Denver Business Journal articles from May 2000

Denver Business Journal archives from May 2000

Coffman pushed to remove lobbyist.(Denver's portion of the tobacco company settlement)
May 5, 2000... Colorado State Treasurer Mike Coffman's hard-fought and ultimately unsuccessful bid to win legislative support for securitizing Colorado's estimated $2.9 billion tobacco settlement came under fire this week when a high-profile lobbyist from the...

Vitale's latest venture.(Mary Beth Vitale joins WestWindMedia.com)
May 5, 2000... After surviving 22 years in the converging communications industry, Mary Beth Vitale can testify that the one true constant in life is change. Vitale recently left her post at local ISP and telecommunications company RMI.NET, where she...

Privacy concerns mounting.(financial information privacy regulation)
May 5, 2000... Feds, state address keeping data secret Colorado considers itself far ahead of other states when it comes to dealing with the hot financial privacy issues facing banks and other Financial services companies. The state Legislature...

Natural gas prices up as production falls.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... If consumers thought they were hurting because of higher gasoline prices, just wait until they get their utility bill this summer. Natural gas prices have skyrocketed to their highest point in recent years causing Colorado's independent...

Wyo. deal benefits Denver.(Alberta Energy Co. opens Denver office)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... One of the largest natural gas producers in North America is opening a Denver business unit. Calgary-based Alberta Energy Co. Ltd. announced the new office after completing the acquisition of the Jonah natural gas field in Wyoming from...

CDOT weighs concrete vs. asphalt.(Colorado Department of Transportation I-25 contract)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The project hasn't even been put out for bid yet, but already the competition for the I-25 widening project is getting fierce. Both the Colorado Asphalt Paving Association and the American Concrete Pavement Association claim to have the...

Why A1 Roker holds the keys for tourism.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Is Colorado getting desperate to gain publicity for the state as a tourist mecca? The Colorado Tourism Board has taken to smuggling actors into the audience of New York City's Today Show with a sign that says "I'd rather be in Colorado."...

DIA makes logical move.(Denver International Airport removes toll plazas)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Denver International Airport is ripping out its toll plazas and is replacing them with pay booths right outside the airport's parking lots and garages. It's about time. Now, maybe visitors to the airport will be able to get in and out in...

Denver outgrows United.(United Airlines adds 200 domestic flights in Chicago)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... United Airlines will not grow as quickly in Denver this year. The U.S. Department of Transportation gave the airline its approval for 200 additional daily domestic flights out of its main hub airport, Chicago O'Hare. Airplanes and crews that...

Lone Tree comes of age.(Lone Tree, Colorado adds a park bench)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The city of Lone Tree is about the addition of one park bench outside its Civic Center. According to the city's newsletter, Timberlines, more benches are on the way. Lone Tree has ordered more than two dozen of the benches that are made...

Spell check.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... A notice was sent out last week inviting people to an informal reception at String's Restaurant honoring Mayor Wellington Webb's new Chief-of-Staff Wayne Cauthern. I don't know who I like better Wayne Cauthern or Wayne Cauthern. It's a tossup....

DENVER'S WAR OF WORDS.(Rocky Mountain News, Denver Post circulation war)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Both dailies claim victory, but Rocky makes gains in metro area The six-month numbers are out in Denver's fierce daily newspaper war and both publications are running big headlines touting that they're winning. But who's right? ...

Commercial brokerage names CEO.(Mile High Properties LLC hires Thom Williams)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Mile High Properties LLC's player to be named later has been named. The Denver-based commercial real estate company announced this week that Thom Williams is its new president and chief operating officer, rounding out its senior management...

AuraServ expands, dials untapped phone market.(AuraServ Communications)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Service aimed between PBX, Centre telephone systems Some phone systems make employees feel like they might do better with two paper cups and a piece of string, but AuraServ Communications has created a phone service that customers say is...

Corrections and amplifications.(Correction Notice)
May 5, 2000... * In "Ratepayers to bear cost of shutting down facility" in the April 28-May 4 edition, it was incorrectly stated that closure of the Leyden Mine wouldn't eliminate the gas odors the neighbors have complained about for years. Residents...

