Education
The U.S. Department of Education will forgive $171 million in debt owed by former Corinthian Colleges Inc. students, according to news reports. That number could increase based on the department’s review of other students’ relief claims. The Santa Ana-based for-profit schools operator filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy last year and closed remaining campuses. It’s been ordered to pay $1.1 billion in civil penalties and restitution to former students.
Economy
A report released by Chapman University in Orange indicates a softening of OC economic and employment growth. Its A. Gary Anderson Center for Economic Research forecasts job growth of 2.5% here this year to about 1.58 million. Local employment grew 3.2% last year (see related OC Insider item, page 3; Op-Ed, page 48).
Education
University of California-Irvine’s Long Institute received $2.75 million from the Long Family Foundation to expand interdisciplinary China research with the goal of broadening the focus of the institute, which was renamed the UCI John S. and Marilyn Long U.S.-China Institute for Business, Law and Society.
Finance
Kodiak Capital Group LLC in Newport Beach agreed to buy up to $1 million in common stock of Evans Brewing Co. in Irvine. The private equity firm agreed to buy shares at about $2.50 apiece, depending on trading levels. Evans makes and sells craft beer to restaurants and retailers under a capacity of about 11,000 barrels a year.
Healthcare
Newport Beach-based Blueprint Bio Inc. received $7.5 million in Series A funding. It’s developing biomarkers for use in personalized medicine. Biomarkers are measurable substances in an organism whose presence indicates disease, infection or environmental exposure. Murrieta-based Forentis Partners LLC provided the funding.
Hospitality
SCG America will develop the Grove District Hotel Resort Development, a stalled 5-acre resort with up to 769 rooms and 39,000 square feet of meeting space in Garden Grove, according to the company.
Media
Firebrand Media LLC in Laguna Beach will launch Pacific Coast magazine in September to cover the “iconic West Coast lifestyle” from Baja to British Columbia, said Chief Executive Steve Zepezauer. Justine Amodeo will edit the quarterly publication, and Denise Adams was named publisher.
Real Estate
Concert Golf Partners in Newport Beach bought Crestview Country Club in Wichita, Kan., on undisclosed terms. It typically buys properties in the $4 million to $10 million range and now owns and operates 13 private golf clubs. The company plans to buy seven to nine more, according to Managing Partner Peter Nanula.
Restaurants
Slapfish Restaurant Group LLC plans franchised locations in six states. The parent company of the Fountain Valley-based fast casual seafood chain said it signed a multiunit operator of other restaurants to open 50 Slapfish locations in Utah, Idaho, Arizona, Nevada, Colorado and Texas. The chain has six locations—five in Orange County and one at Los Angeles International Airport—its website says.
Services
Drybar Holdings LLC in Irvine sold a minority stake to Roark Capital Group, an Atlanta-based private equity firm, for an undisclosed amount. Drybar has about 60 locations and is on track to have more than 75 by year-end. It provides blow-dry services and distributes a line of hair styling products and tools.
Technology
Irvine-based Ingram Micro Inc. is cutting 937 workers at a wireless device repair and distribution center in Fort Worth, Texas, by September, according to filings with the Texas Workforce Commission. About 175 of affected staffers are Ingram employees, the remaining 762 contractors.
Tourism
Visit Huntington Beach plans to promote Surf City USA under the phrase “The Soul of SoCal.” The organization markets Huntington Beach as a business and leisure destination. “We committed to a deep dive” of research that showed the city was about “endless summer, flawless waves, laid-back luxury and an unhurried, welcoming culture full of life,” said Chief Executive Kelly Miller.
