San Antonio Business Journal articles from December 2000

San Antonio Business Journal archives from December 2000

Banks tighten credit strings.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Fear of slowdown prompting lender caution Allen Pullen, a San Antonio management consultant, helped one of his clients line up a $4 million commercial real estate loan six months ago. No problem. "The bank that did it was still...

Sino Swearingen sets course for new class of business jet.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... As a pilot, Jack Braly knows the exhilaration of soaring to new heights. But as the captain of an aviation business, he knows the importance of keeping his head out of the clouds and his feet planted firmly on the ground. Braly...

Developers have major plans for 240-acre site near Schertz.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... If there was any doubt about his desire to become a major player in the city's real estate market, Terrance Casey's recent venture should mitigate those doubts. Casey, owner of Dallas-based Casey International Inc. and the major partner...

Spurs unveil a new marketing office for arena.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The separation has begun. The San Antonio Spurs have taken their first step toward permanently departing the Alamodome. Eighteen months ago, the Spurs outlasted their playoff opponents in record fashion and won their first NBA world...

Music industry newsletter.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... A free, monthly e-newsletter is in operation by Crockett, Texas-based entrepreneur Kenny Love. Called the B# Newsletter, the publication for unsigned and independent musicians is available to anyone with an email address. Love is a...

Forum recipients.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The Hilton Palacio del Rio has chosen its 2001 Stetson Forum recipients. The Hilton each year chooses a number of nonprofit organizations to receive complimentary luncheons for up to 25 people at its Stetson restaurant. The Forum can be used...

Texas A&M University System.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Texas A&M University System will conduct a "Train the Trainer" course, Jan. 19-21. This course teacher trainers how to become better trainers. Students attending this workshop fulfill Microsoft's proof of instructional skills for Microsoft...

Texas Rural Communities Inc. (TRC).(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Texas Rural Communities Inc. (TRC) is soliciting applications from innovative projects in rural Texas for the organization's first annual $10,000 Texas Rural Best Award. TRC is a nonprofit organization serving rural Texas communities,...

Randolph-Brooks CU expands reach into S. Side.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Randolph-Brooks Federal Credit Union has been awarded a community charter from the federal government that gives it access to a major portion of San Antonio's South Side. Randolph-Brooks FCU -- Bexar County's second largest credit union,...

TeleCheck Retail Index.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 29, 2000... Same-store retail sales in San Antonio increased by 3.9 percent for the first 24 days of holiday shopping, according to TeleCheck Services Inc. The TeleCheck Retail Index is based on a year-over-year, same-store comparison of the dollar...

Power brokers seeking to tap into state's electricity market.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Electric utility companies statewide are lining up to register with the Public Utility Commission to become players in Texas' deregulated electric market. A total of 11 utilities have registered so far to compete for power customers in...

Banks beginning to toughen up business-lending criteria.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Seven of the 12 Federal Reserve District Banks reported recently that lending standards had tightened as loan demand slowed with the economy. The report echoed Federal Reserve Board Chairman Alan Greenspan's warning on Dec. 5, that...

Zachry Construction.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Zachry Construction Corp. has formed an alliance with Centex Construction Co. in Dallas. The agreement will call for the two companies to pursue commercial construction projects throughout Central and South Texas. Officials familiar with the...

IP Axess.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... IP Axess Inc. has received a $500,000 purchase order from Advanced Computer Concepts for IP Axess' Vocal Ware IP remote work technology. Advanced Computer, based in Arlington, Va., is a reseller of VocalWare IP. The company will market the...

Alamo Workforce.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Alamo Workforce Development Inc., (AWD) a nonprofit agency, has appointed a new chief financial officer (CFO). Victor Ponder has been named to assume the office, and will be responsible for financial operations and accounting functions...

Dyna Group International.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Dyna Group International's board of directors has approved the continuation of the New Braunfels-based company's plan to buy back company stock. The plan, which would consist of repurchasing up to 1,000,000 shares of outstanding common stock,...

SBC Communications.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... SBC Communications has announced the availability of OC-192, a synchronous optical network through its subsidiaries Southwestern Bell, Ameritech and PacBell. The network will allow Internet service providers and other SBC customers to...

Rural lending.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The Tenth Farm Credit District, made up of the Farm Credit Bank of Texas and 28 affiliated credit associations, has approved more than $5 billion in loans for the first time in its 83-year history. The organization provides short-term...

