The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun articles from May 1998

The Business Journal - Serving Phoenix & the Valley of the Sun archives from May 1998

Campaign starting on growth fight. (Arizona regulation on future construction)
May 29, 1998... Now that Arizona lawmakers have approved a state measure to guide future construction, a publicity blitz to oppose urban growth boundaries is expected to start soon. For weeks, homebuilding officials and others were busy enlisting support...

Few making jokes about Iridium now. (global communications venture)
May 29, 1998... In the midst of seemingly endless technical problems last year surrounding the initial launches of satellites making up the global communications venture Iridium, it wasn't unusual to hear skeptics joke about getting a calendar of scheduled...

'It's our turn': Glendale leads parade as boom marches west. (Glendale, Arizona)
May 29, 1998... Glendale leads parade as boom marches west Household income Median Average Glendale $35,769 $41,735 Valley $37,231 $45,712 Education ...

Lobbyists seek more voices for next year.
May 29, 1998... The 1998 legislative session is over, but that doesn't mean business lobbying groups are relaxing. Most are working on ways to give business owners more clout at the Capitol next year. The Arizona Chamber of Commerce, for example, is...

Ranks of women leaders thinner with Munro's loss. (retirement of Bank of America Southwest CEO Kathy Munro)
May 29, 1998... The already small number of women CEOs in the Valley soon will be reduced by one after word this week that Kathy Munro has decided to leave Bank of America Southwest. Munro said she will retire Oct. 1 as chief executive of the bank's...

ASU professors study east Phoenix land use. (Arizona State University)
May 29, 1998... In east Phoenix, bisected by the Red Mountain Freeway, is one of the city's largest undeveloped properties just minutes from the downtown corridor. Decades of growth has sent the city's boundaries for miles in all directions, while this...

Valley ad man genuine family guy. (creative director and president of Moses Anshell Louis Moses)
May 29, 1998... Early on, Moses driven by 'ignorance, stupidity' His office isn't littered with the scores of awards Moses Anshell has won during its 16-year history. The creative director and president of the Phoenix ad agency prefers pictures of his...

Land company ventures into lending arena. (New Mexico and Arizona Land Co.)(Real Estate & Development Trends)
May 29, 1998... The company is older than Arizona, has assets totaling nearly $70 million and thrives with eight employees. But that's only the beginning. In recent months, the New Mexico and Arizona Land Co. has opened a new chapter in a company history...

Hospital hotbed: Lutheran eyes Gilbert. (Lutheran Healthcare Network's plans to build a hospital in the east Valley, Arizona)
May 22, 1998... Lutheran eyes Gilbert Lutheran Healthcare Network's plans to build a hospital in the east Valley are adding fire to what is becoming a hotbed of activity for hospital systems. As more and more health companies enter the Valley's highest...

Labor shortage hurts downtown. (Phoenix, Arizona)(includes related article on Cornerstone Investment Co.'s joint venture with Universal health realty Income Trust of Maryland)
May 22, 1998... While the labor shortage has been generating lots of headlines lately, the problem has plagued downtown Phoenix since the 1996. The Downtown Phoenix Partnership Inc. has been frustrated for nearly two years in its efforts to match job...

Why Valley fund-raisers are full of good cheer. (fund-rasing events in Arizona)
May 22, 1998... The top 25 charitable events raised $11.7 million, $4.6 million more than last season. For a full list, see page 59. The competition is tougher and the work is a lot harder, yet the rewards never have been higher as Valley fund-raising events...

Kunasek alleges panel violated open meetings. (Arizona Corp Commissioner Carl Kunasek's accusations against commission chairman Jim Irvin of creating an electric power deregulation proposal behind closed doors)
May 22, 1998... A deregulation plan that would postpone by two years electric power choice for all but the state's largest customers is being threatened by charges surrounding its origins. Arizona Corporation Commissioner Carl Kunasek and several other...

America West boosts business travel flights. (American West Airlines' schedule travel flight schedule in Arizona)
May 22, 1998... America West Airlines has changed its flight schedule to boost ticket sales from business travelers, especially those in the Valley. The new schedule features more nonstops from Phoenix to East Coast cities and better timing of arrivals and...

