LI Business News articles from January 2005

LI Business News archives from January 2005

American Heart Assn. inviting companies to sign up for 'Go Red for Women' day.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Break out your scarlet garb. The American Heart Association is inviting companies to sign up for its Go Red for Women day to be held on Feb. 4. Employees pay $5 to participate by wearing jeans and red tops to work....

Amagansett catering co. also offers event-planning services.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Adina Genn With a name like Art of Eating Catering, most people wouldn't guess that the Amagansett company did anything more than, well, catering. Yet for the past 16 years, the company has also offered event-planning...

LI-based companies manufacture trade show booths.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Barry Ballen stood in his firm's four-year-old, 250,000-square-foot Melville headquarters on a cool December day getting ready for showtime. He and his firm were gearing up for the Consumer Electronics Show in...

Trade-show experts offer tips for maximizing trade-show benefits.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik This in from trade-show experts: Even with a beautiful booth or an interesting table, a company faces a long list of potential pitfalls in how it approaches the public. Harry Mandel, CEO of Syosset-based Harrison...

Free samples can be useful marketing tool.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik For the past two years, runners at the JPMorgan Chase Corporate Challenge at Jones Beach have gotten a special treat at the finish line. Sure, there's the sense of accomplishment that comes with completing a...

Printers enter the technology race, but cautiously.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Kern's Printing in East Farmingdale recently shelled out about $160,00 for a new Vijuk machine that saddle-stitches and trims printed materials such as catalogs and newsletters. But instead of buying the device,...

Long Island surgeon reunites with an old friend.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Lung-cancer surgeon Dr. Shahriyour Andaz was named director of thoracic oncology at South Nassau Communities Hospital. The native of India began medical school in 1981 at Grant Medical College in Bombay. While...

LI communications companies announce staffing changes: January 7, 2005.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly D. Pagan Communications named Sarah Price an account executive. Price majored in public relations and minored in French at Marist College in Poughkeepsie. Cablevision Systems Corp. announced three promotions in...

Long Island medical facilities announce staffing changes: January 7, 2005.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Stony Brook Hospital appointed Dr. David L. Brown chief of the division of cardiovascular medicine in its department of medicine. Prior to joining Stony Brook, he served as director of the division of...

Long Island law firms announce staffing changes: January 7, 2005.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Bruce J. Bergman has joined the law firm of Berkman, Henoch, Peterson & Peddy as a principal in the mortgage and tax-lien foreclosure practice group. He is the author of the three-volume "Bergman on New York Mortgage...

Vice chair named for 2004-2005 United Way of Long Island Campaign.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Richard Burgess, business development officer and vice president of middle-market banking for JPMorgan Chase, was named vice chair of the 2004-2005 United Way of Long Island Campaign and chair of the United Way...

June Shapiro Fine Homes & Estates adds two to sales team.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly June Shapiro Fine Homes & Estates, a member of Laffey Association Fine Homes & Estates realtors, added Rudi Friedman and Dalia Hodes to its sales team. The two had paired up at Trylon Realty in Great Neck.

NY entrepreneur dials in to virtual office business.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Adina Genn Some say enthusiastic customers make the best employees. Roger Kahn went a step further, switching from an Intelligent Office customer in the fall of 2003 to franchise owner of the Garden City site in December of the...

Regional partnership helps kids find role models.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Cerini Jean Lahage Cohen, executive director of the Mentoring Partnership of Long Island, said there are about 100,000 local school-age children who can benefit from a mentoring program. "Unfortunately, we're working with...

LI-based Good Shepherd Hospice forming bereavement support groups.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Good Shepherd Hospice is forming bereavement support groups for the winter. Groups will form for those dealing with spousal loss age 59 and under, over 59, parents whose adult child has died, adults whose parent has...

Touro Law School needs donation for annual Goods and Services Auction.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Touro Law School needs donations for its annual Goods and Services Auction. The event will include live and silent auctions, pro bono service awards, desserts and cocktails. Donors are publicized through signs,...

United Way of Long Island increases contribution to Nassau County counseling services.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly The United Way of Long Island increased its financial contribution to Hicksville-based Central Nassau Guidance & Counseling Services for the 2005 fiscal year. United Way offered an unrestricted grant of $4,000 in...

