January 2000
Features
FREE CONFERENCE!
Arlington's second annual Economic Development Colloquium will be held on Thursday, March 2, 2000 at 3401 N. Fairfax Drive on George Mason University's Arlington Campus. Topics will include a review of Arlington's building and commercial real estate activity in 1999 and a look ahead through 2000, as well as a discussion on Arlington's new competitiveness initiatives. Registration will begin at 7:30 a.m. and the conference will end at 10 a.m.To register, visit our click on the purple front-page bar at www.smartplace.org or call 703-228-0800. Hope to see you on March 2nd!
ARLINGTON OFFICE ABSORPTION EXCEEDED 800,000 SQUARE FEET IN 1999
According to the year-end CoStar report, Arlington's office absorption for 1999 was 817,415 square feet. The year-end vacancy rate was 3.4 percent, representing a little more than 1 million square feet of space. There are currently three office buildings under construction in Arlington - Courthouse Tower (248,580 sf), Ballston Tower (225,000 sf), and Virginia Square Plaza (160,000 sf).CAIS INTERNET TO RECEIVE UP TO $200 MILLION INVESTMENT
CAIS Internet, a leading provider of broadband Internet access solutions, has signed a definitive agreement with an affiliate of Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR), under which KKR will make a strategic investment of up to $200 million in the fast-growing company. CAIS, which has offices in Rosslyn, currently has master agreements to be the exclusive provider of high-speed Internet access to over 9,000 hotels worldwide, covering more than 1.1 million rooms. The company also has long-term agreements to provide Internet access to 575 multi-family communities, reaching almost 200,000 residences.James H. Greene, Jr., a KKR partner, said, "CAIS is well positioned to provide faster, more cost-effective Internet access and enhanced Internet services. We believe that CAIS has all the ingredients for significant value creation -- an expanding customer base, exclusive long-term contracts, patented technology and, most importantly, a strong management team. This investment is another example of our ongoing focus on rapidly growing segments within the communications industry."
In 1999, CAIS signed a number of exclusive long-term contracts to provide turn-key broadband access and portal content solutions to hotels and apartment buildings with reliable, affordable services and customized content for an enhanced online experience. CAIS Internet has master agreements with major hotel chains like Hilton Hotels, John Q. Hammons Hotels, Carlson Worldwide Properties, Staybridge Suites by Holiday Inn, Cendant Corporation and Bass Hotels. These agreements cover brands such as Hilton, Hilton Garden Inn, Radisson, Embassy Suites, Doubletree Suites, Ramada, Hampton Inn, Holiday Inn, Sheraton, Crowne Plaza and Inter-Continental. Most recently CAIS signed a multi-year contract with Prime Hospitality, which includes the AmeriSuites and Wellesley Inn & Suites brands. Many of these hotels also plan to carry CAIS meeting room and kiosk Internet access solutions.
CAIS is also a leader in delivering Internet solutions to apartment communities, having a strategic relationship with One Point Communications, and contracts with Town & Country, Tarragon Realty and United Dominion apartment residences nationwide.
More information on CAIS is available at www.cais.com.
