A chronicle of top business stories since 1987

1987

An employee of Fuji Photo Film Co. Ltd. was invited to re-enroll in the University of Rochester’s William E. Simon Graduate School of Business Administration after a storm of criticism greeted the school’s decision to heed proprietary concerns raised by Eastman Kodak Co.-a significant financial supporter of the school-and rescind its acceptance of the student.

Rochester’s business community praised the new U.S.-Canada Free Trade Agreement. In 1986, more than 60 percent of Rochester’s $5.7 billion in exports went to Canada.

Paychex Inc. founder Thomas Golisano received the Herbert W. VandenBrul Entrepreneurial Award from the College of Business at Rochester Institute of Technology.

The Black Monday stock market crash on Oct. 19 sent shock waves through the financial world, but it produced little more than a ripple of anxiety in Rochester’s business community. Most companies downplayed the potential impact.

Columbia Banking Federal Savings and Loan Association quietly prepared to go public.

Despite their strong support for Monroe County Executive Lucien Morin, business and labor groups calmly accepted Morin’s defeat by Democrat Thomas Frey. Frey stunned Morin, winning 57 percent to 40 percent as part of a Democratic landslide.

With the disruption caused by the Main Street improvement project, some downtown merchants wondered if there would be any Christmas in 1987.

Logical Operations, a computer training and consulting firm, formed a subsidiary publishing company. The company’s sales were up 83 percent and staff had grown from 28 to 42 people.

A deal to sell the Four Corners and the Crossroads buildings downtown fell through. Owner Wilmorite Inc. said it was not actively trying to sell the buildings but would consider sound offers.

The picketing of Gannett Rochester Newspapers by the newsroom union represented an escalation of collective bargaining tactics prompted by a deterioration of union-management relations to the lowest point in years.

After an unprofitable move into restaurant franchising, Zab’s Backyard Hots Inc. began pushing Zabkarts and an expanded product line in a bid to find a niche in the oversaturated fast-food market.

Genesee Brewing Co. Inc. shareholders approved a restructuring plan to facilitate acquisitions of companies by creating a holding company, Genesee Corp. In December, the company announced it would buy Ontario Foods Inc.

In a year that heard the death rattle of the strongest bull market ever, most of Rochester’s public companies saw declines in the value of their stock. The biggest gain, 74 percent, was recorded by Champion Products.

1988

Rochester’s health maintenance organizations reported that they closed 1987 deep in the red. Blue Choice lost $7.7 million on revenues of $93 million, and Preferred Care lost $1 million on revenues of $78 million.

AIDS testing and research sparked a dramatic increase in sales at Nalge Co., a major supplier of plastics for medical industries. The Brighton firm employed some 500 people.
Planning and development work was under way on revitalization efforts in the historic Brown’s Race district.

Area employers expressed uncertainty on how they would absorb a 20 percent average increase in premiums sought by Blue Cross Blue Shield of the Rochester Area. “We’re just not going to let our employees get sick anymore,” cracked one company official.

Praxis Biologics Inc. chose a strategy that raised its short-term risk. The firm decided to pull its only real money-making product off the market and replace it with an improved version. As a result, the firm expected to lose money through much of 1988 and 1989.

Columbia S&L president William Mackenzie was credited with engineering one of the most successful turnarounds in the thrift industry. He said his goals were to keep Columbia profitable and independent.

Increased competition in the defense industry and a spy scandal helped Rospatch Electronic Systems Division in Fishers to spur its parent company, Rospatch Corp., to sales and earnings records last year. The Fishers division accounted for $42 million, or nearly one-third, of those sales.

A local group headed by Susan Holliday in February purchased the Rochester Business Journal from American City Business Journals of Kansas City, Mo., which had owned the paper since December 1986. The sale of a number of its newspapers was one of several steps taken by ACBJ to reduce its debt after the October 1987 stock market crash.

Businesses braced for the worst as the Can of Worms reconstruction project began in the spring.

Michael Haymes and his boyhood friend, Jeffrey Hoffman, opened the area’s first Re/Max franchise office. Re/Max agents earn 95 percent of commissions they produce, unlike the traditional 50/50 split between the agent and broker.

Paul Snyder’s attorney said “it may take a miracle” for the developer to resume construction of the Hyatt Regency Rochester hotel within the 45-day deadline imposed by the city. Work on the project halted in June 1986 when Snyder fired general contractor Turner Construction Co. Inc.

Commenting on the growth of the underclass, people who are either on welfare or chronically unemployed, Urban League of Rochester president William Johnson Jr. said: “We have in our midst (nationally) large numbers of people who are unemployed and have no education, (and) have no hope of employment.”

A battle between David Smith, founder and chairman of Praxis Biologics, and the company’s other directors sent shock waves through the investment community. In March, Smith asked the board to reinstate him as president and CEO-posts from which he stepped down in December. They declined.

Efforts to organize a nurses union at Strong Memorial Hospital died for lack of support.
Horsley Keogh & Associates, Roch-ester’s largest venture capital firm with more than $350 million under management, suffered a setback when the University of Rochester declined to renew its five-year contract placing $133 million-or nearly one-quarter of its endowment fund-under Horsley Keogh’s control.

General Motors Corp. announced plans to merge its Rochester Products Division and AC Spark Plug Division. Rochester Products employed some 4,800 people in Rochester.

A $100 million antitrust lawsuit filed in California against Kodak by 18 independent photocopier service organizations and equipment brokers was dismissed. The plaintiffs said they would appeal.

New York offered a $9.7 million financing package to lure Hampshire Instruments Inc. from Massachusetts. The firm and its founder, Moshe Lubin, aimed to revolutionize the semiconductor industry by using X-ray lithography to create circuit patterns for silicon wafers.

Renovation projects in the city’s Cultural District were transforming a once-seedy area into a hub of business and entertainment. Among the projects were Eastman Place and the Eastman School Student Living Center.

Blue Choice, which had lost more than $15 million since its launch in 1985, was ordered by the state to meet criteria for profitability or raise its premiums beyond the 18 percent hike adopted in April. Combined losses for 1987 and the first quarter of 1988 totaled more than $13 million.
The management of IEC Electronics Corp. moved to take private one of the nation’s most profitable small manufacturing companies.

Kodak CEO Colby Chandler topped the Business Journal’s first list of the area’s highest-paid public company executives, with 1987 cash compensation of $1,043,963. Second on the list was Bausch & Lomb Inc. CEO Daniel Gill, who earned $814,489.

Developer Paul Snyder and Turner Construction agreed to resolve their dispute, clearing the way for revival of the Hyatt hotel project after a 14-month impasse. However, a number of details remained to be worked out.

Monroe Savings Bank FSB faced increasing losses, and its regulatory net worth fell far below minimum federal standards.

North Atlantic Fisheries Inc., a fish-processing company that went public in 1985, filed papers with the Securities and Exchange Commission revealing possible misstatements in financial reports.

Microtel Franchise and Development Corp. began construction of its first economy motel. President Loren Ansley said the company could have 400 to 500 motels nationwide over the next three to four years.

A Health Futures for Rochester study predict that, unless a trend of migration from the metro area could be reversed, employers would face a serious labor crunch.

Following a string of losses totaling $4 million and failed recovery attempts, Zab’s-once touted in the New York Times for its part in “a national resurgence of enthusiasm for the hot dog stand”-filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition.

Rochester’s defense contractors faced a future of uncertainty in the wake of a major Pentagon scandal and shrinking procurement budgets.

Local business leaders threw their support behind Monroe County Executive Thomas Frey’s proposal to begin work on the Greater Rochester International Airport terminal project, including construction of a second concourse.

In late August, Paul Snyder surprised local officials by announcing he would withdraw from the Hyatt hotel project. The city began a search for a new developer.

A group of managers at General Circuits Inc. reached an agreement to buy the company from parent Brintec Corp.

The Rochester Philharmonic Orchestra ended its fiscal year with a deficit exceeding $260,000-more than 10 times its shortfall the year before. RPO officials said, however, that a new labor contract and management plans gave the orchestra the stability it needs to attract financial support.

Thomas Golisano’s original goal was to sign up 300 customers. By October 1988, Paychex had 91,000 clients and the number was growing by 800 each week.

Photographic Sciences Corp. decided to sell off its Metrology Division. The new company, Chapman Instruments Inc., was led by Thomas Bristow.

Microtel announced plans to make an initial public offering in early 1989. The firm hoped to raise $3 million to fund growth efforts.

In early December, acquisitions of Computer Consoles Inc. and ACC Corp. were announced. The British firm STC PLC agreed to buy CCI for $12.80 a share, and Rochester Telephone Corp. said it would buy ACC for $6 a share.

