43 in downtown Boise has 112 rooms. A Roundup item in the April 30 issue of the Idaho Business Review included an incorrect total. Information about D.L. Evans Bank was listed as not available in an April 23 list of...

Idaho State Bar membership nearly doubles since '80s.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Membership in the Idaho State Bar has nearly doubled in 20 years. Bar membership was expected to hit 5,000 last week, up from 2,514 at the end of 1986, Diane Minnich said. She is the executive...

Management development program in Sun Valley takes hands-on approach to traditional topics.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Brad Carlson Organization managers participating in this year's Program for Management Development, slated May 14-19 in Sun Valley, won't learn accounting and finance principles the old-fashioned way. Business problem-solving...

Contractor: Picketing by Boise carpenter's union an attempt to force me to unionize.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Lora Volkert The local carpenter's union is picketing two McAlvain construction sites, accusing its subcontractor of not paying standard wages and benefits. But the owner of the subcontractor, Pac-West Interiors, says the...

Credit union industry healthy in Idaho.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Brad Carlson Credit unions are in store for more growth this year, even if that growth doesn't match the strong pace of 2006, according to Alan Cameron. The Idaho Credit Union League president said the institutions continue to...

Member ownership sets credit unions apart from banks.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Gil Birdsong is the executive vice president of Westmark Credit Union. Westmark has roughly 37,000 members, mostly in eastern Idaho. The credit union has two branches in the Treasure Valley, in...

Boise Real Estate Briefs: May 7, 2007.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Central Rent to Own leased 6,995 square feet of industrial space in the South Cole Industrial Center, 2740 S. Cole Road, Suite 310, Boise. The company markets rental programs for appliances,...

Boise bar owner faces charges of falsifying evidence.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Ted Challenger, owner of China Blue, Dirty Little Roddy's and the Main Street Bistro, has been charged with creating a falsified surveillance video to cover up charges that he allowed a minor into...

New Univ. of Idaho diversity director's first order of business: define his job.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Part of Mark Edwards' new job as director of diversity and community at the University of Idaho will be to define the job. The diversity director is a new position for the university, and one...

Industrial property investments promising but hard to come by.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Brad Carlson More investors figure to target industrial property now that rents and vacancy rates have moved in a direction that favors the property owner. But whether those investments earn a profit - or materialize at all,...

Clean air group won't drop Idaho field-burning court action.
May 7, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report A clean-air activist group said Friday it's pushing ahead with its request that a federal appeals court clarify whether agricultural field burning in Idaho must be stopped, despite Gov. C.L....

Idaho State Board of Education director moves to Idaho Dept. of Labor.
May 9, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff Dwight Johnson has resigned as executive director of the State Board of Education to accept a senior management position with the Idaho Department of Labor, according to a press release. Karen Echeverria, deputy...

Boise-based Washington Group International earnings fall, revenues rise.(Financial report)
May 9, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff Washington Group International reported earnings of $13 million for the March 30 quarter, or 43 cents per share, down from $19 million, or 62 cents per share, a year earlier. Analysts polled by Thomson Financial...

Boise-based Boise Cascade reports earnings increase for first quarter.(Financial report)
May 9, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff Boise Cascade Holdings L.L.C. today reported net income of $10.5 million for the first quarter 2007, compared with net income of $2 million for both the first quarter 2006 and the fourth quarter 2006. Income from...

Boise-based IDACORP reports first quarter loss.(Financial report)
May 9, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff IDACORP Inc. today reported first quarter net income of $24.6 million, compared with $25.5 million in the same quarter of 2006. First quarter diluted earnings per share decreased by $0.04 from the first quarter 2006 to...

Special Olympics winter games in Idaho announces fundraiser.
May 9, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff The 2009 Special Olympics World Winter Games, slated for southwest Idaho, announced a promotional and fund-raising partnership with state Special Olympics organizations and Giftback.com. Giftback.com is a national...

Retail vacancy hits record in unanchored Boise shopping centers.
May 10, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Vacancy at unanchored shopping centers is at the highest level ever recorded in the Boise market, according to the May 2007 Market Review compiled by Thornton Oliver Keller. Unanchored vacancy in...

