After Ventura County court battle, pension tensions endure
By Austen Hufford / Friday, August 29th, 2014 / Central Coast, East Ventura County, South Coast, Top Stories, Tri-County Economy, West Ventura County / 5 Comments
For most of the summer, Ventura County was at the heart of a statewide debate over public-sector pensions. Reformers spent tens of thousands of dollars on a proposed referendum to change Ventura County’s public employee retirement system from a defined-benefit system to a 401(k)-style system. On Aug. 4, the battle ended when a judge struck Read More →

Former deputy sues Ventura County over tax break
By Stephen Nellis / Friday, August 29th, 2014 / East Ventura County, Law & Goverment, Top Stories, West Ventura County / Comments Off on Former deputy sues Ventura County over tax break
A former Ventura County Senior Deputy Sheriff who makes $139,771 a year in retirement is suing the county after his application for a service-connected disability designation that would lower his income tax bill was denied.

Cabbies hail help from Sacramento: Bills target Uber, Lyft
By Elijah Brumback / Friday, August 29th, 2014 / Central Coast, Law & Goverment, Small Business, South Coast, Technology, Top Stories, Tri-County Economy, West Ventura County / Comments Off on Cabbies hail help from Sacramento: Bills target Uber, Lyft
Two pending bills in the state Senate could significantly change the competitive landscape between booming ridesharing startups such as Lyft and Uber and the flagging taxi-cab industry in California.

29-acre home development in Fillmore gets council go-ahead
By Elijah Brumback / Friday, August 29th, 2014 / Central Coast, Columns, East Ventura County, Real Estate, South Coast, Tri-County Economy, West Ventura County / Comments Off on 29-acre home development in Fillmore gets council go-ahead
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Stantec to buy tri-county engineering firm Penfield & Smith
By Staff Report / Thursday, August 28th, 2014 / Central Coast, East Ventura County, Real Estate, South Coast, Technology, Top Stories, West Ventura County / Comments Off on Stantec to buy tri-county engineering firm Penfield & Smith
Stantec, a large publicly traded design and consulting company, is acquiring Santa Barbara-based engineering firm Penfield & Smith. Terms of the deal, expected to close in October, were not disclosed. Penfield & Smith has regional offices in Santa Barbara, Camarillo and Santa Maria. The company had revenue of $16 million last year, according to Business Read More →
QAD’s second-quarter profits drop despite record revenue
By Staff Report / Wednesday, August 27th, 2014 / Banking & Finance, Personal Finance, South Coast, Technology, Tri-County Economy / Comments Off on QAD’s second-quarter profits drop despite record revenue
Shares of Summerland-based business software firm QAD fell Aug. 27 on news that the company’s second-quarter profits dropped 24.2 percent to $985,000. QAD reported record revenues and higher operating income during the second quarter. Its total revenue climbed 12 percent to a second-quarter record of $73.1 million, it said, up from $65.2 million in the Read More →
Santa Barbara chamber opposes anti-oil effort Measure P
By Staff Report / Wednesday, August 27th, 2014 / Central Coast, South Coast, Tri-County Economy / 3 Comments
Proponents of Santa Barbara County’s Measure P, an anti-fracking measure that could also shut down conventional oil and gas production, suffered a setback on Aug. 27 when the largest South Coast chamber of commerce said it opposed the November ballot initiative. The Santa Barbara Region Chamber of Commerce said that its board voted to “urge Read More →