1989

The area’s HMO reported skyrocketing losses for 1988. Blue Choice lost $10 million and Preferred Care lost $2.9 million. Another Blue Cross HMO, Group Health, lost $6 million.

Rochester’s largest venture capital firm, Horsley Keogh, announced plans to move to San Francisco by mid-1990.

In February, Champion Products said it had accepted a $77-a-share buyout offer from Sara Lee Corp. The $320 million deal came after the company rebuffed a tender offer by investor Walsh Greenwood & Co.

Investment analysts were disappointed by ACC’s decision not to seek a new buyer after a merger agreement with Rochester Tel fell through. “The company has neglected its responsibility to shareholders,” analyst Joseph Rulison said.

Investors who claimed they were bilked by the defunct penny stock brokerage Power Securities Corp. filed a $1.35 billion class-action suit in federal court. The company also faced a criminal probe.

Negotiators for USAir Group Inc. and eight other carriers agreed to Monroe County’s proposal for a new two-story terminal, clearing the way for the $103 million Greater Rochester International Airport project.

Midlantic Corp. agreed to buy Central Trust Co., further heating up an already hot banking market. Under the deal, Midlantic would pay $291 million for Central Trust and four other upstate banks.

Peter Kolokouris, president of North Atlantic Fisheries, was charged with embezzlement and stock fraud. A grand jury continued to investigate the firm.

Sporting goods retailer Sportecular Inc. filed a Chapter 11 bankruptcy petition. Founded in 1983, the firm went public in early 1984.

Praxis Biologics was sold to American Cyanamid Corp. for $194 million in stock.

Boston-based Goldman Financial Group Inc. said it intended to pursue its bid to acquire Gleason Corp., even though Gleason rebuffed a $20-a-share purchase offer. Gleason lost $4.2 million in 1988.

Hampshire Instruments initiated a private stock placement to raise some $12 million.

General Manager William Blossom won a six-month battle to acquire Rospatch’s Electronic Systems Division. The company was renamed Flightline Electronics Inc.

Goals for a Greater Rochester was created to steer a countywide long-term planning initiative.

Two groups formed to help shape a vision for Rochester’s future. One, headed by Mayor Thomas Ryan Jr. and County Executive Thomas Frey, included Kodak chairman Colby Chandler and Bausch & Lomb chairman Daniel Gill; the other group was headed by Hansford Manufacturing Corp. president Skip Hansford and UR vice president Richard Miller.

Xerox Corp. won the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Kodak said it would take “strong steps”-including 4,500 layoffs worldwide-to boost earnings after a sharp drop in the second quarter.

Greater Rochester Cablevision Inc.’s plan to launch an independent TV station, WGRC, was greeted by opposition and skepticism. The National Association of Broadcasters sought government action.

Monroe County moved to woo Ovonic Imaging Systems Inc. of Troy, Mich., a manufacturer of flat-panel screens for computers. William Manning, president of Manning & Napier Advisors Inc., owned the largest share of Ovonic stock.

Mayor Ryan easily won re-election over Council member John Erb and Republican-endorsed challenger James O’Brien.

Rochester’s international business community greeted with enthusiasm the changes sweeping Eastern Europe, including the collapse of the Berlin Wall.

A proposal by the state Health Department to provide health insurance to all New Yorkers, called UNY-Care, caused a stir among health care administrators, insurance companies and business groups.

1990

Richard Russell, president of R.J. Russell Associates Inc., purchased the county’s first Prudential Real Estate Affiliates franchise.

The May Department Stores Co. shocked Rochester by saying it would close Sibley’s downtown store and merge its other stores with the Pittsburgh-based Kaufmann’s division.

Years of speculation about the future of Monroe Saving Bank came to an end with the news that it had been sold to Buffalo-based First Empire State Corp., parent of M&T Bank. A number of back-office jobs were eliminated after the acquisition.

In a Business Journal poll, area business executives said how Rochester’s top companies fared would be the most significant factor in the local economy in the 1990s. A majority also thought technological change would have a significant impact on their firms, and most were optimistic about the prospects for their businesses.

Rochester Community Savings Bank closed a deal to buy New Jersey-based Shadow Lawn Savings Bank SLA.

The Village Green Bookstore Inc. said it planned to expand from four stores to 20 in the next five years.

Construction of a $2 million pedestrian bridge linking UR with Brooks Avenue could prove a catalyst to development in the Brooks-Genesee area, experts said.

Gleason Corp.’s dramatically improved performance, and delivery of its long-awaited Phoenix line of gear-cutting machines, undermined efforts by Goldman Financial Group to buy out the company.

Act III Broadcasting Inc., a company headed by “All in the Family” producer Norman Lear, said it would divest WUHF-TV 31.

Short of an infusion of money from the city, completion of the Hyatt hotel project appeared to hinge on a proposed consortium of business and civic investors.

Bonnie and Evan Brauer said an ability to change with the times has kept their Scrantoms Book & Stationery Co. Inc. on the success track for 122 years. They planned to open four more stores in the next year.

Colby Chandler retired as chairman and CEO of Kodak. Kay Whitmore succeeded him.

Bar-code giant Symbol Technologies Inc. filed a patent-infringement suit against Webster’s PSC Inc.

A federal court imposed $1.5 million in fines on Thomas James Associates Inc. and co-owners Brian Thomas and James Villa. Thomas was barred for life from the securities industry.

Xerox president Paul Allaire became CEO. A year later, he became chairman when David Kearns stepped down.

As two major downtown office projects-Clinton Square and the renovation of the Powers Building-neared completion, competition to fill existing prime space downtown was fierce.

Tighter lending by banks placed a damper on new commercial real estate projects.

In late May, Mayor Ryan announced a pact to complete the stalled downtown Hyatt project. The agreement involved the city, Wilmorite Inc. and a consortium of nine businesses and organizations. Competion of the project was targeted for January 1992.

General Circuits, a 34-year-old printed circuit-board maker, filed bankruptcy papers and shut down. The firm was founded in 1956 by Peter, John and Andrew Pluta, who sold it in 1979.

For the second time in 12 months, a major RCSB shareholder went public to pressure the thrift into looking for a buyer. Dissatisfaction with the company’s stock performance triggered the move.

The Vision 2000 downtown revitalization framework was unveiled, with a focus on residential and retail development.

Officials at Moscom Corp. said the company was poised to leap into new markets. President Albert Montevecchio said with the new markets Moscom could “become a $75 million to $100 million company, and in the not-too-distant future.”

A group of Rochester hospitals terminated the Hospital Experimental Program, which for a decade served as the linchpin of financial cooperation among the institutions.

Scientific Radio Systems Inc., threatened with liquidation by its largest creditor, told shareholders it needed “a miracle of sorts” to remain viable. Its stock, which once traded at $17 a share, had fallen to 13 cents.

Crystal Forest, a $30 million joint-venture development planned for Greece by Kodak and Home Leasing Corp., was put on hold while its principals reconsider the project.

The proposed sale of Case-Hoyt Corp., Rochester’s largest commercial printer, to California-based Continental Graphics Corp. collapsed. Case-Hoyt’s parent, BCE Inc. of Canada, said it would seek a new buyer for the printing firm.

Riedman Corp. and Niagara Exchange Corp. settled a shareholder-management dispute, reaching agreement to infuse $8.1 million in the Buffalo firm. In return, Riedman became Niagara Exchange’s largest shareholder.

Kodak drew international attention with the launch of its Photo CD. It also unveiled the LionHeart high-speed printer.

The Iraqi invasion of Kuwait triggered a stock-market plunge. The decline in local share prices outstripped the national averages. “The OTC market is dead,” one local analyst said.

In an October Business Journal poll, a majority of business owners said they thought the local economy was not in recession but was headed in that direction. One-third thought it had slipped over the edge, however.

Photech Inc., a Monroe County firm that received $9.3 million in industrial revenue bonds, closed its doors.

Creditors went to court to seek Chapter 7 liquidation of two companies owned by Neil Hirsch, developer of the Eagle Vale golf community in Perinton. The court granted the request.

Fresh from his expansion into Buffalo, Eric Mower of Syracuse said he had cast his eye on buying into the Rochester advertising agency market.

The new East Concourse of the Greater Rochester International Airport opened.

Troubled Chase Manhattan Corp. decided to merge Chase Lincoln First Bank N.A. with its Metropolitan Community Bank, which serves the New York City market. The merger essentially would eliminate Chase Lincoln as a legal entity, dissolving its board of directors.

CCI was sold to Northern Telecom Inc. of Canada. It marked the second time in two years that CCI’s ownership had changed hands.

