The Business Journal (Serving Greater Tampa Bay) articles from May 1991

The Business Journal (Serving Greater Tampa Bay) archives from May 1991

Broker's thrift deal unraveling. (Raymond James Financial Inc.'s attempt to buy Colony Savings Bank)
May 31, 1991... Broker's Thrift Deal Unraveling Raymond James Financial's attempted purchase of Clearwater's Colony Savings Bank is in trouble. The St. Petersburg securities brokerage revealed in its most-recent quarterly report that buying Colony was...

Embassy Suites re-enters Tampa market. (Tampa Bay, Florida)
May 31, 1991... Embassy Suites Re-Enters Tampa Market Embassy Suites has made its way back into the Tampa Bay market. The Dallas-based franchise was to take over the reigns this week at the Guest Quarters location on North Westshore Boulevard. ...

Sabal Park wants upscale hotel. (Sabal Hotel Ltd. hires Camberley Hotel Co. to manage Sabal Park Holiday Inn, Tampa, Florida)
May 31, 1991... Sabal Park Wants Upscale Hotel The owners of Sabal Park Holiday Inn plan to bring an upscale presence, The Camberley Hotel, to the east Tampa market. The Camberley Hotel Co. has been managing the hotel since late March, and sources say...

Off the air. (resignation of WTSP-TV general manager Vince Barresi)
May 31, 1991... Off The Air The Bay Area's third-ranked TV station has dumped its general manager, yet another sign of the volatile industry. Vince Barresi, 42, WTSP-TV, Channel 10's general manager the past three years, shrugged off questions about...

Outback's meat-and-potatoes appeal. (Outback Steakhouse's initial public offering)
May 31, 1991... Outback's Meat-and-Potatoes Appeal Wall Street has noticed Outback Steakhouse's proposed IPO. The deal was the subject of a column this week in "OTC Focus," a daily column in The Wall Street Journal. The gist of the article: Outback has...

Computerland.
May 31, 1991... *A dispute between a landowner and ComputerLand over sales territory has caused the closing of three stores in Tampa, Clearwater and Seminole.

Coca-Cola.
May 31, 1991... *Coca-Cola said it is establishing a headquarters in Tampa for a worldwide joint venture with Nestle S.A. to market coffee, tea and chocolate drinks. Coca-Cola Nestle Refreshments Co. has taken space at Bayport Plaza in Tampa and may...

Reflectone.
May 31, 1991... *Tampa-based flight-simulator manufacturer Reflectone won a contract to train U.S. Air Force crews in aerial refueling procedures. The contract may be worth up to $22.5 million over the next five years.

Bay Plaza.
May 31, 1991... *The president of Bay Plaza, Neil Elsey, resigned as head of St. Petersburg's $200-million, downtown-redevelopment project. Elsey said his personal debts caused him to quit.

Misener Marine Inc.
May 31, 1991... *Misener Marine Inc. of Tampa said HBG, Hollandsche Beton Groep NV, a leading European contractor, has agreed to buy more than 46% of the Misener's stock. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.

Retail Design Concepts. (Relocations)
May 31, 1991... Retail Design Concepts to Grand Central Place, 442 W. Kennedy Blvd., #390, Tampa.

A.R. Savage & Son. (Relocations)
May 31, 1991... A.R. Savage & Son to 1701 Maritime Blvd., Tampa. Two divisions, Tampa Bay Steamship and Transoceanic Freighting Services, were included in the move.

Technology Research Corp.
May 31, 1991... *Technology Research Corp. of Tampa reported revenues of $6,577,787 for the fiscal year that ended March 31, 1991, down 11% from the prior year. The company (NASDAQ-TRCI) lost $654,816 in the fiscal year, compared with a fiscal 1990 loss...

Raymond James Financial.
May 31, 1991... *St. Petersburg-based Raymond James Financial (NYSE-RJF) declared a quarterly dividend of 6 cents per share, payable July 1 to holders of record June 10.