Seattle-based Washington Federal Savings ranks highly among U.S. thrifts.
May 10, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Seattle-based Washington Federal Savings, which has operations in the Boise area, ranks fourth in a recent evaluation of large thrifts. SNL Financial ranked the country's 100 largest thrifts based...

Mortgage lender ordered to cease deceptive ads in Idaho.
May 11, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff The Idaho Department of Finance has ordered Sage Credit Co. to cease and desist misleading and deceptive advertising in Idaho. Sage Credit Co., a California-based licensed mortgage broker and lender,...

City of McCall has more options to avoid bankruptcy.
May 11, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff The city of McCall has a dire letter to citizens on its Web site. The City is required to pay over $6 million to Employers Insurance of Wausau and St. Clair Contractors Inc. As of this writing, the City...

Rabbit meat producer opens in Greenleaf.
May 11, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Hare of the Dog Ranch opened recently in Greenleaf. The business (www.hareofthedogranch.com) produces rabbit meat that is naturally raised, free of hormones and antibiotics, and state-inspected,...

Nampa-based Home Federal restructuring again.
May 11, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Nampa-based Home Federal is changing its ownership structure again. Federally chartered Home Federal in 2004 converted from a mutual savings and loan association to a stock savings bank, a publicly traded...

Farmers & Merchants State Bank, Boise Co-op dedicate Habitat home.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Employees of Farmers & Merchants State Bank and the Boise Co-op store on May 8 dedicated a new Habitat for Humanity home for Juan and Maria Moreno, and their five children. The employees...

Boise-based Overhead Door opens branch office in Spokane.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Boise-based Overhead Door Inc. recently opened a branch office in Spokane, on Thorpe Road near the airport. Overhead Door President Eric Stunz said the branch, which employs five, enables the...

Women's Transportation Seminar transportation chapter forms in Treasure Valley.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Women's Transportation Seminar International Board of Directors recognized the WTS Treasure Valley Chapter as its 41st local chapter during a meeting held the first week in May in San Diego....

Industry study names Boise-based NAI Global top brand.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report NAI Kowallis & Mackey in Boise has announced that NAI Global has been ranked No. 5 on National Real Estate Investor magazine's ranking of the Top 25 brokerage firms. The ranking is based on...

RVP Business Systems in Boise buys Ada Cash Register.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Ada Cash Register, 8361 W. State St., Boise, on May 1 joined RVP Business Systems at 6001 Overland Road in Boise. RVP owner Billy Knorpp said in a statement that his company bought Ada Cash...

Business-focused high school to open in Eagle, Idaho.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report A high school that emphasizes economics, business and leadership is slated to open this fall in Eagle. North Star High School - International School of Business and Economics will be Idaho's...

California-based builder of ethanol plant in Idaho reports strong quarter.(Financial report)
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The California company building an ethanol production plant in Burley announced higher earnings in the first quarter. Fresno-based Pacific Ethanol Inc. reported net income of $3 million,...

City of Boise immune from Tower developer Peterson's lawsuit.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report A judge has thrown out a lawsuit by Boise Tower developer Rick Peterson against the city of Boise. Peterson claimed that his building permit should not have been considered expired. He also...

Back to the drawing board:Ada County's planning and development director to leave the agency.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The loss of Ada County's planning and development director could be a setback for developers of planned communities. There is institutional memory that goes away when people leave the public...

Portneuf Medical Center in Boise may go private.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Lora Volkert Portneuf Medical Center set off a fierce debate in the Pocatello community when its Board of Governors said the county-owned hospital may need to become a private entity. Portneuf was in the middle of a hospital...

And this $1M check goes to ...Idaho nonprofits seek donations in competitive environment.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Representatives of Idaho nonprofit organizations are out of the office a lot these days, seeking donations in one of the most competitive markets in years. The people who direct these organizations...