Downtown insiders hailed the announcement that Hyatt Development Corp. will manage the downtown hotel. It ended months of speculation about management of the hotel, which still was under construction.

Polaroid Corp. won a $909.5 million award against Kodak for infringement of Polaroid’s instant-photography patents. The award later was reduced.

The group organizing the Independent Bank of Rochester, which would be the first commercial bank chartered in the Rochester area in more than two decades, faced more delays in the application process.

CVC Products Inc., a maker of thin-film process equipment spun off from Kodak in the early 1950s, was sold to an investment group led by new President Christine Whitman. The new owners were senior managers and two outside investors.
Wilmorite said it had canceled plans to build a hotel at its Rosepark development in Canandaigua.

The Can of Worms returned to full capacity, five months ahead of schedule.

Local Kodak employment at year-end was 42,200, down from 43,000 a year earlier.

1991

Eric Mower and Associates Inc. of Syracuse acquired Blair Advertising Inc., gaining entry to the Rochester market.

Rochester’s international companies enacted Persian Gulf war contingency plans after a United Nations coalition attacked occupied Kuwait and Iraq. The airport tightened security to guard against the possibility of terrorist attack.

Logical Operations was sold to Ziff Communications Co. Co-founder Barry Keesan said a lack of capital had hampered the firm’s growth plans.

After a two-year, $20 million restoration, the Powers Building reopened. The building dates to 1869.

A severe ice storm in early March paralyzed many businesses. The storm was called the worst in decades to hit the Finger Lakes region. Rochester Gas and Electric Corp. estimated that more than 200,000 of its 327,000 customers lost electrical service.

PSC and Symbol Technologies settled their bar-code patent dispute.

General Signal Corp. completed its sale of General Railway Signal to Sasib spa of Italy.

A downtown baseball stadium for the Rochester Red Wings was recommended in a study conducted by a Boston consultant.

A group of senior managers and outside investors acquired Upstate Litho Inc., the area’s 11th largest printing company.

Monroe Community College, along with St. John Fisher College and SUNY College at Brockport, made plans to open a downtown satellite campus. It later chose the Sibley Building as the site.

William Mackenzie resigned as president and CEO of Columbia S&L. Suffering from a negative net worth and under regulatory supervision, the thrift began a search for a buyer or investors.

C.T. Financial Services Inc. of London, Ont., bought a majority interest in First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Rochester for $188 million.

Cukurova Group, a Turkish conglomerate, made its second offer to buy FNB Rochester Corp. FNB directors said they would not oppose the offer. In June, they signed a definitive merger agreement.

Kodak unveiled the Kodak Professional Digital Camera System. With a list price of $20,000, the new system is designed to position Kodak as a world leader in digital imaging.

KeyCorp took over the Rochester operations of the defunct Goldome FSB.

Rochester-based Marjax Enterprises Inc., one of the nation’s largest regional sporting-goods retailers, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers.

Harry Saddock, CEO of RG&E, stepped down in June due to health reasons. Roger Kober was named to succeed him.

Computer dealer Exsel Inc. landed a deal with IBM Corp. to resell its trade-ins, and predicted its sales would double to more than $20 million.

RIT trustees appointed a panel to review the school’s ties with the CIA.

Faced with financing troubles, William Coppard put the Little Theatre up for sale for the second time in two years. He later took the theater off the market.

After a $1.37 million deficit in the 1989-90 season, the RPO projected a $400,000 shortfall.

Scrantoms store closings signal trouble at the 123-year-old company.
John Ninfo II was chosen for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court judgeship for the Western District of New York.

Kay Whitmore, Kodak’s chairman and CEO, unveiled a restructuring plan that included a work-force reduction of 3,000 people. However, more than 6,000 employees took voluntary early retirement.

Richard Rose announced plans to retire as RIT president in 1992. He had drawn criticism for the school’s ties with the CIA.

UR’s Simon School named William Mayer dean. He replaced acting dean Charles Plosser, who filled the post after Dean Paul MacAvoy left in July 1990.

Lawyers Cooperative Publishing, one of Rochester’s largest private companies, agreed to be acquired by Thomson Corp.

Monro Muffler Brake Inc. went public in July. Within three months, its stock had fallen some 20 percent.

Peter McWalters, architect of the Rochester City School District’s reform efforts, resigned as superintendent to become Rhode Island’s state education commissioner. Manuel Rivera was named to succeed him.

Robert King defeated Thomas Frey to become Monroe County executive. Both business and labor had backed Frey.

The 34-year-old Present Co. decided to shut down. It operated stores in four states.

Under President Carl Atkins, the RPO made plans for deep cuts to solve its financial woes.

Bausch & Lomb quietly purchased a potential site for a new world headquarters. The site was on Clinton Avenue across from Xerox Tower.

The Idea Factory, one of Rochester’s top ad agencies, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers.

OIS Optical Imaging Systems said failure to raise needed capital and an upgrading of its Michigan plant prompted it to back away from construction of a facility in Henrietta, announced in 1990.

Xerox announced plans to cut its work force by 2,500, with up to 800 jobs trimmed in Monroe County.

Ninety percent of respondents in a Rochester Business Journal poll said they believed the local economy was in recession, with 75 percent saying their operating profits had fallen. But 77 percent were optimistic about a rebound.

1992

Erdman Anthony and Associates Inc. managers bought the civil engineering firm from Nynex Corp.

The Hallman Chevrolet Building won city landmark status.

Investor G.S. Beckwith Gilbert notified the SEC that he and three other shareholders intended to seek control of Gleason Corp. In 1991, Gilbert had tried to win repeal of Gleason’s poison pill.

An independent panel urged expansion of downtown Rochester’s Rundel Memorial Library.

M&T Bank parent First Empire State Corp. said it would acquire Central Trust Co. from Midlantic Corp.

Hamphire Instruments said it was ready to proceed with plans to build a plant in the Rochester Science Park. The project was expected to add more than 400 jobs within four years. By August, the plans were postponed again.

Rumrill-Hoyt Inc., the city’s largest ad agency, said it would cut nearly 20 percent of its staff.

More than 20 years after its founding, Infodata Systems Inc. closed its last remaining office here.
After years of delays and controversy, the 27-story Hyatt Regency Rochester opened in March.

Ronald Bittner took over as CEO of Rochester Telephone.
The Cukurova Group abandoned plans to acquire FNB Rochester. Shortly after, four directors of FNB resigned in the wake of mounting losses and problems in the bank’s loan portfolio. Federal regulators took action against the company to correct problems.

Monroe County employees took aim at Robert King for the new county executive’s privatization moves.

William Mayer resigned as dean of the Simon School after only seven months on the job. The move was prompted by a rift over the school’s budget and future plans.

NASDAQ delisted JAM Inc., an East Rochester company.

Albert Simone, president of the University of Hawaii System, was named president of RIT.

Pioneer Group senior partner Michael Falcone became chairman of FNB. Within weeks the bank entered formal consent order with regulators, and former Central Trust chief Carlos Carballada became FNB president and CEO.

Developer Neil Hirsch pleaded guilty to one count of distributing cocaine to minors.

Gannett Rochester Newspapers announced a plan to merge the news staff of the Democrat and Chronicle and Times-Union.

Microtel agreed to acquire Hudson Hotels Corp.

New York nursing homes won a $150 million ruling against the state over Medicaid reimbursements.

Federal regulators placed Columbia S&L into receivership, writing the last chapter in the story of a thrift founded in 1884.

Hahn Automotive Warehouse Inc., a $100 million business, announced plans to go public.
One month after merging with Manufacturers Hanover Corp., Chemical Banking Corp. put up for sale 31 former Manny Hanny branches, including several in Rochester. Fleet later acquired the local offices.

Sara Lee decided to move Champion Products’ headquarters to North Carolina.

Xerox sued the town of Webster in a dispute over its tax assessment.

The North American Free Trade Agreement was signed by President George Bush. “Potentially, it’s win, win, win,” Kodak chairman Kay Whitmore said.

After numerous store closings, Scrantoms filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers.

In August, Bausch & Lomb said it finally was ready to build a corporate headquarters downtown.

Developer James Volpe’s bid to repair his real estate business collapsed in Bankruptcy Court, leaving some 200 creditors with millions of dollars in claims.

In October, the Brown’s Race Historic District officially opened.
Interco Systems Inc., which ranked among Rochester’s largest private companies, began selling assets in the face of capital shortfalls. Clifford Davie, who founded the firm in 1973, in November stepped down as chairman and CEO.

Winterkorn Lillis Inc. was acquired by the Wolf Group, a Buffalo advertising firm.

ACC won the first United Kingdom license to sell international long-distance service ever granted to a foreign company.

