The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun articles from March 2001

The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun archives from March 2001

Paper chase.
March 9, 2001... Small publications battle for readers, ads The East Valley newspaper market may become a battleground for survival if the Tribune's recent venture succeeds. Tribune Newspapers, which just started community papers in Chandler; Tempe and...

Central Avenue intersection in cross hairs.
March 9, 2001... Three developers are racing to rejuvenate a stretch of Central between the Phoenix Art Museum and the city library with a mix of offices, lofts and retail projects. One of the main ingredients is a residential loft development at Central...

Simula regroups, lays off 60.
March 9, 2001... After six years in the loss column, Simula Inc. is battling back with a restructuring plan that cut 60 jobs this week and calls for the closure of its Sedona research and development facility. The company's decision to streamline has...

Insurers divert risk-pool funding.
March 9, 2001... Insurance companies have strong-armed legislators to avoid financing a state health plan to provide coverage for those too sick to qualify for regular coverage. Instead, taxpayers may have to foot the bill, estimated at $6 million over the...

Some experts aren't worth all the effort.
March 9, 2001... While wiling away the hours at 40,000 feet somewhere over Kansas en route to an East Coast meeting, it occurs to me that: * ONE OF THE REASONS people feel so pessimistic about the economy is because they read so many stories about how...

Target distribution center would be Valley's largest.
March 9, 2001... Target Stores is working on what officials are calling the largest single-story building in the Valley's metro region. The 1.6 million-square-foot building at 7101 W. Van Buren St. is the future southwest distribution center for Target...

CORRECTIONS.
March 9, 2001... * David L. Schmitt & Associates is the architect for the Park at Frank Lloyd Wright, an office complex at Frank Lloyd Wright Boulevard and Redfield Road. * A story promoted as Web radio on the front page of the March 2 issue appears in...

Cox blames rate climb on higher program costs.
March 9, 2001... Skyrocketing programming costs are being blamed for the increase in cable rates that will show up next month for customers of Cox Communications. A more than 5 percent rate hike was announced early this week -- at a time when Atlanta-based...

Economists say companies' woes part of 'normal economic process'.
March 9, 2001... Recent negative economic news from local companies is just "a symptom of the overall slowdown" and "part of the normal economic process,", according to a pair of Valley economists who spoke at Tuesday's Power Breakfast, a quarterly event...

Motorcycle Web site given $1M infusion.
March 9, 2001... Riderworld.com, a Tempe-based company for motorcycle enthusiasts, received $1 million from a local angel investor. The business, led by chief executive Alex Chucri, also launched a revamped Web site and hired stealthmode.com for strategic...

[O.sub.2] Science breathes new life into defunct company.
March 9, 2001... Mark Hanley is on a mission to launch his new Tempe company, [O.sub.2] Science, across the Southwest. Plans call for investing $25 million to open 20 offices to provide respiratory therapy. The company, officially called New Valley Health...

Best Western making changes to stay competitive worldwide.
March 9, 2001... Best Western International executives made four strategic decisions this week to increase the company's visibility and accessibility: a new advertising agency, wireless booking, new sales agreements and online reservations. It selected...

Bar wants banks to raise rates on trust accounts.
March 9, 2001... Faced with declining income, the Arizona Bar Foundation is trying to get local banks to raise the interest rates on its lawyer trust accounts. These accounts, known as Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts, or IOLTA, are used by law firms to...

Snell & Wilmer continues regional expansion with opening in Las Vegas.
March 9, 2001... Snell & Wilmer LLP, the largest law firm in Arizona, will be further expanding into the western region with the opening of its Las Vegas office next month. The move puts the law firm in direct com petition with another major Phoenix firm,...

Legal battle's static slows radio stations' Web plans.
March 9, 2001... Local radio station owners are toning down plans to replay streaming audio on the Web. A legal battle pending in New York's federal courts could mean broadcasters across the nation may have to pay additional fees for the right to air music...

Health-care software gives insurers better cost-prediction information.
March 9, 2001... And that means employers with healthier staffers finally may see group insurance premiums lowered. Symmetry Health Data Systems Inc., a Phoenix-based developer of health-care software, has come up with a new tool to help insurance...

Qwest funding 14-state lobbying effort on Web.
March 9, 2001... Qwest Communications International Inc. is bankrolling a public relations campaign in 14 states, including Arizona, but has set it up to look like an independent grassroots citizens effort advocating competitive telephone industry regulations....

