Empoprise-IE

Depending upon your position, rail to ONT is or isn't a win-win

2010-01-06T06:00:00.000-08:00

It's often fascinating to study how people and groups form opinions on various positions, and WHY these positions are formed. More often than not the explanation lies in the old saying "follow the money."

Take this story:

A new position at Los Angeles World Airports, the owner and operator of Los Angeles International Airport and Ontario International Airport, will focus on a long-discussed plan to link Los Angeles to Ontario via the Metro Gold Line light rail system.

Before proceeding, it's important to note that Ontario International Airport is owned by the city of Los Angeles, based upon a deal that happened years and years ago. That's why you'll hear some people referring to "LA/Ontario International Airport" - a term that I refuse to use. (I also refuse to refer to the "Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim." So sue me.)

Now why would Los Angeles want to own an airport way out here, when they control a huge airport within their own city limits? Because the city's own airport is being hampered by huge growth restrictions. Between environmentalist pressures and the sheer lack of space, LAX just plain can't grow at an acceptable rate to support potential additional air traffic. Hence Los Angeles has a vested interest in redirecting traffic out to their other airport property, the one out here in Ontario.

Needless to say, people here in Ontario support the idea.

Jess Romo, Ontario airport's manager, said a direct rail link between the airport and downtown Los Angeles would be vital.

"There's no doubt it would increase the passenger traffic here," he said.

That's important, because as the article notes, and as has been noted previously on this blog, Ontario International Airport has suffered some major passenger declines - partially because of September 11, and partially because of the high fees that airlines are charged to use the airport.

Yes, the same group that wants to increase use of Ontario airport also sets fees that are so high that airlines are pulling out of the airport.

Meanwhile, the people who want a rail line to Ontario airport have to compete against people who want rail lines to other places...and people who want more cops on the streets...and people who want to keep teachers from being fired.

Because while we're talking about rail systems, California's in a budget crisis. And while the rail discussions are a long-term...um...proposition, frankly I'm not certain that California's budget problems will be solved, even in the long-term.

So any talk about a rail connection to the airport may be a dream.

However, there technically IS a light rail connection between downtown Los Angeles and Ontario airport. Only problem is that the rail connection is on the wrong side of Ontario airport.

You see, Metrolink's East Ontario station (3330 E Francis St, Ontario CA 91761) is on the south side of Ontario airport. Only problem is, the terminals are on the north side of the airport.

Perhaps a shuttle service could connect the two...but that wouldn't help on the weekends, because the Riverside line doesn't run on weekends.

And again, budgetary pressures probably mean that Metrolink service won't be expanded in the near future.

When frozen yogurt gets controversial

2009-12-31T07:30:00.000-08:00

On Monday, I wrote something in my Empoprise-BI business blog about Yogurtime in Upland. In the course of writing this post, I discovered a story I had missed in 2009 - a story in which frozen yogurt became controversial.

(OK, the Billy Paul sketch on SNL had a controversial mixing of ice cream flavors, but this is different.)

Back in March, it turns out that Yogurtime had to cancel a high school fundraiser due to "threatening phone calls" - specifically, threats that people wouldn't shop at Yogurtime any more if they hosted the Upland High Gay-Straight Alliance.

Of course, the story resulted in "threatening letters" - basically, ones that said that the people wouldn't shop at Yogurtime any more because they cancelled the fundraiser.

Lots of threats here.

ESRI Developer Summit is approaching

2009-12-30T07:40:00.000-08:00

I saw a LinkedIn update from an ESRI contact who was preparing for the ESRI Developer Summit.

A little bit about me and ESRI - since I'm involved in the public safety arena, I've been following ESRI for some time. The fact that they're based right here in the Inland Empire, and that fact that my former employers Printrak and Motorola did business with ESRI (I assume that Motorola still does business with ESRI today), only serves to increase my interest in ESRI's goings-on. Frankly, during my time in AFIS product management, I would have liked to have incorporated geomapping into AFIS as an aid in crime-solving, but absent a lack of customer interest in using this, and paying for this, I never really pursued the idea.

If you haven't heard of ESRI, they're a Redlands-based company that provides geographic information system (GIS) software that can be incorporated into other applications (such as Motorola's computer aided dispatch application).