Tech Data Corp.
May 31, 1991... *Clearwater-based Tech Data Corp. (NASDAQ-TECD) reported first-quarter fiscal 1992 revenue of $126.4 million, an increase of 25% from first-quarter fiscal 1990 revenue of $101.3 million. Tech Data said net income for the quarter ending...

Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan. (Contracts)
May 31, 1991... Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan, Tampa, has been selected by the city of St. Petersburg to consult on a storwater management master plan and on national pollutant discharge elimination system permit applications.

The Centerline Group. (Contracts)
May 31, 1991... The Centerline Group, St. Petersburg, has been awarded a contract by the Pinellas County Water System to acquire right-of-way to replace a defective 60-foot transmission line through Countryside in Clearwater.

Wallbridge Contracting. (Contracts)
May 31, 1991... Walbridge Contracting, Tampa, has been awarded a contract for Countryside Surgi-Center in Safety Harbor.

Reflectone.
May 31, 1991... *Tampa-based Reflectone (NASDAQ-RFTN) reported first-quarter 1991 revenue of $12.4 million, compared with $14 million in the three months that ended March 31, 1990. The company reported net income of $131,000 after payment of...

First Florida candidate 'no nonsense' banker. (consideration of Al Swan as next president of First Florida Banks)
May 24, 1991... The man under considerations as the next president of First Florida Banks understands a bank in distress. Al Swan, 49, left his job last month as president of the lead subsidiary of Bank South of Atlanta, which, like First Florida, posted...

Outback shares high on menu for Bay investors. (Tampa Bay Area stock market investors want securites of Outback Steakhouse) (company profile)
May 24, 1991... Investors appear eager to buy shares of Outback Steakhouse, the Tampa-based company in the process of going public. Stockbrokers say they wouldn't be surprised if demand pushes the initial offering price to $12, the high side anticipated...

Y&A firm will survive. (engineering firm Appenzeller, Boyd & Zarra of the Y&A Group Inc.) (company profile)
May 24, 1991... A Safety Harbor engineering firm forced to close because of its association with a defunct St. Louis public company has been rescued. Appenzeller, Boyd & Zarra, a civil engineering and land surveying firm, is now Appenzeller Engineering...

The return of the cake maker. (Stuart Goldblatt, creator of Tampa's super-fattening cheesecake, now creates bakery division for Reilly Dairy & Food)
May 24, 1991... The man who created Tampa's super-fattening cheesecake is back, only he's sell ng a slimmed-down version through a different company. Stuart Goldblatt, 35, who started his own bakery company based on a cheesecake recipe he developed...

Marriott marketing. (catering and event planning services)
May 24, 1991... Marketing gurus at the Tampa Airport Marriott have come up with a new way to put their catering and event-planning services to work. It's called Marriott Marquis Events, and, as marketing director Joe Collier puts it. "We take an existing...

Just the fax and maybe milk, too. (grocery shopping by fax; services of Jewel Osco store)
May 24, 1991... Grocery shopping by fax is being marketed in the Bay Area. The Jewel Osco store on Sunset Point and Belcher roads in Clearwater has begun letting customers who are within a 3-mile radius fax in their grocery lists for home delivery. Piggly...

Hot stuff. (ranking of Pharmacy Management Services as No. 21 of 100 best small-growth companies)
May 24, 1991... Pharmacy Management Services in Tampa was ranked No. 21 in Business Week's list of 100 best small-growth companies. The May 27 issue of the national business weekly ranks such companies according to sales growth, earnings growth and return...

New PR Shop. (public relations firm, Ron Stuart & Associates)
May 24, 1991... Ron Stuart, Former editor of Tampa Bay Business Journal, has opened a public relations, communications and marketing firm, based in Clearwater. He recently sent out a letter announcing his firm, Ron Stuart & Associates.

Cecil Edge Jr. (resignation plans from the Tampa Downtown Partnership)
May 24, 1991... * Cecil Edge Jr., president of the Tampa Downtown Partnership, announced plans to resign from his position Aug. 1, so he could return to private industry.

