Baltimore Business Journal articles from April 1995

Baltimore Business Journal archives from April 1995

Ready to play ball, fans return in droves. (Major League Baseball; BaltimoreOriole fans)
April 7, 1995... "Fan Out America" President Ed Bunker didn't have much company as he strolled near the ticket windows of Oriole Park Monday afternoon. As fans wrapped around the corner and down Camden Street to buy tickets, Bunker waited by himself for a...

Local businesses suit up to reclaim baseball bucks. (Baltimore, Maryland)
April 7, 1995... When Major League Baseball closed up shop last summer, it took $37.1 million in baseball-generated money away from Baltimore's hospitality industry. Of the $75 million that state officials estimate was lost as a result of the cancellation of...

Change stirs HMO fury against bill. (health maintenance organizations)
April 7, 1995... Maryland's doctors are close to winning a two-year legislative fight to gain easier entry into managed health care company's provider networks. The state Senate passed a "patient access" bill late Tuesday that is similar to a House bill...

Retailer targets state for massive warehouse. (Target Stores; Maryland)
April 7, 1995... A growing Minnesota retailer looking to build a massive distribution center on the East Coast has its eyes on Washington County. Officials at Target Stores, the nation's third largest discount retailer, said the company will build a 1.4...

City magazine may move out. (Baltimore magazine)
April 7, 1995... Geppi promises Schmoke he'll talk with city officials before moving 'Baltimore' Baltimore magazine's search for new digs could take it to the suburbs - a move that city officials hope to head off. Stephen A. Geppi, new owner of the magazine,...

Weinberg and Green to fight overbilling charges.
April 7, 1995... A top Baltimore law firm charged with intentionally overbilling and defrauding a former client will finally go to court Monday to defend its reputation. Weinberg and Green, the defendant in a $34 million malpractice suit, will face off in...

Auto insurers may have to disclose marketing plans.
April 7, 1995... State lawmakers are likely to pass revised legislation requiring car insurers to file their marketing plans for Baltimore with the state insurance administration. The Senate was expected to vote by the end of the week on a bill that would...

Md. tries to get out in front on banking law. (Maryland)
April 7, 1995... Maryland is likely to become one of the first states to eliminate barriers to interstate branches when the General Assembly ends its 1995 season next week. It's been a nearly uneventful ride for legislation that would allow out-of-state banks...

Local United Way revamps, tries to play to its strengths.
April 7, 1995... In a comeback year for United Way chapters nationwide, the Central Maryland organization has collected $30.8 million in contributions, its first increase in two years. Though small, that 2 percent increase marks the beginning of a turnaround,...

Local employees head back to school: community colleges customize classes for companies.(Special Report: Office Technology)
April 7, 1995... As companies try to advance their employees' technological abilities, community colleges are offering customized classes to fill the demand at relatively inexpensive prices. Nearly all of the community colleges in the Baltimore area, as well...

Benefits survey shows support for working parents in region. (Washington Baltimore area)
April 7, 1995... Washington and Baltimore are cities of working parents, and it shows in the results of a new benefits survey by Hewitt Associates. Sixty-five percent of private employers in the Washington/Baltimore area offered child-care referral services...

McCormick & Co. Inc. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 7, 1995... Corporate Profile McCormick and Co, made several significant moves in the last year to strengthen its position as the world's leading spice manufacturer. In October, the Sparks-based company announced a comprehensive restructuring program to...

Phone firms demand access; telecommunications providers claim landlords block competition with Bells. (Bell companies)
April 14, 1995... Fierce competition over access to tenants has created an unlikely battle between building owners and telecommunications companies. As more and more states permit telecommunications firms to compete with the Bell companies for local access,...

How to use mediation to solve most disputes.(Small Business Advisor)(Column)
April 14, 1995... In an earlier article, alternative dispute resolution was presented as an emerging response to the growing dissatisfaction with litigation as expressed by corporations, attorneys and the court systems. Over the past decade, mediation has evolved...

Don't wait too late to close the barn door. (protection of corporate assets)(Security Issues, part 1)(Column)
April 14, 1995... Part one of six parts You have worked hard to make your business a success. Countless hours, weeks and months have gone into developing a method of marketing that can identify prospects, a method of selling that produces clients, a method of...

Establish ownership before computer software is created.(Copyright Issues)(Column)
April 14, 1995... At no time is ownership of software programs more crucial than when you are about to sell your software development company. The buyer's due diligence efforts will home-in on the question of ownership like a missile up a red-hot exhaust pipe....

