Northern Colorado Briefs Greeley’s Ramada sold at auction

GREELEY — One of downtown Greeley’s premier hotels, after a years-long fight to stay solvent, closed March 22 after U.S. Bank took possession with a $411,000 public auction bid on the 100-room Ramada Inn.

Denver owner Phillip Urban had failed to make payments on a $1 million loan on the property from the Bank of Commerce in San Diego. The public trustee’s sale notice showed Urban owed more than $999,000 on the property.

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Neither U.S. Bank nor the Fort Collins attorney who represented it at the auction announced plans for the hotel. The hotel at 609 Eighth Ave. was built in 1974 as a Holiday Inn, briefly operated in 1995 under the Camfield II Hotel name, then was purchased in November 1995 following a Chapter 11 bankruptcy.

Greeley owners Steve and Sue Baldwin then added it to the Ramada chain. During the 1998-1999 academic year, the University of Northern Colorado contracted with the Ramada to provide overflow housing for students awaiting permanent housing in UNC dormitories. The Baldwins sold the hotel to Urban last June.

Sitel shuts down Fort Collins site

FORT COLLINS — Sitel Corp., the Baltimore-based chain of contract call centers, closed its Fort Collins telemarketing office March 24. Company officials said the closure of the 8-year-old Fort Collins operation, and the loss of 64 jobs, came as a result of the company’s change of business focus. The Fort Collins employees had been in telemarketing jobs, what Sitel calls “outbound selling.” Sitel is now focused more on providing technical support and receiving “customer care” calls than in sales solicitation. A company spokesman said increased emphasis on Internet and e-tail sales contacts made call centers like the one that operated in Fort Collins obsolete.

The company employed 114 people at the site until last year, when cutbacks began that reduced the workforce by nearly half. Sitel operates a global network of more than 75 customer management centers handling about 1 million telephone calls a day in more than 25 languages in 18 countries.

Atrix takes new drug to FDA

FORT COLLINS — Atrix Laboratories, Inc. (Nasdaq: ATRX) submitted an “investigational new drug” application to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, speeding the process to bring its prostate cancer-fighting drug delivery system to market.

The treatment uses Atrix’ patented Atrigel drug delivery technology to administer leuprolide acetate over a 120-day period to treat patients with advanced prostate cancer.

“The strength of results from our ongoing Phase III clinical trial for our 30-day leuprolide product has accelerated filing of this IND,´ said David Bethune, chairman and chief executive officer of Atrix. “This is another step in the development of a multiple line of products for the treatment of prostate cancer; a market estimated to exceed $1 billion in worldwide product sales annually.”

Leuprolide is a hormone that reduces testosterone levels to inhibit prostate tumor growth. Similar to the 30- and 90-day products Atrix is developing, the 120-day product uses the Atrigel system containing leuprolide acetate. The 120-day delivery system is injected subcutaneously as a liquid, where it solidifies and releases a predetermined dose of leuprolide over a continuous period as it is bioabsorbed.

Stone Lion closes

FORT COLLINS — The Stone Lion Bookstore has closed its doors, citing increased competition from the Internet and large chain bookstores.

The Stone Lion has served Fort Collins since 1982, most recently at 107 N. College Ave. The store was owned by Ed and Susan Stuessie, who purchased it in 1996 from Jacques Rieux and Donna Bathory. The store employed 13 workers.

The Internet has taken an increasing share of book sales from independent booksellers. Additionally, Barnes & Noble, one of the nation’s largest book chains, operates a store on South College Avenue in Fort Collins. The Stone Lion experienced a decline in sales of two-thirds during the Christmas season, from which the owners were unable to recover.