Volunteers from Boise franchises of College Pro Painters to paint Good Samaritan Home.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Student painters from the Boise franchises of College Pro Painters volunteered on May 3 and 4 to paint the nonprofit Good Samaritan Home in Boise, a boarding house that provides low-cost rental...

Treasure Valley study: Watch housing inventory.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Metrostudy released a housing report for the Treasure Valley last week. Among the study's findings were: * Home starts increased in the first quarter of 2007 to 1,400, 330 more than in the...

Twenty-seven Canyon County real estate agents honored.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Idaho Housing and Finance Association recently honored 27 Canyon County real estate agents. Those 27 agents have represented a total of 175 buyers who purchased their homes with more than $21...

Boise-based Syringa Bancorp earnings drop, assets rise in first quarter.(Financial report)
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Syringa Bancorp on April 30 reported a consolidated net loss of $363,772 in the first quarter. Four new operating offices completed their first full quarter of operation, including...

Wells Fargo expands Meridian business banking.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Wells Fargo Business Banking Center in Meridian plans to move by early August to a multi-tenant building at 660 Watertower Lane, from the Wells retail branch on Corporate Drive. The move...

Idaho and U.S. foreclosures fell in April.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The number of U.S. properties entering some stage of the foreclosure process fell by 11 percent from March to April, to 140,711, California-based Bargain Network reported on May 14. Nevertheless,...

Capital City Development Corp. approves Capitol Terrace Apartments in downtown Boise.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Capital City Development Corp. today approved an agreement for the Capitol Terrace Apartments. Residents of the Washington Mutual building have opposed the project, but by the time of the meeting...

Norfleet Developments adds warehouse at Caldwell's Sky Ranch business park.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Norfleet Developments recently completed a second warehouse building of 10,800-square feet at 4115 Challenger Way in Caldwell's Sky Ranch business park, south of U.S. 20-26. Norfleet is...

Key Private Bank expands in Idaho following UBS deal.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Key Private Bank is expanding in Idaho following the parent company's sale of McDonald Investments offices to UBS. In Boise, Key hired Mary Monroe as senior vice president and Private Bank...

Meridian company recycles old spa covers, cuts trips to landfill.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report At Cot Spa Covers in Meridian, they're recycling old covers. Owner Tip O'Connor said the move produced a new item to sell and reduced trips to the landfill. Cot employees spread the old covers in...

Idaho Community Foundation to honor Kissler Family entity.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Idaho Community Foundation plans to present its 2007 Friend of the Foundation award to Kissler Family Foundation President Jim Kissler during its annual luncheon at noon May 16 at Boise Centre...

Soaring into the future: Fraise furthers Boise Airport's mission as regional airport.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Eddie Kovsky Garry Fraise is acting director of the Boise Airport. How long have you been acting director at the airport? What was your previous position? Since last October. I was the assistant director for public safety...

No reprieve in sight for Boise Airport parking.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Maybe you've been that guy creeping past the airport parking lot entrance, half-hoping to spot an empty parking space that the red Full sign was lying about. Maybe you were the one clutching...

Delta adds nonstop service between Boise and L.A.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Delta Air Lines is adding a daily direct flight to Los Angeles from the Boise Airport. Beginning July 1, Delta carrier ExpressJet Airlines will offer one nonstop flight to Los Angeles every...

Building Permits.
May 14, 2007... BUILDING PERMITS CITY OF BOISE PERMIT/TYPE OWNER BUILDER LOCATION VALUE 03412-comm. alteration Hormaechea LP Russell Corp. 1555 W. Shoreline Dr. 50,000 01116-unknown not listed Signs...

Boise Real Estate Briefs: May 14, 2007.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Roundup LeMaster & Daniels, an accounting firm, plans an open house May 16 at its new downtown Boise office, 1010 W. Jefferson St., Suite 200. The firm offers accounting and tax planning,...

Idaho lawmakers likely to scrutinize urban renewal agencies.
May 14, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Idaho lawmakers on the Legislative Council say they will likely create a task force to examine how urban renewal agencies work. "What the task force has to do is take urban renewal law, which was...

