South Florida Business Journal articles from January 2000

South Florida Business Journal archives from January 2000

Educational Institute of American Hotel & Motel Association.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Anna Russo of Hollywood is the recipient of Certified Hotel Sales Professional (CHSP) by the Educational Institute of American Hotel & Motel Association.

Michael Fitzgerald of Keiser College.
January 28, 2000... Michael Fitzgerald of Keiser College in Fort Lauderdale became a Microsoft Certified Systems Engineer.

Colonial Direct Financial Group.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... * Colonial Direct Financial Group has leased half of the 30,000-square-foot Zenith Professional Center, now going up on Military Trail in Boca Raton. Colonial, an 80-employee financial planning and services company, is relocating from...

Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... * NRT, parent of Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate, has bought the 80associate ERA P.A. Lethbridge & Co. in Plantation. Terms of the deal were not disclosed. The 41-year-old Lethbridge & Co. recorded $132 million in sales and nearly 900...

Paul Ahmed of Terranova Corp.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... * A private investment group headed by Scott Greenwald paid $5.65 million for the Winn-Dixie-anchored Palm Johnson Plaza in Pembroke Pines. Paul Ahmed of Terranova Corp. in Miami brokered the sale of the 91,000-square-foot center at the...

Boca Research Inc.
January 28, 2000... Exchange: Nasdaq Symbol: BOCI Address: 1377 Clint Moore Road, Boca Raton 33487 Phone: (561) 994-6015 Web site: www.bocaresearch.com Employees: 265 Profile: Boca Research makes modems -- although possibly not for...

Miami Popeye's franchisee acquires 37 more outlets.(Interfoods of America Inc.)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Interfoods of America Inc. (OTC BB: IFDA), the Miami-based Popeye's Chicken & Biscuits franchisee, has completed its acquisition of 37 Popeye's restaurants in Mississippi and Louisiana from Ellis Enterprises of Jackson, Miss., for $34...

Carnival Corp. to acquire Fairfield Communities.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Carnival Corp. (NYSE: CCL) in Miami, the world's largest cruise vacation company and Fairfield Communities Inc. (NYSE: FFD), one of America's largest vacation ownership firms have entered into a letter of intent for Carnival to acquire...

Republic Security says earnings up 37 percent.(Republic Security Financial Corp.)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Republic Security Financial Corp. (Nasdaq: RSFC), parent of Republic Security Bank, announced net income of $7.4 million or 15 cents a share for the three months ended Dec. 31, compared to a net loss of $22.6 million or a loss of 46 cents a...

Burger King Corp. has deal with Backstreet Boys.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Burger King Corp. in Miami has a deal for an exclusive promotion with the music group, The Backstreet Boys, which will include a CD and video offer this year and exclusive title sponsorship of the group's fall tour. Contract terms were not...

El Sitio hosts soccer tournament Web site.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... El Sitio in Miami (Nasdaq: LCTO), creator of http://www.elsitio.com and http://www.osite.com.br, says it will be the exclusive Internet host of Latin America's Football Confederation Gold Cup (Copa de Oro). Played every two years, the Gold...

Aruba offers adventurous fun.(De Palm Tours)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... From South Florida, Caribbean vacation offerings are many. A package from the Aruba Convention Bureau caught our attention. Size-wise, Aruba is small, measuring 20 miles by six miles. There are 27 luxury hotels on the southeastern shore, near...

Get away and go nowhere.
January 28, 2000... Here's a lazy way to get out of town without leaving your living room. From Herrington, and its Enthusiast's Catalog, unwind with the Sunday Football Get-A-Way Chair for $2,995. Football season is as good as over, but that doesn't mean...

Bringing Hawaii to South Florida.
January 28, 2000... If a visitor wondered how much of a draw the Tropical Plant Industry Exhibition was at the Broward County Convention Center, Oren Sugita's journey provided a clue. He was at the show for the fifth year representing Hawaiian Floral...

Northern Trust loan reaches out.
January 28, 2000... Northern Trust Bank of Florida's clients typically don't live in low-income or moderate-income neighborhoods. But that hasn't stopped the private banking specialist from making some big commitments to that market, including a $500,000...

A change in scenery does (some) good.(W.R. Grace & Co.)
January 28, 2000... The company is gone, but its not forgotten. W.R. Grace & Co. a supplier of chemicals and building materials formerly based in Boca Raton, said last week it expected to report fourth-quarter earnings of 44 to 50 cents a share before a...

This lawyer story is no joke.
January 28, 2000... Wouldn't you expect a pro golfer to lay claim as the first to sink a hole-in-one on the newly renovated Diplomat Hotel golf course in Hollywood? You'd be wrong, though. Instead, a high-powered lawyer got the first chance to score the coveted...

