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Jim Walter Homes Closing; Job Losses Include 45 In Tampa

Tribune file photo by JIM REED (2003)

Jim Walter Homes struggled through several unprofitable years recently.

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By SHANNON BEHNKEN | The Tampa Tribune

Published: January 6, 2009

Updated: 01/06/2009 12:30 pm

TAMPA - Tampa-based Walter Industries Inc. announced today that it is closing its Jim Walter Homes subsidiary.

Jim Walter Homes has built more than 350,000 homes since it opened in 1946, but it has not been profitable in several years.

The closure will result in 230 jobs lost nationwide, including 45 at the company's headquarters in Tampa.

"The story of Jim Walter Homes began as World War II ended and soldiers came home to pursue the American Dream," said Walter Industries Chairman Michael T. Tokarz. "Regrettably, it ends at a time when the fundamentals of the homebuilding industry have deteriorated in ways never seen before."

The company expects to record a pre-tax charge of $8 million to $10 million in fourth-quarter 2008 related to the closure of the business.

Walter Industries has businesses ranging from mortgage financing to coal mining.

Reporter Shannon Behnken can be reached at (813) 259-7804 or sbehnken@tampatrib.com.

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