Editorial: A stronger Santa Maria bodes well for the region
The city’s comeback is being fueled in part by the housing bust, which left it as a rare find in the region — a large community with affordable homes, condos and apartments and a skilled workforce.
Op/ed: Tri-county nonprofit trends to watch for in 2014

As one of the largest employers in the Tri-Counties and a provider of vital services, the nonprofit sector is critical to the region’s well being. Let’s look at trends nonprofits will experience in two key areas for 2014: fundraising and marketing.
Editorial: Drones could still bring billions despite FAA setback
Ventura County’s bid to become a Federal Aviation Administration test area for unmanned aerial vehicles, or drones, came up short on Dec. 30, when the FAA announced that six other states had finished first in a competition that attracted 25 applicants.
Five tri-county economic trends we’ll be watching in the New Year
Conventional wisdom holds that with a federal budget in hand, a financial system on the mend, rising housing prices and steady job growth, 2014 ought to be a pretty darn good year.
Editorial: Big banks commit to local communities
Rabobank announced an investment of $1 million into a small-business loan fund run by the Economic Development Collaborative of Ventura County and Union Bank unveiled a multimillion-dollar investment that allowed the Channel Islands YMCA to return the nonprofit’s regional headquarters to downtown Santa Barbara.
Year of awards and new hires positions PCBT for growth in 2014

Pacific Coast Business Times has undergone a substantial expansion during 2013, so I thought I would exercise my editor’s prerogative and talk a little about what we’ve accomplished this year and where we are headed in the New Year.