C.W. Post students participating in fundraiser for St. Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Students at C.W. Post are participating in Up 'til Dawn, a student-run philanthropic program in which students nationwide raise funds for Saint Jude Children's Research Hospital in Memphis, Tenn. The year of...

King Kullen outing raises $100K for Little Flower Children Services of NY.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly King Kullen Grocery Co. raised $100,000 for Little Flower Children Services of New York at its annual James A. Cullen Memorial Golf & Tennis outing. The proceeds will help Little Flower find adoptive and foster homes...

Bankers Life of NY to host bowling benefit.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Bowlers beware. Bankers Life of New York, a Woodbury-based life insurance firm, will present "Strike Against Cancer" at Melville Lanes on March 2 at 6 p.m. All revenue gained by the event will benefit the Don Monti...

Homeless relief available through Nassau County.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Families and individuals who seek homeless relief can call the Nassau County "Warm Line" at (866) WARM-BED for help. Operators will direct callers to the appropriate departments for their individual situations.

Will Long Island thrive in 2005?
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Interest rates, like it or not, are heading up in 2005, and a higher cost of money is never good for business. Also, outrageously high housing costs are stifling the ability of local firms to hire and retain young...

LI firms join flood of aid to Asia victims.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter A tsunami of compassion rolled through corporate Long Island, where contributions from workers' pockets and company coffers to disaster relief are expected to reach millions of dollars. Computer Associates...

Photocircuits Corp. laying off workers in Georgia after consolidation in Glen Cove.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter Photocircuits Corp. is laying off 525 workers in Georgia and revamping its business model in the wake of its decision to consolidate in Glen Cove, an executive said. Chief Financial Officer Jim Zerby said that...

Long Island's office real estate market sees slow, steady growth.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi Does slow and steady really win the race? If so, Long Island's office real estate market has a chance to win the gold, because that's how industry sources have characterized its progress in the past year. ...

This year's LI housing market expected to be hot.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi The sky may be sunny above Long Island's residential real estate market right now, but storm clouds have gathered on the horizon as rising interest rates, building moratoriums and red tape-bound affordable-housing...

NY analyst: Pathmark supermarket chain sale will lure new player.
January 7, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale Analysts don't expect anyone to quickly swoop in to acquire Pathmark, the New Jersey-based supermarket chain that put itself up for sale last month. But when the cash register rings on a future sale, expect a new...

Small Biz Administration seeks procurement system revamp.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Adina Genn If it seems tough to catch a break as a small-business owner seeking federal contracts, that's because it is. Nearly $2 billion in federal contacts intended for small businesses actually went to big corporations in...

Dr. Alexandre de Moura becomes first LI surgeon to insert artificial discs.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter It takes resolve to earn a black belt in shotokan karate. The same could be said for exploring the depths as a recreational scuba diver and tackling moguls on the ski slopes of Killington, Vt. Physician Alexandre de...

LIBN in contract to produce paper for NY County Law Assn.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Long Island Business News' custom publishing division has signed a deal to produce a monthly newspaper for the Manhattan-based New York County Law Association. The tabloid-size paper, which will have an initial...

Holtsville-based Symbol Technologies helping hospital go wireless.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Holtsville-based Symbol Technologies Inc. is helping a hospital "down under" pull the plug. The firm said it has provided handheld computers and a wireless networking infrastructure, to be used for "a trial of...

Hauppauge-based TSR Inc. affected by cutbacks at AT&T.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Cutbacks at AT&T came home to roost for at least one Long Island company. Hauppauge-based TSR Inc., an IT staffing and consulting service, said AT&T, its biggest customer, cut back its IT budget. And that led to...

Hard-copy newsletters come back into style at LI firms.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Four years ago, accounting firm Cerini & Associates stopped mailing hard copies of its quarterly newsletter and launched "E-ssential Bulletin," a bi-weekly online publication. The big idea? That shifting to an...

New address, name for LI-based CPI Aerostructures.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter CPI Aerostructures Inc. has changed its name and address, the company announced. The maker of structural parts for the C-5A Galaxy cargo jet, T-38 Talon jet trainer, A-10 Thunderbolt jet and other military...

LI-based Forest Laboratories and Biovail Corp. being sued by La. Wholesale Drug.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff In a Securities and Exchange Commission filing, Forest Laboratories Inc. said it and Biovail Corp. are being sued in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C. The suit, filed by Louisiana Wholesale Drug Co. Inc. and...

