November 25-December 8, 2014 Section A

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 1

ege The Coll s es Of Busin ion at r t Adminis B At CSUL

Health Wise Diabetes And You r Diet

om A Classro s eum u M Is Not A 4 . g P e Se

See Page 23

lbbusinessjournal.com

November 25-December 8, 2014

City Auditor

Chassis Fleet

Laura Doud Discusses Oversight Of City Spending And Much More

As Congestion Issues Continue, Port Of Long Beach Takes Action ■ By SAMANTHA MEHLINGER Senior Writer n order to help alleviate conIBeachgestion at the Port of Long (POLB), the Long Beach

■ By SAMANTHA MEHLINGER Senior Writer

Nick Schultz is the executive director of the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network, a governmental workforce development organization administered by the City of Long Beach. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

ong Beach is one out of L only four cities in California to have an elected, rather than appointed, city auditor. In her position, Long Beach City Auditor Laura Doud is charged by the city charter to ensure city funds are spent efficiently and effectively.

Now, four months into her third term, Doud has pioneered many audits of city departments and divisions, several of which have garnered national awards. A 2013 audit of city parking citation collections, for example, revealed the city hadn’t collected $18 mil-

Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network Continues Expanding Efforts To Serve Local Employment Needs ■ By SAMANTHA MEHLINGER Senior Writer

(Please Continue To Page 16)

nemployment rates are U dropping steadily and the economy has gained back some

Laura Doud ran unopposed this year for a third term as Long Beach City Auditor. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

footing, but there are still many people – job seekers and business owners alike – who need assistance meeting employment needs.

In Long Beach and surrounding cities Signal Hill, Torrance and Lomita, that’s where the Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network comes in.

Serving those four cities with about a $15 million budget and 50 employees, Pacific Gateway is tasked with meeting the needs of youth ages to 14 to 21, adults who have never been employed or are underemployed, dislocated workers and the business community.

The organization also serves other workforce investment networks and their boards, which were formed under the national Workforce Investment Act of

Long Beach Business Journal 2599 E. 28th Street, Suite 212 Signal Hill, CA 90755-2139 562/988-1222 • www.lbbusinessjournal.com

PRSRT STD U.S. POSTAGE

PAID Long Beach, CA PERMIT NO. 254

1998 to offer workforce development services.

“For the Los Angeles Workforce Investment Board (WIB), we actually operate their (Please Continue To Page 10)

Board of Harbor Commissioners approved a proposal by Chief Executive Jon Slangerup on November 13 to create a temporary storage yard for empty containers on Pier S. The storage yard is meant to take pressure off terminals, which have been so congested with ongoing peak season shipments that truckers have been unable to drop off empty containers in a timely manner.

“We were hearing from beneficial cargo owners and we confirmed with some of our terminals that the yards were so congested that they were not allowing empty containers to be brought in,” Dr. Noel Hacegaba, POLB chief commercial officer and managing director of commercial operations, told the Business

Journal. When a truck is unable to drop off a container, that delays it from picking up its next cargo or dropping off its chassis for use by (Please Continue To Page 12)

Belmont Pool Funding Questions Linger Over Its Replacement ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer

A

community event held late last month gave residents the chance to say their goodbyes to the Belmont Pool, which now sits idle, awaiting its date with the wrecking ball. The (Please Continue To Page 11)

Auto Dealers – A Look Back Can Long Beach Attract Auto Dealers?

Or Is That Road A Dead End? ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer s city leaders continue to discuss how to attract more retail businesses to Long Beach, some have suggested auto dealerships as a good way to shore up the city’s leaky tax base.

“I mean, the price of a car – it would take an awful lot of bathroom towels to achieve the same level of sales tax,” said Mike Conway, Long Beach director of economic and property development.

In a recent interview with the Business Journal, former 3rd District Councilmember Gary DeLong said the city should be focused on attracting businesses that sell “big ticket” items such as cars.

“I think we should make an earnest effort to bring auto dealers back as much as we can,” he said.

Many of the city’s younger businesses and residents might be (Please Continue To Page 14)

A

Automobile Digital Gadgets Sales Of Plug-in Vehicles Show Promise See Pages 14 & 15

Jim Willingham purchased a Buick dealership located at 1881 Long Beach Boulevard in 1961. He grew his business to include Subaru, Jaguar, Saab and Lincoln Mercury dealerships. An increase in crime in the 1980s led Willingham and other local dealers to negotiate with Long Beach to develop an auto mall.

After lengthy light rail construction on Long Beach Boulevard caused business to plummet, and negotiations with Long Beach broke down, Willingham and the other dealers left the city to form the Signal Hill Auto Center. Today Willingham, along with his son, Brad, owns Boulevard Buick/GMC/Cadillac on Cherry Avenue. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 2

INSIDE THIS ISSUE 2 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

3 Newswatch 3-New Director Of Long Beach Airport 3-City Council Reduces Some Fees For CUPs/Zoning 4-Long Beach City Hall News In Brief 4-Local Water Shortage 6-Defining What Is A Nightclub 6-New Marine Safety Chief Named 8-Councilman O’Donnell To Vacate Seat For Assembly 12-Coastal Commission Approves Outlets At The Pike

14 Auto Industry 14-Auto Dealers – A Look Back, continued from Page 1 14-Sales Of Plug-in Vehicles Show Promise 15-Autos Have Lots Of Digital Gadgets, But . . .

16 Q&A With Auditor Laura Doud 20 In The News 20-Drive-through Starbucks Opens At Signal Hill Gateway 20-Pine Avenue Pop-up Shop MADE In Long Beach 21-Blake Christian Named One Of Top 10 Accountants 21-Linda Alexander New Head Of Nonprofit Partnership 21-Home Depot Assists American Gold Star Manor

22 Perspective Realty Views Real Estate After The Mid-Terms By Terry Ross Effective Leadership Green And Growing Or Ripe And Rotting By Mick Ukleja HealthWise Diabetes And Your Diet By Holly Hackman EarthTalk Dealing With Mounting ‘E-Waste’

Section B Guide To Annual Events In Long Beach And Retail Real Estate • Revisions Proposed For

@LBBizJourn GET ALL THREE FOR FREE . . .

DIGITAL DIGIT TAL

edition

W WWW.LBBUSINESSJOURNAL.COM WW.LBBUSINESSJOURNAL.COM City’s Mills Act Program • Universal Technical Institute Breaks Ground On Long Beach Campus

NOW HIRING

• Leases And Transactions

The Long Beach Business Journal is seeking to hire an individual with graphic design/prepress experience. Must have knowledge of Adobe Photoshop, Illustrator, InDesign and Acrobat.

Immediate opening. This position is part-time.

For Inquiries, Call Heather at 562/988-1222

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 3

NEWSWATCH November 25-December 8, 2014

Long Beach Business Journal 3

Association of Airport Executives Shreveport Airport (AAAE).

He is currently a member of the Airports Council International – North Manager Named America Board of Directors as well as chair of the AAAE Diversity Committee.

To Top Long Beach City Council Calls For Airport Post Amendment To Reduce

■

Bryant Francis Tapped By City Manager West; Begins January 5

■ By GEORGE ECONOMIDES Publisher City Manager Pat West has once again reached into the State of Louisiana for an airport manager. Following a national search, West has selected Bryant L. Francis, director of the Shreveport Airport Authority, to lead the Long Beach Airport. Bryant begins his new job on January 5.

F r a n c i s replaces Mario Rodriguez, who left to lead the Indianapolis Airport Authority after serving as Long Beach Bryant L. Francis director for more than four years and overseeing the construction of the new concourses and other airport improvements. Prior to coming to Long Beach, Rodriguez served as deputy director at the Louis Armstrong New Orleans International Airport.

“Mr. Francis is a dedicated, accomplished professional who will provide strong leadership and strategic planning for Long Beach Airport,” West said in a statement. “He will reach out and work collaboratively with all stakeholders, including the community, tenants and our commercial and general aviation partners.”

“I am passionate about aviation, am committed to fostering positive relationships, and will ensure that Long Beach Airport provides the absolute best service possible to its travelers and to all our business and community partners,” Francis said in a statement.

As Long Beach airport director, Francis is responsible for overseeing all airport operations, leases and finances, as well as the Airport Noise Ordinance, community outreach and capital improvement projects.

Francis has more than 18 years of experience in aviation. Prior to Shreveport, he served as deputy director of properties and business development for Idaho’s Boise Airport, director of aviation real estate for the Wayne County Airport Authority in Detroit, deputy director of aviation marketing and communications and air service development for Palm Springs International Airport, and airport operations representative for Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport in Atlanta.

He earned a bachelor of science in aviation management from Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University in Daytona Beach, and is a certified member of the American

Posting Costs For Zone Changes And CUPs ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer A recent Long Beach City Council agenda item, sponsored by 5th District

Councilmember Stacy Mungo, could make life a little easier for businesses applying for zone changes and conditional use permits (CUPs). The city council voted 8-0 to approve the item, which directs City Attorney Charles Parkin to amend the existing municipal code and make more efficient the noticing process required of business owners seeking certain permits. Sixth District Councilmember Dee Andrews was absent for the vote.

Under the current municipal code, businesses applying for zone changes and CUPs are required to publicly post notice of proposed changes. The law requires the Long Beach Development Services Department to print the notices on irregularly sized sheets that are produced at Staples. The amended municipal code

will change that, allowing for a reduction in costs.

“Now we can bring a lot of that in-house if we standardize with 11x17 [inch] paper, which you can print at any normal printer in the office,” Mungo said.

The amended code could also see noticing done more frequently through social media.

“Currently a lot of our constituents engage with city hall through Facebook and Nextdoor and Twitter. We would be able to reach more people more quickly through online posting. Facebook can be reposted and reposted with an easy click,” Mungo said.

Development services is funded through fees charged to constituents. The (Please Continue To Next Page)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 4

NEWSWATCH 4 Long Beach Business Journal (Continued From Page 3)

A Classroom Is Not A Museum I had a nightmare. On the History Channel’s “Pawn Stars,” a hopeful customer tried to sell things found in a typical classroom: a chalkboard, VCR, TV and an overhead projector. Rick Harrison, with his famous negotiation skills, chuckled, “Best I can do is 2 bucks!”

We are not that far from classrooms becoming museums of antiquated

By Nupur Shah, equipment, but we can Head of Instructional change this and we can Technology, College of Business change this now.

Administration, CSULB The adoption of emerging technologies by educators is inevitable. Despite significant studies, the questions that still remain unanswered are, will technology enhance education for the next generation of students and how will it contribute to their success? After surveying the faculty at the College of Business Administration (CBA) at CSULB, we have recently made technological improvements by renovating ten classrooms (with plans to renovate twelve more) to provide tools for a better teaching and learning environment.

In these classrooms, faculty have computers outfitted with industry standard software that allows them to digitally capture everything written on the whiteboard and instantly share it with their students. Students are able to wirelessly project various devices onto a TV monitor and share ideas with the entire class. In addition, two of those classes have been renovated to meet the growing demands of active-learning flipped classroom environments. In those classes, time is devoted to teachers and student teams work on projects and assignments that have become primary learning vehicles. In addition, the College has been an early adopter of the Google Glass Explorers Program to research how wearable technology can enhance the teaching experience. With all these investments, students now have collaborative spaces in which they can work on projects in the CBA Open Access Computer Labs.

Technology-literacy is simply not attainable overnight because it is constantly changing. It requires thoughtful planning and proper training along with on-site technical support. This is why the CBA Instructional Technology support team provides fourteen hours of on-site technical assistance every day – a necessity in supporting a multitude of technology in the classrooms.

At CBA, we strongly believe that the technology in a classroom can enhance education and contribute toward student success. However, the first step is to realize that the status quo is no longer an option – nor is letting classrooms become museums of antiquated equipment.

(The College of Business Administration at Cal State Long Beach is an AACSB accredited business school that provides undergraduates and MBAs with the knowledge and skills necessary to be successful in their careers and to propel the economic development of our region.)

goal of the amendment, Mungo said, is to reduce costs for business owners.

“If you can reduce the costs by bringing printing in-house, reducing the cost of postage and a few other key things, then you pass the savings on to the business owners so everybody wins,” Mungo said.

Once the city attorney finishes drafting the amendment, the new law will go before the planning commission before being considered for final approval by the city council. ■

Long Beach City Hall News In Brief ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer Labor Agreement – On November 11, the council considered a recommendation to direct City Manager West to negotiate a citywide project labor agreement (PLA) with the Los Angeles and Orange County Building and Construction Trades Council. The item would require West to review the development of a local hire policy and report back to the council within 90 days. After lengthy discussion, Eighth District Councilmember Al Austin made a substitute motion to approve the recommendation but eliminate requiring local hires for specialty contracts exceeding $25,000. The motion also called for an annual report on the cost and value of the PLA with the option to contract a compliance officer. The substitute motion passed by a vote of 6-2. Councilmembers Suzie Price and Stacy Mungo voted no. Councilmember Dee Andrews was absent for the vote.

Redevelopment Properties – On November 11, the council considered approving an item to request that City

November 25-December 8, 2014

Commissioners Issue Stage 1 Water Supply Shortage On November 20, the Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners declared a Stage 1 water supply shortage.

The declaration puts into effect a two-day-per-week limit on landscape watering through the end of March 2015.

Under the declaration, watering days are limited to Mondays and Wednesdays.

“As drought conditions continue to worsen, it is in the city’s best interest that the Long Beach Board of Water Commissioners declare a Stage 1 water supply shortage, reducing landscape watering to two days a week through the winter,” Board President Harry Saltzgaver, said in a statement. “The board is enacting these extra restrictions as an effort to conserve even more water rather than raise customer rates.”

According to a press release issued by the department, Lake Oroville, which feeds the State Water Project, is expected to reach its lowest level in history before December 31.

In a statement, Water Department General Manager Kevin Wattier said the declaration was aimed at avoiding the impact of “the severe water shortage that will occur if key watersheds experience only normal to below-normal precipitation this winter.” ■ Manager Pat West and Director of Economic and Property Development Mike Conway create a policy to allocate proceeds from the sale of city-owned properties to fund blight removal. During council discussion, 7th District Councilmember Roberto Uranga made a substitute motion requesting that West report back to the city council with a (Please Continue To Next Page)

Outgoing Long Beach Chief of Police Jim McDonnell (left) is pictured with incoming the chief, Robert Luna, at a November 17 press conference.