Poe & Associates. (an insurance company)
May 24, 1991... * Tampa-based insurance company Poe & Associates purchased Farr Insurance, a Palm Beach commercial property insurance firm. The purchase price was undisclosed.

GTE Florida. (delays Caller ID offering)
May 24, 1991... * GTE Florida said it expected to delay offering Caller ID until the end of this year because of problems in getting the proper equipment.

Kollsman. (military electronics firm)
May 24, 1991... * The St. Petersburg office of military electronics firm Kollsman is closing as a part of consolidation. The company employs 62 people, some of whom will be retained by Trak Mircowave in St. Petersburg. Trak purchased the assets of...

Nutmeg Industries. (sportswear manufacturer)
May 24, 1991... * Officials of Tampa-based sportwear manufacturer Nutmeg Industries said they expect to double earnings and increase sales by more than 30% this year. At this annual meeting last week, officials told shareholders that international expansion...

Boosters see glut, think opportunity. (economic development agencies form Tampa Bay Building Compendium to take advantage of excess empty office space)(Focus: Commercial Real Estate)
May 24, 1991... Bay Area economic-development boosters have come up with a idea to help fill a lot of empty office space. It's called the Tampa Bay Building Compendium, a summary of all available office, industrial and commercial space in Pinellas,...

Retail leasing still in doldrums; concessions, low rents rule. (Focus: Commercial Real Estate)
May 24, 1991... Retail leasing at Bay Area shopping centers is stagnant, although leasing agents say there are a lot of deals on the table. That's good news considering the steady rise in retail vacancies that has plagued the Tampa Bay market in the last...

James V. Messina. (Other)
May 24, 1991... Danka Industries, St. Petersburg, has named James V. Messina chief operating officer of the international leasing division, American Business Credit Corp.

First Union Corp. (Proxy Report Excerpts) (company profile)
May 24, 1991... First Union Corp. is a multi-state bank-holding company that operates across the Southeast. Headquarered in Charlotte, the bank has retail operations in North Carolina, South Caroline, Georgia, Florida and Tennessee, as well as...

Belmac Corp. (Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 24, 1991... Tampa-based Belmac Corp. (BLM-AMEX) has signed a letter agreement to buy Chimos, a privately held Paris-based company that synthesizes and distributes fine chemicals to pharmacies, hospitals and pharmaceutical companies in France and other...

Medcross. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 24, 1991... St. Petersburg-based Medcross (MDCR-NASDAQ) reported first-quarter 1991 sales of $502,938, down 45 percent from the same period in 1990. The company reported a loss of $144,662, or two cents per share. The company lost $27,903 in the same...

Nutmeg Industries. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 24, 1991... Nutmeg Industries (NUTM-NASDAQ) of Tampa reported record sales of $17 million for the first quarter to 1991, up 85% from the $9.2 million reported a year ago. Net income was $155,000, or three cents a share, compared to a net loss of...

Pharmacy Management Services. (Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 24, 1991... Tampa-based Pharmacy Management Services (PMSV-NASDAQ) has filed an 8-K with the Securities and Exchange Commission detailing the acquisitions of Insurance Software Packages and Nancy Sapp & Associates.

CPA finds a pot of gold at the RTC. (certified public accountants; Charles D. Ashford's contracts with the Resolution Trust Corp.) (company profile)
May 17, 1991... CPA Finds A Pot Of Gold At The RTC TAMPA A Tampa accountant and former high-ranking banker has found a sure-fire way to beat the recession. Charles D. Ashford went after a contract last fall to manage the $71-million portfolio of a...

Is there life after lottery? (advertising agency Bozell Inc. loses Florida Lottery account)
May 17, 1991... Is There Life After Lottery? Stay Tuned As Bozell's World Turns TAMPA Some of its employees have already started job hunting. Its No. 2 executive spent the past week in Miami, hustling for new business. And in between,...