So what is GIS?

A geographic information system (GIS) integrates hardware, software, and data for capturing, managing, analyzing, and displaying all forms of geographically referenced information.

GIS allows us to view, understand, question, interpret, and visualize data in many ways that reveal relationships, patterns, and trends in the form of maps, globes, reports, and charts.

A GIS helps you answer questions and solve problems by looking at your data in a way that is quickly understood and easily shared.

GIS technology can be integrated into any enterprise information system framework.

That "integrated" part is where developers come in. As noted above, ESRI's software can be incorporated into other applications, and to assist developers in doing this, ESRI provides several services, including the aforementioned ESRI Developer Summit. The summit will take place in Palm Springs (one mountain pass away from Redlands) on March 22-25, 2010. A high-level agenda has been posted, and a Twitter account (@esridevsummit) and Facebook page (esridevsummit) have been created.

And if you need to figure out how to get there, I'm sure ESRI will provide you with a map.

P.S. They have an on-site cafe with Starbucks.

(empo-tymshft) Sometimes business is a zero sum game

2009-12-28T13:00:00.000-08:00

In our economic and business environment, we are wired to believe that everything is always increasing. Population is always increasing. Wages are always increasing. Revenue is always increasing. And if things aren't increasing, something is wrong.

Hence the note of alarm from the Chino Valley Chamber of Commerce, as recorded by David Allen:

[T]he Chino Valley Chamber of Commerce is alarmed enough by the number of closings in Chino and Chino Hills to appeal to the public.

"Because of the influx of new restaurants in the south Chino and Chino Hills area, many of the longer established restaurants all around Chino Valley are struggling to keep the doors open," writes the chamber's Jean Christy.

To which I respond, DUH! If a town has one restaurant, and a second restaurant opens, then the only way that both restaurants will prosper is if new business can be lured in from the existing population. And during a recession, that probably ain't gonna happen.

But if the number of businesses remain the same, why is the Chamber so concerned? Hints can be found in Allen's article:

Chino lost Black Angus and On the Border, both at the Spectrum, and Dickey's BBQ. (The latter especially bothered Christy because it participated in the chamber's annual Taste of the Chino Valley.)

"If that is not bad enough," Christy writes, "an icon in the Chino Valley for 15 to 20 years -- Marie Callender's in Chino Town Square -- MAY be closing effective Jan. 3." She says Callender's participates in Taste of the Chino Valley and the Dairy Festival and also contributes to other community events.

So you see why the Chamber is concerned - the businesses that are closing are the ones that happened to support the Chamber. Apparently the newly-arrived businesses aren't embedded in the community enough to support the Chamber yet - and THAT'S why Christy's concerned.

And isn't it interesting to notice that something that's been around for "15 to 20 years" suddenly becomes a revered icon? I have lived in Upland or Ontario for over a quarter century, and when I first arrived here, I had a friend who performed at a restaurant in downtown Chino. Or close enough - it was on Central Avenue, just south of Riverside. A few years later, I bet that restaurant lost business when that usurping chain restaurant Marie Callender's opened outside of downtown, threatening the established local business community. And now Marie Callender's itself is a victim of the same problem - new businesses moving in and attracting people away from the old ones.

This parallels the situation in my city of Ontario, in which patrons of Albertson's and other established stores are decrying the entry of Wal-Mart - never mind the fact that Albertson's and the other stores already lured people away from downtown Ontario.

The only way that you'll get old and new businesses to survive is to have a bunch more people migrate to the area. But of course, that would involve APARTMENTS - and we certainly can't have that.

Can you hear me - uh, never mind...

2009-12-18T06:00:00.000-08:00

AT&T's wireless network has been in the news over the last few months, and not in a good way, between aggressive commercials from Verizon and complaints from customers.

But in our local area, there's a bit of good news on the AT&T front.

AT&T announced last week the activation of a new 3G cell site near the intersection of 15th Street and Campus Avenue in Upland.

Writer Sandra Emerson also noted some statistics from an AT&T news release:

AT&T plans to add more than 200 cell sites in California this year and upgrade nearly 320 more sites to 3G. From 2006 to 2008...AT&T's total capital investment in its California wireless and wireline network was nearly $7.9 billion.