Housing, shops proposed for historic site. (Glendale, Arizona)
May 22, 1998... One of the tallest, oldest and most prominent brick buildings near downtown Glendale is proposed for renovation into loft-style housing and commercial shops. Or it could house a climbing school, a microbrewery or a restaurant. Or maybe...

Tempe language training firm expanding. (SpeakFirst's plans to launch a national franchise expansion)
May 22, 1998... SpeakFirst, a Tempe-based foreign language training firm, is poised to launch a national franchise expansion. The company has plans to establish 91 franchises in major cities throughout the United States, according to Marilyn Zupicich,...

Manager carries on Webb's vision. (Chuck Roach, senior vice president and general manager of Sun Cities-Phoenix Division, Del Webb Corp)
May 22, 1998... Building success begins with building people From his office window in Sun City West, Chuck Roach watches quail scurry across the parking lot and hop up into the grills of cars to check for road-kill bugs. "Early in the morning, we've seen...

AZ tops in new banks. (Arizona)
May 15, 1998... Arizona gained more banks than any other state in 1997, as smaller banks in the state start to fill a void created by consolidation in the industry. The number of banks in Arizona increased by six in 1997, putting it tops among seven states...

Capitol gains: how business agenda fared. (Arizona's new laws on business)
May 15, 1998... How business agenda fared While the Arizona Legislature was dragging its 1998 session across the finish line this week. the state's businesses already had scampered away with significant victories beyond the governor's recent tax cut...

Consumers zapped in utility proposal. (deregulation of electric utilities)
May 15, 1998... Electricity consumers could end up footing the entire bill for opening Arizona's power market to competition under a controversial recommendation issued by an Arizona Corporation Commission official. The proposal by deregulation hearing...

Construction industry mad as nails at ASU. (Arizona State University's plan to move construction school to East campus)
May 15, 1998... Arizona State University is building up a lot of resentment with its proposal to move its construction school to the ASU East campus. In fact, several supporters in the construction industry say they will stop their funding and teaching...

Home-health care cries jeopardy from cut backs.
May 15, 1998... The home-health care industry is in a state of turmoil, fearful that huge Medicare cutbacks will cause some home-health care organizations to close their doors. Many are worried that such huge cutbacks will cause some home-health agencies to...

East Valley Health nudges toward partner. (East Valley Regional Health System)
May 15, 1998... East Valley Regional Health System has taken another step closer to finding a partner. Salomon Smith Barney gave its environmental assessment presentation to the health system last week and offered a plan for courses of action. Kaylor...

Venture deal strong for 1st quarter. (venture capital)
May 15, 1998... Asian crisis? What Asian crisis? Ongoing troubles in overseas markets, which have spelled trouble for some high-tech companies in investment circles, don't seem to be discouraging venture capitalists who doled out $43.7 million to Arizona...

Amkor Technology Inc. nets $479M in its IPO. (initial public offering)
May 15, 1998... Amkor Technology Inc., which employs 280 people in Chandler, raised $479 million in an initial public offering this month. The company sold 30 million shares of common stock - with a selling stockholder offering an additional 5 million shares...

Power corridor adding muscle. (office market along Camelback Road in Phoenix, Arizona)
May 8, 1998... In a move expected to increase the temperature in an already white-hot market along Camelback Road in Phoenix, Koll Development Co. plans to start construction of an eight-story office building southwest of 24th Street and Camelback. The new...

Staying in the game. (Scottsdale, Arizona's hotel market)
May 8, 1998... Scottsdale hotels spending over $76 million to spruce up properties, lure more customers Whether it's in response to the booming growth of economy hotels or due to normal wear-and-tear, Scottsdale resorts and hotels are updating their style,...

Snafu may snag utilities. (snag in Arizona Corp. Commission's deregulation policy may delay benefits of deregulation for electric utilities)
May 8, 1998... The Arizona Corporation Commission is rethinking one of the biggest pieces of electricity deregulation in a move that could postpone some of its most anticipated benefits. Opposition from power companies and significant technological hurdles...

Businesses could find $10M in state tax relief. (Arizona)
May 8, 1998... The Arizona Legislature's special session on budget and taxation is expected to produce $10 million in immediate business tax relief. The largest savings from Gov. Jane Hull's tax cut proposal would come from reducing the corporate income tax...