FITZGERALD COMMUNICATIONS INC., one of the nation's largest independent high-technology communications agencies, has been named one of the fastest-growing private companies in America by Inc. Magazine for 1999 and has been recognized by Inside PR as a "hot" technology PR firm. Founded in 1994, FitzGerald Communications Inc. is a Cambridge, Massachusetts -based company with offices in Arlington and San Francisco. www.fitgerald.com
ATYOUROFFICE.COM, a leading online office products superstore, announced that it would partner with employee services hub AtYourBusiness.com, to offer a comprehensive package of office supply and employee management products and services to support small businesses. AtYourOffice.com offers customers the largest selection of office products on the Internet, a best price guarantee, free next-business day shipping on orders over $25 and "fanatical" customer support. AtYourOffice.com is based in Arlington. www.atyouroffice.com
MANAGEMENT INFORMATION CONSULTING, INC. (MIC), an Arlington based e-business solutions provider, has signed a joint marketing agreement to become a CenterStage service provider for OnDisplay, Inc., a leading provider of e-business infrastructure software. Whether your business is a traditional "brick and mortar" business or an Internet start-up, the combination of MIC's strategic services and CenterStage's powerful capabilities will enable rapid deployment of high-quality e-Business solutions. www.micinc.com
HENNINGER MEDIA SERVICES, a leading production and post-production services firm, announced a company-wide business expansion and reorganization designed to support its rapidly growing Internet video services business. Founded in 1983, privately-held Henninger Media Services Inc. is the nation's largest video, film and new media services provider. Headquartered in Arlington, Henninger has facilities in Washington, DC, Nashville, Richmond, New York and Los Angeles. www.henninger.com
QWEST COMMUNICATIONS INTERNATIONAL INC., the Arlington broadband Internet communications company, just announced that it has been awarded a $50 million contract to support the U.S. Department of Energy's (DOE) Energy Sciences Network (Esat). Qwest will provide performance levels up to a terabit (one million megabits/second) network by the year 2005, offering 50 times the highest speed available in the industry today. This partnership will increase our capabilities for collaborative research by linking top scientists with DOE's research facilities. www.qwest.com
THE MILLS CORPORATION, of Arlington, owner and operator of market dominant retail and entertainment destinations, announced an alliance with Centerseat LLC, a digital media company that will provide Mills and MillTV exclusive entertainment programming to be aired throughout Mills properties around the US. MillsTV offers mall-wide video programming that targets shoppers at the point of purchase. The programming will be original works from diverse categories such as Music, Film, Lifestyle, Science and Technology, Sports, Kids. www.millscorp.com and www.centerseat.com
FRIEDMAN BILLINGS RAMSEY GROUP created a new Office of the Chief Executive and named Robert S. Smith, Chief Operating Office. The Office of the Executive will be composed of FBR's three founders, Emanuel Friedman, Eric Billings and Russell Ramsey who will devise and implement long-term strategic plans for the company's primary business areas. Mr. Smith had already taken on the day-to-day management responsibilities of FBR. His role as COO will formalizes this arrangement. FBR is an investment bank; asset manager and venture capital firm headquartered in Arlington, VA www.fbr.com
ARLINGTON-BASED AES CORPORATION, one of the major players in the U.S. power market, has begun construction of the AES Puerto Rico cogeneration facility in Guayama, on the island's southeast coast. The 454 MW facility will provide electricity under a 25-year power purchase agreement to a Puerto Rico Electric Power Authority (PREPA). The plant will provide nine percent of the island's electric generating capacity and will supply approximately 15% of the existing demand for electricity. It will be the cleanest coal-fired facility in the world, according to Sarah Slusser, President, AES Aurora.
On the domestic front, AES has awarded an engineering, procurement and construction contract to Boston-based Stone & Webster Inc. for a 720-megawatt power plant. The natural gas-fired, combined-cycle energy facility will be built on a 48-acre site in Londonderry, New Hampshire. The plant will include two advanced technology combustion turbines as well as two heat recovery steam generators and one steam turbine. To reduce the demand on the local public water supply, the plant will recycle treated wastewater. Project financing is expected to be complete this spring, with a construction start in the summer and completion by mid-2002. www.aesc.com
PICIS, of Arlington, the US market leader in preoperative information management systems, recently won the 1999 Microsoft Industry Solution Award for Healthcare and was a laureate for the Computerworld Smithsonian award. The company's CareSuite automates the flow of clinical data from medical devises and computers and organizes caregiver workflow in the critical care and preoperative setting to improve patient outcomes. CareSuite is installed in world-renowned medical facilities such as The Mayo Clinic, the University of Texas' M.D. Anderson Medical Center, the University of Pennsylvania Health System, Emory Healthcare, St. Luke's-Shawnee Mission Health System and University of Miami-Jackson Memorial Health System. www.picis.com
EFFECTIVE JANUARY 1, THE ASSOCIATION OF ONLINE PROFESSIONALS has changed its name to "The US Internet Industry Association." Since 1994, the association has been the primary US trade association for Internet commerce, content and connectivity. When asked why they chose to locate their new offices in Arlington, representatives from the organization said that being in Arlington allows them more flexibility in meeting with outside colleagues and gives them better access to downtown Washington, DC. www.usiia.org
TELECORP PCS, INC., AT&T Wireless' largest affiliate, announced in December the opening of its online store, www.SunComShop.com. The SunCom service is a digital phone, voicemail and pager -- all in one. The service is part of the AT&T Wireless Network, giving subscribers coast-to-coast roaming. Headquartered in Arlington, TeleCorp PCS Inc. has licenses to serve more than 16.5 million people and currently provides its SunCom digital wireless service in 24 markets.
