The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun articles from January 1995

The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun archives from January 1995

Baseball scrubs won't throw hotels a curve. (Cactus League)
January 6, 1995... A watered-down spring training season likely will not dilute the peak season for local hoteliers, according to new research. Baseball spring training historically has been considered an important component to Phoenix's tourism draw each spring....

RTC sells apartment complex. (Resolution Trust Corp.; Paradise Lakes apartments)
January 6, 1995... The Valley's largest apartment complex, the 1,222-unit Paradise Lakes apartments in north Phoenix, was sold near year end in one of the largest apartment sales of 1994. In a deal that closed Dec. 28, the Resolution Trust Corp. sold for $44.7...

Prognosis is good for UDC Homes. (UDC Homes Inc.)
January 6, 1995... UDC Homes Inc. is negotiating with a potential new owner in an attempt to radically restructure its troubled finances -- and at least one analyst says the prognosis for the homebuilder's survival is good. The Tempe-based homebuilder recently...

New industrial space construction is due.
January 6, 1995... Industrial absorption slowed during fourth-quarter 1994, but demand was great enough to push an already all-time low vacancy rate even lower and prompt the highest level of new construction in years. During the fourth quarter, more than 850,000...

Phoenix, Tucson manufacturing rate high. (Arizona)
January 6, 1995... Phoenix and Tucson were among the top 10 metro areas for manufacturing employment growth during 1994. Thanks to the addition of about 3,000 people at Hughes Missile Systems over the past two years, Tucson grabbed the No. 1 spot with a 15.7...

Great Western's reorganization approved. (Great Western Publishing Inc.)
January 6, 1995... Arizona's second largest printer, Great Western Publishing has reorganized and emerged from Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The Phoenix-based printer's reorganization plan was confirmed on Dec. 19. It calls for Great Western to pay 35 percent...

Two occupational health centers in giant merger. (Occupational Medical Centers Inc.; OccuSystems Inc.)
January 6, 1995... Occupational Medical Centers has merged with Dallas-based OccuSystems Inc., the largest system of occupational health care centers in the United States. OMC has been the Valley's largest provider of complete occupational medical services, with...

Bid for mental health coverage resisted. (Focus On Employee Benefits: Wellness)
January 6, 1995... Behavioral health professionals are pushing hard this year to include richer mental health benefits in employer plans, but they are being met with resistance from insurance companies -- the ones that would pay the bills. Rep. Herschella...

Insurer and health clubs form partnership. (MetraHealth; Fitness Network of Arizona) (Focus On Employee Benefits: Wellness)
January 6, 1995... An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure. That adage is the philosophy behind a partnership between a local health insurer and a consortium of Valley health and fitness clubs. MetraHealth, a Valley managed-care company, has teamed with...

Pharmacy benefit management growing. (Focus On Employee Benefits: Wellness)
January 6, 1995... The pharmaceutical industry is one of the fastest growing and changing components in the health care industry, and several companies are trying to establish a niche there to get a piece of the action. Pharmacy benefit managers such as...

Children's health care barriers identified. (Focus On Employee Benefits: Wellness)
January 6, 1995... The Arizona Department of Health Services has a plan to break down barriers that prevent some Arizona children from getting adequate health care. A recent report, "Primary Care Systems Development: A Future for Arizona's Children," identifies...

Phoenix used for test market in work place safety program. (Phoenix, Arizona; Easy OSHA computer program) (Focus On Employee Benefits: Wellness)
January 6, 1995... Phoenix is being used as a test market for a new computer program designed to assist business managers in complying with work place safety and health regulations. The program, Easy OSHA, was developed by the firm Automated Compliance &...

Arizona's stocks slip in '94.
January 13, 1995... After outperforming the national stock indexes for three straight years, Arizona stocks paid their dues in 1994. Investors putting money into the major Arizona-based public companies last year would have lost 14 percent on their money despite...

Wall Street loves state's IPO market. (initial public offering)
January 13, 1995... Arizona companies bucked the national downward trend in initial public offerings last year by raising $1.39 billion - a number nearly triple 1993's total and one accounting for 4 percent of all the money raised nationally in 1994. Last year,...