A site north of East Main Street behind the former Sibley’s store was chosen for a downtown baseball stadium. County Executive King backed the site, but Mayor Ryan supported one at West Main Street and Plymouth Avenue.

Wilmorite Inc. sold the Four Corners Building to Michael Futerman, Hahn Automotive owner.

Microtel founder and CEO Loren Ansley died of a drug overdose at age 47. Anthony Wilson, Microtel’s chairman, took over as CEO.

A legal battle that lasted more than five years ended when developer Ernest Del Monte and Marriott Corp. finalized an agreement that made Del Monte the exclusive franchisee for all future Marriott lodgings in Monroe County.

1993

Ernstrom & Estes, a law firm that specialized in representing contractors and other construction-industry clients, filed for liquidation.

Kodak said it would lay off 2,000 workers, many in the Rochester area, in a bid to strengthen its bottom line.

Ronald Zarrella was named president of Bausch & Lomb. He replaced the retiring Thomas McDermott.
Rochester Tel proposed opening the local telephone market to competition. A state official said it was “a real ground-breaking proposal.”

WRQI signed shock-jock Howard Stern to go up against WCMF’s Brother Wease.

IEC Electronics raised $30 million in a public offering. It had gone private in 1988.
Carl Atkins resigned abruptly as president and CEO of the RPO. Nan Harmon succeeded him.

In March, William Johnson Jr. brought to six the number of Democrats vying to succeed retiring Thomas Ryan as Rochester mayor. Among the other candidates were Wilmorite vice president Karen Noble Hanson and County Legislator Kevin Murray.

GCA-Tropel laid off some 50 workers, leaving fewer than 100 at its Fairport facility. The staff reduction in March was the second of the year.

In April, Interco filed for bankruptcy protection. A month later, founder Clifford Davie returned to the helm of the firm, stunning creditors. In July, a judge ordered the firm liquidated.

After only 11 weeks as Kodak’s first outsider chief financial officer, Christopher Steffen quit. He had come to the photo giant with a reputation as a hard-nosed turnaround artist. He soon joined Citicorp.

First Empire State made an unsolicited bid to acquire RCSB. After a month of silence, RCSB said it had no interest in being sold.

After a decade of high hopes and low sales, Hampshire Instruments closed.

Kodak decided to divest its Eastman Chemical division. Chairman Kay Whitmore said it was the first in a series of steps that would include more layoffs.

In a $71 million deal, Vari-Care Inc. agreed to be sold to Living Centers of America Inc. Chief Robert Hurlbut received nearly $16 million in cash and stock for the 25-year-old firm.

Troubles beset Exsel Inc., an Inc. 500 firm that surged to the top of the used-computer industry. Only four months earlier, President and CEO Sean Repko had targeted $20 million in sales for the year and talked of turning the firm into a $100 million business.

Voit Corp. founder and president David Goldman died of lung cancer. The sporting-goods company later was acquired by a Malaysian firm and moved its headquarters from Rochester.

Management led by President John Bruning arranged to buy out GCA Tropel and keep the firm in Fairport.

Canandaigua Wine agreed to buy Vintners International Co. Inc., a move expected to put Canandaigua Wine in the No. 2 spot among wine producers nationally.

National Satellite Entertainment pursued an aggressive strategy across the United States. Co-founder Thomas Golisano bought out his partners. He later sold the business to a Chicago firm, saying that “it just wasn’t meeting my financial expectations.”

Montage 93, an international imaging festival, was held in Rochester.
Citicorp took over the Powers Building from developer Value Properties, which completed a $20 million renovation in 1991. Three-quarters of the building remained unoccupied.

Altier & Sons Shoes Inc. filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy reorganization. The 72-year-old business had 18 stores. The firm was sold later in the year.

UR came under fire for its management of the school’s endowment. “(It) has to be in the last 20 years one of the worst-performing large portfolios in the history of Western civilization,” said Simon School professor Gregg Jarrell, who estimated bungled management had cost more than $600 million in forgone gains.

Kay Whitmore was deposed as Kodak chairman, president and CEO.

Co-founder Barry Keesan decided to leave Logical Operations, which was sold to Ziff Communications in 1991. He was succeeded by William Rosenthal.

ITT Corp. agreed to purchase a majority stake in GM’s motors and actuators arm, including Rochester’s Delco Chassis Division. Delco was Rochester’s sixth-largest employer, with some 3,400 workers.

Charles Plosser, who twice served as acting dean of the Simon School, was named dean.

Moshe Lubin, president and CEO of the failed Hampshire Instruments, stunned colleagues and the semiconductor industry by taking his own life. A brilliant scientist, Lubin had founded UR’s Laboratory for Laser Energetics.

Kodak won praise by hiring Motorola Inc.’s George Fisher to succeed Kay Whitmore as chairman, president and CEO.

Once considered a long shot, William Johnson won a landslide victory in the Rochester mayoral race.

Thomas Jackson, vice president and provost of the University of Virginia, was chosen to succeed Dennis O’Brien as UR president.

In a series of investments, the Bass Group of Texas became the second-largest Gleason Corp. shareholder, increasing pressure on the company to maximize shareholder value.

Rochester business lauded congressional approval of the North American Free Trade Agreement.

Xerox announced plans to slash more than 10,000 jobs worldwide.

William Yager, a Penfield real estate investor who acquired the option to become majority owner of Village Green, went on trial on charges that he committed fraud and laundered money through the company. He was acquitted.

Katherine Hudson, Kodak’s highest-ranking female executive, left the company. Her departure brought to 25 the number of executives who had departed since Kodak launched its early retirement program in 1991.

1994

Observers said Rochester should expect more announcements like the one that the parent companies of Rochester General and the Genesee hospitals were exploring a possible merger.

IBM veteran Harry Kavetas was named Kodak chief financial officer.

Long-simmering tensions between the Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce Inc. and the Industrial Management Council erupted into a public controversy. Chamber president Thomas Mooney was ousted from the IMC board, and Bausch & Lomb and Gleason Corp. quit the IMC.

The RPO warned that without a permanent funding solution, the orchestra might shut down.

In March, an earthquake hit the Akzo Salt Inc. mine in Retsof, halting operations.

ACC signed a letter of intent to merge with LDDS Communications Inc., which later changed its name to WorldCom. The deal fell through two months later.

Kodak formed a Digital and Applied Imaging division.

The Ragu plant on Lyell Avenue closed.

George Fisher unveiled his strategy for Kodak. Among other steps, he said the company would sell its health-related businesses, including Sterling Winthrop Inc.

Rochester Tel won initial approval from state regulators for its open-market plan.

Fairport’s HealthChex Inc. agreed to be sold to Atlanta-based Equifax Inc.

Brian Hickey quit Marine Midland Bank to become president of M&T Bank’s Rochester division. He was succeeded at Marine by Kathleen Whelehan.

Kodak won a victory when a pair of anti-trust consent decrees dating to 1921 and 1954 were lifted. The move cleared the way for Kodak to enter the private-label market and to tie its film sales to photofinishing.

Onbank & Trust Co., a Syracuse-based bank holding company with just one loan office in the Rochester area, won the lion’s share of the former Columbia S&L, which the federal government had seized in 1992.

Rochester schools chief Manuel Rivera departed.

Home Leasing Corp. founders Norman and Nelson Leenhouts disclosed plans to form the area’s first publicly traded real estate investment trust, called Home Properties.

CPAC Inc. signed a letter of intent to buy the Fuller Brush Co.

Former Bausch & Lomb president Thomas McDermott took over as Goulds Pumps Inc.’s president and CEO, replacing ousted chief Stephen Ardia.

Empire Trailways Inc., one of the Rochester area’s leading woman-owned businesses, filed bankruptcy papers.

Hopes faded for organizers of the Independent Bank of Rochester, who sought to start a new bank in Rochester.

Canandaigua Wine agreed to buy the Almaden and Inglenook brands from Heublein Inc.

McCurdy & Co. Inc. said it would sell or close all of its 12 McCurdy’s and B. Forman stories, including those at Midtown Plaza. The decision was a blow to hopes for a revival of downtown retailing.

Board member Robert Klimasewski succeeded founder William Berk as Transmation Inc. CEO. The move came on the heels of concern about the firm’s performance.

The proposed downtown stadium cleared its final hurdle. Work on the facility was slated to begin late in the year.

G.S. Beckwith Gilbert made an offer to buy out Gleason Corp. He was rebuffed.

Pro-Fac Cooperative Inc. bid to acquire all shares of Curtice Burns Foods Inc. The move came after a $20-a-share offer by Dean Foods Co. Pro-Fac completed the buyout in November.