Nestle kneading cookie store business.
March 9, 2001... If a Georgia entrepreneur has anything to do with it, Nestle could be dotting the country's retail landscape like chocolate chips in cookie dough. Crest Foods Inc. has granted Hector Rodriguez, an Atlanta franchiser, rights to open 15...

Phelps Dodge builds power plant for Santa Rita mine.
March 9, 2001... Phoenix-based copper producer Phelps Dodge Corp. is building a new 50-megawatt power plant near Santa Rita, N.M., that will yield half the energy required to run its 130,000-tons-per-year Chino mine and Hurley smelter. The...

KTAR dumps Heywood.
March 9, 2001... KTAR-AM 620 dropped morning show host Bill Heywood, whose program was among the top-ranked radio shows in the Valley. "This was not a performance issue with Bill," said KTAR general manager Mary Nyren. "We wish him all the best." ...

New chairman, CEO for Finova.
March 9, 2001... At financially troubled lender The Finova Group, Scottsdale, Matthew Breyne resigned as president and chief executive and John Teets retired as chairman but will remain on the board of directors. The board elected G. Robert "Bull" Durham as...

Henry named to Simula board.
March 9, 2001... Jack Henry has joined the board of directors at Phoenix-based Simula Inc., a maker of inflatable safety restraints. Henry, who retired last year as managing partner of the Phoenix office of accounting firm Arthur Andersen LLP, will serve as...

America West traffic rises.
March 9, 2001... Tempe-based America West Airlines reported record traffic statistics for the month of February. Revenue passenger miles were 1.5 billion, up 10.2 percent from February 2000. Capacity increased 8.6 percent in February to 2.2 billion...

Mesa, United reach deal.
March 9, 2001... Mesa Air Group, a Phoenix-based airline operating under the America West Express name in the Southwest, has reached an agreement with United Airlines Inc. to extend the current Mesa/US Airways regional jet contract by an additional two years,...

Southwest expands schedule.
March 9, 2001... Southwest Airlines is expanding service to and from Phoenix Sky Harbor International. Airport. Beginning June 10, Southwest will add three new daily nonstop flights between. Phoenix and Orange County, Calif. Starting July 5, Southwest...

SpeedFam announces layoffs.
March 9, 2001... Chandler-based semiconductor equipment maker SpeedFam-IPEC Inc. warned that its third-quarter loss will be greater than estimated because of slower orders from semiconductor makers and that it will cut its worldwide workforce by 18 percent. The...

Zila earns new patent.
March 9, 2001... The U.S. Patent and Trademark Office issued an additional patent regarding Zila Tolonium Chloride to. Zila Inc., a Phoenix-based provider of health-care and biotechnology products and services. According to Zila, its vice president and...

Firms land pipeline project.
March 9, 2001... Tulsa, Okla.-based Willbros Engineers Inc., along with Rogers & Phillips Inc. of Houston, were awarded a contract by Panda Energy International and TECO Power Services for project management, engineering, procurement and construction of a...

Motorola sells investments.
March 9, 2001... Motorola Inc., which has Valley-based computer, semiconductor and other operations, has received more than $1 billion cash from the sale of investments in five cellular operating companies. The company said that since Jan. 1, it has...

Small firms fuel Web niche.
March 9, 2001... Providing small companies with easy-to-use Web site services is proving to be quite an opportunity for specialized providers, according to Scottsdale-based market research firm Cahners In-Stat Group. According to In-Stat, e-business...

Heinz buys food companies.
March 9, 2001... The Foodservice Division of H. J. Heinz Co., Pittsburgh, acquired two privately held food-service companies, one of which is in Arizona. Both Central Commissary Inc., Phoenix, and Cornucopia Inc., Irvine, Calif., make and market...

ABCO markets sale completed.
March 9, 2001... Dallas-based Fleming completed the sale of 11 ABCO Desert Markets in Phoenix and Tucson to Safeway Inc. The ABCO Desert Markets were sold as part of Fleming's previously announced strategic plan that focuses on its growth areas of price...

Bids in for TWA assets.
March 9, 2001... The bids are in for bankrupt Trans World Airlines. American Airlines is offering $500 million, plus the assumption of $3 billion in debt and lease obligations. Scottsdale-based Jet Acquisitions Group bid $889 million for substantially...

