Business First-Columbus articles from April 1999

Business First-Columbus archives from April 1999

Hotels brace for onslaught.(addition of more rooms leads to decline in occupancy rates in Columbus, Ohio's hotels)
April 2, 1999... Dean Raymond looks at the hotel market at Hilliard-Rome Road and I-70 and he'll tell you he is not too worried about the future, even though at least 200 guest rooms will be added this year to the 400 rooms available in that area. The...

Opening foreign markets offers possibilities for AEP.(American Electric Power Company Inc.)
April 2, 1999... The U.S. utility industry is in a state of flux, with deregulation and mergers galore. Last week Denver-based New Century Energies Inc. and Northern States Power Co. of Minneapolis agreed to a $4.9 billion merger. The alliance will create...

A steady Lancaster Colony lauded by market-watchers.(ranked as having one of the stable-growth stocks by Bloomberg Personal Finance magazine)
April 2, 1999... Technology stocks may be the darlings of Wall Street these days, but the shares of a Central Ohio nontech company are turning some heads. In April, Lancaster Colony Corp.'s shares made Bloomberg Personal Finance magazine's list of...

Glass ceiling still hovers in banking, women execs say.(analysis of women's position in Columbus, Ohio's banking industry)
April 2, 1999... The glass ceiling for women in banking remains - but is weakening, according to an industry panel. "Almost certainly there is (a glass ceiling) in a lot of companies still," said Judith Dunn Fisher, who broke through April 1 when she was...

Banks gearing up to quiet worry over Y2K bug's bite.(includes related article on tips from the American Bankers Association on how to communicate the Y2K problem to customers)(Year 2000 computer problem)
April 2, 1999... First National Bank of McConnelsville is so confident it'll be ready for 2000, it's extending an unusual invitation: On Dec. 31 customers can watch executives turn on the bank's computers at midnight - and they can even use the ATM. The...

Saturn auto showroom ring forming around Columbus.(Northern Enterprises Inc.'s new Saturn/Southeast franchise in Columbus, Ohio)
April 2, 1999... Franchise's newest operation in southeast will serve as dealership's vehicle depot Central Ohio's third Saturn automobile dealership - and its largest - expects to be hosting new- and used-car sales by mid-April in a 45,000-square-foot...

Health plans likely to dodge malpractice liability bullet.(Ohio)
April 2, 1999... Making health-care plans in Ohio liable in instances of malpractice likely will be erased from proposed legislation, only to be replaced with an external review to protect patients. For the past two years, the Ohio State Medical Association...

Alter mulls Dublin project.(Alter Group plans to create a major office park along Route 33 corridor in Dublin, Ohio)
April 9, 1999... Observers speculate Chicago developer courting Qwest A Chicago-based developer has plans to create a major office park along the Route 33 corridor just west of Avery-Muirfield Drive in an already booming Dublin. Alter Group has filed a...

Dispatch affiliate pays $8.8M for 3rd St. tract.(Capitol Square Ltd.)
April 9, 1999... A Dispatch Printing Co. affiliate has paid nearly $8.8 million for a less-than-one-acre parcel along South Third Street downtown. Commercial real estate brokers Robert Garek and Don Feibel had controlled the 0.7-acre property for nearly 30...

A big deal for Bigmar Inc.(FDA approval paves the way for plant in Johnstown, Ohio)
April 9, 1999... FDA approval for some of its therapies paves the way for plant in Johnstown John Tramontana wasn't sleeping well at night. And since he took the generic oncology drug maker Bigmar Inc. public in 1996, he hasn't taken a vacation. ...

Abrasive Tech's CEO still hungry for acquisitions.(Abrasive Technology CEO Loyal M. Peterman)
April 9, 1999... Last month Abrasive Technology acquired its 11th company in 13 years, and with plans to buy more this year, there's no hint of a slow-up. The privately held Westerville-based maker of superabrasive grinding wheels and tools competes with...

Report: Ohio tops U.S. average in pirated software.
April 9, 1999... Software piracy may not conjure up images of high crime, but Microsoft Corp. says that, for Ohio, it's anything but a misdemeanor. In a report, the software developer's Cleveland office claims Ohio lost more than 6,100 jobs and $440...

PeopleServe buyer not shy about making acquisitions.(ResCare Inc.)
April 9, 1999... The company that plans to acquire Dublin-based PeopleServe Inc. makes acquisitions at such a rapid pace that it might appear it is running out of targets. But that's not so, said Ronald G. Geary, president, chairman and chief executive...

