Business stories that perked our interest in 2011 [Ventura County Star, Calif.]

Dec. 31--With all the pickets and protests, layoffs, and lawyers behaving badly in Ventura County in 2011, business headlines were anything but dull.

As 2012 approaches, we reflected on the region's business news and found eight topics that raised eyebrows, changed lives and impacted the local business climate ...

CEO-watching: New CEOs were named to the executive suites at CalAmp Corp. in Oxnard and Amgen in Thousand Oaks. Meanwhile, CEO earnings at 10 public companies in the region rose 36.8 percent to top $50 million at a time when many workers haven't seen raises or bonuses in years.

Layoffs: Jobs leaked out of the county at a steady pace throughout 2011. At least 2,400 layoffs were announced or occurred. Included in the carnage were the exit of 1,200 jobs from the county when Farmers Insurance left Simi Valley for Woodland Hills, 226 jobs gone when Amgen shrank its research and development department, and 232 eliminations when Zodiac Pool Systems closed its Moorpark offices.

Celery: The overlooked crop took Ventura County supervisors by surprise when they saw celery's $182.27 million value in the annual crop report. Supervisor Peter Foy said he has always associated the county with crops such as strawberries and avocados.

"You never think celery," he said.

Celery knocked nursery stock from the No. 2 spot on the top 10 list for agriculture. Nursery stock has been hard hit by the downturn in housing construction.

The law business: With more than 70 years in business and its name visible on an Oxnard building near Highway 101, Nordman Cormany Hair & Compton had been the county's biggest law firm until partners began leaving and taking associates with them. When all the shuffling was done, Ferguson Case Orr Paterson in Ventura was bigger.

Still, firm staff changes were hardly as stunning as the conduct displayed locally by two lawyers who lost their licenses.

Simi Valley lawyer Russell Takasugi agreed to give up his license. The estate planning specialist was struggling to keep his law license while dealing with criminal charges alleging he'd been embezzling from elderly clients.

Lawyer Michael T. Pines lost his license after being arrested for counseling area families to reclaim their foreclosed houses. He compared himself to Mohandas Gandhi and Martin Luther King Jr., while portraying his clients as Davids up against the Goliath Wall Street banks. But his methods shocked lawyers, judges and law enforcement officers who criticized his methods, saying they were unethical and illegal.

Pickets and protests: Unions kept busy. Southern California grocery workers came close to a strike but averted it after a deal was reached following months of negotiating with Ralphs, Vons and Albertsons. Union members at the Port of Hueneme picketed and refused to load produce onto trucks owned by a company they said fired 10 drivers who tried to organize. Members of Carpenters Local 150 protested the building of a Camarillo Mini Cooper dealership that hired a contractor they said does not pay prevailing wages or benefits.

Occupy Wall Street protests popped up all over the county as people grew fed up with what they believe is a government failing its people, banks getting an unfair advantage and the top 1 percent of America trampling the rights of the other 99 percent. With the exception of one arrest, the protests were peaceful.

Our sluggish economy: The local economy improved at a turtle's pace because foreclosures are still up, dragging down home values and leaving home sales flat. The good news is consumer confidence got a bit better and local unemployment fell lower than the state and national average. At the start of the year, it was 10.9 percent and by November, it was 9.5 percent. Some sectors such as high-tech made gains over the year.

Business comings and goings: Borders left the county, closing its three bookstores, which were in Oxnard, Thousand Oaks and Simi Valley. In its final days, the once-busy Oxnard store resembled a garage sale with books on plastic tables selling for a few bucks. Lowe's pulled the plug on a planned store for Newbury Park but opened one in Oxnard.

Other new store openings included Trader Joe's and BevMo! in Ventura, and Target in the Oxnard RiverPark development.

A Hooters is planned for Thousand Oaks and despite criticism, all signs indicate it's moving toward opening. That said, it's not yet known when that will happen.

Thousand Oaks makes a commercial plan: It was long-awaited and long-debated, but the city managed to put in place a blueprint to revitalize Thousand Oaks Boulevard and make it a pedestrian-friendly commercial corridor.

The plan includes new development and design standards for mixed-use development so retail or office buildings can combine with housing. There are guidelines for public art, signs, storefronts and gateways, wider sidewalks, planters, trash cans, benches and landscaping.

A proposal to allow buildings of up to six stories was shot down by locals who feared it would destroy the area's character. They fought it, and the height limit was dropped to four stories.

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(c)2011 Ventura County Star (Camarillo, Calif.)

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