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

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

Avnet to build $20M group headquarters.(Avnet Inc.; Valley of the Sun, Arizona)
November 6, 1998... Despite a worldwide computer slump that has bogged down the industry as a whole, Avnet Inc.'s Computer Marketing Group is expanding its Valley presence with a new $20 million headquarters. The 126,000-square-foot, two-story building will...

Bankruptcy fears create that sinking feeling; law firms brace for new filings.
November 6, 1998... Economists have been hinting at a downturn in the economy, but now there's something to anchor that talk: Attorneys who handle bankruptcy cases say business is up. And many of the Valley's large law firms are beefing up their bankruptcy...

Samaritan buys Gilbert parcel.(Samaritan Health System; Gilbert, East Valley of the Sun, Arizona)
November 6, 1998... Samaritan Health System, the Valley's largest health care provider, is buying 60 acres in Gilbert to prepare for rapid growth in the East Valley. The acreage is enough to build a hospital. Don Evans knows. His East Valley hospital...

Motorola opts to outsource manufacturing.
November 6, 1998... Motorola fans shouldn't expect many more of those multimillion-dollar semiconductor factories that have spurred much of the Phoenix area's economic growth over the past 30 years. The state's largest employer, which eliminated 2,000 Valley...

Aircraft airbag gets final touch.(AmSafe Inc's new product)
November 6, 1998... A Phoenix company is fine-tuning an airbag product aimed at reducing head injuries in aircraft crashes that occur during takeoff, approach and landing. The seat-belt airbag system is manufactured by AmSafe Inc., a $50 million-a-year...

Tabletop designs win customers.(tablecloths from party rental company TableDrama Inc.)
November 6, 1998... Few things in life resemble the splendor of a fairy tale, but a place setting dressed up by TableDrama Inc. is one of them. Let your mind wander back to the Renaissance era. Picture a long, candle-lit table covered in a brocade cloth and...

Intel's chief is in the world's spotlight.(Craig Barrett, president and chief operating officer of Intel Corp.)
November 6, 1998... Tech #1 It wasn't too long ago that in Arizona, Craig Barrett was known for little more than being the husband of Republican gubernatorial candidate Barbara Barrett. But as she chased political aspirations, he quietly was being...

Homebuilder puts value at No. 1.(Tom Lewis, founder, president and chief executive officer of T.W. Lewis Co.)
November 6, 1998... 'We do very well at 300 homes a year' Valley homebuilder Tom Lewis is a believer in quality over quantity. That's why his company, T.W. Lewis Co., since 1992 has limited itself to building about 300 homes a year. That's also why...

Downtown's changing face: Mullen's work sets the stage.(Margaret Mullen, former executive director of Downtown Phoenix Partnership)(Phoenix, AZ)
November 13, 1998... Margaret Mullen has a request for people when they look back on her years of shepherding the Downtown Phoenix Partnership. "I don't want them to remember me," she said. "I want them to remember downtown." Mullen spent almost eight...

Medical center tries again.(Maricopa Integrated Health System's search for partner)
November 13, 1998... The last time Maricopa Integrated Health System went looking for a partner it was an ugly duckling. This time the system is sprucing up with a $30 million face lift and a new chief executive as it goes courting. The health system this...

Health networks push to save MedPartner sites.(MedPartners Inc.)
November 13, 1998... John C. Lincoln Health Network and Carondelet Health Network are trying to save two of MedPartners Inc.'s four medical centers set to close by Nov. 30 in Phoenix and Tucson. And Tenet Healthcare Corp. reportedly is looking at saving a third...

Breast cancer center set at Samaritan.(Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center)
November 13, 1998... Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center, known in the Valley for its cutting-edge technology, is jumping back into the competitive fray of breast cancer. In the past years, Good Samaritan has watched numerous outpatient mammography centers...

Wells Fargo Bank sees end to big mergers.
November 13, 1998... With the completion of their merger, Wells Fargo and Norwest executives believe the last big chapter will be written in the banking industry's national consolidation binge. "We'll probably see two or three years within the banking industry...

Mesa builder sues San Jose hotel owner.(Mesa, AZ-based Joe E. Woods Inc.; San Jose, CA-based Homestead Village Inc.)
November 13, 1998... An inhospitable dispute between the owner of a new San Jose, Calif., hotel and an Arizona construction company has arisen in the form of a lawsuit. General contractor Joe E. Woods Inc. of Mesa filed suit against Homestead Village Inc. in...

Car rental agencies crash over ad slogan.(Advantage Rent-A-Car Inc.; Enterprise Rent-A-Car Co.)
November 13, 1998... A war of words involving a car-rental ad slogan has drawn locally-based Advantage Rent-A-Car Inc. into a legal fray with a major national company. Earlier this summer, Advantage, which has operations in Arizona, made a preemptive legal...

B&B guests make enterprise worthwhile.(Success Strategies)(bed and breakfast)
November 13, 1998... People typically associate the Valley with plush resorts sporting multimillion-dollar swimming pool complexes - not quaint bed-and-breakfast inns. Yet some Phoenix entrepreneurs have etched a living operating the cozy alternatives to...

Trucking firm challenges IRS.(Swift Transportation Co.)
November 13, 1998... It could cost Swift Transportation Co. $1.8 million in back taxes after its drivers were caught in Uncle Sam's three-martini-lunch crackdown. The Phoenix-based company, which owns 6,600 trucks and has 10,000 drivers, filed a petition...

