LI Business News articles from December 2006

LI Business News archives from December 2006

Long Island not-for-profits banking on the Warren Buffet Factor.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy A 76-year-old Nebraskan has raised the hopes of a lot of people across Long Island's not-for-profit industry. Warren Buffett's tremendous gesture - in June, he donated 85 percent of his estimated $46 billion...

Smithtown fox hunting club educates public about the sport and conservation.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy It's not just "the unspeakable chasing the inedible" anymore. That's a description Oscar Wilde used to describe fox hunting, but at the Smithtown Hunt, things are a little different. Not only is there no fox...

Seismic shift about to rock the Long Island banking industry.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell A seismic shift is about to rock the Long Island banking industry. In December, North Fork Bancorp's $14.6 billion sale to Capital One Financial Corp., a credit-card company that's only recently entered the...

Banking '06: Big deals set tone in busy year for Long Island.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell If the big stories of 2007 - the transition away from North Fork and Bank of New York, a tight yield curve - seem familiar, it's because they were also the big stories of 2006. The year got off to a bang in...

The new New York, from a Long Island perspective.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Governor-elect Elliot Spitzer didn't include everyone who voted for him on his transition team, but it seems that way to Jim Morgo. Morgo, the Suffolk County commissioner of economic development and workforce...

What slowdown? New Realtors join Long Island battles.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Dawn Wotapka Hardesty Long Island's residential market might be softening, but that isn't stopping new companies from trying to wrest market share from established brand names such as Century 21, Daniel Gale and Prudential Douglas...

LIBN's Seats of Power series about corporate board members to run over next three weeks.
December 1, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff They operate largely behind closed doors, collecting a full-time salary for, at most, half-time work, not to mention stock and such extra perks as travel. Politicians? No, we're talking about corporate board members,...

Directors are playing a greater role and shouldering greater responsibility.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell When the parcel arrived at her office, Katherine Heaviside knew her weekend was essentially dead. "My secretary would laugh because I would get a package of written stuff that weighs four pounds on a Friday...

Hard to handle: Assembling the compensation jigsaw puzzle.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Figuring out just how much public company board members make each year requires no small amount of mathematical jujitsu. Unlike pay disclosures for executives, very few public companies state clearly in their...

Tilles Center for the Performing Arts on Long Island offers education with its entertainment.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn A new philosophy has taken hold at the Tilles Center for the Performing Arts: better entertainment through education. In 2005, the center - on Long Island University's C.W. Post campus in Greenvale - introduced...

How to ... Choose a janitorial firm.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Having clean offices is something you and your employees and/or tenants want to take for granted. When an executive leaves her office the evening before a big 9 a.m. meeting, she doesn't want to be wondering...

Long Island Business News Follow Ups: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff Stop your engines Riverhead officials may have put the brakes on a public hearing about F1 Long Island's proposed go-kart facility, but the project is not out of gas yet. As reported March 17, F1 wants to...

Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory raising cash for new labs.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Big ambitions, big dreams, big buildings. That's what Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory is thinking as the research facility gears up to solve the mysteries of some of the most severe illnesses plaguing humans....

Is developer Joe Farkas dynamic enough for Great River turnaround?
December 1, 2006... Byline: Dawn Wotapka Hardesty Developer Joe Farkas sees beauty in his Sunrise. He overlooks that the Sunrise Business Center's exterior includes bold hunter-green stripes and that its look was once described as a dated blend of...

Labor specialist Murray Portnoy dies at 83.(Obituary)
December 1, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff Murray Portnoy, founder of human relations and consulting firm Portnoy Messinger Pearl & Associates, died Nov. 23 after celebrating Thanksgiving dinner with friends and family. He was 83. Portnoy, a union activist...

New report ranks New York 45th in small-biz efforts.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn High taxes and numerous regulations make New York one of the least favorable states in the country for small business, according to a new report. New York placed 45th in an overall state-by-state ranking, down a...

No surprises in NY state's hospital closing commission report.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The highly anticipated state report on hospital right-sizing spared Long Island facilities from outright closure, but it contained recommendations that are sure to permanently alter the region's health-care...