Sierra Club targets friends, foes in ads.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Multi-million $ campaign praises Udall's votes Colorado public officials who haven't supported pro-environment issues in the past might want to watch their backs in light of a new advertising campaign funded by the Sierra Club. ...

Key Bank's move is official.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... KeyBank's Colorado headquarters is now officially located in the World Trade Center on Broadway. The Denver area's eighth-largest lender with. $1.6. billion in assets, according to The Denver Business Journal's March ranking of area banks,...

Shea may buy acres near DIA for houses.(Shea Homes, Denver International Airport)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... A master-planned housing development set for the Denver International Airport environs should soon take a big step toward, reality. Denver's L.C. Fulenwider Inc., which has long been a primary landowner and master developer in the DIA...

Denver considered for HQ.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Denver could figure even more prominently than it already does in Morrison Knudsen Corp.'s purchase of Raytheon Engineers & Constructors. Boise, Idaho-based Morrison Knudsen, which is buying RE&C from defense contractor Raytheon Co. for an...

Californian finds way to build better software.(Bertrand Meyer)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Software engineering pioneer Bertrand Meyer came to town this week to show local developers how to blaze new software development trails without ending up in buggy terrain. Meyer, who is president of Interactive Software Engineering Inc. in...

Schoettler carries message to Istanbul.
May 5, 2000... Former Lt. Gov. Gail Schoettler is in Istanbul May 8 to June 2 for a worldwide conference to discuss the allocation of radio spectrum for a variety of satellite and wireless services. The International Telecommunications Union hosts the...

Crown Media goes public, but scales back price, size.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The on-again, off-again initial public offering for Crown Media Holdings Inc. is on again. Englewood-based Crown Media last month postponed plans to go public with 12.5 million shares of stock after Wall Street's latest tumble. Crown...

Power leaders for Xcel named.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... New Century Energies and Northern States Power Co. have announced some changes to their leadership team once the merger of the two utility holding companies is completed this summer. Denver will be home to two local operations that provide...

FTC targets dealer.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Federal Trade Commission has charged that a Colorado Springs auto dealer ran deceptive lease advertisements on the Internet. The dealer, Nelson B. Noland, owner of R.N. Motors Inc. and Red Noland Cadillac Inc., is accused of failing to...

Cherry Creek tailors ads to certain types.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Cherry Creek shopping center has invested in a major marketing campaign that's aimed at three types of shoppers. Thanks to a major research project, the mall has discovered three different customer profiles who will be targeted with the new...

Cafe Odyssey plans to open more eateries.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Cafe Odyssey Inc., from its newly relocated headquarters in downtown Denver, intends to launch a two-tier expansion program for both large and small locations. The company has two Cafe Odyssey restaurants, in Denver and in Minneapolis,...

Colo. bank makes watchdog's list.(Community Banks)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... One Colorado bank made Bauer Financial Reports Inc.'s April list of "troubled and problematic" U.S. financial institutions. Community Banks of Colorado's branch in Cripple Creek, mining community-turned-gaming town just west of Colorado...

Two Colorado HMOs pick new leaders.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Two of Colorado's largest health plans have new CEOs. Dr. Val Dean, a veteran member of Denver's health-care community, has replaced Eric Sipf as the top executive at PacifiCare of Colorado. United Healthcare of Colorado chose Victor...

Quizno's expanding in D.C. area.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The nation's third-largest operator of submarine sandwich restaurants --behind Subway and Blimpie -- wants to expand in the D.C. area. Denver-based Quizno's, which has three locations in the area, is ready to add more, said John Teza, a...

Colo. company targeted by FTC.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... A Colorado man accused of selling a herbal "cure" for AIDS, cancer and diabetes would pay a fine of $17,500 under a proposed settlement with the Federal Trade Commission. Michael D. Miller, doing business in Crestone as Natural Heritage...

Waste, fraud cost Medicare $13.5B last year.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Waste, blunders and outright fraud cost the U.S. government's Medicare program $13.5 billion in 1999, up 7 percent after three years of drops. That means that eight cents out of every dollar was stolen, compared with 14 cents in 1996. ...

U S West employees ready for Olympics.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Phone company ranks among best supporters of worker athletes in country Street & Smith's SportBusiness Journal Team U S West is not your average job program for Olympic hopefuls. The program was developed 11 years ago by Mike...

