Saint Paul Pioneer Press (St. Paul, MN) articles from April 2005

Saint Paul Pioneer Press (St. Paul, MN) archives from April 2005

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Dave Beal column.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Dave Beal Apr. 30--Forget that old-fashioned idea of companies selling their stock. The chic thing to do these days is to buy it back. Companies across the country are initiating or ratcheting up stock buyback programs...

College grads' job prospects are blooming this spring.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Julie Forster Apr. 30--After entering college during the height of the economic collapse, Christina Bawek knew she would have to pick a major likely to offer a steady flow of jobs. She liked her accounting class at the University...

Minnesotans hurt by rising natural gas prices.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Tim Huber Apr. 30--The higher cost of keeping warm this past winter apparently put a bigger dent in the average Minnesotan's budget. More people are late in paying the state's largest gas utilities. Applications for...

FAA finds design flaw in DC-10 engine part that fell off Northwest jet.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Martin J. Moylan Apr. 30--A design flaw, not poor maintenance, caused a nearly 200-pound piece of metal to break off an engine of a Northwest Airlines jet on April 9 as it flew over Inver Grove Heights, federal regulators said...

Northwest executives take pay cuts along with employees.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Martin J. Moylan Apr. 30--None of Northwest Airlines' top five executives received performance bonuses in 2004, as the carrier posted a $878 million loss. But CFO Bernie Han did get a $100,000 payment that was part of a signing...

Saks may sell Herberger's with other chains.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Scott Carlson Apr. 30--Saks Inc. said Friday that it might sell its 78-year old Herberger's chain together with the company's other northern division department store banners as it sheds mid-priced outlets to focus on its...

Twins win fifth game in a row.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Jason Williams MINNEAPOLIS _ Brad Radke cleared his biggest hurdle Saturday night: The veteran Twins pitcher made it through the first inning unscathed. That, aided by a first-inning, upper-deck home run by hot-hitting Justin...

Speedier games a welcome trend in baseball.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Tom Powers MINNEAPOLIS _ The Twins' victory over the Angels on Friday featured 11 runs and 23 hits spread over six pitchers. Yet the time of the game was a mere two hours, 31 minutes. "Man, 23 hits and two hours and 31...

Vikings expectations high, but Tice remains cool about job security.
April 30, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Worried about his job? Nah, not Mike Tice. "You guys just don't believe me. I don't worry about it,'' the Vikings' coach said. "I don't ever wake up in the morning worried about my job.'' ...

3M Co. hires temps to replace workers doing overtime.
April 29, 2005... Byline: John Welbes Apr. 29--When 3M Co. said last month that it would close its Stillwater automotive graphics plant later this year because of declining demand, the plant's 200 employees were caught off guard. The workers had been...

Check-printer Deluxe sees profits plunge.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Sheryl Jean Apr. 29--Deluxe Corp., the nation's largest check printer, said Thursday that first-quarter net profits fell 19 percent, in part because it lost one of its largest clients late last year. Company officials also...

Being an Audioslave means Chris Cornell works all the angles.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Ross Raihala Confidence, thy name is Chris Cornell. "Really, we weren't too worried about anything this time around," said Audioslave's lead howler during a recent phone interview from Los Angeles. "The first record did...

FBI field office chief says department feels pain of Red Lake shooting victims.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Ruben Rosario ST. PAUL, Minn. _ In Michael Tabman's 22 years as a "G-Man," no case has matched the scope, intensity and emotional drama of last month's deadly shootings at the Red Lake Indian reservation. "You are dealing...

Gas line records slow probe of fatal explosion.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Jason Hoppin Apr. 29--Sloppy and outdated records are slowing efforts to determine whether there are more faulty gas lines like the one that caused a fatal explosion in Ramsey, CenterPoint Energy officials said Thursday. ...

New schools chief hired.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Megan Boldt Apr. 29--The South Washington County School Board on Thursday night unanimously decided to hire Tom Nelson, a former Minnesota education commissioner, as the district's next superintendent. Nelson decided to come...

Senate panel faces tough choice on taxes as veto threat looms.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Patrick Sweeney Apr. 29--Sometime soon, probably Monday, members of the Minnesota's Senate Tax Committee are going to have to swallow hard and vote on a package of tax increases totaling at least $1.3 billion, the committee's...