LI Pine Barrens Society launches pipeline campaign.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff The Long Island Pine Barrens Society finished a 20,000-piece mailing campaign and is launching a marketing initiative aimed at pressuring the government into approving a route for a gas pipeline that wouldn't cut through...

LI-based Globecomm wins contracts worth $4.2M.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Satellite communications company Globecomm Systems Inc. has won contracts worth about $4.2 million, the company announced. Under the contracts with two unnamed prime contractors for the U.S. government, Globecomm...

NY Community Bancorp stock sees 3% rebound.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff New York Community Bancorp (NYSE: NYB) executives are hoping that the last week of 2004 will be a prelude to the company's stock fortunes this year. The Westbury-based bank's stock rebounded 3 percent, to $20.57 as of...

Commentary: NY Dept. of Transportation needs to get moving on pipeline.
January 7, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff The state Department of Transportation needs to speedily overturn its decision to deny KeySpan Energy Corp.'s request to extend a natural gas pipeline along the Long Island Expressway. To go ahead with the project,...

As he leaves national stage, Colin Powell will be missed.
January 7, 2005... Byline: John Kiernan Although President Bush has decided to reshape his Cabinet for his second term and National Security Advisor Condoleezza Rice has been nominated as the new Secretary of State, the next Bush Administration will be...

Commentary: Democrat state New York to battle a new, more-Republican congress.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Jerry Kremer The 2000 and 2004 presidential elections taught us that there are "red" states and "blue" states on the electoral map. The red states vote Republican, and the blue states vote for Democrats. Regrettably, as we go...

Commentary: American Jobs Creation Act: a 650-page boondoggle.
January 7, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale President Bush often touted the American Jobs Creation Act while running for re-election. The recently passed legislation projects nearly $150 billion in tax breaks to stimulate the economy. But will it? The...

Uniondale-based Arbor Commercial Mortgage hits $100M mark.
January 7, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale Uniondale-based Arbor Commercial Mortgage LLC funded $100.5 million of Federal Housing Association-insured loans in 2004 - the highest volume funded by the group in a single calendar year. "We established Arbor...

Bethpage Federal Credit Union offers tax assistance.
January 7, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale Bethpage Federal Credit Union plans to expand its free Volunteer Income Tax Assistance program in 2005 through its Bay Shore branch. First offered by Bethpage last year at its Hempstead branch, the program provides...

Huntington chamber adds RSS info. feed to keep members in the loop.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter Is e-mail just too slow in keeping your customers, members or employees up to date? Then consider this from the playbook of Huntington-based Young Professionals Chamber of Commerce (www.ypchamber.com). In...

LI-based Cablevision adopts Computer Associates tools for Optimum Online customers.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter A suite of security tools from Computer Associates (NYSE: CA) is being offered at no charge to Cablevision Systems' (NYSE: CVC) Optimum Online customers. Customers can get free downloads at the OptOnline.Net...

Help Wanted: Survey finds IT security workers in demand.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter Those thinking about honing their IT skills might want to consider brushing up on security. A survey by outplacement firm Challenger, Gray & Christmas Inc. found that job vacancies outnumber applicants in the IT...

Internet tracker sees spike in shopping, classified sites.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter Some holiday cheer was delivered to shopping and classified Web sites during the holiday shopping period, Internet tracker Hitwise reported. Those two categories attracted 9.1 percent of total U.S. Internet...

NY and Long Island government target illegal apartments.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi New York State Sen. Dean Skelos and Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray were among a recent gathering of elected officials in Nassau that unveiled a battle plan to eradicate illegal accessory apartments in...

Alliance Acceptance signs lease at EAB Plaza in Uniondale.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi Alliance Acceptance Corp., a home mortgage company, has signed an eight-year lease for 5,611 square feet at EAB Plaza in Uniondale. Alliance will be relocating from 3601 Hempstead Turnpike in Levittown. It will...

Hamptons Realty Group forecasts strong 2005 for Hamptons.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi Winter in the Hamptons may mean shorter days, cold air and white caps but the forecast for the residential real estate market in 2005 is looking hot and sunny for local real estate agents. "Reports predict that...