City Manager Patrick West appointed Luna, a 29-year veteran of the department, to the position on November 11, following McDonnell’s election as Los Angeles County Sheriff. “I have one hundred percent confidence that Chief Luna will lead our department with integrity, strength, and a commitment to community policing,” Mayor Robert Garcia said in a statement. “He will ensure that we build a department for the 21st century.”

West added, “Chief Luna’s dedication to the police department and the entire community is impressive. He has demonstrated an abiding love for the City of Long Beach, its people and it diverse neighborhoods. Luna has served in a variety of roles, including 13 years on the executive management team and most recently as deputy chief of police. He earned a masters in public policy and administration and a bachelor of science from California State University Long Beach. He is a graduate of Harvard University’s Senior Executives in State and Local Government program and the Delinquency Control Institute (DCI) at the University of Southern California. He also graduated from the FBI’s National Executive Institute and National Academy. Luna’s appointment was effective November 22. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 5

plan as to how the dissolution of the city’s former redevelopment properties will take place and how the revenues will be utilized. The motion failed for lack of a second. Councilmember Austin made a second substitute motion to approve the item but to include communities of interest on the westside. The motion failed by a vote of 4-4 with Councilmembers Suja Lowenthal, Price, Patrick O’Donnell and Mungo voting no. Third District Councilmember Price then made a substitute motion to exclude a stipulation that proceeds from the sale of the properties should be tracked and directed to the project areas where the former Long Beach RDA properties are located. The motion failed by a vote of 4-4 with Councilmembers Lena Gonzalez, Uranga, Austin and Rex Richardson voting no. A substitute motion was then

made by 9th District Councilmember Richardson to approve the item and request that West allocate up to 25 percent of proceeds from the sale of cityowned properties for citywide priorities.

The motion carried by a vote of 8-0. Sixth District Councilmember Andrews was absent for the vote.

Airport Noise Ordinance – At the November 11 meeting, the city council voted 8-0 to approve a study session educating councilmembers on the history, importance and background of the city’s airport noise ordinance. The session will involve city management, the city prosecutor and the city attorney. Input from community stakeholders will be accommodated. The session will be scheduled within 45 days.

Sales Tax Data – The city council unanimously approved at its November

11 meeting a resolution that allows elected officials, under certain circumstances, the ability to review confidential sales tax information. The resolution authorizes City Attorney Charles Parkin to approve elected officials, on a case-by case basis, to review retailer-specific sales tax data for the purposes of financial planning, economic development and business tax compliance.

SEC – On November 11, the city council approved by a vote of 8-0 a staff recommendation to decline voluntary selfreporting of the city’s bond issuing transactions to the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). In March the SEC issued a continued disclosure cooperation initiative offering favorable settlement terms to bond issuers and underwriters who voluntarily self-report material misstatements made in bond offering docu-

ments. Prior to the vote, Councilmember Mungo said there was no need for the city to participate in the initiative. “We are choosing not to report because we have nothing to report. We’ve done a great job.

Congratulations to the city staff,” she said. Councilmember Andrews was absent for the vote.

Campaign Rules – On November 18, the council voted 8-0 to approve an amendment to the municipal code, effectively changing the rules governing campaign disclosure statements. The new law will allow qualified campaign expenditures made after the date of the primary election to be considered as expenditures for the runoff election. Fourth District Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the vote.

Airport Fund – By a vote of 8-0 the (Please Continue To Next Page)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 6

NEWSWATCH 6 Long Beach Business Journal

City Hall News In Brief (Continued From Page 5)

council approved a recommendation to increase appropriations in the airport fund by $10,697,988 for passenger facility charges approved by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration. Federal law allows local airport sponsors to charge a passenger facility charge up to $4.50 per enplaned passenger. The money will be used to fund capital improvement projects including the construction of a $3.1 million air carrier ramp and terminal area roadway improvements. The city council approved the recommendation on November 18. Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the vote.

Magnolia Industrial Group – The council voted 7-0 to approve a recommendation to extend the Magnolia Industrial Group Property and Business Improvement District through November 30, 2015. The group assesses a fee on Westside businesses and provides security for the area. Councilmembers O’Donnell and Richardson were absent for the vote. The extension was approved on November 18.

Downtown BID – The council voted 80 to approve and extension of the Downtown Long Beach Associates (DLBA) business improvement district.

The extended agreement will last through

November 25-December 8, 2014

Capt. Medina Gonzalo Is New Marine Safety Chief Capt. Gonzalo Medina has been promoted to serve as the city’s chief of marine safety effective December 5. A 19-year veteran of the Long Beach Fire Department, Medina was appointed to the position by Fire Chief Mike D u R e e . “ G o n z a l o Medina has a long history of dedicated and professional service in the Long Beach Fire Department, and he will provide steady leadership for the marine safety division,” DuRee said in a statement. The marine safety division is responsible for the safe and lawful use of the city’s beaches and waterways and includes rescue boat operations, lifeguards and a swiftwater rescue team (Photograph courtesy of the City of Long Beach).

December 31, 2015, The council approved the extension on November 11.

Fourth District Infrastructure – A city council vote of 8-0 approved expenditures of 4th District funds for various infrastructure improvement projects.

Included in the funding was $20,000 for

Read the book:

UNIVERSE IN DISENCHANTMENT www.cuturaracional.com.br • www.trueoriginworld.blogspot.com www.nalub7.wordpress.com • www.youtube.com/porfiriojneves

“TRIAMBOSFHERE” (Porfírio J. Neves) Some “certain things” in life cannot be explained in words.

That is where the new words get in to enable us to clarify what is unknown to the human mind.

This word, for instance, leave people with Goosebumps as it happened a long time ago with me when I first came across the new words in the book Universe in Disenchantment.

The literal definition given by the author is: “Triambosphere is the passage of a body from one atmosphere to another, connecting the artificial and deformed cosmos with the virgin Rational stratosphere, which is pure, clean and perfect.”

Having said that, the term seems to relate to the transmigration of bodies, according to the Rational Knowledge, that bodies of energy migrate into other bodies of energy, from the deformed energy to the virgin Rational energy.

Let’s go over some points which I find important to consider and that is: we are two in one.

This dichotomy is in the concept of body and soul and it can even be seen as a permanent and persistent truth at other levels of consciousness.

It is also in regards with to the origin of the human being and his origin. Thus if there is the material body, there is inherent to it its animating force or the REASONING. Even in Nature one finds its dual composition: electric and magnetic; and many define it as an electric and magnetic system, positive and negative. Again, we are two in one by Nature’s perspective.

The quantic intertwined aspects are beyond the scientific phenomenon, it suggests that two lives can be intertwined to form one sole. In this sense, we have our own dual existence, in which we are observers of this reality. In short we are two in one as creature (quantic observer) and creature (dual behavior).

Remember two in one: superior and inferior; in which the inferior is also two in one – that is – left and right.

This reality is the cause of a lot of confusion in the approach of the three unanswered questions by humanity, because, whenever one thought of the verticalized aspect of life, one could not see this dichotomy either.

Who are we? From where we come? To where are we going?

Summing up, for extended analysis can still be made in regards with this topic, Triambosphere is in the vertical perspective of creator and creature, whereas metempsychosis or transmigration of souls – two in one (horizontally) – puts the soul as energetic impetus (electric

Planning Commission ‘Defines’ Nightclub On November 20, the planning commission voted unanimously to clearly define what constitutes a nightclub. The resulting definition described a nightclub as as any bar, cocktail lounge or dance club with an entertainment permit for amplified music and dancing, in conjunction with alcohol sales. A city memo provided to the commission prior to the vote indicated that the zoning code requires a conditional use permit for a nightclub; however, the zoning code offered no definition of nightclub.

In the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District (DDED), sales of alcohol for on-premises consumption are permitted by right and don’t require a conditional use permit. As a result, conflicts arose between certain businesses and adjacent residents in the DDED. In August of 2013 the city council placed a moratorium on the issuance of entertainment permits within the Downtown Dining and Entertainment District. The council will now consider whether or not to approve the planning commission’s definition. ■ cameras in Orizaba Park, $410,000 for a storage structure and field stands at Whaley Park baseball field and $275,000 for a baseball field enhancement at Stearns Park. Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the November 18 vote.

Naples Seawall – Construction on the Naples seawall began last week along a portion of the Rivo Alto Canal in Naples Island. The section of the wall stretches from Ravenna Bridge to the eastern portion of the Toledo Bridge. Phase one of the project, which is budgeted at $9 million, is financed through Tidelands Operations Funds and is expected to be completed June 2015.

Airfield Construction – On November 18 the city council approved by a vote of

and magnetic) which causes the blood to circulate within the body.

Now, then, bear in mind that the literal definition of Triambosphere distinguishes the deformed artificial cosmos from the virginal Rational stratosphere.

The artificial deformed cosmos relates to the material body, which has in itself the duality “Body and Soul”, electric and magnetic. It is, thus, the second world, resulting from an organization composed by seven parts, in which the Reasoning is the animating element and is materialized by seven particles of life, provided by the creator. In this cosmos, the material or animal being is living.

The virginal Rational stratosphere is the part relating to the “Creator” or the body of the Inhabitant of the Rational World which is materialized as the Pineal Gland. This materialization was composed into three fundamental parts which gave start to the “Matter”: Heaven, Earth and Water which are the beginning of a created object, pure, clean and perfect (The Rational Plain) and its subsequent degeneration and deformation into the artificial deformed cosmos.

There you have it: two worlds with a passage in-between, for those who were in the deformed cosmos had no conditions to realize the existence of the virginal Rational stratosphere. They thought that the existence horizontal duality was vertical.

And why couldn’t this passage between these two world be perceived by humanity. A good justification to that resides in the fact that the word Triambosphere contains 3 terms: TRI – AMBOS – PHERE. Tri is for a sequence of 3 simultaneous events which can only be understood in the Rational Culture, namely: the dematerialization of the Inhabitant of the Rational World, which was isolated in the matter, through the development of the Reasoning.

The Reasoning is the creator of this material world and is awaiting its awakening to return to the Rational World. It is the owner of the Free will which is the cause of this world; as a consequence, it got kept in the matter, and it is suffering the consequences of its actions.

2) The demagnetization of the electric magnetic forces in the material body, when the material body starts being ruled by the Rational Force of the Reasoning known as the RATIONAL ENERGY. It is, as though, the ducts of forces in the material body had been filled by a sole Energy. The Material Body is, then, promoted – Paid Advertisement –

8-0 a recommendation authorizing City Manager West to execute an agreement with Reynolds, Smith & Hills as well as Parsons Brinckerhoff Inc. for as-needed airfield construction management. The amount of the contract is not to exceed $6,000,000 for a period of two years with an option to renew for two additional oneyear periods. Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the vote.

Petroleum Contract – The city council approved a recommendation authorizing City Manager West to execute a contract with Merrimac Petroleum Inc. to provide unleaded diesel fuel for city-owned vehicles and equipment. The 7-0 vote authorizes an amount of $6,000,000 annually (Please Continue To Next Page)

to a superior class of life, known as “RATIONAL APARATUS”.

3) The Rationalization of the “matter”, or better, the Rationalization of the individual with eternal life or BODY OF RATIONAL ENERGY, which is the creator of the microbes that form the material body. Again, the BODY OF RATIONAL ENERGY is the effect created by the RATIONAL WORLD INHABITANT that was materialized as REASONING MACHINE – the sole existential register that identified the Rational origin of the material body. The Rationalization involves both of them, in which they know and acknowledges their World of Race and return to it.

Two bodies into one: the body of the extinguished Inhabitant of the Rational World that was materialized. And the body of the eternal living being which is the cause of the existence of the matter – the creator of the microbial life.

All the spheres of life relate to all dimensions of the eternal life composed by the first world and its transitory lives or the beads (second world).

Thus, TRI –AMBOS-PHERE is a dimensional passage, in which the two go back to their World of Origin, THE RATIONAL WORLD, precluding their existence in the material world where everything is passing and transitory.

How on earth could we ever know of this passage. Then, it was nor in the thought neither in the imagination but in the development of the Reasoning.

The passage or death of the material body as it was understood did not take anyone to the RATIONAL WORLD – OUR WORLD OF ORIGIN – because the RATIONAL BODY OF ENERGY which gave cause to the existence of the microbe was kept in this dimension of deformed artificial cosmic life.

The true passage, Rational, happens while the material body is living; for it is still in life that the Development of Reasoning comes about and not in the death as it was thought.

The TRIAMBOSPHERE is the passage and not life after death. It is the true resurrection of humanity. And it is time now we meet this reality.

St. Francis of Assis used to say: “It is dying that we will be born to the eternal life; and this was Nature’s preparation through numberless transformations made by Nature that were called reincarnations by others.

Everyone will go back to their real WORLD OF ORIGIN, leaving the three dimensional world straight to the ETERNAL – the RATIONAL WORLD. THE BOOK UNIVERSE IN DISENCHANTMENT IS THIS DIMENSIONAL PORTAL which will very soon be fully open for the RATIONAL PROGRESS. EVERYONE WILL RETURN TO THE RATIONAL WORLD. OBS: This text will be evidently continued, for new information is always forthcoming through new illustrations in the RATIONAL BOOKS. For requesting the Book Universe in Disenchantment in California/USA, e-mail: euadorovoces@yahoo.com

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:47 PM Page 7

NEWSWATCH November 25-December 8, 2014 with a 25 percent contingency for an amount not to exceed $7,500,000 for a period of two years with an option to renew for an additional year. Councilmembers O’Donnell and Richardson were absent for the November 18 vote.

Pet Ordinance – At the regular November 18 meeting, the city council considered a recommendation requesting City Manager West and City Attorney Parkin to draft an ordinance requiring pet owners to spay or neuter their animals.

Vice Mayor Lowenthal made a motion also making it unlawful to sell dogs, rabbits or cats in any pet shop unless they are obtained from the city animal shelter, humane society, non-profit rescue organization, or are bred in Long Beach under a breeding permit or are AKC show certified. The motion carried by 8-0.

Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the vote.

Homeless Shelter – The council voted 8-0 at the November 18 meeting to declare a shelter crisis and suspend applicable provisions of local law in order to authorize a winter shelter between December 1, 2014, and March 15, 2015. The vote authorizes City Manager West to execute an agreement wherein the city will sublease 12,000 square feet of space at 6845 Atlantic Ave. to the Long Beach Rescue Mission for use as a homeless shelter. The monthly base rent will be $6,000. Councilmember O’Donnell was absent for the vote.

