Boston Business Journal articles from February 2001

Boston Business Journal archives from February 2001

New hotel planned for Charlestown waterfront.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... A new waterfront hotel is slated to take shape next to the Charlestown Navy Yard at the site of an 1895 brick warehouse listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Boston National Historical Park has chosen the combined team of...

Sublease bonanza.(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... MarchFIRST to put over 80,000 s.f. back on market, adding to high-tech retreat NEEDHAM--In one of the largest returns of subleased space seen in the era of the dot-com fallout, marchFIRST, a Chicago-based Internet consultant with $1...

Amid small-company layoffs, EMC to hire 5,000.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... HOPKINTON--EMC Corp. plans to hire as many as 5,000 new people in Massachusetts in the next year as the company continues to grow, offsetting smaller layoffs from high-profile Internet companies and adding pressure on an already tight labor...

Former CEO sees big option payoff.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Mike Ruettgers' financial gains keep pace with the growth of EMC Corp. Ruettgers, EMC's chief executive officer until two weeks ago and current executive chairman of the company, exercised 700,000 of his stock options in the Hopkinton...

Fergie's thumbs up carries a lot of weight for Fallon.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Worcester-based Fallon Community Health Plan got the royal treatment recently when none other than Sara Ferguson, the Duchess of York, came to town to boast Fallon's benefits. Fergie has been spokeswomen for Weight Watchers, the diet based...

Kind of blue.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Alan Leventhal, chairman and chief executive officer of Beacon Capital Partners, unveiled his plans for the $300 million Midway project in the Fort Point district, but something seemed off. One of the conceptual renderings depicted the deep...

Animal instincts.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Coming off the unbelievable year the real estate market had in 2000, the consensus is that things are cooling down. But is the boom completely finished? Is it over? That was the question posed time and again at Meredith & Grew Inc.'s...

State Street, ABP invest in startup fund managers.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... BOSTON--State Street Corp., the third-biggest custodian of financial assets, said it is establishing a company to invest in startup money management firms with ABP, the third-biggest pension fund. Boston-based State Street and ABP will take...

Reebok 4th-qtr. profit doubles as orders rise.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... CANTQN--Reebok International Ltd. said fourth-quarter profit more than doubled as the athletic shoe maker received more orders worldwide for its products. Net income rose to $6.2 million, or 11 cents a share, compared with profit from...

Ingenta and Catchworld merge in $16M deal.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... CAMBRIDGE--Ingenta, a global research firm, said it has merged with Catchworld, an online hosting and distribution service, in a deal valued at $16 million. Catchworld, headquartered in Abington, England provides online conversion and...

Lawyer group seeks mediation business.(ADR Network)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... A group of attorneys, including several from prominent Boston firms, are banding together to compete with mediation and arbitration firms in the Massachusetts Superior Court's expanded alternative dispute resolution program. Boston-based...

Balancing act.(Massachusetts budget)
February 2, 2001... State's CFO remains confident in the face of declining revenue Stephen Crosby, the state's chief financial officer, is bracing for a storm, unclear whether it will be a hard rain or a hurricane. In his third-floor Statehouse office, a...

Major plans balk at state report-card regulations.(managed care providers oppose accreditation plan)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The state's largest health insurers this week will testify against provisions of a managed care law they say are redundant and will cost them unnecessary manpower and paperwork. Known as Chapter 141, the state law will require all managed...

Free daily paper coming to T?(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... It looks like Metro, a free daily newspaper distributed in public transportation systems throughout much of Europe, as well as in Philadelphia, may be looking to catch a ride to Boston. "My understanding is they have the ability to commence...

Wild ride ends, but office rents likely to rise slowly.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Experts make predictions at Meredith & Grew event For a long time, they skyrocketed. Then they dipped. Now they appear to be leveling off, but industry experts say we haven't seen the last of rising office rents. Greater Boston's...

Fast growth, slow sales has Buck-a-Book reeling.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Bookstore chain files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy NORTH DIGHTON--When North Dighton-based Buck-a-Book Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection last week, it was the second Massachusetts bookstore chain in less than 18 months to fall on...

Cooler conditions grip Hub's telecom properties.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... SOMERVILLE--Work on 150 Inner-belt Road, the site of a proposed telecommunications hotel, has been put on hold, partly for a lack of power and partly for a lack of tenants. TrizecHahn Corp., a Toronto-based company, bought the development...

