News-Press from Fort Myers, Florida • Page 41

STACKED UP OVER CHICAGO Jj) Federal guidelines say SVM O'Hare is too busy D3 liWII WEDNESDAY, NOVEMBER 3, 2004 THE NEWS-PRESS DOW JONES INDUSTRIAL at 10,035.73 NASDAQ 4.92 at 1,984.79 0.05 at 1,130.56 AMEX 0.23 at 1,305.26 RUSSELL 2000 so at 585.44 30 YEAR T-BONDS 0.44 at 4.82 Storms suck $40 million from WCI revenue co ncny ESS MO EY Bonita-based luxury builder has home-closure delays standing the challenges surrounding the hurricanes," Starkey said. Shares of WCI closed at $24.45 on on the New York Stock Exchange, up 32 cents from Monday's close. The storms, which began with Hurricane Charley on Aug. 13, forced the delayed closings of about 59 homes, resulting in 'delays in recording about $30 million in rev enue. Some of those closures will happen in the final three months of the year, but some may be delayed until early 2005, Starkey said.

In all, about 157 homes, expected to generate around $69 million in revenue, will not close in 2004 as planned. The extended delay is due mainly to the added workload that hurricane repairs have placed on building inspectors and plan reviewers, he said. In addition, building materials are even harder to come by now, Starkey said. "Prior to the hurricanes, we were able to overcome the steel and concrete supply issues because of our size," he said. "Following the hurricanes, we are seeing those commodities tighten up.

But, even in this environment, the big builder still has an advantage over the small builder." Starkey said the company is confident the storms' impact will be short lived. While customer traffic in the company's sales centers was down 39 percent in September compared to last year, it has improved with each week in October, finishing down 18 percent from last year. about $30 million, came in the form of revenue lost in the quarter because the storms delayed home closings until at least the fourth quarter, president Jerry Starkey said. The remaining loss, about $9.8 million, is from hurricane damage and at least $4 million of that should be recovered from BY TIM ENGSTROM The four hurricanes that struck Florida since August took a nearly $40 million bite out of WCI Communities the Bonita Springs-based luxury builder reported Tuesday. Most of that money, insurance, Starkey said.

Despite the losses, WCI reported net income for the three months ended Sept 30 rose almost 68 percent to $28.7 million, or 62 cents per share, from $17.1 million, or 38 cents per share, earned in the same period last year. "We are very proud of that performance not with U.S. SUGAR Nextel, Verizon Sjigar consolidation U.S. Sugar Corp. will close Ma its mill in Bryant and upgrade ort processing facilities in Myers Clewiston by fall 2007.

Company plans job 10 MILES Lake Okeechobee cuts, restmctEFin Bryant settle dispute Proposal on cell phones, radios at center of trouble I (jo) Clewiston Calooahatchet River Sugar mill in Bryant to be closed as part of three-year program THE NEWS-PRESS BY LAURA RUANE ailing it crucial for survival, Clewiston-based U.S. Sugar Corp. said Tuesday it's begun a three- mf ipfe r--jrs; lit o. I -sivi i Vi i fwwM W'H it -I i' -if'-i Ri year modernization and consolidation program that ultimately will cost 300 to 350 jobs. Chief elements include: Expanding and further automating processing facilities south of company headquarters in Clewiston.

Closing the sugar mill in Bryant in early 2007. The Bryant mill, located near the eastern rim of Lake Okeechobee, was built in 1962. The much-older Clewiston sugar mill is adjacent to the state-of-the-art refinery and packaging plant that opened in 1998, vertically integrating the company from the field to grocery shelves. That's where the company is pinning its financial hopes for the future. Over the past 15 years, more than 20 sugar-processing facilities in the United States have foundered, and closed.

"One of our goals is to get us in a position so that we are one of the last men standing in the business," said Robert Coker, senior vice president, public affairs. US. cane and beet sweetener producers are seeing sales and revenues dwindle for several reasons, according to Coker Trade agreements limit the amount of sugar they can THE NEWS-PRESS FILE PHOTO Train cars full of freshly cut cane coming in from the fields pull up next to U.S. Sugar's Clewiston sugar refinery. The announced a restructuring Tuesday that will close the Bryant mill and eliminate 300 to 350 jobs.

The Associated Press NEW YORK Nextel Communications Inc. and Verizon Wireless unexpectedly resolved a heated dispute Tuesday over a federal proposal to clear up interference between cell phones and emergency response radios by moving Nextel's signals to a more valuable band of spectrum. In exchange for Verizon dropping its opposition to the spectrum proposal Nextel is withdrawing its claim of trademark rights for the phrase "Push To Talk" and the word "push" to describe the popular walkie-talkie service that Nextel introduced to cell phones and that Verizon and other rivals now offer. The agreement announced Tuesday ends a public argument in which each company nastily accused the other of putting business interests ahead of public safety concerns often invoking memories of Sept. 11 and the need for reliable emergency communications as an issue being exploited or ignored by the other side.

"It was getting ridiculously bitter, and I think they reached a point where saner, cooler heads could prevail," said John Ryan, president and chief analyst for the research firm RHK. He noted that both sides may have decided the dispute was an unneeded distraction with the emergence of a powerful new rival now that Cingular Wireless and Wireless have completed their merger. Nextel's shares closed up 81 cents at $26.90, a gain of 3.1 percent, on the Nasdaq Stock Market. Shares of Verizon Communications 55 percent owner of Verizon Wireless, rose 2 cents to $40 on the New York Stock Exchange. U.S.-traded shares of Vodafone PLC, which owns the rest of Verizon Wireless, rose 24 cents to $25.81 on the NYSE The dispute involved a proposal by the Federal Communications Commission calling for Nextel to give up spectrum which overlaps with frequencies used by emergency responded in exchange for licenses to use another part of the airwaves with greater value.