Getting down to business: Mary Pat Clarke works to win trust, money from business. (Baltimore, Maryland mayoral candidate and City Council president)(includes related article)(The Next Mayor)
April 21, 1995... City Council President Mary Pat Clarke looks at the block of empty industrial buildings clustered in the midtown Howard Avenue corridor and sees seven years of failed business leadership under Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke's administration. Three...

Kurt Schmoke holds strong hand in funds, supporters. (Baltimore, Maryland mayor)(includes related article)(Getting Down to Business)(The Next Mayor)
April 21, 1995... Pick up a copy of Business Week early in September and you'll find Mayor Kurt L. Schmoke's latest campaign to attract employers to Baltimore. The national magazine will feature a marketing supplement pitching the city as the "Mid-Atlantic's...

Self-employed get crack at health insurance. (Maryland's small business insurance reform)(General Assembly 1995)
April 21, 1995... Self-employed business people, who often have trouble finding health insurers willing to sell them policies at a price they can afford, would be included in Maryland's small business insurance reform package under a bill passed by the state...

Collecting trash, and big bucks: 23-year-old's disposal company off to a solid start. (Matt Brigance; Liberty Disposal Inc.)(Special Report: Small Business Week)
April 21, 1995... What a deal Matt Brigance offered his parents. Instead of paying for college, he asked them to lend him that money to start his own business. Commercial waste collection might not have been what the Brigance family was envisioning for their...

HarborView owners late paying property taxes. (condominium complex; HarborView L.P.)
April 21, 1995... Complex's officials blame assessment confusion Owners of Baltimore's most visible condominium complex will be among the thousands of Baltimore city homeowners trooping in to pay their overdue tax bills before the properties go to public auction...

Search starts to replace Chappell. (Baltimore Area Convention and Visitors Association Executive Director Wayne Chappell)
April 21, 1995... Tourism expert Kansas City-bound Baltimore is searching for a new convention and tourism guru to replace Wayne Chappell, who resigned Wednesday. The national search is expected to begin shortly, led by a committee appointed by Henry A....

New Orleans-style eatery expanding to Baltimore. (Copeland's of New Orleans; Baltimore, Maryland)
April 21, 1995... A New Orleans-style restaurant chain has targeted metropolitan Baltimore as part of a year-long expansion effort. Copeland's of New Orleans plans to open as many as five restaurants in the combined Baltimore and Washington markets. The...

Credit unions protest Cap Corp. move. (planned sale of Capital Federal Credit Union to Mid-Atlantic Corporate Federal Credit Union)
April 21, 1995... About 130 Maryland, Washington, D.C., and Delaware credit unions are protesting a decision that will cost them $28 million they deposited in a failed Lanham institution. Credit union regulators seized the assets of Capital Federal Credit Union...

Cable official spreads word about local small business. (Gary Massaglia of Jones Intercable Inc.)(Special Report: Small Business Week)
April 21, 1995... Gary Massaglia wants to get the word out about businesses in Anne Arundel County, and his position as general manager of Jones Intercable lets him do just that. Massaglia's commitment to the business community has not gone unnoticed; as a...

Mercantile bucks tide with strong earnings. (Mercantile Bankshares Corp.)
April 21, 1995... When Mercantile Bankshares Corp. meets with shareholders Wednesday, analysts say they don't expect any surprises. The $5.9 billion Baltimore-based bank company marked a solid year of earnings last year despite the industry's shrinking margins...

The state of the city: much-anticipated rebirth hasn't materialized. (Baltimore, Maryland)(includes related article)(The Next Mayor)
April 21, 1995... In 1987, Kurt L. Schmoke, the promising, young state's attorney for Baltimore, won the post of mayor for the first time while his current political rival for the next four-year term, Mary Pat Clarke, ascended to the presidency of the City...

Giving minority firms a fair shot: under Williams' direction, BGE increases contracts to businesses. (Harold Williams; Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.)(Special Report: Minority Business)
April 21, 1995... Harold Williams and the Republican majority in the House of Representatives have something basic in common. Williams and the GOP would like to see affirmative action programs dismantled. But if you are in favor of preference programs, don't...

A cut above: Barber Lenny Clay works to empower neighborhood youth.(Special Report: Minority Business)
April 21, 1995... The days when Lenny Clay looked forward to cutting hair each morning have long since passed. Clay, the owner of a west Baltimore barbershop since 1974, does have a steady stream of loyal customers who have kept him busy as he has watched their...

