London bomb plot not affecting Colorado travelers

Terrorist plots have not deterred Coloradans from traveling, according the AAA Colorado.

"So far, we've received no requests to change anyone's travel plans," said Sandra Barnes, director of travel services for AAA Colorado. "While the terrorist threat remains real, the fact that so many individuals were arrested before this plot could be carried out has probably boosted some travelers' confidence."

AAA Colorado encourages travelers not to make quick decisions about changing travel plans until they have considered changes in travel restrictions and the latest travel warnings from the U.S. government.

Learn about University of Phoenix

The University of Phoenix in Colorado Springs educates adults who want to advance in their career or want a new career.

A free registration meeting for the public will explore undergraduate and graduate degree opportunities.

WHEN: Saturday, Aug. 12, 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.

WHERE: University of Phoenix Southern Colorado Campus
5725 Mark Dabling Blvd., Suite 150, Colorado Springs

MORE INFO: Call 719.599.5282

United offering special deals

Today through Aug. 18, United Airlines is having a sale on tickets for travel through Nov. 16 to U.S. destinations. Special fares are also available for international destinations; valid travel dates vary. Customers may book travel at united.com or call United Reservations at 800-864-8331.

Orange Oasis more a mirage

David Chang's attempt to resurrect the Orange Oasis restaurant, 5934 Stetson Hills Blvd., is done after just a couple months. He had hoped that the change from a steaks and seafood menu to Szechuan cuisine (with a takeout option) would breath life into the location at Ridgeview Marketplace, but the effort just never took life. Leigh Steinert and Steve Martin of Grubb & EllisQuantum Commercial Group are in the process of seeking out a new tenant.

Colorado Springs Airport gets an A- on its finances

Standard & Poor’s Rating Services recently affirmed its “A-" rating and a stable outlook for Colorado Springs Airport Revenue Bonds, according to Gisela Shanahan, assistant director of aviation-finance & administration at the airport.

According to the report, the airport's strengths include: strong liquidity, with about $26 million in unrestricted cash and investments; diversity in air carrier service, with eight major airlines; and a solid, diverse and growing economic base supporting a large origin and destination passenger market with a moderate cost structure for a small hub airport, with a $7.12 cost per enplaned passenger and a $54 debt per enplaned passenger in fiscal 2005.

Management has countered flat revenue growth brought on by the financial distress of major network carriers such as Delta Airlines and increased enplanements by 3 percent for the first six months of 2006 despite the introduction of low-fare service by Southwest Airlines starting at Denver International Airport.

According to the report, the lower than average debt ratio and strong balance sheet with cash reserves of 709 days is noteworthy because of the recent completion of major expansion projects.

The rating acknowledges management's efforts to diversify the revenue base during a time of rising fuel prices and other cost pressures. More than 60 percent of the airports operating revenues in fiscal 2005 is derived from nonairline sources.

Texas Hold 'Em on hold

The Greater Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce Aces and Amateur Texas Hold 'Em Tournament has been rescheduled for Friday, Oct. 13.

The idea is "outside the box" from the typical chamber guest speaker luncheon, but that is exactly what the chamber wants, said Jenifer Furda, the Chamber's vice president of events.

"We wanted to attract the unusual suspects, younger business people and people that we typically wouldn't get to go to a business lunch," Furda said. "It is still a networking opportunity, because that is number one what the chamber is about, but it is in a fun way that is just a little different."

Facilitated by Deuces Wild, the event allows players to participate in tournaments based on skill levels. Lessons will be available for those who are new to the game or just need to brush up. Players will not win anything at the end of the event, just have a good time and a networking opportunity, the Chamber said.

Non Tournament Players: $15 (includes networking, 500 chips, beverages, food and door prizes); Amateur Tournament: $25 (includes networking, 1,000 chips, beverages, food and door prizes and 1 entry into the tournament); Ace's Tournament: $25 (includes networking, 2,000 chips, beverages, food and door prizes and 1 entry into the tournament). If you are not a Texas Hold'em player that is OK you can learn to play craps, blackjack, poker and roulette.

For information, call or e-mail Jen Furda, 575-4313.

United executives dump company stock

Eight executives of UAL Corp., United Airlines parent company, dumped thousands of shares of stock on Thursday totaling about $2.9 million. UAL President and Chief Executive Officer Glen Tilton sold about 40,000 shares for about $980,000.

The sale comes after the company announced certain officers established pre-arranged personal stock trading plans with a brokerage firm under Rule 10b5-1 of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934.