Kodak sold Sterling Winthrop to SmithKline Beacham PLC for $3 billion. It also sold the Sterling drug segment to Sanofi SA for $1.65 billion. And it sold the Clinical Diagnostics Division to Johnson & Johnson for more than $1 billion.

The SEC filed insider-trading charges against FNB director Francis Lombardi and former director Wilbur Beh. The charges stemmed from actions related to the Cukurova Group, a Turkish conglomerate.

Paychex chief Thomas Golisano said he would run for governor as candidate of the Independence Fusion Party. He received roughly 4 percent of the vote, in which George Pataki defeated incumbent Mario Cuomo.

Goulds Pumps moved its headquarters from Seneca Falls to Fairport.

The Rochester Business Journal said it would launch NewsLink, the country’s first electronic multimedia business newspaper. The first edition was published in March 1995.

Logical Operations was sold by parent Ziff-Davis Publishing Co. to investment firm Forstmann Little & Co.

Ronald Zarrella surprised Bausch & Lomb watchers by resigning as president and COO to become a vice president and group executive with GM.

The SEC filed insider-trading charges against RCSB board member Thomas Farrell, a Gannett Co. Inc. executive, and five other defendants, including Vasile Construction Corp. owner Kenneth Vasile.

Mousaw, Vigdor, Reeves, Heilbronner & Kroll decided to dissolve. At its peak, Mousaw, Vigdor ranked among Rochester’s leading law firms.

Sibley Mortgage Co. agreed to be acquired by First Federal Savings and Loan Association of Rochester. Sibley was the largest privately owned mortgage-banking operation in Upstate New York.

Rochester Tel unveiled a new name: Frontier Corp. And in late December, the Public Service Commission gave final approval to the open-market plan.

1995

Bausch & Lomb announced plans to cut 400 to 500 jobs in its troubled contact-lens division, which saw third-quarter 1994 revenues fall by 40 percent due to excess inventory. A few weeks later, the company stunned analysts by announcing dismal 1994 results. By late January, the SEC had announced an inquiry into the firm’s accounting practices.

Jack Doyle was appointed Monroe County executive. He succeeded Robert King, who resigned after three years in office to take a state job with the Pataki administration.

Aftershocks from January’s earthquake in Kobe, Japan, hit close to home as Rochester firms assessed the short- and long-range impact on their businesses. Japan was one of the top three destinations for Rochester exports.

Scientific Radio Systems, once a high-flying OTC firm, shut down after years of financial struggles.

Howard Millman resigned as GeVa Theatre’s producing artistic director after 13 seasons.

Jack Gallagher retired as Monro Muffler president and CEO. Larry Day succeeded him.

Running counter to the trend of the last decade, Xerox moved its information management division from the suburbs to downtown Rochester.

Hailed as a victory for shoppers, the Bon-Ton Stores Inc. won entree into the Rochester retail market when a legal case sparked by the proposed sale of McCurdy’s stores to May Co. was settled.

Benderson Development Co. Inc. of Buffalo signed an agreement to buy Marine Midland Plaza from a Manhattan partnership.

Kodak unveiled its digital imaging strategy, outlining a range of alliances and new products.

A new daily newspaper, the Rochester Free Press, hit the newsstands. It survived less than a year.

Sporting Dog Specialties Inc., one of the area’s fastest-growing private firms, was sold to PetsMart Inc. of Phoenix.

The RPO hired Brighton native Robert Bernhardt as principal conductor and artistic director.

Frontier announced a proposed merger with Detroit-based ALC Communications Corp., which catapulted Frontier to the front ranks of the long-distance arena.

Surging Gleason Corp.’s stock reached a five-year high in April. The company’s rebound meant new security against activist shareholders who tried to win control of the firm.

Louis Fishgold Inc., a 26-year-old firm that ranked as one of the area’s fastest-growing private businesses, shut down, leaving controversy and angry creditors.

Parkleigh became perhaps the first local firm to launch an e-commerce site on the Internet’s World Wide Web.

Gordon S. Black Corp. was a recipient of the Governor’s Excelsior Award for quality.

Kodak filed a claim of unfair trade practices against Fuji.

Greater Rochester Cablevision Inc. changed its name to Time Warner Communications, reflecting its focus on a wider range of offerings including telephone service.

PSC Inc. held the grand opening of its new 132,000-square-foot headquarters facility in Webster.

The federal government filed suit seeking $27 million from former officers and directors of Columbia Savings, and $10 million from a local law firm. The suit claimed negligence. The defendants denied wrongdoing.

Preferred Care’s restructuring of its Preferred Care Gold products with a selected panel of doctors stirred controversy in the medical community. Kodak chose the plan as its only no-fee option for Medicare-eligible retirees.

Contractor Kenneth Vasile agreed to settle charges in the case involving insider trading of RCSB stock.

Metscan Inc., which ranked sixth on the 1992 Rochester Top 100 list, ceased operations.

Oppenheimer Management Corp. bought Ronald Fielding’s Rochester Funds Distributors Inc.

Daniel Carp and Carl Kohrt were named with Chairman George Fisher to Kodak’s new chief operating office.

The 31st Ryder Cup came to the Oak Hill Country Club in September. The European team claimed an upset victory.

UR unveiled a five-year restructuring plan calling for an 11 percent faculty reduction and a 25 percent shrinking of the graduate population.

The purchase of a professional soccer franchise-later named the Rochester Raging Rhinos-was announced.

Bausch & Lomb celebrated the grand opening of its world headquarters downtown. Within weeks, the firm’s directors created a panel to examine allegations raised by Business Week.

John Doyle defeated Democratic challenger Eugene Welch in the Monroe County executive’s race.
Logical Operations co-founder Barry Keesan took the reins as CEO of Work-Smart International Inc., which grew out of Wordsmart Inc., a training firm founded by Germaine Knapp.

Former RG&E executive David Laniak became CEO of ACC.
Facing increasing pressure from Wall Street, Bausch & Lomb chief Daniel Gill announced his resignation. William Waltrip took the reins on an interim basis.

1996

Blue Cross chose a Court Street site for its new headquarters building downtown. Controversy prompted the insurer to downsize plans for the building.

The Doyle Group Inc., one of Rochester’s leading private firms, bought Security Safe Inc. The company projected sales of $37 million in 1996.

Kodak unveiled its Advantix line of Advanced Photo System products, the product of a collaborative effort with Fuji and three other Japanese competitors.

IEC Electronics founder and CEO Roger Main suffered a heart attack in February.

Performance Technologies Inc. went public on Nasdaq.
Jay Inc., one of Rochester’s leading ad agencies, was sold to Interpublic Group of Cos. Inc., one of the world’s largest ad organizations.

Gordon S. Black Corp. bought Louis Harris & Associates, one of the nation’s top polling firms.

Denise Gutstein, 32, became the youngest person and first woman to be president of Rochester Tel.

PSC Inc. filed suit against giant rival Symbol Technologies claiming unfair competition and antitrust violations. Later in the year, PSC doubled its size with the purchase of Spectra-Physics AB’s Data Capture Group in a $140 million deal.

Alling and Cory Co., Rochester’s oldest company and one of its biggest private businesses, agreed to be sold to Union Camp Corp. for $88.4 million.

3M said it would close the company’s Rochester-area plant, laying off nearly 400 workers.

Katherine Keough was named St. John Fisher College’s first female president, succeeding William Pickett.

Chase Manhattan announced a restructuring plan resulting in a net loss of 600 jobs here. Chase’s move grew out of its merger with Chemical Banking.

O’Connell Electric Co. acquired most of T.H. Green Co.’s assets, fulfilling
O’Connell president Walter Parkes’ dream of returning T.H. Green to his family’s control.

Transmation reported record sales and earnings, fueled by a restructuring launched two years earlier by President and CEO Robert Klimasewski.

Hudson Hotels chairman Anthony Wilson was named top hotel CEO of the year. Hudson, formerly known as Microtel, sold its name and franchising rights in 1995.

Wolfe Publications Inc., publisher of nine weekly newspapers, was sold to Canandiagua Messenger Inc.

Auditors for Village Green reported “substantial doubt” that the company could remain viable. Store closings followed.

Paychex won analysts’ praise with its purchase of National Business Solutions Inc., a Florida-based professional-employer organization.

Thomas Farrell pleaded guilty to securities fraud in the case involving insider trading of RCSB stock.

The Rochester Business Journal launched its Daily Edition on the Internet.

In July, Frontier Field opened in downtown Rochester.

Former World of Science Inc. principals James and Carla Froehler bought People’s Pottery and disclosed plans to launch a national retail chain of mall-based craft stores.