I'm not sure of the comparable cell site count and investment figures for competing wireless carriers.

Create template. Implement. Repeat. We are the Chaffeys.

2009-11-06T12:40:00.000-08:00

Now since I live in Ontario, I obviously realize that the Chaffey brothers planned a very broad avenue - in this case, Euclid Avenue - as part of their plan for Ontario.

And since I've done a little bit of research, I also realize that the Chaffeys did the same thing when they left Ontario and established a settlement at Mildura, Australia. The road is now known as Sturt Highway.

But when David Allen posted a picture of Etiwanda circa 1882, I was struck by the fact that the Chaffeys did the same thing in Etiwanda. Presumably the street in question is Etiwanda Avenue.

So, my question - if you were to go to the bottom of the Salton Sea, would you find a wide boulevard running down the middle?

Cleared!

2009-10-31T11:23:00.001-07:00

Target, Montclair.

Upland kids, make five bucks!

2009-10-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

Sandra Emerson announced that Upland dentist Sean Lee is doing his part in the fight against tooth decay by buying Halloween candy from kids. Lee's office is paying $1 per pound, but before kids try to canvass the entire city and make a million, please note that Lee is paying a maximum of $5 per kid.

I can't find anything about this on Lee's website, but Emerson has further details.

Intentional flooding

2009-10-17T16:35:00.001-07:00

Vernon south of Arrow, Montclair.

We noticed the water at Moreno on Friday.

Seven things I'll miss about the IE while at Oracle OpenWorld

2009-10-10T12:00:00.000-07:00

Today is the Saturday before Oracle OpenWorld 2009. For many people it's an extremely busy day, especially if you're flying to San Francisco from a foreign country. But for me the Saturday before OpenWorld is usually a semi-lazy sort of day. My laundry's done, my suitcase is packed, but my computer (obviously) isn't, and I still have to review my cheat sheets, pick up dog poop, and take care of some other things before I go.

Twenty-four hours from now I anticipate that I'll be on a BART, heading toward my hotel in the Union Square area, and then heading down to the Moscone Center for Oracle PartnerNetwork events. And for the next five days, I will be in an urban area, an area very different from my suburban Ontario home.

Now I'll grant that staying in a Union Square hotel is not exactly the same as permanently living in the Union Square area - I won't have any need to search for a Safeway, for example - but it's different enough to merit a comparison between the way that I live for up to 51 weeks out of the year, and the way that I live for one week in San Francisco. And since I live in outer suburbia, not Manhattan, the differences are fairly striking.

So here are seven things that I'm going to miss over the next week:

Driving in my car. People obviously drive in San Francisco, but I don't know how they do it. I am very happy to live in an area where I don't have to parallel park all that often, and I usually don't have to pay to park my car somewhere. And, most importantly, I don't have to deal with narrow streets, one-way streets, or tons of traffic. Sure I have traffic down here, but at least it's all going in the same direction.

Family. In all my years of travel, I can only think of one time that my family has traveled with me on business. My family happens to love San Francisco, but when they think of "San Francisco" they don't think of the Union Square/Moscone Center area; their thoughts are a little farther north. And even if their schedules permitted them to come with me this time, they'd hardly see me anyway, so what's the point?

"Normal" food. Now again, this doesn't affect people who actually LIVE in San Francisco, but it certainly affects people who are traveling. In most cases, travelers are dining out at restaurants, eating at a hotel buffet, or having some other type of catered food (e.g. the box lunches that are served at Oracle OpenWorld). Now it's good food, don't get me wrong, but it's out of the ordinary for your body, and eventually your body tells you to just buy a loaf of bread or a bag of carrots or something and eat like you normally eat at home.

Quiet. Your situation may be different, but when I go to bed tonight, I won't have partiers walking up and down my street at all hours, I won't have delivery trucks stopping by next door at 3:am, and I'll have precious few sirens. Now if I lived in San Francisco permanently I'd get used to such things - heck, I lived next to a freeway for over six years and barely even noticed it - but it's enough to confuse you in the short term.

