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

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

Diamondbacks close to deal for TV rights. (Arizona Diamondbacks baseball team)
July 7, 1995... The Arizona Diamondbacks will finalize its "official" television and radio broadcast deals next week. It's a move that will bring the winning stations exposure and the possibility of increased revenue as they air the fledgling Major League...

Vencor closing hospital. (Vencor Inc.)
July 7, 1995... Vencor Inc., a Louisville, Ky.-based operator of specialty hospitals on a fast-growth track, is closing its 49-bed specialty hospital in Youngtown July 26. It will be the first hospital of its more than 35 nationwide that Vencor has closed....

Company finds key in custom software. (Software Systems Development Corp.)
July 7, 1995... In a sea of companies selling software products, carving out a niche as one of the Valley's few customized software developers has sent Systems Development Corp. on a wave of growth that last year swept sales past the $2 million mark. That,...

Local DynCorp firms bought by Sabreliner. (DynAir Tech of Arizona Inc.; DynAir Telecommunications; Sabreliner Corp.)
July 7, 1995... Two aircraft-related companies at Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport are part of a $12.5 million acquisition by St. Louis-based Sabreliner Corp. Sabreliner officials said the company has purchased five subsidiary firms of Reston,...

Karsten Manufacturing to trim 100 employees. (Karsten Manufacturing Corp.)
July 7, 1995... Karsten Manufacturing Corp. is cutting more than 100 jobs at its Phoenix headquarters following a recent change in management in which founder Karsten Solheim handed the reins of the golf business to his sons. Karsten, manufacturer of the Ping...

2 newspaper groups to offer Internet info. (American City Business Journals Inc.; DataTimes Corp.; Microsoft Network)
July 7, 1995... The parent companies of two Valley newspaper groups have teamed with on-line computer services to offer business information and community-oriented news over the Internet. American City Business Journals Inc. and DataTimes Corp. have announced...

Doctors question claims by Life-Plus. (Phoenix, Arizona doctors)
July 7, 1995... Life-Plus boasts its antioxidant, now being sold in the Valley, will fight ailments from Azheimer's to arthritic and headache pains, but some local doctors reject those claims. The Batesville, Ark.-based company is marketing an antioxidant...

CIGNA unveils new health plan options. (CIGNA HealthCare of Arizona Inc.)
July 7, 1995... In response to a trend of providing more health-care choices to employees, two new network options are being offered to businesses by CIGNA HealthCare of Arizona. CIGNA recently began offering CareNet, an option that allows members to choose...

Aetna introduces World Wide Web site. (Aetna Health Plans of Arizona)
July 7, 1995... Aetna Health Plans of Arizona is one of the first health-plan carriers to join a growing number of businesses across the country stepping up their marketing with a home page on the World Wide Web. Aetna has launched its "AHP of AZ Home Page" on...

Zaler out on bail; accusers want justice. (Arnie Zaler)
July 21, 1995... Arnie Zaler is out on bond after spending just five hours in jail, but his accusers in an alleged ticket scam want to see him pay. His arrest followed a Maricopa County grand jury indictment charging him with one count of fraud and five counts...

PhyCor enters market. (PhyCor Inc.; Arizona)
July 21, 1995... National health firm agrees to buy Casa Blanca Clinic Mesa-based Casa Bianca Clinic Ltd., one of the largest multi-specialty physician clinics in Arizona, has signed a letter of intent to sell its assets to a large national physician management...

Hospitals team up to compete against out-of-state giants. (Arizona hospitals)
July 21, 1995... Arizona hospitals that once were fierce competitors now are slowly laying down their scalpels and forming alliances in an attempt to control costs and remain competitive with big out-of-state chains coming into town. Dee Balle, a partner at...

AHCCCS HMOs face tougher times. (Arizona Health Care Cost Containment System; health maintenance organizations)
July 21, 1995... Big profits are coming to a screeching halt for Arizona's health maintenance organizations that serve the state's poor. That's because of new competition entering the arena, which resulted in reduced costs to the state, said Richard Potter,...

NetPro aimed high, chose to be a growth company. (NetPro Computing Inc.)
July 21, 1995... Even when they started out with two employees and an office in their home, the founders of NetPro Computing Inc. refused to think like a small business - a philosophy that turned an untapped niche into a gold mine for the Scottsdale-based...

Cable firm is forced to broadcast Ch. 61. (Cox Communications Inc.; KASW Channel 61)
July 21, 1995... With its hands tied by federal law, Cox Communications has agreed to carry the highly hyped KASW Channel 61 Valleywide, a move that will cost the cable company more than $15,000 and force it to drop one station in some service areas. KASW,...

Battle grows between gas, electric cooling. (Salt River Project Agricultural Improvement and Power District; Arizona Public Service Co.; Southwest Gas Corp.)
July 21, 1995... St. Joseph's Hospital expects to save about $100,000 in fiscal 1996 because of an economic decision to use natural gas, rather than electric, air conditioning. Choices such as this by large commercial customers have sparked competition among...

Figures show mixed picture of biz growth. (Arizona)(includes related article)
July 21, 1995... A recently released ranking of U.S. Census Bureau figures paints a picture of lackluster small-business growth in Arizona from 1988-1992, but local officials say those figures don't tell the whole story. Phoenix came in 55th out of 80 major...