ALLIED RESEARCH CORPORATION, a diversified defense and commercial electronic security firm, has agreed to sell its subsidiary, Barnes & Reinecke, Inc to United Defense Limited Partners of Arlington. United Defense, LP is a $1.2 billion prime contractor of armored weapons systems whose 5,000 employees provide superior engineering and system integration skills, proven logistics support capability and global experience. www.udlp.com
ON-SITE SOURCING of Arlington announced that its board of directors has authorized the company to repurchase up to 500,000 shares of its common stock. The shares will be repurchased on the open market or in negotiated transactions, subject to market and general business conditions. On-Site Sourcing expects to fund the repurchased shares through cash, as well as the proceeds from the sale of its information technology division. www.onsite.com
DIAMONDBACK IS POISED TO STRIKE
Arlington's Diamondback Vision Inc., a young Internet video-technology company, is living up to its name. The symbolism of power embodied in the diamondback snake, from which the company's name was derived, has become a reality in the form of $5 million in venture fund capital. The funding package, crafted by Novak Biddle Venture Partners, includes participation by CMGI, ABS Ventures, the eMedia Club and Bill Draper.INCUBATOR AMERICA! DRAWS FIRM TO ARLINGTON
The Washington Strategy Group, a consulting firm, moved its offices from the District to Arlington to position itself near Incubator AMERICA! Katsuyuki Imamura is the president of the company.NEW SESSIONS OF GEORGE MASON UNIVERSITY'S TRAIN TO TECHNOLOGY (TTT) PROGRAM will be starting soon. The program trains and certifies students in the software and internet technologies needed to prepare them to enter the information technology workforce. The TTT program offers training in several technical tracks, including Oracle, Java, C++ and Web Development. Each track consists of four modules, each approximately five weeks long, for a total of 256 classroom/lab hours. The training will lead to a certification in that specialty by George Mason University and in some cases an independent certification agency. For more information, check out the GMU site at http://ttt.gmu.edu/overview.asp. Training on additional subjects, tied to the needs of the Northern Virginia Technology employers, are planned.
COUNTY UNVEILS WAY-FINDERS PROGRAM
Arlington County Board Chairwoman Barbara Favola introduced citizens to the Wayfinder program on January 14, 2000.
On January 14, Arlington County unveiled the first of the Way-finders signs, at the intersection of North Stuart Street and Fairfax Drive near the Ballston Metro Station. Way-finders are eight-foot high full-color maps and directional signs that will help pedestrians and motorists navigate the Rosslyn-Ballston corridor.
"Way-finder signs are designed to highlight the distinct characters and identities of Arlington's neighborhoods and business districts. This drive for definition is part of Arlington's long-term, broad-range plan to create pedestrian-friendly urban villages and business centers, each with its own distinct identity," said County Board Chairman Barbara Favola. "The Way-finder program reinforces that Arlington is a destination for business and for recreation."
The Way-finder signs are an outgrowth of the Rosslyn Station Area Addendum, the new Arlington County Economic Development initiative. This is the same initiative that gave birth to the County's popular SmartScape program, which maintains Arlington's public roads and spaces.
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