If you can't stand the heat....(Ruth's Chris Steak House)(Company Profile)
April 9, 1999... Owning a restaurant is many a would-be entrepreneur's dream. But the odds are stacked against those whose venture is into the kitchen Working in New Orleans in 1965 as a 38-year-old divorced mother, Ruth Fertel realized she couldn't put her...

Columbus' pace of job growth declines.
April 16, 1999... Is the Columbus area's jobs-growth party over? After leading Ohio's major metropolitan areas in the rate of employment growth and number of jobs created for most of the decade, a Business First study shows metro Columbus' reputation as the...

This is no flight fancy: Ricart, the auto merchant, thinks it can make a go of selling airplanes as part of its retail transport empire.(Ricart Aviation Inc.)
April 16, 1999... Fred and Rhett Ricart, the car-selling brothers who made the ad hype "We're dealin' "synonymous with their auto showrooms, are dealing in a more glamorous mode of transit - reconditioned airplanes. The Ricarts formed a company last October...

Hospital for obese proposed in Dublin.(Forest Health Services Corp. plans to build hospital in Ohio)
April 16, 1999... Michigan firm tells city it's considering 23-bed surgery center off Avery Road The company that operates a surgical treatment center for obesity at Columbus Community Hospital is considering building a hospital in Dublin where it would...

Alban Equipment is sold to national rental retailer.(United Rentals North America Inc.)
April 16, 1999... Competitive pressure has forced Central Ohio's oldest equipment rental company to sell to a fast-growing national firm. Alban Equipment Co. completed its sale March 31 to United Rentals North America Inc., based in Greenwich, Conn., for an...

New offices leave AirTouch with plenty of room to grow.(AirTouch Cellular)
April 16, 1999... AirTouch Cellular is taking over all 120,000 square feet of offices that adjoin its Eastern region headquarters in Dublin. And with just 125 employees occupying the national technical center to date, there's plenty of space for AirTouch to...

with key exec in fold, Park starts consumer loan arm.(Earl W. Osborne to head Park National Bank's Guardian Finance Co.)
April 16, 1999... Park National Bank has formed a consumer finance division to cater to customers with imperfect credit. Guardian Finance Co. will open May 1 at the Silver Horn Shopping Center in Hilliard. It will extend direct lending to consumers,...

Dairy Mart banks on no-fee ATMS to help power sales.(Dairy Mart Convenience Stores Inc. installs automated teller machines at its stores)
April 16, 1999... Now you can get something for nothing. In a shift away from rising surcharges at most automated-teller machines, Dairy Mart Convenience Stores Inc. has installed no-fee ATMs at its 50 Central Ohio stores. The fee-free ATMs replace the...

First Service ready to mine expanded field of members.(First Service Federal Credit Union to open branch in Franklin County, Ohio)
April 16, 1999... First Service Federal Credit Union will open a downtown branch to serve its new field of membership encompassing everyone in Franklin County. The site, next to Rhodes Tower, once housed a Star Bank branch office that was vacated last June...

Technow: Superconductive Components maintains the future is NOW.
April 16, 1999... A Central Ohio company's anti-gravity experiments Carry a lot of weight with the National Aeronautic and Space Administration. Columbus-based Superconductive Components Inc. (SCI; www.superconductivecomp.com) manufactures ceramic...

Snap.com pioneers super-portal mix of sound, video, text.(Internet access provider)
April 16, 1999... Snap.com, the venture backed by NBC and CNet Inc., has unveiled the first Web portal tailored to computer users with ultra-fast connections to the Internet. With hundreds of thousands of homes signing up for high-speed Internet access...

Red ink rises at health plans; employers can count on premium increase as 11 programs post losses in 1998.
April 23, 1999... Managed-care companies that offer health plans in Central Ohio struggled financially last year after a bad 1997. Eleven of 17 managed-care companies with major subscriber enrollments in Central Ohio lost money last year, compared with eight...

Business is taking a swing at Supremes; ruling raises stakes in election of Douglas' successor.(Ohio Supreme Court; Justice Andrew Douglas)
April 23, 1999... When it comes to reforming a key aspect of Ohio's tort law, long-time Statehouse business supporters are saying enough already to the decades-long legislative effort. For them, it's time for Plan B: Focus on election of justices to the...

Prolifics buys Wasserstrom office furniture operations.
April 23, 1999... Wasserstrom Co., in business since 1902, has sold its office furniture division to a much younger and smaller company. Prolifics, an office furniture supplier started three years ago on Sawmill Road, acquired the division April 9 and will...

