Dallas Business Journal articles from February 1997

Dallas Business Journal archives from February 1997

Lacerte clicks on Plano. (Lacerte Software Inc. to build office campus in Plano, TX)
February 7, 1997... Software maker ready to close on 89 acres near Legacy Park PLANO - Lacerte Software Corp. of Dallas is set to close in April on 89 acres at the southeastern corner of State Highway 121 and the Dallas North Tollway. Lacerte Software is...

American boarding all rows. (American Airlines expands its AAdvantage Incentive Miles program)
February 7, 1997... American Airlines pushing its mileage program to vendors D/FW AIRPORT - The next time you take your dog to the vet for fleas, don't be surprised if your doctor suggests a product made by pharmaceutical giant Bayer AG. That's because Bayer...

'Pieces of the rock' on block? (office buildings owned by Prudential Insurance Company of America in Dallas, TX)
February 7, 1997... Buyers ready if Pru sells more holdings DOWNTOWN - Prudential Insurance Company of America's $105 million sale of Renaissance Tower in 1995 was a prelude to the insurance giant's long-range plan to divest itself of almost all its direct real...

Membership roundup by HMOs pinching profits. (Dallas, TX)(Industry Overview)
February 7, 1997... Health care costs could be rising again ARLINGTON - Local health maintenance organizations reported steady enrollment growth in the third quarter, creating bigger financial losses for those that have chopped prices to gain new members....

Survey: Fort Worth rates high in home affordability.
February 7, 1997... FORT WORTH - Referred to by many native Texans as "Cow Town" and "Gateway to the West," Fort Worth can claim another nickname. "Affordable." Dallas' sister city is the second-most affordable home market in the United States, according to a...

Opportunity knocks for NASCAR fan. (Matt Williamson, project manager for HCB Contractors)
February 7, 1997... HCB manager gets to work on Texas Motor Speedway FORT WORTH - When the National Football League went on strike in 1988, scab Kevin Sweeney was replacing Danny White and Steve Pelluer as quarterback for the Dallas Cowboys. And Matt Williamson...

Bush tax plan would render Freeport exemption obsolete. (Texas Gov. George Bush)
February 7, 1997... Tool's supporters decry changes; opponents say playing-field would level NORTH DALLAS - Gov. George Bush's proposed tax cut would pull the legs out from under the triple Freeport tax exemption, a tool used by numerous Texas governments to lure...

UNT program aids international business travelers. (travel medicine consultation program at the University of North Texas)
February 7, 1997... FORT WORTH - An employee of Motorola Inc. here begins preparation for a business trip abroad long before the airline ticket arrives by courier. The first step of a long journey is just across the building, to an on-site clinic operated by the...

Professionals paying the piper in search for perfect partners. (professional marriage brokers)
February 7, 1997... UPTOWN - Start with a strong economy, add a large professional population and throw in the country's highest divorce rate. These elements, found in abundance in the Metroplex, create a market for a service growing in use: matchmaking. Or,...

Smith Communications shutters N. Dallas location. (Emmitt Smith Communications Corp.)
February 7, 1997... OAK CLIFF - Dallas Cowboys running back Emmitt Smith plans to consolidate his two Dallas cellular-telephone and paging stores into one. Smith, owner of Emmitt Smith Communications Corp., will close his Pepper Village Square location in North...

Capital gains cuts hinge on defining small businesses. (Congress seeks definition of small businesses that qualify for capital-gains tax cut)
February 7, 1997... WASHINGTON - Congress will try to determine just how small a small business must be to enjoy the fruits of a capital-gains tax cut as the Clinton administration prepares to defend its budget this month. Republicans have been pushing to cut...

Bill seeks to limit nonprofits' lobbying expenditures. (Rep. David McIntosh introduces bill in Congress disqualifying nonprofit organizations engaged in lobbying activities from federal loans and grants)
February 7, 1997... WASHINGTON - An Indiana congressman is quietly preparing for another fight on Capitol Hill as he attempts to change the way nonprofits are run. In early January, Rep. David McIntosh, R-Ind., introduced a bill that would make nonprofits...