Park Naming – Two parks in the 6th District are closer to being named after

Long Beach Business Journal 7 Latina Superstar Jenni Rivera and the civil rights organization, the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). On November 20, the Long Beach parks and recreation department voted unanimously in favor of approving the names. The housing and neighborhoods committee as well as the parks and recreation commission will now consider the matter. “It was another great day for Long Beach,” said Councilmember Andrews in a statement.

“I want to thank all the community members that came out in support of the parks.” Jenni Rivera, an alumnus of Long Beach Polytechnic High School, was killed in a plane crash in 2012. The NAACP is the nation’s oldest and largest civil rights organization.

Airport Honored – On November 18, the Long Beach Airport was honored with the Helen Putnam Award for Excellence in Public Works, Infrastructure and Transportation. The award, presented to the city council by the League of California Cities, recognized the airport’s new concourse for providing travelers a unique and innovative space that serves as an ideal gateway to the city.

Modica Appointment – By a vote of 8-0 the city council approved the appointment of Tom Modica to the position of assistant city manager. Modica previously served as deputy city manager. Modica’s appointment was approved at the November 11 meeting. ■

28

& c Year ou s nti ng !

3225 E. P Pacific acific Coas Coastt Hwy. Hwy y..

FFast ast Delivery Deliver y Daayys a Week Weekk 7 Days

562.498.8788 562.498.8 788 www.bigepizza.com www .big epizza.com

listed doctors ted in ctors lis ongratulations ttoo our do CCongratulations

ooted as the the Voted V LASIK best LASIK in center in center Beach Long Beach

Give The Gift Of Sight 50% off LASIK

Official Eye Care Provider for Long Beach State Athletics

Eye Physicians of Long Beach Specializes in: Cataract Microsurgery CLUDING s• # ATARACT ICROSURGERY INincluding ©© Crystalens #RYSTALENS Glaucoma Management s• ' LAUCOMA ANAGEMENT & Surgery 3URGERY • Pterygium 0TERYGIUM Cosmetic ILLERS ND &Fillers s• # OSMETIC "Botox OTOX©© Aand

• IIndividualized s )ND VIDUALIZED !LL ,All ASELaser R ,!3)LASIK + • Eyelid Plastic Surgery s %YELID 0LASTIC 3URGERY Transplantation s #O• RCornea NEA 4RAN SPLANTATION • Diabetic Care s $IABETIC %YEEye E #ARE • Glasses and Contact ES s 'LASSES AND #ONTACT ,ENSLenses

The Most Advanced Technology In Cataract Surgery

Ask Us About LenSx®, Verion™ & Ora System®

w.eplb.com 6378 | ww www.eplb.com 801-6378 877) 801((877) 3325 Ave., Suite Beach, CA Verde Ave., 90808 Long Beach, Palo Verde CA 90808 103, Long 3325 Palo Suite 103,

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 8

NEWSWATCH 8 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

Councilmember O’Donnell’s Assembly Win Could Lead To Four-Month Vacancy For Council Office New Assemblymember To Step Down December 1; Mayor’s Office To Staff District Until Special Election Early In 2015 ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer With two years remaining on his term, 4th District Councilmember Patrick O’Donnell will soon vacate his seat to assume his new role as a state assemblymember. O’Donnell beat challenger John Goya in a November 4 runoff election for the 70th Assembly District. O’Donnell told the Business Journal he plans to resign his seat on December 1.

Long Beach Assistant City Clerk Poonam Davis said officials won’t proceed with an election to replace O’Donnell until the councilmember resigns.

“Once he resigns, then the council has 60 days to call for the election – declare a vacancy first, then call an election,” Davis said.

Once an election is called, the city has 120 days to hold the special election for a new 4th District councilmember. Davis estimated the cost at $180,000.

Though O’Donnell’s seat could remain vacant for as long as four months, Daniel Brezenoff, deputy chief of staff for Mayor Robert Garcia, said his office plans to oversee the 4th District office.

Fourth District Councilmember Patrick O’Donnell is stepping down from his city council seat on December 1 as he prepares to transition to Assemblymember O’Donnell, representing Long Beach, Signal Hill, Avalon and parts of San Pedro. He replaces current assemblymember, Bonnie Lowenthal, who is termed out. O’Donnell, a teacher in Paramount, served two four-year terms on the city council and was elected to a third term two years ago. He is taking a leave of absence from his teaching position while serving in Sacramento. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

“We will staff that office and we will be handling constituent services. We will make sure it’s a seamless process; there will be no lapse of service,” Brezenoff said.

However, during that interim until a new councilmember is elected, the city council will be left with eight voting members, with five votes required to pass most items.

In the 2012 April primary, a termed-out O’Donnell ran as a write-in candidate to retain his 4th District seat. He went up against business consultant Daryl Supernaw and retired Long Beach Police Officer John Watkins. After a recount, Supernaw was declared winner of the primary election by 13 votes. O’Donnell, whose name did appear on the general election ballot, won the runoff by 12.2 percent.

When reached by the Business Journal for comment, Supernaw stopped short of saying he will definitely run in the special election. In an e-mailed statement he said his decision will depend on support from campaign volunteers as well as whether questions over election issues can be dealt with.

“In the June 2012 runoff election, I beat the incumbent in the eastern half of the 4th District by 40 votes. Many questioned the voting results in the western half at the time. If we can get those issues resolved, I would certainly consider running,” the statement read.

Watkins meanwhile indicated he will run.

“I am planning on running, I’ve already got my team in place. We’re just waiting for the vacancy to be opened up,” he said.

Like 7th District Councilmember Roberto Uranga, Watkins collects a city pension making him ineligible to simultaneously collect a council salary.

Watkins said he plans to use the money he would normally collect from serving as a councilmember to instead fund district projects.

“It was never an issue in the last campaign. I was going to donate it all to charity, so it continues to not be an issue,” Watkins said.

While the city awaits O’Donnell’s official resignation, the councilmember said he plans to take a leave of absence from his job as a high school teacher. He added that he’s taken time in recent weeks to meet with some of the leadership in Sacramento.

“I met with the speaker of the assembly and laid out my priorities, which are education, and being a strong voice for the ports that are in the district,” O’Donnell said.

He added that serving the City of Long Beach has prepared him well for his future job.

“You can apply a lot of what I’ve learned in Long Beach to the state assembly from a budget perspective, a jobs perspective, a transportation perspective and the perspective of dealing with many interests that want to weigh in on issues. Long Beach is a good training ground for that,” he said. ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 9

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 10

NEWSWATCH 10 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment (Continued From Page 1)

services in the harbor and San Pedro, and we do the business portion of the services for Orange County,” Nick Schultz, executive director of Pacific Gateway, told the Business Journal in an interview at his office. “We’re an interesting WIB in that we’re the only one that services other WIBs as a provider. I think that’s a testament to some of our expertise,” he said.

Governmental workforce development agencies like Pacific Gateway are primarily funded through the Workforce Investment Act and by earning competitive grants.

Pacific Gateway is administered by the City of Long Beach.

Schultz is relatively new to Pacific Gateway, having been hired on as executive director in mid-June. He has a 20-year background in workforce development, most recently serving as the workforce investment board director for Alameda County in Northern California. Schultz said he made the move to Long Beach partially because of the city’s appreciation for workforce development as a key component in economic development.

So far this year, Pacific Gateway has helped place 2,407 adults and dislocated workers, as well as 800 youth, in jobs and has assisted 1,231 businesses. The number of businesses and youths supported in 2014 has increased since previous years, Schultz said. He estimated the total number of adults and dislocated workers serviced by Pacific Gateway this year has decreased from previous years because the unemployment rate has been decreasing and, as that occurs, demand for job placement services dips. In Long Beach, the current unemployment rate is hovering around 8.6 percent.

There are still plenty of people who need Pacific Gateway’s job placement services, however. For example, layoffs of more than 2,000 employees of The Boeing Company’s C-17 manufacturing program in Long Beach, which is being shuttered, have already begun in phases and should be complete some time next year when the last C-17 comes off the production line.

“As Boeing moves towards their closure, we’re on site to assist the impacted employees daily,” Schultz said. “We continue to work with Boeing to ensure that proper resources are going to be in place as all those folks eventually term out. We actually did an onsite job fair where we got 22 or 23 [aerospace and aviation industry] employers to come, including Northrop Grumman, SpaceX, Gulfstream,” he noted.

One of the principal services Pacific Gateway offers to the community is an online labor exchange where individuals may search for jobs, work on and post their resumes, and more. The network’s array of services for the unemployed, underemployed and dislocated workers also includes workshops, job training and even help registering for insurance through Covered California.

Next year, Pacific Gateway is going to advocate for better local hiring practices citywide.

“We’d like to see and are going to put forth some recommendations about what

Pacific Gateway’s Executive Director Nick Schultz says that so far this year, the agency has helped place 2,407 adults and dislocated workers in jobs, and has assisted 1,231 businesses.(Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

we call a first source hiring program,” Schultz said. “What that program would do is similar to a project labor agreement arrangement: it would leverage every city dollar in a process that ensures non-construction and service-related projects must attempt to procure human capital and net new jobs [hired] from the local community,” he explained. “We’re going to make a big push for that in the coming year.”

The number of businesses serviced by Pacific Gateway has increased this year due to the organization’s increased outreach efforts, Schultz said. To determine where to direct business outreach, Pacific Gateway relies on labor market data.

“We have some tools that give us some pretty strong data about what the industry clusters are in this area and how those clusters are primed for growth,” he explained. The industry clusters with the largest opportunities for increased employment and sustainable wages in the Long Beach area include health care, tourism and hospitality, and trade, transportation and logistics, Schultz said.

Pacific Gateway’s labor market analysis has revealed local small businesses currently hold the most opportunity for growth.

“At a minimum, 80 percent of the growth we hope to experience and should be able to take advantage of here in the communities we serve is going to come from businesses that right now employ less than 25 people,” Schultz said. As a result, Pacific Gateway is going to focus on expanding its small business outreach in 2015.

“In order to ensure we can capitalize on that forecasted growth, we have to make an extra effort to start to get to know the folks who are employing under 25 people so we can really be in a position to help them and facilitate that projected growth to the maximum over these next few years.”

Schultz sees Pacific Gateway playing an important role in the city’s revitalized economic development efforts that are underway through its newly restored economic development department.

“In the long term, I would love to be able to be at the front of the city’s business expansion and retention strategy. I think the data we have, the trends we’re seeing

and our ability to interpret those as well as the concentrated effort to validate that data with the business community gives us a unique insight into what’s happening on the ground,” he said. “There is an opportunity there to take that into a strategy that can, with the city’s combined capabilities, attract complementary businesses to move in and can help us as a city to market our assets,” he added. Schultz and the head of the economic development department, Mike Conway, meet regularly to discuss such strategies, he said.

The principal way Pacific Gateway helps both businesses and individual job seekers is through job training services, to which most of the organization’s budget is dedicated, according to Schultz.

To determine a business’s employment needs, Pacific Gateway directly reaches out “to try to understand what positions in their organizations support growth and what types of knowledge, skills and abilities really make a high-performing employee,” he explained. “We can do recruitment and hiring fairs and then, based on whether the business finds matches or not, we turn back around and train to help them fill some of the openings or do some on-the-job training,” he continued, adding that Pacific Gateway also works with outside entities such as Long Beach City College to provide specialized training.

Recently, Pacific Gateway helped a new business in North Long Beach, the Northgate Gonzalez Market, hire a big chunk of its more-than-180-person workforce, Schultz said. “We’re proud to say that 86 percent of the folks they hired were local Long Beach residents who came through the process here,” he emphasized. “And 40 of them started because of on-the-job training contracts that we put in place for them.”

Pacific Gateway continues to service more and more youth due to its success in securing competitive grants for youthrelated work experience efforts, Schultz said. “That will actually continue based on our financial situation into the next couple of years,” he said.

Pacific Gateway has a variety of programs aimed at placing youth in jobs and

Pacific Gateway Workforce Investment Network 3447 Atlantic Ave. Long Beach, CA 90807 562/570-9675 Toll Free: 1-800/292-7200 workforce.dev@pacific-gateway.org To contact the Business Assistance Team and learn more about its programs call toll free: 1-866/848-3321. internships, including Hire-A-Youth, which enables young people to gain work readiness training and a nationally recognized work readiness certificate and then get placed in a specialized internship or job. The organization also has a summer Youth Jobs Program in which young people gain about 100 hours of work experience at local schools, organizations and businesses. In addition, Pacific Gateway offers youth training academies in partnership with local businesses and groups that provide more intensive occupational training.

The organization also often engages with city and community partners to help youth in specific areas or with certain needs. In early November, Pacific Gateway helped 8th District Councilmember Al Austin’s office sponsor a Black College Fair at the Long Beach Convention & Entertainment Center. The event was held to inform local students about opportunities to attend historically black colleges. “About 5,000 people came through for that event,” Schultz said. “Being a part of the city structure, we’re pleased to have the flexibility to get out there and be the conduit for those types of things for residents.”

Pacific Gateway also recently assisted 6th District Councilmember Dee Andrews in holding a career exploration program for youth in his district. “Long Beach Memorial Medical Center brought them onsite in the hospital’s simulation lab to let them know about some health care careers. That was a really great program that I would love to replicate with the other districts in the city,” Schultz said. ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:22 PM Page 11

NEWSWATCH November 25-December 8, 2014

Long Beach Business Journal 11

Belmont Pool (Continued From Page 1)

pool, which was the site of Olympic time trials in 1968 and 1976, was declared seismically unsafe in 2013. A $4.6 million temporary pool was built to serve the community that same year, and remains open.

On October 21, following a series of study sessions involving community stakeholders, the city council voted unanimously to approve a new Belmont Beach and Aquatics Center, which will include two 50-meter pools (one indoor, one outdoor), a separate diving well and a general use whirlpool. The original design was expected to cost $99 million to construct, but, following community input, several new features were approved including an adjustable floor for one of the pools and increased seating capacity (to 1,250).

The new design is expected to cost $103.1 million.