OK, lawyers, be a star in your own write.(Broward County Bar Association)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... On the front page of the January issue of Barrister, the official newspaper of the Broward County Bar Association, two screaming headlines offer a way for local lawyers to -- imagine that - make more money. "Attention, all aspiring John...

Migration patterns keep lawyers flying.(Steel Hector & Davis)
January 28, 2000... Spring is the time when the swallows return to Capistrano and the turkey vultures come back to Hinkley, Ohio. In South Florida, January is the time when lawyers fly the coop. This year they're flying in droves away from Steel Hector &...

Ask her to explain what Sex Wax is.(Ron Jon's Surf Shop)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The surf's up in the Fort Lauderdale area, according to executives at Ron Jon's Surf Shop. The legendary surfing retailer recently expanded and opened new stores in California and in Sunrise's Sawgrass Mills mall. Now Ron Jon wants to...

Mark Begelman's songs in the key of success.(Mars Music)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... An entrepreneur never wants to get behind one of these three curves -- the people curve, the technology curve and the money curve, says Mark Begelman, the chief Martian at Mars Music. A former president of Office Depot, Begelman told the...

That's why they're 'hunqry' start-ups.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The Florida Venture Capital Conference may have briefly been a victim of its own success. In its most winning year ever, the Florida Venture Forum counted 650 attendees at this year's two-day bash in the posh Biltmore in Coral Gables. Another...

New club makes Delray swing.(Rodney Mayo has leased the historic Delray Beach house)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... South Beach and West Palm Beach nightclub owner Rodney Mayo has leased the historic Delray Beach house, once home to the posh Damiano's restaurant. Mayo, who owns Lost Weekend in Miami Beach among other clubs around South Florida, plans...

WEEK IN REVIEW.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Just when you were getting comfortable with the AOL merger with Time Warner, now comes word that British music conglomerate EMI Group has agreed to join hands and jive happily ever after in musical bliss as the latest bride of Time Warner....

FIU.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... FIU in Miami architecture professor, Juan Bueno honored by Harvard's Landscape Architecture Program.

Make allies to boost business.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Corporate and organizational relationships are in! (Wall Street says so!) And for the small business, too, there is tremendous value in being inclusive and forming strategic alliances. Forming professional relationships with companies that...

Rapid prototype designer molds for a special market.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Inside large glass cages that resemble overgrown aquariums, orange laser beams dance across invisible molds -- designs generated by a handful of powerful computers cluttering an office just 10 feet away. It's a scene straight out of "Star...

Help, your cell phone is ringing and you can't recover.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Picture this: You're in an important meeting with a prospective client, trying to make the sale of the year. The prospect is in the middle of telling you exactly what you need to hear to complete the sale, when a cell phone rings. Uh,...

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE.
January 28, 2000... ACCOUNTING Linda S. Lubitz, president of The Lubitz Financial Group was appointed to the advisory board of TIAA-CREF Institite in Miami. Craig Friedman joined Berkowitz Dick Pollack & Brant as supervisor in accounting services, Scott...

Good news for families.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The Lord's Place Inc. got dirt moving this week in West Palm Beach. That's where the organization -- which provides services to homeless families -- is building its new Family Shelter Complex. The facility will provide long-term care and...

WITI celebrates.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Women in Technology International packed the Chivas Regal Room at the new AmericanAirlines Arena to celebrate the launch of a new South Florida chapter for WITI, the Encino-Calif.-based trade and networking organization. The WITI Foundation...

MAKING A BIG IMPRESSION.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Scrambling for qualified workers, Baker seeks local funding for training schoool From the Dolphin Mall and Port Everglades to a new passenger terminal extension at the Fort Lauderdale/Hollywood Airport, Cincinnati-based Baker Concrete is...

U.M. student's Web site makes finding housing a snap.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... University of Miami student Charles Silver has turned an overheard conversation into a Web-based business. "I overheard students and teachers many times at my school who were talking about needing information quickly on affordable housing...

A wake-up call for sleepy old Coral Springs park.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Two veteran Miami developers have acquired the remaining acreage at the Corporate Park of Coral Springs with plans to wake up the long-sleeping giant. Partners Stephen Blumenthal and Carlos Lopez-Cantera paid Bonita Springs-based...

New county permit process looks like a good idea.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... With the dawn of a brave new millennium came the approval of a new ordinance from the Miami-Dade County Building Department. With an effective date of Jan. 3, the county is now required to approve or reject building plans within 30 business...

Nicklaus golf development threatened by a lawsuit.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Jack Nicklaus' companies in Palm Beach County are ready to work on a project in the Charlotte, N.C., area, but a lawsuit threatens to disrupt that. The 550-acre Longview golf course community that was to be centered around a...

