The Atlanta Constitution from Atlanta, Georgia • 26

8-B Th Atlanta Journal WEEKEND The Atlanta Constitution 17,1984 I. 7TTV 111 todex nip only I 9 if starts on office tower in Lenox area By Sallye Salter Stiff Writer Construction bas begun on the first phase of a $225-million office-hotel-housing complex on five acres of air rights adjacent to the Lenox MART A station. The two million-square-foot project named Atlanta Plaza is being developed by Dallas-based Vantage Properties Inc, one of the nation's five largest developers, and Travelers Insurance Corp. The air rights cost a record $1.3 million per acre. y- The first phase, a 28-story $74-million office tower containing 654,000 square feet of space, is scheduled to be completed in late 1985.

In addition to the office space, the structure will include 10 floors of parking, some designated for MARTA passengers, and 44,1100 square feet of retail space. Atlanta Plaza, which will front on an extension of East Paces Ferry Road and have "direct access to MARTA, will later include a second office tower containing 850,000 square feet and a 400-room hotel topped by 60 condominiums. three structures with exteriors of polished black granite and reflective glass are to be built over the next seven years. Vantage is already attempting to double "its. 'site size by acquiring an additional five acres stretching along the extension of East Paces Ferry that is under construction from Lakeside Drive to Roxboro Road.

John A. Stabler, president and partner of Vantage Southeast Property said Friday that he has made an offer on the additional tract on which Vantage would like to build a thjrd large office building. "Atlanta Plaza is Vantage's first project in Atlanta, but Stabler said the firm already 'ork will adjoin the Lenox MARTA' station W.A. BRIDGES JRVStaff Vantage's John Stabler holds a model of the project quarterly loss II" Fit Tin AuodtM Pratt WASHINGTON Wholesale inflation slowed to 0.4 percent in February despite a sizable increase in food costs and the biggest jump in more than four years in home heating oil prices, the government reported Friday. A White House spokesman said the inflation report arid separate figures showing a February spurt in- home construction were "good news for everybody" and private analysts seemed to agree.

February's increase in he Labor De- fiartment's Producer Price Index for inished goods followed a 0.6 percent January rise that was the steepest in 14 mopths. So. even though the rate of increase slowed in February, prices so far this year are still running at a pace that would give 1984 the highest inflation in three years. But government and private economists said big food and energy price increases have been mostly, due to bad winter weather and will fade this spring. Nor is anyone expecting home construction to stay at the pace indicated by the, Commerce Department's report that housing starts climbed 11.2 percent to 'an annual rate of 2.2; million units in February the highest rate in nearly six years.

Allen Sinai, chief economist for the investment firm of Lehman Brothers Kuhn Loeb, said, "The economy is growing very strongly I don't see any major reacceleration of inflation occurring at this time." In particular, he pointed to less-publicized parts of the inflation report that showed February prices either flat or actually declining for goods or materials at earlier stages of production than the "finished goods" which are ready for sale to retailers or consumers t'- Economic1 strength was also shown in a new Federal Reserve report that U.S. industry was operating at 80.7 percent of capacity in February, the" highest rate since the summer of 1981. That good news bad been expected in light of Thursday's report of a 1.2 percent increase in industrial production last month. Details of the inflation report said: Prices for home heating oil jumped 8.2 percent, the biggest one-month increase since a similar rise in September 1979. Food prices rose 0.7 percent, including a 13.5 percent jump in vegetable prices, much less than the 2.7 percent January increase, which had been blamed on crop damage from frigid temperatures.

Car prices rose 1.4 percent, light truck prices were up 1.3 percent, and capital equipment costs for modernizing and expanding U.S. industry rose 0.5 percent 4 i I $225-million Atlanta Plaza complex has acquired a 60-acre site on Peachtree Dun-woody Road for a second development and is attempting to line up a prime. Midtown site that would appeal to International Business Machines which is seeking a major office location there. The first tower at Lenox, Stabler said, will be the only commercial structure outside downtown with covered walkways and escalators into a MARTA station. "Atlanta Plaza will set a new standard of excellence and efficiency in Atlanta," he said.

In its efforts to achieve top quality structures, he said, Vantage selected nearby Monarch Plaza as "the finest suburban office complex." Then, he said, Vantage instructed its architects, Smallwood, Reynolds, Stewart, Stewart and Associates and Turner Associates to make Atlanta Plaza "at least 10 percent better." In late 1983 Vantage purchased the air rights, over land that Marta owns adjacent to its station, from J.T. Holding which bad assembled a larger tract in late 1981. The monitors are used on children who have been diagnosed as susceptible to sudden infant death syndrome. (., The loss, which was not expected by ana-' lysts who follow the company, was attributed to an $8.4 million write-down of inventories of the infant monitor, which is produced by the company's home care product division. Revenues in the fourth quarter rose to $32.4 million from $27.3 million in the year-earlier quarter.