An economic impact study, commissioned by the city and conducted by Cal State Long Beach Economics Professor Emeritus Joseph Magaddino, considered various seating configurations allowing various levels of competition. It was determined that a 1,250-seat arrangement would allow the facility to host competitions such as Olympic trials and NCAA division championships, and potentially bring the city an estimated $30,624,789 annually from lodging, food and retail expenditures.

In an e-mail to the Business Journal, Dino D’Emilia, vice president of construction services for Anderson Penna, the company charged with demolishing the Belmont Pool, said crews have begun removing old equipment and conducting hazardous materials abatement work. It’s estimated that demolition will conclude in late March. The California Coastal Commission still needs to approve the new facility’s construction and is expected to consider the matter in November 2015.

While financing for the new pool comes from oil revenue in the city’s tidelands fund, concerns have risen in recent months of a possible shortfall due to declining oil prices. According to 3rd District Councilmember Suzie Price, $66 million in tidelands funding has

Book Y Book Your Yo ou r Holiday Ho liday Party Par ty Today!

Today!

Existing Temporary Pool

Existing Footprint

Dive Well

Outdoor Pool 50m x 25m

Proposed Footprint Natatorium 50m x 25y Pool

Moveable Floor

already been appropriated and is available for the project. An October city memo stated that in order to address the remainder of the funding, City Manager Patrick West is expected to develop an alternative FY15 tidelands capital budget by the end of December “to address the changing situation.�

Price told the Business Journal that she will be scrutinizing various capital improvement projects in her district and potentially reprioritizing them. “It’s a matter that will be studied over the next couple of months to determine what projects are critical and which can be delayed,� Price said. “If you look at the f ive-year [Capital Improvement Plan] for the tidelands fund, you’ll see we have $15 million allocated to the Belmont Pier down the road in a couple of years. We may have to delay that.

That may be a project that is not of critical importance right now.�

Further questions about Belmont Pool funding were raised last week when an anonymous tipster told the Business Journal that $40 million appropriated for the pool project would soon be

Private Banquet Room for up to 55!

Catering for 20 – 5,000

‡ $OVR )HDWXXULQ LQJ 6WHDNV 7UL 7LLSS &KLFFNHQ 3ULPH 5LEE )UHVK )LVVK 6DQGZLFFKHV 6DO ‡ )DPLOO\ 2ZQHG 2SHUDWHG ‡ .LGœV 0HQXV ‡ &RFNWDLOO /RXQJH ZLWK 7 9 œV ‡ 7DEOHVLGGH 0DJLFF 6XQGD\ 1LJJKWV ‡ :DUP &RPIRUWDDEOHH %RRWKKV ‡ 5HVHUYDWLRRQV $FFHSWHG ‡ 'LQQH ,Q 2SHQ DW SP 0RQ )UL ‡ 2SHQ DW 1RRQ 6DW DQG 6XQ ‡ 7DNH 2XW $YDLODEOH 'DLOO\ DW DP ‡ %XFNHWV 3DUW\ 3DNV DQG 7UD\V ‡ +DSS\ +RXU 0 7+ 30 6DW 6XQ 30

Locker Rooms

Coupon p

Expires 12/30/2014

$5 off off a any ny y order of $25 5 or o more* more* *Cannot be combined with any other offerr, coupon or discount.

LBBJ

siphoned to the city’s public works department. When reached for comment, Assistant City Manager Tom Modica said this was not the case, adding that there were a lot of misconceptions floating around. “We’ll come back by the end of the

year with some recommendations and some predictions about what happens if oil is at a certain level . . . and what does that look like in the capital plan – what might not have funding in the future capital plan, what are some options.â€? â–

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/24/14 4:11 PM Page 12

NEWSWATCH 12 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

A H&M store is under construction at The Pike at Rainbow Harbor. The store is taking up 24,000 square feet of space previously used for eight retail pads, including Coldstone Creamery, which has moved directly next to the future retailer. The trendy men and women’s clothing retailer is set to open in the second half of 2015. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

California Coastal Commission Approves Outlets At The Pike ■ By SAMANTHA MEHLINGER Senior Writer DDR Corp, the property management firm for The Pike At Rainbow Harbor, received the official go-ahead from the California Coastal Commission on November 14 to reposition The Pike as an outlet center.

“These new developments at The Pike represent a great opportunity for Long Beach and we’re looking forward to a new era of growth and activity downtown,” Mayor Robert Garcia told the Business Journal in an e-mailed statement.

“The coastal commission’s approval clears the way for a retail outlet center

that will bring all kinds of entry and management jobs, sales tax revenue and visitors to downtown, which means our restaurants, hotels and other businesses will benefit as well,” Vice Mayor Suja Lowenthal told the Business Journal via e-mail.

Lowenthal’s 2nd Long Beach City Council District encompasses The Pike.

“I think the outlets will inspire our conventioneers to stay an extra day or two after their conference and I’ll bet some of our visitors come away thinking they’d like to live in Downtown Long Beach, so the exposure value is particularly exciting,” she said.

Approved plans include making façade alterations, adding square footage to existing retail pads, enlarging the central plaza, constructing a pedestrian bridge over Cedar Avenue to connect The Pike’s parking structure to the adjacent building off Shoreline Drive, landscaping and more. A graphic from coastal commission documents shows DDR plans a 21,900square-foot expansion of a building located between Cedar Avenue and Aquarium Way off Shoreline Drive onto property in front of the Hyatt The Pike Long Beach hotel. Long Beach

Development Services Director Amy Bodek previously told the Business Journal this expanded building would be about two stories tall.

DDR is currently working with national retailers to secure large anchor stores and other tenants, according to Matthew Schuler, director of communications for DDR. “Currently, plans call for five additional retail anchor stores and various specialty shops to accompany H&M and Restoration Hardware Outlet as the newest retail amenities at The Pike. We look forward to providing additional details as lease agreements are finalized,” he wrote in an e-mail to the Business Journal.

The first new anchor tenant, international clothing retailer H&M, recently began construction at The Pike and should be open by Spring 2015, according to a late October statement from DDR. The store is taking up eight vacated retail pads on two floors. The existing Restoration Hardware Outlet, located south of Shoreline Drive, is also currently under construction as it expands to take up vacant retail pads on the second floor above it. ■

Chassis Fleet (Continued From Page 1)

another truck. The chassis is the frame and wheels on which containers sit.

For months, truckers at both POLB and Port of Los Angeles have been suffering from a lack of chassis caused by a change in the way the chassis are managed. Prior to about a year ago, chassis were owned and operated by shipping lines and could be dropped off fairly interchangeably at various terminals. In the past year or so, however, the shipping lines divested themselves of chassis ownership, selling them off to three local companies that do not operate interchangeably, making it more complicated for truckers to pick up and drop off chassis. This issue has been compounded by shipments from large vessels carrying 10,000 twenty-foot equivalent units or more of cargo, creating a higher need for chassis at a time when there already aren’t enough to go around.

“This empty inner storage yard that we’re making available will allow these empties to be dropped off at that site, and the truck pulling that empty container can then take its chassis into a yard, pick up an (Please Continue To Next Page)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 13

NEWSWATCH November 25-December 8, 2014 import container and take it back through the supply chain,” Hacegaba explained.

“The idea is we’re enhancing space in our yards, while at the same time facilitating an increase in the supply of chassis.”

At the November 13 meeting, Slangerup called the empty container storage yard a temporary solution and noted he would be bringing the harbor commission a proposal for the port to purchase and operate its own chassis fleet to take pressure off the supply chain by the end of November.

The backed-up terminals and slower truck turn times may be a result of more than the chassis shortage and a longer-than-normal peak season, according to the Pacific Maritime Association (PMA). The PMA represents carriers and terminal operators in ongoing labor contract negotiations with the International Longshore and Warehouse Union (ILWU), which represents longshore workers at West Coast ports. In early November, the PMA announced the ILWU was refusing to send hundreds of workers to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in “orchestrated slowdowns.”

On November 20, the PMA sent out another press release stating the ILWU was halting “big table negotiations” through the end of Thanksgiving weekend. “This slowdown in negotiations and the union’s refusal to extend the contract are taking place amid continuing worker slowdowns, which began on Halloween in Tacoma and soon spread to Seattle, Oakland, Los Angeles and Long Beach. In some ports, productivity remains 30 percent or more below normal as a result of orchestrated ILWU maneuvers,” the release stated.

Hacegaba had a different perspective.

“What I can tell you is based on what we have seen happen in the Pacific Northwest and Oakland. The situation here in Long Beach is far better because the longshoremen continue to show up to work and they continue to complete their shifts,” he said.

But national retailers, manufacturers, farmers and others remain concerned about the ongoing negotiations, which have grown heated in the past few weeks as the PMA and ILWU continue to trade shots with finger-pointing press releases. To date, dozens of organizations representing national and international groups and companies relying heavily on West Coast ports have sent pleas to President Barack Obama, asking him to intervene in the negotiations.

The National Retail Federation cosigned one such letter to President Obama

Long Beach Business Journal 13 in early November, requesting that he send a federal mediator to intervene in ILWU/PMA negotiations.

Stephen Schatz, a National Retail Federation spokesperson, said the organization hasn’t received a direct response on the matter, but met with White House staff recently to discuss the concerns of the federation’s constituents. “Having congestion build up is one thing, but with the rising labor tension there has been a lot of heated rhetoric applied to both sides. Plus the congestion is giving a lot of supply chain stakeholders great anxiety,” he said.

Also compounding their anxiety was that on November 13, port truck drivers began striking after several months of a “cooling down” period orchestrated by Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti following strikes in late summer. As the Business Journal went to press on November 21, the strike ended.

The drivers, backed by the Teamsters Union, had argued they were misclassified as independent contractors and should instead be recognized as employees of the trucking companies they work for. Striking drivers were from trucking companies Pacer Cartage, Harbor Rail Transport, QTS Inc., LACA Express, WinWin Logistics, Total Transportation Services Inc. and Pacific 9 Transportation.

A November 18 press release from a Teamster’s representative said the strike had created “a logistical nightmare” before it ended as truckers picketed terminals in Long Beach and Los Angeles as well as at railyards serviced by the impacted trucking companies. That might have been an exaggeration, at least according to the Port of Long Beach’s assessment of the strike’s impacts on operations. Spokesperson Lee Peterson told the Business Journal that only about a dozen picketers were present at one port terminal on November 19.

As congestion issues continue, POLB remains dedicated to finding solutions.

“The Port of Long Beach is taking this congestion issue very seriously. In fact, relieving congestion today and in the future is our highest priority,” Hacegaba emphasized.

In a recent statement, Port of Los Angeles Executive Director Gene Seroka said port staff in Los Angeles was also working to remediate congestion. “We continue working with our customers and logistics partners to do everything possible to relieve the current situation and design solutions that will better enable the supply chain in the future,” he said. ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/24/14 4:11 PM Page 14

AUTO INDUSTRY 14 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

Auto Dealers – A Look Back (Continued From Page 1)

surprised to know, that for decades, Long Beach was home to its own auto row, located along Long Beach Boulevard. But with crime spiking throughout the 1980s, and light rail construction causing traffic jams, several Long Beach auto dealers spent years negotiating with the city about the possibility of constructing a new auto mall.

When those talks failed in 1989, the city witnessed a mass exodus of longtime Long Beach auto dealers that made their way to Signal Hill, lured by a bigger, better deal.

Brad Willingham, co-owner of Signal Hill’s Boulevard Buick/GMC/Cadillac, remembered when the dealership his father, Jim Willingham, owned since the early 1960s was located at 1881 Long Beach Blvd. just north of Pacific Coast Highway. The elder Willingham grew his business to include a Lincoln-Mercury, Saab and Subaru franchise, but by the 1970s the neighborhood began to change.

Panhandlers congregated around the lots and the county opened a large social services office in a former bowling alley adjacent to the Willingham dealership. Parking became scarce, domestic disputes raged near the boulevard and neighborhood businesses were frequently burglarized.

In the days before Internet appointments, people interested in buying a specific vehicle would drive to the lot early and a line of cars would form outside the dealership, becoming easy targets for panhandlers.

“These guys would go up and wrap on the windows and panhandle; we just watched our business evaporate in those years,” Brad said.

In 1980 the first showroom opened in what would rapidly blossom into the Cerritos Auto Square.

Shortly after, a small group of Long Beach auto dealers began discussing with city leaders the possibility of building an auto mall in Long Beach. The group included Jim Willingham; Mike Salta, owner of a Pontiac dealership; Gary Cooper, owner of Long Beach Nissan; Jim Gray, owner of Jim Gray’s Imports; Bob Autrey, owner of a Mazda and BMW dealership; and Monte Davis, owner of Glenn E. Thomas Dodge.

It was a discussion that Brad said lasted nearly 10 years. The first time his father told him the city wanted to build a mall, Brad was still in college.

“He told me, ‘Son, Long Beach is going to build an auto center, and it’s going to be about two years out,’” Brad explained.

“Every year, it was another two years.”

Eventually, seven potential sites were identified, including the present day Kilroy Airport Center at Spring Street near Lakewood Boulevard, and a spot near Wardlow Road and the 710 Freeway. Talks ultimately centered on a 70-acre site at Spring Street and Orange Avenue behind the Sunnyside Cemetery, most of which was owned by the city’s water department.

But, by 1987, Signal Hill officials were making plans of their own.

A Los Angeles Times article from the era described Signal Hill’s vision for building a five-level enclosed auto dealership that would feature restaurants, a beauty salon, convenience store and even a dry cleaner.

Jim Willingham bought his dealership, then located on Long Beach Boulevard, in the early 1960s. But by the next decade, the neighborhood had changed with panhandlers and crime driving away customers. This was due, in part, to the county opening social services office adjacent to the dealership.

(Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Though the elaborate plan was eventually abandoned, the city still had its eye on Long Beach auto dealers.

“Signal Hill basically took [the land for] what is the auto center today. They had at least mapped it out, and slowly over the years they put it in eminent domain and they did all the things they had to do for redevelopment,” Brad said. “They would keep coming back to us.”

Down on Long Beach’s auto row, things continued to get worse as construction began on the light rail system connecting Long Beach to Los Angeles. Jim Willingham said he could still remember the effect it had on the dealers.

“They took out all the beautiful islands and landscaping. Then they had to widen the street by narrowing the sidewalks. It removed all the parking,” Jim said.

