AMUSEMENT
Knott’s Berry Farm in Buena Park plans to open two new slide structures at its Knott’s Soak City water park next summer. Soak City is across Beach Boulevard from Knott’s Berry Farm; both parks are owned by Sandusky, Ohio-based Cedar Fair L.P., a publicly traded amusement park operator. A Knott’s spokesperson said names for the new slides weren’t being disclosed. The park also plans to expand its main restaurant, Long Board’s Grill, and add tented structures guests can rent for shade.
AUTOMOTIVE
Irvine-based Kia Motors America Inc., the marketing and distribution arm of Kia Motors Corp., and Chino-based Hyundai America Technical Center Inc. will work with the Advanced Power and Energy Program at University of California-Irvine. The partnership will examine the potential of hybrids and all-electric vehicles to help the state manage its power grid. Kia will provide six Soul EV electric vehicles to the university for the work.
FINANCE
Irvine-based Pacific Premier Bancorp Inc. named Ronald J. Nicolas Jr. chief financial officer of the company and the bank. He succeeds E. Allen Nicholson, who resigned on May 31 to accept the CFO position at CVB Financial Corp., the holding company for Citizens Business Bank in Ontario. Nicolas was CFO at Banc of California Inc. in Irvine prior to resigning there in November.
INSURANCE
Newport Beach-based insurance broker Alliant Insurance Services acquired on undisclosed terms the Western Carwash Insurance Program in Sacramento. Alliant is a distributor of insurance products and services. The Western Carwash Insurance program provides property and liability and workers’ compensation insurance programs to 1,200 owners and operators of carwash businesses in 12 western states.
Huntington Beach-based insurance provider Confie acquired ExpressLink Inc. in Calabasas on undisclosed terms. Confie provides personal and commercial insurance nationwide. ExpressLink provides car insurance and extended warranties at auto dealerships. Brian Murphy will continue as president of ExpressLink, which said it plans no layoffs or relocations, a Confie news release said.
LAW
Costa Mesa-based Rutan & Tucker LLP created a public-private partnerships practice group led by William Eliopoulos, its Silicon Valley-based construction partner. The group counsels clients on public building, transportation, transit, power, and water infrastructure projects. It’s providing counsel to the California High-Speed Rail Authority and to one of two final bidders for the University of California-Merced 2020 Campus Expansion Project.
TECHNOLOGY
Nicholas Mitsakos was named interim chief executive of Irvine-based Ubiquity Inc. as part of its corporate restructuring. Former Chief Executive Chris Carmichael takes the chief creative architect role. Mitsakos currently manages Arcadia Holdings Inc., a holding company based in Palo Alto for his legacy investments, and San Francisco-based Matrix Capital, which focuses on public securities. Ubiquity, which also announced the spinout of a production studio, is searching for a permanent chief executive, as well as board members with expertise in augmented reality, virtual reality and holography.
Irvine-based Spireon Inc. said Kevin Weiss was named chief executive and that the company surpassed 3 million subscriptions for its GPS vehicle telematics software. The company, founded in 2003, has more than 500 employees in several U.S. offices. Weiss, who replaces Marc Brungger, will lead Spireon’s strategic growth plan, which includes expanded offerings. The company’s software provides businesses and consumers with Big Data insights to track, manage and protect their vehicles and fleets.
