Mail Tribune (Medford, OR) articles from November 2001

Mail Tribune (Medford, OR) archives from November 2001

Medford, Ore., Workshop Shows Employers How to Trim Health Care Costs.
November 1, 2001... Byline: John Darling Nov. 1--The spiraling cost of health care is an ailment that's treatable, Rogue Valley employers learned at a workshop held Tuesday at Rogue Valley Medical Center's Smullin Center. Using a method called "demand...

New CEO of United Airlines Welcomes Challenge.
November 1, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 1--The new chairman and chief executive of United Airlines, John W. "Jack" Creighton Jr., has one of the more momentous tasks in the business world today. United, which has served Medford since the company's...

Yreka, Calif., Girl Wins Millions in Suit against Wal-Mart.
November 1, 2001... Byline: Dani Dodge Nov. 1--A Jacksonville attorney won a $3.1 million lawsuit against Wal-Mart for a young burn victim in Yreka, Calif. Shane Reed of Reed & Associates represented the girl in a Sacramento federal court. After four days...

New Tariffs Will Raise Home-Building Costs in Medford, Ore., Area.
November 3, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 3--All those new homes on the region's drawing boards are about to get a little more expensive. With the prospect of hundreds of new homes going up in the Medford area in the months ahead, the Commerce...

Medford, Ore., Communications Firm Set to Revolutionize Regional Access.
November 4, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 4--As Hunter Construction owner Richard Ryan's crews installed 80 miles of fiber-optic cable for the upstart Ashland Fiber Network in recent years, he began seeing a far greater dynamic at play. He wasn't just...

Coos Bay, Ore.-Based Bank to Reopen Next Week under New Ownership, Name.
November 7, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 7--Western Bank, once a model of community banking, will disappear from the state's landscape this weekend. Workers are changing signs at 30 of the bank's remaining 31 branches. The branches will close Friday...

Mobil Brand Returns with Medford, Ore., Gas Station.
November 7, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 7--A familiar trade sign, absent from the Northwest for a decade, has returned to the Rogue Valley. Mobil brand gas is available for the first time since British Petroleum replaced the last Mobil brand service...

Spokane, Wash.-Based Hotel Firm Looks at Buying Medford, Ore., Hotel.
November 9, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 9--Medford's Red Lion Hotel may have a new identity within a few months. WestCoast Hospitality Corp. began discussions with Hilton Hotels Corp. -- Red Lion's corporate parent -- in May, with an eye on doubling...

Ruch, Ore., Winery to Debut New Tasting Pavilion during November Sale.
November 14, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 14--RUCH, Ore.--Wine making was something of a lost art in Jackson County 30 years ago and wine tasting was something Southern Oregonians did in California. Even after Valley View Winery helped bring back the...

Southern Oregon One-Hour Photo Merchant Develops Successful Business.
November 15, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 15--There's a bit of surfer in Joe Frodsham, one of Southern Oregon's most prominent one-hour photo merchants. The 51-year-old Frodsham catches a wave, rides it for all it's worth and then paddles back to the...

Medford Firms Say Oregon Transportation Department Should Obey Land-Use Laws.
November 15, 2001... Byline: Melissa Martin Nov. 15--The state should have to follow its own land-use laws, said the owners of three Medford businesses that would lose driveways and property when the new Interstate 5 north interchange is built. "There are...

Ski Shop Closes Ashland, Ore., Location.
November 16, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 16--Rogue Ski Shop has closed its Ashland outpost six seasons after expanding its operations to 358 E. Main St. Neither drought, nor sagging economy nor Sept. 11 fallout closed the doors. Rather, it was...

Northwest Funds Manager Sees Precedents in Market Response to Sept. 11.
November 17, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 17--Some investors jumped out of the market without much thought following Sept. 11. Others simply recast their portfolio. Long-term or short-term, large and small players, most still have questions. The...

Ashland, Ore., Internet Web Design Firm Lays Off 15 Employees.
November 17, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 17--ASHLAND, Ore.--Project A, this town's high-profile and far-reaching Internet Web design company, on Thursday laid off 15 of its 35 employees. "I'm pretty shook up about it," said Jim Teece, Project A's...

Home Sales Drop 23 Percent in Jackson County, Ore., during October.
November 20, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 20--Jackson County home sales dropped 23 percent in October from the previous year, the largest year-over-year percentage drop since January. Figures compiled by Roy Wright Appraisal Service showed only 167...

Charter Communications Internet Customers Could Lose Service for A While.
November 20, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 20--Ashland resident Bill Greenstein was one of the earliest Charter@Home high-speed Internet customers, signing on when service became available in July 1999. "I wasn't going to wait for Ashland Fiber...

White City, Ore.-Area Drywall Recyclers Find Multiple Markets.
November 21, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 21--WHITE CITY, Ore.--As his body started to feel the effects of back-breaking construction work, Larry Stoner began considering his options. His doctor told him lifting weight wasn't one of them, so he began...

Central Point, Ore., Considers Other Offers to Wire City Hall for Internet.
November 21, 2001... Byline: Buffy Pollock Nov. 21--CENTRAL POINT, Ore.--Broken promises, increasing prices and poor service from Charter Communications are reasons some City Council members favor a competitor's proposal to wire City Hall for the Internet. ...

Oregon's Ashland Fiber Network Woos Customers for High-Speed Internet Service.
November 21, 2001... Byline: Tony Boom Nov. 21--ASHLAND, Ore.--Ashland Fiber Network shifted plans a day after it said it wouldn't take advantage of a chance to sign up more high-speed Internet customers in light of a competitor's problem, the City Council...

Sales for Jacksonville, Ore., Inn Plunge after Sept. 11.
November 22, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 22--The Jacksonville Inn was on pace for a record sales year before Sept. 11. Since then, dining has fallen off and hotel reservations have plummeted. Owner Jerry Evans said the Jacksonville landmark is still...

Ashland, Ore.-Area Body Cushion Company Goes Into Video Reproduction.
November 27, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 27--ASHLAND, Ore.--A Rogue Valley body cushion business with customers in 67 countries has expanded into an unrelated line of services. Body Support Systems now edits and reproduces videotapes for local...

Central Point, Ore., Commercial Development Nears Final Approval.
November 29, 2001... Byline: Greg Stiles Nov. 29--CENTRAL POINT, Ore.--A 20-acre commercial development east of Bear Creek is nearing final approval from the city. The Pear Blossom Center is due for final plat approval no later than Jan. 1 according to...

Tenants Object to Leasing Rules at Jackson County, Ore., Airport.
November 30, 2001... Byline: Jill Briskey Nov. 30--Jackson County claims its new policy on lease agreements at the Medford airport is good business -- and, more importantly, fair. But some tenants leasing property at the county-owned airport say it's a...