Crown Central Petroleum Corp. (Proxy Report Excerpts)(Company Profile)
April 21, 1995... FYI Crown Central Petroleum Corp. had a net loss of $35.4 million in 1994 compared to a net loss of $4.3 million in 1993 and $5.5 million in 1992. The Baltimore-based refiner and marketer of petroleum reported a net loss of $10.2 million for...

The changing Downtown: officials working on a variety of projects to keep Towson's small-town ambiance. (Towson, Maryland)(Towson Report)
April 21, 1995... As Towson continues to grow, keeping that small-town ambiance is a priority for officials. Plans are in the works to take care of businesses, customers, employees, drivers and pedestrians. Forefront among proposals to spruce up Towson's...

New employers spice up Towson economy. (Towson, Maryland)(Towson Report)
April 21, 1995... Towson is more than just the hub of the Baltimore County government. It's also a thriving business community that continues to attract businesses from near and far. Three of the newest larger companies to make Towson their corporate home,...

Home buyers holding back; but market's broad appeal keeps people coming to Towson. (Towson, Maryland)(Towson Report)
April 21, 1995... Slow but hopeful might be the best way to describe sales in the Towson residential real estate market, although agents are looking for a more active spring. "The market has been about average with the rest of Baltimore County, and usually...

Buyers try for health deal: employers, unions join forces for price leverage. (Mid Atlantic Health Care Purchasing Coalition)
April 28, 1995... A group of Maryland employers, union workers and retirees hopes to save hundreds of thousands of dollars in health care costs by uniting for better leverage in negotiating employee benefits with insurers. They're forming the Mid Atlantic Health...

Study: save millions by cutting beds, docs. (health care costs)(includes related article)
April 28, 1995... Eliminating as many as one-third of the hospital beds in the Baltimore area and one-third of the physicians could save at least $500 million in health care costs, according to a new study by a professor at the Johns Hopkins University School of...

Sparks shareholders sue to stop sale to Mercantile. (Sparks State Bank; Mercantile Bankshares Corp.)
April 28, 1995... A group of shareholders who say Sparks State Bank could fetch a higher price has filed suit to prevent the sale of the tiny Baltimore County bank to Mercantile Bankshares Corp. Three shareholders at the 78-year-old bank filed a lawsuit in...

Electrical union seeks to organize workers at BGE. (International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers; Baltimore Gas and Electric Co.)
April 28, 1995... A union that represents more than 225,000 utility workers nationwide is trying to organize the workforce at Baltimore Gas and Electric Co. The International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers has set up a local office, "United BGE Workers," as...

Crestar tops list of possible Loyola suitors. (Crestar Financial Corp.; Loyola Capital Corp.)
April 28, 1995... Analysts debate merits of potential buyers Crestar Financial Corp. is emerging as the frontrunner in speculation over who is negotiating to buy Loyola Capital Corp., one of only three remaining large Baltimore-based banks. But at least one...

Children's looks to new generation: hospital to open center for elderly in '97. (Children's Hospital)
April 28, 1995... Faced with a fast-changing marketplace and a bigger share of empty beds, the "New" Children's Hospital - which began as a home for children with polio and other chronic diseases - now plans to change direction again and serve a different...

New leaders say Bank of Glen Burnie to slow growth.
April 28, 1995... A $12 million racial discrimination lawsuit that triggered an overthrow of the Bank of Glen Burnie's managers and longtime board members is in settlement negotiations. The northern Anne Arundel County bank's new leaders say its resolution will...

Casey considers revamping firm. (President J. Joseph Casey of Casey & Associates/ONCOR Inc.)
April 28, 1995... In a move that court change the structure of Baltimore's second-largest commercial real estate firm, Casey & Associates/ONCOR international is considering a plan to allow top-producing agents to own part of the company. "We recognize that the...

As competition gets fiercer, store faces a struggle. (An Die Musik)
April 28, 1995... Five years ago, An Die Musik opened in Towson with some innovative marketing tools. It brought in musicians to perform or appear in the Investment Place store. And it is credited with setting up the first listening booths in the Baltimore...

Private companies boost port profile. (Port of Baltimore)
April 28, 1995... Rukert Terminal Corp. has expanded its bulk cargo operations in Canton, taking over a vacant warehouse at the old Exxon Corp. oil refinery site. The $1.1 million deal marks the latest sign of growth by stevedoring companies working private...

City-owned business park sees new burst of activity. (Seton Business Park)
April 28, 1995... Seton Business Park is back. After a string of lean years, the city-owned business park off Northern Parkway has suddenly emerged as Baltimore's hottest place to do business. How hot? * Virginia-based Cel-Sci Corp. set up shop at Seton in...