July 19, 2026

		

Jorge Mercado

Jorge Mercado is a staff writer with the Business Times. His beats include technology, agriculture, cannabis, energy and the environment, and higher education.


| Sunday, April 26th, 2026

From wealth to waste: Project ReWear impacting closets and the environment

Columns, East Ventura County, Latest news, left, Subscriber content

After 24 years, Kimberly Lau decided she wanted to leave the wealth management business. Nothing was particularly wrong; she just knew she wanted to make a bigger difference. And she ended up finding that passion in an unexpected place — her teenage sons’ closets. “Especially a few years ago, I would help them clean up, Read More →

| Sunday, April 26th, 2026

PCBT’s 2026 Hall of Fame Honoree: Joey zumaya

Latest news, Santa Barbara County, Top Stories, Top Story

Joey Zumaya’s rich family ancestry can be traced back to Lieutenant José Francisco Ortega, the first commander of the Santa Barbara Presidio.  The year was 1782. The American Revolution was still being fought and the Central Coast was part of Spanish California. “When you see the name Ortega — like Ortega Street — that’s my Read More →

| Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026

Teledyne announces record first-quarter results

Earnings, East Ventura County, Latest news, left, Subscriber content, Technology, Tri-County Public Companies

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| Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026

Firestone Walker snaps up Stone Brewing

Central Coast, Latest news, San Luis Obispo County, Subscriber content, Top Stories, Top Story

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| Monday, April 20th, 2026

Central Coast unemployment dips back below 5% in February

Central Coast, Columns, Economy, Latest news, left

In an effort to catch up on previous reports, the California Employment Development Department has released unemployment numbers for February. Announced April 17, the unemployment rate for the Central Coast saw a shift in February, dropping from a 5.03% unemployment rate in January to a 4.8% in the most rate in the most recent report. Read More →

| Monday, April 20th, 2026

Radius Q1 report highlights record-breaking sales volume

Latest news, Real Estate, Santa Barbara County

Santa Barbara County’s South Coast commercial real estate market started off the new year with a bang, carried by the largest non-hotel CRE deal ever completed in the area, according to Radius Commercial Real Estate’s Q1 report. Announced April 20, the south coast CRE market sales volume hit $361 million across 40 transactions, a record-high, Read More →

| Sunday, April 19th, 2026

From design to AI, 2026 SCBT winners break the mold

Latest news, Santa Barbara County, Subscriber content, Technology

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