With funds and new CEO, Neighborhood Clinics turn the corner
By Marlize van Romburgh / Thursday, November 21st, 2013 / Health Care & Life Science, Nonprofits, South Coast, Top Stories, Tri-County Economy / Comments Off on With funds and new CEO, Neighborhood Clinics turn the corner
The struggling Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics nonprofit is narrowing its funding gap and has a strategic plan and new permanent CEO in place, putting it on track to become financially sustainable at a time when it looks to expand service to Goleta.
“Six months ago, we were in danger of closing our doors,” said Mark Palmer, president of the board.
Thousand Oaks cancer drug firm raises $9M
By Stephen Nellis / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / Health Care & Life Science, Technology, Top Stories / Comments Off on Thousand Oaks cancer drug firm raises $9M
Thousand Oaks-based ImmunGene, a cancer treatment firm led by a former Amgen scientist, has raised $9 million from Ally Bridge Group, an investment group with ties to Hong Kong.
ImmunGene’s so-called antibody-cytokine fusion technology could help improve the cancer-cell targeting in therapies. President and CEO Sanjay D. Khare was formerly the scientific director at Amgen, the biotech giant. Prior to the funding, ImmunGene had received several hundred thousand dollars in federal research grants.
Antibody technologies hold promise for creating cancer treatments that do less damage to healthy cells. Molecules are crafted to mimic the body’s own immune system and bind to specific defects in cancer cells.
Study: Skilled workers priced out of San Luis Obispo
By Patrick Kulp / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / Central Coast, Real Estate, Top Stories, Tri-County Economy / Comments Off on 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.
Taylor Frigon invests in Schmidt-backed cloud tech firm
By Stephen Nellis / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / Banking & Finance, Personal Finance, Technology, Top Stories / Comments Off on Taylor Frigon invests in Schmidt-backed cloud tech firm
Alongside its everyday wealth and investment management business, San Luis Obispo-based Taylor Frigon Capital Management has been quietly making venture capital investments over the past five years that are gaining attention from Silicon Valley heavyweights.
Taylor Frigon’s venture investment arm, Taylor Frigon Capital Partners, was an early investor in a company called Otoy in Los Angeles. The company has recently inked deals with a spate of big players — Firefox parent Mozilla, Amazon’s cloud services branch and Autodesk, the gold-standard for 3-D rendering software — to crack a previously unachievable goal.
$17.8M sale positions Camarillo shopping center for turnaround
By Marlize van Romburgh / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / Columns, Real Estate, Top Stories / Comments Off on $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.
Sharp idea: Santa Barbara razor entrepreneur taps crowdfunding
By Tony Biasotti / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / Features, Small Business, Top Stories / Comments Off on Sharp idea: Santa Barbara razor entrepreneur taps crowdfunding
Santa Barbara entrepreneur and former hedge fund manager Steve Worthington has created BornSharp, a self-sharpening razor designed to last five years.
ValueClick reboots: Online advertising firm to sell assets, rename
By Stephen Nellis / Friday, November 15th, 2013 / East Ventura County, Features, Technology, Top Stories, Tri-County Economy / Comments Off on ValueClick reboots: Online advertising firm to sell assets, rename
The $1.6 billion Westlake Village-based digital advertising company has been under fire from investors — and trial attorneys — for its reliance acquisitions to produce revenue growth. It has also faced criticism of the steep losses it has taken on selling off business lines that didn’t work out.