Denver Business Journal articles from October 1997

Denver Business Journal archives from October 1997

Northern suburbs grab retail. (retail firms open shops in Colorado)
October 31, 1997... Some big names target growing communities It may have taken landing Nordstrom to prove it, but the north suburbs are ripe for retail. While much of the focus for retail growth has been on the south suburbs with the arrival of Park Meadows...

Windsor braces for word on Kodak. (Eastman Kodak Co.'s planned layoffs at its Windsor facility)
October 31, 1997... With Wall Street pressuring Eastman Kodak Co. to slash as many as 20,000 of its 95,000 jobs and $1 billion in expenses, the company's northern Colorado work force is bracing for severe cutbacks. While the photographic supply giant admits it...

Link VTC expects sales to double.
October 31, 1997... Link VTC can no longer rely on its designation as a scrappy startup as a platform to outmaneuver its larger competition. The video conferencing prodigy is now owned by the nation's fifth-largest long-distance provider. Frontier Corp., and the...

Pacifica nears sale of portfolio. (Pacifica Holding Co.)
October 31, 1997... Properties could fetch more than $500 million Denver-based Pacifica Holding Co. began disposing of its mighty, $500 million commercial real estate portfolio this week, according to informed sources. In one of the biggest industrial real...

Banks learn to love CRA's tough mandate. (Community Reinvestment Act of 1977)(Industry Overview)
October 31, 1997... Minorities, poor benefit,' lenders profit When the Community Reinvestment Act became law in the fall of 1977, it quickly gathered a reputation as the regulation bankers loved to hate. The act, which celebrated its 20th anniversary in...

Equitable whittles away at Denver-area portfolio. (Equitable Real Estate Investment Management Inc.)
October 31, 1997... Equitable Real Estate Investment Management Inc., part of the Equitable insurance giant, is quietly thinning its Denver-area holdings. At the bidding of its adviser, The Yarmouth Group of San Francisco, Equitable has put on the market four...

VStream technology moves video over Net. (VStream Inc.; Internet)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)
October 31, 1997... Startup raises $1.5 mil., eyes another $10 mil. VStream Inc. plans to use the Internet to offer a corporate video version of pay-per-view. The Boulder startup, driven by a pair of young, but surprisingly experienced entrepreneurs, recently...

Group matches angels with business owners. (Colorado Capital Alliance)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Colorado Capital Alliance helps business startups find money easily and affordably Imitating the popular CBS show "Touched by an Angel," the Colorado Capital Alliance Inc. is trying to provide a place where angels and those in need can meet....

Opus plans $28M spec Broomfield office project. (Opus Northwest L.L.C.; Broomfield, Colorado)
October 31, 1997... The Broomfield real estate market is beginning to feel the aftershocks of computer giant Sun Microsystems Inc.'s commitment to the Interlocken office park there. Opus Northwest LLC of Denver expects to break ground early next year on the...

KimVu 2000 inventors eliminate blind spots. (rearview mirrors)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Rearview mirror gives drivers double vision With a new product about ready to hit the market, entrepreneurs Richard and Bobby Kim are looking forward and backward at the same time. Together, the brothers invented the KimVu 2000, a rearview...

DraCo's Casablanca takes pain out of video editing. (DraCo Systems)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Siemens builds product for Boulder company DraCo Systems wanted to take the difficulty and expense out of digital-video editing. And judging from customer praise, the Boulder-based company may have succeeded when it premiered the Casablanca...

Colorado's enviro industry woos international visitors. (environmental services industry)(Industry Overview)
October 31, 1997... Colorado's international environmental market is heating up, thanks in part to a consortium of local government and trade organizations. The Ambassador Program, a joint venture between the Colorado Environmental Business Alliance, the Denver...

Commodity prices shielded Colo. energy stocks. (Colorado)
October 31, 1997... High commodity prices insulated Colorado's energy stocks during the Oct. 27 market crash. Companies like Forest Oil Corp., Barrett Resources Corp., St. Mary Land & Exploration Co. and Patina Oil & Gas Corp. sustained only minor drops in...

