Kiger's Notebook

Triple J keeps growing

Three years ago, Jason Hoerter dumped all his savings into a new business and bet that a locally owned trash hauler could turn garbage into gold.

At first, his Triple J Disposal trucks rumbled around to about 400 customers, mostly in Austin.
Now his four trucks haul refuse for more than 5,000 customers in Austin, Adams, Lyle, Lansing, Brownsdale, Oakland, Rose Creek, Waltham and Dexter.

Early this month, 60 homeowners in Grand Meadow began rolling out trash for Triple J, just as about 190 people in Hayfield did in August.

“We’ve reached the turning point,” Hoerter said. “Now we’re to the size there’s no way (national competitors) could run us out.”

And he is poised to drop the next garbage can to really rev up business.

Behind his one-year-old facility at 202 Railway in Brownsdale, Hoerter has lined up 3 acres to build a transfer station dome, measuring 120 feet by 80 feet, in the spring.

“When that is up, then we’ll go berserk,” he said.

By having a transfer station, his trucks won’t need to make daily runs to the Steele County Landfill.

Trucks will dump at the station, and the trash will be loaded onto an open semitrailer to make the trip to the landfill.

The transfer station “gives us an enormous advantage over anyone else in area,” Hoerter said. “Once that is up, I foresee us growing to 12 trucks.”

Then he plans to fuel up his trucks and send them into Dodge Center, Kasson, Byron and Rochester.
“The whole idea is to work our way to Rochester,” Hoerter said.

Working is definitely his focus. To kick-start his business and build it to its current size, he has almost lived in his office.

“I really don’t have much of a life,” he said. “Everything has to go back into the company.”

His employees include four full-time drivers, two office staff members and three part-time workers.

Now he can offer health insurance to his employees. And this Christmas should be greener than last, with the first holiday bonuses probably heading home with his employees.

As the driver of his operation, Hoerter is doing more than turning on the speed. He is cruising along a mapped out route.

Back in 2004, when he decided to build in Brownsdale, he told a reporter, “In two years, I want 6,000 accounts. I want to go to Dodge Center, Rochester, Grand Meadow and Hayfield.”

Now he has 5,000 accounts and is doing business in Grand Meadow and Hayfield.

If the map holds true, a transfer station and trips into Dodge Center and Rochester are just up ahead.

Moving day for Pace Electronics

I was talking to Pat Deutsch of Pace Electronics Thursday and he said this weekend is when his operation moves to its newly-built 48,000-square-feet facility along Technology Drive, by JDS Uniphase

Pace is moving from 533 Sixth Ave. N.W.

They plan to be open for business by Monday morning.

Whew, I still have unopened boxes from my move a year ago. This should quite a weekend for the Deutsch family.

Mayo-linked biotech amends earnings

 Here's an amended 2004 earnings report for a biotech company from San Diego – MicroIslet, Inc. – that showed a huge spike in its R&D costs due to working with Mayo Foundation.

Here's some from the press release:

MicroIslet, Inc. announced today that it has filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission its amended annual report on Form 10-KSB for the 2004 fiscal year, its amended quarterly report on Form 10-QSB for the first quarter of fiscal 2005, and its quarterly report on Form 10-QSB for the period ended June 30, 2005.

MicroIslet believes that its filing today of the Form 10-QSB for the period ended June 30, 2005 constitutes full compliance with the American Stock Exchange (Amex) continuing listing standards and completion of the plan of compliance submitted to the Amex on September 6, 2005. MicroIslet had been out of compliance with the Amex requirements of Sections 134, 1003(d) and 1101 of the Amex Company Guide for the company's failure to file its Form 10-QSB for the period ended June 30, 2005 with the Securities and Exchange Commission. MicroIslet anticipates notification of regained compliance from Amex shortly.