Twins rally to defeat the Angels.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer MINNEAPOLIS _ Somewhere in a frigid dugout in Detroit during a loss to the Tigers on Monday, the Twins might have won Friday night's game at the Metrodome. That's when manager Ron Gardenhire pulled aside...

James, Williams remind Vikings of Doleman, Millard.
April 29, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Vikings defensive coordinator Ted Cottrell is a leg and hip man. So there's no confusion, we're talking about when he evaluates a defensive end. Cottrell was doing that Friday, checking out the...

Best Buy to launch 'lab stores' in China.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Scott Carlson Apr. 28--Lixin Zhu has become a diehard Best Buy shopper since the Chinese native moved to the Twin Cities about three years ago. Zhu, editor of a Twin Cities' Chinese language newspaper, said he visits Best...

Best Buy spinoff health store 'eq-life' to replace bookstore.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Gita Sitaramiah Apr. 28--Books are out. Health is in. The Bound to be Read bookstore will close this summer at St. Paul's Victoria and Grand. Moving in will be eq-life, a health-oriented store developed by Best Buy that melds...

`Enron: The Smartest Guys in the Room'.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Chris Hewitt You're not going to believe this, but big businesses will do anything to make money. The people at Enron actually attempted to market weather futures, just one of the funny-if-they-weren't-so-aggravating details...

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Real World Economics column.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Edward Lotterman Apr. 28--When Amartya Sen won the 1998 Nobel Prize in economics, I congratulated an Indian-born co-worker on his compatriot's achievement. He snorted dismissively and made it clear he did not consider Sen's...

Mood changes, anger contributed to student's shooting spree, family believes.
April 28, 2005... Byline: David Hanners ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Jeff Weise's anger over being banned from high school _ coupled with mood changes brought on by a recent doubling of his antidepressant dosage _ pushed him to carry out last month's deadly shooting...

Facility losing money.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Brian Bonner Apr. 28--A top-to-bottom financial study of the Inver Grove Heights community center will be undertaken, the City Council decided this week. The study group will be led by Jack Skoog, who chairs the city's...

Deadly gas explosion traced to faulty line.
April 28, 2005... Apr. 28--An unlawfully installed natural gas line connection caused a deadly December explosion that leveled a small office building in Ramsey, and there is concern similar joints may exist throughout the northern and western metro areas,...

State of buildings decried.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Cynthia Boyd Apr. 28--Several Spring Lake Park School District buildings may be in such bad shape that the state Department of Education could advise the district to replace rather than repair the structures, Superintendent Don...

Twins end bizarre road trip with a sweep.
April 28, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ The Minnesota Twins finally went home Thursday night. At least that's where they were headed after extending their road trip through hell _ or Detroit, anyway _ by two innings and 45...

Minnesota woman hospitalized after tiger attack.
April 28, 2005... Byline: David Hawley ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Earlier this year, Allison Asher volunteered to care for Grant Oly's Siberian tigers while he spent 45 days in jail for violating a court order to reduce the number of big cats he was keeping on his...

`XXX: State of the Union'.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Chris Hewitt The minute you see Willem Dafoe playing the U.S. secretary of defense in "XXX: State of the Union," you think "maniac." You think "turncoat." You think, "How did this slimeball get White House clearance?" ...

`The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy'.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Chris Hewitt Watching "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" is like walking into a roomful of kindergartners, all screaming for your attention. It is an uncommonly frenetic movie, crammed with ideas, animation,...

Shareholders at Piper Jaffray meeting will want answers after down quarter.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Sheryl Jean Apr. 27--The honeymoon is over for Piper Jaffray Cos. The brokerage and investment bank has taken a wallop, just in time for the company's second annual meeting since its spinoff from U.S. Bancorp in late 2003....

Family to open largest retail garden center.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Scott Carlson Apr. 27--Nearly 40 years ago, the Bachman family had the seeds of a dream for their company's nursery growing range: Build a big retail garden center at their sprawling Farmington site. Next month, the family's...

Fame and fortune? It's still news to Maroon 5.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Ross Raihala No one is more surprised at Maroon 5's success than guitarist James Valentine. "I remember being really excited when we sold 5,000 copies of our record," said Valentine in a phone interview from his home in...

Mobile flirting via BlackBerry.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Julio Ojeda-Zapata MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. _ It's singles night at the Nochee nightclub in downtown Minneapolis, but the patrons aren't getting anywhere near each other _ at least at first. Instead, they're peering and...

