FINANCE
Anaheim-based auto-loan specialist Gateway One Lending & Finance LLC agreed to a sale to a bank holding company that plans to keep local management in place. The deal is with Wayzata, Minn.-based TFC Financial Corp. Terms were not disclosed. Gateway One has an auto-loan portfolio of about $406 million. TFC has $18.8 billion in total assets with bank branches in the Midwest, South Dakota and Arizona.
REAL ESTATE
Newport Beach-based developer Irvine Company released Southern California Coastal Mountains to the Sea: A Celebration of Open Space on the Historic Irvine Ranch. The coffee-table book is filled with photography of 50,000 acres that have been given to various public entities by the developer and now are “permanently preserved” and designated as a National Natural Landmark by the U.S. Department of the Interior. Irvine Co. Chairman Donald Bren transferred the final 20,000 acres to Orange County last year (see related OC Insider item, page 3). The land includes a system of hiking and bicycle trails, educational and other programs amid natural features ranging from coastal areas to Limestone Canyon. The 50,000 acres account for more than half of the original Irvine Ranch, which started in 1866 with 93,000 acres. Proceeds from sales of the book will go to the Irvine Ranch Conservancy, a non-profit established by Bren.
A Newport Beach-based developer won a $50.3 million judgment against a one-time partner on four projects in Los Angeles, including a renovation of the Hollywood Palladium. A Superior Court jury in Los Angeles ruled in favor Newport Capital Advisors’ claim that Wilton, Conn.-based Commonfund Realty Investors, a non-profit that invests on behalf colleges and other schools, “repudiated” a joint venture. The jury awarded Newport Capital $16.3 million and another $34 million in punitive damages. Commonfund said it plans to appeal the verdict and judgment.
Santa Ana-based Grubb & Ellis Co. struck a financing deal with Irving, Texas-based C-III Capital Partners LLC, and is in negotiations with “regarding a strategic transaction.” The deal calls for a C-III affiliate to invest $10 million in Grubb & Ellis through the expansion of an existing $18 million credit facility the brokerage inked with Santa Monica-based hedge fund Colony Capital LLC earlier this year. Grubb & Ellis has struggled to remain profitable through much of the commercial real estate downturn. It has been eyeing potential financing deals and exploring a potential merger or sale since March.
TECHNOLOGY
Data storage equipment maker Emulex Corp. suspended operations at a subcontracted manufacturing in Thailand due to flooding there. The company said the building sustained some damage but equipment, inventory and finished products were spared by a move to a higher floor. Emulex is one of several Orange County-based companies that have seen disruptions to operations in Thailand, which has borne the brunt of severe flooding caused by a heavy monsoon season punctuated by typhoons.
Santa Ana-based networking equipment maker Silex Technology America was sold for approximately $28.3 million to Murata Machinery Ltd. in Kyoto, Japan. Silex Technology America is a subsidiary of Silex Technology Inc., also in Kyoto. It employs about 200 workers here, and plans call for it to continue operations here without interruption, according to the company.
Irvine Sensors Corp. in Costa Mesa plans to sell its thermal imaging business to Vectronix Inc. in Switzerland for an undisclosed total of cash. Irvine Sensors makes infrared and other cameras along with image processers and software. Irvine Sensors’ board has approved the deal, and shareholders are expected to vote on it next month.
ECONOMIC INDICATOR
UP: Retail spending in Orange County for the year ended June 30, according to data on Measure M collections. The measure imposes a half-cent of sales tax here and sends the money to the Orange County Transportation Authority. The agency reported a 6.5% increase to $236.2 million in Measure M revenue for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. It was the first increase in four years.
