South Florida Business Journal articles from June 1995

South Florida Business Journal archives from June 1995

Dealer linked to phony titles. (Schwag Used Cars Inc. uses fraudulent signatures to obtain car loans and make fake documents)
June 2, 1995... Schwag customers thought they were signing up for test-drives, not loans MIAMI - A simple signature allowed a Hialeah used car dealership to misuse hundreds of thousands of dollars, leaving banks and consumers empty-handed. The dozens of...

Big vote launches new awards. (Blockbuster Entertainment Corp. to hold first annual Blockbuster Enterainment Awards for overlooked entertainers)
June 2, 1995... FORT LAUDERDALE - Move over, Oscar. Fort Lauderdale-based Blockbuster Entertainment - its nominees endorsed by more than a million patrons - is set to debut its first televised awards show to honor some of America's most popular entertainers....

Franchisee asks: where's the beef? (Taco Viva franchisees complain of lack of marketing support and inferior food)
June 2, 1995... BOYNTON BEACH - Keith Crawford has a beef with Taco Viva, the fast-food Mexican chain whose restaurants once dotted the state of Florida. Crawford, who co-owns three Taco Viva franchises in Boynton Beach, Jensen Beach and Fort Pierce, says his...

Ideon stock takes a beating. (Ideon Group Inc. stock drops 45.5%)
June 2, 1995... In a storm of trading, Ideon Group Inc. stock plummeted 45.5 percent last week, as more than 4 million shares changed hands and trading was temporarily halted. Ideon (formerly SafeCard Services) saw its stock fall to $9.125 a share last Friday...

Venezuelan owners sell Eastern National. (Union Planters Corp. to acquire Eastern National Bank)
June 2, 1995... MIAMI - Eastern National Bank is being acquired by Union Planters Corp., a $9.7 billion-in-assets bank holding company based in Memphis. But don't expect much to change. Jose Valdes-Fauli will continue to lead the bank after the merger as...

Florida health costs drop.
June 2, 1995... Managed care pushes down cost of employee benefits While the costs of employee medical plans increased last year for employers in most states, Florida's employers saw a decrease. And employers in South Florida, spurred by managed care, are...

Kenco builds on last large tract. (Kenco Communities Inc. builds Addision Reserve country club community in Boca Raton, Florida)
June 2, 1995... DELRAY BEACH - With Boca Raton nearly built out, Delray Beach is supplanting the Mizner city as a country club haven for the affluent buyer. Case in point: Addison Reserve. "There's a lack of inventory in Boca Raton," says Richard Finkelstein,...

Architect's name helps sales. (Architect Michael Graves designs new Constructa projects in Miami Beach, Florida)
June 2, 1995... MIAMI BEACH - Irrepressible architect Michael Graves is about to make his mark on trendy Miami Beach - a condominium, retail and office project that overlooks the beach like an oceangoing vessel. Graves was the star at a recent beach soiree...

Neolens works to keep stock listed. (Neolens Inc. signs debt conversion agreement with NASDAQ Market System)
June 2, 1995... MIAMI - Neolens Inc. is working to keep its stock listed on the Nasdaq Small Cap market while it looks for a new chief executive officer. Neolens, a local manufacturer of eyeglass lenses that has lost more than $9 million in the past three...

Partners to launch new health plan. (University of Miami School of Medicine,Public Health Trust of Dade County; Physician Corporation of America; UM HealthTrust)
June 9, 1995... MIAMI - A managed health care plan launched this week in Dade County is one of the nation's first partnerships involving a medical school, a public health care system and a for-profit managed care company. The UM Health Trust, a managed health...

Grossman's tourism tips. (Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau Pres. Nicki Grossman)
June 9, 1995... New boss sees Fort Lauderdale as distinct destination FORT LAUDERDALE - By the morning of her second day at the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention & Visitors Bureau, Nicki Grossman had turned the president's office into her own. The walls...

Ex-SafeCard CEO starting new firm. (Steven Halmos; Reunion Group)
June 9, 1995... FORT LAUDERDALE - Fort Lauderdale investor and former SafeCard Services Inc. chief executive officer Steven Halmos has started a new company to develop and market credit card enhancement services. The Reunion Group will focus on the retail end...

Second exec out at skin-care company. (Viva Pharmaceutical Pres. Peter B. Newton)
June 9, 1995... President also did not disclose bankruptcy in prospectus given to investors BOCA RATON - A second executive has stepped down from a Boca Raton skin-care company after acknowledging that he too did not disclose a bankruptcy in financial...

Role is the same, but center swaps office for home. (Sawgrass International Corporate Park; Office Depot Inc.; Home Depot Inc.)
June 9, 1995... SUNRISE - Office Depot is replacing Home Depot at Stiles Co.'s Sawgrass International Corporate Park. Office Depot signed a long-term deal for 150,570 square feet of distribution space in what used to be known as the Sherwin Williams building,...

Base has new operator. (Opa-Locka Airport; Husta International Inc.)
June 9, 1995... OPA-LOCKA - Joseph Husta has taken over the fixed-based operation at Opa-locka Airport from Miami developer Michael Adler. Adler had operated there as Terminal One, a two-story building with 10,000 square feet, for the last three years. In...

