South Florida Business Journal articles from April 1999

South Florida Business Journal archives from April 1999

Pompano races ahead; developer plans class A, retail space for Broward's last frontier.(Premier Commercial Realty's plan to develop the land surrounding Pompano Park Racing track)
April 30, 1999... Premier Commercial Realty recently snapped up 136 acres surrounding Pompano Park Racing track. It plans to come out of the starting gate this Spring with 1.8 million square feet of retail, offices and warehouses. Terms of the deal with...

Time for fun: despite balmy weather, cruise lines thrive in summertime.(South Florida)
April 30, 1999... It may be unbearably humid in the CAribbean, blindingly bright in Cancun and tortuously sticky in Key West, but that doesn't mean summertime is a slow time of year for South Florida's cruise lines, industry spokespeople say. In fact,...

Miami company prepares prepaid cell-phone invasion.(Topp Telecom)
April 30, 1999... Topp Telecom joins forces with TelMex, other Latin firms Miami's Topp Telecom, which developed the technology that allows consumers to buy cell phones at convenient places such as 7-Eleven, now dances to the rhythm of the Latin beat, or...

Palm Beach pursuing Latin American tourists.
April 30, 1999... Palm Beach County officials want a larger share of the 3 million to 4 million Latin Americans who fly to Florida every year. But so far the effort has been slow to produce results. Of Latin Americans visiting Florida last year, 24,000...

Setting the stage.(South Florida Business 100)
April 30, 1999... Restructuring costs kept 1998 profits down for South Florida's largest public companies, even as revenues rose. Call it the cost of doing business. Call it an investment in the future. While most South Florida firms improved revenues in...

Fatal construction: Miami-Dade among country's deadliest sites for workers.(includes related article on occupational hazards for construction workers in South Florida)
April 30, 1999... Deadly work Compared to counties around the country, South Florida is a particularly dangerous place for construction workers. Figures (for 1990-1998) exclude deaths of state, county and city employees, some highway accidents and...

Airlines in a dogfight over ramp.(LanChile Airlines, United Air Lines Inc. disagree over financing for a $16 million ramp at Miami International Airport)
April 23, 1999... LanChile, United propose different ways to pay for $16 million project LanChile Airlines' planned $60 million cargo and office facility at Miami International Airport is in a holding pattern. This and revised plans by United, Varig...

Building our future: Steel Fabricators provides backbones for many top projects.(Company Profile)
April 23, 1999... Drive by Kurt Langsenkamp's business and you probably wouldn't notice it. His two-story office building is well kept, but its simple design doesn't stand out among the businesses along Oakland Park's Prospect Road, a gritty looking street...

Hospitals may reap millions in pilot project.(Medicaid referral plan)
April 23, 1999... Broward and Miami-Dade counties' public hospitals dropped their objections to a Medicaid pilot project offering them financial incentives of up to $14.5 million over the next two years. After a year of delays, the project is expected to...

Aquarium sinks at CityPlace, may resurface elsewhere.(plans for an aquarium in West Palm Beach, Florida)
April 23, 1999... A proposed $52 million aquarium attraction at West Palm Beach's CityPlace appears to be sunk. "You always have to make choices," CityPlace Chief Operating Officer Bruce Macleod said. "From an architectural point-of-view and a program...

]Home developers and bank form 'mutual' bond.(Washington Mutual Bank)
April 23, 1999... Washington Mutual Bank, the nation's largest savings and loan, has begun lending to South Florida homebuilders with the goal of boosting its already strong mortgage business. The savings bank's Residential Builders Services Group has...

Bill proponents see 8 percent drop in health-care costs.(bill to make health insurance more affordable to small businesses)
April 23, 1999... Lawmakers and lobbyists are wrestling over proposed statutory changes that aim to make health insurance more affordable for small businesses. Supporters of nearly identical Senate and House bills say plans to revamp the five-year-old...

Merger costs Cunard Cruise Line $10 million.(Cunard Line Ltd.'s merger with Carnival Corp.)
April 23, 1999... In the wake of a merger with Carnival Corp., Cunard Cruise Line will only get $350,000 out of a $10.6 million incentive package that lured the cruise line from New York to Miami 16 months ago. Miami-Dade County is severing its pledge of...

HMOs suffer worst year ever in Florida.(health maintenance organizations)(Industry Overview)
April 23, 1999... Stung by spiraling medical costs, irate doctors and a dicey strategy for gaining market share, Florida's health maintenance organizations suffered their worst year ever in 1998, hemorrhaging $49.5 million. And Florida employers will be...

Boca company answers the call.(Phone Interactive Communication Corp.)(Company Profile)
April 23, 1999... Chances are pretty high that if you call Sprint s toll free number to order long distance service, the call will end up in Boca Raton. Instead of hiring a room full of customer service people to answer the phone, many companies such as...