StorageTek timing escapes the market's wild ride. (Storage Technology Corp.; Wall Street crash)
October 31, 1997... Thanks to strong earnings and a timely stock buyback, Storage Technology Corp. emerged from the Wall Street crash in better shape than many of its peers. On Tuesday, Oct. 28, the stock rebounded to $57.31, ending a rollercoaster ride that...

Jones switches on digital TV test run in Ariz. (Jones Intercable Inc.; Arizona)
October 31, 1997... Cable giant reaching out to 1, 600 homes Jones Intercable Inc. will probe the digital market with a trial-run in Arizona. The Englewood-based cable provider plans to test its digital technology with a friendly audience of 25 employees in...

Jeppesen puts information at pilots' fingertips. (Jeppesen Sanderson Inc.'s flight calculators)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Flight calculator combines aviation, personal functions Before they take off into the wild blue yonder, pilots need to compile a lot of information. This information, which is critical if they are to get to where they are going quickly and...

Descente will squeeze into smaller office space. (Descente North America Inc.)
October 31, 1997... A leaner Descente North America Inc. expects to slip into new office/warehouse space by January 1998. The manufacturer of pricey ski and golf clothing, which boasts dual headquarters in Englewood and Vancouver, B.C., has inked a deal to lease...

Luminette's sheers shut out competition. (Luminette Privacy Sheers)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Hunter Douglas develops product over four years Luminette Privacy Sheers offer the best features of various traditional window treatments wrapped up in one new product. Luminette has the appearance of conventional sheers, but, like...

Ohco taps alternative medicine market. (Ohco/Oriental Herb Co.)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Chinese herbal medicines alleviate sore muscles and joints, focusing on 'Chi' There isn't a lot in Hannah Hayes' background to indicate she would become the chief executive officer of an up-and-coming Chinese herbal medicine company....

Omnitech systems protect U.S. fighting forces. (Omnitech Robotics)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Remote-controlled vehicles find land mines in Bosnia From a mine field to a strip mine, a landfill to a corn field, there is dangerous, or at the very least, mind-numbingly repetitive and expensive work. Often, this work is best done by...

Chair bounces elderly, disabled into shape. (Aerobic Bouncing Chair Inc.)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Entrepreneur inspired by paralyzed sister-in-law Two things happened in Richard Dawes' life that prompted him to help disabled people: His sister-in-law underwent surgery to remove a tumor that left her paralyzed and he ran into high school...

SpeakEZ Voice Print fights telephone fraud. (T-Netix Inc.'s speaker-verification technology)(97 Most Innovative New Colorado Products)(Company Profile)
October 31, 1997... Product thwarts theft of identification numbers Telecrooks beware. The Englewood-based firm T-Netix Inc. is fighting wireless telephone fraud with state-of-the art speaker-verification technology. The company's SpeakEZ Voice Print system...

Rail merger derails key industries; wheat, coal producers mired in logjam.
October 24, 1997... Wheat, coal producers mired in logjam The year-old, $54 million merger of two western railroads has sidetracked two of Colorado's key industries. The state's wheat and coal producers claim they have lost valuable time and money because of...

Deutsch tries IPO to get cash; bidder for Stapleton hopes to raise $5.5M. (Harvey Deutsch's Gateway American Properties Corp.; Stapleton International Airport)
October 24, 1997... Bidder for Stapleton hopes to raise $5.5M The investment group that wants to buy Stapleton International Airport for $30 million cash is trying to raise cash with a public offering. And that's a risky undertaking, based on information in...

U S West targets Internet; new service offers speedy connection.
October 24, 1997... New service offers speedy connection The data transmission arm of U S West Communications Inc. is preparing to unveil a service to dramatically increase the speed of Internet connections using standard copper wires. U S West's Interprise...

Politics, personalities and red tape: Stapleton issues spotlight conflicts between public, business agendas.
October 24, 1997... Stapleton issues spotlight conflicts between public, business agendas The Stapleton Development Corp. thinks of itself as a sleek jet sitting on a runway ready for takeoff, but with the city and county of Denver's arms wrapped around the tail...

