The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun articles from August 1996

The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun archives from August 1996

Broker taps $19M deal. (Tim Bray of Southwest Community Services)
August 30, 1996... Middleman Bray rakes in a cool $1.4 million off Scottsdale water Depending on how you look at it, Tim Bray of Scottsdale's Southwest Community Resources is either a world-class entrepreneur or a slickster who's cashing in on public ignorance...

Bayless calls for halt on medical bid. (Maricopa County, AZ, Supervisor Betsy Bayless)
August 30, 1996... Maricopa County Supervisor Betsey Bayless wants to halt negotiations on a $300 million contract to run the county's health system, saying the contractor is shifting too much work to the county. "The time has come to cease negotiations with...

Two lose in lottery shake-up. (restructuring of Arizona Lottery)
August 30, 1996... Two high level directors at the Arizona Lottery are leaving - one fired and one resigning - their moves part of a top-level restructuring leaders hope will beef up stale sales. Sam Wakasugi, who has served as director of marketing for more...

New Valley beer maker brewing. (Star Brewing Inc.'s move into Phoenix, AZ-area and change of name into Phoenix Ale and Lagering Co.)
August 30, 1996... Star Brewing Inc. is squeezing out its last barrel of beer in hometown Portland, and company owners have decided to reinvent themselves in a $3 million facility in the Valley's burgeoning brewery market. If things go as planned for Wayne...

Court reporters cringe: fear Future Technology/Microsoft team will eliminate jobs. (Future Technology Resources Ltd. and Microsoft Corp.'s plan to bring audio and video recording devices into courtroom)
August 23, 1996... Future Technology Resources Ltd. in Phoenix has teamed with giant Microsoft Corp. to bring high-tech audio and video recording devices into the courtroom; and will make courtroom drama accessible over the Internet. Changing the $5.2 billion...

County faces SEC sanction over bonds. (Maricopa County, Arizona)
August 23, 1996... Maricopa County faces a possible sanction from federal securities regulators for its role in failing to disclose the county's troubled financial picture when it went into the market for two 1993 bond elections. County officials have been...

Circle K shops four city sites for new HQ.
August 23, 1996... With a new owner, and a new president and CEO on board, The Circle K Co. is ready to consolidate and streamline its operations into one Valley facility. Sources say Circle K has pinpointed four possible locations and put together a short...

Court investigates land deals tied to Megafoods founders. (Megafoods Stores Inc.; Dean Miller and Jack Walker)
August 23, 1996... Dean Miller and Jack Walker, founders of Megafoods Stores Inc. - now reorganizing in U.S. Bankruptcy Court - are being investigated for land deals that may have lined their pockets while shortchanging Megafoods. The allegations are outlined...

High-tech leaders seek state money.
August 23, 1996... Leaders in Arizona's burgeoning technology sector hope to boost grassroots innovation under a plan that would expand the state's role in high-tech enterprise. Industry proponents will unveil a comprehensive technology proposal next month...

Thomas-Tvert bags Bashas' ad campaign. (Thomas-Tvert Inc.'s contract with Bashas' Markets Inc.)
August 16, 1996... It appears Valley ad firm Thomas-Tvert Inc., which has been creating highly visible, quirky ad campaigns for retail giant Circle K for four years, has emerged the winner of another high-profile retail campaign - Bashas' Markets Inc. Steven...

McCarthy, Kansas City firm team on air-pollutant removal system. (McCarthy's joint venture with Black & Veatch)
August 16, 1996... Phoenix-based McCarthy has formed a joint venture with Kansas City-based engineering design firm Black & Veatch to remove pollutants from air discharged by manufacturing facilities. Together, the companies will chase construction projects for...

Couple strikes geyser of water sales. (Geyser Products LLP)
August 16, 1996... Most small businesses are worded about how to get customers through the door and keep the cash flow moving. Debbie and Michael Vance, the husband and wife owners of Mesa-based Geyser Products LLP, can remember a time when they worried about...