Sales under this plan have the effect of spreading stock trades over an extended period of time to reduce the market impact.

Does a $2.9 million one day sale sound like a minimal impact to you?

The individuals participating in the stock trading plans will sell shares to pay taxes due on stock grants made to officers as part of the company's ongoing long-term incentive plans, as well as for other purposes.

Doss Aviation involved in high-tech scam

According to Frank Hunter, president of the Springs-headquartered aviation company, someone took the company's fax cover sheet, an electronic image of his signature and sent a fax to the company's bank requesting an internationl wire transfer of $14,520 to Lithuania.

The bank returned the money to the company and is currently investigating the fraud.

Hunter said he wants to get the word out about the scam to prevent other companies from falling victim to the same scam.

Colorado Springs test a blockbuster

Blockbuster Video is using the Colorado Springs area to test out a new policy that management believes could give them a leg up on chief online competitor Netflix. The open-ended policy allows Blockbuster Online customers to return their movie to a Blockbuster store and get a free in-store movie rental. Subscribers can take their movie in a sealed return envelope to any one of 20 stores in Colorado Springs, Falcon, Fountain, Monument, Woodland Park, Pueblo or Canon City and the store will return it to the Online division.

The free in-store rental is subject to normal in-store rental rules, including no late fees, and it must be returned by the store’s normal due date. This rental offer is in addition to the free in-store rentals that are given with a Blockbuster Online subscription. The plan allows Blockbuster Online subscribers the option of getting a new movie the same day they return it instead of waiting for a new one to be mailed and is available as an addition to the number of DVDs allowed out at a time from Blockbuster Online.

Town Hall meeting about Stormwater at Chamber

Greater Colorado Springs members are invited to a town hall meeting from 9:30 to 11 a.m. Aug. 7 at the Colorado Springs Chamber of Commerce, 2 N. Cascade suite 110.

The Chamber encourages businesses to be part of the discussion and decision on the fee structure for the City's proposed Stormwater Enterprise Fund coming to a vote on Aug. 22.

The Chamber will present the critical need for the enterprise and will review the city's options of a phase-in of the fee versus the implementation of the full fee by Jan. 1, 2007.

For more information, call 575-4313.

Health insurance rankings

In a new survey of the 100 largest U.S. cities, Colorado Springs ranked 64th in affordability for children's health insurance, at an average cost of $80.33 a month.

For families, the city ranked 42 in terms of affordability.

The top-rated cities for affordable children's plans were St. Louis, Grand Rapids, Mich., Columbus, Ohio, Long Beach, Calif. and Glendale, Calif., and Akron Ohio. Monthly premiums in these cities ranged from $29 to $47.69.

Grand Rapids also ranked No. 1 for affordable family plans.

The latest U.S. Census data reports that nearly 46 million Americans are without health insurance, 8.5 million of which are children.

To see the full report, go to www.ehealthinsurance.com.

Denver's tourism numbers rise because of Colorado Springs

Denver attracted a record 10.4 million visitors in 2005 due in large part to Colorado Springs and Pueblo. The Pikes Peak region sent the second highest number of visitors to Denver according to a tourism survey commissioned by the Denver Metro Convention & Visitors Bureau. Los Angeles sent the largest amount of overnight visitors to Denver in 2005, according to the Longwoods International survey. The Colorado Springs visitors bureau, Experience Colorado Springs at Pikes Peak, does not commission for a similar study.

Springs businessman appointed to SBA national advisory council

Wendel Torres, managing partner at Colorado Springs-based TORIX General Contractors, Inc. is one of two Coloradans to recently be appointed as members of the Small Business Associations National Advisory Council.

The other Coloradan to be appointed is Denise St. Cyr, Director of Corporate Development at Denver-based CADDO Solutions.

The National Advisory Council serves as a key private sector advisory group to SBA, Congress, and the president on small business issues. The council includes small business owners and leaders who volunteer their time over the course of a two-year appointment to provide the SBA with diverse and expert advice, ideas, and opinions on small business issues and SBA programs nationwide.

Torres is one of the managing partners at TORIX General Contractors which has been in Colorado Springs since 1987. The firm has sales exceeding $60 million, and over 100 employees.