Town of Huntington board to nix rezoning request.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Dawn Wotapka Hardesty In another move engineered to bring Canon USA to Melville, the Town of Huntington plans to deny Roger Tilles' request to rezone his Pumpkin Farm from commercial to residential. The decision is expected at...

Melville-based North Fork Bank officially taken over by VA-based Capital One.
December 1, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale North Fork Bancorp has reached the end of the line. The Melville-based company, which expanded aggressively through acquisition to become the biggest bank based on Long Island, was officially taken over by...

Banking veteran Doug Manditch raises $3M in seed money for proposed Empire National Bank.
December 1, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Longtime banking veteran Doug Manditch said Friday his new company has raised the necessary $3 million in seed money to progress with his plan to launch a new bank. Manditch also said he expects to file...

Founder of aircraft parts manufacturer CPI Aerostructures retires.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The founder of aircraft parts manufacturer CPI Aerostructures will give up his seat on the board, the company announced Friday. Arthur August, who founded the Edgewood-based company 27 years ago, will step...

Commentary: Closed access.
December 1, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff For years, government watchdogs have tried to crack the Legislative omerta surrounding the spending of millions of our tax dollars on porkish "member items." Backed by a court order, the Times Union newspaper in...

Long Island Real Estate Briefs: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Dawn Wotapka Hardesty Easygoing Wachtler inks his biggest lease to date Phil Wachtler has worked for more than a year to stand out in the competitive Long Island office market. He's a hands-on manager who keeps a cat litter...

Nassau County campaign battles the stigma of mental illness.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Claude Solnik Successful North Fork builder Mary Speed became depressed in the mid 1990s - so depressed that she overdosed on pills. "I think my rationale was, 'If I take all this stuff, I'll sleep for the weekend and deal with...

Commentary: Winds of change blowing throughout the state.
December 1, 2006... Byline: John Kiernan In one month, New York State will have a new governor, lieutenant governor and attorney general. In January there will be a lot of pomp and ceremony as the new statewide officials take their oaths of office and Gov....

Commentary: NY GOP snoozes and loses, especially upstate.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jerry Kremer Once upon a time, there was an area known as upstate New York. In big cities such as Albany, Buffalo, Syracuse and Rochester, there were plenty of jobs and highly-paid executives; in rural areas, there were many family...

Commentary: It's a dirty job, but we need sewers.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Martin Cantor For the past two years I have served as chair of the Suffolk County Legislature's Downtown Revitalization Advisory Panel. During that time, the panel, which includes 19 other Suffolk residents, has evaluated...

Letter: Dismal record on conservation.
December 1, 2006... I think most people would be shocked about what a poor job of conservation we're doing on Long Island. Long Islanders care about the environment. And they are serious about protecting it. Polls consistently show a high level of...

Long Island Financial Briefs: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Survey: Small, personal banks best bigger brethren Maybe it's the personal touch. Branch customers like community banks and credit unions better than the nation's biggest banks, according to a new survey....

Long Island Technology Briefs: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff New York's small tech firms snag $106M in grants New York's small, high-tech businesses were awarded a record $106.2 million in federal grants in 2005. Between Federal Small Business Innovation Research grants...

Long Island Chapter of NY Association of Health Care Providers names Taryn Birkmire president.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Long Island Chapter of the New York Association of Health Care Providers named Taryn Birkmire president for a two-year term. Birkmire is executive director of Recco Home Care Service Inc. in Massapequa,...

On the move.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Accounting Marcum & Kliegman Certified Public Accountants and Consultants was named Innovative Firm of the Year by the Leading Edge Alliance, an international association of independently-owned accounting...

Lifelong poet launches her own business, Poetry Creations by Carolyn in Woodbury.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn Carolyn Gilbert Schwartz has written poetry ever since childhood, but until recently never considered building a business around her talent. Instead, she worked on Wall Street and earned a master's degree in...

