Dallas Business Journal articles from January 2000

Dallas Business Journal archives from January 2000

Slurpee's competition.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The Slurpee machine will soon share counterspace with the Orange Power Frut Cooler, a new, nutritionally enhanced beverage recently introduced by 7-Eleven. The new drink is part of a move by 7-Eleven to meet the customer trend in choosing...

DalMac plots S.H. 121 offices.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Development called 'single most significant in Hurst-Euless-Bedford area in years BEDFORD -- City officials have cleared the way for development of a big new office park that would more than double the amount of prime office space that's...

M&A deals up, values down in D-FW in 1999.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... GREATER METROPLEX - More deals, but smaller deals. That's what the mergers-and-acquisitions market produced during 1999 in Dallas-Fort Worth and in Texas, according to an exclusive report from Los Angeles research firm Mergerstat. ...

The paper chase.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Former Belo exec Jeremy Halbreich embraces a new challenge: aggressively snapping up community newspapers with growth potential PRESTON CENTER -- For 24 years, Jeremy L. Halbreich rose through the ranks of The Dallas Morning News...

MontFort extension Part of Prestonwood plan.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... NORTH DALLAS -- Dallas developer Sam Ware likes properties with a "story" behind them. They may have been battered by a bankruptcy, a severed partnership or a changing marketplace. That's when Ware and his company, Lazarus Property Corp., buy...

Bowling alley to become call center.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... EAST DALLAS -- Developers Leon Backes and Terry Casey plan to convert the recently closed Don Carter All Star Lanes at the northeast corner of Northwest Highway and Skillman Street into a call center. The two developers, who have their...

Rising the roof.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... FORT WORTH -- Shopco Advisory Group, owner of Ridgmar mall in west Fort Worth, is planning a 150,000-square-foot, open-air retail center adjacent to Ridgmar. The Town Houses at Ridgmar will feature retailers, themed restaurants and...

It's good to be Briggs.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... RICHARDSON -- Trammell Crow Co. leasing agent T. D. Briggs is having a good week. Technology company Inet Technologies Inc. has finally signed its lease at Collins Crossing, a 300,000-square-foot building at 1500 Greenville Road. Briggs...

Not so exclusive.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- When is an exclusive TV interview not really an exclusive? When other stations in your market have similar interviews. That's what WFAA-TV (Channel 8) ran into Tuesday night, after promoting its "exclusive" interview...

Health care woes.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... RICHARDSON -- Centra HealthPlan services will eliminate at least 99 jobs and possibly close its facility by March 31, according to a letter received by the Texas Workforce Commission earlier this month. Senior company executives, 24...

In with the old.
January 28, 2000... FAR NORTH DALLAS -- Chris Taylor and Johnny Johnson of Jones Lang LaSalle are the leasing agents of 411,686-square-foot Centura office tower -- again. Mark Small of MJS Resources, who developed Centura at 14185 Dallas Parkway, said he...

Southern space.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... DESOTO -- Perhaps VarTec Telecom inc. is branching out into the commercial real estate market. VarTec, which provides long-distance calling and Internet services, currently has two buildings to unload. In an effort to consolidate its...

Correction.
January 28, 2000... In the article "Museums focus on Western heritage" (Jan. 21-27), the caption should have identified the artist's rendering as the National Cowgirl Museum and Hall of Fame, Instead of the Cattle Raisers Museum.

Uncommon Care to open care center here.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... SOUTHLAKE -- Austin-based Uncommon Care has confirmed plans to open an Alzheimer's care center in Southlake, its second new Metroplex facility in the past year. Alzheimer's care center could be open by end of year SOUTHLAKE --...

Group promotes orderly growth in Wise County.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... ALLIANCE -- Developer Bob Kresler moved his development company, Kresler Corp., from Southlake to the small Wise County city of Rhome about three months ago. Kresler and others believe the southern Wise corridor, which encompasses the...

Coach manufacturer plans $4 million center.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Entertainers like Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton are among Prevost Car's customers FORT WORTH - Prevost Car Inc., a luxury coach manufacturer based in Quebec, Canada, is planning to open a $4 million service, parts and sales center in Fort...

