$60M sought in business jet accident
The most disruptive accident at the Santa Barbara airport in decades has spurred a $60 million civil lawsuit between the parent company of one of the Tri-Counties’ biggest private companies and a French maker of corporate jets. The accident took place June 10, 2007, when a 13-passenger Dassault Mystere Falcon 900 ran off the main Read More →
CKE counts on viral media buzz for sales
CKE Restaurants, parent of the Carl’s Jr. and Hardee’s brands, is tasting success with an online marketing strategy that has racked up more 8 million views for YouTube videos about its burgers. The Carpinteria-based company put some of the video-sharing site’s biggest stars to work promoting its burgers. One YouTube star generated half a million Read More →
$75M estate
It’s been a bad year for California homeowners. Many have seen their property values plummet, and the luxury market is no longer insulated. The real estate market in and around Los Angeles has taken a hit, but one Ventura County luxury homeowner is adapting his strategy to fit the downturn. Instead of reducing the $75 Read More →
Insurance agent sentenced in annuity scheme
A former Santa Barbara life insurance agent has been sentenced to 90 days in jail and ordered to pay $2.1 million for misleading seniors in a scheme that left them paying penalties while he reaped $1 million in commissions. David Abraham, 48, of Santa Barbara, pleaded guilty to felony grand theft on July 9, the Read More →
Area investors acquire Bank of Santa Barbara
Bank of Santa Barbara is being sold to a group of investors headed by veteran Santa Barbara banker Eloy Ortega, the bank’s parent company said July 13. The exact price of the sale wasn’t disclosed. Ortega agreed to a cash payment of 1.6 times the tangible common equity of the $62 million Bank of Santa Read More →
Business bank scrambles to get capital
Banks large and small are feeling the pinch from the real estate downturn, and regulatory agencies have started asking banks to step up and amass more capital. While that may be relatively easy for some of the area’s big institutions, smaller community banks are handling the process differently. In Oxnard, Ventura County Business Bank President Read More →
Stimulus funds flood Tri-Counties
Funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act — the federal stimulus bill — are starting to percolate into the Tri-Counties, with millions of dollars allocated to infrastructure and job training programs. • Congresswoman Lois Capps (D-Santa Barbara), said that the Bureau of Reclamation will make available $20 million in federal economic recovery funding Read More →