'96 bowl games score $2.2 million from state. (Fiesta Bowl; Super Bowl)
January 13, 1995... Gov. Fife Symington's proposed state budget calls for taxpayers to hand off $2.2 million to support the 1996 Super Bowl and Fiesta Bowl. About $2 million will be channeled through the Arizona Office of Tourism to support the college football...

Reshaping without surgery: Mayo signs deal to set up care network. (Mayo Clinic Scottsdale, John Alden Life Insurance Co., Mayo Healthcare Network)
January 13, 1995... Mayo Clinic Scottsdale has signed its first insurance contract with John Alden Life Insurance Co. to launch its new Mayo Healthcare Network. John Alden, which to date has not been a major player in the Phoenix area, will use the deal as a...

Sportsplex to get 20-screen theater. (Sportsplex Scottsdale)
January 13, 1995... Sportsplex Scottsdale is bringing the movies and a movie star to the downtown Scottsdale retail development. AMC Theaters has agreed to lease nearly the entire fourth floor of the mall and plans to build an 80,000-square-foot, 20-screen movie...

Picerne restarts apartments construction. (Picerne Development Corp.)
January 13, 1995... After a five-year hiatus from development, Picerne Development Corp. has broken ground on four apartment complexes in the Valley totaling more than 1,000 units and has plans to begin construction of a 568-unit complex later in this first quarter....

Fox studios creating local animation staff. (Twentieth Century-Fox Film Corp.)
January 13, 1995... Those who venture inside the new 20th Century Fox animation film studio in Phoenix first must sign a confidentiality agreement. Visitors are forbidden from revealing what they see or hear. Fox artists are quietly at work on preliminary...

Misshapen skulls head for cheaper repair. (Cranial Technologies Inc.)
January 13, 1995... A Phoenix company is marketing a headband designed to reshape the skulls of infants with an abnormal head shape, eliminating the need for expensive surgery. Jeanne Pomatto, orthotist and founder of Phoenix-based Cranial Technologies Inc., has...

New system allows for access to public records. (Stellar Tax) (Focus on Office Tech)
January 13, 1995... A Virginia company that compiles computerized multiple-listings for the Valley real estate community has started a new venture aimed at providing easier access to many of the public records often used by businesses. Called StellarTax, the new...

Dillard's leaving Park Central; Walgreens checking out too; future of mall in jeopardy. (Dillard Department Stores Inc.; Walgreen Co.)
January 27, 1995... The last two remaining major retailers at Park Central Mall plan to pull out of the aging center by summer, leaving the mall without retail anchors and with an uncertain future. Dillard's does not plan to renew its lease that expires in August...

St. Joe's goes to alternative health care. (St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center)
January 27, 1995... For the first time in Arizona and possibly the first in the nation, a major health-care system and a university are linking up with alternative health-care providers to offer integrated health services in the Phoenix market. The new project is...

Continental Circuits files IPO. (Continental Circuits Corp.'s initial public offering)
January 27, 1995... Continental Circuits Corp. has filed to raise up to $24 million through an initial public offering, making it the second big Valley technology firm to go to the public market this month. The Phoenix-based manufacturer of circuit boards plans to...

Developers balk at OSHA safety rules. (housing developers; Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
January 27, 1995... Regulations could raise construction costs by 20 percent Local homebuilders plan to go before the state office that regulates OSHA on Feb. 2 in an effort to stall implementation of new federal safety guidelines that some housing experts believe...

Health Radio now talking in 35 markets. (Health Radio Ltd.)
January 27, 1995... Phoenix-based Health Radio Ltd., which started its first radio talk shows in November, already is broadcasting the live programs on 35 radio stations in the Midwestern and Eastern markets. Health Radio is on a fast-growth track - much quicker...

State banks' earnings level for 3rd quarter. (Industry Overview)
January 27, 1995... After posting record increases in profitability for several consecutive quarters, Arizona's banking industry has hit a plateau. The state's 33 banks posted a total profit of $224.3 million for the third quarter of 1994, an increase of less than...

Hospital building Mesa women's center. (Lutheran Healthcare Network; Center for Women's Health)
January 27, 1995... Lutheran Healthcare Network has begun an $8.1 million construction project that will include a 30,000-square-foot women's center and a 13,000-square-foot expansion of the dietary department at Valley Lutheran Hospital, Mesa. This means, for...