Long Island Elite: Helping young execs find their way.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Ken Cerini Networking events can be intimidating, especially for those new to a business, making participants feel insecure and out of place - like a lost child at a carnival. This all-too-familiar scenario often leaves young,...

The rundown.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Tutors needed Literacy Nassau, which helps county children and adults learn to read or improve their reading skills, needs a few volunteers. Those interested must attend a series of tutor training...

Literacy Nassau needs tutors.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Literacy Nassau, which helps county children and adults learn to read or improve their reading skills, needs a few volunteers. Those interested must attend a series of tutor training workshops to learn how...

Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington to offer special exhibition and student art workshop.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Heckscher Museum of Art in Huntington will offer a special exhibition and a student art workshop during the winter recess. From Dec. 27 through Dec. 29, the museum will exhibit "East Coast/West Coast...

Long Island Crisis Center receives $7,500 grant from New York State.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Long Island Crisis Center received a $7,500 grant from New York State to support the not-for-profit's crisis hotline. LICC operates the hotline 24/7, and has been in existence for more than 35 years....

Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts offers.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Usdan Center for the Creative and Performing Arts, an arts summer day camp for children, is offering an "Early Bird" tuition break for the upcoming season. Any child who registers before Dec. 15 will...

American Heart Association sets date for its 2007 Wear Red Day for Women.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The American Heart Association has set Feb. 2 as the date for its 2007 Wear Red Day for Women. On that Friday, supporters should wear some kind of red top to work to show support for the organization's...

Three Strohm Sisters Family Foundation launches printer cartridge recycling program.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Three Strohm Sisters Family Foundation, which raises money to support cancer research, has launched a printer cartridge recycling program. The not-for-profit will collect any empty inkjet or laser...

Marcum & Kliegman Certified Public Accountants and Consultants named.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Marcum & Kliegman Certified Public Accountants and Consultants was named "Innovative Firm of the Year" by the Leading Edge Alliance, an international association of independently-owned accounting firms. The...

Port Washington senior living residence names Anne Ryan director of marketing.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Port Washington senior living residence The Amsterdam at Harborside named Anne Ryan director of marketing. She recently worked for a retirement community in Maryland. Harborside also named Helayne Scheier...

Joseph C. Cantwell of Hempstead Golf and Country Club receives 2006 Distinguished Service Award.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Joseph C. Cantwell of Hempstead Golf and Country Club received the 2006 Distinguished Service Award from the Metropolitan Golf Association. Cantwell is a former president of the MGA.

Long Island health care facilities announce staffing changes: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II St. Charles Hospital in Port Jefferson named Walter Gaudino to its rehabilitation department. Gaudino is a specialist in musculoskeletal rehabilitation and the non-surgical management of orthopedic medical...

Long Island operation of USI Insurance Services names Rick Maher vice president.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Long Island operation of USI Insurance Services named Rick Maher vice president of employee benefits. He had worked in the firm's New York headquarters as a sales representative for Liberty Mutual.

Long Island law firms announce staffing changes: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Garden City firm of Amato & Associates named Keith Patrick Brown partner and managing attorney. He has been with the firm for six years; previously, he was assistant attorney general with the New York State...

Long Island radio news reporter Sophia Hall to be honored by American Heart Association.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Sophia Hall, Long Island news reporter for radio station WCBS Radio 880, will be honored by the American Heart Association at its upcoming Go Red for Women Luncheon.

Central Nassau Guidance and Counseling Services names James F. O'Brien board president.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Central Nassau Guidance and Counseling Services named attorney James F. O'Brien president of its board of directors.

Westbury-based PL Developments announces staffing changes.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Westbury-based PL Developments named Aamna Rana an accounts payable associate for the pharmaceutical company. Pl Developments also named Punit Patel quality engineer and Dulce Andrade industrial engineer.

Long Island real estate firms announce staffing changes: December 1, 2006.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Long Island office of Cushman & Wakefield named Nicole Paris-Suozzi director in its retail services operation. She had been director of the retail group for Oxford & Simpson in Jericho. The Long Island...