Removal of a water main reduced Boulevard traffic to one lane in either direction. Originally expected to take two years, the project dragged on for three and a half. Sales plummeted from as many as 100 cars a month down to 30.

“No one in their right mind would go down there,” Brad said.

Long Beach’s proposed price for the sale of the land rose as high as $13 a square foot. Signal Hill meanwhile offered its land for $10 a square foot.

Jim Gray explained to the Business Journal that the Long Beach property was in need of significant cleanup.

“That property had a lot of oil and problems with the land” Gray said, adding that the Signal Hill property had problems of its own.

Putting Long Beach at a distinct disadvantage, two-thirds of the City of Signal Hill had been declared a redevelopment zone, giving it immediate access to a bond that would cover the construction of the new mall. Long Beach meanwhile planned to raise money for its mall by securing guarantees from the dealers that they would pay for construction through sales tax revenue. “[Signal Hill] had put everything in the city in redevelopment. So they were able to deal with the problems of the contaminants through the redevelopment agency,” Gray said.

Ultimately, the prospect of guaranteeing Long Beach a set amount of revenue broke the deal.

“It’s retail. There are no guarantees,” Jim Willingham said. “We don’t know when GM’s going to go on strike. If General Motors goes on strike, we don’t have any cars to sell for a couple months.”

One by one, Long Beach dealers signed on with Signal Hill: Bob Autrey was the first, followed shortly by Mike Salta.

Four more dealerships followed en masse.

The Long Beach Press Telegram reported that Boulevard Automotive group moved on February 15, 1991. According to Brad and Jim, they were the last to go.

Twenty-five years ago this month, in a December 1989 issue of the Business Journal, Publisher George Economides likened Long Beach’s failure to build the auto mall to a football game in which the city was without a decent quarterback.

Referring to city leaders, who seemed to express little concern over the loss of the dealerships, Economides wrote, “for them to brush aside the loss of the auto dealers (our largest potential source of taxable sales) as insignificant, scares me as to the sanity of these people who guide our community.”

In a 1989 interview with the Los Angeles Times, Long Beach Community Development Director Susan Shick said the deal couldn’t have worked without the sales tax guarantee. “The city can’t put up all the money and take all the risk,” she said. “That’s not the way it works.”

Responding to a request from the Business Journal, the City of Signal Hill released figures detailing sales tax revenues from auto dealerships, including the Signal Hill Auto Mall, going back to 1991.

Since then, the city has collected close to $45 million from auto retailers.

Fifth District Councilmember Stacy Mungo, who also chairs the city council’s economic development and finance committee, said she continues to work on ways to help existing Long Beach dealerships thrive.

“What the economic committee has done is delve into who are the brands that are represented in the region, and what are we learning about the dealers that have stayed by us when they were enticed to leave to other cities,” Mungo said.

Currently, Long Beach has 33 former redevelopment agency sites around the city that are ready for future development.

While Long Beach awaits state approval to begin developing those properties, Mike Conway said he’d like to see auto retailers return to town.

“New dealerships, we’re certainly on the hunt for them. And we have some potential new dealerships that we’re working on now which are kind of exciting,” he said, adding that he couldn’t discuss specifics.

But those with ties to the automotive industry remain skeptical.

Todd Leutheuser, executive director of the Southland Motor Car Dealers Association, explained that existing dealerships have radius protection prohibiting the same dealerships from selling cars within a 10-mile radius of another.

“So when you start looking at who’s within 10 miles of whom, the world becomes pretty small, pretty quick,” he said.

Jim Gray also expressed doubt, explaining that, in urban centers, it’s preferable to bundle dealerships in groups.

“Even if you could meet the other requirements, [the city] doesn’t have enough of what would be needed to build a Cerritos, or even what Signal Hill has now.” ■

Sales Of Plug-In Vehicles Show Promise, But Electric Future Is Far From Assured ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer Recent statistics detailing sales of plugin vehicles show promise for the future of clean technology – but just how promising depends on whom you ask.

In September, the Plug-in Vehicle Collaborative (PEVC) announced California surpassed 100,000 plug-in car sales since the market launched in 2010, accounting for 40 percent of all PEVs nationwide.

The PEVC is a public-private organization made up of automakers, utilities and charging equipment providers that seeks to promote PEV market growth. PEVs differ from standard hybrids in that they primarily run on a rechargeable electric battery as opposed to an internal combustion engine.

“We believe California is on track for a big advancement in the adoption of plug-in electric vehicles,” said PEVC Executive Director Christine Kehoe. “We passed the 100,000 mark in August. We’re now approaching 110,000, so we have steadily increasing sales.”

This revelation inches California closer to a goal set by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2012 to put 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025.

Still, not everyone is impressed.

Todd Leutheuser, executive director of the Southland Motor Car Dealers Association, explained that the overall market share of hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles remains small. Year-to-date figures maintained by the California New Car (Please Continue To Next Page)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 15

AUTO INDUSTRY November 25-December 8, 2014 Dealers Association show that electrics and plug-in hybrids make up less than 2 percent of overall automotive market share, a slight increase from the year before. Standard hybrids, meanwhile, accounted for about 6 percent, down a percent from the previous year.

“They’re moving the needle, but it just isn’t necessarily making business sense from the consumer side,” Leutheuser said.

“There’s not a super compelling case.

Gasoline is relatively inexpensive still.”

Though the environmental benefits of driving electric may be attractive to many Californians, when faced with the higher sticker price of electric vehicles consumers are opting for old-fashioned gas-burning engines by a substantial margin.

“In the consumer’s mind, being altruistic about the environment is pretty low,” Leutheuser said. “When you’re going to write a check for $20,000 to $40,000, you find out how low that is.”

At the Edmunds.com website, where consumers can comparison-shop for cars, the MSRP for new hybrid and electric vehicles doesn’t dip below $18,000. The bulk of the vehicles listed, including the Honda Accord, Nissan Leaf and Chevy Impala, are listed in the $25,000 to $35,000 category.

Jeremy Acevedo, a senior analyst with Edmunds, told the Business Journal that, although plug-in electrics and standard electric vehicles have performed commendably in the past few years, even biting into the standard hybrid market share, they haven’t reached the level of acceptance expected of the technology.

“One of my reservations when looking at the success of this segment, between plugins and [electric vehicles], is they don’t have tremendous traction at the prices they’re looking to command,” Acevedo said.

Angie Nucci, senior environmental public relations specialist with Honda North

Long Beach Business Journal 15 America, told the Business Journal that hybrid and plug-in electric vehicles continue to be part of the company’s efforts to reduce harmful emissions, though she hinted at other technology that could become more prevalent in the future.

“We’re looking at all types of drive trains and various forms,” Nucci said. “Whether that’s a plug-in hybrid, which we have through our Accord, or conventional hybrids [and] also fuel cells.”

Nucci said the company will be making announcements in the near future about its next generation of fuel cell cars and added that hydrogen-powered vehicles would be a big topic of discussion at this year’s Los Angeles Auto Show.

“I think there’s going to be a lot of announcements about hydrogen. Definitely keep your eye towards that,” Nucci said.

Pitted against competing technologies, sticker shock and declining fuel prices, plug-in vehicles also face a limited charging infrastructure, particularly at workplace locations and multi-family dwellings.

According to Larry Rich, who serves as the sustainability coordinator for the city’s office of sustainability, Long Beach currently has 52 charging stations at 11 cityowned lots, from the Queen Mary to the airport. He explained that, although the city has done almost all it can in terms of bringing charging stations to public property, gaps exist in the private sector at buildings such as apartments and condominiums.

“There’s not a separate meter in your parking structure. And while some people can find an outlet in their parking garage and plug into it, it oftentimes leads to complaints by the other residents saying, ‘Hey, we’re all paying for that,’” Rich said.

While the city could potentially develop a policy that provides incentives or requires developers to install charging stations in multi-family structures, it hasn’t done so

yet, and, according to Rich, the office of sustainability hasn’t received a policy direction from city leadership to focus on that area.

“It’s just a matter of prioritizing it,” Rich said. “We have a sustainable city action plan. It has many goals and policies and actions that are proposed to be taken during this decade.

But we can’t work on all of them at once.”

Though challenges to widespread adoption of plug-in vehicles remain, the future of the technology continues to show promise.

Earlier this month the United States Air Force announced it was rolling out a 42-vehicle fleet of plug-in vehicles to be used at Los Angeles Air Force Base. It’s the first time the U.S. Department of Defense has used such vehicles in a nontactical role.

Looking forward to 2015, Kehoe said the PEVC will make the issue of workplace and multi-family dwelling charging stations a priority. But, despite being a booster for the technology, even Kehoe admits the governor’s goal of 1.5 million zero emission vehicles by 2025 is a lofty one.

“I can’t guarantee that we’ll get to that aspirational goal. But we will be a lot closer to it than we are today.” ■

2015 Chevy Spark EV shown on the lot at Harbor Chevrolet, 3770 Cherry Ave., Long Beach.

2015 Ford Fusion Energi shown on the lot at Worthington Ford, 2950 N. Bellflower Blvd., Long Beach.

2015 BMW I3 at Long Beach BMW, 2998 Cherry Ave. in Signal Hill. Not satisfied with merely being electric, BMW claims the car’s interior is 25 percent crafted from renewable or recyclable materials.

(Above photographs by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Sometimes Auto Manufacturers Have To Play Catch-Up To Improve Digital Gadgets ■ By BRANDON FERGUSON Staff Writer As technology continues to enhance the tools we use on a daily basis, the opportunity for headaches seems to grow.

Just ask any anyone who’s tried to execute a simple text message with Siri, the voice-activated application for the iPhone.

Recent reports suggest that, when it comes to sources of daily frustration, the family car is increasingly joining the ranks of traditionally digital gadgetry.

According to a J.D. Power and Associates (JDPA) study released in August, integrated audio, communication, entertainment and navigation systems (also known as infotainment systems) in new cars have become the most “problematic component category” for new car owners.

The study was based on responses from more than 86,000 new vehicle owners surveyed.

Drivers were particularly irked with problems stemming from voice recognition systems, which surpassed wind noise as the problem most frequently reported by new car users. Another frequently reported issue involved difficulty pairing a car’s built-in blue tooth system with cell phones.

A 2014 auto reliability study conducted by Consumer Reports revealed similar complaints with drivers indicating that infotainment systems were the number one offender when it comes to overall car reliability.

“Right now it’s the most prevalent problem we’re seeing in new cars,” said Jake Fisher, director of automotive research at Consumer Reports. “In occurrences, it’s far more than any other issues.”

The study listed the most and least reliable models of

“Without a doubt, as time goes on, they’re going to work out these bugs; we’re seeing it now with our data. We compared last year’s data with the year before and invariably every system continues to get better, ” Fisher said.

He pointed to the example of Ford and Lincoln, whose MyTouch system has shown significant improvement over last year. The system features a touch screen in the center console that allows drivers to control Bluetooth, navigation, audio and other features.

“What’s going on is the penetration of these systems is increasing almost exponentially. Maybe four years ago it was only common in BMWs or luxury cars. Now we’re seeing [infotainment sysPictured is the nfotainment system in a 2015 BMW I3. The digital system tems] in virtually every car out there,” Fisher said. allows drivers to pair mobile devices with the car for hands-free communicaTodd Leutheuser, executive director of the tion, and also provides navigation, climate control and vehicle information. Southland Motor Car Dealers Association (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville) explained that cars have evolved so rapidly over 2014, comparing each with where they had ranked the the past decade, it comes as no surprise that there are previous year. Fisher explained that common gripes some bugs to work out. cover a wide spectrum of woes.

“We’ve seen tons of generational increases in new car “It ranges, but some of the complaints could be the sys- technology. In fact, in the last 10 years we’ve probably tem locking up, so you have to reboot the system or turn gone through three generational changes,” Leutheuser said. off the car and turn the car back on to get it working again, He added that, as technology evolves rapidly, manuscreens going blank, not pairing with your phone. All dif- facturers aren’t that far behind when it comes to making ferent types of issues,” Fisher said. improvements.

But it’s not all doom and gloom. Statistics show that “While certain manufacturers have had growing pains, manufacturers experiencing problems with newly intro- what you hear in news reports in 2013 might not be true with duced systems have had success improving them with the same make and model in 2014. Because they’re consubsequent models. stantly fixing, renewing and improving their technology.” ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 16

Q&A WITH CITY AUDITOR LAURA DOUD 16 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

(Continued From Page 1)

lion worth of parking citations for the past few years. The report won the national Bronze Knighton Award from the Association of Local Government Auditors – the third time Doud’s office was recognized with a Knighton Award.

Under Doud, the Office of the City Auditor has also been recognized for its website and is a member of several national organizations, including the Association of Local Government Auditors, the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants, the Association of Certified Fraud Examiners, and others. Including Doud, there are 18 staff members within the city auditor’s office.

A Long Beach native, Doud is a graduate of Wilson High School, Long Beach City

College and California State University, Long Beach. After earning a degree in accounting, she began working for the city as a staff auditor in 1993. From 2003 to 2006, she served as a controller for the Water Replenishment District of Southern California. She has served as city auditor for the past eight years after first being elected in 2006 and reelected in 2010. In this year’s election, she ran unopposed. Doud holds a law degree from Pacific Coast University School of Law and is a certified public accountant and a certified fraud examiner.

On a patio at the Hotel Maya overlooking the Long Beach skyline, Doud spoke to the Business Journal about her duties as auditor, the impact of her office’s audits to city operations, her priorities for her third term, current issues on her radar and more.

LBBJ: How do you determine which audits to pursue?

Doud: That’s a really good question. We have limited resources and there are a lot of big important issues facing our city, so we always want to be strategic on where we use our resources to basically give the taxpayers the biggest bang for their buck. The overarching things we think about when we decide to do an audit are the importance of it to the public, the relevance of it, making sure it will be valuable and useful, and that it could make a difference.

Those are things we look for, but we also get requests a lot. We get requests from the mayor. We get requests from city council.

We get requests from city management. We get requests from the public. We are 100 percent open to all of those requests. Then

Upcoming in the Long Beach Business Journal December 9, 2014 Edition Health Care Quarterly

How To Live A Healthier And Longer Life Disaster Preparedness And Protecting Your Well-Being An Interview With Reggie Harrison, The City’s Director Of Disaster Preparedness

Understanding The Impacts Of Abuse

ADVERTISE IN THE

Call 562/988-1222 to reserve your ad space

we sit down as a management team and decide what is most relevant, timely, critical and important, and what could have the biggest impact. That is kind of how we go about choosing and identifying the risks too, the risk potential, [and potential] loss of revenue. So there are a lot of factors that go into determining what audit we do. Can I just back up for one minute?

