Providence Business News articles from January 2000, page 3

Providence Business News archives from January 2000

Citizens, USTrust merger OK'd.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... BOSTON -- The Massachusetts Board of Bank Incorporation gave unanimous approval of the merger of Citizens Financial Group of Providence and USTrust of Boston. Citizens' agreement to join the surcharge free SUM network of ATMs was cited by...

Federal auditor to review SBA board's records.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- A federal auditor is inspecting the books of the volunteer council that oversees the Small Business Administration's annual Rhode Island Salute to Small Business, after receiving allegations from "an anonymous source," according...

Textron invests in e-commerce firm.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- Textron is investing $100 million in Safeguard Scientifics of Wayne, Penn., a venture capital company that invests in Internet businesses. As part of the deal, Textron gets access to the 250-Internet related companies in which...

Bills adding up for state in EgyptAir crash.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- The federal investigation of the EgyptAir Flight 990 crash has so far cost the state more than $450,000. The biggest expenses have been attempting to identify victim remains, refurbishing a hangar at Quonset Point, in North...

Going digital is the way for printers.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 17, 2000... For today's printer, publisher and retailer the world is digital -- and getting more digital by the day. According to Forrester Research, by 2002 more than 98 percent of all business organizations with 1,000 or more employees will have...

Black and white fades as color flows in.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... In the world of printing, black and white has become almost as obsolete as the linotype. Dramatic changes in technology have transformed the once mostly labor-intensive industry into a high-tech, fast-paced world of graphics and color....

As Internet influence grows, printing process changes.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... A recent four-hour television documentary hailed Johann Gutenberg as the most important figure of the last 1,000 years for improving the printing press in the 15th century. The Arts & Entertainment Network show aired, however, at a time when...

Area's quick printers.(Statistical Data Included)
January 17, 2000... Area's quick printers (ranked by number of employees) 2000 1999 Company Information Full-time Total rank rank employees...

Despite electronic era, demand, cost of paper climbs.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 17, 2000... With the economy soaring in the United States and making a strong comeback in other parts of the world, the price of paper is on the rise. The expanding economy has created a greater demand for paper products of all kinds, which has led...

RHODE ISLAND stock watch.(Statistical Data Included)
January 17, 2000... RHODE ISLAND stock watch Stock Div./ P/E 52 week 52 week Last This Company symbol share ratio high low week week Aerovox (O) ...

PERSONAL INVESTING andrew leckey.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... Q. What do you think of shares of T. Rowe Price Dividend Growth Fund for a 30-something couple that doesn't have much investing experience? -- K.G., via the Internet A. While it could serve as part of a diversified portfolio, this fund...

BUSINESS notes.
January 17, 2000... BANKING D. Faye Sanders, senior vice president and director of government affairs for Citizens Financial Group, Inc., has been elected president of the Rhode Island Bankers Association. She was, formerly the secretary of the association....

RISECU raises funds for Breast Cancer Coalition.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... The Rhode Island State Employees Credit Union lent its support to the Rhode Island Breast Cancer Coalition by selling candy bars in all five branches during the month of October last year, with the profits going to the Breast Cancer...

Coastal Cleanup awards.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... In conjunction with the 1990 Coastal Cleanup Campaign, awards were presented to two individuals who have worked to protect the waters and coastline of Rhode Island. Awards were presented Jane Sherman, the Woonasquatucket Greenway...

Need for oversight.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... Legislative efforts aimed at curtailing credit card use by state and quasi-state agencies miss the point. While they may be well intentioned, and directly address recent improprieties at the Economic Development Corp., they simply don't...

Media consolidation.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... The merger of Time Warner into America On Line raises numerous questions, concerns and opportunities. It also has stimulated some bizarre comment from the media about the threat that consolidation may have on the dissemination of fair and...

We need more determined dreamers.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... Few things are more uplifting than a hometown hero who saves lives through persistence, resourcefulness, courage and diplomacy. We in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area have such a hero. He's U.S. Navy officer Charles "Swede" Momsen, a native of...