Fortress Global Investigations and Security names Michael D. Lentini managing director.
December 1, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Fortress Global Investigations and Security named Michael D. Lentini managing director. He had been a New York City Police Detective for the Manhattan District Attorney's Office Squad.

Henry Schein Inc. lowers estimates.
December 5, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Lower sales of its flu vaccine has led Henry Schein Inc., the largest provider of health-care products and services to office-based practitioners, to lower its financial guidance for 2006. The company said it...

Comtech Telecommunications shares rise.
December 5, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Comtech Telecommunications Corp. shares rose nearly 6 percent to $37.28 early Tuesday after the company reported first-quarter profit that beat Wall Street estimates. The company actually had lower sales, in...

Toys 'R' Us taps Intelli-Check.
December 5, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Intelli-Check has installed its identification software in 832 Toys "R" Us retail stores, according a Securities and Exchange Commission filing. According to the filing, Intelli-Check spent "less than 30...

Langer's CFO quits.
December 5, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Sara Cormack resigned as chief financial officer of Langer Inc. for unspecified personal reasons, the company announced Tuesday. Cormack, who accepted the position in September after working for PG&E Corp....

Fitch Rating gives Long Island Power Authority an 'A-' rating.
December 6, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Credit ratings agency Fitch Rating on Wednesday gave the Long Island Power Authority's $5.9 billion in electric system general revenue bonds an 'A-' rating, a stable outlook. The rating, essentially LIPA's...

Chembio Diagnostics' vice president of sales leaves the company.
December 6, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Chembio Diagnostics' vice president of sales will no longer work for the company - but he'll still be doing the company's work. Avi Pelossof accepted a position created specially for him at Inverness...

Report: Carl C. Icahn drops his bid to take control of Reckson Associates Realty Corp.
December 6, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Carl C. Icahn has reportedly dropped his bid to take control of Reckson Associates Realty Corp. With a shareholder vote on a previously announced deal between Reckson and SL Green scheduled for today, Icahn...

Woodbury-based Veeco Instruments hires executive vice president of global field operations.
December 6, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Woodbury-based Veeco Instruments said Wednesday it has hired Benjamin Loh Gek Lim as its executive vice president of global field operations. The newly created position gives Loh the responsibility of managing...

Orbit International Corp. receives follow-on order from Federal Aviation Administration.
December 6, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Orbit International Corp. on Wednesday said it received a follow-on order worth $980,000 from the Federal Aviation Administration. The FAA, which placed the order with the Hauppauge-based company's...

Mediation slated for CanonUSA real-estate fight.
December 7, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell Suffolk County Executive Steve Levy has proposed a mediation hearing next Wednesday in an effort to resolve a bitter real-estate fight that could cost Long Island the headquarters of CanonUSA. The two principals...

Arrow Electronics to acquire InTechnology plc. storage business.
December 7, 2006... Byline: David Reich-Hale Arrow Electronics Inc. said late Wednesday it had agreed to acquire InTechnology plc.'s storage and security distribution business. Arrow didn't disclose how much it paid for England-based InTechnology, though...

Hi-Tech Pharmacal sees decline in net sales and profit.
December 7, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Pharmaceutical company Hi-Tech Pharmacal on Thursday said pricing pressure on its generic line of drugs caused second-quarter declines in its net sales and profit. For the quarter ended Oct. 31, Hi-Tech...

Comtech Telecommunications receives order from U.S. Army.
December 7, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Comtech Telecommunications Corp. on Thursday said it received an order from the U.S Army to provide engineering support to an unnamed contractor. The order, worth $4.3 million, is part of Comtech's existing...

Hofstra Law School dean to organize 9/11 cleanup workers' respiratory illness suits.
December 8, 2006... Byline: LIBN Staff A federal judge has tapped Hofstra Law School Dean Aaron Twerski to help straighten up one of the messier arenas of litigation to come out of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Some 11,000 workers who took part in the...

Freeze! That security law may be unconstitutional.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Correy E. Stephenson As identity theft continues to grow, states are beginning to take action to protect their consumers. A recent trend is the passage of credit freeze laws, enabling consumers to prevent credit reporting...

