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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Around the Valleys – April 30

Antelope Valley Lancaster Chinese-owned manufacturer BYD of Lancaster has won the contract to build 20 articulated electric buses for Los Angeles International Airport, according to the airport’s parent entity Los Angeles World Airports. The new buses will be used for transporting guests across LAX’s airfield between gates and terminals. A budget cap on the project has been set at $23.7 million. The 20 battery-powered, 60-foot-long articulating electric buses will replace older, diesel-operated vehicles to provide guests with quieter rides that produce zero polluting emissions. LAWA also anticipates reduced maintenance costs. The BYD buses will help the city of Los Angeles achieve goals set forth in Mayor Eric Garcetti’s “Sustainable City pLAn,” which intends to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to 45 percent below 1990 baseline levels by 2025. In 2017, LAX Bus Operations transported more than 2.4 million passengers with more than 53,000 bus trips. Kern County Lebec Dollar General has made a 240,000-square-foot commitment to expand its footprint in the master-planned Tejon Ranch Commerce Center in Kern County to more than 850,000 square feet, according to Colliers International, which negotiated the deal. Dollar General would not disclose the value of its four-year lease. A Colliers team based at the brokerage firm’s Los Angeles-North office in Encino — consisting of Senior Executive Vice President John DeGrinis, Senior Vice President Patrick DuRoss and Vice President Jeff Abraham — sealed the deal with property owner Tejon Ranch Co. and development partner Majestic Realty. The discount retailer will occupy about half of the newly completed 480,000-square-foot building that features amenities such as cross-dock loading, 55 dock-high loading doors and 36-foot ceilings. A remaining 240,000 square feet is available for lease in the same building where Dollar General will expand its footprint. San Fernando Valley Burbank Warner Bros. has renewed its 456,000-square-foot lease at Studio Plaza in the Burbank Media District, according to the Real Deal. Todd Doney and Matt Hargrove of CBRE brokered the deal with the entertainment entity. Financial terms were not disclosed regarding the lease, which expires next year. Since 2004, Burbank-based Warner Bros. has been leasing 3400 Riverside Drive, where the studio’s longtime financial partner, Australian film company Village Roadshow Entertainment Group, also has offices. That same year, Santa Monica real estate investment company Douglas Emmett Inc. assumed ownership of the Studio Plaza Building, which looms 13 stories high and is adjacent to the Warner Bros. studio lot, Walt Disney Co. and Comcast-owned NBCUniversal Studios. Van Nuys A State Senate committee approved a bill April 18 to allow cannabis business owners to start a limited charter bank in California. Senate Bill 930 was introduced in January by State Sen. Robert Hertzberg (D-Van Nuys) to improve business operations for dispensaries and other suppliers to the cannabis industry as well as address public safety issues as the businesses won’t be handling large amounts of cash. The senate Banking and Financial Institutions Committee passed the bill 7-0 and then referred it to the Governance and Finance Committee. If made into law, the bill would allow for the creation of limited charter banks and credit unions licensed by the Department of Business Oversight. The institutions would be serve two purposes – holding and accepting cash for its account holders; and issuing special purpose checks to the account holders, according to an analysis of the bill for the banking and financial institutions committee. “A cannabis business with an account at a (limited charter bank or credit union) will be able to use special purpose checks, rather than cash, to pay taxes and to pay for certain products and services, but only if the entity to which the cannabis business presents the special purpose check wishes to accept it,” the analysis said. “If we assume that the state and some local jurisdictions will agree to accept special purpose checks for the payment of taxes (something not yet authorized or required), the most obvious advantage to the system envisioned by this bill is the increased ability of cannabis businesses to pay their state and local taxes.” Woodland Hills In a combination of restructuring firms, L.A.-based Beilinson Advisory Group has purchased Omni Management Group in Woodland Hills. Marc Beilinson, managing partner at Beilinson Advisory Group, will become chairman of the combined company called Omni Management Group. Brian Osborne, a 30-year corporate restructuring veteran, will serve as chief executive. Both companies specialize in bankruptcies and corporate restructurings. Omni Management is the originator of the claims management and plan administration while Beilinson Advisory Group provides interim management and independent director services. In addition to Beilinson Advisory Group, Beilinson and managers at Omni participated in the acquisition purchasing Omni from its previous owner, Rust Consulting. “Having been involved in all facets of the bankruptcy space for 35 years, I have always wanted to improve the claims and case management process,” Beilinson said in a statement. “This transaction presented the right opportunity to join forces and make smart investments in systems, people and processes, and to create a product that is unsurpassed and easily utilized by bankruptcy professionals.” Liquidation firm Great American Group has partnered with Tiger Capital Group sell off the inventory of 212 locations of Bon-Ton Stores Inc. Great American is a subsidiary of B. Riley Financial Inc. in Woodland Hills. The closing stores, which include nine furniture galleries, are located in 23 states in the Northeast, Midwest and upper Great Plains regions. Bon-Ton filed for bankruptcy in February. The chain operates stores under the brand names Bon-Ton, Bergner’s, Boston Store, Carson’s, Elder-Beerman, Herberger’s and Younkers. “Bon-Ton has been around for 160 years and has become a household name for many shoppers. It’s always sad to see such an iconic retailer of quality merchandise go out of business, but consumers have a rare opportunity to enjoy dramatic discounts on their favorite items,” Scott Carpenter, president of Great American’s Retail Solutions division, said in a statement. Santa Clarita Valley Santa Clarita Certified Thermoplastics in Santa Clarita was acquired April 23 by Ducommun Inc. for $30.5 million. Established in 1978, Certified Thermoplastics specializes in precision extrusions and assemblies of engineered thermoplastic resins, compounds and alloys for commercial aerospace, defense, medical and industrial applications. Its customers include Boeing Co. and Airbus. Aerospace manufacturer Ducommun said the acquisition, financed through an existing credit line, will be accretive to earnings within the first year following closing. Publicly traded Ducommun last year relocated its headquarters from Los Angeles to Santa Ana. Established in 1849, carries the distinction as California’s oldest continuously running company. Simi Valley Simi Valley Xavient Digital plans to hire 250 employees in California and the Northeast U.S., the company has announced. The Simi Valley information technology and software firm did not break down how many of those employees would be at its Ventura County headquarters. The new hires will also be placed in San Diego, Philadelphia, New Jersey and Delaware. Xavient was acquired by Telus Communications Inc. in a transaction that closed in February. With the deal, Xavient was rebranded Xavient Digital – powered by Telus International, a subsidiary of Telus Communications, in Vancouver. Xavient Digital Chief Executive Rajeev Tandon said the company was looking for tech enthusiasts with a passion for innovation who want to be part of the company’s growth. “We intend to further expand our recruitment within and beyond the state of California and the Northeast region of the U.S., broadening our scope across the country and around the world as part of our ongoing commitment to partnering with our valued clients and creating meaningful long-term career opportunities in the U.S. tech sector,” Tandon said in a statement.

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