Region
Now that the realities of recession have hit hard, it’s time for Santa Barbara County to launch a targeted and effective economic development initiative. All around us are examples of people doing a good job with limited resources. The Economic Vitality Corp. in San Luis Obispo, the EDA activities that are taking place under the Read More →
Oil field rejection shows state
Politics being politics and California being California, it was not totally surprising to see a perfectly sensible deal between environmentalists and the oil industry go down the tubes late last month. The State Land Board’s decision to reject a proposal by Plains Petroleum to abandon four offshore platforms and an unsightly refinery in return for Read More →
Economy uproots hotel plans
Just a few months ago, the future of the hotel industry in the Tri-Counties looked clear. Smaller, nimbler, niche-oriented hotels were going to be the wave of the future. But the credit crunch has put a number of these plans on hold. Construction at Fess Parker’s Waterfront Hotel has been stalled; the restoration of the Read More →
Oil spill
The 40th anniversary of the Santa Barbara oil spill, widely credited with helping give birth to the environmental movement, would not seem to be a time to pay some new respect to the free enterprise system. After all, the Jan. 29 offshore spill, which polluted beaches in Santa Barbara and Ventura counties, led to a Read More →
Harbor, 101 power past recession
While the overall economy struggles to gain altitude, here are two signs of improvement. First, a turnaround at Channel Islands Harbor. The latest development is the hiring of Lauterbach Associates, an Oxnard-based architecture firm, to transform the Port Royal restaurant site into the new home of the Ventura County Maritime Museum. Relocating the museum is Read More →
How Geithner can
Here’s a can’t-fail idea for getting the economy moving again — and preventing the big guys from getting all the government handouts and tax breaks. We’re proposing a new Treasury Department program for small businesses. Just for kicks, let’s call it The Geithner Exemption. Under The Geithner Exemption, any one of the nation’s 6 million Read More →
Property crime hurts bottom line
Property crime is economic crime. We haven’t seen the latest data, but from news reports and conversations with our colleagues in the business world, there seems to be a sudden increase in office break-ins, smash-and-grab car theft, identity-theft and bank robberies. It’s easy to blame the recession and shrug things off. But victims of these Read More →
