Business Courier Serving Cincinnati - Northern Kentucky articles from May 1997

Business Courier Serving Cincinnati - Northern Kentucky archives from May 1997

N.Ky. manufacturer goes public. (General Cable Corp.)
May 30, 1997... General Cable deal raises $355 million Greater Cincinnati has a new public company. General Cable Corp., a Highland Heights-based maker of wire and cable products, quietly joined the ranks of Cincinnati's publicly traded companies in...

Black radio group makes second Columbus buy. (Blue Chip Broadcasting Ltd. buys WJZA-FM)
May 30, 1997... Blue Chip Broadcasting Ltd., owner of WIZF-FM in Cincinnati, is expanding its fast-growing urban format radio network with the purchase of a fifth radio station. If approved by the Federal Communications Commission, the $4.4 million purchase...

AK Steel turns around its financial performance.(Company Profile)
May 30, 1997... Unions, safety still problematic Middletown-based AK Steel Holding Corp. is a company with two stories: One consists of its financial successes that make it a leader in the integrated steel industry, favored by Wall Street. The other side,...

More problems for city's rec division. (Cincinnati Recreation Commission)
May 26, 1997... Chase successor, worker to face contract review A Courier investigation has uncovered more problems in Cincinnati's recreation division. The problems stem from possible improprieties by the city official who many see as the heir apparent...

Staton plotting $100 million fund. (Duke Realty Investments Inc. former chief operating officer Dan Staton)
May 26, 1997... Mayerson partnership plans larger investments Two of the Tri-State business community's freest spirits are joining forces on a venture-capital fund of up to $100 million. Fred Mayerson, a rebellious local millionaire with interests ranging...

Radio giant Jacor wants more TV in its future. (Jacor Communications Inc.)
May 26, 1997... Even on its way to becoming the nation's largest radio operator, Jacor Communications Inc. sees TV in its future. Having bought WKRC-TV (Channel 12) in Cincinnati last year, Covington-based Jacor has been quiet about its plans for the station...

Jacor might buy St. Louis 'Big One.' (Jacor Communications Inc.; KMOX Radio station)
May 26, 1997... KMOX buy would give Jacor top slot in market Rapidly expanding Jacor Communications Inc. has its eyes on the largest radio station in St. Louis. The Covington-based broadcaster is wooing the Westinghouse/CBS Inc. owners of KMOX Radio to...

Salaries jump for Jacor executives. (Jacor Communications Inc.)
May 26, 1997... Four firms dominate largest raises list What grew faster than Jacor Communications Inc. in 1996? The salaries of Jacor executives, according to a new compensation study compiled by the Courier. The list of largest pay raises awarded to...

XU's new business school dean wants practical learning. (Xavier University College of Business dean Michael Webb)(Interview)
May 26, 1997... Michael Webb will begin as dean of the College of Business for Xavier University on June 2. Prior to joining Xavier, the Union, Ky., resident had for 17 years been a member of the University of Kentucky business faculty, the last two as...

Giant Eagle lands in Ohio grocery market. (supermarket chain)
May 26, 1997... A new major player has entered the Ohio supermarket business, giving the Kroger Co. and the Louisville-based parent of Cincinnati supermarket chain Thriftway Food & Drug increased competition in each company's drive to expand. Giant Eagle of...

Miami U. students study local retailers. (Miami University)
May 26, 1997... Projects focus on how to improve marketing The Miami University students stood stiffly at the front of the darkened presentation room, nervously shifting from one foot to the other. Finally, one took a few cautious steps forward, cleared her...

Hair stylist bests hubris. (Peter D'Ambrosio)(Small Business Strategies)
May 26, 1997... Failed salon teaches hard business lessons In 1978, 27-year-old Peter D'Ambrosio was an ace hair stylist, but no wizard at running his own hair salon - he tried and quickly failed. A few years later, he resurfaced - but only after...