American graffiti not just an old movie, but an $8 billion eyesore.(Florida Graffiti Control)(Company Profile)
April 23, 1999... Experts say it can accelerate crime, drive away new business, deflate property values and ruin the architectural integrity of an entire city. It costs an estimated $8 billion a year to fight. And by most accounts, it's ugly and scares people....

Women making strides in male-dominated fields.(women-owned businesses)
April 23, 1999... Once limited to industries such as retail and advertising, women in South Florida now own businesses sprinkled across the entire corporate galaxy. Miami's All American Containers is just one example. Run by Remedios and Rosa Diaz-Oliver,...

$100 million expansion nears completion at space center.
April 23, 1999... CAPE CANAVERAL - In years past, the Kennedy Space Center Visitor Complex had little to offer guests aside from displays of old rockets, moon rovers and assorted space-age gizmos. As one observer recalls, "It was just a metal museum."...

$20 million cosmetics plant killed.(BGI Industries)
April 16, 1999... Peruvian cosmetic maker BGI Industries has called off plans to build a $20 million manufacturing plant in Boynton Beach's Quantum Corporate Park, opting instead to sell the site. BGI's proposed 160,000-square-foot facility, expected to...

Landing space vehicle crucial to state's future: VentureStar's impact vital for Palm Beach.
April 16, 1999... Palm Beach County plays a leading role in Florida's mission to capture the next generation of space travel - the science fiction-like VentureStar. Lockheed Martin, a California aerospace and defense contractor, is developing the first...

Hot hotel restaurants: once shunned by the locals, top hotels create some hip spots.
April 16, 1999... The term conjures images of crusty roadside diners where day-old chipped beef is the special. It brings to mind dim dining rooms with lounge lizard carpeting and salad bars with wet iceberg lettuce, beets and stray bits of cottage cheese...

Miami hopes sand and soaps mix.(entertainment production business in South Florida)
April 16, 1999... It's been years since Arnold Schwarzenegger crashed a crane-held fighter jet into a Miami office tower or Sandra Bullock jumped from a burning cruise ship in "Speed 2." But the lull in South Florida feature films doesn't mean the...

Heavy hitters join arena's board.(advisory team for the Arena at Climatis)
April 16, 1999... Developers of the $48 million Arena at Clematis, proposed for downtown West Palm Beach, have assembled a high-powered advisory team to help move the project down the court. The board includes former County Commission Chairman Ken Foster...

Rival banks' competition spurs slight drop in deposits.(includes related article on NationsBank's James Cassady's added duties)(NationsBank and Barnett Banks)
April 16, 1999... The first statewide data on deposits for last summer show that even amid rivals' efforts to steal customers, the combined NationsBank and Barnett Banks operation suffered relatively modest declines of 4 percent in both Broward and Palm Beach...

Fast growth prospect doesn't scare Jupiter.
April 16, 1999... WCI and Jupiter on same page to handle 'smart growth' As North Palm Beach County prepares for its largest development spurt to date, Jupiter officials take it in stride. Unlike their counterparts in adjacent Palm Beach Gardens,...

State arrests six charged in Medicaid fraud case.(Florida)
April 16, 1999... State investigators this week arrested six people connected to a Miami-Dade County home-health agency, charging them with defrauding Medicaid. The six, including a Hialeah Fire Department lieutenant, were alleged to have billed the state...

Art for business' sake: snap decision pays off for former ad executive.(Red Square Photography founder Corey Weiner)
April 16, 1999... Corey Weiner wanted more from his job than just a way to pay the bills. As a youngster growing up in California in the 1970s, he played with kids whose parents were screenwriters, producers and directors. He was constantly surrounded by...

Boca restaurant row's biggest allure is revenue.(Boca Raton, Florida)
April 16, 1999... It's located between two major expressways. Its residents can afford to eat out most nights. It's an easy drive from West Palm Beach or Fort Lauderdale. It's safe and clean. It has ample parking. It's west Boca Raton's restaurant row -...

Brokering Burt's ranch.(Burt Reynolds' ranch)
April 9, 1999... Asking price cut to $4.1 million, but firm deal is lacking Customers stream into Ritchey Brown's feed and supply store in Jupiter Farms, shouting friendly hellos to the blue-eyed nephew of actor Butt Reynolds. For 25 years Brown's...

Accounting firms adapt to consolidation.
April 9, 1999... It's not hard to understand why huge accounting firm consolidators, such as American Express or Century Business Services, want to own South Florida accounting firms. Traditionally, accountants have benefited from close personal bonds...

West Palm bank getting jump on Y2K.(Fidelity Federal Savings addresses year 2000 computer problem)(Brief Article)
April 9, 1999... Committees have banks prepared for potential snafus When financial industry leaders meet in Washington next week for a Y2K summit, Anita Mixon of Fidelity Federal Savings will be among a dozen bankers explaining what to do. Mixon,...