Headhunter looks for a good fit. (Witt/Kieffer, Ford, Hadelman, Lloyd senior VP and board member Michael Meyer)
August 16, 1996... He doesn't just go in for the kill, deliver a candidate's head to his client and walk away. Michael Meyer, a headhunter for the nation's largest national executive search firm specializing in health care, shatters the stereotype of a typical...

Aetna CEO scores, doctors sour. (US Healthcare Inc.'s Leonard Abramson's $1 billion compensation package for merger with Aetna Life and Casualty Co. even as Aetna slashes reimbursements for doctors)
August 9, 1996... Abramson walks away with $1 billion while doctors' reimbursement fees slashed In the sea of mergers of mega managed-care companies, top executives are walking away with hundreds of millions of dollars, while physicians get their...

Big tenants join former Fox Brain. (former Fox Animation Studios head Steve Brain plans $40 million film studio in Sun Valley, Arizona)
August 9, 1996... Like a video on fast forward, plans by former Fox Animation Studios head Steve Brain to launch a $40 million film studio in the Valley are moving ahead swiftly. Already, a high-tech digital imaging studio, a Valley-based video rental firm...

Buyout creates 200 Valley jobs. (Mastering Computers Inc.'s merger with Eagle River Interactive Inc.)
August 9, 1996... Scottsdale-based Mastering Computers Inc. has merged with Eagle River Interactive Inc., a deal that is expected to create 200 Valley jobs. Avon, Colo.-based Eagle River will issue 1.175 million shares of its common stock, which trades on The...

Flight security prompts rise in corporate jet use.
August 9, 1996... [TABULAR DATA OMITTED] A growing concern among corporate executives in the Valley and nationwide over flight safety is prompting the sale, lease and charter of private aircraft to take off. Even before the explosion that blew TWA Flight...

Email encryptor regains license, considers IPO. (Pretty Good Privacy Inc. plans initial public offering)
August 9, 1996... Pretty Good Privacy Inc. - whose founders believe Email should be at least as private as that sent by the U.S. Postal Service - is hoping for a pretty good experience as a public company. Key to making that happen was the just-completed...

Cox silent on possible sale of Tribune papers. (Cox Enterprises Inc.; Tribune Newspaper Co.)
August 9, 1996... Rumors have been swirling among employees at the Valley's Tribune Newspapers that owner Cox Enterprises Inc. is looking to sell its Arizona holdings, and possibly even its entire newspaper operation. Sources speculate that the privately held...

Builders targeted for solar panels. (Sun Systems Inc.)
August 9, 1996... Scottsdale-based Sun Systems Inc. is moving into the manufacturing arena with solar panels designed to blend into a rooftop. The new division is expected to double the company's work force, allow it to expand into three times its current...

Gold Canyon Ranch plans to become city. (ranch in Pinal County, Arizona)
August 9, 1996... The Gold Canyon Ranch area of Pinal County is nestled at the base of the Superstition Mountains and is surrounded by a phenomenal amount of growth. Yet the cluster of development now taking place has left residents there feeling as though...

Taxes, regulation curbs small-business growth.
August 9, 1996... WASHINGTON - The bulk of higher regulatory and tax burdens is falling squarely on small business, according to a new report. Small business pays an average of $5,545 per worker to comply with government regulations every year. almost double...

School for homeless youths getting permanent address. (Thomas J. Pappas Elementary School in Phoenix, Arizona)
August 9, 1996... The Thomas J. Pappas Elementary School for homeless children is getting its own facility built in time for next year's school session. Ground is expected to be broken this fall for a $3 million, 30,000-square-foot facility on 3.9 acres near...

Orchids and Onions return as architectural comment. (community awareness program in Phoenix, Arizona)
August 9, 1996... For the second consecutive year, community members are invited to take a closer look at the city and surrounding towns where they live and work. Which projects make the Valley a better place to live, sweetening the quality of life as a...

Congress comes through with 'piggyback' tax-relief. (tax relief for small businesses)
August 9, 1996... WASHINGTON - After being mired in political squabbling for most of the year, Congress finally gave small businesses what they have yearned for for years - tax relief. The House and the Senate also passed several provisions last week that...