Buffalo-based Continental Coin Processors Inc. disclosed in a bankruptcy filing that it had shorted the Regional Transit Service Inc. some $1 million.

ACC chairman Richard Aab started a new telecom venture in North Carolina. He later resigned from ACC and was succeeded by David Laniak.

St. Mary’s Hospital and Park Ridge Health System announced plans to merge.

The Prudential R.J. Russell Realtors, once one of the area’s top residential real estate firms, filed bankruptcy papers.

Guardian Industries Corp. of Michigan announced plans to build a $125 million float-glass plant in Geneva, creating 250 jobs.

Marine Midland Bank announced plans to buy First Federal for $620 million.

SUNY College at Brockport president John van de Wetering said he would retire. Paul Yu replaced him.

DT Industries Inc. of Missouri bought Hansford Manufacturing Corp., a leading Rochester private company founded in 1947.

Lawyers Cooperative Publishing said it would close its Webster facility, which employed 650 people. However, it planned to keep a “significant presence” downtown.

Investors pounded Moscom’s stock after it aborted a plan to spin off its Votan Corp. subsidiary.

Trident Precision Manufacturing Inc. of Webster won the prestigious Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award.

Incumbent Rep. Louise Slaughter defeated Republican challenger Geoffrey Rosenberger, a principal of Clover Capital Management Inc.
Kodak filed a trade-secrets complaint against former manager Harold Worden, who set up a consulting business after leaving Kodak in 1992.

Cousins of Wilmorite CEO Thomas Wilmot sued him with a $225 million suit claiming fraud.

Contractor Kenneth Vasile pleaded guilty to securities fraud in the RCSB insider-trading case.

Frontier chairman and CEO Ronald Bittner underwent emergency surgery to remove a brain tumor.

1997

William Carpenter, president and chief operating officer of Bausch & Lomb, was promoted to CEO.

A new era started in January for some 900 workers as Danka Office Imaging began operation following the purchase of Kodak’s Office Imaging Division.

Contractor Kenneth Vasile was sentenced to three years’ probation, six months of which would be home confinement, for insider trading.

Following a stock-price jump of 365 percent in 1996, analysts predicted bigger things from Detection Systems Inc.

Gannett Rochester Newspapers announced the Times-Union would cease publication in June.

Moscom hired outsider David Mazzella as its new president and chief operating officer. He replaced Albert Montevecchio as president. A few months later, Montevecchio stepped down as chairman and CEO.

The Sutherland Group Ltd., already the fastest-growing private company in the Rochester area, in February said it expected to double its size within the year to reach 1,200 employees. By fall it had upped the projection to 2,500 employees.

Bausch & Lomb in April unveiled a plan to cut $100 million from operations-including 900 jobs in Rochester-that CEO William Carpenter said should be the extent of major restructuring for the company.

ITT Industries Inc. made a friendly offer to buy Goulds Pumps for $815 million or $37 a share in cash, plus an agreement to assume $119 million of the pump maker’s debt. After the deal closed, Goulds president and CEO Thomas McDermott and several other top executives left the firm.

Michael Hone resigned as chairman and CEO of PSC Inc. after the firm’s board charted a new strategic direction. Replacing him was Robert Strandberg, who Hone recruited to PSC in December 1996.

After more than a year of picketing, protests and verbal sparring, Local 1170 of the Communications Workers of America approved a new contract with Rochester Tel.

Consumer-electronics veteran Joseph Clayton was hired as Frontier president and CEO.

The market reacted favorably to Xerox’s hiring of IBM chief financial officer Richard Thoman as its president and chief operating officer.
The Justice Department filed an anti-trust suit, claiming RG&E improperly induced the University of Rochester to drop plans to build an electric cogeneration plant four years before.

After 77 years, Rochester Telephone Corp. disappeared. The company’s name was changed to Frontier Telephone of Rochester Inc.

Greater Rochester Visitors Association Inc. membership agreed to accept a county-ordered restructuring proposal after months of controversy.

Corestaff Inc. of Houston purchased the Pittsford-based Millennium Computer Corp. and CompuCorps Resources Inc. The two local firms together employed some 170 people and projected reaching nearly $17 million in sales in 1997.

Home Properties was picked by the city to develop the former Hallman’s Chevrolet site into a $7 million, 74-unit downtown apartment community.

Kodak told workers its no-cost health insurance option for single coverage of Rochester employees would be a self-insurance plan administered by Preferred Care.

Nazareth College of Roches-ter president Rose Marie Beston announced her retirement, effective July 31, 1998.

A federal court in San Francisco upheld a jury verdict that Kodak illegally refused to sell replacement parts to companies that repair Kodak equipment. The case dated to the late 1980s.

In late August, Frontier chairman Ronald Bittner died after an eight-month battle with cancer.

In September, Kodak chief George Fisher announced plans for a restructuring including sizable layoffs.
RG&E chairman and CEO Roger Kober said he would retire Jan. 1. Thomas Richards, president and COO, was chosen to succeed Kober.

Paychex chief Thomas Golisano ranked among the richest Americans on the Forbes 400 list.
The RPO projected a surplus for the second year in a row.

Mary Ann Sapos exited as president and CEO of Hutchins/Y&R, Rochester’s second-largest ad agency.

Shareholders approved the merger of RCSB Financial Inc. and Charter One Financial Inc. of Cleveland.

Frontier CEO Joseph Clayton outlined a restructuring plan including some 700 layoffs, 65 in the Rochester area.

For the second time, Xerox won a Malcolm Baldrige National Quality Award. The prize went to the locally based Xerox Business Systems for excellence in service.

CVC announced plans to conduct an initial public offering.

Kodak announced plans to cut 10,000 jobs. “We are out of denial now,” Chairman and CEO George Fisher said. “We were wishing (the problems) would go away. We were deluded by our own thinking.” The number of cuts later was boosted to nearly 17,000.

The multivenue entertainment complex at High Falls Center debuted.

New York City-based Big Flower Press Holdings Inc. bought IMPCO Enterprises Inc., one of the area’s top private firms.

ACC’s board agreed to sell the firm to Teleport Communications Group Inc. in a $1 billion deal.

The United States and Kodak lost the entire case before the World Trade Organization over access to the Japanese photographic film and paper market.

Papers filed with the state revealed plans to launch the Monroe Fund LLC, a $20 million venture fund involving Monroe County and RG&E.

Peter Arnold, president of California-based Arnold Industries Inc., acquired Midtown Plaza.

Wegmans Food Markets and Xerox were named to Fortune’s first-ever list of the 100 best companies to work for.
ACC chairman and CEO David Laniak died unexpectedly.

1998

Former Bausch & Lomb and Goulds Pumps president Thomas McDermott took the helm of Forbes Products.

RG&E launched an unregulated energy marketing subsidiary, called Energet!x.

Hutchins/Young & Rubicam Inc., the city’s oldest and third-largest ad agency, disclosed restructuring plans that would dismantle the firm.
Thomas Richards became chairman, president and CEO of RG&E.

Former Monroe County Executive Robert King was named Gov. George Pataki’s top budget official.

Stephen Natapow and Robert Gordon led a group in the purchase of First Federal Plaza, one of downtown’s prime office locations.

Shareholders approved the sale of ONBANCorp Inc. to First Empire State, parent of M&T Bank.

Xerox announced plans to cut 9,000 jobs, including 1,400 in Monroe County.

Mayor Johnson and County Executive Doyle sought $40 million in state money for a proposed performing arts center.

Graham Corp. chairman Frederick Berkeley III died. The former president and CEO had worked for the Batavia-based firm for nearly 50 years.

Nalge Nunc International Corp. ceased to be an independent subsidiary of Sybron International Corp., following the departure of President David Della Penta.

Plans for a Lake Ontario fast ferry connecting Rochester and Toronto were unveiled.

Perk Development Corp., operator of 41 Perkins Family Restaurants in Upstate New York and real estate developer, filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers.

Two top ACC executives-Arunas Chesonis and Steve Dubnik-left the firm to launch telecom start-ups PaeTec Communications Inc. and Choice One Communications Inc.

Local companies were caught in the broad stock market retreat caused by the Asian currency crisis.

ITT Industries Inc. agreed to sell its 3,500-worker ITT Automotive Electrical Systems North America Inc. operation here to French auto-parts maker Valeo SA.

Avram Glazer led Zapata Corp. into the Internet era, forming Zap.com.

The Rochester-Genesee Regional Transit Authority focused on an East Main Street site for the proposed central bus facility.

Buffalo-based insurer HealthNow announced plans to expand into the Rochester market.

Broker H.J. Meyers & Co. Inc. shut down, putting some 500 staffers around the country out of work. The firm had been the subject of an SEC probe. It later filed for bankruptcy, and claims against it reached $27 million.