Laying the groundwork for growth: Lord & Taylor may add more stores to Denver area.
October 24, 1997... Lord & Taylor may add more stores to Denver area Beginning Nov. 1, Lord & Taylor will expand its presence in Denver. The New York-based retailer, a division of the May Co., will open a larger store at Cherry Creek shopping center that day,...

Bank One takes lead for SBA lending. (Bank One Colorado)
October 24, 1997... Bank One Colorado grabbed the crown for Small Business Administration lending in the state from Norwest Bank Colorado. Combining an aggressive approach and a pilot program targeting the smallest of small-business loans, Bank One made more...

Trujillo speaks his mind. (U S West Communications Inc. CEO Sol Trujillo)(Interview)
October 24, 1997... During his two-year tenure at the helm of U S West Communications Inc., CEO Sol Trujillo has piloted the former monopoly through the unfolding deregulation of telecommunications and a quest to move from a local phone company to a full-service...

Economist warns of risk in trying deflation policy. (Wayne Angell)
October 24, 1997... Commodity prices are headed lower while wage and labor costs are expected to rise. Whichever tips the economic scale first could spell the difference between inflation and deflation. One of the nation's top deflation hawks, Wayne Angell,...

State share of gambling profits drops by $1M. (Colorado)
October 24, 1997... With the number of casinos in Colorado on the decline, the state expects its share of the profits to be down more than $1 million this fiscal year. The Governor's Office of State Planning and Budgeting, in its latest revenue forecast,...

Remade GSA partners with the private sector; feds contract out Denver real estate work. (General Services Administration)
October 24, 1997... Feds contract out Denver real estate work Joe Solarte has spent his career helping companies lease office space in a freewheeling, fiercely competitive environment, where he can earn as much as his skill allows. But to serve one of his...

TCI's stock price soars 107% in past 12 months. (Tele-Communications Inc.)
October 24, 1997... Stock for Tele-Communications Inc. outperformed most of its cable-providing peers during the past 12 months, and that's before the widely reported deal with Microsoft Corp. The Englewood-based cable company enjoyed a 107 percent gain, more...

Colorado farm production up.
October 24, 1997... Despite hail, wind storms and flooding during July and August, Colorado farmers still managed to reap exceptional winter wheat, dry bean, onion and hay crops in 1997. The state's winter wheat, oats and barley crops were larger than the...

Real estate companies attack from two fronts; commercial market lures residential firms Re/Max and Coldwell Banker/Van Schaak.
October 24, 1997... Commercial market lures residential firms Re/Max and Coldwell Banker/Van Schaak In the hyper-competitive arena of real estate sales, several Denver-area firms have chosen to fight on both the residential and commercial fronts. But whether...

Small-business lender muscles into Colorado. (Commerce Loan Co.)
October 24, 1997... One of the nation's most active small-business lenders wants a piece of the Colorado market. The Commerce Loan Co., a subsidiary of San Diego-based Bank of Commerce, has opened a new lending office at 6300 S. Syracuse Way in Englewood....

Engineering firm adds creative flair to work; Martin/Martin projects include Coors, Pavilions.
October 24, 1997... Martin/Martin projects include Coors, Pavilions At the consulting engineer firm Martin/Martin, the design and construction of high-rises, bridges, sports arenas and other facilities is more than the practical application of science. It is...

Firm stresses teaming up on toxins. (JSC Spensley)
October 24, 1997... An environmental consulting firm in Colorado is designing ways for the nation's Fortune 500 companies to shift the liability of contaminated properties off their balance sheets once and for all. Denver-based JSC Spensley has organized a...

'Notwax' helps ski company gain speed; Boulder-based Zardoz turns a chemical byproduct into popular new skiing lubricant.
October 24, 1997... Boulder-based Zardoz turns a chemical byproduct into popular new skiing lubricant What started out as 60,000 pounds of a clear liquid, abandoned in an empty lot in Wilmington, Del., turned out to be a boon for ski-product engineer Paul...

Curtis Park down but not out; DHA vows to try again for housing funds from the feds.
October 24, 1997... DHA vows to try again for housing funds from the feds When the federal Department of Housing and Urban Development passed over Denver earlier this month in its distribution of some $450 million in Hope VI public housing funds for projects...