Colorado makes list for top spots for sport.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... MountainBoard Sports Inc. of Colorado Springs, a maker of mountainboards, put two Colorado locales on its list of the world's top 10 places to ride the snowboard-skateboard hybrid. Two Colorado Springs hot spots made the list -- The Valley...

Federal legislation could threaten fantasy leagues.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Broad-ranging legislation being considered on Capitol Hill may affect the online sports fantasy industry, some say, by giving sports leagues more control of the statistics used in fantasy games and encouraging them to raise the licensing fees...

Red ink flooding accounting empire.(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... CBIZ struggles with rollup strategy It took 10 years for founder David Fuchs to grow Tri-Tek Information Systems into a $35 million company. It took only three months for Fuchs to leave the St. Louis-based company after he sold it to...

Largest Denver-Area Mortgage Banking Companies.(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Largest Denver-Area Mortgage Banking Companies (Ranked by total dollar volume of loans originated in Colorado) ...

Century Business on hunt for new CEO.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Wanted: National business services provider needs results-oriented executive with a successful record of pulling together offices in a large number of geographic markets. Public company experience essential; high profile with investment...

Critics see flaws in medical records privacy rules.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Hospitals, insurers and employers say proposed medical records privacy regulations will be difficult to administer, resulting in increased health care costs. Biotechnology companies fear the confidentiality requirements will make health...

Distrust sparks calls for online privacy laws.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... As of April 21, Web sites must obtain parental consent before they collect, use or disclose personal information about children -- requirements signed into law last year. Privacy advocates now want Congress to make sure that online...

XCare's revenue up 117% from last year.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Englewood-based XCare.net Inc. saw its first-quarter revenue increase dramatically from the previous year's fourth quarter. The company reported $2.9 million for the first quarter ended March 31, a 30 percent increase over the 1999 fourth...

Basin Exploration Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Basin Exploration Inc. earned $22.7 million in revenue for the first quarter ended March 31. That marks a 74 percent increase from the $13.1 million the company earned during the same quarter the previous year. Basin Exploration's net...

Vari-L Co. Inc.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Denver-based Vari-L Co. Inc. saw its first-quarter profits set records. Net sales for the first, quarter ended March 31 were $7.9 million, a 48 percent increase over the $5.3 million reported for the 1999 first quarter. Net income...

Group wants green cards, not more H-1B visas.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... "The new economy needs new Americans," members of the Immigration Reform Coalition contend in a letter to Congress that advocates "green cards, not guest workers" approach to solving the high-tech labor shortage. The technology industry is...

Tax debate continues.(Internet)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The presidents of 11 technology trade associations sent a joint letter to members of Congress asking them to address Internet taxation in a "systematic and comprehensive manner." The associations, which range from the American Electronics...

Workers can complain.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Occupational Safety and Health Administration is making it easier for workers to file complaints about workplace hazards by setting up a "Workers' Page" on its Web site. The site providers workers with an electronic option for turning...

HUD homes go for $1.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The Department of Housing and Urban Development has begun selling homes to local governments for $1 in an initiative designed to create affordable housing and revitalize neighborhoods. HUD acquires the homes when borrowers default on loans...

Congress gets around to Spanish-American War tax.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... If federal legislation currently in the works gets passed, phone bills jacked up by a turn-of-the-century-imposed tax could get lower. Making its way through the U.S. House of Representatives is a bill to repeal a 102-year-old tax on...

Lawmakers address spam.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The campaign to can spam is getting the attention of federal lawmakers. And the basis for the new bill sitting before Congress is anti-spam legislation adopted in California last year. Under the federal "Can Spain Act" (HR 3113),...

Historic game lives on today.(base ball)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... 'Base ball' finds 'cranks' Last Saturday at Fort Logan, which was a calvery post in the late 1800s, a drive past the legions of youth soccer teams on the expanse of green grass turns into a drive back in time. Tucked away behind some...

'Where the Heart Is' ends up as a mess of cliches.(Review)
May 5, 2000... "Where the Heart Is" starts with good intentions but ends up being a two-hour Wal-Mart commercial. The main character, a poor, pregnant teenager named Novalee Nation, gets dumped at a small-town Wal-Mart store in Oklahoma by her boyfriend....

