About That 100,000; Kudos for Ingram; Prediction for Aitken

A key number overlooked in last week’s initial blast of publicity on the $68 million makeover of the central plaza at the Segerstrom Center for the Arts: 100,000. That’s a conservative estimate from Segerstrom Center President Terence Dwyer on how many visitors will be drawn each year by the 30 or more weekends of free performances and other outdoor events expected in the renovated space. The center draws somewhere in the range of 300,000 to 500,000 to its indoor performances in any given year. The early estimate on the central plaza represents a hike of at least 20% on overall attendance—a nice stir for businesses in the South Coast Metro district … It’s early in the planning, and there’s still some money to raise—even with the $13.5 million naming gift from Julia and George Argyros—but look for at least one local brand to play a role. Word has it that innovations from Christie Digital Systems in Cypress are expected to bring a new perspective on everything from outdoor movie nights to showcases for the digital arts … A café that’s part of the makeover plan for the plaza is expected to have flat-screen TV technology woven into its design, leading the Insider to wonder if the Vizio brand founded by William Wang—a member of the Segerstrom Center’s board—might be part of the picture … Next week’s Business Journal will take a deeper look at the cautionary tale provided by the Forum for Corporate Directors breakfast panel at the Pacific Club last week, when a full house got a unique view of the Allergan takeover battle … Some nuggets in the meantime, starting with Cary Hyden’s new duties as chair of the FCD, succeeding Chris Cox … Former Allergan President Doug Ingram was a consensus pick of the panel for unsung hero in the defense against the hostile bid by Valeant and Bill Ackman’s Pershing Square, with a performance that allowed CEO David Pyott to focus fully on the would-be raiders … Final nugget: The legal team that stood its ground against the raiders for seven months before Allergan struck its $72.5 billion deal with Actavis will be honored by American Lawyer, which has named the transaction “Global M&A Deal of the Year” … Editor-at-Large Rick Reiff reports that friends packed the OASIS Senior Center in Corona del Mar for the 90th birthday of GOP stalwart Marian Bergeson, the first woman to serve in both the state Assembly and Senate. She shared the stage with another spry birthday celebrant, 82-year-old former Gov. Pete Wilson, who she served as Secretary of Education … A mostly Democratic crowd gathered for a retirement party at Pacific Amphitheatre for OC Employees Association boss Nick Berardino, who praised two rising stars in the crowd: former OC Register reporter Jennifer Muir, who succeeds him as the union’s GM; and Ashleigh Aitken, president of the OC Bar Association and his chairperson on the OC Fair Board. Berardino predicted Aitken would one day be governor … Additional birthdays recognized at the Black Chamber of Commerce of OC’s annual gala at the Disneyland Grand Hotel last week: Santa Ana College got a nod for its 100th, while the Orange County Hispanic Chamber and Vietnamese American Chamber of OC were recognized for their 30th anniversaries. The Black Chamber also honored Jordan Fourcher, project leader on the El Toro Plane Crash 50th Anniversary, and echoed Berardino with kudos for Muir.