As seen on TV: Patients getting advertised drugs.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Jeremy Olson Apr. 27--The symbols in prescription drug ads are becoming as familiar as Ronald McDonald and the Budweiser Clydesdales. There is the nerdy superhero that promotes a skin drug, the droopy white pill that sells an...

Dual-casino plan sent to lion's den.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Patrick Sweeney Apr. 27--Gov. Tim Pawlenty's two-casino gambling proposal took a beating in a procedural vote in the Minnesota House on Tuesday. Fourteen Republicans joined 65 Democrats in voting to send the casino plan to...

Council says yes to Lowe's project.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Brian Bonner Apr. 27--A giant piece of West St. Paul's redevelopment puzzle will soon be in place. Lowe's, the nation's No. 2 home improvement retailer, is expected to build a 168,000-square-foot store and garden center on...

Mobile home park might go.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Nancy Yang Apr. 27--A mobile home park in Oakdale could be redeveloped into about 150 affordable housing units by 2009 under a Washington County Housing and Redevelopment Authority proposal that would require the relocation of...

Twin Lakes project edges forward.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Steve Scott Apr. 27--A proposed agreement for the first phase of Roseville's major Twin Lakes redevelopment passed the City Council on Monday night, part of a lengthy approval process praised by the project's supporters for its...

State workers' union sues over prisoner's road cleanup.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Rachel E. Stassen-Berger Apr. 27--A state employees union alleged in a lawsuit Tuesday that Minnesota Gov. Tim Pawlenty's plan to have prisoners clean up highways would supplant union workers. Like the old song goes: That's...

City stymies updates, growth.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Bob Shaw Apr. 27--In a sea of fast-growing suburbs, Ham Lake is an island. It's one of two cities in the seven-county metro area that has no growth plan filed with the Metropolitan Council. It is surrounded by cities with...

Site of Twins' future ballpark doesn't smell like garbage.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ I stood at home plate of the Twins' future ballpark Wednesday. There were cars all around because, at the moment, the site is a parking lot in Minneapolis' warehouse district. I wasn't there to...

Mays wins in return to the scene of his last victory for Twins.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ It was only a matter of time. Eventually, Minnesota Twins right-hander Joe Mays would return to health. And return to Kansas City _ which, these days, means the same thing. And win a...

McHale says he returning to Timberwolves' front office.
April 27, 2005... Byline: Rick Alonzo ST. PAUL, Minn. _ As he watched the NBA playoffs from his lakehouse, Kevin McHale realized he just couldn't walk away. McHale said Wednesday he felt personally responsible for the Timberwolves' disappointing...

AARP to join suit against 3M.
April 26, 2005... Byline: Julie Forster Apr. 26--AARP, a powerful advocacy group, is joining an age discrimination lawsuit against 3M Co., the Maplewood-based manufacturer. The lawsuit filed in December claims that since at least 2001, 3M has...

Indebted Minnesotans rush to file for bankruptcy before law changes.
April 26, 2005... Byline: Jennifer Bjorhus Apr. 26--Strapped Minnesotans are rushing to file for bankruptcy before a complicated new law takes effect in October making it tougher to wipe personal debts clean. Twin Cities bankruptcy attorneys say...

Verizon bringing ringback tones to Midwest.
April 26, 2005... Byline: Leslie Brooks Suzukamo Apr. 26--Remember elevator music? The wireless industry has brought the concept to the cell phone with something called the ringback tone, a snippet of a song that replaces the standard ring that callers...

In battle to build new Twins ballpark, keep people, politicians out.
April 26, 2005... Byline: Tom Powers ST. PAUL, Minn. _ "No new taxes!" (Insert applause here.) "Why should we pay?" (Insert more applause.) "Power to the people!" (Clap, clap, clap . . .) The preceding was an exercise designed...

Santana's winning streak hits 17 as Twins win it in the ninth.
April 26, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer KANSAS CITY, Mo. _ It was a night made for making history. Twins pitcher Johan Santana survived a pitching duel against one-time idol Jose Lima to beat the Kansas City Royals, 2-1, on Tuesday night at...

School-shooting study delves into peers who knew attacks were coming.
April 25, 2005... Byline: Ruben Rosario ST. LOUIS _ Researchers behind the most comprehensive study done yet on school shooters want to turn snitches into whistleblowers to help prevent tragedies like last month's killings at Minnesota's Red Lake High...