A towering project

Colorado Springs developer Ray O'Sullivan is moving ahead with his plans for a proposed 24-story residential, commercial and hotel tower on the downtown City Auditorium block, on the southeast corner of Kiowa Street and Nevada Avenue. The building would have 100 for-sale condominiums on upper floors; 250 hotel rooms on middle floors; and lower floors with 25,000 square feet of retail space, 30,000 square feet of for-sale office condominiums, 15,000 square feet of meeting space, indoor and outdoor pools and a spa. The building also would have four levels of underground parking. The building's look and feel, pictured in a rendering by Springs architect Doug Comstock, is intended to blend in with City Hall across the street and the next-door City Auditorium. Estimated cost: $125 million. Next up: Completion of a study by hospitality consultant HVS International of suburban New York City to gauge the hotel's potential success, and then reaching an agreement in the next month with a hotelier O'Sullivan described as an upper-end, four-star operator. He wouldn't identify the name. HVS did a similar study three years ago that endorsed the idea of a downtown Springs convention center and hotel. If all goes as planned, O'Sullivan said he hopes to begin construction in May or June of 2007, with completion in early 2009. The project's working name is Cooper Tower, but that name will change, O'Sullivan said.

Office fashion or faux pas?

Our Business article about dressing in the workplace (7/24/06, Clothes Case) generated a lot of response, primarily from female readers and primarily complaining about the "before" and "after" office attire photographs.

"Were the photos flopped?" one caller asked.

"Is this a joke?" another wondered.

"I'm embarrassed for this model -- did she consent to this?" another asked.

Some were less polite.

"I would not hire (this image consultant) to outfit my dogs!!!! She has about as much fashion sense as a first grader," one reader e-mailed me.

At issue appears to be the length of the pants and the jacket sleeves in the "after" shot. The pantsuit was off the rack at Stein Mart.

The illustration was intended to show how the "after" outfit is more figure flattering and slimming, makes the executive look younger and says "professional" rather than "matronly."

Image consultant Tia Warren's response to all the hullabaloo?

"I could dress the woman in a potato sack for the "before" shot and some people would say they liked it better than the "after" picture."

See the story and photos here: http://www.gazette.com/display.php?id=1319556&table=story_archive&sec=4

JA exec gets award

Robin H. Wise, president of Junior Achievement -- Rocky Mountain Inc., has received the nonprofit organization's 2006 Charles R. Hook award that recognizes chief staff officers who promote the growth and development of the organization in their local community

The Rocky Mountain Inc. affiliate of JA covers Denver and northern Colorado. JA worldwide programs teach business and economics to students in grades kindergarten through 12th.

Majority of workers have no preference about gender of boss

According to a Vault Inc. Workplace Survey, women prefer to work for a male boss rather than another woman. When asked if they would prefer a male or female boss, 28 percent of the women picked a male boss rather than a female boss, though the majority of both the men and women surveyed had no preference. The survey is comprised of 518 responses from employees representing a variety of industries across the country, and is made up of 52 percent women and 48 percent men. More men would rather work for a man than a woman as well; 26 percent of men chose a male boss and 8 percent picked a female boss.

RealTime Shredding expands into Texas

RealTime Shredding of Colorado Springs, developer of the first self-service kiosk to help consumers and businesses fight identity theft, has made its first stab at expanding outside of the state. They have installed two kiosks in Amarillo, Texas, at an RV park and in the Boys Ranch School System, said Amanda Verrie, RealTime Shredding president. The family-owned business placed its first kiosk at Chapel Hills Mall last September and has since added units in Denver, Fort Collins and in two additional locations in Colorado Springs.

Apartment rents down -- or not

RealFacts, a California research company that tracks the nation's apartment industry, says Colorado Springs was the only city in a recent survey of 29 major metropolitan areas in the western United States that showed a decline in average monthly apartment rents over the past year. Its survey suggests average monthly rents in the Springs are now $708, down 0.4 percent from last year. That figure contrasts with a survey from local commercial real estate broker Doug Carter, whose June survey estimated local monthly rents were averaging $626, a 3.5 percent jump from a year ago. RealFacts and Carter, however, were on par when it comes to apartment occupancies; both suggested occupancy levels increased by about 3 percent this year over 2005.

Scam artists target area seniors

The Better Business Bureau is warning area seniors to be wary of a new phone scam in which they are threatened with cancellation of Medicare or Medicare part D coverage as a means to get the senior's bank account information. Roma Costanza with the Senior Insurance Office in Colorado Springs says Medicare and Social Security never ask for bank information, cash payment, or other personal information. Once seniors have turned over bank account information they can lose everything in their accounts and a few have already lost large amounts. "Seniors may get calls from Medicare providers," said Katie Carrol, spokeswoman for BBB of Southern Colorado, "but they already have most of the senior's information and are not allowed to get any financial information over the phone." For further information call the Colorado Consumer line at 800-222-4444.