Emissions cap prompts oil firm backlash
Santa Barbara County’s decision to impose a strict cap on carbon emissions from a proposed oil project puts the county at a competitive disadvantage in California and likely will cut into the money energy firms pump into the regional economy.
The Board of Supervisors voted 3-2 on Nov. 12 to require Santa Maria Energy to cap its carbon emissions at 10,000 tons per year. Santa Maria Energy had proposed 136 wells for a site near Orcutt.
Santa Barbara County’s oil is thick and viscous. In order to extract it, companies inject steam into wells to soften the oil. Burning natural gas to create the steam is what generates the bulk of carbon emissions.
Study: Skilled workers priced out of San Luis Obispo
The findings highlight a pervasive mismatch between the high price of even starter homes and the number of jobs that pay wages high enough to support those prices. Experts say the gap is a significant roadblock to the state’s economic growth.
$17.8M sale positions Camarillo shopping center for turnaround
The bankrupt Camarillo Plaza community shopping center has been sold to an undisclosed Beverly Hills buyer for $17.8 million after receiving 20 separate offers. The 74,072-square-foot mall is located on Daily Drive at the intersection of Brently Avenue, across Highway 101 from the Camarillo Premium Outlets.
Camarillo Plaza sells for $17.8M out of bankruptcy
The bankrupt Camarillo Plaza community shopping center has been sold to an undisclosed Beverly Hills buyer for $17.8 million after receiving 20 separate offers.
Sonos sets tone for tech firms as it snaps up downtown space
Music equipment maker Sonos markets some of the highest-quality audio equipment around, but the company is being very quiet as it snaps up thousands of square feet of space in downtown Santa Barbara. According to the brokers at Radius Group’s economic and commercial real estate forecast on Oct. 31, Sonos has now leased about 100,000 square feet of new space over the last year, and is looking for more.
Montecito Medical’s $54M buy raises stake for health properties
Montecito Medical Acquisition Co., a Santa Barbara-based real estate investment firm, has made one of its largest purchases to date, paying $54.6 million for the UCLA Outpatient Surgery and Oncology Center in Santa Monica. The firm now has about $170 million in assets, even after divesting some of the properties it purchased with its first fund between 2006 and 2008.