It was a very good year at Capital Crossing Bank.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Call it redemption. After being listed in October by Tucker Anthony Inc. as a stock to avoid, Capital Crossing Bank has reported record profits in 2000 and seen its stock price increase by nearly 50 percent. "I think we had an...

Dewey Square Investors is closed.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Dewey Square Investors Corp., once the money management arm of the former First National Bank of Boston, like its former owner, is also about to disappear from the Boston financial scene. The company's fate will be decided Feb. 15 at the...

Restaurant co. looks to expand Caribbean concept.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... A Cambridge-based restaurant company has issued a private stock equity offering in an effort to fund its expansion. Caribiana Inc., which owns the 7-year-old Rhythm & Spice restaurant in Cambridge, is hoping to raise between $2.2 million to...

Enermetrix wins another round.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... MAYNARD--A new round of investment has raised investors' backing of Enermetrix to more than $60 million. The latest round--which totals $35.5 million--will go to support the company's offerings in putting web technology to work in the...

Regulators look for buyer for struggling N.H. bank.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... In its brief, four-year history, First Alliance Bank & Trust Co. in Manchester, N.H., tried everything to make a buck, from publishing a community magazine to cashing in on a local television personality's popularity to reinventing itself as an...

ActiveCyte's site to link researchers to companies.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Internet service hopes to uncover blockbuster drugs in the making NEWTON--Richard Gill thrives on being the middleman. That's why he is right at home in his new digs at Newton-based ActiveCyte Inc., a company about to launch an Internet...

eXcelon Corp. restructures around XML opportunities.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... BURLINGTON--Setting its sights on a return to profitability this year, eXcelon Corp. is reorganizing itself around its Internet-collaboration product line. With its stock price sagging, the 12-year-old company, formerly known as Object Design...

Decades-old Lodestar, an energy software maker, taps into $29M.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... PEABODY--Though not a startup, Lodestar Corp. has taken in a big first round of venture capital. The fast-moving Peabody company raised $29 million, an investment that is earmarked for the further development of e-business technology used...

U.S. organic foods rule gets mixed review in Mass.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... On March 1, Donald. Franczyk reluctantly plans to change the name and structure of his organization in order to comply with new federal regulations governing organic foods. But Franczyk, who is the certification administrator for the...

Passkey.Com lands $14.4M.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... QUINCY--A local technology provider that aims to ease the reservation process for the multibillion-dollar meetings and convention industry has secured $14.4 million in a fourth round of funding. The recent infusion brings total funding to...

Circuit City plans to open store at Landmark Center.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Circuit City is slated to be the next major retailer to land at Boston's Landmark Center. The company is still negotiating the lease, but Circuit City spokeswoman Jennifer Mullen confirmed, "We have a letter of intent signed. We hope to be...

Redwood and iBelong combine to form Verilytics.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... On the heels of raising $22.6 million in venture capital last fall, iBelong Inc. of Waltham bought Redwood Investment Systems Inc. of Boston to use that company's technology in iBelong's next product release, iBelong's founder announced this...

Stratus spinoff to dose equity deal.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... MAYNARD--A spinoff of the former Stratus Computer company is due to close soon on a $115 million investment deal. A trio of large corporations have agreed to take an undisclosed stake in Stratus Technologies in exchange for the investment....

Biosphere Medical puts big hopes in its little spheres.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... ROCKLAND--Who would have thought little round acrylic balls could be used to eradicate tumors? Biosphere Medical Inc. is hoping its embolotherapy product will eclipse its less spherical competitors, especially in the treatment of uterine...

Excelergy Corp. receives $15M.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Excelergy Corp. of Lexington, after pulling its initial public offering in November but doubling its revenue in 2000, received $15 million in venture capital, company officials announced yesterday. The company, which makes software used by the...

Nutter McClennen organizes public-law practice.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Nutter, McClennen & Fish LLP is setting up a public-law practice group and joining the ranks of local firms with the clout to pave the way for clients with regulatory tangles. Jack Driscoll, a senior partner at the Boston firm and a member...