La Crosse riverfront is an even bigger draw than the bars.
April 25, 2005... Byline: Beth Gauper LA CROSSE, Wis. _ We'd been in La Crosse for barely an hour, and everyone we'd met was a certified character. In Riverside Park, Frank and Faith Rimmert and Jonathan and Barb Rimmert were decked out in top...

`Winter Solstice'.
April 25, 2005... Byline: Chris Hewitt The movie is called "Winter Solstice" not because it takes place in winter but, unfortunately, because the main character is named Winters. Cutesy title notwithstanding, the movie takes place during spring and...

Twins come up short in Detroit.
April 25, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer DETROIT_Maybe these guys need to get out more. After being cooped up in their hotel rooms and apartments the previous two days with snow falling in Detroit, the Twins and Tigers finally took it outside...

Hunter adds theft to his game.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer DETROIT _ Torii Hunter's sprint to the major league lead in stolen bases this season is no accident. It has been his plan since the end of last season. And with 10 steals through 17 games, the Minnesota...

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Real World Economics column.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Edward Lotterman Apr. 24--Be cautious in accepting long-term projections of compound growth. The "miracle of compounding" can transform even small deviations from assumptions into large differences between predictions and actual...

Xcel energy gets back to basics with new projects.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Tim Huber Apr. 24--Xcel Energy has begun an unprecedented building boom. There's the $1 billion modernization of three Twin Cities electricity-generating plants. The $1.25 billion coal-fired generating plant to be built in...

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Investor's Eye column.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Gail MarksJarvis Apr. 24--If the stock market is telling us something about the economy, Wall Street pros aren't sure what the message is except that investors are spooked and confused. Just a few weeks ago, investors worried...

Firm focuses on making, selling ergonomic office products.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Sheryl Jean Apr. 24--After growing up in the office supply business, Tim Skiba knew there was more he could do to make workers' bodies more comfortable -- and their jobs easier. His father owned the now-defunct Midway Office...

Vikings contend they'll be contenders.
April 24, 2005... Byline: Don Seeholzer ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The first round yielded a big-play wide receiver and pass-rushing defensive end. The second brought a possible starting left guard. The Minnesota Vikings didn't fill all their holes during the...

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Dave Beal column.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Dave Beal Apr. 23--Nothing ventured, nothing gained. By some accounts, very little money is being ventured locally for Minnesota companies hoping to grow up here in key parts of the biotechnology industry. And that is raising...

Credit card companies add international fees for foreign currency transactions.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Sheryl Jean Apr. 23--An idyllic vacation in a far-off land just got a little more expensive for many consumers who use credit cards while away. As of April 1, Visa USA Inc. changed the way it charges banks and other issuers...

Medtronic to settle with doctor over spinal implant invention.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Jim McCartney Apr. 23--Jury award: $550 million. Patents and patents pending: $800 million. Never hearing from Dr. Gary K. Michelson again: Priceless. Medtronic Inc. said Friday it has agreed to pay $1.35 billion to...

Minneapolis may block transfer of cable service to Comcast over franchise fees.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Leslie Brooks Suzukamo Apr. 23--The City of Minneapolis expects to file a lawsuit Monday in a long-running dispute with Time Warner Cable that could block the cable company's agreement to transfer the city's cable franchise to...

Weather fouls Twins' mood; snow scrubs Saturday's game.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer DETROIT _ Just when the Twins' injury storm had passed, a snowstorm blew across the infield at Comerica Park on Saturday and threw a chill into the Twins' pitching plans for the next week. Severe weather in...

Need for speed: Vikings surprise some by taking Williamson.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Don Seeholzer ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The experts say it takes a minimum of three years to accurately evaluate any draft, but give the Vikings an early B, for boldness. Staying true to their board, they used their first selection...

Fowler and Co. are no-shows for Vikings.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Tom Powers ST. PAUL, Minn. _ No one from the alleged new ownership group was on hand for the Vikings' gala draft day party at Winter Park. Although I thought I saw Zyggi Wilf sitting atop a bulldozer in the parking lot, waiting...

Williamson's speed will heal broken hearts in Minnesota.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ The instant they heard the Vikings had chosen South Carolina wide receiver Troy Williamson with the seventh overall pick, some of the 3,800 fans at the team's draft party cheered. A lot more booed....

McCombs says he has backup buyers ready.
April 23, 2005... Byline: Don Seeholzer ST. PAUL, Minn. _ One round into what is likely to be his final draft as Vikings owner, Red McCombs stopped by the media room Saturday at Winter Park. Still awaiting NFL approval of Reggie Fowler's $625 million...