Coast to Coast Popcorn & Candy acquires Garden City facility.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi In December, Coast to Coast Popcorn & Candy closed on a deal with Harry Krantz Co. to purchase a 24,950-square-foot warehouse at 120 Broadway in Garden City for $2.63 million. The company will use about 19,650 square...

Farrell Fritz merging with East Hampton-based law firm.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Continuing its expansion into the East End, law firm Farrell Fritz is merging East Hampton-based Edwards & Duggan into its operations as of Feb. 1. William H. Duggan Jr. will join Farrell Fritz as counsel. He is...

Two NY senators calling for investigation of gift card fees.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Two local state senators are calling for an investigation of certain fees charged by Simon Property Group gift cards. Sen. Charles J. Fuschillo, R-Freeport, chairman of the consumer protection committee, and Sen....

Nassau County Comptroller audit finds pattern of uncontrolled costs at correctional center.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik An audit by the Nassau County Comptroller of the Nassau County Correctional Center has found a pattern of "uncontrolled costs" due to poor supervision of overtime and leave. The audit, spanning from 2002 to April...

NY's helmet law for skateboarders takes effect.
January 7, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Wearing a helmet while skateboarding has always been a good idea. It's now the law. As of Jan. 1, all skateboarders 14 years old or younger in the state are required by law to wear an approved safety helmet while...

Allstate personal financial rep. in East Northport advises clients about 'fiscal' fitness.
January 14, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale New Year's resolutions often revolve around losing weight and getting in shape, but this is also a great time of year to take stock of your fiscal fitness. That's the pitch from area insurance agents, at least....

Charlotte-based Wachovia could be considering entrance into LI banking market.
January 14, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale Wachovia Corp., the fourth-largest bank in the United States by assets, could be close to entering the Long Island banking market. With $499 billion in assets, Charlotte-based Wachovia, which aggressively...

Percentage of home-based small businesses increasing on Long Island and nationwide.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Adina Genn Rather than seek another full-time gig working for someone else, like many people who were laid off during the economy's steep decline in the early part of the decade, Leah Beth Mills decided to start her own business....

Long Island to prepare for terror attack with mock chemical drill.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter A mock terrorist chemical attack in April will test Long Island's coordinated emergency response and offer select companies a showcase for their homeland security defense systems, officials said. Terry Winters,...

Long Island-based North Fork Bank faces a buying challenge in New Jersey.
January 14, 2005... Byline: David Reich-Hale MELVILLE - North Fork Chairman John Adam Kanas said he's close to going back on the hunt for new bank deals in New Jersey, but he had better move fast. Merger experts say attractive acquisition targets are quickly...

Interview with Terri Alessi-Miceli, executive director of Hauppauge Industrial Assn.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff LIBN: Describe the HIA's current status. ALESSI-MICELI: Its strength lies in the fact that it's a member-driven organization. We are now working toward getting involved with those companies to find out their concerns...

Holtsville-based residential development firm builds affordable-housing project in Coram.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi Can a developer build an affordable-housing project without government subsidies, acquiring development rights or slapping in extra units to make up for lost profits? Apparently so. Emanon Equities, a...

CEO of Huntington Chamber of Commerce offers advice to those searching for his replacement.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Ken Schachter Passion, vision and business sense will be essential qualities required for the next head of the Huntington Chamber of Commerce, said Dennis Sneden, who stressed he was leaving the post Jan. 14 of his own volition....

First-quarter revenue for Jennifer Convertibles plummets; furniture firm blames China.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Blame it on China, Jennifer Convertibles says. The firm said first-quarter revenue plummeted 6.1 percent to $31.7 million as its loss widened to $2.5 million from $1.7 million. The reason for the shrinking...

Central Islip-based printing company files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Amid a still-soft economy and rising costs, Accurate Web Inc., a printing company based in Central Islip, has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection. The firm filed in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court of the Eastern...

Hauppauge-based financial firm becomes latest to exit Securities and Exchange Comm. work.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik The Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 may be creating new opportunities for accounting firms, but it's also convincing them to put some work aside. Take Albrecht, Viggiano, Zureck and Co., which has decided to walk away...

Former Long Island tourism chief pleads not guilty.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Former Long Island tourism chief Michael Hollander pleaded not guilty to a 26-count indictment that he filed false expense reports. In Suffolk Supreme Court, Hollander, former president of the publicly funded Long...