No-nonsense CEO builds Del Webb. (Del Webb Corp. CEO Phil Dion)
August 9, 1996... When it comes to reputations, Del Webb chief executive Phil Dion is known as a demanding, hard-driving, no-nonsense kind of guy, He s not prone to off-the-wall antics, outrageous behavior or attention-getting tactics. He's a man who could...

Grant could aid in high-tech training. (Maricopa Community College District may get grant from the National Science Foundation)
August 9, 1996... The Valley is one step closer to getting federal funding for a high-tech training center that would make Maricopa County a national hub for producing semiconductor technicians. Maricopa Community College District officials got word this month...

Interaction skills, firm work ethic in demand. (partnership between educators and the business community)
August 9, 1996... The three R's of a prime education - reading, 'riting and 'rithmatic - are being usurped by even more basic life skills, say local business leaders who hire college graduates. The necessary skills to vie with today's work force are...

CAD Institute changes name, gains new status. (University of Advancing Computer Technology in Phoenix, Arizona)
August 9, 1996... The CAD Institute in Phoenix is going through some design changes of its own by expanding, taking on a new name and receiving university status. The institute, which began as a CAD system provider and training firm in 1983, was granted...

Teens wise up to today's health-care issues.
August 9, 1996... Students throughout the Valley are gearing up to start a cartoon strip and unveil a poster campaign to teach other students about basic health-care issues. Last year, they met with Phoenix Suns star A.C. Green to hear his strong views on...

Phoenix Art Institute receives accreditation.
August 9, 1996... The Accrediting Commission of Career Schools and Colleges of Technology has granted the Art Institute of Phoenix its initial accreditation and renewed the accreditation of the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute. "It's like getting the Good...

Tech Corps links volunteers with schools.
August 9, 1996... A national grass-roots plan to get America's children on the information highway is gathering both steam and the support of business and industry, which are seeking to improve the crucial computer skills needed in the 21st century global...

SCC business students on career fast track. (Scottsdale Community College)
August 9, 1996... Arizona's first accelerated community college business education program is on a fast track at Scottsdale Community College. "Business Fastrack" is a one-year, accelerated program that combines practical, project-oriented courses designed to...

Mc2 formula: quality = success.(Company Profile)
August 9, 1996... Don't sell a philosophy major short of success in a pragmatic field. Mike Corn, founder of [mc.sup.2], coupled his innovation and creativity with technological skills to build the Phoenix-based software development company. [Mc.sup.2]...

CEO memo details job cuts at US West. (U S WEST Communications Inc.)(includes verbatim text of memo)
August 2, 1996... US West Communications Group decided to immediately begin slashing 5,000 jobs because its competitors are "preparing to attack our very livelihood," and the company is performing poorly group CEO Sol Trujillo said in a July 26 memo to top...

Builder's integrity brings success. (Summit Builders Construction Co. President) (Jeffrey Stone)(Profile)
August 2, 1996... Most entrepreneurs likely would choose a booming economy as the best time to launch a business. Not Jeffrey Stone. The founder and president of Summit Builders Construction Co. chose 1986 as the year to start his company. It was the very...

Valley firms report second-quarter earnings. (Sun Valley, Arizona)(Industry Overview)
August 2, 1996... * The Dial Corp announced net income for the second quarter ended June 30 of $14 million, or 15 cents per share, after deducting one-time costs of $16 million, or 18 cents per share, for the company's planned spinoff of its consumer products...

Architects look to form a consortium. (Emiko LLC)
August 2, 1996... With the advent of interactive entertainment concepts such as Disneyland's Tune Town, all the way to restaurant concepts such as Rainforest Cafe, there's a new niche being created for architecturally minded interior designers. Andrew Gartner...

Nearly 50% of hotel tax comes from resorts.
August 2, 1996... Valley resort properties represent only 12 percent of the city's total hotel-room inventory, yet they pay almost half the hotel/motel tax revenue collected. The resort market in metropolitan Phoenix is comprised roughly of 9,000 rooms with...