Retail project set for booming N. Dallas area.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... FAR NORTH DALLAS - A 290,000-squarefoot shopping center is planned at the intersection of Coit and Campbell roads, joining an explosion of retail projects at the busy intersection. The area straddles the border between Dallas and...

SouthTrust makes Heritage Bank purchase.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Deal gives SouthTrust a major presence in Metroplex market WAXAHACHIE -- Birmingham-based SouthTrust Corp. has purchased Heritage Bank, a $174.7 million independent with nine locations in Johnson, Ellis and Tarrant counties. The deal...

Lookout Plaza developer suspends construction.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... RICHARDSON -- Construction has been halted on the 150,000-square-foot, three-story Lookout Plaza building in Richardson. Thompson Realty Corp. has a building permit for the project and has completed site work. But the company's lead...

Training classes scheduled for entrepreneurial women.
January 28, 2000... FORT WORTH -- The Fort Worth Women's Business Center plans to host another session of the Network to Empower Entrepreneurial Women, known as Project NEW. The program is geared toward women just starting a business or who have been in...

Park Place dealership offering mentorships.
January 28, 2000... GRAPEVINE -- Park Place Lexus Grapevine, which just opened its doors Jan. 24, has launched a unique mentoring program to head off a possible shortage of qualified mechanics. Park Place's strategy stems from the difficulties experienced...

Law firm sets its sights on Telecom corridor.
January 28, 2000... Long-time Richardson lawyer to join Worsham branch office RICHARDSON -- Sole practitioner Jim Shepherd's decision to join Dallas-based law firm Worsham, Forsythe & Wooldridge created the perfect occasion for the firm to open a branch...

Dr. Thomas Royer.(Christus Health)
January 28, 2000... Former surgeon hones skills as Christus CEO LAS COLINAS -- Dr. Thomas Royer often schedules his first meetings at 7 a.m., but he's usually in his office long before sunrise. "As a surgeon, I had to work long days, making pre-operative...

Classic spins gold out of leftover pad sites.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... BEDFORD -- Just as a talented chef can transform leftovers into a tasty stew, developer Bob Kohsmann, owner of Bedford-based Classic Concepts Inc., has taken property scraps, and turned them into an $8 million business. A former housing...

Denton Factory Stores tapped for revitalization.
January 28, 2000... Leasing agent plans to bring high-profile tenants to center DENTON -- Denton Factory Stores is turning to a familiar face to revitalize its leasing activity and attract more business for existing tenants. Bruce Targoff, of...

Stonebridge acquiring Interface Teknologies.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... FAR NORTH DALLAS -- Technical-services provider Stonebridge Technologies Inc. has acquired another Dallas company, Interface Teknologies. The price was $5 million. Stonebridge officials say all of Interface's 60 employees will keep their...

Business groups gear up for 2000 campaign.
January 28, 2000... Project 2000 to target key races and getting out the vote WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Money may be the mother's milk of politics, but business groups learned from organized labor's success in the 1998 congressional elections that money alone...

Uwe Blab trades NBA career for office title.(Paragon Scientific VP of systems integration)
January 28, 2000... Former Maverick's software interests lead to job at Austin company Ever wonder what happens to National Basketball Association players when the game is over? When Uwe Blab, who was a first-round draft pick for Dallas in 1985, went...

Dallas company may be tapped for Austin project.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... AUSTIN -- A three-member real estate team in Austin is trying to lure a Dallas company that would invest more than $8 million in a senior-care complex in Southwest Austin. Plaza Development Corp. Inc. has received approval from the city...

Virtual agency satisfies clients' 'need for speed'.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... It's not a virtual agency, but MarketingServicesNow.com has found a way to make use of the Internet in nearly everything it does. The Addison-based company bills itself as a full-service, online ad agency. Among its strategies: Providing...

Signing on.
January 28, 2000... Plano-based The Consulttus Group Inc. has landed three new clients. First, the company was tapped by Threedots Inc., an Australian developer of software-products used for automating work-flow management, to provide marketing communications...

Fun at the zoo.
January 28, 2000... Publicis Dallas has beaten a pack of agencies to land the Fort Worth Zoo account. After a three-month review of five finalists, the zoo granted agency-of-record honors to Publicis. Fort Worth-based Regian & Wilson Advertising & Public...