Samuel Yacono, a Fairport securities dealer and businessman under investigation by the SEC, killed himself. He left investors more than $13 million short.

Christopher Seaman was named musical director of the RPO.

AT&T acquired Teleport Telecommunications Group, owner of ACC.

Paychex chief Thomas Golisano fell short in his second bid to become New York governor. He received some 8 percent of the vote.

Delphi Automotive Systems Corp. filed for an IPO as part of its planned spinoff from General Motors Corp.

Robert Gross was named president and CEO of Monro Muffler Brake.
M&T Bank Corp., formerly First Empire State, agreed to buy FNB Rochester, Rochester’s last locally headquartered bank.

1999

Xerox vice president Mary Quin was kidnapped while visiting Yemen. She was released unharmed. Meanwhile, the document company launched a sales-force reorganization.

The new state Supreme Court Appellate Division courthouse on East Avenue officially opened.

The former Rochester Telephone, renamed Frontier Telephone of Rochester, marked its 100th birthday.

Rochester’s top 25 public companies estimated they would spend nearly $400 million to fix possible Year 2000 computer glitches.

Frontier Corp. agreed to be sold to Bermuda-based Global Crossing Ltd., a firm started by Gary Winnick, a former lieutenant of junk bond king Michael Milken. Rolla Huff was named the new president and chief operating officer of Frontier. Qwest Communications International Inc. subsequently made a bid for Frontier, but the $9.9 billion deal with Global Crossing went through in September.

Kodak sold its copier unit to German offset printing firm Heidelberger Druckmaschinen AG, resulting in the transfer of some 1,500 local jobs.

In March, the Dow Jones Industrial Average topped 10,000 for the first time.

Richard Thoman was named CEO of Xerox. The day of the announcement, its stock closed up 50 percent since June 1997, when Thomas joined the company.

Excellus Inc., parent of Blue Cross Blue Shield of the Rochester Area, in April moved into its new Court Street headquarters. At the same time, the Blues were weighing a mid-year rate hike due to operating losses fueled by soaring pharmaceutical costs.

RG&E shareholders voted to form an unregulated holding company, RGS Energy Group Inc., the biggest change for the utility since it had gone public a half-century earlier.

Bausch & Lomb took another step toward becoming a “technology-based company for the eye” with its sale of its sunglass business to Italy-based Luxottica Group SpA for $640 million.

Xerox shares peaked at more than $120, or $60 after a split. However, the price began a sharp drop after the firm posted second-quarter results.

Kodak began testing its “You’ve Got Pictures” service on America Online.

Partners at Nixon, Hargrave, Devans & Doyle LLP, Rochester’s largest law firm, approved a merger with Boston-based Peabody & Brown. The merged firm adopted the name Nixon Peabody LLP.

Paychex chief Thomas Golisano ranked 447 on the Forbes magazine list of 465 billionaires worldwide. With a net worth of $1 billion, Golisano became Rochester’s first billionaire.

Former Alling & Cory chief Samuel Hubbard Jr. was named president and chief operating officer of Genesee Corp., succeeding John Wehle Jr., who remained chairman and CEO.

Some 29 years after joining Kodak, President and COO Daniel Carp was chosen to become CEO, effective Jan. 1, 2000. He replaced George Fisher, who continued as chairman for another year.

In a lawsuit featuring some big names in local business, Thomas Golisano filed a claim against Hudson Hotels chairman and CEO Anthony Wilson and Canandaigua Brands president and CEO Richard Sands, seeking repayment of a $2 million loan.

Warsaw-based Financial Institutions Inc. conducted an initial public offering.

Kodak announced plans to close its Elmgrove plant, costing 500 positions. Another 700 job cuts were planned.

Michael Cavalcanti, former Perk Development Corp. principal, filed bankruptcy court papers claiming he owed creditors $53 million. His debt made the case one of the largest personal filings in Monroe County history.

Michael Futerman, who built Hahn Automotive Warehouse Inc. from a single auto-parts store to a $100 million wholesale supplier, died at age 71.

Marvin Sands, who grew a small bulk-wine processor he and his father purchased in 1945 into Canandaigua Brands, the nation’s second-largest wine producer, died at age 75.

UR celebrated the grand opening of the Arthur Kornberg Medical Research Building and Aab Institute of Biomedical Sciences.

Clothing manufacturer Hickey-Freeman Co. marked its 100th birthday.

Rolla Huff left Global Crossing to become president and CEO of MGC Communications Inc., later renamed Mpower Communications Corp. Growth in the industry locally spawned the term “telecom alley.”

CVC Inc. went public at $10 a share. A few weeks later, the renamed Harris Interactive Inc. began trading at $14 and closed its first day at $20.06, up 43 percent.

Gleason Corp. announced plans to go private. The 130-year-old firm went public in 1969.

2000

Jan. 1, 2000, arrived without Rochester-area firms suffering any major Y2K problems.

Midtown Plaza owner Peter Arnold filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy petitions for Midtown Rochester LLC and Arnold Industries Inc. Within two months, Arnold filed personal bankruptcy papers as well.

The Monroe Fund, a venture fund whose start-up investors included Monroe County, made its first investment, placing $500,000 with Web Product Realization Network Inc. Within six months, WebPRN succumbed to the dot-com implosion.

Agrilink Foods Inc. unveiled plans to grow aggressively, doubling its revenues over the next five years to $3 billion. The firm already was the largest frozen vegetable processor in the nation.

Choice One Communications went public, and its stock nearly doubled in its first week of trading. Fellow telecom venture Mpower Communications, flush with cash from a pair of offerings, said it planned to triple the size of its operations over the next 18 months.

Veeco Instruments Inc. agreed to buy CVC, whose chief executive, Christine Whitman, was slated to become president and COO of the merged firms. Shortly after the deal closed, CVC cut its local work force by one-third.

John Wehle Jr. chairman and controlling shareholder of Genesee Corp., died at age 53 following a long illness.

Xerox announced another 5,200 layoffs in a $625 million restructuring. Locally, the firm planned to cut 2,000 jobs.

Ernest Del Monte opened the Del Monte Lodge in Pittsford, the first of a planned national chain of small luxury hotels.

Samuel Hubbard Jr. headed a management buyout of the Genesee Brewing Co. The business, acquired for $25.8 million, was renamed High Falls Brewing Co. LLC.

Richard Thoman ended a 13-month tenure when he resigned under pressure as president and CEO of Xerox. Chairman Paul Allaire retook the CEO’s reins and Anne Mulcahy was promoted to president and COO. Shortly afterward, Xerox revealed that the SEC had launched a probe of its accounting.

Struggling retailer World of Science Inc. agreed to be acquired by Natural Wonders Inc. Within months, Natural Wonders filed for bankrupcty.

The Dolomite Group, a $100 million firm founded in 1920 by the Odenbach family, was sold to Oldcastle Inc., the American arm of CRH PLC of Ireland.

A deal calling for a Welch Allyn Data Collection Inc. affiliate to buy PSC Inc. collapsed. The Webster-based firm later put its headquarters on the market-Paychex bought it-and shifted its operations to the West Coast.

Citizens Communications Co. agreed to buy Frontier Communications’ local-telephone operations from Global Crossing for some $3.65 billion.
Los Angeles-based Continental Industrial Capital Inc. bought Kodak’s Elmgrove facility for $30 million.

Genencor International conducted an IPO; its stock rose 20 percent to $21.63 in its first day of trading.

Corning Inc. announced plans to invest $80 million, creating 440 jobs at a new plant in ABB Instrumentation Inc.’s former facility in Henrietta for its world-leading, fiber-optic photonic technology division.

PaeTec filed to conduct an IPO. In early 2001, it yanked the offering as the market for telecom stocks chilled.

Canandaigua Brands, with sales of more than $3 billion, adopted a new name: Constellation Brands Inc.

Riedman Corp., one of the largest private insurance firms in the nation, agreed to sell its operations to publicly held Brown & Brown Inc.

Nazareth College of Rochester unveiled a master expansion plan that would double the size of the institution.

Paychex became Rochester’s most valuable company. Its market value soared to some $19 billion, more than Kodak, Xerox and Bausch & Lomb-and nearly equal to the combined value of the Big Three.

Excellus acquired Buffalo-based Univera Healthcare. The purchase was the third for Excellus, a holding company created in 1998 that took over Blue Cross Blue Shield organizations in Syracuse and the Utica/Rome area the following year.

Xerox announced a $1 billion turnaround plan including more job cuts and selling or outsourcing of some manufacturing operations.

A jump in Paychex’s stock boosted CEO Thomas Golisano’s net worth to more than $2 billion.

