Business First-Columbus articles from January 1998

Business First-Columbus archives from January 1998

Voinovich bullish on Ohio's prospects for 1998. (Ohio Gov. George Voinovich)
January 2, 1998... '97 setbacks leave popular governor with work to do 1997 wasn't George Voinovich's best year. After all, Ohio's governor suffered three major political losses for the first time in memory last year. First, the Ohio Supreme Court narrowly...

St. Arnold leaves legacy of stability at 'The Mount.' (Mount Carmel Health System Pres. and CEO Dale St. Arnold)
January 2, 1998... The management team that Dale St. Arnold has assembled for Mount Carmel Health System will help the city's second largest health system weather his pending departure as president and CEO. But the greatest challenge ahead for parent Holy Cross...

Interest grows to repeal antique checking provision.
January 2, 1998... WASHINGTON - Small businesses and community bankers want Congress to repeal a Depression-era law that prohibits banks from paying interest on business checking accounts. Small business activists believe the law, which was enacted in the 1930s...

Tech startup claims niche rooting out insurer fraud. (Alta Analytics)
January 2, 1998... A Westerville technology startup is focusing on a potentially lucrative niche within the insurance industry: detecting fraud. Fraud cost insurance companies more than $85 billion in 1995, according to the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud, and...

Voca plans public offering to fund national growth plan. (Voca Corp.)
January 2, 1998... Columbus-based Voca Corp. is planning to go public within the next two years and become the largest company of its kind in the country. Voca, founded in Columbus in 1979 by Chairman Vincent Pettinelli to provide residential services to men,...

Home Depot nails down local sites. (Home Depot's plan to enter the Greater Columbus market)
January 9, 1998... Atlanta behemoth poised to enter Columbus market Home Depot, the nation's largest home improvement retailer, is ready to paint Greater Columbus in a big way. As it nears the March opening of its first store - at Cleveland Avenue and 1-270...

Business leaders hope for more ties to Ohio state; new president gets credit for Maryland efforts. (new Ohio State University Pres. William 'Brit' Kirwan)
January 9, 1998... New president gets credit for Maryland efforts Under Gordon Gee, Ohio State University's relationship with Central Ohio's business community was strengthened in an unprecedented way, leaders say. And although there's every indication that...

Fifth Third builds Central Ohio base. (Fifth Third Bancorp.)
January 9, 1998... While executives begin to digest the merger of State Savings Co. into Fifth Third Bancorp, the Cincinnati-based bank may be whetting its appetite for another meal. "Fifth Third is looking for opportunities toward merger and expansion,...

Chicago REIT buys Star building. (real estate investment trust Great Lakes' purchase of the Star Bank Center)
January 9, 1998... A Chicago-based REIT active in the Dublin office market has acquired the Star Bank Center downtown for more than $22 million. Great Lakes REIT, most recently the buyer of two MetroCenter office properties, closed the deal Jan. 7 for the...

Executive Jet Aviation taxis expansion to North Airfield.
January 9, 1998... Executive Jet Aviation has circled around Port Columbus International Airport again, with plans to land its $15 million expansion project back at the North Airfield. The corporate jet marketing and operations company, a division of New...

Sales drop at Penn Traffic, chain replaces ad executive. (Penn Traffic Co.)
January 9, 1998... Penn Traffic Co., owner of Big Bear Stores, has replaced its Columbus-based advertising director as it searches for new ways to lure customers back to its supermarkets. The Syracuse-based company reported Jan. 5 a disappointing sales decline...

Defense contract stir could give moving firms flat tire. (Defense Dept's new procurement policy)
January 9, 1998... WASHINGTON - Nilson Van & Storage Co. had long been a favored vendor for the Department of Defense. The small South Carolina moving company had a multimillion-dollar contract to ship personal belongings of military personnel and civilians...

Juniper, Schmidt partner in new collision venture. (Schmidt Collision Center partners Bob Juniper and Dan Schmidt)
January 9, 1998... Bob Juniper is partnering with a longtime Columbus auto dealer to reach another niche in the collision repair business. Juniper, president of Three C Body Shop Inc., and Dan Schmidt, president of Infiniti of Columbus Inc., are partners in...

Owners of Barley's plan brewpub for Dublin Road. (Brewpub Restaurant Corp.'s plan to open Grandview Heights brewpub)
January 9, 1998... The owners of Barley's Brewing Co. Ale House No. 1 plan to open a Grandview Heights brewpub, their second. Brewpub Restaurant Corp. has started internal demolition on parts of the former B.G. Salvi's on Dublin Road just west of Grandview...

Despite struggles, Ciao chain plans to greet Columbus in '99. (Ciao Cucina Corp.'s plans of opening an upscale Mediterranean-style eatery in Columbus, Ohio)
January 9, 1998... Faced with ongoing financial problems, Cincinnati-based Ciao Cucina Corp. abandoning plans to grow to a 30-restaurant chain by 2000. A major Ciao investor, however, said the company still has plans to open an upscale Mediterranean-style eatery...

Team America acquires firm, sees more growth in horizon. (Team America Corp.'s acquisition of Staff-Link Inc.)
January 9, 1998... Worthington-based Team America Corp., a publicly trade professional employer organization, is acquiring a Tennessee-based company. Staff-Link Inc., a PEO employing 800 worksite employees, becomes the fifth company acquired by or merged into...