In the fourth quarter last year, the company lost $500,000, or 4 cents, a share, on a restated basis that assumed a merger with Narco Scientific took place on Jan. 1, 1983. For the year, the health care company posted a 65 percent increase in net earnings to $5.3 million, or 38 cents a share, from the $2.7 million, or 23 cents a share, in the previous ff" Healthdyne had unexpected year. Sales increased to $132.7 million from $103.6 million. Robert Anastasi, a technology analyst for.

Robinson-Humphrey, had indicated in a January report that Healthdyne would have "disappointing" earnings in the fourth quarter. He also said the home care products division had encountered problems, much of it due to a loss of division sales managers early, in the quarter. Anastasi had downgraded his estimates for the company to net earnings of 16 cents a share for the fourth quarter and 85 cents for the year. Tom Lord, of Johnson, Lane, Space, Smith Co. had predicted in a January report that Healthdyne would have an annual net income of 95 cents a share.

Lord said that Healthdyne's "aggressive" program to acquire small regional home health care companies had caused concern among some investors. By Robert Snowdon Jones Staff Writer Healthdyne Inc. said Friday it took a $4.2 million, or 29 cents a share, loss in the fourth quarter because its best-known product, an infant monitor, is suffering from weak sales. l'JThe fourth-quarter Infant Monitor revenue shortfall has forced us to rethink our 1984 plans and to speed up the introduction of a redesigned product," said Parker H. Healthdyne chairman.

"The redesign should improve the manufacturing efficiencies of the product." Healthdyne's market share for the monitors bas been steadily slipping from 90 percent in 1982 to less than 75 percent by late last year, the; company reported. Malfunctions in the product caused many customers to go to HeaHhdvne's competitors, said Katie H. Gam-bill, an analyst for Equitable Securities Corp. Stocks score sharp gainst Dow up 169 From Wirt DliMtdwt NEW YORK Stock prices soared Friday in very active trading propelled by news of President Reagan's $150 billion federal budget-cutting proposal. While blue-chip issues scored huge gains, oil issues also jumped on speculation Congress would be unable to pass legislation that would block some of the largest' mergers in American history.

v' The Dow Jones industrial average, which was up almost 21 points at 2 p.m., finished the session ahead 16.96 points to 1,184.36. It was the Dow's biggest daily advance since Feb. 24 when it rose 30.47 points. The Dow transportation average rose 4.22 to 518.21 and the Dow utilities average added 0.72 to 127.60. Turnover on the Big Board swelled to 118 million shares Friday from 79.5 million shares on Thursday.

Volume on Friday was the largest since Jan. 6 when 137 million shares changed hands. Prices began climbing at the opening following the announcement late Thursday that President Reagan and Republican leaden in Congress had agreed on a three-year $150 billion deficit-cutting package that includes reductions of, $57 billion in defense spending. Analysts said that' investors 'were elated by the announcement because the huge budget deficits and the strong economic recovery are said to be the reasons that interest rates have been rising and stock prices falling since early January. Robert H.

Stovall, director of investment policy of Dean Witter Reynolds commented that despite Friday's sharp gains, many professional traders "still have one foot out the door anticipating renewed selling pressure next week." Stovall said that these traders have heavy inventories of stock and are expected to use the current strength in the market "to generate some liquidity." I 1 management's view, disrupts annual meetings with questions and policy proposals. Ms. Ruth, a senior vice president with Hill Knowlton Inc. public Irela- tions firm in New York, suggested -that the person responsible for his company's investor relations 6uljt to take the "gadfly" to lunch pripi to I -the annual meeting and let hirotyent his concerns. 5 She also recommended that lhan- agement retain close control 01, the: annual meeting by establishing1 an agenda and staying with it, monitor- -ing shareholders', concerns anqiad- dressing the issues before being asked questions.

And she warned "never give up the mike, particularly to the I- Ed Kirkland, who works in investor relations for BellSouth said he anticipates a meeting in April tq fur-ther organize an Atlanta NIRI ter. 1 1 i 1' projects a 6 percent decline in non-resdential construction in Dallas, to $2.06 billion. Pallas' 21 percent vacancy rate in the office market is almost twice as big as Atlanta's. But in Houston, where the office vacancy rate is close to 30 percent, Chicago Title projects a construction gain of about half of 1 percent, to $2.05 billion. The only other Southeastern urban area in the top 10 for 1984 is Tampa-St.