Are you geographically informed?(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... With all the hoopla today about kids not knowing their geography, the question could also be raised about today's businessperson and his knowledge of the world. After all, aren't the buzzwords now the global economy and knowing your place in...

Time and distance never excuse lack of meetings, selling.(Brief Article)
January 17, 2000... Dear Kate & Dale: I work full time for a major corporation, and I also have a home-based graphics animation business. My issue with my business is not only time constraints, but geographic ones -- I don't live near enough to any major market...

Izzo bill to target lead paint again.
January 10, 2000... After months of revising the lead paint bill that failed in the General Assembly last year, state Sen. Thomas J. Izzo will introduce a new bill in the Senate next week. Izzo, a Cranston Democrat who chairs the Senate Health; Education,...

All RI news station gains viewer popularity.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... The concept behind The Rhode Island News Channel is "news when it's convenient," and according to Neilsen ratings, it,s becoming more popular for a growing number of Rhode Islanders. WLNE Channel 6 and Cox Communications launched the...

Quasipublic agencies flourish.
January 10, 2000... While the recent controversy surrounding the Rhode Island Economic Development Corp.'s use of state credit cards has prompted some to question the use of quasi-public agencies, their role in states' economic development efforts seems firmly...

'We're moving in right direction, looking to future'.
January 10, 2000... Name: Vincent A Cianci, Jr. Occupation: Mayor of the City of Providence. The longest sitting mayor in the city s history. Backround: First elected mayor of Providence in 1974, at the age of 33, winning reelection in 1978 and 1982....

Health care tops legislative agenda.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... The 2000 legislative session opened last Tuesday afternoon and there seemed little debate as to which single issue would be dominating the agendas of both the House and Senate. In the days leading up to the session, Senate Majority Leader...

Correction.(Correction Notice)(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... On our list of software development companies in our Book of Lists, The Providence Business News neglected to list Hope Consulting Group. The company, which employs eight, would have ranked 24th. They are located at 88 Jefferson Boulevard,...

NEES sale to, British firm awaits public comment.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Things were looking up last month for the pending $3.2-billion acquisition of New England Electric System by a British utility company. New England Electric had managed to head off a Nuclear Regulatory Commission hearing scheduled for...

Cities and towns trim bills by pooling electrical purchases.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Rhode Island municipalities got a break on their electric bills in the second half of 1999 by pooling their purchasing power to buy electricity from an alternative supplier. Although regulated electric utilities still own the power lines...

Year of triumph, change in media field.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... While reaching a target audience is always the goal for marketing and advertising agencies, as well as television and radio stations, in 1999 some in Rhode Island fared better than others. Though it vas an award-winning year for local...

Rapid growth of women in business continues.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Considered the fastest growing segment of the Rhode Island economy by the United States Small Business Administration, women and minority businesses continued to flourish in 1999. That success is confirmed with a total of 113 SBA loans...

Investors going online with increasing zest.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Not only are more people investing their money - they are doing so online in dizzying numbers. Predictably, the world's largest mutual fund company, the Boston-based Fidelity Investments, sees an opportunity in such a surging phenomena....

Signing bonuses, starting salaries reach new levels.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... MENLO PARK, CA -- In the market for a new job? If you are a computer professional, a signing bonus could be on the horizon. While the bulk of these cash incentives still go to senior executives, a recent survey of chief information officers...

PlugInGo.com, of Middletown on the go.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... MIDDLETOWN -- Third party affiliate solutions provider PlugInGo.com has reached an agreement with oneCommerce.net, which will combine the e-commerce solutions of oneCommerce.net with PlugInGo's affiliate solution. oneCommerce.net...

Log On America gets Connecticut certification.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- Log On America has been certified as a Competitive Local Exchange Carrier (CLEC) in Connecticut. Pursuant to the company's CLEC status, business and residential customers will now have an alternative in choosing a local...

Computer malfunction delays flights.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... NASHUA, N.H. -- It wasn't a Y2K problem, but thousands of airline passengers would not have known the difference after a computer problem delayed flights throughout the country last Monday night. A failed computer part at the air traffic...