KidsCare wins marketing help.(health insurance program for uninsured children)
November 20, 1998... KidsCare is about to get a booster shot. So far, the program passed by the Arizona Legislature to provide health coverage to uninsured children, has received a dismal response from eligible families. But the Arizona Health Care Cost...

Downtown may get new venue.(entertainment complex in Phoenix, Arizona)
November 20, 1998... A 5,000-seat entertainment complex may soon be added to the growing number of attractions in downtown Phoenix. It also could become the cornerstone of the redevelopment efforts of the Capitol Mall District. The plan, which involves a...

Arizona hospitals seek nursing Rx.(shortage of nurses)
November 20, 1998... A changing industry and work force is causing a nursing shortage for Arizona hospitals again this year, just as preparations begin for the busy winter season. Last year, many hospitals had to turn away sick patients because there were not...

Norwest signs go up on 8 Bank of Arizona sites.(Norwest Bank)
November 20, 1998... Bank of Arizona, known by its logo of a saguaro cactus silhouetted against a mountain range, fades into the sunset this weekend. When the sun rises Monday, it will reemerge as Norwest Bank, with a Wells Fargo stagecoach rolling into its...

East Valley inspections fall behind Phoenix.(building inspections for houses)
November 20, 1998... Most of those who moved into one of the 30,000 homes constructed in the Valley in the past year probably assume city inspectors made sure the house was built correctly. But how well the inspectors did their job depends on where in the...

Single message may not hit all markets.(diversity marketing for small businesses)
November 20, 1998... As the country's ethnic make-up becomes increasingly diverse, small businesses are being urged to go beyond promoting their products and services to a mass public. Tweaking one message to fit various ethnic groups or developing separate...

CIMsoft seeks funding to launch new company.(Banking and Finance Trends)
November 20, 1998... CIMsoft Inc., a presenter at this year's Arizona Venture Capital Conference, is seeking $3 million to establish a corporate headquarters and launch a firm created to help companies avert expensive, broad-based product recalls. The company...

Hospital environment keeps RNs in job hunt.(Arizona hospitals; registered nurses)
November 20, 1998... Nancy Young had worked for St. Joseph's Hospital and Medical Center for 10 years as a case manager, but her position was eliminated twice. At first, she worked with the hospital's nursing home. Then that closed. She transferred to the...

Samaritan wins Anthem contract.(Samaritan Health System)
November 27, 1998... Samaritan Health System has been selected as the exclusive health care provider at Anthem, Del Webb Corp.'s 5,856-acre master-planned community near New River. "There's definitely a significant trend in major master-planned communities...

Our stake in space: 10 Arizona firms help build station.(International Space Station)
November 27, 1998... Deconstruct the International Space Station, one of the biggest and most complex structures ever to be assembled in space, and you'll find many of its parts stamped "Made in Arizona." NASA's scientific and explorative venture into space has...

Iridium big help in hurricane relief.
November 27, 1998... Iridium LLC is marketing its satellite-powered phone network to wealthy corporate globe trotters, but some of the first beneficiaries of the service will be the poorest of the poor. Officials with Iridium and Motorola Inc. are putting the...

BofA closing trust offices.(Bank of America)
November 27, 1998... The ax is falling on Bank of America's trust and private banking departments in Arizona as a result of its merger with NationsBank. Half the staff, 35 people, in trust services and private banking in the Valley and in Tucson, were recently...

Investors smile down on Arizona's markets.
November 27, 1998... Randy Eckel has a telescope pointed out the window of his 23rd-floor corner office, an expensive trinket that allows him to gaze across the Valley onto a market that has served his company well during the past six years. Eckel, co-founder...

Z-Teca eyes expansion, Cucina! backs off Valley.(Phoenix Metropolitan Area)
November 27, 1998... Two restaurant chains have taken divergent paths in their Valley operations. Z-Teca Mexican Grill has plans for rapid expansion, while Cucina! Cucina! Inc. is cutting back its presence. Z-Teca hopes it has the ingredients for success....

Phoenix restaurant fights city over zoning.(former Top of Central restaurant)
November 27, 1998... A Phoenix businessman is straggling to reopen a Central Avenue restaurant that has ties to Arizona's territorial days. George Nackard has spent about $215,000 so far in renovating a restaurant at the southeast comer of Central Avenue and...

The 'square peg' makes his way; Castleberry takes helm for the third time.(W. Thomas Castleberry)
November 27, 1998... W. Thomas Castleberry likes to play the part of the crotchety old man, frequently reminding others of his age {just 61), waning energy and how reluctant he is to smile, especially for the camera. But don't be fooled. Behind the...

Finding identity means survival: gift basket owner touts personal touch for business.(Extraordinary Basket Co.)
November 27, 1998... With nearly 100,000 gift-basket companies in the United States - 1,000 in Arizona - differentiating from the competition can be tough. A few companies have tried to separate themselves by focusing on corporate clients, offering corporate...

Holiday hiring: Valley retailers hope labor grinch doesn't spoil season.(Phoenix Metropolitan Area)
November 27, 1998... Even before kids donned their costumes for Halloween, Valley retailers began preparing for holidays hiring. If projections come true, this holiday season will be the best since 1994 in terms of total sales. A study done by accounting firm...