'Patent Leather' great swan song.(Review)
May 5, 2000... It is appropriate mat Bill McHale's swan song at the Country Dinner Playhouse also is one of his favorites. McHale, who retired this year after 30 years at the south metro dinner theater, produced and directed one of his favorite musicals...

Heat, thin air hinder flight expansion.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Hot summer days hobble big DIA jets Putting the "I" in Denver International Airport is not as easy as it sounds. The airport has successfully snagged direct flights from DIA to six different cities in Canada, three cities in Mexico and...

Travelers now point, click and go.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... But today's travel agency businesses must prepare for massive re-engineering Scoot over Mom & Pop Travel, Inc., you've got company. As it has in many industries, the Internet has found a home in travel and tourism. And this summer's...

Ocean Journey turns 1, visitor count at 1.4M.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... The Denver tourism industry has been fishy for nearly a full year now and you can thank Ocean Journey for luring in the tourists to the Platte River Valley. "We've been really embraced by people," Ocean Journey President Jim Hekkers said....

The changing face of travel agency business.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... In the words of Mark Twain, "The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated." The travel agent industry is alive and well and, in my opinion, will be for many years to come. However, taking a line from a famous Bob Dylan song, "The times they...

Tips on finding the perfect meeting location.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... So it's your job to plan the next meeting for your company or association. How do you pick an appropriate site for the event that will make its success likely? Site selection breaks down into four categories: city, hotel convention...

Staying safe: Business travel tips from experts.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... With more businesses going global, executives are increasingly finding themselves boarding planes bound for faraway markets where the potential for the unexpected, and possibly disastrous, can befall them. Whether your company is sending...

Best place for? in Colorado -- read the book.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)(Review)
May 5, 2000... The best out-of-place animals in the state can be found at The Colorado Alligator Farm near Alamosa and the best place to see junk transformed into animal sculptures is the Swetsville Zoo near Fort Collins, according to a new travel guidebook,...

Demand for adventure trips increasing yearly.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... You don't have to settle for an average, ordinary, just-like-last-year vacation. If you've got to miss a Lions Club meeting, wouldn't you rather it be because you were heli-hiking in the Canadian Rockies or gambling with the native guides...

More business travelers are taking kids along.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... More and more business travelers are taking the kids along and they want something for them to do other than watch TV and hang out in video arcades. According to research by Travel Industry Association of America, younger baby boomers are...

Software developer changing its name.(WorldWerx Inc. to Vroom Technologies Inc.)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... WorldWerx Inc., a telecommunications-focused software developer, has changed its corporate name to Vroom Technologies Inc. The telecom-focused product lines will also undergo a name change to be announced soon. Pollack Norman Advertising of...

Aurora Chamber of Commerce.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Aurora Chamber of Commerce awarded Randall C. Hertel, vice president and development partner of Majestic Realty Co., as its 1999 Business Person of the Year Award. In 1999, Hertel signed lease agreements totaling 405,000 square feet.

Building Specialties Store Inc.(president Steve Osborne named Colorado's Small Business Person of the Year)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Steve Osborne, president of Building Specialties Store Inc. based in Durango, is Colorado's Small Business Person of the Year for 2000. This award is given by the SBA to one of nine entrepreneurs selected as finalists. Other Colorado Small...

Boulder County Business Hall of Fame.(awards)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Boulder County Business Hall of Fame's new inductees are Stan Elmore, Bob Greenlee, Tom and Caroline Hoyt, John Sackett and Richard Salberg. The nonprofit organizations recognizes those who have been instrumental through business-related...

RNL Design.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Victoria G. David, laboratory architect/planning specialist at RNL Design, will judge the "Laboratory of the Year" competition sponsored by R&D Magazine. She is one of seven other judges.

National Association of Home Builders' Institute of Residential Marketing.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The National Association of Home Builders' Institute of Residential Marketing awarded Doris Pearlman, president of Possibilities for Design Inc., with the 1999 "Excellence in Education" award.

Graebel Van Lines.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Graebel Van Lines won two safety awards from the American Moving and Storage Association. It took first place in the lowest accident rate category during 1999 and second place in the safety initiative category with its driver training program.

On the move.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Bobby Spencer, an agent for American Family Insurance, moved his office from Littleton to 541 W. Highlands Ranch Pkwy #109, Highlands Ranch, 80126.