Radio stations that I know. Frankly, I enjoy being in other cities and listening to their radio stations, and I even look forward to the end of daylight saving time because that allows me to pick up a San Francisco station (KCBS 740) on my commute home in Orange and San Bernardino counties. But while I'll hear some new stuff, I won't be hearing my usual stuff. I don't know when the traffic reports will come on (not that I care about traffic in San Francisco), I'm not sure where/if I'll hear Dan Patrick and Petros & Money, and there won't be any Handel on the News.

In-N-Out Burger. Actually, there is one In-N-Out Burger in San Francisco, but I won't be anywhere near it.

Last, but not least, vertical space. It goes without saying that things are more crowded in the city on the horizontal plane, but when you think about it they're also crowded in the vertical direction. I live in a single story house, and all of the buildings within 1/4 mile of me are also single story houses. When you look up, you only see sky - and a few telephone poles. Contrast this to my arrival on Market Street, in which I will climb up stairs to emerge from the BART station, walk several blocks between multi-story buildings, take an elevator to my room, take the elevator back down, again walk several blocks between multi-story buildings, then traverse the many vertical levels of the Moscone Center to get registered and get to my OPN events.

While these issues, as well as the firehose of information that will be streaming at me during Oracle OpenWorld, can be invigorating, they can also be discombobulating, so I anticipate that there will be some happiness when I arrive back home on Thursday night, driving a car by single story buildings with few delivery trucks in sight.

Picture source; reprinted by special arrangement with the photographer)

Steven's Hope Events

2009-10-08T06:00:00.000-07:00

Over a month ago (has it been that long?), I blogged about Steven's Hope. If you missed that post, here's an excerpt from something Sandra Emerson wrote:

Steven's Hope For Children is an Upland based non-profit organization that provides temporary hospital adjacent housing and other services to families with sick children.

Well, there are several Steven's Hope-related fundraisers coming up.

Upland Now notes that there will be a car wash this Saturday at Upland Memorial Park from 9am to 3pm, accompanied by a car and motorcycle show, a pie-eating contest, and other events. On the other side of town, a 10K run from Life Bible Fellowship to Foothill and back again will start at 7:30.

But wait! There's more in Montclair on October 14. Go here to find a link to a coupon to print out. If you bring the coupon between 4pm and 9pm, Islands will donate 20% of your bill to Steven's Hope.

If the atheists won't get you, the capitalists will

2009-10-07T06:00:00.000-07:00

My hometown of Ontario, California has been the host of a series of Nativity scenes up and down Euclid Avenue. Most are Christian, but in recent years there have been additional scenes for Baha'i and other faiths. Some atheists (particularly Patrick Greene) and some non-Christians (particularly the Anti-Defamation League) haven't been happy with the display, but the display has continued through the years.

Since the city can't fund the Nativity displays, the $10,000 in funding has to come from somewhere, and for 2009, they're seeking sponsors to fund the displays to the tune of $1,000 per display. Fittingly enough, this is for the 50th anniversary, or the "golden" anniversary, of the displays.

There are no online details of how the sponsorships will be recognized - and I was unsuccessful in finding a website for the Ontario Chamber of Commerce - but this could be either very good or very bad, depending upon how it is implemented.

I didn't know William Randolph Hearst lived in Corona

2009-10-06T22:15:00.000-07:00

I just saw something in Housing Kaboom that completely floored me.

Now there are probably very valid real estate schools of thought that dictate that you should not overbuild your house relative to your neighbors. To a point, I don't really care about very valid real estate schools of thought. If I ever find myself in the position to build my own house from scratch, I'm going to build what I like, regardless of whether it's twice the value or half the value of the neighbors or whatever.

But on the other hand, I might have a problem selling it later when I get tired of it.

Now Corona is a nice city, and I'm sure that there are very nice houses in the city. But you don't think of Corona as the place where a house would be listed for $10,995,000.

No, that's not a typo. That's not $1,995,000...that's $10,995,000.