Petersburg, where a 19 percent gain in activity to, $800 million in non-residential construction is anticipated. leaks of hi-tech Preventing PR objectives urged for annual meetings secrets says to Soviets crucial, economist million more "The studies that I have done esti-. mate that the per capita consumption has increased about two-and-a-half times since about 1950. But by Western standards, the quality of living is very drab and very low." Mrs. Greenslade said that so the Soviet Union has resisted introducing private enterprise into its economy, as tried successfully in Hungary.

Some Soviet economists, have publicly called for the freedom of people to start mom and pop stores. y. Mrs. Greenslade does not feel that the Soviet economy is on the verge of Afghanistan, she said. impose a cost on the Soviet But it didn't get them out of she noted.

Greenslade portrays the economy as one run by government agencies. Because of the size Soviet economy, such a system tremendous waste and corruption problem that Soviet newspapers discuss, she said. government has always operated priorities, and the military always been a very large priority," said. "The consumer always a lower priority, and the hasn't been very good in the kinds of goods people By Beaa Cutts SMf Writer The chairman of the National Investor Relations Institute advised a group of corporate representatives in metro Atlanta Friday to use annual meetings for advancing 'positive relations), between the company and owners of stock. "You probably hate the annual meeting, and your management probably bates the annual meeting," Carol Ruth told investor relations specialists.

"Traditionally, it's been one of those things: 'Ob my God, we have to do it, and if we're lucky, we'll get out of it in 15 minutes, And we'll find a way to keep anybody from asking But she added: "The best annual meetings are those that do achieve some public relations and investor relations objectives." She also suggested trying to defuse the "gadfly" stockholder who, in especially when the people's in- collapse. "It is has been rising." the U.S. would SAYS SANCTIONS HAVE FAILED Gertrude Schraeder Greenslade things that the U.S. can do is to put its own economic and social house in order; to show to the Soviet Union and the rest of the world," she said. "The better we are, the worse they are going to look." it an that is functioning," she noted.

The United States' best weapon in dealing with the Soviet economy is offense, Mrs. Greenslade added. "I think one of the most important 12 percent of the Soviejt national product is spent for defense, while in the United States it is percent. The Soviet GNP is half that of the United States, though the former has about 40 By Maria Saporta SM The United States', first priority in East-West economic relations should be to prevent leaks of high-technology' products to the Soviet Union, according to an expert on the Soviet economy. Gertrude Schraeder Greenslade, a of Virginia professor of economics, has been in Atlanta for two weeks as the first scholar-in-resi-dence 1 with Emory University's program for Soviet and East European Studies.

think we should zero in on what kind of economic measures are real critical to our national security, and to me that is the hi-tech products that the Soviets can translate into military advantages," Mrs. Greenslade said. Most economic actions taken by the United States against the Soviet Union have failed, Such as the grain embargo, after the Soviet invasion If- it want, come 51 decline By Tom Walker 5HN Writer national financial institution has pre-, dieted a 5.1 percent decline in commercial -and': other non-residential construction in metro1 Atlanta this year, a development some local real estate experts would be happy to see, iChicago Title Insurance a major pri- insurer of property titles, projected $840 million in non-residential construction in an 18-county metro Atlanta area thisyear, compared with $885 million last year. into "It did Union. Afghanistan," Mrs.

Soviet of the has a openly "The on has she has been system producing About gross about 6 about even predicted in metro area non residential construction an economy that we in intensely dislike, but approximately 4.9 million square feet of office space were under construction in metro Atlanta at the end of 1983, when the overall vacancy rate was already 13 percent Carter noted that a record 3.8 million square feet of office space were absorbed locally in 1983, but he attributed that to a limited number of big transactions by a relatively few large space users, such as American Telephone Telegraph, International Business Machines Corp. and Kimberly-Clark Inc. "In short," said Carter, "the breadth of the absorption for 1983 was not exceptionally wide." He added that if the rising absorption triggers a new wave of widespread speculative construction, "there is cause for con-' cern." Nationally, Chicago Title Insurance projects total non-residential construction of $57.3 billion, more than a 10 percent increase over 1983. Los Angeles is expected to be the leading market, with $2.56 billion, or a gain of almost 8 percent. Among other top 10 cities, Chicago Title One of the busiest non-residential sectors in Atlanta is office construction, where some real estate experts would welcome a cutback in construction, lest the market become Frank Carter, president of Carter Associates a development and brokeraga firm, said, "Unless a proven demand for space dictates otherwise, we need to return in 1984 to the building levels Of 1982, when at the end of the year, a comparatively low 2.8 million square feet of space were under construction." By Carter Associates' own estimates,.