Del Webb on 'Admired' list.
March 9, 2001... Phoenix-based Del Webb Corp. is one of America's "Most Admired Companies," according to Fortune magazine. In its Feb. 19 cover story, Fortune ranked the master-planned community developer in the upper half of its list. Fortune's report...

Petsmart reports losses.
March 9, 2001... Phoenix-based Petsmart Inc. reported losses for the fourth quarter and the full fiscal year. when it released unaudited financial results. The company reported a fourth-quarter net loss of $27.2. million for the period ended Jan. 28, which...

Rocket deal going to Chandler.
March 9, 2001... The U.S. Air Force Space and Missile Systems Center awarded Orbital Sciences Corp. of Dulles, Va., a $5 million contract for the Quick Reaction Launch Vehicle-2 program. Orbital's Launch Systems Group, which is responsible for the...

Commercial mortgage market finds Guardian.
March 9, 2001... Guardian Underwriters, a direct lender in the commercial mortgage market, has opened its first office in the Phoenix area. "The current market in Phoenix has shown itself to be a rich, growing market," according to Parry Clark, director of...

Non-attorneys sought.
March 9, 2001... The State Bar of Arizona wants to make sure Arizona citizens have a voice in the legal system. The Board of Governors is looking for two non-attorneys to serve for a two-year term. They will have full voting rights but cannot become...

Greenberg a lateral leader.
March 9, 2001... The law firm of Greenberg Traurig LLP has been named the No. 1 firm on American Lawyer's list of lateral growth leaders in 2000. The firm, which has added six offices and more than 300 lawyers in the past two years, added 107 lateral...

Fortune smiles on Wells.
March 9, 2001... Wells Fargo was ranked as the "most admired" super regional bank in the United States for the second consecutive year by Fortune magazine. The bank also ranked 40th among all 535 companies from 63 industry segments in the recent survey....

AmTrust building branches.
March 9, 2001... AmTrust Bank, a division of Ohio Savings Bank, will be opening two new branches in the Phoenix area this year. This will bring its total number of branches here to four. The bank is planning to open a 5,000-square-foot facility at 10706 W....

Freeman joins appellate group.
March 9, 2001... Susan Freeman, a partner with Lewis and Roca LLP, has been named to the board of directors of the Council of Appellate Lawyers. She, is the only Arizona representative on the board. The council recently was formed to assist in the...

Difficult lawyers seminar.
March 9, 2001... The Maricopa County Bar Association and the National Practice Institute are presenting a seminar entitled, "Objections at Trial, 2001 and How to Deal with the Difficult Lawyer." The seminar will be held on Friday, March 23, at the Pointe...

Capital stays on Nasdaq.
March 9, 2001... Capital Title Group, a regional title insurance agent with headquarters in Phoenix, has received word that its securities will continue to be listed on the Nasdaq Small-Cap Market." The decision was made following the company's oral hearing...

Tax refund cashing kiosks.
March 9, 2001... Circle K customers can cash their tax-refund checks at automated financial kiosks at 57 locations throughout the Valley. The kiosks' 2 percent fee is reportedly lower than that of competing check cashers in Arizona.

Facilitec wins judgment.
March 9, 2001... Facilitec, a Phoenix-based office products and furnishings company, has won a judgment against the State of Arizona in Maricopa County Superior Court. In a controversial move in 1998, the state awarded a $4 million per year contract to...

First college of dentistry may open by fall of 2002.
March 9, 2001... Arizona School of Health Sciences is working to establish a college of dentistry and oral health on its Mesa campus, which is set to open this August. It would be the only dental school in-the state. Provost Craig Phelps, D.O.,...

Blood types and diet secrets.
March 9, 2001... New York Times bestselling author Peter D'Adamo will speak March 13 at Camelback Golf Club in Scottsdale. The naturopathic physician will unveil the secrets behind his work that connects blood types and diet, documented in his book Eat...

Who's buying NextHealth?
March 9, 2001... Several companies have expressed interest in purchasing NextHealth Inc. of Tucson. The company announced in January that it had received an offer from a group that included William T. O'Donnell Jr., its chief executive, and George L. Ruff,...

Flying hospital lands nearby.
March 9, 2001... The Flying Hospital, a Lockheed L-1011 containing the world's largest fully equipped surgical hospital, ever constructed inside an aircraft, will be on display during the 18th annual convention of the International Society of Transport Aricraft...