College seeks partners for X-ray program.(Cambridge College offers continuing education at hospitals)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Buoyed by the ongoing success of its partnership with the radiology department at Massachusetts General Hospital for its health care management program, Cambridge College is seeking expansion to other hospitals. Ties between the...

Lowe's to enter Hub-area home improvement market.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The local home improvement retailing scene will heat up this month with the opening of the first Boston-area Lowe's Home Improvement Warehouse. A 150,000-square-foot Lowe's is scheduled to open Feb. 23 on Route 114 in Danvers--the company's...

Tweeter's name game.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Tweeter Home Entertainment Group Inc. has entered the naming rights game in Georgia. One of the Canton company's regional consumer electronic retail chains will put its name on the former Lakewood Amphitheatre, a 19,000-seat Atlanta venue...

Talbots 'exclusive privileges'.(Product Announcement)
February 2, 2001... A Hingham retailer of classic women's clothing has initiated a new customer appreciation awards program. Following a pilot program in six states, Talbots Inc., which sells women's apparel in 712 retail stores, online and by catalog, last...

Super Hunger Brunch.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The 10th annual "Super Hunger Brunch" will be held Feb. 3-4 at 47 Greater Boston restaurants. The event is sponsored by Boston-based Greater Table, a nonprofit alliance of Greater Boston restaurants and individuals who raise funds for...

Investors interest in caring firms isn't always charitable.(tracking socially responsible investments)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Winston Churchill, the great British statesman, once said that a life is defined by what you give, not what you get. Put another way by Cambridge musician and satirist Tom Lerher, life is like a sewer: What you get out of it depends on what you...

Tis tax season.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... With tax season under way, individuals and accountants alike are suffering through the headaches of reporting income. But here are some changes that might soothe the pain. The state Department of Revenue is drafting new tax rules that will...

In a blink.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... If you're an employer or insurer, you probably got a letter from James J. Campbell, commissioner of the state's Department of Industrial Accidents, announcing that he recently told Gov. Paul Cellucci he'll be stepping down early this year. ...

The converted.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Also, in case you missed it, the Boston Stock Exchange has fully converted to decimal pricing of stock, said Josephine Finn, an exchange spokeswoman. The exchange said it made the switch Jan. 29, well ahead of the April 9 deadline set by the...

Area's Largest Charter Air Service Providers.(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... Area's Largest Charter AirService Providers (ranked by number of aircraftin fleet for companies operating in Mass.) [*] No. of Number of full-time...

Shares of ON Technology creep back from the brink.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... ON Technology Corp. of Waltham is crawling back from the abyss of being delisted from the Nasdaq. On Jan. 12, the exchange notified the company that it was at risk of being delisted for not maintaining a minimum bid price of $1 per share over...

Software deals.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Two local software companies announced deals last week that added to their cash supply, while a company that makes chips for digital cameras also had an influx of venture capital. Open Software Associates Inc. of Box Hill, Victoria,...

Aspen goes shopping.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Cambridge-based Aspen Technology Inc. bought struggling e-Chemicals Inc. of Ann Arbor, Mich., an Internet-based exchange for the chemicals industry, for an undisclosed amount, the companies announced last week. Aspen makes software for process...

Demand for Alzheimer's care units continues to grow.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Two years ago, John Lind figured he would not have any problem filling the senior living community he was opening in Franklin, called Forge Hill. But he wasn't expecting families to call him personally to plead with him to construct additional...

Get globalized protection at Mount Auburn Hospital.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... One of the drawbacks of globalization is that a businessperson often must pick up and go to an office halfway around the world at a moment's notice. Well, don't forget your shots, especially if you are traveling to the Third World. ...

Compassionate care grants awarded to three hospitals.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... While most hospitals are in the business of caring, three were recognized recently for doing it better than the rest. Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton, Fairview Hospital in Great Barrington and Mary Lane Hospital in Ware received...

Area's Largest Property Tax Payers.(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... Area's Largest Property Tax Payers (ranked by 2000 property tax) 2000 property Rank Company tax liability 1...

Did you miss your train, or is my stomach rumbling?
February 2, 2001... EDWARD "NED" RILEY Railroads have an admirable place in American myth and metaphor. After all, without trains, how could any of us ever get railroaded? Or be on the right track? Or stick to a timetable? Or, to get to the point eventually,...