Bellco takes aim at community banks. (Bellco First Federal Credit Union's expansion of membership)
October 17, 1997... Credit union seeks metro Denver charter Bellco First Federal Credit Union could expand its membership to the 2 million residents of the six-county metro area as early as next year. The city's largest credit union has worked for several...

SuperNet sale nets a windfall. (Colorado Advanced Technology Institute's sale of firm to Qwest Communications Inc. for $16M)
October 17, 1997... CATI and universities share $16M bonanza The sale of SuperNet Inc., Colorado's oldest point of access to the information superhighway, will provide an on-ramp to riches for the institutions and individuals who founded it. The sale to Qwest...

Ancillary service organizations. (Colorado)(tabular data only)(Health Care Directory)(Directory)
October 17, 1997... Alpha Dental Plan of Colorado inc. 609 E. Speer Blvd. No. 200 Denver, Colo. 8020 3744-3007 Type of plan: Dental President: R. K. McFarland Number of members in Colorado: 28,000 Number of Colorado doctors in network: 233 Service area: Colorado...

Selling to couch potatoes. (Home Shopping Network's launching of its Television Shopping Resources)
October 17, 1997... Firm teaches TV pitchmen With the help of a Denver consulting firm, the Home Shopping Network is putting a new program into place that will give small companies the chance to pitch their products on the popular television channel. John...

Post profit skyrockets 260 percent. (Denver Post Corp.)
October 17, 1997... Newspaper makes gains against News With The Denver Post reporting huge profit gains and expectations high for a strong circulation report, top management at The Denver Post have been smiling a lot recently. Securities and Exchange...

$3M owed to Denver for real estate taxes. (delinquent property taxes drops from 1996 levels)
October 17, 1997... Number of scofflaw's down from 1996 When Mike Roche of Greeley drafted the mighty Starwood Lodging Trust as a partner in the redevelopment of the 1616 Glenarm Building as a hotel, he also settled one of the city and county of Denver's...

U S West wins round over charges to competitors. (complaints of overcharging against U S West Communications Inc.)
October 17, 1997... Long-distance phone companies won't be getting a break on their bills in Colorado, if an administrative law judge has his say. The judge recently recommended to dismiss a complaint that U S West Communications Inc. charges too much to grant...

Home health agencies. (Colorado)(tabular data only)(Health Care Directory)(Directory)
October 17, 1997... Accent on Independence 1728 Race St. Denver, Colo. 80206 331-0818 Number of patient visits in 1996: 62,011 Visits in hours: 98,776 Patient service revenue 1996: N/A Total number of nurses: 5 Total number of skilled nurses: N/A Average charge...

Dairy cooperatives will vote in Nov. on merger. (Western Dairymen Cooperative Inc., Mid-America Dairymen Inc., Associated Milk Producers Inc., Milk Marketing Inc.)
October 17, 1997... Recent volatility in the price of milk and changes in federal regulations have prompted Colorado's dairy farm cooperative to discuss the possibility of merging with three of the nation's largest milk marketing agencies. Members of Salt Lake...

Hospitals. (Colorado)(tabular data only)(Health Care Directory)(Directory)
October 17, 1997... Boulder Community Hospital P.O. Box 9019 Boulder, Colo. 80301 440-2273 Administrator: David Gehant Number of licensed beds: 265 Number of full-time staff physicians: 1,750 Number of full-time employees: 1,750 Total inpatient days: 38,447 Annual...

Exabyte shifting Eagle toward business clients. (Exabyte Corp.'s Eagle division)
October 17, 1997... Exabyte Corp.'s Eagle division is inching away from its bold move into the consumer market, tiptoeing to the more familiar territory of business computer storage. The Boulder tape storage giant characterized the shift in the emphasis of its...

Trust Bank confounds skeptics in first year. (Trust Bank of Colorado)
October 17, 1997... Customers bring $28 million to 24th floor More than a few skeptics questioned whether Trust Bank of Colorado could find enough business high on the 24th floor of the Tabor Center. Would customers really ride an elevator up when they could...