Founders remain in control of Mall of America, court rules.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Scott Carlson Apr. 22--The Ghermezian family, the Mall of America's founders, not Simon Property Group, remains in control of the Mall following a federal appeals court decision Thursday. In affirming a St. Paul federal court,...

Adelphia acquisition to impact Minnesota.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Tim Huber Apr. 22--The $17.6 billion acquisition Thursday of bankrupt cable company Adelphia Communications by Time Warner Inc. and Comcast Corp. is going to have a big impact on Minnesota. As part of the deal, Comcast would...

Minnesota woman is Moby's muse on new record.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Ross Raihala ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Minnesota holds a special place in Moby's heart. Not only did many of the electronic-music star's relatives come from here _ as a child, he spent summers vacationing at Lake Florida _ but a...

Deeper environment spending cuts OK'd.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Dennis Lien Apr. 22--Mowing and trash pickup at state parks could suffer, timber-sale goals could go unmet and a controversial effort to designate off-highway vehicle trails in state forests might be scaled back. And that's...

Rising fuel prices blamed for Northwest Airline's large quarterly loss.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Martin J. Moylan Apr. 22--Its larger-than-expected first-quarter loss has turned up the volume on this hindsight: Why hasn't Northwest Airlines done more to protect itself from soaring jet-fuel prices? They hit $1.38 a gallon...

Goodbye, '80s; hello, Jack.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Amy Carlson Gustafson Apr. 22--There's a new radio format on the Twin Cities FM dial, and it goes by the name of Jack. At 9 a.m. Thursday, 104.1 WXPT-FM ditched its '80s music format for a larger, more eclectic play list. First...

Twins lose in 10th on Rodriguez' home run.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Gordon Wittenmyer DETROIT _ It was a night of triumphant returns for the Minnesota Twins. Even if it wasn't a night of victory. The Detroit Tigers scored the winning run in the bottom of the 10th inning when Ivan...

Williamson wouldn't be a stretch for Vikings.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ While trying to decipher what the Vikings will do on Saturday in the NFL draft, keep in mind the story about the scorpion and the frog. Quick version: A scorpion can't swim, so he asks a frog...

Qwest endeavor likely stalled.
April 22, 2005... Byline: Leslie Brooks Suzukamo Apr. 22--A legislative effort to free Qwest Communications International from nearly all state retail phone service oversight has failed and is likely dead for the session, a key state senator said. ...

Pioneer Press, St. Paul, Minn., Real World Economics column.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Edward Lotterman Apr. 21--Perhaps Coon Rapids should invite Ronald Coase to visit. The 1991 Nobel laureate might be able to help resolve a dispute about the Mississippi River dam there. Coase's insights on the importance of...

Health care system based in St. Paul, Minn., to double work force.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Tim Nelson Apr. 21--Allina Hospitals & Clinics is doubling the work force of its hospice and palliative care division and will relocate its St. Paul headquarters, company officials said on Wednesday. "It's demand by residents...

Minnesota firms rank high in executive leadership.
April 21, 2005... Byline: John Welbes Apr. 21--Some of Minnesota's largest corporations also are the most serious in the U.S. about developing in-house executive talent. A study released Wednesday lists the top 20 companies in the nation for leaders,...

Piper Jaffray shares nosedive as profits decline.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Sheryl Jean Apr. 21--Shares of Piper Jaffray Cos. lost one-quarter of their value Wednesday as the brokerage and investment bank stumbled in its second year as an independent entity, posting a steep decline in first-quarter...

Big airlines find lucrative market in overseas flights.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Martin J. Moylan ST. PAUL, Minn. _ They're not the friendliest skies U.S. carriers have ever seen. And they've discovered that war, disease or some other calamity can darken them quickly. But for the six largest U.S....

Timberwolves' overhaul should center on Kevin Garnett.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Bob Sansevere ST. PAUL, Minn. _ When the game ended, people stood and cheered. It was odd, like cheering a car wreck, or a funeral procession. Then again, the Timberwolves' horrendous season finally was over, so maybe that...

Chow hopes quirky Kung Fu movie will prove he's a `master'.
April 21, 2005... Byline: Chris Hewitt ST. PAUL, Minn. _ Film scholars can blather about semiotics and the unknowable self. Stephen Chow has a simpler way to describe how he wants audiences to react to his movies: "Look good, feel good, want to see more."...