LBBJ: Sure.

Doud: The charter has specific responsibilities for the city auditor. First and foremost is that we fulfill our charter responsibilities. We are responsible for the comprehensive annual financial audit. We do contract that out to KPMG [an audit, tax and advisory firm], but we oversee it. We are also required by the charter to audit the city’s quarterly cash and investments. We are required to audit cash disbursements and cash receipts and garnishments. There are requirements such as the Prop H oil production tax audit. We’re required to do that by ordinance. So, first and foremost are the charter responsibilities and then there are the ordinance-mandated audits.

Third, we get fraud hotline calls that we take seriously. We have a fiduciary duty to follow up on those calls. With the other resources we have, we take requests from the public and from a number of sources.

LBBJ: How often do you get requests from people at city hall?

Doud: Not too often, but we do receive them. We’re working with the mayor right now on our information and technology audit. City council in the past has asked us to look at the port. The port makes that transfer to Tidelands Fund, and we were asked to audit that. We were also asked to audit the harbor [commission] travel. That was a group request from council, the budget committee, the public and the media. We were getting questions from a lot of places. City management just recently asked us to audit the marina. We just finished two marina audits, one in cash controls and one on contract management.

They are posted on our website. People can go to our website and pull them up and review them and see what we’ve done.

LBBJ: As you mentioned, your office has a hotline to report city fraud. Does that phone ring a lot?

Doud: We get a constant stream of calls.

Some calls are more serious than others.

One of the things we are working on is producing an annual report on our fraud hotline calls. We will have a report next year on that.

LBBJ: How have your audits effected changes in city operations?

Doud: I think it has really had a powerful impact and change in the city because we spend so much time in the planning phase of our audits, [and] because making a difference and making changes is probably one of the most important things to me. I am not here just to issue an audit report and get a headline or say, “I caught you doing something wrong,” or to criticize or embarrass, or anything like that. One of the greatest rewards for me is to find improvements in how we can do things better. We don’t waste a lot of time on things we don’t think will make a difference. If we think we have an idea and we charge off on a path on an audit and then we find that halfway through it is not going to result in what we thought, we back off. We don’t waste our

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 17

Q&A WITH CITY AUDITOR LAURA DOUD November 25-December 8, 2014 time. Because we spend so much time in the planning process, we have come up with some really good audits, and I can give you a couple of examples.

The very first one we did was the oil production tax. We don’t have enough time for me to go through the whole thing, but through our audit we did find the City of Long Beach was charging the lowest price per barrel on oil. It was a benchmark study which, as a result, ended up in a ballot measure. To get a tax increase, you need a two-thirds vote. And we got two-thirds percent of the vote. There had never been a tax increase voted on by the public before in the history of Long Beach. You can barely get two-thirds of the people to agree on apple pie, let alone a tax increase. But I think, with a lot of planning and preparation and collaborative work with the city, we were on to something very important. Since that vote, the city has collected over $22 million it otherwise would not have had for police and fire. So when you talk about what kind of change has it had, it didn’t just happen that one year. Because of our audit and oil production tax, every single year the city is receiving $3.5 million to $4 million more as a result, and it was specifically allocated for police and fire. Every year we can sustain approximately 12 more police officers, 12 more fire fighters, better equipment, better training. This is really a big deal in times of downsizing and budget cuts and revenue dropping. This was a huge shot in the arm for the city. I’m really proud of that.

We also audited the police department – the first time the police department had been audited in over 12 years. At the time we started, the department had approximately $12 million in overtime. We looked at why there was so much overtime and we came up with some recommendations, and as a result their overtime has decreased tremendously. It has had a significant impact on the budget because of the recommendations we made to help deployment and some recommendations in civilianization, [such as] taking the police officers who are in the office, putting them out on the streets and replacing them with civilians. So, as a result, there have been more cops on the streets and there has been less overtime. I think there were some really great recommendations that came out of that that have caused great change.

LBBJ: How much was the overtime reduced?

Doud: The next year I believe it had gone down to $4 million. What it is today I am sorry, I don’t know. But a year after our audit was issued, it went from $12 million to $4 million.

LBBJ: What year was that?

Doud: We issued it in 2007. So the fiscal year 2008 was $4 million. I think there have been some significant other ones as well, like animal control. At the animal control [division of the Long Beach Parks, Recreation & Marine Department] there was a theft. There is a woman sitting in jail right now partially due to the work that our office did. That was a high profile case that I think really brought attention to segregation of duties – not to let the same person collect the cash, to record the cash and to make the bank deposit. You need to have segregation of duties. There needs to be better oversight, better accountability, better transparency. I

Long Beach Business Journal 17 think it really caused some changes. I know within animal control it did.

Also the Alamitos Bay Marina. The city – a couple of years ago – was about to issue over $90 million in debt to fund the $96 million project at the marina. We started asking questions about how they were planning to finance the debt and they didn’t really have a plan, so the city hired a financial consultant to figure out if they could afford this debt for this huge project and the financial consultant came back and said [the city] can’t afford it. So it’s a good thing we were asking the questions. They then went to a phased-in approach, to rehabilitate the portions they could afford.

LBBJ: Is that the dredging and rehabilitation project they are working on now?

Doud: Yes, at Alamitos Bay. It’s by basin, and it is phased in as they can afford it. It really addressed the importance of having a plan and ensuring you could finance it before you put the city on the hook for it.

LBBJ: Have your recommendations on the various audits you’ve conducted been followed through on? If not, why?

Doud: Some have. Not all that we would have wanted. If not, why? Well, I think there are a couple reasons. One, we have experienced a recession. City revenues have gone down. Budget cuts have been real. City management has had a challenge with managing their resources and some of our audits recommend having a segregation of duties. They don’t have the resources to hire more people to segregate (Please Continue To Next Page)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 18

Q&A WITH CITY AUDITOR LAURA DOUD 18 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

(Continued From Page 17)

it, or they have had to downsize staffing so there is not as much oversight. I know they have experienced some challenges there with decreased revenues and a limited budget. But, as we’ve talked about, a lot of our recommendations deal with antiquated software and information and technologies.

One particular one [city management] did follow throug on was the parking citations audit, where we found out there was over $18 million in outstanding parking tickets and the system was so outdated, it didn’t interface with the DMV. They had all this old data that was clogging up the system. They had no way of purging it. The software was so old and clogged and it didn’t even produce proper reports to manage anything appropriately. So we took it to [city] council, and council did approve an investment to improve their system and software to increase their collection efforts.

So that was a good thing that took place.

LBBJ: Do you typically find that when your recommendations aren’t followed through on, it has to do with resources and funding?

Doud: Often times. One report that will be really important is going to be a summary of all of our recommendations and the implementation of our recommendations. There is a lot of work that goes into these reports. We take it seriously. We’re required to abide by generally accepted government auditing standards and there is a high level of standard that all of our reports meet. They are solid reports, and they are bulletproof. They have not been challenged in any way. I feel very passionately about these recommendations being implemented, and there are not as many implemented as I would like. So we’re planning to put a summary report together to show what has been recommended and what has been implemented.

LBBJ: How often do you repeat audits you have done in the past, or audits for the same departments?

Doud: Not very often. It’s a big city.

There is a lot going on constantly. We’re trying to keep up with what’s current and don’t have a lot of extra resources to go back.

There are some departments and things we haven’t even gotten to yet. So I want to try to get to everything before repeating [audits].

LBBJ: If you were to repeat an audit, why would you do so?

Doud: We would go where the greatest risks are. Where are the greatest risks for loss of revenue and potential liability and fraud? We would keep our ears and eyes open at council meetings. We listen to council meetings, water commission meetings, read the agendas, read the newspapers. We’re looking at all these things. So it would most likely be due to risk. Also, we follow the money. Where is the money, and also, what is important to the public?

LBBJ: Do you conduct, or have the freedom to conduct, audits of city agencies with non-General Fund budgets? For example, the harbor department, water department, airport.

Doud: Yes. We have done several audits of the harbor. We did the harbor transfer budget, and as a result there was another ballot measure. Since the 1980s, I think due to a vote from the public, the port had been making a transfer to the Tidelands

City Auditor Laura Doud has been a Long Beach resident all her life. As auditor, she is able to examine city departments, divisions, staff and elected officials, as well as certain agencies receiving city funding, to ensure public funds are being spent efficiently and effectively. One of her priorities for her third term is examining and issuing recommendations about how to address a systemic city issue of outdated technology. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Fund on 10 percent of their net [revenue].

It created a lot of tension between the city and the port because of that term, “net.”

There were a lot of questions about what was involved in that net. We were asked by city council and the port to look at it. The port was saying, “Look, we’re not hiding anything.” And the city was like, “Well, we want to make sure it’s all transparent.” And one of the things we found in that audit was that the port was actually netting their prior year transfer to come up with their base to get to their net and get to the next transfer amount. We didn’t think that was right.

Don’t net the transfer out. That caused a ballot measure because we came to a disagreement. We recommended to get rid of net [revenue] and just go to gross [revenue].

Instead of 10 percent net, go to 5 percent gross. Then just take it off the top and they can run their business the way they need to.

So now [with voter approval] the transfer is based on 5 percent of their gross.

As you know, we just did an audit of the harbor [commission] travel as well that has caused some change in their policy and transparency and accountability. It has been a good thing. We have also done an audit of the water department and looking at how they budget and what they base their rate changes on. We also are undergoing a contract audit right now on the airport. That will be issued probably within a month or two.

LBBJ: What about groups who work closely with the city and rely partially on city funding, such as the PBIDs, Downtown Long Beach Associates, Long Beach Transit and Convention & Visitors Bureau? Are you able to audit those groups?

Doud: Yeah, we are. They are not General Fund, but we are allowed to.

LBBJ: Have you ever audited any of those groups?

Doud: We haven’t yet, no.

LBBJ: Will there be an audit of the port’s capital improvement projects, such as the Gerald Desmond Bridge?

Doud: The Gerald Desmond Bridge is a massive project. It would be a huge undertaking. It is being funded by federal, state, county and port money. I think there will be a lot of auditors looking at it. And we’re certainly keeping an eye on it, but as they are in process, we are not planning on going in at this time.

LBBJ: What would cause you to look at one of those projects?

Doud: I think if there was an allegation of misappropriation or inappropriate spending that surfaced and there was cause to believe that it could be [accurate]. Or if the public was requesting information they weren’t able to get and there was a feeling of not being transparent.

LBBJ: You mentioned the port travel audit. Have you ever audited the travel expenditures of the mayor and city council?

Doud: We have not yet.

LBBJ: What would be a situation in which you would do that?

Doud: I think if there were allegations of some sort we would definitely put that as a top priority.

LBBJ: For instance, you said you audited the harbor commission travel expenditures because of media attention, public requests.

Doud: We got it from so many sources.

That was a concern to the public and the media and a lot of people, so we felt it was appropriate to do that. If that became an issue [with the mayor or council], we would look at that as well.

LBBJ: Have you been approached by anyone at city hall to assist in the new civic center project?

Doud: Last Tuesday night [November

11] at their study session at Houghton Park, I believe [7th District] Councilmember Roberto Uranga mentioned that he would like the city auditor’s office to have some sort of oversight role. We are definitely keeping our eyes wide open and listening and attending all of the hearings and listening to the public, because there is a lot of concern. It is a lot of money. It is a big project. It is a big decision. I don’t have a vote, but I believe the auditor’s role is to ensure that there is a fair process and that city leaders give the public an opportunity to vocalize or express their concerns and the things that are on their mind and what they would like to see. And, when they have questions about costs, that financial management provides those costs to them – what the city is paying now, what they project to pay and so forth. I think the city is doing a great job right now reaching out to the public and spending time in open public forums, going out to different parts of the city and talking about these things and listening to the public. They are doing a good job. I am just in an oversight [role] looking at the process and making sure, again, if there is information the public wants, just making sure they get it. If not, I would be of help in that area.

If there were questions that weren’t being answered, or financial questions, we could assist in that regard.

LBBJ: So right now you’re just kind of keeping an eye on it?

Doud: And observing and watching and listening.

LBBJ: How might the falling price of crude oil impact the budget? Is that something you’re taking a look at?

Doud: Yes. The city is budgeted at $70 per barrel for their operating budget and then anything above and beyond $70 a barrel is used for capital projects. If the price of oil did drop below $70, which it hasn’t yet, but it could, it could have real and serious risks

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 19

Q&A WITH CITY AUDITOR LAURA DOUD November 25-December 8, 2014 to the budget and potentially city services.

Not to mention the capital projects, right?

LBBJ: Do you think when they budgeted it they did so conservatively?

Doud: I think they did, because at the time it was close to $100. It is continually dropping. The fact that they went to $70 at a time it was pretty high . . . it is so volatile.

Nobody knows the future. So I think that was a conservative approach.

LBBJ: We talked a little about this earlier. In several cases, your audits have revealed outdated or inefficient technology as a factor in inadequately managed funds or as a potential cause of future issues. In your view, is this a consistent issue throughout city departments?

Doud: Yes. It really is. As you have mentioned, almost every audit that we’ve looked at has [identified] outdated inefficient technology. The city appears to be doing a lot by hand, manually, that it could be doing with automation and technology.

That’s one of the reasons we’ve initiated this technology improvement audit. It’s a systemic problem. Instead of just looking at it department by department, we’re looking at a citywide issue and concern and taking inventory of all of the city’s systems and addressing them citywide. And [we are] comparing them to what other cities are doing and with best practices on how we could best serve our constituents to improve technology. It is available; we just have to be smart about it.

It is changing rapidly. I mean technology is complicated. There is a lot to it. That is one of our greatest challenges that we face.

Technology is one of the most important things to keep on top of. If our goal is to improve city government for our constituents, we have to put this as a priority.

We have to keep current. We have to keep up to date on this. It’s a big deal.

LBBJ: To what extent does it seem like much of the city’s technology is outdated?

Doud: A lot of the software is outdated.

