EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Orange County should dodge recession in 2002 and resume weak growth around midyear, Chapman University economists said in their annual forecast; OC will create about 15,700 jobs next year, a 1.1% increase and the lowest rate since 1993; local unemployment is pegged to hit 3.9% UCLA’s Anderson School economists forecast a moderate rebound in the U.S. economy in mid-2002 Edwards Theatres Circuit Inc., Newport Beach, named Ron Reid to succeed Stephen Coffey as chief executive when Coffey leaves at the end of the year; meanwhile, federal anti-trust officials asked for and received documents related to Edwards’ acquisition by Philip Anschutz, who also has bought four other large theater chains.
ENERGY
CalEnergy Co., Omaha, Neb., dropped a lawsuit against Rosemead-based Southern California Edison after the utility agreed to pay $400 million it owes alternative energy producers in the first quarter; Edison also agreed to a five-year deal to buy energy from alternative producers at a rate of 5.37 cents per kilowatt-hour starting in May.
FINANCE
Impac Mortgage Holdings Inc., Newport Beach, filed to sell $262.6 million in securities over time TLC America Inc., Brea, was ordered by a federal judge to repay $107 million to investors allegedly defrauded in a Ponzi scheme.
GOVERNMENT
A financial report to be included in ballot materials for an anti-El Toro airport initiative, designated Measure W, said the creation of a park instead of an airport will not require a tax hike but will cost the county more than 80,000 jobs and $6 billion in economic activity that an airport would generate Republican state Sen. Dick Ackerman of Irvine is set to face Democratic Attorney General Bill Lockyer in November after the other GOP primary prospect withdrew University of California, Irvine, physicist Ruqian Wu was elected a fellow of the American Physical Society; also, UCI hired renowned breast-cancer researcher Eva Lee from the University of Texas Health Science Center in San Antonio The Huntington Beach City Council voted to spend $611,000 to draw up a comprehensive water-quality management plan aimed at cutting water runoff pollution Debbie Cook was selected mayor by the Huntington Beach City Council for a one-year term Wayne Baglin was selected mayor of Laguna Beach Richard Dixon was named mayor of Lake Forest.
HEALTHCARE
An advisory panel recommended that the Food and Drug Administration approve Irvine-based Refractec Inc.’s technology for reshaping the cornea with radio waves to correct farsightedness Cardiac Science Inc., Irvine, received FDA approval to market its second-generation Powerheart defibrillator.
REAL ESTATE
The Irvine Company scaled back plans for Santiago Hills east of Orange; the company now plans to build no more than 2,500 homes on 1,400 acres instead of as many as 10,400 homes on 6,500 acres Supervisor Tom Wilson formed two groups of businesspeople, civic leaders and environmentalists to review Rancho Mission Viejo LLC’s plans for 14,000 homes, 5.1 million square feet of commercial space and some 15,000 acres of open space in South County Laguna Woods dropped its protest of the construction of 23 single-family homes by Rossmoor Partners, Newport Beach, on 10.6 acres of unincorporated land, in exchange for Rossmoor’s support for the city’s annexation of the parcel.
RETAIL
Anaheim-based CKE Restaurants Inc. reported a narrowed third-quarter loss and predicted it would return to profitability early next year; CKE’s shares fell 12% in what one analyst called a knee-jerk reaction to the loss.
TECHNOLOGY
DPAC Technologies Inc., Garden Grove, said it will increase its workforce by 15% to 20% and add a second production shift to keep up with demand for its computer memory products; the company’s shares rose 34% to 2.85 on the news Emergent Information Technologies Inc. sold its government services unit to L3 Communications Holdings Inc. for $40 million to pay off debt RF Micro Devices Inc., Irvine, will buy IBM Corp.’s global positioning system components development operations and intellectual property; RF Micro will add 15 IBM workers and apply for a patent Optical Sciences Co., Anaheim, received a $13.8 million Pentagon contract Conexant Systems Inc., Newport Beach, elected Hossein Eslambolchi, AT & T; Corp.’s chief technology officer, to its board.
TRANSPORTATION
John Wayne Airport asked the Federal Aviation Administration to investigate why Delta Air Lines MD-90 jets have blown tires on landing in OC 10 times since 1998; meanwhile Supervisors are considering raising fees at John Wayne Airport to make up a post-Sept. 11 revenue shortfall A Transport-ation Corridor Agencies committee voted to scrap a proposed 50 cent rate hike next year for FasTrak customers from other tollways; the agency itself is set to vote on the move this week.
WHAT ELSE IS NEWS
Walt Disney Co. plans to hire about 900 people on a temporary basis for the holidays through January Ropak Packaging, Fullerton, opened a 206,000-square-foot plant and sales office in Langley, British Columbia The Keith Cos., Costa Mesa, acquired Universal Energy Inc., Houston, for undisclosed terms Fluor Corp., Aliso Viejo, sold its Stich Equipment unit to Tractor & Equipment Co., Birmingham, Ala., for undisclosed terms A Santa Ana appeals court ordered ICN Pharmaceuticals Inc. Chairman Milan Panic to pay an additional $105,000 in child support for a son he fathered during an affair with former company employee Debra Levy; the court said DNA tests confirmed Panic was the father Mandalay Bay in Las Vegas sued Irvine-based Conference & Travel Management Inc. for canceling a five-day conference at the hotel after Sept. 11; CTM said it tried to reschedule the conference, but the hotel could not accommodate it in the first quarter so it went elsewhere Robert Gray, founder of Irvine-based St. John Knits International Inc., David Wilson, chairman of Wilson Automotive Group, and Rep. Loretta Sanchez were named to Chapman University’s board.