IntegraCare merger runs into delays. (IntegraCare Inc.-Integrated Health Services Inc. merger)
June 9, 1995... DELRAY BEACH - IntegraCare's planned merger with Integrated Health Services is worth less money than anticipated and is taking longer than expected to complete. Blaming potential changes in Medicare reimbursement for occupational and speech...

Cordis Corporation: a wellness program with 'heart.'(Health Care Monthly)
June 9, 1995... New employees at the Cordis Corporation receive a physical exam from a physician soon after hiring. It's their introduction to one of South Florida's most extensive corporate wellness programs. For more than two decades, Cordis' 1,800 employees...

Fun Train wants $15M. (Florida Fun Train; First American Railways)
June 16, 1995... IPO would finance Miami-Orlando route MIAMI - First American Railways Inc., a development company that wants to run a "Florida Fun Train" to entertain tourists traveling between South Florida and Orlando, is turning to the investing public to...

The Boca Burger boom. (Boca Burger Co.)
June 16, 1995... But growth has meant move to plant in Fort Lauderdale FORT LAUDERDALE - A year after Hillary Clinton started ordering cases of them for the White House, Boca Burgers are on the shelves at 50 U.S. supermarket chains and on the menu at...

Troubled Florida West attracts buyer. (Florida West Airlines Inc.)
June 16, 1995... MIAMI - The president of Florida West Airlines, backed by LAN Chile S.A., Fast Air Carrier S.A. and Alexander Cargo Inc., has signed a letter of intent to buy the cargo airline out of bankruptcy for $3.5 million. Richard Haberly, a former...

Medical clean-up. (medical waste industry)
June 16, 1995... A hostile international takeover involving waste management giants in Texas and Great Britain last year has sharply reduced competition in South Florida's tightly regulated medical waste industry. Last December, Houston-based Browning-Ferris...

Curing the sick building should be a top priority.
June 16, 1995... It begins with a single employee complaining of blurred or dry eyes, a sore throat and a headache. But as quick as you can say "blue Monday," the entire office has "sick building syndrome," a collection of workplace ailments that includes...

This joint's no dive: movie moguls target Miami for restaurant. (Dive!; Steven Spielberg; Jeffrey Katzenberg)
June 16, 1995... MIAMI - Dive!, a hot new restaurant concept created by Hollywood moguls Steven Spielberg and Jeffrey Katzenberg, is looking to open in Miami. Bob Hayward, a spokesman for the restaurant chain's parent company, confirmed that Miami is one of...

Bimini Club up for sale. (Bimini Big Game Club)
June 16, 1995... The Bimini Big Game Club, host to more than 30 fishing tournaments a year and a popular stop-off for South Florida sport fishers, is on the selling block. The asking price is $6.8 million. The owner has decided to sell its real estate...

Little bank's big plans under way. (Gulf Bank)
June 16, 1995... Turnaround done, execs now ready to grow Miami lender MIAMI - It's the second-smallest bank in Dade County, but Gulf Bank has big plans. Those plans started with the bank's recent move into a new headquarters building and its introduction of...

Next from Sawgrass: play while you shop. (Sawgrass Mills shopping mall)
June 16, 1995... SUNRISE - For die-hard shoppers, a day at Sawgrass Mills is the ultimate entertainment. But for those who don't feel that way, the five-year-old mall soon will offer some new incentives to visit: an aquarium, an IMAX movie theater, a concert...

OSHA compliance can be helpful to many employers. (Occupational Safety and Health Administration)
June 16, 1995... To many employers, the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) is the classic example of "Big Brother." While OSHA was created to assist both employees and employers in maintaining a safe and healthy place to work, most employers'...

Private prison firm relocating to Florida. (Esmor Correctional Services Inc.)
June 16, 1995... SARASOTA - A prime competitor of Wackenhut Corrections Corp. is moving its corporate headquarters from New York to Florida. Esmor Correctional Services Inc. will relocate from Melville, N.Y., to Sarasota in September and plans to tap the local...

Asbestos management plan is key. (health in the workplace)
June 16, 1995... The concern with asbestos-containing materials (ACM) in the workplace originates from evidence linking respiratory diseases with occupational exposure in manufacturing industries. The mere existence of asbestos does not mean occupants of the...

WSHE switches format as part of "evolution." (FM radio station)
June 16, 1995... MIAMI - It's out with the tried and on with the new at WSHE (103.5 FM), a rock'n'roll station that reaches Dade and Broward counties. As some listeners may have noticed, as of June 5, the station made its transformation from album-oriented...

Oil exploration firm seeks $80 million in IPO. (Forcenergy Gas Exploration Inc.; initial public offering)
June 16, 1995... MIAMI - Forcenergy Gas Exploration Inc., a unit of Sweden's largest oil and gas group - Forcenergy AB of Sweden - has filed documents with the Securities and Exchange Commission to raise nearly $80 million in an initial public offering. The...