The FOCUS Agency.
January 28, 2000... The FOCUS Agency's executive vice president and managing director, Mike Sullivan, has promoted four of the agency's top executives, and added a senior copywriter to the agency team. Promotions were Jouette Travis to senior vice president and...

PopMail.com Inc.
January 28, 2000... PopMail.com Inc. (Nasdaq: POPM), an e-mail marketing company for the broadcast, media, sports and entertainment industries, will provide its services to dmagazine.com, the Web site of D magazine. The move is expected to help improve the...

Quick's delivery service moving at rapid pace.
January 28, 2000... Revenue for the Dallas office of New York-based Quick International Courier has grown 200% the last five years, prompting the company to expand into new offices recently near Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport at Royal Lane and Luna...

ISO registered.
January 28, 2000... Garland-based SVTronics Inc., a privately held electronics manufacturer, completed the ISO-9002 certification process in December, according to Chris Dickey, sales director. "ISO-9002 certification enables us to expand our...

Fresh look.
January 28, 2000... The Texas Association of Airport Executives is re-evaluating its goals and restructuring its organization, including a name change to Texas Airport Management Association, according to the aviation division of the Texas Department of...

Distribution growth.
January 28, 2000... Tennessee-based Tractor Supply Co. has doubled its Waco facility with the opening earlier this month of a new distribution center there, according to a company announcement. The farm-and-ranch retailer operates 278 stores in 26 states....

Volunteerism leads dentist to AIDS fund-raiser.
January 28, 2000... Dentist Kevin Terrell set up private practice in Plano in 1994, but by the next year he was searching for something more fulfilling. He began offering his services at Stewpot, a homeless shelter in Dallas. "I would go into the homeless...

Lending a hand.
January 28, 2000... The Susan G. Komen Breast Cancer Foundation will provide $1 million in funding to help sponsor the first, large-scale study on quality cancer care. The study, spearheaded by the American Society of Clinical Oncology, begins in February....

InstantDocuments seeks $10 million in financing.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... InstantDocuments.com is closing on an equity infusion of about $1 million from a group of individual investors. Now it's going after the big money. Tom Clancy, president and chief executive of the Dallas concern, is preparing to raise...

Enterprise forum.
January 28, 2000... If you're interested in how real-world companies can get their businesses going in cyberspace, the MIT Enterprise Forum has got a talk in store for you. Adding a clicks component to a bricks-and-mortar company will be the subject of a...

IntellAgent Control Corp.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... IntellAgent Control Corp. was recently acquired by Kasten Consulting AG of Leverkusen, Germany. Dallas-based IntellAgent has sold its sales-force automation software to 250 companies.

Cutting Edge Software Inc.
January 28, 2000... Cutting Edge Software Inc. recently moved its headquarters from Plano to an expanded space in Dallas, The maker of spreadsheet software for handheld devices that use the PalmPilot operating system unveiled a new logo as part of a corporate...

I3S Inc.
January 28, 2000... An Irving supplier of high-speed Internet connections to apartment-building tenants, 13S Inc., recently changed its name to BroadbandNOW Inc., under which it has marketed its services.

TennisStation.com.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... TennisStation.com, which purports to be the information source for amateur tennis in the United States, was recently launched by Dallas' Internet SportStations Inc. This is one of 50 such sites that the company intends to launch by the end of...

John Bartosiewicz.
January 28, 2000... Bartosiewicz, 49, is general manager of the Fort Worth Transit Authority a regional transportation system serving Fort Worth, Richland Hills, Lake Worth and Blue Mound. * Family: My wife, Betty, and I have been married 27 years. Our...

Multifamily housing.
January 28, 2000... Dallas remains the nation's, apartment construction leader, with permits issued for 14,000 multifamily units in the October 1998-October 1999 time frame. However, concerns about the possibility of overbuilding are yielding at least a moderate...

Cash cow?(Real estate developers' approach to agriculture.)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Developers make use of agricultural rules to gain tax advantages WESTLAKE -- Longhorns roam near Fidelity Investments' corporate campus here. Not only do the steers create a prairie feel, but they also save billionaire Ross Perot Jr., the...

Companies are drawn to Deep Ellum's charm.
January 28, 2000... Developers work to make others aware of this Dallas business district DEEP ELLUM - A local developer is planning to market Deep Ellum to technology and design companies looking for a warehouse space to call home. Jeff Swaney's...