Delta, Southwest help knock America West from top spot.
April 23, 1999... [TABULAR DATA OMITTED] Delta Air Lines dethroned America West Airlines as top carrier at Port Columbus International Airport in the first quarter of this year as commercial careers adjusted regional strategies. Airport authority...

New kid on the block.(Health Care Report)(health systems in Columbus, OH)
April 23, 1999... Columbus-based health systems are expanding into outlying counties, where smaller hospitals have long been the only game in town When Fairfield County physicians wanted to partner with a hospital system to build an outpatient surgery center...

Increased demand fuels growth of Ohio's assisted-living industry.(Health Care Report)
April 23, 1999... Concept appears far from growing old with seniors With assisted-living facilities popping up all over town, you might get the idea that the market's become saturated. Think again. The new facilities locally are simply a reflection...

Judge's ruling could put Seneca in play.(Seneca Hotel)
April 23, 1999... Ownership of the Seneca Hotel downtown could be up for grabs to real estate developers and investors in late May as the result of an April 16 ruling by a Franklin County Common Pleas Court judge. Judge Michael Watson's ruling stems from...

Eyewear retailer sees 'Net as only place to do business.(Health Care Report)(Sunshineoptical.com; Internet)
April 23, 1999... Gordon Gerard is the founder of a three-month-old online eyewear business and battles online and traditional retailers everyday. What separates his Dublin company, Sunshineoptical.com, from other sites is that users can browse among 40,000...

Dairy Mart runs with pack.(Dairy Mart Convenience Stores Inc.)
April 30, 1999... The obvious isn't lost on executives at Dairy Mart Convenience Stores Inc., who figure time-pressed consumers will shop anywhere it's easiest. So in the next 60 days, the Hudson-based company's newest store in Columbus will be outfitted...

What's next for NetMed?
April 30, 1999... NetMed Inc.'s balance sheet is blotched with red ink, its stock price has plummeted and the licenser of its Pap smear screening system is in default on its payments to the Dublin company. That's not all. NetMed is down to three employees,...

Group bears up under freight of the world.(Rail Van Global Logistics)
April 30, 1999... Making connections makes Rail Van millions in sales Their company owns no railroads, trucks or ocean liners. But each day, the 470 workers at Rail Van Global Logistics shepherd the worldwide movement of 3,800 loads of freight a day. ...

Signs will let Jackets' major sponsors dominate arena.(Columbus Blue Jackets)
April 30, 1999... The Columbus Blue Jackets are close to signing a big-league sports sign company to saturate the inside of Nationwide Arena with images of the NHL team's eight major sponsors - one at a slowly revolving time. The multiyear, six-figure deal...

CheckFree's Dublin center adding jobs from division.
April 30, 1999... CheckFree Corp. has created a division that promises to add jobs to the company's burgeoning staff in Dublin. Set to be launched in May, the EC Solutions division would operate independently of CheckFree's other businesses. It would be...

2 Worthington computer resellers hit by Microsoft with piracy suits.
April 30, 1999... Continuing its aggressive campaign to thwart software piracy, Microsoft Corp. has sued 10 Ohio computer resellers, including two Central Ohio businesses. In the lawsuits, Microsoft alleged Data Transfer and Explorer Micro Inc. of...

Trucking firm chief is sued over retirement plan funding.(TennOhio Transportation Co.'s owner John Armstrong)
April 30, 1999... The U.S. Department of Labor is suing the owner of Columbus-based TennOhio Transportation Co., alleging he failed to deposit employees' 401(k) contributions into the trucking company's retirement plan investment accounts. The lawsuit was...

Medicare HMOs see trouble in Ohio if more cuts made.(health maintenance organizations)
April 30, 1999... HCFA proposal to adjust payments concerns health plan administrators Medicare HMOs in Ohio may cut back benefits or pull out of more counties if the federal government moves ahead with plans to cut more money out of the system starting in...

Simple message helps direct gift-basket dealer's busy life.(gift store Baskets By Bonnie)
April 30, 1999... Describing her six-year old business. Baskets By Bonnie, Bonnie Segel keeps it succinct: "We send messages. We do it through 'baskets on demand, where we make each basket to order Our two main products are time and creativity. Our business...

What's in a brand name? Hotel customers say less and less.(hotel marketing)
April 30, 1999... Hotel marketing just got toughen A new report shows a significant decline in two key measures used to track loyalty trends among business travelers. According to the YP&B/Yankelovich Partners National Business Travel Monitor, only seven...