For the quarter ended June 30, 2005, the company reported a net loss of $1,934,061 or $0.05 per share compared with a net loss of $1,721,776 or $0.04 per share, for the same period in 2004. Net loss was $3,934,304 or $0.10 per share for the six months ended June 30, 2005 compared with a net loss of $3,372,905 or $0.10 per share, for the same period in 2004.
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Research and development expenses increased to $1,326,902 for the three months ended June 30, 2005 from $464,553 in the same period in 2004, and increased to $2,730,699 for the six months ended June 30, 2005 from $1,111,650 in the same period in 2004. These increases were due mainly to an increase in headcount for lab personnel, the company's partnership with the Mayo Foundation, and materials and services relating to testing of the company's technology in animals JEFF ADDITION - Hogs?.

The company reported $5.1 million in cash at June 30, 2005. The report of the company's independent registered public accounting firm contained in the Form 10-KSB/A for the 2004 fiscal year contains a going concern qualification resulting from the company's need to raise additional capital to continue operations at present levels beyond March 2006. MicroIslet is taking appropriate measures to secure additional working capital for sustaining operations beyond March 2006. More information on these measures is contained in each of the periodic reports recently filed with the SEC.

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MicroIslet is a biotechnology company engaged in the research, development, and commercialization of patented technologies in the field of transplantation therapy for people with insulin-dependent diabetes. MicroIslet's patented islet transplantation technology includes methods for isolating, culturing, cryopreservation, and immuno-protection (microencapsulation) of islet cells. MicroIslet is working to develop and commercialize a first product, called MicroIslet-P(TM), a microencapsulated porcine islet cell suspension that will be used for transplantation in patients with insulin-dependent diabetes.

Austin store to show off its solar power

Here's some from a story we ran in our Austin edition today on this:

Solar power will be on display Saturday at a local business and residence.

Austin Utilities’ first solar-generating commercial customer, Caron Jagodzinski, owner of Good Earth Natural Foods, will open her business at 120 Third Ave. N.W. for tours. Jagodzinski installed eight photovoltaic panels in August on the store’s roof in downtown Austin.

Tom Yates, who lives at 26068 U.S. 218, also will open his home for tours of his solar-powered system, which was tied to the grid in August 2003.

The tours are part of the Minnesota Renewable Energy Society’s 10th annual Solar Tour. Tours will run from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

On Saturday, thousands of solar-powered homes and businesses across the country also will invite public tours as part of the American Solar Energy Society’s National Solar Tour.

Solar tour maps for all participating buildings are available for download at www.solartour.net.

First Alliance CU coming to Byron

First Alliance Credit Union will build a branch office in Byron to open in the third quarter of 2006, according to last week's Byron Review.

It will be at the intersection of Tenth Ave. and Seventh St. It will have a drive-through and an ATM. Officials say First Alliance, which has two Rochester offices, has "close to" 300 members in Byron, according the story by Ruth Hanson.

Pemstar auction in San Jose. Ca.

Rochester-Based Pemstar Inc. is auctioning off the "surplus assets" of a facility in San Jose, Calif. on Oct. 11. The facility closed as part of a consildation of plants in 2003.

Here's some from the ad on the auction:

There will be a webcast auction of the surplus assets of a Pemstar facility on October 11, 2005.

Don't miss your opportunity to bid on the surplus assets of a complete 141,000 sq. foot late model SMT manufacturing facility. The auction is live in San Jose, CA and webcast on October 11th, 2005.  www.xlineassets.com

Examples of equipment available include: 2 high speed Panasonic placement lines: MV2Fs and MPAV2Bs, 2 late model Fuji Lines including 2 NP 153XLs, 2 Universal GSM1s with tray feeders, and 3 MPM UP2000 screen printers.

Celebrating Wong's in downtown Rochester

Here's another Matt Russell item. This time about the bash coming up for Wong's as the Wong brothers step back and retire. I wrote about the changes at Wongs in a front page story (A choice still debated today) a few months ago.

We'll be out there covering this bash.

CELEBRATION PLANNED FOR WONG’S: Food, drink and live music will be part of the festivities Thursday night as businesses on Historic Third Street in downtown Rochester celebrate the 50 years of business Wong’s Cafe, which was recently sold, has done downtown, according to a press release.

The Historic Third Street block party, which features a performance by the band Six Mile Grove, is scheduled from 7 p.m. to 10 p.m.