Cholera bug.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Researchers from the University of Texas Health Science Center-San Antonio's (UTHSC) department of microbiology have found a way of lowering the virulence of the bacteria that causes cholera. Karl Klose and Daniele Provenzano, a Ph.D....

Residential developer putting up picket fences on NW Side.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 29, 2000... Another local developer is looking to put his own brand on the latest trend in traditional housing. Harry Hausman, president of HLH Development LP, is gearing up for a new subdivision on the city's far Northwest Side, at the northwest...

New year can be time for winning resolutions.(Brief Article)(Critical Essay)
December 29, 2000... Recognition goes to the starting quarterback who takes the hits. Career longevity goes to his backup who carries the clipboard and takes the notes. So with the end of the year -- and yes -- the real millennium, we are left with an...

Deposit auction.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The office of Texas Comptroller Carole Keeton Rylander has completed the first online auction of state deposits involving financial institutions competing for state funds. Some $70 million in certificates of deposit have been awarded to 42...

NADBank.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The North American Development Bank (NADBank) will provide a $14.1 million grant to the city of Del Rio, Texas in order to assist that city in developing its San Felipe Springs Water Treatment Plant Project. Funding for this grant is...

LARGEST SAN ANTONIO TRAVEL AGENCIES.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... LARGEST SAN ANTONIO TRAVEL AGENCIES Ranked by gross revenues 01-01-2000 to 09-30-2000 Gross Air ticket Name revenues...

Biz owner finds security in being own boss.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... When Michael Lujan started working at USAA as a security guard, he had no idea he would one day put his own financial security on the line by launching his own business. But that's exactly what happened two years ago. He also says that...

Congress fixes tax problem it created for small-biz owners.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... A year ago, Congress turned George and Margaret Willard's dream of selling their Nova, Ohio-based business and retiring to Florida into a nightmare. The Willards had sold their home and bought a new home in Williston, Fla., where they...

PEOPLE ON THE MOVE.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Architecture/Engineering Holt Company of Texas, an authorized Caterpillar equipment sales, parts and service dealer, added Clay Moore as its newest machine sales representative. Moore will be assisting customers in their purchase of new...

San Antonio Area Public Stocks.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 29, 2000... San Antonio Area Public Stocks WEEKLY STOCK UPDATE Market Data as of 12/22/00 1 WK YTD 30-Day P/E Company Ticker Price Change Return Avg Vol...

Dlann M. Bartek.(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Dlann M. Bartek won the 2000 Award of Excellence from the San Antonio Legal Secretaries Association. Bartek, an attorney and shareholder of Cox & Smith Inc., received the award for her professionalism and contributions to the association,...

Longhorn Cafe.(donates to local middle school)(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Elementary and middle school students with grades of B or better will receive a complementary children's meal, with the purchase of an accompanying adult meal, at the Longhorn Cafe located at 17625 Blanco Road. Students must show proof of...

High-tech shadows.(San Antonio high tech industry)(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Austin casts a long shadow over San Antonio when it comes to the high-tech industry. But two recent reports indicate that the sun also rises in the Alamo City. The city, according to a report by. AeA (formerly the American Electronics...

Some ideas do have bipartisan backing.(political activity in Texas)(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... The political pundits are wringing their hands over a "divided nation." Will President-elect George W. Bush have a mandate to enact his agenda? While the theme of national division makes for good headlines and snappy broadcast copy, most...

Be assured that there will be growth in spring.(Column)
December 29, 2000... I first put pen to paper with these ideas in the wee hours of the morning on Nov. 8, shortly after the networks declared George W. Bush the winner-the first time. Before I could finish, the race was again too close to call. I fully expected...

Search is on for S.A.'s top private companies.(local awards from Arthur Andersen LLP)(Brief Article)
December 29, 2000... Arthur Andersen LLP, an international accounting and consulting firm, and the San Antonio Business Journal have teamed up again to provide a very special way to recognize San Antonio's leading privately held companies -- the Seventh Annual...

Health care system faces a growing diabetes crisis.(San Antonio, Texas)
December 22, 2000... At least two medical experts believe thousands of San Antonio school children have already begun to die a slow, often painful death. Their killer: a disease most of those affected don't even know they have. Doctors Tern De La Haya and...