Stiles, Summit made '99 count.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... For general contractors working South Florida's booming construction industry, one year can make the difference between being a player or an also-ran. Take Stiles Construction in Fort Lauderdale and Summit Contractors of Sunrise. 1998...

New FHA guidelines worrying appraisers.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The Federal Housing Authority has imposed new guidelines for appraisers who conduct FHA loan appraisals. The change has appraisers complaining the new mandates blur the lines between their traditional responsibility -- to determine, on...

Largest General Contractors.
January 28, 2000... Largest General Contractors Aubri Benjamin Jenni Cruise Ranked by 1999 South Florida gross billings Rank 2000 General Contractor ...

Flight path to growth.
January 28, 2000... Executive Airport's largest operator is expanding again Tour the tarmac at Fort Lauderdale Executive Airport, and in all directions is the shade of a Banyan. Banyan Air Services, Inc. is already the largest fixed base operator at the...

Miami noise machine.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Lost in all the hue and cry about Elian is another only-in-Miami story: How officials with the National Academy of Recording Arts and Sciences recently got a good dose of local politics. The group decided to hold its first-ever Latin...

Coasting ahead.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... South Florida is growing as a center of technology, but it has received little recognition. That's why we are happy to see economic development and technology groups working together on the Internet Coast initiative. Gov. Jeb Bush vetoed...

Boutiques for luxury home buyers.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... The vibrant economy and success of the stock market have stimulated real estate in South Florida, especially in the luxury home market. This growth has produced a unique group of people monetarily liquid enough to purchase luxury cars, large...

Techniques keep site from Internet invisibility.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... How many of you have gone online to look up something, typed up your search inquiry, and your answer was something like this: "There are 20,640 sites matching your search. Would you like to see the first 10,20, or 30?" What if your Web site...

Company brews pot full of trouble.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... One of my favorite businesses in the world let me down. I've been a customer of Gevalia coffee service for more than a decade and enjoyed excellent service. Then they failed me, not once but twice. When my regular shipment of whole bean...

AIC.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The AIC in Miami awarded the Se Habla Espanol Awards in Communications Excellence in the category of best newspaper campaign.

Kalyn/Siebert of Rail America.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Kalyn/Siebert of Rail America a specialty truck trailer manufacturer in Boca Raton, was awarded a new order for trailers valued at approximately $5.2 million.

Johnson & Wales University.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Johnson & Wales University in North Miami, chef instructors recognized by the American Culinary Federation for their contributions to the Miami chapter.

ImMediacy.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... ImMediacy and its president Cheryl K. Crowley received the ACE Media Promotion of the Year Award from the Adult & Community Educators of Florida for exceptional public relations work on behalf of the Palm Beach County Literacy Coalition.

Florence Fuller Child Development Centers.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Lorry Herdeen, executive director of Florence Fuller Child Development Centers, was selected by the Soroptimits International of Boca Raton/Deerfield Beach as a "Woman of Distinction" in the non-profit category.

Professional Women's Executive Roundtable (POWER).(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Professional Women's Executive Roundtable (POWER) a non-profit networking organization is celebrating its one year anniversary in Boca Raton.

Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Coldwell Banker Residential Real Estate in Key Biscayne honored five of its associates, sales manager Carolyn Jones and sales associates Joan McCaughan, Rosella Garcia, Lucia Morales, Ginette Orozco and Betty Portuondo.

Associated Builders and Contractors.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The Associated Builders and Contractors in Sunrise awarded a merit award for construction to Centex Rooney/Huber, Hunt & Nichols for the National Car Rental project.

Community Partnership for Homeless.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Community Partnership for Homeless, the nationally prominent organization serving homeless needs in Miami-Dade county, accepted a $1.5 million gift from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Elcon Electric.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Elcon Electric in Pompano was awarded an electrical contract for Cisco - Miami Upfit by Bovis Construction Corp.

Worldwide Internet Services.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Worldwide Internet Services in Coral Springs provides relay services to ByteAudio.com.

Lawex Corp.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Lawex Corp. has retained the Weinbach Group, a full-service communications firm, to handle Lawex's advertising and public relations activities.

Goldstein Lewin & Co.
January 28, 2000... David A. Katzman a certified public accountant in Boca Raton has merged with Goldstein Lewin & Co.

Language Exchange International.
January 28, 2000... Language Exchange International in Fort Lauderdale reclaimed by its owners, Connie and Nick Paladino.

Dryclean USA.(acquired by British company)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Dryclean USA in Miami was acquired by Johnson Group PLC, a British company.

City of Hialeah Police Department.(to open Center for Outdoor Suspension with Miami-Dade School Board)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Miami-Dade School Board entered into a corporate agreement with the City of Hialeah Police Department to open the Center for Outdoor Suspension.