Verizon said Nextel wasn't being asked to pay nearly enough for the upgrade, describing the proposal as a multibillion dollar taxpayer giveaway. However, Nextel has argued that the spectrum it would turn in is being undervalued by nearly a half billion dollars by the FCC. Verizon filed objections with the FCC and threatened to sue, saying the law required an auction of the spectrum Nextel would receive. likely to feel the pain. "The Bryant sugar mill is 40 minutes away," said Iglesias, the general manager of Roland Martin's Marina.

"But if US. Sugar closed its mill in Clewiston, it would shut down Clewiston." It won't be the first downsizing: More than 1,300 people were idled in 1994 when the See SUGAR D6 sell while big food processors are moving operations overseas, to take advantage of lower labor and environmental costs for themselves and sugar producers. Low-carb diets also have taken a bite out of domestic sugar consumptioa Critics counter the federal program of import quotas and loans still favor the industry at the expense of consumers and food manufacturers. Coker said. "You have folios who live in Okeechobee, LaBelle, and other communities within a 100-mile radius of Clewiston." Clewiston resident Ramon Iglesias said he just heard about the cuts Tuesday, and doesn't think they will significantly damage that city's economy because the western Palm Beach County communities around Bryant are more The anticipated job cuts represent 14 percent of the company's work force of about 2,100.

The terminations will be phased in closer to 2007, Coker said. Severance packages will be discussed in union negotiations early next year, he added. The cuts are expected to fall fairly evenly on both management and hourly workers. "They live all around the lake," Struggling AOL plans to cut another 700 jobs in 2000. Since then AOL's fortunes have waned, top AOL executives left or were reassigned, and the parent company removed the letters "AOL" from its name.

Securities regulators are still investigating accounting practices at AOL In midday trading, Time Warner shares were up 10 cents at $16.48 on the New York Stock Exchange. company, the giant media conglomerate Time Warner reports earnings for its third quarter. AOL is expected to be a key topic for investors, including its efforts to seek new kinds of revenues as its dial-up users migrate to highspeed Internet connections. AOL employs about 13,000 people in the United States and 20,000 wprldwide. It had 23.4 million subscribers as of the end of June, Last year the company cut 450 jobs in California as it consolidated its software development operations there.

AOL was once a leading star of the Internet business, and used its soaring stock to buy Time Warner at the height of the Internet bubble Tuesday. The source said the job cuts would occur mainly in northern Virginia, where the online service is based. News of the cuts was reported earlier in The Washington Post. Jim Whitney, an AOL spokesman, declined to comment. Word of the job cuts came one day before AOL's parent The Associated Press NEW YORK America Online, which has been trying to turn its fortunes around as users leave the service for broadband connections, plans to cut about 700 jobs next month, or 5 percent of its U.S.

work force, in a bid to meet financial targets, a person familiar with the matter said WALLSTREET Midgrade averaged $2,259 and premium $2.30. Hyatt Hotels Corp. executive Carlos Cabrera is the newest member of Lee County Tourist Development Council He replaces Solomon Cokes, LOCAL NEWS The price of unleaded gasoline in Lee County fell one tenth of a cent Tuesday from the previous day. According to AAA, the average pump price of the most popular grade of fuel was $2,085. That's three-tenths of a cent below the all-time high set on Oct.

30. The national average for unleaded regular is $2,019 and statewide it's $2,042. Diesel which has been breaking records almost daily, fell almost 3 cents Tuesday to $2,293 from Monday's all-time high. INSIDE Tentative deal in casino strike D3 Record losses forecast for property insurance companies D6 INDEX Market Line D2 AMEX Listings D2 NASDAQ Listings D2, D4 Mutual Funds Listings D4-5 NYSE Listings D7 CONTACT US Casey Logan, Assistant Business Editor, 335-0492 1 10 a.m. 7 p.m.

Monday-Friday Tight presidential race sours markets The prospect of a tight race for the presidency and a repeat of 2000 prompted a late sell-off on Wall Street on Tuesday. News of exit polls showing a tight race were a "sell" signal to investors worried that the election would be deadlocked. Most analysts agreed that a clear winner by Wednesday morning no matter which candidate would boost the market. But if the election appeared headed for a prolonged court battle as in 2000, stocks could fall sharply. The Dow Jones industrial average was down 18.66, or 0.2 percent, at 10,035.73.

Broader stock indicators were narrowly mixed. The Standard Poor's 500 index was up 0.05, or 0.01 percent, at 1,130.56, and the Nasdaq composite index gained 4.92, or 0.2 percent, to 1,984.79. The Associated Press appointed by the Board of County Commissioners. Cabrera is vice president and managing director for Hyatt Regency Coconut Point Resort and Spa in Estero. He also helps oversee Hyatt's nine other Florida properties.

In 2002, Gov. Jeb Bush appointed Cabrera to the board of directors for Visit Florida, the state's tourism marketing arm He also sits on the board of directors for the resort and hospitality management program at Florida Gulf Coast University. Fmu ii if lip Mil i iv a i iw yy vvviiv 1 ing outside of 1 Southwest vl Florida. The tourism council was established in 1983. Its nine CABRERA members are.