We found that even some of the manufacturers of the software the city is using don’t even service it any more. The reports that are being generated aren’t always the most relevant reports. There are weaknesses we found in the reports being generated and in the functionality of the technology where it doesn’t absolutely prevent people from going in and making edits and changes, and then not having a proper tracing or track of who edited what and why are all of these edits being made. It’s things like that that we really need to strengthen the controls over to ensure that there isn’t any funny business. When you’re dealing with cash, too, you just have to have the strictest of controls in all regards.

We are planning on issuing a report to Mayor Garcia’s new [technology and innovation] commission. We are going to be doing some really good work and I’m excited to have a report in the next few months and issue it publicly to his new commission and all who are interested.

LBBJ: What was the impetus for the Police & Fire Public Safety Dispatcher Overtime Audit?

Doud: It was a fraud hotline call. So we did a little bit of preliminary analysis on the call and we found that the overtime did seem to be significant, so we felt it was important to follow up and look into.

Long Beach Business Journal 19 LBBJ: Can you share what the overtime was?

Doud: We don’t really talk about our audits while they’re in process, because we haven’t given the department a chance to respond and they might have a good reason for it, and that wouldn’t be fair.

LBBJ: What are your priorities for your third term as city auditor?

Doud: I’ve thought about this for a while.

I can’t think of anything more important right now than getting on top of the technology issue. I don’t think that can be overemphasized enough, the importance and the significance [of that issue]. It’s a big project. The report we’re working on now is taking a lot of time. And when a report does come together and we issue it [in February or March], it’s going to take a lot of effort from a lot of people to make this work. How do we make this work? How do we coordinate all of this system management so that it’s no longer these silos in these departments working independently and not communicating with each other . . . that we’re all on the same page, and that it is easy for the public to pay tickets or pay for services online and do a lot more online than they are now able to do?

Over the next four years, I believe I am going to be heavily involved and this is going to be on my mind a lot. How, as a government, we can be innovative just like private businesses are. They are constantly thinking of better ways to service their customer.

As the independent elected auditor, one of the things that makes my job work so well is that the public is my client. I work for the public and I have a responsibility to them to make government accessible, open, transparent, accountable, efficient and responsive, and I want to do a better job at that. I want to reach out to the public more and I want the public to reach out to us more. Are we meeting their needs? What is it that we can do better? What is it that you want that we’re not providing?

LBBJ: Is there anything else you would like to discuss?

Doud: I’m so incredibly blessed to have the best staff I have ever had – the most professional, dedicated and committed to public service that I have ever had. They’re outstanding. I am super grateful for them and their hard work because we have issued a number of really positive reports that have caused me to decide to issue the report on summarizing all of our recommendations and implementation. That is how strongly I feel about the importance of implementing these recommendations.

I have to give my staff the credit for being so dedicated and focused. It’s not easy to put an audit together. You really have to be committed. We receive resistance some times, and sometimes it’s not easy.

I’m really grateful for the trust the public has put in me. As an independent, elected officer of the City of Long Beach, that’s a big deal. And to be the steward over the city’s finances, to be the oversight – kind of like the independent check and balance, I am committed to it. We have a lot more work to do. I am looking forward to the next four years. I am really grateful to have a job where I look forward to waking up in the morning and going to it. To be involved and feel like we’re making a small difference in some way, it’s really a satisfying feeling. ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 20

IN THE NEWS 20 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

Starbucks Opens At Signal Hill Gateway Center A new drive-through Starbucks store opened at Signal Hill Petroleum’s Signal Hill Gateway Center, 999 E. Spring St., following a ribbon-cutting ceremony on November 12. The location is one of the first of Starbucks “Reserve” branded stores, a new format the company launched in September dedicated to selling premium-branded Starbucks Reserve coffee. Like all new Starbucks Reserve stores, this 1,700square-foot location features an interactive roasting experience and a tasting bar. “We are so pleased to have the newest Starbucks in the city and look forward to a long, lasting relationship,” Signal Hill Mayor Ed Wilson said at the ribbon-cutting event. Dave Slater, executive vice president and chief operating officer of Signal Hill Petroleum, also expressed his approval, saying, “The enthusiasm and support from the community has been overwhelming and we look forward to enjoying an excellent cup of coffee with our neighbors and friends at this great location,” A new Sprint store also recently opened at the center, and a Chipotle Mexican Grill is opening in December. Starbucks is open daily from 4:30 a.m. to midnight. At left, Bobby Casillas, front right, store manager of the new Starbucks, and Starbucks employees celebrate the store’s opening.

(Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Signal Hill city officials, Starbucks employees and representatives from Signal Hill Petroleum gather for the grand opening of a new Starbucks store at the Signal Hill Gateway Center. Pictured at the ribboncutting, from left to right, are: Signal Hill Police Captain Christopher Nunley, Mayor Ed Wilson, Starbucks District Manager Fauzia Adams, Signal Hill Councilmember Lori Woods, Signal Hill Petroleum Slater and Signal Hill Petroleum executive vice president and chief operatin officer, Dave Slater Signal Hill Petroleum Real Estate Manager Ashley Schaffer. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Pine Avenue Pop-up Shop – MADE In Long Beach Localism, Inc., a group dedicated to building and supporting networks of local merchants, growers and other organizations, partnered with property management firm Doma Properties to open a 12,500-square-foot retail space at 236 Pine Ave. to give local merchants an outlet to sell their wares.

The long-term vision is to turn the space, called MADE in Long Beach, into a permanent retail venue where local artisans and merchants can either host booths leased month-tomonth or create small built-out spaces within the building, according to DW Ferrell, executive director of Localism.

About 80 artisans and retailers have already expressed interest in the location, he said. MADE in Long Beach is launching some time before Thanksgiving with a holiday pop-up shop full of local vendors and organizations, including Bike Local, Anandamide, LBC Home Kitchen, Long Beach Jerky Co., Proper’s Pickle, Rose Park Roasters, Reclamation Dept., Wilderess, Heartbreak Coffee and The People’s Soap Company. Following the holidays, MADE in Long Beach is going to transition to leasing to vendors on a longer-term basis, Ferrell explained. By mid-summer, he said more permanent build-outs are to be complete, as well as a maker lab for tenants to use for assembling their goods or testing out new products. Localism is providing tenants with workers to staff their booths, which is built into the cost of leasing space. Hours for the holiday shop have not yet been finalized, but should be typical of holiday retail hours, Ferrell said. Visit www.madelb.com for more information. Pictured at MADE In Long Beach, from left are: Dev Mavi, property owner of 236 Pine Ave. and a co-creator of the MADE in Long Beach concept; Scott Hamilton, owner of Doma Properties; Ferrell; Heather Kern, special projects manager for Localism; and Rashad Captan, founder of Bike Local.

(Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 21

IN THE NEWS November 25-December 8, 2014

Long Beach Business Journal 21

Linda Alexander Takes Reins Of Nonprofit Partnership Deborah Goldfarb, left, president of the board of directors for the Long Beach Nonprofit Partnership (LBNP), welcomes the group’s new executive director, Linda Alexander, during a recent reception.

Alexander most recently served with First 5 LA, where she worked “closely with LBNP to collaboratively provide much needed consulting and support for early care and education in Long Beach.”

She earned her MFT (marriage and family therapy) specialization in counseling psychology at San Francisco State University and her bachelors in psychology from California State University, Long Beach. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

Home Depot Employees Support Gold Star Manor On November 20, more than 50 local Home Depot employees donated their time and work as well as store resources to provide new gardening amenities and a freshly-painted community center for a local housing complex for veterans and their families. The complex, known as the American Gold Star Manor, is named for the Gold Star Mothers, a group of mothers who have lost children in service of their country. The manor was originally created in the 1970s to house these women and still does to this day, although the facility is also home to veterans and low-income seniors. Led by Home Depot Supervisor Alison Durham and Store Manager Emily Simpson of Home Depot’s 751 E. Spring St. location in Signal Hill, the volunteers constructed new garden sheds and created a new park area for residents. According to Terry Geiling, American Gold Star Manor president and CEO, Home Depot donated several thousand dollars worth of construction materials, paint and other supplies for the projects. The American Gold Star Manor Veterans Club, cooked a thank-you BBQ for the Home Depot employees who volunteered their time to repaint the Manor’s community center and improve the gardening area. Pictured top, from left are: Veterans Club member Sam Kim, Home Depot Store Manager Simpson and American Gold Star Manor’s Geiling.

(Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

More In The News The Longs Honored – Signal Hill residents Robert Long and his late wife Nancy were honored by the Rotary Club of Signal Hill for their contributions to childhood education and to Rotary on November 8. The Longs have donated school supplies for Signal Hill elementary students and contributed funds for their well-being for more than 10 years.

After Nancy Long’s passing, her husband formed a foundation in her name, which has since partnered with the Rotary Club of Signal Hill to deliver school supplies to local students. In 2013, Robert Long donated more than $150,000 to the

Rotary International Donor Advised Fund to be used for clean water programs worldwide. He has been involved in many aspects of the Signal Hill community, having worked in the oil industry for many years and as an officer in the Preservation Organization of Signal Hill.

Nancy Long was a member of Signal Hill Civil Service Commission and a local small business owner.

Dramatic Results – For the third consecutive year, Dramatic Results in Long Beach has been named a “Top-Rated” 2014 Nonprofit by GreatNonprofits.org.

Dramatic Results, which is headed up by Executive Director Christi Wilkins, uses a hands-on, art-based approach to learning

Blake Christian Named One Of Top 10 Accounting Professionals In California Blake Christian, a partner and certified public accountant with the Long Beach office of Holthouse, Carlin & Van Trigt, has been selected by the National Academy of Public Accounting Professionals as one of 2014’s top 10 public accounting officials in California.

Christian has more than 29 years of accounting experience. “We are very pleased to recognize Blake Christian, whose commitment to the profession and mastery of his craft have earned him this significant honor,” said NAPAP Executive Director Paul Witte in a statement.

Prior to joining Holthouse, Christian was a tax partner with the international accounting firm of KPMG Peat Marwick and also served as tax director with a Fortune 500 company. Christian is a nationally recognized expert and frequent author and speaker on state and federal Location-based Incentive Credits (LBIC’s), including State Enterprise Zone Credits, Federal Empowerment, Renewal Community, Indian Tribal Lands and Gulf Opportunity Zone Credits. He has also assisted in the development of specialized software, which is used by over 200 tax departments throughout the U.S. to identify LBIC’s. He received a master’s degree in taxation from the University of Southern California and a bachelor’s degree in business administration from California State University, Long Beach. (Photograph by the Business Journal’s Thomas McConville)

by specializing in “curriculum that integrates art into other core academic subjects meeting California content standards.” Wilkins said, “We are proud of our accomplishments this year, including demonstrating double-digit gains in students’ math performance, expanding our program delivery to K-2 students and for being awarded a $2 million grant to integrate iPad technology with our award-winning Math in a Basket program.”

Honda Gives Back – Honda Motor Co. surprised attendees at a weekend gala event in Palos Verdes when it pledged $1 million to Providence Little Company of Mary Medical Center in Torrance. The money will be used to fund the hospital’s

planned cardiovascular center of excellence. “Once again American Honda shows its spirit of philanthropy and its commitment of advancing health care in the South Bay,” Liz Dunne, chief executive, South Bay communities, Providence Health & Services, South California, said in a statement. The donation was announced in front of a crowd of 700 guests at a black tie event hosted by Little Company of Mary Medical Center to honor Honda with a corporate leadership award. Stephan Morikawa, assistant vice president of corporate community relations for Honda, surprised everyone while receiving the award, by announcing the donation. ■

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 22

PERSPECTIVE 22 Long Beach Business Journal

November 25-December 8, 2014

Green And Growing Or Ripe And Rotting here was a group of tourists visiting a small village in Europe. They walked by an old man sitting on a wooden fence.

One of the tourists asked, “Were there any great people born in this village?”

The old man replied, ■ EFFECTIVE Just babies!”

“Nope.

LEADERSHIP That story raises an

By Mick Ukleja important point. Growth takes time. It is a process. It must be intentional. It’s never accidental. And growth is a major purpose for being alive. It’s a natural phenomena, so when growth ceases, then life loses its intent. The result? We lose vitality.

As Coach John Wooden put it, “The moment your past becomes more exciting than your future is the day you start to die.” In other words, you are either green and growing, or ripe and rotting.

No one exceeds beyond their wildest expectations unless they begin with some, well . . . wild expectations. Everyone gets stuck. People who grow do not stay stuck.

You don’t drown by falling in the water. You drown by staying there.

When people are intentional in their growth, they will realize a success that they would not in any other way. Fostering development and growth is a personal choice.

When it comes to leading others it is an essential practice that will bring out the best in your people. If you want them to be the best, then help them be better.

Organizations can get good at training.

Training focuses on a specific outcome that

T

EDITOR & PUBLISHER George Economides SALES & MARKETING EXECUTIVE Heather Dann SALES & MARKETING ASSISTANT Cori Lambert OFFICE ASSISTANT Larry Duncan EDITORIAL DEPARTMENT SENIOR WRITER Samantha Mehlinger STAFF WRITER Brandon Ferguson PHOTOJOURNALIST Thomas McConville COPY EDITOR Pat Flynn The Long Beach Business Journal is a publication of South Coast Publishing, Inc., incorporated in the State of California in July 1985. It is published every other Tuesday (except between Christmas and midJanuary) – 25 copies annually. The Business Journal premiered March 1987 as the Long Beach Airport Business Journal. Reproduction in whole or in part without written permission is strictly prohibited unless otherwise stated. Opinions expressed by perspective writers and guest columnists are their views and not necessarily those of the Business Journal. Press releases should be sent to the address shown below. South Coast Publishing also produces Destinations and the Employee Times magazines.

Office South Coast Publishing, Inc. 2599 E. 28th Street, Suite 212 Signal Hill, CA 90755 Ph: 562/988-1222 • Fx: 562/988-1239 www:LBBusinessJournal.com Advertising and Editorial Deadlines Wednesday prior to publication date.

Note: Press releases should be faxed or mailed. No follow up calls, please.

For a copy of the 2014 advertising and editorial calendar, please fax request to 562/988-1239.

Include your name, company and address and a copy will be sent to you. Distribution: Minimum 22,000.

Regular Office Hours Monday-Friday 8:30 a.m.-5:30 p.m.