Radio-meister.(Andrew Ashwood)
December 22, 2000... Cheesehead in the heart of Texas tackling demands of two stations There are two teams Green Bay Packers fans (aka cheeseheads) love to hate: The Dallas Cowboys and the Minnesota Vikings. Imagine the predicament of a Milwaukee native who...

Laredo lender building S.A. service center.(San Antonio)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Only a year after completing a 10,000-square-foot expansion at its local service center, Laredo-based International Bank of Commerce (IBC) is once again pressed for space at the site. But the lender does not plan to once again add on to...

Local tech firm set to launch product, eyes move to Dallas.(Sevis Systems Inc.)(Brief Article)(Product Announcement)
December 22, 2000... Sevis Systems Inc., a start-up firm specializing in software for telecommunications companies, is preparing to roll out its first product in early 2001 after nearly two years of secretive build up. But not long afterward, the company...

Marketing to Mexico.(Travel agent conference information)
December 22, 2000... The San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau (SACVB) and San Antonio hospitality partners recently hosted more than 125 key travel industry clients from Mexico City at an update event in Mexico City. Mexican travel wholesalers, travel...

Stamp of approval.(local boy chosen for stamp)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Local photographer Bob Wickley found that bringing his camera to family activities has its benefits. Wickley's photo of his son, Aaron, playing Little League baseball here in San Antonio was selected by the U.S. Postal Service as a U.S....

Building a partnership.(Kaufman and Broad Home Corp.)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Home builder Kaufman and Broad and SeaWorld Adventure Park celebrated their new marketing partnership by donating toys to Elf Louise for her holiday program to help local children. SeaWorld General Manager Michael Catcott, costumed...

Luby's explores options for renegotiating its credit pact.(financial management)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Luby's Inc. is looking for some financial wiggle room. Luby's officials may seek to renegotiate a revolving credit agreement with the restaurant chain's lenders, a group of four banks led by Bank of America, to give the beleaguered...

Bomer shuttering Oldsmobile dealership located near airport.(San Antonio, Texas)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Bob Bomer is permanently closing his Oldsmobile dealership at 750 N.E. Loop 410 on Dec. 31. The 50 employees at the dealership will be laid off in the process. Bomer says the closing of the dealership is in accord with his sale of the...

Venus on the hunt for capital to fund 2001 growth strategy.(Venus Exploration Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Executives at Venus Exploration Inc. are on the hunt for capital to fund on-going oil and gas drilling activities at fields in Texas, Louisiana and Oklahoma. Invigorated by historically high energy prices and a perceived under-valuation...

NADBank.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The North American Development Bank (NAD Bank) has signed separate grant agreements with two Mexican cities. The agreements are with the cities of Tecate, Baja Calif., and San Luis Rio Colorado, Sonora, for financial assistance totaling...

Air Force Center to award hefty pact for environmental work.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The Air Force Center for Environmental Excellence (AFCEE) at Brooks Air Force Base is bundling an estimated $750 million worth of environmental remediation and construction contract work at installations worldwide. The Air Force plans to...

Compass Bank S.A. pursuing a branch-expansion strategy.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Compass Bank in San Antonio is preparing to break ground on two new branches in two of the city's fastest-growing corridors. The stand-alone offices will be located at The Forum at Loop 1604 and Interstate 35 North, and near Blanco Road...

Businesses spread holiday cheer.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... It's difficult to get into the Christmas mood when bound to a hospital bed. Especially when your loved ones are far away. Officials with the University of Texas Health Science Center, University Hospital System (UHS) and the South Texas...

Mama's Restaurant making way for eatery's cafe concept.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Mama's Restaurant on Interstate 10 West is about to bid adieu. Beau Roby, chief operating officer for locally based 1776 Inc., which owns and operates the restaurant, says that plans call for closing down the eatery, located at 7710 IH10...

Hollywood Park.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 22, 2000... Transwestern Commercial Services recently broke ground on North Park Corporate Center, a 135,000-square-foot office project located at 17319 San Pedro, about a half a mile south of Loop 1604 and U.S. Hwy. 281. Alan T. Grilliette, vice...

A taxing topic.(Texas Comptroller's office on sales taxes)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The Texas Comptroller's office recently reversed its position on sales taxes applied on fees charged by management companies that oversee tenant finish-out or building renovation on behalf of an owner. In the past, those fees charged to the...