Chicago Title exec discusses impact of merger.
January 28, 2000... Changes in the industry likely will include one-stop shopping for clients DOWNTOWN DALLAS -- Tom Garner has been with Chicago Title for the last 11 years. As the regional manager of Chicago Title Insurance Co's. Southwest Commercial...

Market ended the year on a high note.
January 28, 2000... Predictions of softer market, too much inventory, missed the mark NORTH DALLAS -- When considering 1999's Dallas-Fort Worth office market performance, the overwhelming reaction of local industry members has been utter surprise and,...

New law will give REITS more opportunities.(Real estate investment trusts.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Real estate investment trusts would just as soon skip the year 2000 and get to the new millennium's official start. That's because 2001 is the year when publicly owned REITs will get more leeway to own and operate private subsidiaries....

Commercial real estate industry finally jumps on the Internet bandwagon.
January 28, 2000... After responding to a couple of e-mail inquiries, C.W. Kendall recently received a phone call from the sender, a prospective buyer based in Chicago. Kendall, owner of Dallas-based Kendall Land Corp., and the caller spoke via telephone,...

Internet listings new tool for developers.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Location has always been key to selling real estate, but now a new kind of address is becoming critical for commercial sales: the Internet. At least two major companies have started Web sites listing commercial properties across the...

Leasing agents are key to health of the industry.
January 28, 2000... Brokers act as extended sales force representing property owners It's as true today as it was 100 years ago -- leasing brokers are the critical link to the health of the commercial real estate industry. Lately, this has become more...

Snelling & Snelling hires Staubach Co.
January 28, 2000... Family-owned staffing firm Snelling & Snelling Inc. has hired Elysia Holt Ragusa and Carl Ewert of The Staubach Co. to represent the company in its real estate search. The same two brokers represented Snelling in its move from Florida...

Giant buy.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The sale of Lincoln Plaza made real estate weekly newsletter Real Estate Alert's list of largest single-property transactions in the fourth quarter. The 1.2 million-square-foot building sold for $126 million, or $105 per square foot,...

Evaluating options.
January 28, 2000... Chicago-based Anderson Consulting has hired New York-based Julien J. Studley Inc. on a national basis to assess its real estate. Larry Scheerer, director of facilities and services for Anderson's Dallas offices, said the company has no...

Retail stays strong.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... A recent study by real estate research firm M/PF Research Inc. shows that retail demand remained strong through the second half of 1999. Total retail demand increased 53% from the 1998 level. New centers erected in 1999 are already 82%...

Stream Realty Partners.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Dallas-based real estate firm Stream Realty Partners just picked up four leasing assignments:

FairPoint Communications Corp.
January 28, 2000... FairPoint Communications Corp. has signed a lease for 125,000 square feet of space in Freeport Business Center II, a Trammell Crow building leased by Tony Click. Greg Spitler of Grubb & Ellis Co. represented Fairpoint in the lease.

Wells Fargo Bank to work with LoopLender.
January 28, 2000... Wells Fargo Bank has announced plans to begin offering lending services through a leading online commercial real estate listing company. The West Coast-based bank, which last year announced plans to merge with Norwest Corp., has joined...

Feng Shui can create harmony in the workplace.
January 28, 2000... More business owners are including this Chinese art in their formula for success Generally, a good business plan includes personnel, operations, marketing and financial-management plans. But many Dallas businesses are including in their...

Retail site sells for $20M.
January 28, 2000... A 184,000-square-foot retail center in Round Rock has sold to a partnership of Dallas and New York investors for more than $20 million. New York-based Investcorp and Crow Holdings of Dallas purchased Boardwalk Shopping. Center Dec. 17....

Packaging up space.
January 28, 2000... A packaging supplier to Dell Computer Corp. has added more than 155,000 square feet of space in two separate leases and launched Austin's only corrugated sheet plant for manufacturing custom cardboard boxes. Austin Foam Plastics has...

Barshop & Oles to sell two local retail centers.
January 28, 2000... An Austin developer has listed two retail centers for sale as part of a six-property portfolio with a value of about $100 million. Barshop & Oles is seeking to sell the Austin centers along with three centers in San Antonio and one in...