February 29 may pose next Y2K computer hurdle.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... WASHINGTON -- February 29 could pose the next problem for computers not programmed to recognize the first "extra" leap year in 400 years. There's typically -- but not always -- an extra day in February every four years and this leap year one...

K Feeders' success linked to honesty, creativity.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Company: K Feeders Owners: Paul and Jordan Blasbalg Location: 1485 South County Trail, East Greenwich Employees: 57 Year founded: 1975 Annual Revenues: WND If you ask Paul Blasbalg if he likes running the family...

BVA announces 2000 Honorees.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Business Volunteers for the Arts/Rhode Island will hold its tenth annual Arts & Business Awards Dinner on Thursday, January 20 at the Rhodes on-the-Pawtuxet, Cranston. The celebration of the arts pays tribute to people and organizations that...

The Beauty of having Beast come to town.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... There's surely no beast in the economic fortunes of the Providence Performing Arts Center and downtown restaurants and parking garages, with the production of Beauty and the Beast appearing for a two-week run, ending Jan. 16 at PPAC. By...

Mall development proposal falls through.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... BOSTON -- A controversial proposal to replace the old Northern Avenue Bridge with a retail-restaurant mall development has fallen through, city officials said. The project came to a surprise end after the developer, Forest City Enterprises of...

Accounting firms merge.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... WORCESTER -- The accounting firm of Carin, Charron & Rosen announced it has merging with Gerald P. Bonder & Co. of Boston, solidifying its position as the second largest regional accounting firm in New England. Carin, Charron & Rosen also...

Aerovox says results will reflect restructuring costs.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... NEW BEDFORD -- Aerovox, Inc. announced that its fourth quarter and year ending results would include $5.5 million to $6 million for costs related to the company's previously announced restructuring efforts. The company said the figure...

EUA to provide services to Textron Systems.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... LOWELL -- EUA Cogenex Corp., a wholly owned subsidiary of Eastern Utilities Associates, signed a $3.1 million Phase II contract with Textron Systems to provide additional Energy Management Services at its Wilmington, MA. facility. Similar to...

Ferry service OK'd from New Bedford to Vineyard.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... NEW BEDFORD -- While officials have given the go-ahead for limited freight car- carrying ferry service this spring between New Bedford and Martha's Vineyard, some officials are not optimistic about the system's success. The Woods Hole,...

Murder rate in Boston lowest in nearly four decades.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... BOSTON -- Officials here credit the strong economy as part of the reason for a decline in homicides in the city, the lowest in 38 years. Officials said that in 1999 there were 31 homicides in Boston, far less than the 152 recorded at the...

Rail project on schedule for Fall River, New Bedford.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... FALL RIVER -- Construction of a commuter rail system between Boston and Fall River and New Bedford is scheduled to begin by the fall of 2002, with completion the middle of 2004, according to state transportation officials. The department has...

Tillinghast Licht law firm merges with Boston firm.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Tillinghast Licht & Semonoff, among Rhode Island's most prominent law firms, have merged with the Boston law firm of Perkins Smith & Cohen. The combined firm will have 84 lawyers, 28 in Providence, 52 in Boston, and four in Washington, D.C....

Cyto Therapeutics sells cell technology.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... SUNNYVALE, Calif. -- Cyto Therapeutics, Inc. announced the sale of its Encapsulated Cell Technology to Neurotech S.A. of France for $3 million, royalties on future product sales, and other considerations. The Providence Business News reported...

Lord & Taylor delays mall opening.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... PROVIDECE -- Lord & Taylor, which was scheduled to open in Providence Place in March has postponed its opening until the fall. Lord & Taylor is expected to be the third anchor of the downtown mall, joining Nordstrom, which opened in August,...

Mall falls short of hiring goals.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- Providence Place fell short on three of four goals for hiring and employing minority and female contractors, according to a report issued by the developer. The mall failed to reach its goals for hiring female construction...