A little free press helps this twisted endeavor soar.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn Grassroots marketing trumps plain old advertising, according to Jill Frechtman, and it's easy to see why she believes fervently in this mantra. Frechtman, owner of Plainview-based Fretzels by Jill, which markets...

How to ... Sell your building.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Bernadette Starzee Looking to unload a commercial building? Aligning yourself with a good commercial real estate broker is an all-important first step, one that can make a significant difference in the price you get and the amount...

The Turnaround Management Assn. names vice president of chapter relations.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II The Turnaround Management Association, a not-for-profit association that specializes in helping companies renew their businesses with new management, named Jeffrey A. Wurst vice president of chapter relations....

Long Island accounting firms announce staffing changes: December 8, 2006.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Huntington Station-based Fuoco Group named Brian Carlson director of fraud and forensic services. He previously worked in the forensics department at KPMG. The Long Island chapter of the Institute of...

Corporate board members may be spreading themselves too thin by serving on multiple boards.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Think you're busy to the point your schedule resembles a forced march? You probably have nothing on Vincent Tese. The cable TV pioneer sits on 11 boards of directors, six of publicly traded companies, including...

Long Island Board Stars: December 8, 2006.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy Alfonse D'Amato Former U.S. Senator Partner, Park Strategies Board member, CA Inc. D'Amato, 69, brings his Washington and New York connections. The company, formerly known as Computer Associates International,...

Revamped Long Island planning board homes in on new leader.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell The Long Island Regional Planning Board is preparing to make environmental attorney Michael White its next executive director. If White, a partner of Jaspan Schlesinger Hoffman in Garden City, is selected, the...

North Fork Bancorp merger over, John Kanas stays put - for now.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Jeremy Harrell On Dec. 1, John Adam Kanas cashed out his shares in North Fork Bancorp. Inc., the institution he built up from a minor East End player to a metropolitan force. But that doesn't mean he's checked out of the banking...

Long Island man finds enjoyment in teaching, composing music.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Ambrose Clancy When Reynard Burns was a little boy in Harlem, his mother gave him something that's never left him - a love and appreciation of music. There was always music in the house. His mother oversaw his piano lessons,...

Unemployment dips, adding fuel to brain drain worries.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Claude Solnik Unemployment is way down on Long Island - but that may be a double-edged sword. Long Island is steaming ahead with what economists consider "a full employment economy" - Island unemployment is so low it's...

Economic forecast: sunny, with scattered housing clouds.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Claude Solnik Businesses are hiring and executives are reporting rising revenue, but Long Island's lack of affordable housing is raining on the economic parade. Nearly two thirds of Long Island companies - 63 percent - reported...

Study: Worried parents costing American businesses billions.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn Working parents who worry about their children's after-school activities cost employers billions of dollars in lost productivity, but experts say employers can abate these concerns through workplace flexibility. The...

Bringing security to the people in vulnerable post-9/11 world.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Adina Genn Stephen Kear and Charles Wendel want to help civilians protect their environment in a post-9/11 world. In November, the partners, both of whom are police officers, launched Global Awareness, which provides...

To fund hope across the world.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Ken Cerini Meru, Kenya, is one of the most naturally beautiful and diverse areas of the world, located right on the equator on the Kathita River, on the northeast slopes of Mount Kenya. But with all the beauty comes plenty of...

Long Island Nonprofit Briefs: December 8, 2006.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Henry E. Powderly II Grants for change The State University of New York College at Old Westbury received a $200,000 grant from the U.S. Department of Justice Office on Violence Against Women to support the college's Women's...

Long Island hospitals avoid being shut down by state.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Claude Solnik Between a new medicare prescription drug system, troubles at Stony Brook University Medical Center and Nassau University Medical Center, moves to link East End hospitals and programs to lure nurses, a lot happened...

As talent pool squeezes, a move to outsourcing.
December 8, 2006... Byline: Claude Solnik Dvirka and Bartilucci Consulting Engineers has been busy managing its construction business and handling environmental studies. All the work has led the Woodbury-based firm to expand staff. But there's just one...