Measure this turnaround by victories and defeats. (appointment of Richard Williamson as head coach of Tampa Bay Buccaneers football team)
May 17, 1991... Measure This Turnaround By Victories And Defeats TAMPA Richard Williamson has been handed the toughest turnaround challenge since Lee Iaccoca took over Chrysler. After 28 years of coaching college teams or working as an assistant...

FCC says AT&T taxed Floridians too soon. (Federal Communications Commission; American Telegraph and Telephone Co.)
May 17, 1991... Victory For Tampa Gadfly FCC Says AT&T Taxed Floridians Too Soon TAMPA In a case brought by a Tampa telephone consultant, the Federal Communications Commission has ruled that American Telephone & Telegraph unlawfully taxed...

Dealster wants blank check. (Alan Lipstein's financial investment scheme)
May 17, 1991... Dealster Wants Blank Check TAMPA If the deal works they way Alan Lipstein hopes, he could walk away with a cool million. If not, he might wind up losing as little as $500. His investors, though, could face thousands of dollars...

First Florida chatter. (next First Florida Banks president)
May 17, 1991... First Florida Chatter Alfred W. Swan Jr., an Atlanta banker, reportedly is being considered as the next president of First Florida Banks. Tampa-based First Florida has been without a No. 2 executive since John Walbern took early...

Seahawk needs financial fish. (financial backer for Seahawk Deep Ocean Technology's museum)
May 17, 1991... Seahawk Needs Financial Fish Talk has it that Seahawk Deep Ocean Technology may raise $25 million to build its new museum, either through a public offering of stock or by setting up a limited partnership. Seahawk did not respond to...

Small, minute, little, but tiny? (personnel count of advertising agency Earle Palmer Brown)
May 17, 1991... Small, Minute, Little, But Tiny? Leave it to the Wall Street Journal to be original in its description of the Tampa office of Earle Palmer Brown, which just won the $25-million Florida Lottery account. In an item about the agency winning...

Southeast Banking Corp.
May 17, 1991... * Southeast Banking Corp. saw trading volume of its stock rise to more than 500,000 shares, four times its daily average. The Miami-based bank has reported losses for six quarters and has been conducting takeover discussions with NCNB Corp....

Thrift watch. (objections to ratings by Madison Savings and Partners Savings in Tampa)
May 17, 1991... Thrift Watch At least two struggling thrifts named in a recent TBBJ story objected to the ranking given them by financial institutions rating company IDC of Hartland, Wis. IDC gives a ranking of "one," its lowest, to institutions that...

Computerland cuts competitor. (to buy NYNEX Business Centers Inc.)
May 17, 1991... Computerland Cuts Competitor It's still not clear what will happen to the 17 employees at the Nynex Business Center on 4300 W. Cypress St. in Tampa. In late March, Computerland announced it would buy one of its prime competitors --...

Hawkins Construction. (Contracts)
May 17, 1991... Hawkins Construction, Tarpon Springs, has been awarded the contract to build Sam's Wholesale Club expansion in Fort Myers.

Tampa Bay Engineering.
May 17, 1991... Tampa Bay Engineering, Clearwater, has been awarded the construction engineering inspection contract by the city of Clearwater for the widening of Countryside Boulevard.

R.E. Purcell Construction Co. (Contracts)
May 17, 1991... R.E. Purcell Construction Co., Palm Harbor, was awarded the construction contract.

Marketech. (Contracts)
May 17, 1991... Marketech, Tampa, has been chosen by System One Staffing to provide marketing services.

Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan. (Contracts)
May 17, 1991... Post, Buckley, Schuh & Jernigan, Tampa, has been selected by the city of Pinellas Park to design and engineer two city parks.

St. Joe's readies obstetrics plan. (St. Joseph's Hospital)
May 10, 1991... St. Joe's Readies Obstetrics Plan St. Joseph's Hospital again could go head-to-head in the baby-delivering business with Humana Women's, its competitor across the street. The competition could lower the cost of obstetrics care in the...