Local market unaffected by court's telecom ruling. (local telephone services)
January 9, 1998... In hopes of avoiding further delays in competition, the federal government and AT&T have immediately appealed a Texas judge's decision that guts the 1996 Telecommunications Act. U.S. District Court Kendall in Wichita Falls struck down part of...

House of frozen food: Kahiki sees cold cash in selling microwave entrees. (Kahiki Foods Inc.)(Small Business Strategies)
January 9, 1998... Kahiki sees cold cash in selling microwave entrees While continued growth of sales and profits drives American companies, deciding the avenue to growth is not always obvious. Kahiki Foods Inc., operators of the landmark Kahiki Restaurant on...

Insurance agent license law stalls over education issue.
January 9, 1998... Controversy over continuing education for insurance agents has stalled streamlining the state's insurance agent licensing process. Senate Bill 154 calls for - among other things - a reduction in continuing education requirements for insurance...

Donatos ready to take slice of Atlanta. (Donatos Pizza Inc. forms partnership in Atlanta, Georgia)
January 16, 1998... Donatos Pizza by the slice Donatos Pizza founder Jim Grote opened his first pizzeria in 1963. The chain began marketing franchises in 1991 as a vehicle to grow outside Greater Columbus. Its markets now include Cincinnati, Cleveland,...

Bill mandating diabetic coverage gains momentum.
January 16, 1998... A year-old bill that would mandate health insurance coverage for Ohio's 600,000 diabetics is moving forward despite an intense effort by business groups to kill it. On Jan. 7, the Ohio Senate's Health Committee approved 5-1 Senate Bill 12,...

Pizzuti secures $86 million in financing with Cigna.
January 16, 1998... Pizzuti Inc. has secured $86 million in permanent financing from a major life insurance company as it prepares to seek equity partners for future development deals. Late last month, the Columbus-based developer exchanged its variable rate...

Texas real estate firm buys four area Hudson retail sites. (PNL Blackacre LP's acquisition of properties from Hudson Advisors L.L.C.)
January 16, 1998... A Fort Worth-based real estate investment company has opened an Ohio portfolio with the purchase of four Columbus retail properties. PNL Blackacre LP, the acquisition affiliate of PNL Cos., bought the properties from Dallas-based Hudson...

United HealthCare lands city's $23M health account. (United HealthCare of Ohio; Columbus, Ohio)
January 16, 1998... United HealthCare of Ohio is on quite a roll as it enters 1998. The Columbus-based health insurer has secured four new contracts collectively coveting a potential 30,000 lives. Key among those is the city of Columbus, which is switching its...

Ohio gives credit for high-tech investment. (added incentive for investment s in small technology companies)
January 16, 1998... Ohio is providing an added incentive for people to invest in small technology companies here. The Ohio Department of Development (ODOD) is providing tax credits to Ohio individuals who invest in technology-oriented businesses that are engaged...

Downtown boom puts more buildings on sales block. (Columbus, Ohio)
January 16, 1998... The skyline may not include a tall buildings like New York or Chicago, but the fact is downtown Columbus has some pretty hot office real estate. And it's a trend that will probably continue for some time, according to John Hall, vice president...

2 major builders add to Tuttle Crossing office space. (Dublin, Ohio)
January 16, 1998... In 1998, two spec office projects will offer new spaces for prospective tenants in the Dublin market. Pizzuti's four-building project, 22-acre Metro Center, will include One Metro Place, which is already under construction, and Metro South,...

Regulators closing in on decision on PIE; hospitals fear fallout if state liquidates insurer. (PIE Mutual Insurance Co.)
January 30, 1998... Hospitals fear fallout if state liquidates insurer Regulators are trying to determine whether PIE Mutual Insurance Co., the state's largest medical malpractice insurer, will be liquidated. Hospital attorneys, insurance executives and risk...

Aetna single-panel approach raises ire of some docs. (Aetna U.S. Healthcare)
January 30, 1998... Miffed by a "take it or leave it" approach, a substantial but undefined number of Central Ohio physicians are leaving Aetna U.S. Healthcare's local provider networks. "About 50 of our physicians already plan to drop out of Aetna's network,"...

Small, large movers at odds over dereg.
January 30, 1998... Proposal would end restrictions on territories For the first time, most commercial movers are supporting a Statehouse move to dismantle the decades-old way Ohio regulates their industry. But some small movers who want to protect their...

Division head buys Yenkin Majestic retail operations. (Robert A. Shapiro of New Dean & Barry Ltd.; Yenkin Majestic Paint Corp.)
January 30, 1998... Columbus-based Yenkin Majestic Paint Corp., operator of several familiar retail stores including Dean & Barry Paint Town and Majestic Paint Centers, has sold its retail division to a group of investors headed by the division's former president....

Cost of living lifts region in tech-job salary survey.
January 30, 1998... Whether you're a mainframe programmer in Manhattan or a webmaster in San Francisco, you can take home a $10,000 to $20,000 raise by moving to Columbus. According to a new information technology salary survey, life in the Midwest is more cost...

Cup o' Joe & mo'. (coffee shop)(Small Business Strategies)(Company Profile)
January 30, 1998... Looking at the big and little pictures has kept Cup o' Joe steaming hot in the local coffee house business. Owners Todd and Michelle Appelbaum say they have strived to create an image for their four-year-old business, one that resonates with a...