Tri-County Produce goes on but co-founder will be missed
The concept of local sourcing of food was not exactly a hot trend in 1985 when Jim Dixon took over a fledgling farmer’s market operation named Tri-County Produce on lower Milpas Street. For three decades the company has flourished in a warehouse a couple of blocks from East Beach in Santa Barbara. It is there Read More →
Oxnard needs to get financial house in order
A Feb. 23 city council meeting in Oxnard underscores the fact that the region’s largest city still has some cleanup work to do after the financial scandal that engulfed the city several years ago. The accounting firm Eadie and Payne said that it needed until at least March 29 to prepare a schedule for the Read More →
Scalia’s death will impact cases of regional concern
The untimely death of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia over President’s Day weekend will likely alter the trajectory of any number of cases before the court. Two of them are particularly relevant to the Tri-Counties. In Friedrichs v. California Teachers Association, the justices appeared to be closely divided on the question of whether to uphold Read More →
SOAR revisions needed for agribusiness to grow
SOAR, short for Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources, has had a big impact on land use in Ventura County. Up for renewal after two decades, a revised SOAR should go before voters this fall. Among other things, SOAR needs revisions that carve out exceptions for food processing facilities. It needs to recognize the growing Read More →
CDC fails Chipotle by not finding outbreak source
The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has concluded its investigation into two E. coli outbreaks that sickened at least 60 Chipotle Mexican Grill customers in 14 states but said it was unable to determine the source of contamination. The CDC said it was probably a common meal item or ingredient. That conclusion is Read More →
North Santa Barbara County great location for spinout tech
The Third District Supervisor race in Santa Barbara County caught our eye recently when the topic of finding new homes for UC Santa Barbara spinout technology companies came up. Bruce Porter, a West Point alum and stockbroker, has suggested a more comprehensive effort to link UCSB technology startups to communities in north Santa Barbara Read More →
UI fund deficit requires multipronged approach
While California’s political class is salivating over the thought of tax windfalls and a spending spree, the state’s employers are coughing up $1.7 billion in payroll taxes this month to put a small patch over the state’s insolvent unemployment fund. That enormous haul was enough to close just a fraction of the $8 billion the Read More →