JetBlue Airways, a start-up low-fare air carrier based at New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, began serving Rochester.
A federal grand jury indicted members of the Amico family, builders accused of conning banks and other lenders out of millions of dollars.

The Big Three and other local firms finished the year with huge stock-price declines. Kodak and Bausch & Lomb fell more than 40 percent. Xerox’s stock dropped below $5 a share after Moody’s Investor Service Inc. cut its rating to junk-bond status. It ended the year down 80 percent.

2001

Charter One division president Edward Pettinella resigned. Within a few weeks he joined Home Properties of New York Inc. as executive vice president and likely successor to the firm’s co-founders, Nelson and Norman Leenhouts.

Corning agreed to buy Fairport-based Tropel Corp. for $190 million.

The newly formed Greater Rochester Sports Authority met for the first time.

RGS Energy Group agreed to be acquired by New York State Electric & Gas Corp. parent Energy East Corp. in a cash and stock deal valued at $1.4 billion.

ViaHealth announced plans to close the 538-bed Genesee Hospital, trying to stem some $2.5 million a month in losses.

Judy Columbus Inc. Real Estate and Relocation, one of Rochester’s top real estate firms, agreed to be acquired by Buffalo-based Hunt Real Estate Corp. The acquisition made Hunt the largest member of the Greater Rochester Association of Realtors.

SUNY College at Brockport purchased the Chamber of Commerce building on St. Paul Street to house its MetroCenter.

Former rivals Lake Ontario Fast Ferry Corp. and Canadian American Transportation Systems LLC agreed to jointly pursue a Rochester-Toronto fast-ferry service.

Kodak hired Patricia Russo, a former top executive at Lucent Technologies Inc., as president and chief operating officer.

Pitney Bowes Inc. bought Danka Business Services International in a $290 million cash deal. DSI, a former Kodak division, was acquired by Danka Business Systems PLC in 1996.

Pro golfers Jeff Sluman and Dudley Hart led a group that purchased the Lakeshore Country Club in Greece.

Robert Bosch GmbH of Germany acquired Detection Systems Inc. in a roughly $144 million deal. The local firm was renamed Bosch Security Systems in September 2002.

Ten Cate ENBI Inc. moved its copier-component plant, which once employed more than 230 people, to Mexico, citing cheaper labor. The plant operated here for more than two decades.

Kraft Foods Inc., which employs some 500 people at its plant in Avon, conducted an IPO that raised a near-record $8.7 billion.

The Rochester Business Hall of Fame selected its inaugural class of inductees. Among the 13 individuals picked were George Eastman, Thomas Golisano, James Gleason, Richard Sands and Robert Wegman.

Developer Laurence Glazer bought the landmark-status Michaels/Stern Building downtown. Catholic Family Center moved into the building in early 2002.

Anne Mulcahy took the helm at Xerox as CEO, succeeding Paul Allaire.

A deal worked out in U.S. Bankruptcy Court gave lender Blackacre Bridge Capital LLC possession of Midtown Plaza after a lengthy struggle with owner Peter Arnold.

Greater Rochester Enterprise Inc. was founded as a five-year, $14 million effort to spur regional economic development.

William Carpenter resigned as CEO of troubled Bausch & Lomb. Two months later, Ronald Zarrella, who left Bausch & Lomb in 1994 to take a top position at GM, was hired to return as B&L chairman and CEO.

The Sept. 11 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City and the Pentagon in Washington, D.C., stunned the community and raised concern about prospects for the faltering economy. Among the local firms most deeply affected was Harris Beach LLP, which lost six people in the attacks.

Corning president and CEO John Loose predicted an expanded presence in Rochester. Roughly a month later, the company-battered by a severe slowdown in the telecom industry-announced it would close its $80 million Henrietta plant.

Kodak and Xerox decided to switch all Rochester-area employee health plans to company-financed self-insurance plans. The moves affected more than 30,000 people here and were viewed by some as a blow to community rating.
Shareholders approved a plan to take automotive-parts distributor Hahn Automotive Warehouse Inc. private in a management-led deal.
Rochester’s landmark 132-year-old Powers Building was sold to S.B. Ashley & Associates Venture Co. LLC for $6.3 million.

Joseph Clayton left Global Crossing to become president and CEO of Sirius Satellite Radio Inc., a firm with no revenues and more than $1 billion invested in satellites circling the earth.

Harris Interactive acquired New Jersey-based Total Research Corp., one of four firms it bought in 2001. With the deal, Harris Interactive became one of the 20 largest market research firms in the world.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court approved a plan to liquidate People’s Pottery Inc., leading to going-out-of-business sales at all 47 People’s Pottery stores nationwide. Founders James and Carla Froehler later reopened a number of locations.

Valeo Electrical Systems Inc. filed Chapter 11 bankruptcy papers.

Rochester-area exports fell some 12 percent in 2001 to an estimated $13 billion as firms were hurt by fallout from Sept. 11.

2002

High-tech firms continued to struggle with the impact of the nationwide industry downturn. Xelus Inc. cut almost one-third of its work force; Auragen Communications Inc. and Performance Technologies Inc. were among other firms downsizing.

Burdened by hundreds of millions of dollars in debt, Mpower Communications filed a prenegotiated Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Transmation Inc. hired Carl Sassano, a former Bausch & Lomb top executive, to replace Robert Klimasewski as CEO of the Gates-based company. The firm later changed its name to Transcat Inc.

UR reported a more than 35 percent increase in technology-transfer revenues in fiscal 2002, surpassing $40 million.

Driven by demand from aging baby boomers, developers planned to start building more than 1,000 senior-living housing units within the next year.

Joining Kodak and Xerox, UR decided to self-insure its employee health plans. It hired Aetna Inc. to administer the plans.

Paychex chief Thomas Golisano launched his third bid for governor, vowing to spend up to $75 million in the effort. He spent some $30 million to defeat Gov. George Pataki in the bitterly contested Independence Party primary.

Montana Mills Bread Co. conducted an IPO that raised more than $8 million.

Canada-based Tim Hortons opened a local coffee-roasting plant and unveiled plans to open five eateries, employing nearly 200 staffers by year’s end.

IEC Electronics cut another 35 percent of its work force in Newark, down to fewer than 200 people. IEC once had some 1,500 workers companywide. CEO Thomas Lovelock and CFO Richard Weiss resigned.

Paychex agreed to buy the former Corning site in Henrietta.
Thomas Richards, RGS Energy Group’s top executive, reportedly was forced out after refusing to negotiate new terms more favorable to acquirer Energy East.

Genencor announced plans to build a $50 million biotech facility here, adding up to 100 jobs.

Bausch & Lomb lost a patent-infringement case brought by rival CIBA Vision Corp. over Bausch & Lomb’s PureVision product.

A wave of corporate scandals caused the spotlight to focus on companies’ stock-option costs. If options were treated as an expense, Kodak’s 2001 earnings would plummet from $76 million to a loss of $3 million.

The stock market decline hit Rochester’s sole billionaire, Thomas Golisano. From late 2000 to July 2002, the value of his Paychex holdings dropped roughly $1.5 billion to some $870 million.

The University of Rochester Medical Center received $30 million in state funds to support its biotech research.

Rep. John LaFalce decided not to seek re-election, clearing the way for Rep. Louise Slaughter to run in the newly redrawn 28th congressional district without facing a primary fight.

Xerox reached an agreement with the SEC to restate its financial results for 1997 through 2001 and pay a $10 million civil penalty. It admitted no wrongdoing, however. The restatement cut its pretax earnings by $1.4 billion. In September, a criminal probe of Xerox’s accounting was disclosed.

Empire Beef Co. Inc., which posted more than $500 million in sales in 2001, put the finishing touches on its $17 million expansion.

The owners of the landmark Auditorium Theatre, William and Raymond Saucke, filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Agrilink Foods received a $175 million investment from Vestar Capital Partners, making Vestar the new majority owner of the $1 billion firm.

County Executive Doyle, saying Monroe County faced a $15 million to $23 million budget gap this year and a $45 million to $65 million gap next year, proposed hundreds of layoffs and other spending cuts.

The IMC and Greater Rochester Metro Chamber of Commerce Inc. confirmed that merger discussions were under way.
Electronic Data Systems Corp., which employs more than 1,300 people locally, saw its stock fall more than 70 percent in a 10-day period after warning of a drastically reduced profit outlook.

RIT formally launched its $300 million “Power by the Future” fund-raising effort, the school’s first capital campaign in 17 years.

Facing a severe cash crunch, Sonnenberg Gardens warned that it might close Jan. 1, 2003.

10/11/02 (C) Rochester Business Journal