Discovery airs local birth.
March 9, 2001... Phoenix Baptist. Hospital & Medical Center participated in the production of "Birth Day," a documentary-style television series, that airs daily on the Discovery Health Channel. Unexpected complications in a Valley woman's labor and...

Zila settling suit.
March 9, 2001... Zila Inc. of Phoenix has reached an agreement to settle $5.75 million in shareholder class-action lawsuits, which were filed in early 1999. The agreement comes after a U.S. Food and Drug Administration advisory panel declined to recommend...

Hawkeye makes debut.
March 9, 2001... Scottsdale Healthcare Shea has a new technology that combines nuclear medicine with CT scans to help speed disease diagnosis for its doctors. Called Hawkeye, the new technology is expected to not only attract patients, but topnotch doctors...

Gretzky mania scores sellout boost for Coyotes.
March 9, 2001... Wayne Gretzky recently called many of you at home to invite you to a Phoenix Coyotes hockey game. Most of you were savvy enough to recognize the call as a mass-marketing effort. In fact, it was sent to 75,000 numbers, said Joe Levy, vice...

Princess checks in ladybugs.
March 9, 2001... The Fairmont Scottsdale Princess now is home to 80,000 red beetles brought in to eat aphids on the grounds, said spokeswoman Sue Kavanagh. The ladybugs were purchased about a week ago from biological pest control company Buglogical in...

Antigua on the money.
March 9, 2001... Scottsdale golf clothier Antigua Group is co-sponsoring the national 2001 Jaguar CEO Tour. The company will provide logoed apparel for each participant in the tournament and in return Antigua's name and logo will be visible on a variety of...

A little bit country...
March 9, 2001... America West Airlines has entered a codeshare agreement with Big Sky Airlines that expands America West's routes by 20 new markets in Montana, Texas, Oklahoma and Arkansas. Customers can begin booking flights, to these destinations through...

Tapatio Pointe adds day care.
March 9, 2001... The Pointe Hilton Tapatio Cliffs Resort will be launching a summer day-care program on May 19 that will run through Sept. 2. The Hilton's Squaw Peak property has had a kids program for nine years. Company spokeswoman Brooke Cromwell said...

The Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa.
March 9, 2001... The Westin La Paloma in Tucson now officially is The Westin La Paloma Resort & Spa with the addition of an Elizabeth Arden Red Door Spa, which opened in January.

Trickster Cafe.
March 9, 2001... Robert Shields of the '70s television show Shields and Yarnell, is opening his own restaurant in Sedona called Trickster Cafe. Shields partnered with chef Andre Lechien to create a European and Asian-influenced menu. The address is 350...

Arizona Professional Golf Tour.
March 9, 2001... The new Arizona Professional Golf Tour has signed an agreement with American Golf allowing tour players to use American Golf's facilities for practice at 50 percent off regular range fees after 3:30 p.m. daily. Courses include Stonecreek,...

Edelman Public Relations Worldwide.
March 9, 2001... Edelman Public Relations Worldwide in Dallas now is handling media relations for the Wyndham Buttes Resort in Tempe. Edelman can be found on the Internet at www.edelman.com.

Pax pairs with Channel 12 on sales, marketing deal.
March 9, 2001... Paxson Communications Corp. has partnered with the local NBC Network affiliate, KPNX-TV 12, as part of a joint sales agreement with Gannet Co., which owns Channel 12. Under the agreement, KPNX will provide sales and marketing...

Black business pub debuts.
March 9, 2001... Brandon and Shelly Renee Harris have launched ABE Magazine -- Arizona Black Executive -- the Phoenix area's first Africa-American publication highlighting the black business community. The magazine is available at Albertson's, WalMart,...

Luce kicks, off TV service.
March 9, 2001... Luce Online has formed a new broadcast television monitoring, arm, First Alert Broadcast Service. The media-monitoring service tracks more than 3,000 television broadcasts from more than 100 media markets. The new service will allow...

Susan Sears agency expands.
March 9, 2001... Susan Sears & Associates Public Relations/Advertising of Phoenix has opened an office in Salt Lake City with an eye on Utah's high-tech sector. The firm also has an office in Denver. Heading up the Salt Lake office will be general...

New marketing players in town.
March 9, 2001... Sara Bresnahan has formed Lancio Partners, a new Phoenix virtual marketing company. Her newest client is Los Angeles-based Main Course Technologies. Also, Teri James, formerly of James Holbert Associates, has formed Teri James Public...