But listen to what you get for that price:

Beds: 6
Baths: 10
Sq. Ft.: 14,873
$/Sq. Ft.: $739
Lot Size: 3.9 Acres

And that's just the numeric facts. Then you get into the textual information:

Bedroom Information

* 2 Master Bedrooms
* Dressing Room/Area
* Main Floor Bedroom
* Master Bedroom Balcony
* Master Bedroom Retreat
* Master Suite
* Sitting Room/Area
* Walk-In Closet

Fireplace Information

* Has Fireplace
* See Through
* Uses Both Gas & Wood
* In Family Room
* In Library
* In Master Bedroom
* In Master Bedroom Retreat
* Other Location

Disability Access Information

* Elevator

But wait! There's more...much more. The funniest part was toward the bottom:

Nearby Similar Listings

No similar listings could be found.

But since a picture is worth a thousand words, let me share one of the pictures associated with the listing.

No, that's not the Hearst Castle. That's the home on 1111 Casper Circle.

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More pictures at the listing and at Housing Kaboom.

A case of someone NOT spinning his wheels

2009-10-06T06:00:00.000-07:00

A union organizing effort at March Air Reserve Base led to a firing, but a judge has ordered that the firing be rescinded, according to the Press Enterprise.

One of the accusations against Raul "Rudy" Trejo was as follows:

Trejo was accused of spinning the wheels of a government vehicle so violently it sprayed gravel and dust on a co-worker who was ambivalent about the union, and of using foul language during that incident and at other times.

However, not only could Trejo be identified as the person who did this, but an International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers organizer also noted something else:

Joe Young, an organizer who works out of the union's Rancho Cucamonga office, said in an interview...that because Trejo would have been driving a munitions truck, any incident involving the vehicle would have been witnessed by Military Police. No such witnesses were produced.

It should be noted that Trejo was not an employee of the military itself, but an employee of Satellite Services, out of Marquette, Michigan.

Why non-military personnel are driving munitions trucks is a whole other matter entirely.

FTC disclosure, the local edition

2009-10-05T23:15:00.000-07:00

FTC DISCLOSURE: Earlier this evening I received compensation from Starbucks in excess of two dollars. Specifically, I received a free tall coffee, and also received one dollar off of a purchase of those new VIA instant coffee thingies. It is quite likely that the receipt of such riches from Starbucks has positively affected my opinion of the company.

My previous FTC disclosure in the Empoprise-BI business blog can be found here. And my subsequent FTC disclosure in the Empoprise-MU music blog can be found here.

(Picture source, license)

Swearing-in for new police chief in Pomona

2009-10-05T06:00:00.000-07:00

Monica Rodriguez notes that new Pomona Police Chief Dave Keetle, who has been acting Chief for several months, will be sworn in on Monday the 5th at 7:00 pm. Council members will listen to Keetle swear at City Hall, 505 South Garey.

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Beat THAT price, Wal Mart (Stater Brothers prescriptions)

2009-10-03T07:15:00.000-07:00

I've previously discussed how Wal Mart's low prescription pricing has had beneficial effects throughout the industry, as competitors have matched the prices. (Kind of like how union wages help wages of non-union workers. But I digress.)

Well, Stater Brothers has some new pricing that even Wal Mart will find it hard to match - although it may try. From the Press Enterprise:

San Bernardino-headquartered Stater Bros. Markets on Wednesday rolled out a new program offering a free 14-day supply of certain generic antibiotics, including refills, for those presenting valid prescriptions at its 28 stores with Super Rx pharmacies.

The idea is not new to Staters:

Stater is the first Southern California supermarket chain to offer the free drugs, though companies with primarily Eastern U.S. stores -- including Meijer, Giant Eagle and Publix -- recently started similar programs.

Brown said Stater and the other supermarket chains are part of a prescription drug purchasing cooperative, which lets the grocers pool their buying power to get lower prices from manufacturers.

Not that the manufacturers are offering the drugs for free.

The covered prescriptions, by the way, are amoxicillin, ampicillin, ciprofloxacin, doxycycline, erythromycin, penicillin, tetracycline and trimeth/sulfa.

More airport news

2009-10-01T06:00:00.000-07:00

Airport issues rage on at Ontario airport, while San Bernardino airport works on...um...getting off the ground. The Press Enterprise has covered both stories.

Ontario:

For the first time since 1988, a decade before two multi million-dollar terminals were built , fewer than 5 million travelers are expected to use Ontario International Airport,according to a forecast from the airport.