PolyMedica Corp.(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... THE BUSINESS PolyMedica Corp. is a national provider of direct-to-consumer specialty medical products and services primarily focused on chronic diseases and the consumer health care markets. The company's business is conducted through...

MASSACHUSETTS STOCK INDEX.(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... * MASSACHUSETTS STOCK INDEX Ticker Close Pct. 52-week Company Symbol Price Chg. High Low P/E A. D. Technologies Inc. ADTC ...

Required reading.
February 2, 2001... PTOtoday links parent-teacher groups with other independents FRANKLIN--Tim Sullivan was peddling school fund-raising services in 1996, when he conceived of the idea for PTOtoday magazine. As a sales representative for a company that...

State offers e-file option for annual reports.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... This past Monday, Jeanie Griggs, an employee with Boston-based law firm Davis, Maim & D'Agostine PC, turned on her computer, surfed to the Massachusetts Secretary of State's web site, and in a matter of minutes, became the first person to file...

Watch employee 'net surfing, but without going overboard.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... With their businesses' best interest in mind, more and more business owners have started monitoring their employees' web usage. In fact, 73 percent of U.S. businesses monitor their employees' Internet usage, according to an April 2000 survey...

Accounting's many arms.(additional services in demand)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Firms expand services to stay on the cutting edge of their clients' needs It has been years since Dave Beatty, a certified public accountant, prepared a tax return or composed a financial statement for a client. Today, he heads a...

Doing business by the book.(professional accounting services)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... No firm is too small to get its financials reviewed by the professionals Companies of all sizes and ages face a similar question when it comes to staffing for specialized services: Should they outsource or hire in-house personnel? ...

A forensic matter: Crunching numbers, taking names.(forensic accounting investigates fraud)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Threat of corporate fraud raises demand for investigation experts What happened? That question echoes through the hallways and execulive boardrooms of corporations every year as fraud and other forms of white-collar crime are...

All sides huddle over 'net tax debate, deadline looms.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... A slowing U.S. economy and the calendar are working against the Internet industry over whether electronic commerce transactions should be taxed, sources say. There are many issues in the great Internet tax debate, but the hottest and most...

Firms fear shortage of qualified CPAs, demand swells.(certified public accountants)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Business analysts and job counselors always seem to talk up high-tech jobs. That's been the place to be for a while, after all. But computers, information systems and telecommunications aren't the only fields for great careers, job experts...

Tax law changes benefit 'S' firms, repeal previous rule.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The biggest tax news for businesses this year actually happened in late 1999. That's when the state's Department of Revenue (DOR) issued a ruling that opened the door for "S" corporations to avoid paying the additional corporate surtax...

Restricted stock: Better option?(alternative to employee stock options)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Stock options aren't always the best incentive. Restricted stock can be better. They can be better for the employee, who typically pays far less in taxes with restricted stock than with stock options. But they can also be better for the...

PERSONNEL FILE.(appointments, promotions)
February 2, 2001... ADVERTISING/COMMUNICATIONS Lynn McNamee joined Velocity, a Boston-based advertising/marketing agency, as studio production manager. R+D Advertising and Marketing in Boston added the following: Greg Robertson, creative director; John...

Symmes Maini and McKee Associates.(architectural design award)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Two recent projects by the architectural and engineering firm Symmes Maini and McKee Associates of Cambridge were selected in a national competition honoring educational design excellence by American School and University magazine. Master...

TeleKnowlege.(Total-e 3.0 software)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Framingham-based TeleKnowlege's Total-e 3.0, a billing, customer care and e-partner management software product, was named a "Product of the Year" for 2000 by Communications Solutions magazine.

Smith, Buckley & Hunt Inc.(5 star designation awarded by Massachusetts Association of Insurance Agents)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Smith, Buckley & Hunt Inc., a Brockton-based independent insurance agency, earned the 5 Star Agency designation from the Massachusetts Association of Insurance Agents, in recognition of an agency's high quality of service.

Cannon Design.(Presidential Award for Design Excellence)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Cannon Design of Boston received the Presidential Award for Design Excellence, in recognition of its work on the U.S. Port of Entry in Calexio, Calif. The awards, which were bestowed upon nine projects nationwide, are the only government-wide...