CCI Telecom.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Contemporary Constructors Inc. has formed a holding company under which the company will now be marketed. The new name under which the company wilt operate is CCI Telecom Inc. CCI provides telecommunications infrastructure services for PCS,...

Humana.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Humana Health Care Plans of Texas Inc. has signed an agreement with WellMed Medical Management that will enlarge the physician network available to Humana's members in San Antonio. The agreement will add 31 primary care physicians, 10...

NADBank.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 22, 2000... The North American Development Bank (NADBank) has inked an agreement with the city of Roma, Texas, to provide $5.57 million in grant funding to help the city improve its water system. Roma is engaged in a $34 million project that will provide...

Abraxas.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 22, 2000... Abraxas Petroleum Corp. reported an $11.45 million loss on revenues of $16.38 million for the third quarter ended Sept. 30. This compares, to a $6.9 million loss on $16.96 million in revenue for the comparable quarter a year ago. However,...

Terra-Genesis Housing.(Metropolitan Life Foundation Awards )(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Terra-Genesis Housing Inc. of San Antonio was selected as one of six organizations to receive the fifth annual Metropolitan Life Foundation Awards for Excellence in Affordable Housing. The award will be presented at the Enterprise...

Ranstad North America.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Ranstad North America has opened a new FlexLife Center in San Antonio, bringing the number of offices for the professional services provider in the Alamo City to two. The new center will offer employees short-and long-term assignments,...

Texas Aerospace.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Gov. George W. Bush has announced the appointment of Arthur Emerson to the Texas Aerospace Commission. Emerson, who is chairman and chief executive officer of Groves Rojas Emerson in San Antonio, will serve a term slated to run until Feb. 1,...

Eye Care Centers.(Eye Care Centers of America Inc., third quarter)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 22, 2000... Eye Care Centers of America Inc. has released its results for the third quarter, ended Sept. 30. The company reports net revenues of $87.4 million, as compared to net revenues of $75.4 million for third quarter 1999. Further, comparable...

Trade delegation.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... A high-level trade delegation from the Canary Islands, Spain, is scheduled to visit the Alamo City early next year. The delegation will represent several sectors, including the health care, hotel industry, advertising and...

S. A. Convention & Visitors Bureau earns national honors.(San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The San Antonio Convention and Visitors Bureau (SACVB) recently earned five prestigious awards from the readers of five influential publications: the Inner Circle Award from Association Meetings magazine, the Gold Service Award from Meetings...

Tall order.(The Carver Academy)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... David Robinson has a tall order for Santa to fill. He's looking for local businesses to join as marketing partners in his $12 million community project, The Carver Academy -- An Excellence Project of the David Robinson Foundation -- which is...

Interference in the appraisal process is a growing problem.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Should you care that you paid more for your house than necessary because your mortgage broker rejected appraisals that didn't "hit" the price on the sales contract? Should you worry that the last time financial institutions failed on a...

LARGEST SAN ANTONIO CHURCHES AND SYNAGOGUES.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... LARGEST SAN ANTONIO CHURCHES AND SYNAGOGUES Kim Maureen Hernandez Ranked by total individual membership Name Total Total ...

USAA.("100 Best Companies to Work For")(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... USAA has been named one of the best companies to work for by Fotune magazine. The company made Fortune's "100 Best Companies to Work For" list, one of only four companies to be on the list since its inception. USAA was ranked 74th on the top...

SBA eligibility.(Small Business Administration)(meeting)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The U.S. Small Business Administration's 8(a) Business Development Division will be conducting a meeting on eligibility criteria for the program on Dec. 27. The meeting will beheld at 10 am in Room A-527, fifth floor of the Federal...

Windows 2000.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Registration for the MCSE NT 4.0/Windows 2000 training course classes at Our Lady of the Lake University ends on Jan. 4. The class is designed for MCPs who have the required NT 4.0 core courses, as well as MCSE's who want to be certified on...

Banquet.(The San Antonio Manufacturers Association)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The San Antonio Manufacturers Association will be holding its annual membership banquet on Jan. 16, from 6 pm to 9:30 p.m., at The Club at Sonterra. The cost of the banquet is $38 per person. The keynote speaker for the event will be...