Group was ahead of managed care curve. (Health Central Women's Care P.A.)
February 7, 1997... RICHARDSON - Eight years ago, a group of local doctors stepped up to the table and rolled the dice. In effect, the founding members of the group now called Health Central Women's Care P.A. were putting their careers on the line. They were...

Ordering office supplies? You better shop around.
February 7, 1997... Each year, businesses spend billions of dollars on office supplies such as pens, paper, toner, paper clips and notepads. Since most purchases consist of many inexpensive items, it can be difficult to get a sense for whether you are paying a fair...

Bottom line not always top concern in automation crisis.
February 7, 1997... When reader Deborah Rebuck, president of Maximum Business Automation in Tampa, Fla., called recently, we found the conversation intriguing. The topic was preparedness for when automation fails in some way. This is not really the "disaster...

Five myths about contracts.
February 7, 1997... There are many myths and misconceptions about contracts and contract law. I've outlined five of the biggest. A contract is a written document stating the promises made by each party. Many people think that if it's not in writing, it's not a...

Both parties are talking up cuts to capital-gains taxes.
February 7, 1997... WASHINGTON - Two years ago, victorious Republicans charged Capitol Hill, confident that their full agenda would be signed into law by President Clinton. Big tax cuts were a major part of the GOP plan, yet when the 104th Congress ended,...

Docs calling shots at Plano Surgery.(Health Care Quarterly)
February 7, 1997... PLANO - Increasingly, doctors are taking their destinies into their own hands, making bold decisions to help ensure success in the increasingly competitive health care sector. They all fear the ever-growing clout of managed health care...

Service delivery keys health care firms' structure.(Health Care Quarterly)
February 7, 1997... In preparation for the advancement of managed care, many hospitals, health systems and insurers have focused on building more complete delivery systems that will eventually coordinate care and lower overall costs. This focus has resulted in...

Strategic alliances reshaping future of health care.(Health Care Quarterly)
February 7, 1997... Provider organizations are forming strategic alliances to more effectively compete for health care dollars in today's market. The goal of these organizations is either to gain market share for their provider-owners or to provide return on...

Majors writes success story with copious medical texts. (Majors Scientific Bookstore)(Health Care Quarterly)
February 7, 1997... DALLAS - Nestled in a 1950s-style red brick building next to a paint-and-body shop, Majors Scientific Bookstore doesn't shout "largest medical bookstore in the United States," as it bills itself. But the family-owned business, located just across...

Future looks bright for retirement-home development. (Dallas, TX)(Health Care Quarterly)(Industry Overview)
February 7, 1997... As 2000 rapidly approaches, the real estate market in Dallas and the Southwest is making a strong comeback, as evidenced by recent news reports of significant increases in lease and occupancy rates. This activity has spurred growth in new...

Hospice: combining the art and science of health care. (Family Hospice Inc.)(Health Care Quarterly)
February 7, 1997... Programs growing at rate of 100 per year nationally IRVING - When Marti McDonald learned last summer that she was in the final stage of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, she was determined not to let history repeat itself. McDonald, 49,...

Cinemark projects Latin blitz. (Cinemark USA Inc. to build theaters in Central and South America)
February 21, 1997... Dallas movie giant to open dozens of new theaters throughout Central and South America NORTH DALLAS - Cinemark USA Inc. is planning an aggressive, multimillion-dollar expansion into Latin America, which analysts say will tap a large,...

Fiddling for Wall Street's signal. (AudioNet to sell stocks to the public)
February 21, 1997... Web-radio pioneer AudioNet hears IPO in the distance DEEP ELLUM - About 18 months ago, AudioNet Inc. was housed in the upstairs bedroom of one of its two founders, Mark Cuban. But change comes at light speed on the Internet, where the Dallas...