On the Web.(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... JG Johnson Architects PC launched a new Web site at www.jgjohnson.com. The site will be used as a marketing tool for the firm, but will also contain a project management application, providing a faster means of communication and an easier...

NEWSMAKERS.(executive appointments)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Architecture and design Carter Design Inc. hired David Augustinis as director of design and planning. Augustinis brings 18 years of experience to the position. Bechta Group Ltd. Facilities Consultants named Lisa Walker space planner...

Enterprise office moves to historic home.(Enterprise Foundation's Denver office relocated to the Graystone Mansion)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Enterprise Foundation's Denver office relocated to the Graystone Mansion. The new office is on the corner of 18th and Williams streets, near both the Five Points and Curtis Park areas. The newly renovated Graystone Mansion is more than...

Event raises big bucks.(Colorado AIDS Project fundraiser)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The month of March was a big one for the Colorado AIDS Project (CAP), which brought in more than $60,009 thanks to the "Rendezvous with the Stars" fundraiser and the Denver Post's Season to Share campaign. The event brought 150 fans...

Bark at the Park 2000.(Denver dog carnival)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Bark at The Park, Denver's only canine carnival, returns to City Park on Saturday, May 20 from 8 a.m.-noon. Voted "Best Festival for Dogs" by Westword last year, Bark at the Park is a fun and unique event for dogs and their people. Interactive...

Don't rush decision in tobacco settlement.(Colorado Legislature debates settlement terms)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... The Colorado Legislature has a history of deferring major decisions until the final days of the session. The reasons are many and varied. Often, sponsors need the time to line up votes on highly contested issues. Sometimes the decisions are...

Chickens come home to roost.(low oil price set up American consumers for higher prices)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... For decades, Americans have promoted policies designed to insure, and even guarantee their country's continued dependence on foreign oil. We have declared off limits to development vast expanses of promising oil fields in the Gulf of Mexico and...

Modern architectural styles fading.(giving way to New Urbanism)
May 5, 2000... American cities show the accretions of style. Style signals the character of streets, neighborhoods and subdivisions as they sprawl into the countryside. When you go back to the Midwest and Atlantic states and drive the old two-lane highways...

Arts-minded reader likes new section.(Out of the Office section of the Denver Business Journal)(Brief Article)(Letter to the Editor)
May 5, 2000... What a great addition "Out of the Office" is to the DBJ. Thanks for your expanded coverage of scientific and cultural organizations' programs and performances. Tina Poe Colorado Business Committee for the Arts Denver

DBJ STOCK REPORT.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... DBJ STOCK REPORT Top 10 Weekly Gainers Close Net % change % change Company Name 04/28/00 change in week YTD Echostar Comm. Corp....

DBJ FUNDWATCH.(mutual fund yield trends)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... DBJ FUNDWATCH General equity funds 1 Wk. 4Wk. YTD 3 yrs. Fund Name 04/27/00 03/30/00 12/31/99 04/24/97 Westcore:Select ...

Savings Account Yields.(from Colorado banks)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... Listed are the effective annual yields, after compounding, on a variety of savings instruments offered in the Denver area. Yields are fixed rate for all certificates of deposit (CD). Rates paid are for deposits of $2,500, except jumbo CDs,...

National Interest Rate Index.(rate trends)(Brief Article)
May 5, 2000... National Interest Rate Index Current rate Previous Net change SHORT-TERM INTEREST RATES (%) week (%) (+ or -) Prime rate 9.00 9.00 ...

Borrowing Rates.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Borrowing Rates Auto terms: Personal terms: $10,000 loan. $5,000 loan, 48-month ...

Current Tax-exempt Bond Offerings.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... Current Tax-exempt Bond Offerings Issue Coupon rate Maturity Yield Colorado Wtr Resources Pwt Dev 4.85 09-01-01 4.60 Denver City & Cnty Sch Dist 5.10 12-01-07 5.10 Eagle,...

Tony's Meats: A cut above the rest.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
May 5, 2000... If butcher shops are dinosaurs of the past, then Tony's Meats and Specialty Foods is Jurassic Park. In 22 years, south suburban Denver's little meat market that could grew into a sprawling prepared-foods empire that generated $17 million...