Nassau County to unveil plan to develop transportation links to the Hub in May.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Nassau County will unveil its plan to develop transportation links to the Hub on May 31, Deputy County Executive of Economic Development Patrick Duggan said. Speaking at a Hauppauge Industrial Association luncheon,...

Enzo Biochem gets $1M grant to fund clinical trail for compound to treat fatty liver disease.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Enzo Biochem Inc. has won a $1 million grant from the Israel-U.S. Binational Industrial Research and Development Foundation to fund a clinical trial of a compound that could be used to treat non-alcoholic...

Forest Laboratories begins selling alcoholism treatment drug.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Forest Laboratories Inc. said that its Campral tablets, the first new treatment for alcoholism introduced in nearly a decade, are being sold to physicians, patients and pharmacies nationwide. Campral Delayed-Release...

Commentary: Bad news for journalism.
January 14, 2005... Byline: LIBN Staff Journalism is a never-ending conflict between getting the news to your readers as quickly as possible - preferably before your competitors - and getting it right. When push comes to shove, getting it right is always...

Commentary: Pataki can't have it all in budget plan.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Martin Cantor You wonder what Gov. Pataki had in mind when delivering his State of the State address last week. In what seemed like his swan song, Pataki chose to take people down memory lane, reliving his finer moments as...

Commentary: Pataki will let his budget bill do the talking.
January 14, 2005... Byline: John Kiernan The annual State of the State message delivered by the governor to the New York State Legislature on the first day of the new legislative session is a political event that attracts politicians on all levels and people...

Commentary: George Pataki and the 'Curse of the Fourth Term'.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Jerry Kremer Are you superstitious? Do you avoid black cats? Do you avoid walking under ladders? Are you afraid to open an umbrella indoors? Do you believe that there is such a thing as a "jinx?" Now, I'm not saying there's...

Anthony Curto to move from Mineola to Melville office in order to expand business.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Anthony Curto, a senior partner and head of the corporate and commercial law department at Forchelli, Curto, Schwartz, Mineo, Carlino & Cohn, is moving from the office in Mineola to the one in Melville. Curto's...

Garden City-based Moritt Hock Hamroff & Horowitz opens office in Manhattan.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik In a move that makes it the latest firm to expand into New York City, Garden City-based Moritt Hock Hamroff & Horowitz has opened an office in Manhattan at 330 Fifth Avenue. The office, which opened at the end of...

New York State Bar Association unveils its 2005 legislative priorities.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Claude Solnik Unveiling its 2005 legislative priorities, the New York State Bar Association is calling for an array of changes, including further reform of the Rockefeller Drug Laws, videotaping interrogations by police and a...

Attributes of the new Chrysler 300c make it uniquely American.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Nick Anastasi Its strong shoulders, over-sized grill and low-slung roofline are only a few of the new Chrysler 300c attributes that makes it a uniquely American statement. But the 300c's sheet metal isn't the only part of the...

Professional organizers help businesses get their acts together.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Adina Genn If the success of shows such as "Clean Sweep" and "Queer Eye for the Straight Guy" is any indication, Americans clearly yearn for a little more organization in their lives. And for business folk, putting the "o" back...

Thomas Motamed named to the board of trustees at Adelphi University.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Thomas F. Motamed, vice chairman and chief operating officer of the Chubb Corp., was named to the board of trustees at Adelphi University. Having graduated from Adelphi in 1971, Motamed is the 14th alumnus to serve...

Lawrence Lee appointed systems engineer at CHIPS Computer Consulting in Lake Success.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Lawrence Lee was appointed systems engineer at CHIPS Computer Consulting in Lake Success. He previously was senior systems engineer for the Northeast Region at Nortel Networks. CHIPS also named Matt Nikravesh...

Ernest Mattace Jr. sworn in as trustee to Suffolk County Community College.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Ernest Mattace Jr. was sworn in as a trustee to Suffolk County Community College. He is past president of the college's Alumni Association Council. The Education & Assistance Corp. named Beverly E. Harrison to...

Long Island financial firms announce staffing changes: January 14, 2005.
January 14, 2005... Byline: Henry Powderly Arbor Commercial Mortgage named Hugh Jeffers its Federal Housing Administration screening director. He will help to develop FHA-insured financing opportunities. Ridgewood Savings Bank elected William C. McGarry,...