Home's where the battle is. (Lowe's Companies Inc. to build new hardware store in Dallas, TX, near a Home Depot store)
February 21, 1997... Lowe's turns up heat on Home Depot Inc. SOUTH DALLAS - The hardware wars are moving to South Dallas, where Lowe's Cos. Inc. will be building its fifth Home Improvement Warehouse in Dallas County. The new Lowe's will have more than 150,000...

N. Ireland means opportunity, not strife, to STB. (STB Systems Inc.)
February 21, 1997... Profits are replacing problems in Belfast, U.S. firms discover RICHARDSON - When Richard Cooke first was asked to entertain the notion of doing business in Northern Ireland, the software engineer's initial reaction was predictable. "I...

Bristol tripling office space in wake of Bass acquisitions. (Bristol Hotel Co.)
February 21, 1997... ADDISON - Bristol Hotel Co. will nearly triple its headquarters space at The Midway Atriums complex on Midway Road near Belt Line Road. The Dallas-based hotel owner and operator needs the extra room - expanding to 85,363 square feet of office...

ProMedCo to pump new energy into IPO in limbo for months.
February 21, 1997... FORT WORTH - ProMedCo Management Co. is turning to the public market to fund continued expansion of its multi-specialty doctor's network. The company aims to bring additional physician groups to its core business - consolidating and managing...

Middle-market specialization central to TexSYS expansion.(Company Profile)
February 21, 1997... IRVING - At TexSYS RD L.L.C., the word is focus. Since its founding about four years ago, the Irving-based company has grown from three people to 30 by installing a type of software in companies' client servers, which are networks of mainframes...

Shoe market may give edge to local retailers. (Foot Action Inc.; J.C. Penney Co. Inc.)
February 21, 1997... IRVING - Grabbing the athletic shoe market in shopping malls is no small feat. Target consumers, ages 12 and 24, want high-profile sneakers. And they want swooshes - as in the status emblem that decorates Nike shoes. Footaction USA Inc. and...

Columbia opens urgent care clinic in growing Frisco. (Columbia/HCA Corp.)
February 21, 1997... FRISCO - Drawn by a growing population bursting with young families, Columbia/HCA Healthcare Corp. has opened a new urgent care clinic here to better manage easily-treated illnesses and injuries. The clinic's extended hours spell a less-costly...

Facing competition, chips are down for Tex-Mex chains.(Industry Overview)
February 21, 1997... FARMERS BRANCH - The chips and salsa better taste good. They are the first impression customers have at most Tex-Mex restaurants. And with the proliferation of Metroplex Tex-Mex eateries, it's easy for customers to take their dinero elsewhere....

Southwestern Life joins KUVN-TV in downtown relocation.
February 21, 1997... DOWNTOWN - Two sizable leases in the works Downtown bear testimony to the colloquial assertion that the central business district is "where it's at." One of the leases is a relocation from Garland; the second comes from within the district...

Charter changes. (Dallas, TX)(Editorial)
February 21, 1997... A few weeks ago, it looked like Dallas was headed for an intriguing spring election, highlighted by a proposed change to the city charter that would give the mayor more power in city policy matters. Politics being politics, that meaningful...

Foreign workers follow Virtual's lead. (Virtual Solutions Inc.)
February 21, 1997... IRVING - Like many high-tech companies in the Metroplex, Virtual Solutions Inc. had a problem. The firm, which designs and installs computer databases, was having trouble finding good workers. In one case, difficulty finding qualified...

Free-for-all at fairway? Rash of vacancies could radically change North Dallas office market.
February 28, 1997... FAR NORTH DALLAS - DSC Communications Corp. is putting its offices on the block, becoming the latest in a string of pending North Dallas office vacancies totaling more than 1 million square feet. Real estate observers say the vacancies - all of...

Catch-all: Designtex designed as one-stop shop. (Designtex Enterprises)
February 28, 1997... NORTH DALLAS - Think about buying an old house, and your dream is to renovate the place inside out. After all the headaches, false starts and mental ping-pong, you sign the note and the old place is yours. Now your worries really begin....