Towne tries to take the 'down' out of 'downtown.' (Towne Properties LLP)(Small Business Strategies)(Interview)
May 26, 1997... Several housing projects on tap for teetering core Here's a little-known fact about Towne Properties LLP patriarch Neil Bortz: Before launching the Mount Adams development company with Marvin Rosenberg and Lambert Agin, Bortz spent nine...

American Financial adds computer unit. (computer software subsidiary of American Financial Group Inc.)(Small Business Strategies)
May 26, 1997... THE PUBLIC FILE: AMERICAN FINANCIAL GROUP Most investors know American Financial Group Inc., the Cincinnati-based conglomerate controlled by legendary Cincinnati financier Carl Lindner and his family, as an insurance company. But American...

Covington sees boom in construction. (Covington, KY)(Construction and Architecture/Engineering)
May 26, 1997... Large projects fuel smaller development With hundreds of millions of dollars invested in construction projects either underway or in the pipeline, Covington's riverfront and downtown are under-going a metamorphosis - proving that older urban...

Using out-of-town architects benefits locals.(Construction and Architecture/Engineering)
May 26, 1997... Whenever an out-of-state architect is selected to design a high-profile local building, the inevitable chorus arises from the community's architects stating that they have been overlooked for this "reputation-enhancing" commission. Consider...

Ohio trauma system should be mandatory.(Editorial)
May 26, 1997... Traumatic injuries killed more than 5,300 Ohioans from 1995 to 1996. Supporters of a statewide trauma system think many of them could have been saved if they had ended up at Level I trauma centers instead of local hospitals. Hospitals tout...

Workers should be permitted to 'bank' comp time they earn. (new law on overtime compensation)
May 26, 1997... In today's busy world, time has become one of our most valuable resources. In response to employers and employees seeking greater job flexibility, the House of Representatives has recently passed "win-win" legislation, the Working Families...

Chamber to city: comprehensive strategic plan needed. (Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce)
May 26, 1997... Editor's Note: The Greater Cincinnati Chamber of Commerce on May 19 released a series of recommendations on ways the city could improve its dealings with business. Three focus groups and a series of 11 one-on-one interviews were conducted by...

Bank to sign largest lease in decade; Provident plans back-office growth. (Provident Bancorp Inc.)
May 19, 1997... Provident Bancorp Inc. is negotiating to sign the largest office lease in downtown Cincinnati in at least 13 years, according to a high-level real estate source. The parent of Cincinnati-based Provident Bank, with headquarters in the...

Women finally make top-pay list.
May 19, 1997... The glass ceiling in corporate Cincinnati might be on the verge of shattering. For the first time since local business papers began tracking compensation of Tri-State public company executives in the 1980s, a woman now ranks among the 50...

Ducks, 'Clones ready to face off; only one hockey team likely to stay. (Cincinnati Mighty Ducks Hockey Club; Cincinnati Cyclones)
May 19, 1997... Cincinnati's newest minor-league hockey team is skating into a head-on collision with the existing team for the almighty dollar, with hockey experts expecting only one team to be left standing. The Cincinnati Mighty Ducks Hockey Club, the new...

Enquirer rate hike aims to boost Post; advertisers encouraged to buy ads in both papers. (Cincinnati Enquirer; Cincinnati Post)
May 19, 1997... The Cincinnati Enquirer has hiked its advertising rates almost 20 percent, raised the jointly operated Cincinnati Post's rates 50 percent and introduced a new rate schedule aimed at getting advertisers into both. The rate hike, which an...

Utility tax decrease could hurt schools. (Cincinnati Public Schools)
May 19, 1997... Cincinnati Public Schools could lose nearly $11 million a year, or $222 per student, in funding if deregulation of Ohio's electric industry takes place and tax laws remain the same. Ohio schools could lose $257 million annually under the...

TriHealth memo rankles workers; lab consolidation means longer hours.
May 19, 1997... A recent memorandum ordering TriHealth laboratory employees to work 20 percent overtime for the next two months - or face firing - has some crying foul. "I've never seen such a threatening memo," said Deborah Schneider, president of District...