Small biz growing up with small town.(GT Express Computers Inc.)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Gary and Peggy Tanner recently celebrated the grand "reopening" of their company, OT Express Computers Inc., at a new location in the Bulverde area. Celebration seems in order for the couple. They say it was the original opening of their...

Soft-money ban could help interest groups.(proposed political campaign finance reforms)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... "Count every vote," the union troops chanted as they converged on the U.S. Supreme Court for what may be the last battle in a, 2000 campaign that everyone expected to end more than a month earlier. They wore orange ribbons on their...

Next administration.(presidential candidates Bush and Gore turn election uncertainty into fundraising opportunities)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Meanwhile, the disputed election means the fund-raising for the 2000 campaign did not end Nov. 7. Both Gore and Bush established fund-raising committees to finance their legal expenses and operations during the post-election challenges to the...

Vote split.(small business group heavily finance Republican Party while survey of small business owners finds mixed alliegence)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Lobbyists representing the small-business community continued to give most of their money to Republicans in the weeks leading up to the election, according to campaign contributions filed with the Federal Election Commission as of Dec. 1. ...

Neese may head SBA.(Terry Neese seen likely to be named head of the US Small Business Administration)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Capitol Hill insiders say Terry Neese, public policy adviser and former president of the National Association of Women Business Owners, is a likely choice to head the Small Business Administration (SBA) with Republican George W. Bush as...

Loan sale.(by the US Small Business Administration)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... The SBA's third sale of loans from its small business and disaster loan portfolio brought in winning bids totaling $674 million, bringing the total revenue raised by these loan sales to $1.4 billion. The U.S. Treasury receives the...

AMT exemption.(many small businesses do not take possible alternative minimum tax exemption)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... A new study finds that many small businesses could qualify for an exemption from the alternative minimum tax, but instead are overpaying their taxes by an average of $11,638. The study by the Treasury Inspector General for Tax...

Cloudy December.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Small-business owners were a wee bit more optimistic in November than they were a month earlier, according to a survey conducted by the NFIB Education Foundation. The two-tenths of a point increase in the Small Business Optimism Index,...

Health care providers.(US Small Business Administration raises size threshold for health care business loans)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... An estimated 5,000 health care providers can qualify as "small" for government programs and services after the SBA increased its size thresholds. Previously, health care businesses with annual revenues of $5 million or less qualified as...

Business coalition is seeking tax reform, not just a tax cut.(National Federation of Independent Business)(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... What Mae West said about sex also goes for tax cuts, says Grover Norquist, president of Americans for Tax Reform. "All tax cuts are good tax cuts," he says, even bad ones. But as the 106th Congress was giving up on a $240 billion tax...

San Antonio Area Public Stocks.(local stock price movements)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
December 22, 2000... San Antonio Area Public Stocks WEEKLY STOCK UPDATE Market Data as of 12/18/00 1 WK YTD 30-Day P/E Company Ticker Price Change Return Avg Vol...

SYLVANIA ALAMO BOWL.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... December 30, 2000 Dear SYLVANIA ALAMO BOWL Fans: There's a new light in San Antonio. This year OSRAM SYLVANIA kicks off its' title sponsorship of the 8th Annual SYLVANIA ALAMO BOWL. We're proud to be associated with the Big Ten...

Effective marketing propels Alamo Bowl to new heights.
December 22, 2000... If you were among the thousands of folks (like this writer) who last year at the last minute tried to buy tickets to the Sylvania Alamo Bowl game or the Big 12 and couldn't get them, here's a heads up from the Bowl folks. Thanks to...

Games gone by.(past Alamo Bowl football games)
December 22, 2000... Alamo Bowl has created plenty of exciting moments in college gridiron history 1993 University of California 37 University of Iowa 3 The inaugural Builders Square Alamo Bowl matched the Hawkeyes of the University of Iowa...

Nebraska, Northwestern fans bring spirit to Alamo City.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... Whether they are wearing Cornhusker scarlet or Wildcat purple, one thing is certain. Fans and alumni attending this year's Sylvania Alamo Bowl plan on making a big impression on the residents of San Antonio. University of Nebraska ...

New vs. old: Cats square off with Corn.(Brief Article)
December 22, 2000... It's the veteran versus the rookie. Storied history versus rising star. Blue collar versus blues greats. The Nebraska Cornhuskers come armed with 32 straight bowl appearances and three national championships in the 1990s. Their opponent,...