'94 Valley homebuilding approaches '78 record. (Sun Valley, Arizona)
January 27, 1995... Homebuilding in the Valley rose during 1994, but not enough to dethrone 1978 as the record year for new homes. While the record for new homes didn't fall, the top homebuilder of 1993 did, toppling from first to third in home starts. During...

Supreme Court weakens discrimination defense. (job discrimination)
January 27, 1995... A popular defense used by Arizona and other Western employers in job discrimination cases filed against them has been diluted by a Jan. 23 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court. At issue is "after-acquired evidence." Such evidence is that which...

20 Arizona businesses make QVC TV cast. (QVC Network Inc.)
January 27, 1995... More than 500 businesses pitched their wares when QVC was in town auditioning products Jan. 10, but only 20 winners were chosen to appear on the home shopping network. QVC's stop in Phoenix was part of a nationwide tour during which QVC...

State's largest movie house to open in May.
January 27, 1995... Construction is scheduled to begin next week in northeast Scottsdale on the $5.2 million Harkins Shea Luxury 14 Cinemas, which is set to become Arizona's largest movie theater. The 14-screen, 51,200-square-foot theater is planned to open on May...

Tooling, machine shops changing with economy. (Industry Overview)
January 27, 1995... The tooling and machine industry is important to Arizona's economy, and smart tooling and machine shops in Arizona will continue to do well despite a shakeout in the industry. That is the message that the chairman and CEO of the 2,700-member...

How to avoid sexual harassment incidents. (The Human Side) (Column)
January 27, 1995... Since the publication of Michael Crichton's novel and the release of the movie, "Disclosure," the general public has become aware of what companies have known for some time - that sexual harassment situations are complicated, volatile and...

Valley No. 5 apartment market in nation. (Sun Valley, Arizona) (In Sites) (Column)
January 27, 1995... The Valley is one of the top 10 locations in the nation for investment and development of apartments, according to a national study by Ernst & Young. One of the worst apartment markets in the late 1980s due to overbuilding, the Valley is now...

Shiny, new car appeal leads to success. (Kemp Biddulph of Biddulph Oldsmobile Inc.)
January 27, 1995... If winter storms continue to threaten this year's Phoenix Open, Kemp Biddulph and his pal Eddie Lynch might just repeat their trick from 1980 when they dressed in Indian regalia and did a rain dance in an attempt to lure sunshine over the golf...

Valley carpool usage inching upward. (Sun Valley, Arizona) (Focus: Automotive)
January 27, 1995... Metro area commuting patterns Journey to work Drive alone In carpools Public transportation Atlanta 77.6% 13.1% 4.7% Austin 74.8 14.7...

GM's Riviera and Aurora models are headturners. (Focus: Automotive) (Evaluation)
January 27, 1995... Lu: General Motors has a new breed of luxury car that's turning heads. Vince: And causing quite a few tongues to wag, too. Lu: The Buick Riviera coupe and the Oldsmobile Aurora sedan broke ground as early '90s concept cars, but found their...

Auto sales help drive local economy.
January 27, 1995... Car sales are driving a good portion of the Phoenix area's economic grand prix, as the local economy continues to benefit from consumers' faith in the future. Those expectations are just one aspect of the region's overall business performance,...

Arizona high-tech stocks show diverse results. (Industry Overview)
January 27, 1995... Arizona high-tech stocks were a mixed bag in January. Several local technology firms appeared on the winners and losers lists, while other firms in that industry may not have made the list but still posted some interesting news that affected...

Use common sense in buying a business.
January 27, 1995... Buying a business can destroy your ego, keep you up all night or be the most exhilarating and intelligent decision you will ever make in your life. It is imperative that prospective buyers ask relevant questions and carefully analyze all aspects...

Doing nothing can mean best move in 'speed age.' (On Excellence) (Column)
January 27, 1995... If you are a woman or man of action, and most of us in business like to think we are, then doing nothing is often the best action - or non-action. Sounds strange, even absurd, in these times when rapid response is the only sane response....