Wong’s Cafe is located at 4 Third St. S.W.

Downtown Rochester bars

Here's an item from Matt Russell's On the Menu column:

McCORMICK’S SET FOR OCTOBER CLOSING; TWO NEW DOWNTOWN BARS PLANNED: Downtown Rochester restaurant McCormick’s is set to close next month, according to Kevin Molloy, president of the Marquis Hospitality division of Chafoulias Management Co.

McCormick’s moved down one floor from its skyway-area location near Galleria Mall in July, freeing a spot for a new restaurant scheduled to open soon, Metro. McCormick’s bumped another restaurant, Sabastian’s, in the move and has since operated from the former Sabastian’s location in the Radisson hotel lobby.

Metro is expected to open Oct. 3, but the opening could be pushed back a week, Molloy said.

So what will go in the Radisson lobby space that McCormick’s is set to leave? Molloy said it will be used to host special events before being replaced by a bar next spring. He added that a martini and wine bar concept has been discussed.

In the meantime, the former bar located next to McCormick’s original skyway-area location is being renovated as it gets ready to open under a new name. Molloy described the bar as “a relaxing environment for a quiet drink and business meetings and so forth.”

An Oct. 26 opening date is planned, he said.

Metro and the two new bars will be located on South Broadway between First Street Southeast and Second Street Southeast.

BK to build in Stewartville, Kasson, Zumbrota

Here's a quick hit on the future of Burger King in the area.

I talked to Greg Dolphin of Twin Cities-based Dolphin Fast Food the other day and he said plans are in the works to build a BK in Stewartville. Nothing is signed yet, so the location is still hazy.

Then he said he also plans to build in Kasson and Zumbrota also.

All three building projects should get cooking next spring.

Those additions would bring Dolphin's holdings to six in the area. They picked up three BKs when the area BKs melted down and the company dropped the franchise license that had been held by Road Corp.

I'll do a more detailed take on this issue soon.

Hormel names new CEO

Here's some big, though not unexpected news out of Austin.

Johnson's impending retirement has been out there for awhile and the company has been grooming Ettinger for that final move to the CEO office for a couple years.

The board of directors of Hormel Foods Corporation announced that it unanimously elected Jeffrey M. Ettinger to be the company’s ninth chief executive officer.

Ettinger, current president and chief operating officer, succeeds Joel W. Johnson who will retire as chief executive officer on Jan. 1, 2006. Johnson will continue to serve as Hormel Foods chairman of the board.

"Hormel Foods has been privileged to have Joel Johnson lead the company as chief executive officer for the past 12 years. Johnson’s vision and steady hand helped grow the company and provide its shareholders with strong and consistent returns. He has been very effective in his role as chief executive officer. Johnson orchestrated numerous strategic acquisitions to expand the presence of Hormel Foods, most notably The Turkey Store. He refined the company’s marketing strategy to significantly advance the sale of value-added products, and established Hormel Foods as a significant player in the ethnic foods marketplace," said Dr. Robert R. Waller, board member.

After spending 24 years at General Foods Corporation, Johnson joined Hormel Foods Corporation as executive vice president of sales and marketing in 1991. He was elevated to the position of president and elected to the board of directors in 1992. In October 1993, Johnson was elected chief executive officer and in December of 1995 he became chairman of the board.

"It has been an honor to lead this great company and I am proud of our accomplishments," said Johnson. "We built a balanced portfolio of category leaders in both the refrigerated and grocery aisles and have established an excellent track record for bringing innovative products and processes to the marketplace. Our foodservice division leads its industry, and both Hormel Foods international and specialty foods are growing to important status."

Ettinger began his career with Hormel Foods in December 1989 as a corporate attorney. He became the HORMEL chili product manager in 1995, was named assistant treasurer in 1997 and treasurer in 1998. In 1999, Ettinger was named a vice president of Hormel Foods Corporation and Jennie-O Foods president. He later became president and chief operating officer of Jennie-O Turkey Store when Hormel acquired The Turkey Store Company in 2001 and then assumed the role of chief executive officer of Jennie-O Turkey Store in 2003.