Blue Ash firm to build eight assisted-living centers: three new CommuniCare facilities for Tri-State.
May 19, 1997... Blue Ash-based CommuniCare Health Services will spend $40 million to build eight assisted-living facilities - three in the Tri-State - over the next few years. And to help free up cash for its expansion, the company has entered into an...

Health care roundtable.(Panel Discussion)
May 19, 1997... Collaboration among doctors, hospitals and other health care providers is essential if the changes taking place in health care locally are going to ultimately benefit consumers. That was the consensus that emerged from our panel of experts in...

Three companies receive abatements for Butler expansions.
May 19, 1997... Union Township trustees in Butler County have approved tax-abatement packages for a trio of companies, creating 120 new jobs with $8 million in new investment. Two of the companies, Pole Zero Corp. and Republic Wire Inc., are within a mile...

College View eyeing patent, new products.
May 19, 1997... Blue Ash-based CollegeView, which made its name in college-search software, is moving into the retail market with the introduction of three products aimed at college-bound students and their families. The company also expects to receive a...

How Opera stole the show: winning industry awards provides instant credibility. (Opera Portables Inc.)(Small Business Strategies)
May 19, 1997... The two entrepreneurs and lifelong friends behind Erlanger-based Opera Portables Inc. knew their product was sound, and it traveled well. But what Brian Carlson and Greg Dewald didn't know was how well it, and they, would perform at the...

Elegant Fare cooks up profits with focus shift.(Small Business Strategies)
May 19, 1997... Sharonville food service firm caters to clientele Reshaping their company in the 1980s has made Bert Kurinsky and wife Anne Lisbin the caterers to many of the Tri-State's movers and shakers. The couple co-own Sharonville-based Elegant Fare...

Changes put SDRC back on path to profit. (Structural Dynamics Research Corp.)
May 19, 1997... After posting combined net losses of almost $23 million in 1994 and '95, Milford-based Structural Dynamics Research Corp. turned around its fortunes to finish last year with net income of $33.7 million. "We've been working really hard in the...

Delhi sees condo boom; empty nesters want to stay in neighborhood.(Real Estate Monthly)
May 19, 1997... Delhi Township, a western Hamilton County community of mostly single-family homes, is seeing a spate of new condominium development as the area's baby boomers have begun looking for lower maintenance housing. "It's the baby boomers who are...

'Mega-buildings' offer big solutions in warehousing.(Real Estate Monthly)
May 19, 1997... While "bigger is better" is overrated in many facets of our lives, when it comes to warehouse distribution buildings the saying holds water. In the 1980s and early '90s, a typical bulk distribution center built for the market had a 100,000-...

Local group works to help women succeed in commercial real estate.(Real Estate Monthly)(Column)
May 19, 1997... There's a new voice being heard throughout the commercial real estate industry. It's the voice of Commercial Real Estate Women (CREW) Cincinnati, a nonprofit organization whose mission statement is: To create an environment of trust which...

Time to 'get real' about highway funding.
May 19, 1997... It has been said that the only two certainties are death and taxes. True. But very close to certain would be the fact that Ohio and the other 49 states are not likely to see highway funds increased from the federal level in the next half-decade...

Area should cooperate like Buda and Pest.
May 19, 1997... Today, on both sides of the river, people are talking about the proposed stilet-to-like Millennium 2000 Tower scheduled to be built in our neighboring city, Newport. It seems a group of Northern Kentucky business owners and professionals...

Local insurance giants may sell stock. (Cincinnati insurance companies plan reorganizations so they can sell their securities to the public)
May 12, 1997... New law to allow mutuals to convert Some of Cincinnati's largest insurance companies are exploring major reorganizations that could allow them to sell stock to the public for the first time. Western and Southern Life Insurance Co. and Ohio...

Time Warner, Bell restart phone talks. (Time Warner Communications; Cincinnati Bell Telephone Co.)
May 12, 1997... Time Warner Communications, which in December postponed plans to expand its presence in the Greater Cincinnati telephone market, is getting back in the game. Time Warner has recently taken steps that would allow it to roll out local phone...