"Speaking on Business" host: Networking a never-ending responsibility.
May 15, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Businesses can't afford to stop networking and prospecting just because the economy is booming, Fred Ball says. If you do get complacent, you will become the forgotten business of tomorrow, Ball,...

MPC reports quarterly loss.(Financial report)
May 15, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report MPC Corp. reported a net loss of $5.2 million on net revenue of $56.8 million for the quarter ending March 31, 2007. Revenue declined 14.6 percent compared to the same period in 2006, though...

State of Idaho files securities suit against Henzler, BCM.
May 15, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Idaho Department of Finance has filed a complaint in the Third District Court in Caldwell against Glenn B. Henzler and BCM Enterprises, LLC, claiming the parties violated Idaho Uniform...

Boise developer: Capital City Development Corp. partnership essential to Library Blocks success.
May 17, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Developer Mark Rivers today condemned critics of Capital City Development Corp., an agency he considers vital to building his project, the Library Blocks. I think a lot of the negative...

Silver prices have Idaho's Silver Valley companies booming.
May 17, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report As a precious metal, silver does not have the allure of gold. As an investment, it is not as hip as Google. But dowdy old silver is suddenly chic. Silver prices are at their highest in more...

Idaho science and tech director to retire.
May 17, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report Karl Tueller is retiring from the Idaho Department of Commerce and Labor. Tueller is the executive director of the Office of Science and Technology and the deputy director of Commerce and Labor....

First Northwest medical school in 60 years breaks ground.
May 18, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Pacific Northwest University of Health Sciences on Wednesday began construction on the first new medical school to be built in the Pacific Northwest in 60 years. The 48,000-square-foot building, scheduled...

Capital City Development Corp. votes to give Boise Rescue Mission land to IHFA.
May 21, 2007... Byline: Idaho Business Review Staff Report The Capital City Development Corp. Board of Commissioners last week agreed to transfer to Idaho Housing and Finance Association a narrow parcel in front of the Boise Rescue Mission that it acquired...

Evolution of Hewlett-Packard's LaserJet.
May 21, 2007... Byline: Eddie Kovsky Hewlett-Packard introduced the first LaserJet printer in 1984. The printer, developed at HP's Boise facility, cost $3,500 and could print eight black and white pages a minute. Twenty-seven years later, Boise - where...

Contracts Awarded.
May 21, 2007... ESI, Boise, was awarded a contract to remodel the former Emporium space in the Karcher Mall for a Burlington Coat Factory store at 1509 Caldwell Blvd., Nampa (negotiated). Cost not listed. Eckman & Mitchell Construction, Salt Lake City, was...

Building Permits.
May 21, 2007... BUILDING PERMITS CITY OF BOISE PERMIT/TYPE    OWNER    BUILDER    LOCATION    VALUE 01165-alteration    not listed    Image National...

For Idaho contractors, state boundaries don't mean much.
May 21, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff Time was, Idaho construction contractors stayed close to home and did most of their work here, and it was rare for a general contractor from another state to venture into Idaho for work. Those days are gone. A booming...

Contractor registration numbers hold steady at 18,000 in Idaho.
May 21, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff When Idaho initiated its contractor registration requirements 16 months ago, officials estimated up to 17,000 contractors statewide might register with the state. They were close: Recent registration information from...

Idaho housing market could be rebounding.
May 21, 2007... Byline: Lora Volkert Idaho's housing markets could be on the rebound, if April building permit levels are enough of an indication. In 2006, Kuna issued 340 fewer building permits than in 2005. Single-family home permits fell to half...

Falcon Building in Boise soars to environmentally friendly heights.
May 21, 2007... Byline: IBR Staff From teardown to build-up, the remodeling of the Falcon Building is an environmental dream come true. The three-story, 35,000-square-foot building at 815 E. Park Blvd., Boise, is undergoing extensive interior...

Residential contractors in Idaho see increase in work.
May 21, 2007... Byline: Lora Volkert The residential construction market is starting to see an upswing again, Treasure Valley residential contractors said last week. Larry Ralston, president of Capitol Building Co., said he's seeing a lot of activity...