Corporate Detroit articles from June 1991

Corporate Detroit archives from June 1991

The battle for the phone lines: Michigan Bell wants a state bill that will enable it to really use its telephone lines, not just own them. (includes related article on Michigan Bell Telephone Co.'s financial contributions to political action committees) (column)
June 1, 1991... The state legislature has been holding hearing upon hearing on a Michigan Bell-backed proposal to deregulate the phone industry. With deregulation, Bell would be able to expand into information services (such as advertising and...

High-tech industries feel economic pinch. (Detroit, MI industry)
June 1, 1991... Detroit's recession-rocked economy continues to take a toll on local businesses despite national forecasting that claims the country may already be moving out of its financial blues. A recent survey of high-tech companies operating in...

Duns Scotus lives on: LoPatin & Co. will leave the stately seminary in Southfield mostly intact. (Michigan real estate developer to turn seminary into executive conference center)
June 1, 1991... Norman LoPatin had plenty of reasons for just saying no when Southfield city officials approached his firm about developing the Duns Scotus seminary as an executive conference center. The economy was heading south and financing was drying...

Detroit's most wanted. (demand for automobile engineers and designers) (Cover Story)
June 1, 1991... Jeff Chaney is one of the highly prized free agents in Detroit's limited pool of automotive design talent. Last year he made $96,000 -- on a par with the average annual salary of a 30-year-old M.D. He also gets four weeks paid vacation, full...

The return of Dick Headlee. (Michigan tax reform advocate who campaigns for 20% property tax cut) (includes related article on Governor John Engler's tax policies)
June 1, 1991... The Headlee petition for a 20 percent cut in property taxes brings to mind something out of an old Looney Tunes cartoon. Remember the fuzzy rabbit or cute baby or bug-eyed bird that suffered indignity after indignity? In one scene, the bad...

Passing on your business. (transferring family-owned businesses to family members)
June 1, 1991... The Lewis family has all the makings of a great mini-series. The patriarch of the family, a crusty man in his late 70s, has long ceased running the family business effectively. Although he won't surrender the presidency or its power, he also...

The word from Hoot: are car dealers an endangered species? (Detroit, MI automobile dealer Martin "Hoot" McInerney)
June 1, 1991... In his 28 years as a car dealer, Martin "Hoot" McInerney has weathered recessions and energy crises. A lot of good years are mingled among the bad. But massive changes in the industry -- along with the latest recession -- have prompted the...

True detective: how private detectives crack some of the business world's toughest cases.
June 1, 1991... Private detective Richard Gillies, a former Wayne County sheriff's deputy, has tackled more than a few corporate investigations in his time. But he especially likes to tell the tale of one of them: Once, the top management of a company...

Is the Prix worth it? (economics of Detroit, MI Grand Prix automobile race, June, 1991)
June 1, 1991... By mid-June, Indy cars will be racing through the streets of Detroit, entertaining spectators and TV audiences. The theory is that all the Grand Prix activity will benefit Detroit and its image. But image is one thing, and economic advantages...

Toyota township. (Lyon Township, MI may house automobile manufacturer's research and development center) (includes related article on impact of Toyota's plans on automobile parts and supplies manufacturers)
June 1, 1991... Until now, Lyon Township has been as American as Norman Rockwell. It is the home of centennial horse farms, corn fields, and a growing number of golf courses and homes. It hardly looks like it could be a venue for international finance and the...

A skyline full of bargains. (Detroit, MI-area business real estate leasing incentives)
June 1, 1991... In the current sluggish real estate market, businesses can get perks for leasing office space -- and now may be as good a time as any to move into the fancy new office building that employees may be coveting. Local real estate experts say...