Zaragoza in the middle
With the seating of John Zaragoza as its newest supervisor, Ventura County is launching into a new era. Gone is the contentious and uncooperative John Flynn, whose last term was marked by infighting and a mean-spirited effort to derail progress on a number of fronts. The region’s largest county — and its most fiscally sound Read More →
Entrepreneurs remembered
During 2008 we marked the passing of some remarkable entrepreneurs. Two that stand out are Herb Peterson and George Bliss. Peterson was a Chicago native and ad executive who worked on the McDonald’s account and helped create the persona of Ronald McDonald. Bitten by the entrepreneurial bug, he moved to Santa Barbara and created the Read More →
Oprah a role model for neighborhood celebrities
Until just a few days before Christmas, Oprah Winfrey’s presence in the Tri-Counties was much like any of the other dozen or so members of the entertainment and business elite. Her semi-secluded life included social events held in tents on a lawn adjacent to her Montecito estate. Her purchases put smiles on the faces of Read More →
Granada needs your help
Michael Towbes and his family have generously offered $5 million in matching grants to close the funding gap on the restoration of Santa Barbara’s Granada theater. This is a project that has elevated the performing arts game across the Tri-Counties, creating a Broadway-class performance venue that’s right in the heart of the region. We encourage Read More →
California suffering from internal injuries
Just as the 1990s ended with global problems looking smaller and smaller, the first decade of the 21st century is ending with mega-problems looming everywhere. These are big things that really demand more than Band-Aids and quick fixes. Here is a closer look at four of them: • California’s budget mess. All of the parties Read More →
Time to rethink area economic development
You know that the economy is in deep recession when movers and shakers in greater Santa Barbara start using those two dreaded words: “economic development.” Never a shrinking violet when it comes to politics, Carpinteria City Councilman Joe Armendariz has come close to touching the third rail of South Coast politics by calling for “resurrecting Read More →
More is less when buyouts occur
The sale of Mentor to Johnson & Johnson, announced earlier this month, punctuates the need for a bigger conversation about economic development in the Tri-Counties. That’s because we are increasingly losing our middle class of companies and relying more and more on risky startups for job growth. True, J&J — like Allergan, Citrix, Teledyne, Raytheon Read More →