En-able places bet on electric deregulation.
October 17, 1997... As Public Service Company of Colorado Inc. and the rest of the state's electric utilities jockey for position, a Lakewood-based company has pinned its future on teaching them how to compete in a deregulated marketplace. En-able, a subsidiary...

Preferred provider organizations. (Colorado)(tabular data only)(Health Care Directory)(Directory)
October 17, 1997... The Alliance 3033 E. First Ave., Suite 810 Denver, Colo. 80206 793-1500 Number of enrollees statewide: 80,000 Person in charge locally/title: Elisa Hamill, president Number of local primary care physicians in plan: 4,733 Number of local...

Holme Roberts raids rivals to bolster securities unit. (Holme Roberts and Owen's recruitment of John McDermott and Lisa Kahn from competitors)
October 17, 1997... McDermott, Kahn agree to switch teams Holme Roberts & Owen plucked two Denver litigators from the competition in a move that the firm boasts will give it the largest securities litigation department in the region. Holme Roberts, one of the...

Public Service puts dereg on fast track. (Public Service Company of Colorado pushes deregulation bill before Colorado Legislature)
October 10, 1997... Public Service Company of Colorado Inc. secretly is trying to throw the switch on legislation to open the state's electricity market to competition. In a series of closed-door meetings with top legislators, consumer advocates and others, the...

Pension firm files Chapter 7. (Scott Tellier & Company of Colorado Inc.)
October 10, 1997... 400 clients scramble to locate paperwork One of the state's largest retirement plan administrators shut its doors suddenly, leaving 400 businesses rushing to comply with federal pension laws and wondering what will become of their retirement...

Book publisher spies success with children. (Accord Publishing Ltd.)(Company Profile)
October 10, 1997... Accord uses jiggly attention grabber Ken Fleck keeps a box of eyeballs on the floor by his feet. He reaches down, plucks one and rolls it around in his hand. Eventually, that eyeball will wind up in the hands of a child. Fleck is...

Buyouts shake up metro Internet firms. (Denver-based Internet service providers)(Industry Overview)
October 10, 1997... The local Internet service provider scene is changing faster than Larry King's marital status. A month ago, the two largest players in Denver were in the driver's seats of the Internet equivalent of luxury sedans, but SuperNet Inc. and Rocky...

Blues hope to thwart stock market bears. (Empire Blue Cross and Blue Shield; Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Colorado)
October 10, 1997... With sighs of "it can't last forever" on their lips, two Blue Cross and Blue Shield health plans in the U.S. - those in Colorado and New York - hope to catch the tail of the current wild stock market ride before it stops. Both plans hope...

Starwood to pay $68M for Security Life hotel. (Starwood Lodging Trust)
October 10, 1997... Construction of a new 540-room hotel in the old Security Life Building is another step in revitalizing Denver's "upper downtown," balancing the development that has energized the other end of the 16th Street Mall, analysts said. Developers...

Amoco's basin selloff has drillers salivating. (oil company to sell its Wattenberg natural gas assets)
October 10, 1997... Oil giant's D-J holdings may fetch $200M Consolidation and selloffs in Colorado's Denver-Julesburg basin are reshaping a "sleeping giant" in the region's energy business. And the pace of change will accelerate as major players in the basin...

WorldCom poses formidable threat to US West.
October 10, 1997... The introduction of local telephone competition has largely been in the hands of lawyers and wangling executives, but that could change with the proposed merger of WorldCom and MCI Communications Inc. MCI, the most aggressive challenger to U...

Avalanche fans pay the price. (average ticket prices of hockey club Colorado Avalanche)
October 10, 1997... NHL franchise charges above-average price for admission Fans of the Colorado Avalanche don't get off cheap. The team ranks sixth among National Hockey League teams for average ticket price. Add in the cost of being a fan, and the money goes...

Magness behest: a taxpayer windfall. (Colorado taxpayer windfall due to Magness Estate's &78-million single estate tax payment)
October 3, 1997... Forget Ted Turner. Every Colorado taxpayer will receive a windfall from the $1 billion estate of the late cable magnate Bob Magness. Records from the Department of Revenue show that Colorado received an unexpected single estate tax payment of...

