EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Compiled by Mike Mason
TOP STORY
Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger took office. His first action: Executive Order 1, which repealed the $4 billion car tax increase signed by former Gov. Gray Davis. Schwarzenegger called a series of special sessions to overturn several other recent measures, such as a law that allows illegal immigrants to get driver’s licenses. He also said he would move to put a $15 billion bond measure on the March ballot in a bid to cut the state’s budget shortfall (see related story, Schwarzenegger Steels Workers’ Comp Stance).
TECHNOLOGY
Lake Forest-based Western Digital Corp. said it plans to make disk drives for laptop computers by the end of next year … Costa Mesa-based Emulex Corp. named Jim McCluney as president and chief operating officer. McCluney, former head of recently acquired Vixel Corp., replaces Krik Roller, who was named president of Emulex’s worldwide sales … Anaheim-based Advertise-ment-Banners.com won $2.25 million in punitive damages against bankrupt Seattle-based X10 Wireless Technology Inc. Advertisement-Banners.com accused X10 of not paying for Internet advertising. Its total judgment against X10 is $6.6 million. The suit was filed in 2001 … Irvine-based technology services provider DynTek Inc. won a $7 million, five-year deal to manage New Hanover County, N.C.’s child-support program.
HEALTHCARE
Irvine-based Spectrum Pharmaceuticals Inc. said it’s in a second phase study of its EOquin treatment for patients with a type of bladder cancer.
REAL ESTATE
Miami-based homebuilder Lennar Corp. said it plans to move its regional headquarters to a 137,352-square-foot office building in Aliso Viejo at 25 Enterprise in the Summit Office Campus. The 7.5-year lease deal is for $27 million. About 500 workers will move from Mission Viejo and other Lennar offices to the new headquarters by mid-2004. Summit is owned by developer Parker Properties and Cigna Corp. … The state Wildlife Conservation Board wants a second appraisal on a parcel of the Bolsa Chica mesa owned by developer Hearthside Homes, a unit of Irvine-based California Coastal Communities Inc. The state is considering using funds from Proposition 50 to buy the land, where Hearthside has plans for 380 homes on 210 acres.
FINANCE
Newport Beach-based Pacific Investment Management Co., or Pimco, is among 16 mutual fund companies that allegedly paid Morgan Stanley to sell their funds, according to reports. The Securities and Exchange Commission is investigating the companies to determine liability associated with Morgan Stanley’s Partners Program. Morgan Stanley has agreed to pay a $50 million fine for not disclosing the fees to investors. Pimco, meanwhile, said it plans to put a 2% redemption fee on shares sold within 60 days of purchase in a bid to cut down on market-timing investors … Irvine-based New Century Financial Corp. said it could lose 60% of its lending business in New Jersey after the state passed an anti-predatory lending law. New Century, which makes home loans to borrowers with poor credit ratings, said New Jersey’s law puts too much liability on lenders and will undercut the secondary market for its loans. New Jersey said fees and interest rates on loans made by New Century and other subprime lenders are excessive.
WHAT ELSE IS NEWS
Irvine-based Freedom Communications Inc. would see its debt triple to $1 billion under its plan to let shareholders cash out of their stakes in the media company, according to a proxy statement. A vote on the plan, which would remake family owned Freedom’s board of directors and bring in two East Coast private equity firms as investors, is set for Dec. 17. Blackstone Group and Providence Equity Partners plan to pay $220 per share to those selling shares, with $7.29 a share of the acquisition price used to buy out outside investors who own part of Freedom’s 65 newspapers, which include the Orange County Register … Aliso Viejo-based Fluor Corp. said it won half of a $700 million contract to lead a group of companies building a chemical complex in the Shanghai Chemicals Investment Park near Shanghai, China. Fluor, meanwhile, said it has cut 16,752 workers in the past year, including 966,or 35% of its employees,in OC (see related story, page 7) … Shares of Foothill Ranch-based Wet Seal Inc. slumped 11% to 10 after the company warned its fourth-quarter loss would be bigger than expected as it cuts prices to clear out inventory ahead of the holiday season. About a year after joining Wet Seal, Chief Financial Officer William Langsdorf said he plans to resign in January for personal reasons. Meanwhile, the teen retailer reported a third-quarter operating loss of $11.9 million, versus a loss of $4.7 million a year ago, on a 6% decline in sales to $136.1 million … Costco Wholesale Corp. plans to appeal a ruling that nixed its proposed 143,000-square-foot store in La Habra because the retail chain didn’t consider the effect of traffic on nearby residents. A hearing is set for Dec. 5 … Irvine-based Taco Bell told its franchises to stop using green onions after the Food and Drug Administration warned that the vegetable might have caused recent hepatitis A outbreaks. Taco Bell hasn’t been linked to the hepatitis A outbreaks, but a Pittsburgh-area Chi-Chi’s restaurant, part of Irvine-based Prandium Inc., has been blamed for at least 510 cases. Mexican-grown green onions are among the suspects in that case … Newport Beach-based American Vanguard Corp. said it plans to buy the rights to Nuvan, a chemical used to control flies and other pests, from Switzerland’s Novartis AG for an undisclosed amount.