Technology Research Corp.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Windmere Durable Holdings in Miami entered a license agreement with Technology Research Corp. to use TRC's Extended Fire Shield technology.

World Fuel Services Corp.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... World Fuel Services Corp. in Miami Springs signed an agreement to sell its oil recycling segment to EarthCare Co.

Fidelity Bankshares.(announces income for fourth quarter)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Fidelity Bankshares of West Palm Beach, announced the company's net income for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was over $4 million.

Van Vechten & Co.
January 28, 2000... Van Vechten & Co. in Boca Raton, a public relations agency celebrates its 20th anniversary in business.

Private Tutoring Services.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Private Tutoring Services in Boca Raton is offering instruction and support in all Fields of academics from elementary to university.

Citrix Systems.(new UNIX services offered)(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Citrix Systems in Fort Lauderdale, will provide application service provider access or UNIX using MetaFrame software.

Convergencia.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Convergencia, an Internet magazine located in Miami for Latin America, becomes available in April.

Applied Digital Solutions.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Applied Digital Solutions in Palm Beach has implemented an internal browser-based e-business solution specifically to serve its large corporate customers.

Walker/Fitzgibbon Film & Television.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Walker/Fitzgibbon Film & Television of Miami was nominated for the 42nd Grammy Awards for its work on Gloria Estefan's Dance DVD "Don't Stop."

Johnson & Wales University.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Steven Kilts was honored "Chef of the Year" and Alan Lazar won "Chapter Achievement Award." Both are chefs from Johnson & Wales University in North Miami.

Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... Dr. Alex Powell of Miami Cardiac & Vascular Institute received a certificate of added qualifications in vascular and intervention radiology.

State investigates largest viatical company.(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... A Fort Lauderdale viatical company, billed as the nation's largest, is under criminal investigation and also being sued in civil court for more than $600,000. Anne Williams, an investigator in West Palm Beach with the Florida Division of...

Link's leader invests in club on South Beach.(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Those wondering how worried Paul R. Johnson is about his package delivery business could have asked him last Saturday at a new business venture, a South Beach night club called Bacchanalia. Johnson, the 20-something CEO and leader of Link...

Internet Coast unites business groups.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... A growing regional alliance of trade organizations, universities, and tech companies is launching a major push to brand South Florida technology as "The Internet Coast." The latest branding effort takes up where the old "I-95 Corridor"...

Rexall Sundown hub could fortify Coconut Creek.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Rexall Sundown's search for a site to build a new distribution center has led it to 75 acres in Coconut Creek owned by a Wayne Huizenga entity, according to several real estate sources and city officials. The development deal has yet to...

Gay retirement complex developers remain hopeful.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Jacqueline Tuchler, 42, founder of Cruisin' Kids Carpool, has spent the latter part of the 1990s coming out. First she embraced her sexuality with a new domestic partner. Next, the twice-married mother of one shed her suburban confines to...

Internet tax ban hot, but voters cool on big cuts.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... The tax policies of the leading presidential candidates range from Steve Forbes' proposal to "end the IRS as we know it" to Bill Bradley's plan to eliminate corporate tax shelters. But the only issue that seems to have hit a nerve with...

CORRECTION.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... In a profile last week of new printing company Miami Offset, the company's Web site was listed incorrectly. The correct site is: www.Miamioffset.com.

Fla. prompt-pay laws revised for lawmakers.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... But certain issues are still unresolved After almost a year discussing and debating the delays in payments to hospitals and doctors for services, the state Agency for Health Care Administration is ready to recommend to legislators how to...

Bank Atlantic's stock plan seems fair, analysts say.(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Bank Atlantic Bancorp's offer to buy back its Class B shares should help investors understand the company and thus provide a longsought price lift for its surviving Class A shares, according to securities analysts. BankAtlantic's...

The benign dictator.(Statistical Data Included)
January 28, 2000... Alvarez is comandante of fast-growing law firm Cesar Alvarez and his parents and two brothers left Cuba when he was 13 and the Castro government was in its second year. Today, as president and CEO of Miami's fast-growing Greenberg Traurig...

Hot on the acquisition trail.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... TraveLeaders Group forms eight-agency Gables-based roll-up Six Florida travel agencies, along with two others based in Dallas and Philadelphia, have banded together. They are forming the nucleus of TraveLeaders Group, an ambitious Coral...

The excitement is over; now hurry up and wait.(Brief Article)
January 28, 2000... The SRO crowds at last week's Florida Venture Forum are gone -- and so are the covetous start-ups, the 75 venture capital firms, and the 650 attendees that shoehorned themselves at the Biltmore Hotel in Coral Gables. Now comes the wait. ...