Pacific Capital hires troubled-loan czar
Santa Barbara-based Pacific Capital Bancorp, the struggling parent of Santa Barbara Bank & Trust, has named Paul Alexander to oversee the team that addresses the company’s troubled assets, the source of many of the bank’s capital woes over the past year. Since last spring, Pacific Capital has been under a voluntary agreement with regulators to Read More →
Where the rubber meets our road rage on repairs
Headed northbound on Highway 101 in late January, a car driven by one of our staff literally went airborne when it went over a large bump just past the Ventura city limits. The car landed with a crunch as it smacked the bottom of a pothole. Some $300 later it’s back to normal — and Read More →
Green districts garner attention
A few weeks ago our news pages touched on a special kind of special district — one that promotes and funds green energy projects. Santa Barbara County and San Luis Obispo both are considering such districts, though with slightly different approaches to funding. And the idea caught the attention of The Economist, which wrote about Read More →
Controversial Oxnard smelting plant is on the market again
The former Halaco smelting plant in Oxnard is on the market again. The 10.7-acre site at 6200 Perkins Road is being marketed by Ventura County’s Troop Commercial Brokerage, which is hoping a buyer converts the controversial property to a clean job site. The property served as a smelting plant for Halaco Engineering from August 1965 Read More →
Jobs agenda meets politics of obstruction
When Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger showed up in San Luis Obispo on Feb. 8 to make his pitch for a $500 million plan for job growth and green tax credits, he was preaching to his kind of business leaders. Central Coast Republicans and Democrats alike often find common ground with the governor’s mix of faith in Read More →