Bleak picture painted for tourism industry. (Arizona)
July 21, 1995... The tourism and travel industries in Arizona and nationwide are in for a disastrous trip. That was the disheartening message relayed to those attending a national task force meeting in Phoenix last week by Hyatt Hotels Corp. chairman Darryl...

Riding herd on Arizona Highways. (Arizona Highways publisher Nina La France)(Company Profile)
July 21, 1995... Nina La France's recent promotion to the driver's seat at Arizona Highways magazine came as a surprise to a lot of people - but most of all to La France. "I spent the whole day pinching myself. I couldn't believe it," La France told The...

Valley new-home affordability declines. (Sun Valley, Arizona)
July 21, 1995... With costs for land, labor and materials on the rise, new homes in the Valley no longer are the bargains they once were. The Valley, once one of the best places in the nation to find affordable homes, has seen a sharp rise in new-home prices...

Housing grants target homebuyers, renters. (Arizona)
July 21, 1995... The Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco has made $2.3 million in affordable housing grants available for Arizona. The funds, which represent the largest amount yet awarded in the state under the bank's Affordable Housing Program, is...

Phoenix hot market for built-in misters. (Arizona Mist)
July 21, 1995... Company officials say deal with homebuilder pending The jet streams of a misting system cooling the air is a common sight in Valley restaurants, but if one company has its way it also will become a staple in the city's homes. Scores of...

Sumitomo '50-50' on Phoenix. (proposed $400 million semiconductor plant site)
July 28, 1995... The Japanese industrial giant Sumitomo Sitix Corp. has resurrected its interest in Phoenix as the site for a $400 million semiconductor plant that economic development officials say could spawn new high-tech development in the Valley. Sumitomo...

Job growth in Phoenix 5th in nation.
July 28, 1995... The statistics are new, but the trend is familiar: The South and West continue to outpace the rest of the United States when it comes to creating jobs. According to a study by The Business Journal, the Phoenix-Mesa area had the fifth largest...

Two indicted in Medicare fraud probe. (Dr. John Ross Coy; Dr. Krantinath Raikhelkar)
July 28, 1995... Two Arizona doctors are under indictment and two dozen more are being investigated in a federal crackdown on Medicare fraud. Peter Sexton, an assistant U.S. attorney in Phoenix, said two doctors are under indictment for fraudulent claims filed...

Barrow plans $40 million research unit. (Barrow Neurological Institute)
July 28, 1995... Mercy Healthcare Arizona hag begun a $40 million fund-raising campaign to develop a neuroscience research center for the world-renowned Barrow Neurological Institute. Barrow already is a world leader in neurology, neurosurgery and research of...

Training on the fast track. (Midak University)
July 28, 1995... An untapped market and a program of fast growth proved to be the formula for success at Midak University, a local software trainer for products sold by five national software giants. When president and CEO Arnie Kuenn and six of his colleagues...

Auto theft booming business in Arizona.
July 28, 1995... Arizona is expected to lead the nation in per-capita auto theft rates when the U.S. Justice Department releases final 1994 figures later this year, but insurance companies are banding together to fight the state's climb to notoriety. More than...

Hazelwood passes on Super Bowl contract. (Hazelwood Enterprises Inc.)
July 28, 1995... The president of Phoenix-based Hazelwood Enterprises Inc., the Super Bowl Host Committee's No. 1 draft pick to be the official merchandiser for Super Bowl XXX, has withdrawn his proposal claiming the agreement no longer benefits his company....

'Sportacular' funding decision drawing near. (Arizona Super Sportacular)
July 28, 1995... The Arizona Department of Commerce, playing referee in the $2 million Arizona Super Sportacular funding process, has made its call on how much will be awarded to seven different sporting events scheduled for early next year. ADOC officials...

Copper companies shine with big hikes in profits.
July 28, 1995... Asarco Inc. led the pack with a whopping 1,020 percent increase in second-quarter earnings as Arizona's four major copper companies profited from higher copper prices and production. Next was Cyprus Amax Minerals Co. with a 318 percent increase...

Cox upgrades could lead to phone fight. (Cox Communications Inc.)
July 28, 1995... Cox Communications is gearing up for what many expect to be some hard-fought one-on-one with US West Communications for a chunk of the local telephone market. Roughly $80 million has been pumped into the ground to pay for upgrades and to help...

Phoenix area is 56th in per capital income.
July 28, 1995... You'll probably never make the kind of dough that Phoenix Suns star Charles Barkley does. But how are you doing compared with the rest of the country? And how is the city of Phoenix doing compared with other U.S. cities? The Bureau of Economic...

Exec ties work to love of Arizona. (Hyatt Regency Scottsdale Vice President Bill Eider-Orley)
July 28, 1995... "This is where I want to be. I wanted to work in a place, in an area, that I would go to when I would vacation." From his modest third-floor office at the Hyatt Regency Scottsdale, Bill Eider-Orley tells a story of the hotel and resort industry...

Apollo Group to expand with public sale. (Apollo Group Inc.'s initial public offering)
July 28, 1995... Phoenix-based Apollo Group Inc., which raised nearly $32 million in December in an initial public offering, now is using that money to open 10 to 15 new campuses and learning centers in several states. The public offering for University of...

Official Super Bowl merchandise worth $50 million.
July 28, 1995... T-shirts, caps and jerseys are big business for the National Football League - a $3 billion business. More than $3.1 billion in retail sales of NFL merchandise was generated nationwide last year. About $50 million of that was for paraphernalia...