Stories in this week’s Orange County Business Journal
TOP STORIES
Jonas Bevacqua, the 33-year-old cofounder of Irvine-based clothing maker Lifted Research Group Inc., died May 30 at his home in Laguna Beach. An autopsy last week failed to determine a cause of death. Medical examiners now are awaiting results of blood and toxicological tests, which could take six to eight weeks. Investigators have ruled out homicide. Bevacqua started LRG with Robert Wright and Charlie Moothart in 1999. The company has estimated yearly sales of about $200 million and makes clothes inspired by hip-hop music, urban fashion and skateboarding. LRG has strong ties to hip-hop music and sports, with a number of stars serving as models. Bevacqua was known for flashy clothes, hats and oversized jewelry. In 2007, LRG was honored by the Business Journal as one of the county’s fast-growing private companies, with Bevacqua impressing the crowd of businesspeople with his eloquence and flare. He was of Vietnamese descent and grew up one of eight children, seven of whom were adopted, all of different ethnicities. LRG designs and markets its clothes from a 110,000-square-foot facility in Irvine.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority elected Tom Umberg to replace former Anaheim mayor Curt Pringle as its chairman. The board oversees development of a publicly financed 800-mile high-speed system that’s expected to connect Anaheim, Los Angeles, the Bay Area, Fresno and San Diego. Umberg is a former state assemblyman who represented areas of North Orange County for three terms as a Democrat. He defeated Pringle in his first race for the Assembly in 1990. Umberg has been a member of the rail board since 2008 and works as a lawyer for Manatt, Phelps & Phillips LLP’s office in Costa Mesa.
ECONOMIC INDICATOR
UP: Hiring plans among executives here, according to the Orange County Business Leaders Survey by the Paul Merage School of Business at the University of California, Irvine, and Allen Matkins Leck Gamble Mallory & Natsis LLP. Two-thirds of 130 respondents said their companies plan to add jobs this year, with one in five indicating an increase of 10% or more.
REAL ESTATE
Santa Ana-based real estate brokerage Grubb & Ellis Co. plans to continue to seek suitors on a possible a sale after a 60-day exclusivity pact with an investor passed last week. Grubb got $18 million in financing from Los Angeles-based hedge fund manager Colony Capital LLC in March. The deal gave Colony—led by billionaire real estate investor Tom Barrack—60 days to consider a larger investment in Grubb, whose stock has been battered by the commercial real estate downturn as well as an ill-fated combination with Santa Ana-based NNN Realty Advisors in 2007. Grubb said it has made “significant progress” in the potential sale of Daymark Realty Advisors, a recently formed subsidiary that runs its tenant-in-common portfolio of about 30 million square feet.
FINANCE
Opus Bank agreed to leases for six branches in Southern California. Opus is officially based in Redondo Beach and maintains its executive headquarters in Irvine. It’s also negotiating leases for 11 new branches, including its first in Northern California. Opus has $708 million in assets and nearly $294 million in deposits. It made its first acquisition outside Southern California in March, striking a deal for Everett, Wash.-based Cascade Bank as part of plan to become a big regional presence along the West Coast.
Pasadena-based OneWest Bank FSB laid off 65 workers at its Financial Freedom reverse mortgage business in Irvine. OneWest inherited the unit when it bought Pasadena-based IndyMac Bank it 2009 in the wake of IndyMac’s shutdown by federal regulators. OneWest said it plans to exit the reverse mortgage business but will continue to service loans in its current portfolio.
TECHNOLOGY
WebVisible Inc. completed the relocation of its headquarters from Irvine to Los Angeles. The venture-backed company sells subscription-based software that helps small and midsize businesses place online advertising. It has more than 100 employees. Most had been based in Irvine.
EDUCATION
Shares of Santa Ana-based vocational school operator Corinthian Colleges Inc. rose after the Education Department issued regulations that allow more time to adjust to new federal rules on loan repayment and student debt levels. Corinthian and other school operators have until 2015 to meet the requirements, instead of an originally proposed 2012 cutoff date. Federally backed student loans make up the majority of revenue for Corinthian, which has about 105,000 students at more than 100 campuses in the U.S. and Canada.
OTHER NEWS
The Little Mermaid ride opened at Disney California Adventure in Anaheim. The ride is the latest addition as part of a renovation for the Disneyland Resort, which includes California Adventure, its sister Disneyland Park and the Downtown Disney District shopping center.