Duramed needs $10 million investment to stay alive. (Duramed Pharmaceuticals Inc.)
May 12, 1997... But analysts question ability to sell more stock With expenses increasing and its near-term hopes to produce generic conjugated estrogens dashed, Duramed Pharmaceuticals Inc. will need a cash infusion of at least $10 million over the next...

When survival means growth. (Dayton Area Health Plan)(Company Profile)
May 12, 1997... Shrinking customer group dictates strategy Running a health maintenance organization (HMO) that serves Medicaid patients is not a cakewalk. It has discouraged local and regional giants like ChoiceCare and United HealthCare of Ohio. Their...

CommuniCare looking for more acquisitions. (CommuniCare Health Services Inc.)(Interview)(Company Profile)
May 12, 1997... Blue Ash firm expands into five divisions Stephen Rosedale, chairman, president and chief executive officer of CommuniCare Health Services, began his health care career in 1974 when he took a job as an administrator in a nursing home. "I...

Stocks drive Cincinnati Financial success.(Company Profile)
May 12, 1997... THE PUBLIC FILE: CINCINNATI FINANCIAL CORP. For those averse to buying insurance company stocks, Cincinnati Financial Corp. Chief Executive Officer Robert Morgan has some advice: Think of the insurer as part mutual fund. Compared to other...

Federated executives rake in cash; huge option grant could net $24.7M. (Federated Department Stores Inc.)
May 5, 1997... A management change at Federated Department Stores Inc. is proving to be lucrative for top officials of the Cincinnati-based retailer. Federated Chairman Allen Questrom, Greater Cincinnati's highest-paid public company executive in 1995 with...

Retro cafe truckin' into OTR; '70s-style N.Y. bar leasing Hanke site. (Have a Nice Day Cafe; Hanke Building)
May 5, 1997... A splash of the groovy 1970s is coming to Cincinnati's hippest bar scene. Have a Nice Day Cafe, a '70s-style bar/restaurant concept invented by the New York-based Bar Investment Group Inc., has signed a 15-year lease for the historic Hanke...

Troubled tower may be leveled. (Fifth & Race Tower)
May 5, 1997... STATE'S SPACE The state of Ohio rents more than 120,000 square feet of space in buildings Downtown. Location Total Annual $ per space rent sq. ft. 441 Vine ...

Cintas eyes $300 million purchase. (acquisition of National Linen Services)
May 5, 1997... Atlanta company would mark biggest buy ever Cintas Corp. may be involved in acquisition talks that could net its biggest purchase ever. Analysts say Mason-based uniform rental giant Cintas is one of several bidders for the linen division...

Company cashes in on payday loam boom. (Check 'n Go Inc.)
May 5, 1997... Check 'n Go grows to major Midwest player What started out as one Check 'n Go store in Covington two-and-a-half years ago has mushroomed into 70 payroll loan stores in six states. David Davis, executive vice president of CNG Financial...

Tri-State urologists form 'super group'; plan surgery center. (Urology Group)
May 5, 1997... Driven by the demands of managed care for doctors to consolidate, 25 Tri-State urologists have merged their practices into a "super group" and plan to launch a $3 million freestanding surgery center by early next year, possibly in Norwood....

The perils of partnerships. (Danbarry Cinemas Inc.)(Small Business Strategies)(Company Profile)
May 5, 1997... Success takes 'thick skin and short memory' When Barry Kohn saw a the later for sale in Middletown n 1989, he called a lend he knew in the movie business. When Danny Heilbrunn got the call, he was working his last day for the Loews theater...

Kreller looks to build lasting relationships; efficiency consultants advise on credit reporting. (Kreller Group Inc.)(Small Business Strategies)(Company Profile)
May 5, 1997... Kreller Group Inc. founders Joe Davidoski and Gary Mertz made a big splash in the late 1980s by accusing Dun & Bradstreet of fraud and overbilling. The accusations drew national attention and helped the former D&B sales executives establish...