Business Journal Subscriptions Standard Bulk Rate: $28.00 1st Class: $70.00 (25 issues – 1 year)

EARTHTALK Dealing With Mounting ‘E-Waste’ Dear EarthTalk: We must really be swimming in electronic waste, what with all the iPhones and other devices that are so common. How is this all being dealt with? – Mary Shufelt, New Bern, NC

ith electronic equipment and gadgets the fastest growing waste stream in many countries, how to deal with so-called “ewaste” may in fact be one of the most pressing environmental problems of the 21st century.

According to BCC Research, consumers around the world purchased 238.5 million TVs, 444.4 million computers and tablets and a whopping 1.75 billion mobile phones in 2012 alone. Most of us discard such items within three years of purchase, and this is driving the global growth in e-waste by some eight percent a year. Meanwhile, a recent study conducted by researchers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) on behalf of the United Nations found that the growth in demand for and manufacturing of new electronics will result in a 33 percent increase in ewaste globally between 2012 and 2017.

But why is e-waste any more of a problem than old fashioned garbage? “Some of the materials in personal electronics, such as lead, mercury and cadmium, are hazardous and can release dangerous toxins into our air and water when burned or deposited in landfills improperly,” reports the non-profit Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC). “And throwing away metal components, like the copper, gold, silver and palladium in cell phones and other electron-

W

ics, leads to needless mining for new metals.”

Today some 80 percent of unwanted electronics are disposed of improperly. “E-waste is either discarded or exported to emerging nations, where open-air burning and acid baths are used to reclaim precious metals and other elements,” reports Maureen O’Donnell in EHS Journal. The lack of proper controls in Matthijs Rouw, courtesy Flickr

Vol. XXVII No. 23 November 25December 8, 2014

said, “I’ve seen many people who are magnificent at getting unimportant things done. They have an impressive record of achievement on trivial matters.”

Growth is not for sissies. It can include pain and loss. Moving forward often involves jettisoning something else. That’s not easy. When you throw something overboard, remember that something better is yet to come.

Nothing – including you – stands still. If you’re not moving forward, you are moving backward. It’s a principle in this world that describes the universe itself – that which does not expand, contracts. You are either getting better or……….

Growth is a process. The mighty oak was once a small nut. That 100-foot pine was a seed blowing in the wind. Albert Einstein was a misunderstood child. Unless a kernel of wheat is planted in the soil and dies, it remains alone. At times you might feel like you are dying. At that moment realize a new life is being born in you. Adversity doesn’t stop your growth. It often propels you into a new dimension of awareness that is broadening your perspective and increasing your influence.

Don’t run from it. Embrace it.

We teach what we know. We reproduce what we are.

(Mick Ukleja has co-authored several books including Managing the Millennials. He helps organizations create environments in which all generations can thrive. He is a keynote speaker and president of LeadershipTraq, a leadership consulting firm. His clients have included Fortune 500 corporations and nonprofit organizations. Check his weekly blog at www.leadershiptraq.com.)

you would like to see happen. Growth goes deeper. Growth is about going to a new level of competency. It can include training, but it also involves mentoring, coaching, reading, and self-directed study.

One of the barriers to growth is the fast track mentality. People want everything – including growth – in an instant. Growth is not “just a search away.” Growth comes as we face life on a day-to-day basis. It’s not an overnighter. It doesn’t happen in a day, but it does happen daily. When I was doing my graduate work one of my professors said to my cohort group, “It will take 15-20 years for your experience to catch up to your education.” I wrote that down, but didn’t really understand it at the time. I do now!

Everything has a price. When it comes to growth it means to fully embrace change.

There is usually pain involved. That’s why we use the phrase, growing pains. Growing intellectually includes pain. Growing emotionally includes pain. And anybody who works out knows that growing physically includes pain. Spiritual growth comes when we embrace pain in its totality. We go deeper and integrate fully. It goes beyond alignment to attunement.

Yet that never happens in the fast lane.

A part of growth is accepting change. And change is about embracing opportunity. It’s living life to the fullest. It is a welcoming of growth that will make you extraordinary – someone you have always wanted to be. You focus on what’s truly important to you.

Do not get numbed by busyness and miss the point of your work, your career, your relationships – i.e. your life. Peter Drucker once

such countries, she says, has led to elevated lead levels in children and heavy metals pollution of soil and water. As a result, she adds, “We now stand at the forefront of a growing environmental catastrophe.”

The good news is that many nations have enacted new laws to hold manufacturers responsible for the future e-waste created by their products. The European Union has led the way with its Waste Electrical and Electronic Equipment (WEEE) Directive, which calls on electronics makers to “take back” their products for recycling when consumers upgrade to something new, and restricts European countries from exporting or importing e-waste.

Japan and China are among other countries that have passed similar laws.

The U.S. government has yet to follow suit, but the Electronics Takeback Coalition (ETC) reports that 21 U.S. states have implemented their own “take back” laws, and several other states are considering similar legislation. Meanwhile, environmentalists continue to pressure Congress to consider similar legislation at the national level, given especially that Americans are the world leaders in generating e-waste.

Additionally, many manufacturers are adopting voluntary e-waste recycling certification standards. One is the e-Stewards program, which helps those looking to dispose of obsolete electronics identify recycling options that adhere to high standards of environmental responsibility and worker protection. Another program, R2 Certification, run by the nonprofit SERI, is supported by several large manufacturers, including DirecTV and Microsoft.

Consumers can do their parts by choosing manufacturers that embrace so-called “producer pays” electronics recycling through participation in one of these programs.

Contacts: Etc., www.electronicstakeback. com; e-Stewards, www.e-stewards.org; SERI, www.sustainableelectronics.org; WEEE, http://ec.europa.eu/environment/ waste/weee/legis_en.htm.

(EarthTalk ® is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E – The Environmental Magazine – www.emagazine.com. Send questions to: earthtalk@emagazine.com.)

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 23

PERSPECTIVE November 25-December 8, 2014

Long Beach Business Journal 23

Real Estate After The Mid-term Elections dust has he hardly settled from the most expensive mid-term election season ever – with over $4 billion spent on campaigning nationally – and what do we have to show ■ REALTY VIEWS for it? Not much,

By Terry Ross according to most observers, if you are looking for substantial change in legislation or policy when it comes to real estate.

At the recent National Association of Realtors (NAR) Convention in New Orleans, most of the observations were pretty realistic about the likelihood of substantial change in the next two years, now that the GOP controls both the House and Senate. The overriding opinion is that the current gridlock will continue because of infighting, polarization and the lack of consensus that government has a role in helping real estate – even housing.

Two of the biggest threats that real estate has faced over the past few years are the legislative movements to increase capital gain rates and eliminate the mortgage interest deduction, which saved

T

homeowners roughly $70 billion last year in taxes. Many think that these two issues are safe for now – if for no other reason than Washington gridlock will keep anything from being done either way.

Two of the speakers at the NAR convention – Mark Halperin and John Heilemann, co-authors of “Double Down:

and another stalemate on any progress is likely the outcome, they said. “As of now, President Obama is a spent political force, which is a real turnaround from Obama as a candidate, who was seen as someone with huge possibility,” Halperin said. “The president is now a more polarizing figure than former Presidents Bill Clinton or George W. Bush.”

According to the speakers, none of the president’s large-scale reforms are going to be touched in the upcoming lame duck session of Congress. However, at least one key piece of legislation that is supported in most real estate circles will likely be considered and passed before the end of the year.

Halperin predicted that the federal Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, which creates the federal backstop that encourages private insurers to make terrorism insurance available and affordable for commercial properties, will be reauthorized before its December 31st expiration date.

NAR is a strong proponent of the program and feels it is a component to promoting commercial real estate and real estate development – two areas of the industry that are fighting to get back to pre-recession levels.

The speakers were pessimistic that the new congress will tackle tax reform or any real estate-related tax provisions, which require a lot of political strength from the sitting president and a deep willingness from both parties to negotiate.

In addition, this gridlock is likely to run over into other areas of the economy that need attention that could help business, health care and consumer spending, which all impact the health of housing and commercial real estate.

(Terry Ross, the broker-owner of TR Properties, will answer any questions about today’s real estate market. E-mail questions to Realty Views at terryross1@cs.com or call 949/4574922.)

which can lead to high blood glucose levels. Alcohol can interfere with some diabetes medications so you should discuss it with your physician.

Other Tips for Healthy Eating: • Try to have at least three meals a day, at the same times and similar amounts. Do not skip meals.

• Always eat on time, especially if you take diabetes pills or insulin. If you take insulin, you may require a bedtime snack.

• Eat a variety of foods each day including fruits, vegetables, and whole grains or beans.

• Use low-fat dairy products and lean meats if you drink milk, or eat cheese and meat.

• Avoid fruit juice as it raises blood sugar rapidly. Have a small serving of whole fruit instead.

• Try not to eat fried foods. Choose baked, grilled or broiled food.

• Learn to read food labels and buy a set of measuring cups to measure portions.

• Try to eat food low in saturated fat.

• Limit your salt and sugar intake. If you use table sugar, consider sugar substitutes.

Nutrition for people with diabetes is not a “one size fits all” approach and should be tailored to each individual’s health and activity needs. For most people, it’s an opportunity to learn how to take better care of themselves, eat more nutritious foods and improve overall health and quality of life.

– In memory of my brother K.C. Hackman April 29, 1972 – Nov. 16, 2014 – (Holly Hackman, RD, CDE, is a registered dietitian and certified diabetes educator at Long Beach Memorial.)

Capitol Hill. “There are people in Congress who think there should be no role for the government in the housing market. That makes it really hard to do anything on housing,” Halperin added.

Neither President Obama nor the conservative Republicans are going to want to compromise on their key principles,

The overriding opinion is that the current gridlock will continue because of infighting, polarization and the lack of consensus that government has a role in helping real estate – even housing.

Game Change 2012” – headlined the Federal Legislative and Political Forum session at the New Orleans conference and shared their views and analysis about the new political landscape cast by the most recent elections.

“House Speaker John Boehner’s historic majority will be more conservative than any other Republican Congress in the history of the Republic. The polarization of politics is the context of everything going forward,” said Heilemann.

Both speakers were skeptical that any major legislation will pass in the next two years, especially when it comes to housing policy, which is a divided issue on

Diabetes And Your Diet was diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes at 19 and was overwhelmed and upset, but figured I could handle it. I went through stages of impending doom then realized it’s not ■ HEALTHWISE

By Holly Hackman, a death sentence and complications are RD, CDE avoidable if you take care of yourself. Attitude is everything; and I have lived a healthy life with diabetes for 20 years.

The misconceptions about nutrition and diabetes tend to be endless. In every class I teach there is always a new misconception.

People do their own research without really knowing if the advice is science-based or just a testimonial. This leads to a lot of confusion and it can be challenging to convince people otherwise.

I hear misconceptions from class participants like “my friend with diabetes said I can’t eat carbs” or “I can’t eat fruit because it turns to sugar.” Others come into the nutrition class thinking it’s the end of the world, but by the time the class is over they realize it’s not as bad as they thought.

I

Tackling Diabetes-Related Myths People with diabetes follow a special diet.

Newly diagnosed people need to follow a balanced diet that is individualized to their specific medical conditions and needs.

Nutrition is only one aspect of diabetes control and all newly diagnosed people should attend a diabetes self-management class to learn how to obtain the best glycemic control.

All foods can fit into your meal plan, but

you have to be aware of portion sizes and make sure your blood glucose levels are staying within your goals.

Eating a lot of sugar can cause diabetes.

Eating too much sugar does not cause diabetes, but consuming too much sugar and excess calories can lead to weight gain and obesity. Being overweight doesn’t mean you will automatically develop Type 2 diabetes. However, being overweight does put you at risk, and combined with other factors, it may increase your risk.

People with diabetes can’t consume carbohydrates.

People with diabetes must consume carbohydrates; they’re your body’s main source for energy and brain function.

Cutting out carbohydrate foods means depriving your body of important sources of vitamins, minerals, antioxidants and high-fiber foods. No carbohydrate foods are “bad” in moderation, but most of your carbohydrates should come from whole grains, beans and legumes, fruits, and milk or yogurt.

Be aware of portion sizes and know which foods are carbohydrates, so you don’t overeat those particular foods.

People with diabetes can’t drink alcohol.

People with diabetes can safely drink alcohol in moderation, but there are certain guidelines to follow. Never drink on an empty stomach, because alcohol can make your blood glucose drop, even the next day. Alcohol should be limited to two drinks per day, and certain drinks (drink mixers, juices, regular soda, sweet wines and sweet vermouth) contain large amounts of sugar and carbohydrates,

GET ALL THREE FOR FREE . . .

DIGITAL DIGIT TAL

edition

WWW.LBBUSINESSJOURNAL.COM WWW.LBBUSINESSJOURNAL.COM

1_LBBJ_NOV_25_2014_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 11/23/14 5:23 PM Page 24

" '# ) " # ) " $ # ) ( "$ # ) % # & $# ) $ # ) !% $#

the

CARSON Center

* 7 0 *,01 &++,3 1&3" +.2"1 +! ,+#"/"+ " "+1"/ 7 0.2 /" #""1 ,# #)"5& )" *""1&+$ 0- " &+ )2!&+$ 0.2 /" #,,1 ))/,,* 7 "+1/ ))6 ), 1"! *&+21"0 #/,* +! ,+$ " % &/-,/10 " 06 !/&3" #/,* / +$" ,2+16 +! 1%" "010&!"

7 #)"5& )" 0- "0 $2"010

,**,! 1&+$

7 1 1" ,# 1%" /1 2!&, 3&02 ) ".2&-*"+1 01 $" +! 1%" 1/& ) )&$%1&+$ 7 /,#"00&,+ ) "3"+1 ,,/!&+ 1,/ ,+ 0&1" 7 + ,*- / )" #,,! 0"/3& " 4&1% "1%+& *"+20 3 &) )" 7 /"" - /(&+$ 7 !' "+1 1, 1%"

/,,* ,2 )"1/"" %,1")

110

E University Dr

405

Links At Victoria

Avalon Blvd

Harbor Fwy Figueroa St

W 190th St Normandie Ave

E Victoria St

Cal State Univ-Dominguez Hills

S Wilmington Ave

91

E Del Amo Blvd

E Carson St E 223rd St

the

CARSON Center 01 /0,+ 1/""1 7 /0,+ 7 444 /0,+ "+1"/ ,*