Denver Business Journal articles from November 1997

Denver Business Journal archives from November 1997

Dealers: felons should not sell cars. (proposed Colorado law)
November 7, 1997... Colorado soon may slam the door on felons seeking to sell cars and trucks for a living. Automobile dealers, together with the Colorado Motor Vehicle Dealer Licensing Board, are preparing to ask the Legislature for authority to bar most felons...

Quark in hunt for hires: software firm's ads suggest 200 openings.
November 7, 1997... Quark Inc. is kicking off a hiring push that could bring as many as 200 new jobs to Denver. In late October, the Denver-based software company initiated a nationwide employee search for 200 new positions with full-page advertisements in The...

Defrosting El Nino hype. (climatic phenomenon)
November 7, 1997... El Nino was framed. The "little boy" was arrested, tried and convicted of a crime it didn't commit - the mighty Colorado blizzard of October 1997. At least that is what one of the state's leading climatologists claims. In recent weeks,...

Tourism board pushes for funding. (Colorado Tourism Board)
November 7, 1997... Permanent source sought to promote state The 1998 session of the Colorado Legislature likely will debate several proposals to provide a permanent source of state tourism promotion funds, even as the Colorado Tourism Board marshals its forces...

War of the wireless services. (in Denver, CO)
November 7, 1997... DBJ puts cellular, PCS providers to the test Let's get ready to rumble. Wireless phone services have turned the metro area into the scene of a brawl - although a civilized one where everyone is easy to reach. They are sparing over the...

Cab companies pass hurdle in merger. (Metro Taxi Inc.'s merger with Coach USA Inc.)
November 7, 1997... One of the city's smallest taxi companies has failed in a last-ditch effort to stop the merger of Denver's Metro Taxi Inc. with Coach USA Inc. of Houston. American Taxi, a 2-year-old company, claimed that Coach and Metro tricked it into...

Businesses gird for higher premiums. (health care insurance costs among Colorado firms)
November 7, 1997... Small companies may see largest jump in health-care costs After a few years savoring stable health insurance premiums, many Colorado companies and their employees - especially small businesses - have been shocked by bills they're getting for...

HMO execs' salaries difficult to pin down. (health maintenance organizations)
November 7, 1997... DBJ search finds partial information; Kaiser, PacifiCare, QualMed pay most Part of what consumers pay health-maintenance organizations in their monthly premiums goes to administrative costs such as executive compensation. Though HMOs are...

New restaurant complex offers 'interactive dining.' (Dave and Buster's)
November 7, 1997... Dave & Buster's is like nothing you've ever seen, promises Dave Corriveau, co-founder of the Dallas-based company that will open a 48,000-square-foot complex at the Colorado Center Dec. 18. The restaurant and entertainment complex features not...

Discounters key to 16th Street Mall's revival. (shopping center in Denver, CO)
November 7, 1997... Downtown Denver is steadily filling some of the vacancies along the 16th Street Mall, and one of the most recent, Ross Dress for Less, already has found a loyal customer base. The discount retailer, which opened on 16th and Stout streets, has...

Miles Cortez quitting to start boutique firm. (McKenna and Cuneo executive to start litigation boutique called Cortez Macaulay and Bernhardt)
November 7, 1997... Macaulay, Bernhardt and others leave McKenna Attorney Miles Cortez is leaving McKenna & Cuneo with five other lawyers to start a litigation boutique called Cortez Macaulay & Bernhardt. Cortez joined the Washington, D.C.-based firm in 1993,...

J.D. Edwards seeking acquisitions; $300M raised from software giant's IPO will fund plan to buy companies. (initial public offering)
November 7, 1997... J.D. Edwards & Co. plans to use the $300 million it raised in an initial public offering to acquire other companies, perhaps overseas, the company's president said. "The strength of the IPO is more emotional than solid," C. Edward McVaney...

Motorcycle company gears up. (Eller Industries Inc. to buy Indian Motorcycle Manufacturing Inc.)
November 7, 1997... Eller Industries Inc. has signed a letter of intent to buy the beleaguered Indian Motorcycle Manufacturing Inc. out of receivership. Eller Industries, led by president Lonnie Labriola, agreed to pay $20.5 million for the assets of the company,...

