EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
Compiled by Mike Mason
TOP STORIES
The Navy hopes to have a plan to dispose of El Toro by May 31, telling Irvine the Marines might move back to set up a boot camp and that some of the land likely will be sold to the highest bidder; the Navy said it would work with Irvine but made no formal pledge to back the city’s plan to turn the base into a park with homes, industrial space and education facilities Irvine officials proposed grinding up the El Toro runways and selling the crushed concrete to developers and public agencies building roads and parking lots Airport backers vowed to fight Measure W in court.
ENERGY
California officials reworked power contracts with five of two dozen energy suppliers covering $15 billion of the state’s $43 billion energy deals signed last year, cutting $3.5 billion off the bill for the next decade; as part of the deal, the state dropped complaints against San Jose-based Calpine Corp. and Baltimore-based Constellation Energy Group Inc. and reached an $8.5 million settlement with the power generators over power pricing Federal regulators ordered a hearing into whether California can void billions of dollars of contracts from other sellers The California Independent System Operator approved a masterplan for a wholesale electricity market, ahead of a September deadline when federal price caps expire Grid officials said the state would be free of blackouts this summer, though energy supplies could tighten after the cancellation or deferment of 62 power plants in recent months.
TECHNOLOGY
Irvine-based Interplay Entertainment Corp. sold its Shiny Entertainment unit and the rights to the “Matrix” video game to France’s Infogrames Entertainment SA in a $47 million deal that includes a combination of cash and notes Santa Ana-based MSC.Software Corp. blamed legal expenses and weak global sales for a first-quarter loss instead of an expected profit; shares fell 44% to 10.94 on the news Irvine-based Intersil Corp.’s buy of Milipitas-based Elantec Semiconductor Inc. is set to close by mid-May; Intersil raised its 2002 earnings forecast range after reporting that sales in the March quarter grew 5% to $134.1 million Costa Mesa-based Epoch Networks Inc. cut 40 jobs, or 30% of its workforce.
HEALTHCARE
Lake Forest-based Apria Healthcare Group Inc. hired Lawrence Mastrovich as chief operating officer; Mastrovich left Apria last year to be chief operating officer of Coraopolis, Pa.-based TechRx Inc.; Apria posted a 9.1% rise in first-quarter operating profit to $69 million on sales growth of 11% to $301.3 million Irvine-based Edwards Lifesciences Corp. got approval to market a new heart-valve repair system; the company also settled its patent lawsuit with Medtronic Inc. and is set to receive a one-time $20 million payment while granting Medtronic a license on two of its patents Chief Executive John B. Rush resigned from Irvine-based Micro Therapeutics Inc.; Chairman James M. Corbett assumed acting-chief executive duties.
GOVERNMENT
Directors of the struggling San Joaquin Hills toll road approved a merger with the more successful Eastern/Foothill toll road agency, which likely will vote on the bailout plan June 13; analysts said that without the merger San Joaquin could miss bond payments as early as 2005 and probably would default by 2012 The Orange County Transportation Authority said it would pay $72.5 million and assume $135 million in debt to buy the 10-mile 91 Express Lanes from Anaheim-based California Private Transportation Co.; the deal, which could be done by July, is expected to lower rates and clear the way for $1.6 billion in upgrades to the Riverside freeway New sewage systems rules in North and Central OC were set to be approved by water regulators late last week; the rules require cities to control fat, oil and grease and to streamline sewage repair and inspection standards County supervisors authorized $630,000 a year to lease added data storage after the county’s data processing department failed to anticipate higher computer use in the department Standard & Poor’s removed John Wayne Airport revenue bonds from credit watch, citing the airport’s rebound after the Sept. 11 attacks A bill to raise benefits by $100 a week for those unemployed last fall passed the State Senate but didn’t receive enough votes to go into effect right away; the retroactive payments, which could cost $540 million, are expected to go into effect in the summer Former GOP Assembly speaker Curt Pringle said he will run for mayor in Anaheim San Clemente City Manager Mike Parness said he is leaving to take the same job in Walnut Creek Officials in San Clemente, Dana Point and San Juan Capistrano plan to fight a state plan to build a second railroad line along the beach.
REAL ESTATE
Houston-based Nuevo Energy Co. outlined plans for a contested 900-home Tonner Hills community on 789 acres in Brea (see related story, page 1) A hot real estate market helped Irvine-based Fidelity National Financial Inc. and Santa Ana-based First American Corp. post strong income and revenue gains in the quarter vs. a year ago; Fidelity said first-quarter operating income jumped 80% to $157.8 million on a 41% gain in revenue to $1.1 billion, while First American’s operating profit more than doubled to $88.6 million on revenue growth of 30% to $1 billion.
WHAT ELSE IS NEWS
Walt Disney Co.’s operating income in the March quarter for its parks and resorts unit decreased 15% to $280 million from a year earlier on an 8% decline in revenue to $1.5 billion; Costa Mesa-based Emulex Corp. Chief Executive Paul F. Folino was named to head the Orange County Performing Arts Center; the center’s board has been rocked by the resignations of Broadcom Corp. founders Henry Samueli and Henry T. Nicholas III, who are being sued by an investors group that includes other board members
Seven former and current workers sued Laguna Hills-based Del Taco Inc. for racial discrimination.
Up:
Purchasing managers survey, to 56.3 in the first quarter after falling to 35.6 in the fourth quarter, the lowest level since 1988, according to Chapman University.
Up:
Orange County housing permits at 2,258 in the March quarter, up 30.9% vs. last year, according to the Construction Industry Research Board; apartment permits more than tripled to 838 units.