Now that is a stunner. I moved here in 1983, and back in 1988 the airport pretty much consisted of a single terminal at the end of Vineyard Avenue. This was back when "boarding the plane" meant taking a walk outside on the runway and climbing the steps. So what the figures are saying is that we could close Terminal 2 and Terminal 4, move everything to the old terminal, and still get along fine. Don't hold your breath for the construction of Terminal 3 any time soon.

San Bernardino:

Looking to lure passenger carriers to a nearly completed passenger terminal, San Bernardino International Airport officials this week approved a long-discussed package of incentives, worth more than $2.5 million for each airline it can draw.

And where could San Bernardino airport potentially get airlines? From Ontario, of course, where airlines are already pulling out because of Ontario airport's high rates. Heck, if someone's gonna pay you to move your facilities 23.5 miles, why not do it?

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From A to K, new IE shopping experiences

2009-09-28T06:00:00.000-07:00

Despite the recession, some businesses are expanding, with new stores opening in the Inland Empire over the next few days.

One store has already opened - a new Apple Store. While I don't mind driving to Rancho Cucamonga for Apple stuff, I'm certainly that a commute to Victoria Gardens would be long if you lived in, say, Temecula. Well, the Press-Enterprise notes that a new Apple Store is opening in Temecula at 40820 Winchester Road.

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The other store opening that I heard of is closer to my Ontario home. You may recall that when Mervyn's went under, Kohl's bought up a bunch of their old locations. Well, one of those locations was in south Upland, and Upland Now notes that the new Kohl's, located at 233 S. Mountain, will open on Wednesday.

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Sturt Highway in Mildura, and why Johnny's Australia is more advanced than Josh's America

2009-09-27T21:15:00.000-07:00

A lot of you, especially those of you who live in Upland, California, know that Mildura, Australia was founded by the Chaffey brothers - the same brothers that founded Ontario, California.

And you've probably heard that there are similarities between Ontario (and Upland) and Mildura, including the fact that Mildura is supposed to have a long, wide, tree-lined street.

Well, thanks to Google Street View, someone like me who has never been to Australia can still see Sturt Highway.

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Now the sharp-eyed among you will notice one goof that the Chaffey brothers apparently made - someone must have looked at the plans backwards, because the people in Mildura are driving on the wrong side of the street.

A New South Wales government site (the border is not too far away from Mildura) tells about the history of the Chaffeys and Mildura. It appears that the Chaffeys' success in Mildura was short-lived:

The creation of Mildura was primarily the result of the enthusiasm of the politician Arthur Deakin and the Canadian proselytiser for irrigation, George Chaffey. Chaffey came to Australia in 1886 after he and his family had founded Ontario on diverted water. He bought Mildura station, eaten out by rabbits and eaten up by drought, because in its garden, under the wind-pump, grapevines still flourished: later in 1886 an agreement between the Victorian government and George and William B Chaffey granted 100,000 hectares around Mildura to establish an irrigation settlement, initially on 20,000 hectares, using Murray water.

Mildura municipality was a corporate reality in 1890: there were already four suburbs, a port, a shipyard. The first dried fruits of the irrigation scheme were sold in 1891. But the bank crashes of 1893 and conflict between the Chaffeys and the Irrigation Trust led to dramatic failure and the dismantling of the Chaffey empire in 1896-7: George went off to irrigate the Colorado desert instead.

But not all was lost. If I ever do make the trip to Mildura, I may be able to stay at the Best Western Chaffey International Motor Inn.

So who or what was the "Sturt" for which Sturt Highway was named? According to Wikipedia, the Sturt Highway actually spans three states, so the Chaffeys probably didn't have a part in naming it. The highway was named after Charles Sturt (1795-1869).

Not sure if the rest of the highway is tree-lined, though.

Oh, and by the way...there is one other thing named after the Chaffeys...a toilet. This information is courtesy the National Continence Management Strategy. I've REALLY got to ask Johnny Worthington about THAT one.

The stimulus is local in Fontana

2009-09-22T06:00:00.000-07:00

When you give people money, they're going to spend it. And Fontana is getting money from the Federal Government. Here's what city manager Ken Hunt is saying:

The City of Fontana has received about $6 million from the federal government for the purpose of buying, fixing up, and reselling bank owned properties within our community. The conditions for the expenditure of these monies include a stipulation that the money can only be used to purchase and renovate bank-owned properties. Each property must be purchased at a discount of at least 15% below market, and must be resold to qualified, low-income property owners.