'Just bring your toothbrush': condo-hotels are Miami's latest real estate hit.
April 9, 1999... Condo-hotels are Miami's latest real estate hit Miami developers are embracing the worldly concept of hassle-free living by investing in hybrids. The hybrids are not man-made monsters but luxurious condo-hotels that will sprout along...

Cable industry's Internet services consider following Comcast's lead.(merger with MediaOne Group sparks speculation of merger between @Home and Road Runner)
April 9, 1999... The proposed merger of South Florida's cable television giants Comcast and MediaOne Group prompted speculation that the cable industry's leading high-speed Internet services, @Home and Road Runner, also will merge. But a spokesman for...

Sold to the woman in red.com: South Florida companies are jumping on the e-auction bandwagon.
April 9, 1999... Live auctions are so passe. You have to advertise them in the newspaper, find a big enough place in which to hold them, hire a cop so no one steals the goods, a caterer to serve refreshments, register bidders and arm them with numbered...

Picking up speed.(insurance companies merging with banks)
April 9, 1999... Insurance agents spread their wings to stay in business The insurance industry doesn't have to wait until New Year's Day for a new millennium. The financial world entered its own 21st century several years ago with questions of "who's...

Bankers agents share friendly rivalry.(Florida banks selling insurance)
April 9, 1999... At City National Bank of Florida, lenders surprise customers by asking if they'd like help landing property and casualty coverage for their business or personal needs. The Miami-based bank has been doing that since January, referring...

E-insurance offers security for data-based companies.(Insuretrust.com LLC)
April 9, 1999... As the business world's dependency on network systems grows - and trade on the Internet takes off - so does the potential for security breaches and technical snafus that can cost a company millions in liability, not to mention immeasurable...

PAX TV denies Wall Street rumors: analysts say company may be forced to sell fledgling network.
April 2, 1999... PAX TV is not for sale, despite speculation to the contrary on Wall Street, CEO Jeff Sagansky said. But some analysts say the family-friendly network in West Palm Beach may have no choice if it fails to improve its financial situation by...

Development springs forth: Coral Springs projects touted as Class A space.(Coral Springs Economic Development Foundation)
April 2, 1999... Coral Springs, once passed over by office developers, is seeing a flurry of new development. Encouraged by dwindling vacancy rates, one developer broke ground on 90,000 square feet of offices and another plans 85,000 square feet. ...

International trade lacking in diversity: South Florida selected as training ground for minority businesses.
April 2, 1999... By its nature, it would seem international trade doesn't suffer from a lack of diversity But it does. Minority-owned businesses are the fastest growing in the U.S., but African American-owned companies barely show up in trade numbers....

A remedy for Rexall's ailment?: supplements could add revenue as vitamin sales lag.
April 2, 1999... Supplements could add revenue as vitamin sales lag Rexall Sundown is supplementing its core vitamin business with a new strategy. Rather than selling only traditional vitamins and minerals, the Boca Raton-based company (Nasdaq: RXSD)...

Attorneys squaring off for lone Bar seat.
April 2, 1999... Attorney Henry Latimer thinks that the image of lawyers needs polishing. John Bowman wants more attention paid to small office practitioners like himself. Latimer and Bowman are run-off candidates for a seat on the Florida Bar's Board of...

Paper trail: the 'Jewish Journal', the only survivor in a long list of failures, faces unusual changes.
April 2, 1999... The Jewish Journal - the last of South Florida's once-vibrant Jewish press - has given up some of its most valuable editorial features to its new owner, the Sun-Sentinel. The paper recently moved its bar mitzvah, birth and wedding...

Better late than never, Neiman-Marcus breaks ground: third South Florida Neiman's slated to open in November 2000.
April 2, 1999... Neiman-Marcus, the tony Texas retailer that lassoed a spot on Worth Avenue and held on during a bumpy ride to corral it, will finally break ground this month. Construction on a two-story, 49,000-square-foot department store with roof and...

Marlins spring training home has sprung some leaks.(Florida Marlins)
April 2, 1999... Brevard County promises to renovate so Marlins won't bolt The Florida Marlins, who moved into their palatial spring digs in Brevard County only five years ago, have uttered rumblings that have their landlord worried that they may pack up...

Lending more than a hand: despite what you might have heard, many banks really want to give small businesses money.
April 2, 1999... For banker Scott Radway, who heads up Union Planters Bank's small business unit in South Florida, handing out loans is job security. "My job is to lend money," Radway said. In recent years, small business has become big business for...

With a premium on accuracy, medical transcribers in demand.
April 2, 1999... Transcribing medical records has grown to a multi-billion industry in the United States and is one of Florida's fastest-growing jobs. Yet companies that perform the service can't find enough employees to handle the need. Janice Newman...

Miller Construction Company: serving South Florida for 25 years.(Company Profile)
April 2, 1999... Back in 1973, brothers Tom and Harley Miller launched a new Fort Lauderdale construction company with their first project - construction management for the Port de Mer condominium in Hillsboro Beach. Thanks to their estimating, scheduling and...