Top California SBA lender expanding to Denver. (SierraWest Bancorp; Small Business Administration)
November 7, 1997... SACRAMENTO, CALIF. - SierraWest Bancorp in Truckee, the area's largest Small Business Administration lender, is expanding its SBA lending program into three other states. In the past, SierraWest had confined its SBA activity to California and...

Daily papers boost Sunday readership. (Denver, CO)
November 7, 1997... But Rocky loses ground during the week Circulation battle continues Here are circulation figures for The Denver Post and Rocky Mountain News for the six-month periods ended Sept. 30 for the last three years: ...

Tailoring top execs' fashions: metro businesses help bigwigs with shopping. (Denver, CO)
November 7, 1997... Business people without the time or inclination to shop can turn to Eric Tack for help. Tack, president and chief executive officer of Executive Clothiers, visits clients in their homes or offices, takes their measurements and consults with...

Blue Cross bills total $5M in effort to go public. (Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado)
November 7, 1997... Outside experts, especially lawyers and accountants, have carved a $5.2 million industry out of the conversion of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado into a for-profit company. The Blues have spent nearly $3.3 million so far on outside...

Concrete manufacturer moves into Hawaii. (Rocky Mountain Prestress Inc.)
November 7, 1997... HONOLULU - At a time of absolute lows in Hawaii's construction industry, Denver prestressed concrete manufacturer Rocky Mountain Prestress Inc. is solidifying a 10-year Campbell Industrial Park lease estimated at $4 million. The 39-year-old...

Storms eat away at road salt supplies. (troubled railroad freight services)
November 14, 1997... Snow storms and delivery delays threaten to drain the region's supply of road salt and deicers just as the icy jaws of winter begin to open. Two of the largest distributors of products that keep roads safe from snow and ice complain they can't...

Icy battle over claims. (corrosion claims over salt deicers used in Colorado)
November 14, 1997... Ice Slicer has quickly melted its way into Colorado, but competitors charge the deicer's marketing claims are slippery at best. Redmond Minerals Inc. of Utah, producer of Ice Slicer, has won over Aurora, Fort Collins, Arvada, Greeley, Longmont...

U S West nets $1.5B from sales. (controversial real estate portfolio sale)
November 14, 1997... Baby Bell rough ride in real estate at an end U S West Inc. has reaped $1.5 billion from the sale of a controversial real estate portfolio once valued at $1.4 billion, with only a smattering of properties left to unload. While that sales...

Mastering Cherry Creek. (Cherry Creek shopping center head Nick LeMasters)
November 14, 1997... It hasn't been an easy year for Nick LeMasters. In his first year as the head of Cherry Creek shopping center, LeMasters saw sales at Denver s most successful mall drop for the first time thanks to competition from Park Meadows Town Center....

Staubach grabs Baby Bell business. (U S West Inc. moves half of the management of its real estate portfolio from Grubb and Ellis Co.)
November 14, 1997... Grubb & Ellis loses piece of huge account The Staubach Co. has snatched a major client away from the Grubb & Ellis Co., seriously wounding its rival. After five years with Grubb & Ellis, phone giant U S West Inc. last week moved half the...

Gray Line rolls into Denver. (Gray Line Worldwide's headquarters)
November 14, 1997... Mile High City draws travel biz The world's largest sightseeing organization, Gray Line Worldwide, has moved its headquarters to Denver, the latest in a series of tourism and hospitality companies to pick the Mile High City as home. Gray...

Chefs promote state's agricultural products. (Colorado)
November 14, 1997... Cooks give boost to Colorado-grown foods Colorado's agricultural industries are getting a promotional boost from the state's top chefs. With culinary creations like Bean Crepes Suzette, Ostrich Fillet Kalahari and Pumpkin Bread Pudding, the...

Labor shortage looms over Nike talks. (athletic-shoe maker scouting for site for planned expansion)
November 14, 1997... Colorado officials could know by mid-December if Nike Inc. likes the Rocky Mountains and this region's economy enough to build a major corporate expansion here. "Our goal is to narrow the places we're looking by the middle of next month and...

Brokers. (Denver, Colorado)(tabular data only)(Commercial Real Estate Directory)(Directory)
November 14, 1997... Aardex Corp. 12340 W. Alameda Parkway, No. 220 Lakewood 80228 Contact: Richard Butler, president Areas of specialization: office buildings Square feet leased and sold locally in 1996: N/A (325,000 out of state) Square feet through first half of...

