Retail market heats up again in Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo counties
The Tri-Counties are finally seeing some retail leasing action again, with everybody from large national chains to local mom-and-pop shops penning deals on spaces. It’s an encouraging sign that the economy is truly on the upswing. In Santa Barbara, national clothing retailer Love Culture announced that it has signed a 10-year lease on 7,000 square Read More →
A new deal for a new banking era
Every financial crisis breeds its own solutions. In the case of Pacific Capital Bancorp, the region’s largest financial institution, that solution is something called a “recapitalization.” As befits the era of the hybrid, the proposed $500 million cash injection by Dallas-based Ford Financial Group is part sale and part workout, all done with a wink Read More →
Lokey joins Mission Community Bank
San Luis Obispo-based Mission Community Bank announced May 3 that it is bringing former Rabobank executive and tri-county banking veteran Jim Lokey on as its executive chairman. Lokey was the president and chief executive officer of Arroyo Grande-based Mid-State Bank & Trust for seven years, until the bank was bought by Rabobank in 2007 in Read More →
Ethos Water co-founder talks innovation, "ethical brands" at CLU
Social entrepreneurship is an emerging blend of nonprofit and for-profit activity, and leading-edge companies are “ethical brands” such as Tesla or Grameen Bank that favor relationships over transactions. That is the view of Jonathan Greenblatt, a former Clinton administration official and entrepreneur who now teaches at UCLA. Greenblatt spoke May 4 at the latest installment Read More →
Editorial: Building sale smells like another state fiasco
For more proof that the administration of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger is living in a world of illusion, look no farther than some serious number crunching on his proposed sale of state office buildings. Once touted as a way to close the state’s budget gap, the plan to sell and lease back 11 flagship office properties Read More →
Keeping the seats full: Arts organizations battle the recession
A recession is never a pretty picture, especially for arts and culture nonprofits, which rely heavily on private donations and visitor attendance. Arts organizations around the country laid off workers last year, adopted hiring freezes or cut other expenses in response to a falloff in private donations and government grants. In California, the Santa Read More →