Arizona Bank reaches for Valley customers.
May 8, 1998... Arizona Bank, which has debuted as No. 6 on The Business Journal's 1998 list of the Valley's top banks, plans to go after consumer and then commercial business in the Phoenix area. David T.C. Wright, president and chief executive officer of...

Family counters lack of work. (Scottsdale, AZ-based J&D Installations Inc.)
May 8, 1998... Jack Rice was elated. As owner of J&D Installations Inc., he was in the middle of completing eight jobs for one customer and his kitchen cabinet installation business seemed poised for major expansion. It was 1995 and Rice had been running...

Check it out: authorities try to crack down on commercial check fraud. (Arizona)
May 8, 1998... Having someone dig though your garbage - ferreting out what bank you use for your payroll account, what the account number is and then printing and cashing false checks with that information - is one check counterfeiting scenario that local...

Banker propelled by people skills. (Founders Bank of Arizona CEO Julian Fruhling)
May 8, 1998... First impressions count with bank president Visitors to the Founders Bank office in north Scottsdale are immediately made to feel welcome as they are greeted upon walking through the front door. Julian Fruhling, president and chief...

Samaritan sale fuels growth. (Samaritan Health System)
May 1, 1998... Cash-strapped Samaritan Health System is close to selling two of its Arizona hospitals, expecting to rake in more than $200 million. That will put the state's largest hospital system in a position to expand into growth areas of the Valley,...

Casual ways: firms relax dress policy. (Arizona-based businesses)
May 1, 1998... Casual-day policies at Valley businesses have evolved, but, for the most part, you still aren't likely to find out what your colleagues' bare toes or legs look like. Eighty-one out of 100 Valley businesses responding to a survey by The...

Downtown revival aims at Roosevelt. (Phoenix, Arizona; Roosevelt Neighborhood)
May 1, 1998... A mix of federal and state money is proposed to help accelerate redevelopment of a part of downtown Phoenix that some say is the entrance to the city's heart. With its five-year redevelopment work ending in the Longview neighborhood, the...

Glendale hospital loses Medicare certification. (HealthSouth Valley of the Sun Rehabilitation Hospital)
May 1, 1998... HealthSouth Valley of the Sun Rehabilitation Hospital has lost its Medicare certification after a routine check found that the Glendale facility did not have a system in place to ensure quality of care. When the Health Care Financing...

Sports medical center gains major tenant. (planned sports medical facility in Scottsdale to have HealthSouth Corp. as major tenant)
May 1, 1998... A sports medical facility is planned in north Scottsdale where the major tenant will be HealthSouth Corp., an Alabama company that has outpatient surgery centers across the United States and in other countries. The $12.5 million project on...

Polymer utility poles could cut wood use. (Powertrusion 2000 International Inc. to use polymer composite poles)
May 1, 1998... Wooden poles, which for decades have held up the country's telephone and electrical wiring, may soon get the shaft, thanks to a Scottsdale company that wants to replace them with a high-tech stand-in. Powertrusion 2000 International Inc. has...

SanTan to heat up competitive mall scene. (SanTan Fashion Center)
May 1, 1998... While the opening of the SanTan Fashion Center in Chandler is three years away, some retail community members already are predicting there will be minor casualties in the southeast Valley's mall scene. It's a case of too many malls too close...

Courtroom opts for technology over paper. (Arizona courtrooms)
May 1, 1998... Two civil lawsuits surrounding one of the nation's largest plumes of contaminated groundwater are the catalyst bringing more technology into Arizona courtrooms. The cases, Lofgren v. Motorola Inc. and Baker v. Motorola Inc. are scheduled for...

Economists duel over gasoline standards. (Arizona)
May 1, 1998... Business groups pushing California gasoline standards for cleaner Valley air hope to douse opposition to their effort with a strongly worded report from one of the Valley's best-known economists. The analysis by Scottsdale economist Elliott...

Produce supplier adds new lines. (fruit and vegetable distributor Rainbow Produce Co. adds pasta to product line)
May 1, 1998... Rainbow Produce Co. of Phoenix is branching out from its line of fruits and vegetables to become a distributor for Sanguigni Pasta. Bruce Lincis, founder and president of Rainbow Produce, said distributing pasta was a good way to expand his...