Willcox & Gibbs. (proxy report excerpts)(Company Profile)
June 16, 1995... 150 Alhambra Circle, Coral Gables 33134 (305) 446-8000 Willcox & Gibbs is a distributor of electrical parts and supplies. The company operates 171 branches in 19 states and the Bahamas. It employs 2,800 people and had reported annual sales...

Complaints target talent firm: would-be models, TV producer challenge Palm Beach agency's practices. (Palm Beach Modeling and Talent Agency)
June 23, 1995... SINGER ISLAND - Aspiring actors and models pinned their starry-??? dreams of becoming famous on a Singer Island talent agency that they say promised to get them jobs in commercials and films. Instead, they say the firm, Palm Beach Modeling and...

Dade thrifts eye joint CDC effort. (multi-thrift community development corporation in Dade County, Florida)
June 23, 1995... MIAMI - Several Dade County thrifts are seeking to create the first multi-thrift community development corporation. By banding together, the thrifts hope to make satisfying their CRA burdens easier and, at the same time, provide much-needed...

Sun spots trust for growth. (trust operations of SunBank-South Florida in Broward County and Palm Beach County, Florida)
June 23, 1995... FORT LAUDERDALE - Jean G. Smith, head of SunBank's Broward and Palm Beach county trust operations, sees herself as a caretaker. And she's responsible for a large estate: By some measures, she oversees the biggest trust and investment operation...

Blank check backer's goal: OPM (other people's money). (Ocean Group Inc.)
June 23, 1995... PALM BEACH - Robert Mann wants investors to write him a check for $575,000. He says he'll take the money, talk to people and look through The Wall Street Journal and New York Times for business opportunities. If he succeeds, investors who paid...

Home body: PR exec's Boca home now the place for her power lunches. (Elaine Azen)
June 23, 1995... Elaine Azen still does power lunches, but the territory has changed. More often than not, they take place in the sun-spackled morning room of her own Boca Raton home, where she has set up shop as a PR consultant after 20 years of running a...

Firms line up to get piece of rail action. (Florida High Speed Rail)
June 23, 1995... Four powerhouses in transportation, construction, program management and infrastructure have joined forces to pursue the multibillion-dollar Florida High Speed Rail franchise. The companies, calling their venture Florida Overland Xpress, are...

Growth reshaping Key Biscayne: some long-time residents question zoning decisions.
June 23, 1995... KEY BISCAYNE - Maria Swindell remembers a time when there were no roads on Key Biscayne, when the ocean breeze wafted freely through her small cottage. Today, the breeze reaching her house off Harbor Drive is being blocked by a towering...

New twists in Ideon legal tangle. (Ideon Group Inc.)
June 23, 1995... A lawsuit filed in connection with the plunge in Ideon Group Inc. stock late last month has been dropped. In addition, a federal judge in Miami struck several charges added to a stock manipulation and insider trading suit filed against Ideon...

Air show draws S. Fla. firms. (Paris Air Show in Le Bourget, France)
June 23, 1995... PARIS, FRANCE - Representatives from Dallas-Fort Worth gave away gold lapel pins shaped like Texas while their Florida counterparts handed out orange juice to thousands of aviation industry buyers who came from around the world to witness the...

Project firm: leave the nuts-and-bolts work to us. (Sharpe Project Developments)(Real Estate Monthly)
June 23, 1995... Steven Leveen may know about the marl order catalog business. But the president of Levenger Company, the Delray Beach-based corporation that runs the catalog Levenger Tools for Serious Readers, admits he knew nothing when it came to building...

Creditors rapping on Luke's door. (rapper-promoter Luther Campbell)
June 23, 1995... MIAMI - Local rap star/promoter Luther Campbell's financial problems are mounting as creditors seek to take control of his record company. Just last week, Campbell filed for personal Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, two months after creditors...

Production firm is granddaddy of Miami video operations. (AFI/FILMWORKS of South Miami, Florida)(Advertising, PR & Video)
June 23, 1995... MIAMI - At the ripe old age of 26, AFI/FILMWORKS in South Miami may be the granddaddy of the local production community. The company - founded in 1969 by directors Steve Minor and Bill Randall, both Boston University film school graduates -...

Gables investment firm brokers apparel deal. (agreement between Olympic Mills and Coachman Inc. brokered by R.K. Grace and Company)
June 23, 1995... Olympic Mills, an apparel manufacturer and retailer in Puerto Rico, is opening a Miami office to spearhead the company's U.S. expansion. Olympic was acquired by Coachman Inc., a Clearwater-based retailer, in a $29 million deal last month. R.K....

Industrial-space demand propels rates in Airport West.(Real Estate Monthly)
June 23, 1995... MIAMI - When construction on Beacon Center started last year, space was leasing for $5.85 a square foot. Today, it's pushing $6.40 to $6.80 a square foot. "The market is as active as ever with Miami Airport Center, Beacon Industrial Park,...

Butters tackles new Broward County projects. (Butters Construction and Development Inc.)(Real Estate Monthly)
June 23, 1995... FORT LAUDERDALE - Malcolm Butters, head of Butters Construction & Development in Fort Lauderdale, doesn't know which way to turn: east or west. Both directions are keeping his company busy these days. First, he's building a 125,000-square-foot...