State Street Research.(receives award from Dalbar Inc.)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... State Street Research of Boston earned two Dalbar Key Honors Awards--Mutual Fund Key Honors and Intermediary Key Honors--from Dalbar Inc., a Boston-based firm that evaluates, rates, and ranks financial industry efforts. This is the fifth...

IBM pension fund puts office tower up for sale in Boston.(Fleet Financial Building)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM Corp.'s pension fund has put up for sale its One Federal Street office tower in Boston's Financial District, sources said, citing the property's broker. The fund and its adviser are hoping the 38-story building will sell...

Herald closes CNC purchase.(Herald Media acquires Community Newspaper)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Herald Media Inc., owner of the Boston Herald, completed its acquisition of Community Newspaper Co. The Herald assumed ownership of CNC's 87 weeklies, four dailies, 14 shoppers, some specialty publications and its Townonline web site. Terms of...

Microsoft, stung by hackers, hires Akamai for web help.(Akamai Technologies to provide backup)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Redmond, Wash.-based Microsoft Corp. said it hired Akamai Technologies Inc. of Cambridge to operate a backup Internet network after the No. 1 software maker's web sites were victimized by hackers' attacks. If a web user cannot access a...

Thomas Lee, Putnam joint venture mulls second fund.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Thomas H. Lee said the joint venture between his Boston-based buyout firm and Putnam Investments is planning to introduce its second investment product. They're considering a hedge fund or a pool to invest in distressed debt or mezzanine...

Raytheon sells boats unit to management for $108M.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Lexington-based Raytheon Co. said it sold the recreational products division of its Raytheon Marine Co. to its management team for $108 million to reduce its debt. The sale of the unit, which makes electronic devices including radars,...

Genuity says fourth-quarter loss widens, lowers forecast.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 2, 2001... Burlington-based Genuity Inc., an Internet services provider that first sold shares to the public in June, said its fourth-quarter loss widened because it spent more on marketing and set aside money in case customers don't pay their bills. The...

MindBranch buys Korea firm.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... North Adams-based MindBranch Inc., a provider of market research, acquired a majority control in Outsource Korea Inc. of Korea. Outsource Korea, with headquarters in Seoul, helps Korean corporations identify, source and manage their business...

Synchronicity drops IPO.(initial public offering)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Marlborough-based Synchronicity Inc., a provider of Internet-based software products that enable enterprise-wide and business-to-business collaboration, withdrew its registration for an initial public offering. The company had hoped to...

FirePond to buy Brightware.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Waltham-based FirePond, a provider of e-business selling services, will acquire San Rafael, Calif.-based Brightware Inc., a supplier of customer assistance software. Under the terms of the agreement, FirePond will purchase Brightware for $9...

Don't reinvent the wheel.(managed health care legislation)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The Legislature last year insinuated itself into the managed health care debate by passing Chapter 141, titled "An Act Protecting the Health and Safety of Massachusetts Consumers From Certain Managed Care Practices in the Insurance Industry."...

Block that tax cut end-run.(Massachusetts economic performance and tax cuts)(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Word from Beacon Hill is some voices in the state Senate are considering plans to tie the Bay State's voter-approved tax cut to state economic performance. That very idea was ignored by the Senate last summer--before Question 4 became law;...

Of venture capital traffic jams and exit ramps.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... The IPO market lies in a coma. It overdosed on financial ecstasy. Sudden withdrawal symptoms knocked it unconscious, and its convalescence has transformed nifty new companies with clever-sounding names and nebulous potential into the equivalent...

The Bay State should brace for a hard landing.(Brief Article)
February 2, 2001... Cathy E. Minehan, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, is the latest economic pundit to predict a soft landing, in her case "moderate growth, that is in the range of 2 percent to 3 percent" for 2001 (reported in the Boston Globe on...

For Fenway Park's future, it's best to look to the past.
February 2, 2001... Going back to the future has been Boston's guiding philosophy throughout the Red Sox ballpark saga. Last year, the Boston Redevelopment Authority reported that within Boston's city limits, there was no viable alternative to the historic...

Networking layoff sparks engineer hiring frenzy.
February 9, 2001... IronBridge's demise leads others to rush for talent LEXINGTON--Demand for talent in the optical networking field is such that a company will go to just about any lengths to find its next engineer. Layoffs at IronBridge Networks spurred...