Office space turnaround in N. Pinellas. (improvement in the office leasing market in North Pinellas)
May 10, 1991... Office Space Turnaround In N. Pinellas The office vacancy rate in Clearwater and surrounding areas in north Pinellas County is holding at a dismal 30%. Most of the glut is in the north county, where the vacancy rate reaches 37%. ...

Jewel Osco puts parcels on market. (sale of parcels of land of Jewel Osco Florida)
May 10, 1991... Jewel Osco Puts Parcels On Market Two parcels of land where grocery chain Jewel Osco Florida planned to open stores this year are for sale. Commercial real-estate developer Rosewood Property Co. in Tampa is marketing more than 28 acres...

Bye bye Benbow. (new name and new owner for Admiral Benbow hotel)
May 10, 1991... Bye Bye Benbow After being on the market for several years, the Admiral Benbow on Westshore has a new owner and a new name. Sources say that the 240-room hotel has been bought by Quinsung Corp., a group of Orlando hoteliers. Management...

Penny hustle. (hassles of J.W. Gant Financial with the Securities Exchange Commission; hustlings of chief promoter, Frank Palumbo)
May 10, 1991... Penny Hustle J.W. Gant Financial, the securities underwriter closely aligned with Tampa's Action Staffing, got a trashing recently in Forbes. In a story entitled, "Bucket brigade," Forbes explored the activities of Frank Palumbo, Gant's...

Salomon at your service. (job-hunting assistance of Salomon Bros. for spouses of employees)
May 10, 1991... Salomon At Your Service As teams of Salomon executives and their families get the red-carpet treatment on their visits to check out this area, the Tampa Committee of 100 is doing its best to clinch those key executive relocations. ...

About town. (Tampa dresses up for the Queen of England's visit)
May 10, 1991... About Town Take a stroll along Bayshore Boulevard early next week. You might think you're at Old Hyde Park - the one in London. The Queen will be in Tampa briefly on May 20. Rumors have it that Her Highness is expected to confer upon...

Barnett Banks. (intends to buy Southeast Banking Corp.)
May 10, 1991... Officials at Barnett Banks * Officials at Barnett Banks of Jacksonville confirmed they are again interested in purchasing troubled Southeast Banking Corp. Charlotte-based NCNB Corp. announced last week it might soon make an offer for...

GTE. (reorganization plans)
May 10, 1991... GTE * GTE officials said they will close its Atlanta-based Contel Corp. data center and merge those operations with the GTE Data Services headquarters in Tampa. "A significant number" of employees will transfer to Tampa Bay as part of the...

Roy McCraw. (new president and chief operating officer of Fortune Financial Group Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Roy McCraw * Roy McCraw, former head of First Union's regional operations, was named president and chief operating officer of Fortune Financial Group, the Bay Area's largest thrift. Rausey Mason, Fortune's vice chairman, resigned as...

Homestyle Buffet. (hires new president)
May 10, 1991... Homestyle * Homestyle Buffet, facing consecutive quarters of depressed earnings, hired a new president. John A. Scott, former chief of Po' Folks restaurants, will take the reins May 15 of the Oldsmar-based all-you-can-eat cafeteria.

Jack Eckerd Corp. (1990 earnings)
May 10, 1991... Jack Eckerd Corp. * Clearwater-based Jack Eckerd Corp. reported record sales of $3.5 billion in 1990. Profits, however, were erased by expenses from the company's 1986 leveraged buyout and its 1990 acquisition of Revco Drug Stores. The...

Outback Steakhouse. (files statement with Securities and Exchange Commission for initial public offering of common stock)
May 10, 1991... Outback * Outback Steakhouse filed a statement with the SEC for the initial public offering of 1.37 million shares of common stock. The Tampa-based Aussie-style restaurant has 33 locations nationwide.