JD American Workwear obtains financing.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... COVENTRY -- JD American Workwear, Inc. has announced that it has received a commitment for $2.5 million in financing from Patina Corp. to allow the company to complete the restructuring it announced in December. Norman J. Birmingham has...

Cranston first in building permits.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Cranston led the state in single-family building permits for the first 11 months of 1999, according to the Rhode Island Bui1ders Association. The city issued 194 permits, slightly ahead of Coventry, which issued 185. Cumberland was third with...

Teachers challenge residency requirement.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... PROVIDENCE -- The Providence Teachers Union has filed suit against the city contending that the residency rule, which requires teachers to move into the city within six months of their hire, is discriminatory. The suit challenges the hiring...

GTECH celebrated Y2K in 13 time zones.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... WEST GREENWICH -- The global reach of GTECH, the world's largest lottery supplier, came with a price this New Year: a chance to be bitten by the Year 2000 computer bug in 13 time zones. GTECH spent more than $20 million over two years to...

An award-winning relationship.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... For more than two decades, Hodges Emblem and Badge of Portsmouth has literally had an award-winning relationship with some businesses in Sweden. The 80-year-old company exports nearly $75,000 worth of award ribbons used primarily for cat...

Tariffs, Trade, Taxes, Trademarks.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Trade Regulations and Tariffs: After Sweden's entry into the European Union (EU) on January 1, 1995, EU laws and regulations replaced Swedish customs laws. Sweden now applies the ex EU tariffs to imports from the United States and other...

Area's Chambers of Commerce.(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Area's Chambers of Commerce (ranked by membership) 2000 1999 Executive Rank Rank Name director...

Plans, initiative spur Northern RI revival.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... From the development of a master plan in Burrillville to Pawtucket's ambitious 2020 initiative, The towns and cities of northern Rhode Island are looking to pump up the region's economy through a host of economic development projects. ...

Burrillville -- so far, yet near enough.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Incorporated in 1806, Burrillville is located in the northwest corner of Rhode Island, bounded on the north by Massachusetts and on the west by Connecticut. It is approximately 20 miles from Providence, has a land area of 57.3 square miles,...

Plan provides foundation for preventing sprawl.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... When the state legislature passed comprehensive planning legislation for all municipalities in the late 1980s, Northern Rhode Island was one of the first areas to embrace the concept. Now, more than a decade later, planners from three...

RHODE ISLAND/stock watch.(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... RHODE ISLAND stock watch Stock Div./ P/E 52 week 52 week Lats Company name symbol share ratio high low week...

PERSONAL INVESTING.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... Q. Would you give me your opinion of Fidelity Select Banking Portfolio? Is it time to exit, or should I continue to invest? - P.K., via the Internet. A. First decide whether you think interest rates are going much higher, then ponder...

Board of Realtors' officers appointed to national committees.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... The National Association of Realtors has announced that three Greater Providence Board of Realtors Committees. Sharon D. Steele, president of the Sharon Steele Group of Providence, and 1999 Greater Providence Board president has been...

Washington Trust Company.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Debra A. Turrisi has been promoted to sales and service manager of the Washington Trust Company's main office in Westerly. She assists in managing daily branch operations and is responsible for consumer loans and mortgages. Joining the bank...

First Bank and Trust Company.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... William J. Markham has been appointed loan officer of First Bank and Trust Company in the Bank's Richmond office. He is responsible for developing: small business loans eastern Connecticut markets. He comes to First Bank from Enterprise...

Rhode Island Chapter of the Associated General Contractors.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... David J. Maron has been elected president of the Rhode Island Chapter of the Associated General Contractors for its 2000 to 2002 term. Maron serves on the RIAGC legislative committee and its industry advancement fund as well as being trustee...

St. Joseph Health Services of Rhode Island.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Kathleen A. Locarno, RN has joined St. Joseph Health Services of Rhode Island as coordinator of senior outreach services. She will be responsible for business and referral development in the areas of nursing homes, senior outreach services,...

Sylvester Associates, Inc.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Sam S. Sylvester of Sylvester Associates, Inc., has earned the registered health underwriter professional designation from the American College in Bryn Mawr, PA. Candidates for the RHU must complete a three-course curriculum of study and six...