Study urges lifting ban on Sunday auto sales. (automobile dealerships)
November 14, 1997... Should automobile dealerships open on Sunday? The Colorado Motor Vehicle Dealer Board and the Colorado Department of Regulatory Affairs are butting heads on that question and other rules governing automobile sales in the state. More than 1...

Municipal voters looked more kindly at 1997 ballot issues. (Colorado tax election results)
November 14, 1997... City voters proved themselves more generous than their county counterparts on bonds, tax changes and other measures in the Nov. 4 election. Municipal voters approved 70 percent of the 187 ballot questions before them, according to an election...

Developers. (Denver, Colorado)(tabular data only)(Commercial Real Estate Directory)(Directory)
November 14, 1997... Aardex Corp. 12340 W. Alameda Parkway, No. 220 Lakewood 80228 Contact: Richard Butler, president Square feet completed in 1996: 0 Square feet through first half of 1997: 0 (second half - 45,000) Percentage breakdown of business: Office - 90;...

Business travelers key to United's strategy: airline tries to improve on-time performance.
November 14, 1997... Airline tries to improve on-time performance Pleasing rather than squeezing business flyers is how United Airlines plans to turn itself into the most profitable airline in the world. Business travelers are the key to stronger profit margins...

Pavilions developer scouts Charlotte for sequel. (Denver Pavilions developer Entertainment Development Group Inc.)
November 14, 1997... CHARLOTE, N.C. - The developer of the $101 million, 350,000-square-foot Denver Pavilions urban retail center is scouting Charlotte for a similar project uptown planned to include Hard Rock Cafe, Nike Town and other destination shopping....

Property managers. (Denver, Colorado)(tabular data only)(Commercial Real Estate Directory)(Directory)
November 14, 1997... Aardex Corp. 12340 W. Alameda Parkway No. 220 Lakewood 80228 987-9000 Contact: Richard Butler, president Leasable space under management in Colorado: 0 Average lease size: N/A Average lease size: N/A Percentage breakdown of property: Office - 90;...

Similarities of carving kits prompt Pumpkin's lawsuit. (Pumpkin Masters Inc.'s lawsuit against Concept Marketing)
November 14, 1997... Halloween may be over, but the real snarling has just begun for Pumpkin Masters Inc. The Denver-based purveyor of tool kits for intricate gourd carvings filed a civil suit in U.S. District Court, charging that Concept Marketing, a nonprofit...

Metro area takes 12th place in per capita income survey. (Denver, Colorado)
November 14, 1997... Per capita personal income in Denver is hardly a Mile High, according to a recent study of the metro area's collective earning muscle. Denver ranked 12th in a survey of 55 metropolitan areas, recording $26,581 in personal income for each person...

Durango company named in patent infringement suit. (Loronix Information Systems Inc. sued by Prima Facie)
November 14, 1997... KING OF PRUSSIA, Pa. - Video recorder maker Prima Facie has sued a Colorado company and its distributor for infringement of two key patents Of its video monitoring systems technology. The lawsuit accuses Loronix Information Systems Inc. of...

Pharmacy caters to ailing AIDS patients. (Colorado Pharmacy)
November 14, 1997... Pharmacist Tim Snyder wanted to help AIDS patients and keep his business afloat in the process. His pharmacy today is a multimillion-dollar business, proof that good deeds are sometimes rewarded. You'll find Snyder, 51, behind the counter of...

Executive-suite managers. (Denver, Colorado)(tabular data only)(Commercial Real Estate Directory)(Directory)
November 14, 1997... Addington Executive Services 50 S. Steele St., Suite 222 Denver 80209 Contact: Christa Addington Square feet under management: 10,750 Buildings with suites under management: N/A Monthly rent per office: starting at $325 No. of tenants: 25...

Cooper buy marks Intrawest's defining year. (Copper Mountain ski area)
November 14, 1997... Fiscal 1997 proved to be a pivotal year for Intrawest Corp., the Vancouver-based ski resort owner that bought Colorado's Copper Mountain ski area this year. In the 12 months ended June 30, the Canadian commercial real estate developer turned...

U S West opens two PCS shops in Phoenix. (U S West Communications Inc.; personal communications services; Phoenix, Arizona)
November 14, 1997... U S West Communications will open its first retail stores in Phoenix and Tucson featuring its new integrated wireless phone service during the first quarter of 1998. The Englewood-based company is looking for retail commercial locations to...