Stephens Co. (Communication)
May 10, 1991... Sam Collins * Tradewinds Video, Tampa, has appointed Sam Collins as account executive.

Hawkins Construction. (Contracts)
May 10, 1991... Hawkins Construction Hawkins Construction, Tarpon Springs, has been awarded the contract to build a Rooms to Go furniture store in Fort Myers.

Angle & Schmid. (Contracts)
May 10, 1991... Angle & Schmid Angle & Schmid, St. Petersburg, was awarded a $5.8-million contract by the Pinellas County School Board for elementary school L to be built in the Bonnie Bay area.

HCB Contractors. (Contracts)
May 10, 1991... HCB Contractors HCB Contractors, Tampa, has been selected as the general contractor for the southeast regional headquarters of USAA at Tampa Palms Centre of Commerce.

Action Staffing. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Action Staffing * Tampa-based Action Staffing (NASDAQ-ACTS) reported $52.4 million in revenue for the second quarter ended Feb. 28, up 33% from $39.4 million reported in the same quarter a year ago. Net income was $176,000, up 23% from...

Superior Surgical Mfg. Co. (dividends)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Superior Surgical Mfg Co. Mfg Co. * Seminole-based Superior Surgical Mfg Co. (ASE-SGC) has declared a quarterly dividend of 22 cents per share, payable May 27 to shareholders of record as of May 13, 1991.

Homestyle Buffet. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Homestyle Buffet * Oldsmar-based Homestyle Buffet (NASDAQ-HBUF) reported sales for the first quarter ended March 27, 1991 of $11.2 million, up 30% from first-quarter 1990 sales of $8.6 million. Earnings declined to $401,000, or seven cents...

Florida Steel Corp. (parent company, FLS Holdings declares dividends)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Florida Steel Corp., * Tampa-based FLS Holdings, parent of Florida Steel Corp., (NASD-FLSHP) has declared a pay-in-kind quarterly dividend on its Series A Cumulative Exchangeable Preferred Stock at a annual rate of 17.5% per share, payable...

Raymond James Financial. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Raymond James Financial * St. Petersburg-based Raymond James Financial (NYSE-RJF) reported revenue of $70.7 million for the second quarter ended March 29, up 19% from the $59.3 million reported a year ago. Net income fir the second quarter...

Tampa Electric. (registers with the Securities and Exchange Commission its proposed sale in first mortgage bonds)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Tampa Electric * Tampa-based Tampa Electric, a subsidiary of TECO Energy (NYSE-TE) has registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission the proposed sale of $150 million in first mortgage bonds. The company says it will use the...

International Container Systems. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... International Container Systems * Tampa-based International Container Systems (NASDAQ-ICSI) reported sales of $3.9 million for the first quarter ended March 31, up 49% from $2.6 million reported for the first quarter of 1990. Net income...

Kimmins Environmental Services. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Kimmins Environmental Services * Tampa-based Kimmins Environmental Services (NYSE-KVN) reported $24 million in sales for the first-quarter ended March 31, down 13% from $27.5 million reported a year ago. Net income was $769,000, or six...

Medcross. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Medcross * St. Petersburg-based Medcross (NASDAQ-MDCR) reported fiscal 1991 revenue of $3.5 million, down 17% from $4.2 million reported for 1990. The company had a net loss for the year of $26,000, compared with a loss of $483,000 a year...

Poe & Associates. (earnings)(Tampa Bay Inc.)
May 10, 1991... Poe & Associates * Tampa-based Poe & Associates (NASDAQ-POEA) reported $12.4 million in revenue for the first quarter ended March 31, up 9% from $11.4 million reported for the first quarter of 1990. Net income was $1.3 million, or 33 cents...

Office vacancy rate lowest in six years. (Westshore real estate)
May 3, 1991... Office Vacancy Rate Lowest In Six Years In stark contrast to downtown Tampa, the vacancy rate in Westshore has declined to a six-year low of 16%. And that rate could drop even further - perhaps by as much as 6% - when the Student Loan...