Gates, Leighton & Associates, Inc.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Michael S. Moonan has been promoted to landscape architect and project manager of the international landscape architecture and planning firm of Gates, Leighton & Associates, Inc. Formerly a landscape designer for the East Providence firm,...

The Providence Journal Company.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Michael J. Delaney of Lincoln was recently promoted to assistant managing editor of visuals in the news department of The Providence Journal Company. In his new position he will supervise the photography staff and oversee the photo lab, photo...

Leadership Rhode Island.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Anna Prager has agreed to serve as interim president of Leadership Rhode Island, following the departure of Kathryn Hartley. A committee will be formed to conduct a search for a permanent president, expected to be named by March of this year....

Mercury Print & Mail.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Steve Cronin has been appointed president and COO of Pawtucket-based Mercury Print & Mail. Formerly serving as vice president of customer operations, Cronin has been with the company for two years. Fromer president and COO John Maguire will...

Institute for International Sport.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Marketing and communications executive David Esty has been appointed to the board of directors of the Institute for International Sport, located on the Kingston campus of the University of Rhode Island. The Bristol resident is owner and CEO...

Caster communications makes changes in staff.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Caster Communications, Inc., a full-service marketing communications agency, has added two new employees and promoted another. Kristine Hinck has joined the Providence agency as an account executive. Formerly of Gilbert Whitney & Johns...

EDITORIALS.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Legislative session These will be difficult times for our state legislature. It will face complex issues that should shape the course of our state's health care system, reform the way we govern our institutions of higher learning,...

Competition --tooth and nail is best.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... When UCLA basketball coach John Wooden diagrammed the pyramid of success, he put "competitive greatness" near the very top of the chart. But more firms are tuning into another truth: If you want to compete with the best, you'd better start at...

Coming to America: It isn't easy, never was.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... Periodically we need to examine our own heritage to find out what it must have been like when family members came to this country; this is especially true if we have had recent connections to another country and can remember the immigrant...

An appeal to eliminate childhood lead poisoning in RI.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 10, 2000... To the editor: When most people think of lead poisoning they envision a child lying in a decaying tenement in a poor, old, run-down urban neighborhood. Seldom do individuals think of a large suburban community, such as Warwick as a place...

Calif. 5th grader wants help.(Brief Article)
January 10, 2000... To the people of the great state of Rhode Island, My name is Ashlyn. I'm a 5th grade student from Southern California researching information about your state. I'm interested in learning about Rhode Island from you! Can you please write...

Economy keeps rolling along.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... Two years ago economists were warning of a slowdown in the national, regional and local economy. A year ago, the same Six months ago, the same. The recovery cycle had just gone on too long, economists suggested. We were bound for a slowdown,...

Banks find new opportunities in mergers, laws.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... Remember when there was Hospital Trust National Bank, Industrial National Bank friendly tellers anxious to help you with deposits and withdrawals, and bank employees opening checking and savings accounts? Well the banking business in some...

Top ten stories of 1999.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... 1. Health Care Hospital network mergers, health care insurers failures, a growing number of uninsured Americans, and government's failure to enact reforms has kept health care among the most important issues facing business, facing all...

For hospitals and HMOs, problems mount early, often.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... When Women & Infants Hospital Chairman Benjamin P. Harris III gave his speech before the hospital's annual meeting of the corporation last month, his exasperation was immediately evident. "Looking back on 1999, it just about takes your...

Tourism's growth sparks debate over the quality of jobs it creates.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... It seems only fitting that the first performance at the Providence Performing Arts Center for the new century is Beauty and the Beast. That seems to characterize our state's burgeoning tourism industry. The Beauty of it, of course, is...

SBA sidesteps efforts to streamline the agency.(Brief Article)
January 3, 2000... The federal agency that financially guarantees loans to small businesses dodged a bullet in 1999. Congress last year proposed deep cuts to the U.S. Small Business Administration's budget that could have forced the administration to fire...