Sylma's promotes education.
March 9, 2001... The March of Dimes-Arizona Chapter has hired Sylma Hispanic Advertising to help them launch a statewide health education campaign targeted to Hispanic women. The campaign will address folic acid and its ability to reduce the risks of birth...

Not quite Charlotte's web.
March 9, 2001... Giant spiders no longer will threaten a vacant Glendale shopping center. The critters, reportedly the size of SUVs, starred in a Warner Bros. and Village Road-show Pictures film that just wrapped after two months of shooting in Superior...

Restaurateur uses noodle, saves dough.
March 9, 2001... Yoshi's takes open-source approach to lower overhead For a small-business owner, controlling overhead is a key part of beating the competition. For the founders of Yoshi's, a restaurant chain operating in the crowded quick-serve Japanese...

Oasis faces debate on how to promote Arizona's high-tech industry.
March 9, 2001... Tech Oasis wants to make Arizona a. major technology hub, and it's reaching out to businesses and economic development officials to help. But some of those asked to participate in the project are worried a tech-specific image could leave...

ONE QUESTION.
March 9, 2001... What fun desktop tools have you downloaded from the Internet? "This was a free download off ZDNet: 'NetPerSec' is the name of the program. It has a screen that tracks your bandwidth so you know how much information you're sending and...

Stratco CEO makes sure success is in firm's mix.
March 9, 2001... * COMPANY PROFILE: STRATCO INC. Type of company: Equipment design for product mixing Chairman and CEO: S. Diane Graham City: Scottsdale E-mail: sbg@stratco.com Web site: www.stratco.com Employees: 65 Year...

Biotechs push for tax-break legislation in Maryland.
March 9, 2001... BALTIMORE -- Legislation that would offer cash incentives and tax benefits to Maryland biotechnology companies is being lauded by proponents as an innovative way to keep the state at the forefront of the country's biotech industry. One...

MoneyZone troubles.
March 9, 2001... CHARLOTTE, N.G. -- Moneyzone.com, a Charlotte-based online marketplace for business capital, put out a "for sale" sign in December, but analysts say it's a tough time for a dot-com to be looking for a white knight. The company has cut most...

Alliances shift course.
March 9, 2001... DALLAS -- Two separate technology alliances formed by i2 Technologies and Electronic Data Systems to capitalize on the popularity of online marketplaces have run into trouble, due largely to a shift of market sentiment away from such exchanges,...

Disney town slow to boot up.
March 9, 2001... ORLANDO, Fla. -- Coupling the best of a bygone era with the latest in technology was the promise of the town that Disney built. But while Victorian homes, manicured lawns and a town square have been delivered in Celebration, cutting-edge...

Young Web business lands deal with 17,000-member BOMA.
March 9, 2001... EAST BAY -- In the new new economy -- the one where dot-coms have become dot-bombs -- Greg and Brian Brown, founders of the online service manageStar, are thriving. ManageStar, a relatively young company that offers property managers...

Stock pressures on Quintus.
March 9, 2001... EAST BAY -- A new villain has emerged in the saga of fallen software maker Quintus Corp. -- Wall Street. Restated financial figures released by the company lend credence to the theory that a big factor in Quintus troubles was the desire to...

Webvan drives on.
March 9, 2001... SAN JOSE -- If Webvan is going down, it won't be without a fight. Unlike dot-coms that stop short of total cash burnout to return value to shareholders or save face, Webvan is ramping up efforts despite shrinking cash reserves, downgrades from...

Digital appliances in future?
March 9, 2001... SAN JOSE -- Apple Computer Inc. has enjoyed a reputation for investing a little style in an otherwise dowdy computer industry. Now the Cupertino computer maker may be considering a leap from the desktop to the living room and, beyond with a new...

Keeping e-mail secret.
March 9, 2001... Secret messages aren't just for government agents. And when it comes to personal emails, you don't want to broadcast your private thoughts for just anyone to read. One possible solution? Disguise them as widely despised spam through Spain...

Incubate.com keeps its first success in nest.
March 9, 2001... Incubate.com, one of the Valley's few birthing centers for technology businesses, is keeping its first child and looking for quick income. Mammoth Media will remain within Incubate and be rebranded, still offering marketing and public...

Technology startups gain new venture fund.
March 9, 2001... Investors at Solstice Capital in Tucson have access to a new venture fund exclusively for investments in Arizona technology startups. The fund comes via a partnership with Village Ventures in Massachusetts. Officials said the fund's value,...