Warehouse space set for 12 acres in NE.
January 28, 2000... More than 150,000 square feet of manufacturing space is coming to an Austin market hungry for bulk warehouse room. The Austin office of Kennedy-Wilson Property Services, formerly SynerMark Commercial Real Estate Services, bought about 12...

Southwest Bank expands operations.
January 28, 2000... Southwest Bank of Texas is expanding its Houston operation by year's end, moving the information-technology division to downtown's revamped Renaissance Tower. TCP Renaissance Partners, an affiliate of Dallas-based TCP Holdings, is under...

New posts announced.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Jim Peters is leaving his long-held position as managing director of Cushman & Wakefield's Houston division to take up brokerage again. And Elizabeth Trocchio, the former president and chief operating officer of Fort Worth's Woodmont Property...

Cattleman Square purchased.
January 28, 2000... Via Technology has purchased a historic building in the Cattleman Square area west of downtown San Antonio for its new company headquarters. Manuel Villa, owner of the firm, says the building at Travis and Medina streets was once the...

Kuper Realty plants its flag in Dominion.
January 28, 2000... Kuper Realty has purchased the real estate operations of Dominion Associated Realtors and has plans to expand offices and staff significantly in the next 12 months. Kuper bought the firm from INTCO, a Texas general partnership that owns...

Three-firm team seeks to double cargo space.
January 28, 2000... HOUSTON -- A three-firm team is negotiating with the Houston Airport System build and market more than a million square feet of cargo industrial space on the George Bush Intercontinental Airport tarmac. In a move that would double the...

Relationships, training fuel industry growth.
January 28, 2000... Various changes and dynamics impacted the commercial real estate industry over the past decade. The consolidation of national and international firms through mergers and acquisitions, an increasing number of firms deciding to go public and...

Bridging the finance gap for new construction.
January 28, 2000... Developers can choose from a range of finance options for a project Real estate developers face numerous decisions regarding the financial structure of any project they wish to initiate, but among the most significant is how to capitalize...

Steady times ahead for downtown district.
January 28, 2000... The state of the commercial real estate market in the Dallas central business district is, to borrow a phrase, "steady as she goes." A laundry list of positive economic factors and investments has contributed to the strength of downtown...

Single-tenant construction activity.
January 28, 2000... Single-tenant construction is expected to play a significant role in the Dallas-Fort Worth area office market this year. Ongoing construction in the Dallas area totals nearly 2.3 million square feet and two buildings totaling 356,000 square...

LARGEST METROPLEX COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS.(Directory)
January 28, 2000... LARGEST METROPLEX COMMERCIAL CONSTRUCTION PROJECTS Jerry Gunter RANKED BY CONSTRUCTION COSTS Description Construction Rank Location ...

Internet connections latest apartment perk.
January 28, 2000... One bedroom or two. Covered parking. Fireplace. A super-fast Internet connection. These days, more and more apartment complexes are adding that last item to the list of amenities they offer, and it's becoming almost an expectation among...

Dallas-based bank set to expand into San Antonio.
January 28, 2000... SAN ANTONIO - Texas Capital Banc shares caused quite a stir last year when it opened for business with an initial capitalization of $80 million, the backing of high-profile investors like B.J. "Red" McCombs and an Internet banking subsidiary....

A niche of convenience.(TNT Marketing)
January 28, 2000... TNT Marketing serves a market overlooked by bigger companies ARLINGTON -- When introducing itself to prospective clients, TNT Marketing Inc. likens itself to an ant -- small, hardworking and effective. Arlington-based TNT is a...

EDS herding cats.
January 28, 2000... As part of a new marketing program designed to raise company visibility, Piano-based EDS has launched an online game to illustrate "in a fun and creative way" the complexities that are faced when managing e-business. The game, called "The...

Coollink enters deal.
January 28, 2000... Coollink.com, a Dallas-based online e-commerce marketing and Internet service provider, has entered a co-branded marketing partnership with Wyntrac Inc., an Internet event service provider, for the meetings and conventions industry. This...

Startups recognized.
January 28, 2000... OfficeExchange.Com, an online provider of pre-owned corporate office furniture, has been named one of the nation's top 60 Internet start-up companies of 1999 by investment-research firm VentureOne. OfficeExchange.Com was invited to attend...