Ginsburg breaking the mold. (Intertech Plastics Inc. CEO Noel Ginsburg)
October 3, 1997... Plastics firm CEO focuses on service Noel Ginsburg knew nothing about plastics when he dropped out of the University of Denver's business school to pursue his goal of owning a manufacturing company. But he did have a role model - his...

U S West may have to spill it. (telephone firm's closely-guarded data on number of phone lines it fails to install monthly)
October 3, 1997... Secret held order data could face court test The closely guarded reports that reveal how many telephone lines U S West Communications Inc. fails to install each month could soon see the light of day, unless the phone company slams the lid....

McMorris gets NW Transport moving again. (NW Transport Service Inc. head Jerry McMorris)
October 3, 1997... Colorado Rockies owner Jerry McMorris is looking a little relaxed these days and it's not just because the baseball season is over. During the past year, McMorris and a team of top lieutenants have restructured NW Transport Services Inc., a...

Source says SEC probing Comtec. (Securities and Exchange Commission; ComTec International Inc.)
October 3, 1997... Comtec International Inc., a penny stock company based in Aurora, has become the subject of an informal inquiry by the Securities and Exchange Commission, a source close to the matter said. The source, a Denver attorney involved in a lawsuit...

CD-ROM gift teaches lessons of agriculture. (development of an interactive multimedia CD-ROM on Colorado's agricultural industry by Denver-based photographers Emmett Jordan and Michael Lewis)
October 3, 1997... Photographers use talents to educate Students interested in learning about farming and ranching in Colorado no longer have to go down to Old McDonald's farm and get their shoes dirty. Two Denver photographers are developing an interactive...

Douglas struggles with jobs. (Douglas County, CO)
October 3, 1997... School district short about 70 employees Douglas County is a long way from Aspen. But Denver's fastest-growing suburban county is experiencing the same sort of severe worker shortages and housing problems that have plagued Colorado's...

Tax questions stake spots on ballots. (state residents to vote on Colorado cities' tax, business development and economic development policies)
October 3, 1997... Colorado's cities will grapple with development and tax questions on the ballot this November. But several also face a shortage of willing public servants and are asking for a repeal of term limits. A Denver Business Journal analysis of...

1999 Broadway owners seek $10.7M investment. (Winthrop Financial Associates; 1999 Broadway Building in Denver, CO)
October 3, 1997... Winthrop Financial Associates is going to its limited partner investors in the 42-story 1999 Broadway Building with a last-ditch plan to return the office tower to profitability. According to documents, Winthrop Financial is asking investors...

Head of U.S. Chamber pledges plenty of fights. (proposal of U.S. Chamber of Commerce CEO Thomas Donohue that might ease Colorado's tight labor market)
October 3, 1997... If Thomas Donohue has his way, American businesses will walk head raised high rather than mumbling apologies when criticized by unions, environmentalists and the media. Donohue, president and CEO of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, is driving...

Telecom powers lobby against Denver fee plan. (Partnership Against New Telephone Taxes coalition of phone firms' campaign against Denver, CO's proposed tax on phone and cable firms)
October 3, 1997... A group of telecommunications giants have formed an alliance to counter a proposed ballot initiative ultimately designed to give the city of Denver the power to charge telephone and cable companies for burying lines under city streets. The...

Reliance on income taxes could spell danger for Colo. (Colorado's taxing structure)
October 3, 1997... Property, income and sales taxes make up' the three legs of the revenue-raising stool most governments rest on. But in Colorado, the state leans heavily on one leg - individual income taxes - and easily could tip over if the economy goes into...

Colorado's venture capital climate.
October 3, 1997... Startups face obstacles in the hunt for funding More venture capital continues to pour into Colorado, but for the unprepared entrepreneur, getting funding can be as elusive as ever. The hot stock market of the last three years has boosted...

Corporate giving on rise in Denver. (Corporate philanthropy in Denver, CO)
October 3, 1997... Whether it is helping an art museum, giving its employees the day off to put together playground equipment at the local school, or volunteering to do the books for a community food bank, corporations have found it is good business to get...