But truth to tell, dedicated funds aren't really dedicated. The fact that the Feds are giving Fontana $6 million to buy up property means that Fontana itself doesn't have to raise $6 million for this purpose, and can therefore spend its own $6 million on whatever it wants. Water fountains or kite flying days or something.

Testing photoblogging; .@foursquare is working!

2009-09-20T14:05:00.001-07:00

If you are reading this, then photoblogging is working from my re-imaged phone. If you're reading it twice, then cross-posting works also.

This is the site of my first Foursquare check-in, by the way.

The ripple effect of airport issues

2009-09-18T12:50:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/caveman_92223/ / CC BY-ND 2.0

As I've previously noted the Riverside Press-Enterprise has provided extensive coverage of some of the financial issues facing Ontario Airport (the official name has "LA" in it, but I'm ornery - just ask Rita Moreno of Arte). Now if an anchor business such as an airport has a decline in business, then you can expect that certain surrounding businesses would also be affected. And this is the case, according to the aforementioned Riverside Press-Enterprise:

The owner of the 299-room Marriott Ontario Airport hotel has stopped making payments on the $26 million mortgage and will give the hotel back to lenders.

Executives with Sunstone Hotel Investors, the hotel's owner, said in a conference call Wednesday afternoon that the hotel's value had fallen about 36 percent to $16.7 million, making it worth far less than the loan.

Yes, you know that this can happen to residential properties, but it obviously can happen to commercial properties also. And revenue isn't good either:

The Marriott Ontario Airport earned profits of $447,000 in the first quarter of 2008 and $274,000 in the second quarter, but lost $23,000 and $55,000 in the third and fourth quarters respectively.

We'll see how long it takes the airport to get out of the doldrums, and if the lenders - or whoever they sell the hotel to - can make some money off the deal.

The West End Animal Shelter and theanimalrescuesite.com

2009-09-16T06:00:00.000-07:00

Liset Marquez of Ontario Now published an email that she received from the West End Animal Shelter. Here are excerpts:

The Animal Rescue Site started a contest awarding $100,000 in grants to eligible Petfinder.com member rescue organizations to help animals. The grand prize is a $20,000 grant, and there are many other prizes!

Basically, if you go to http://www.theanimalrescuesite.com/clickToGive/home.faces?siteId=3 and vote for the West End Animal Shelter, they will be in the running to win a $20,000 grant. Read the entire letter here.

And here is a page (via petfinder.com) that contains more information about the Shelter:

West End Shelter for Animals is a private, registered, non-profit organization. We are a no-kill pet placement and adoption center located in Ontario, California. We receive no government funding; our revenues come strictly from fees for services, donations, fundraising efforts, and our low-cost vaccination clinic. The shelter was established in 1954 as the local humane society, and in 1994 was converted to the present no-kill alternative facility. Visitors are always welcome!

The shelter is at 1010 E Mission in Ontario.

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The albatross around Fleetwood Enterprises

2009-09-15T06:00:00.000-07:00

http://www.flickr.com/photos/jbolles/ / CC BY-SA 2.0

You would have thought that as the assets of Fleetwood Enterprises go through liquidation, the Fleetwood Enterprises story would be pretty much over.

It's not:

At least four class action suits have been prepared against former executives of Riverside-based Fleetwood Enterprises alleging violations of the Securities Exchange Act by issuing false and misleading statements about the company's financial condition between Dec. 6, 2007 and March 10, 2009.

Now to succeed in a lawsuit, you need to show an intent to deceive. And that's just what one set of lawyers claims happened:

In its 38 page filing made Sept. 1, Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP pointed to statements made in press releases by Elden Smith since Dec. 6 that it alleges painted a rosier picture of Fleetwood's condition.

More details can be found in the firm's press release:

COUGHLIN STOIA GELLER RUDMAN & ROBBINS LLP FILES CLASS ACTION SUIT AGAINST FORMER EXECUTIVES OF FLEETWOOD ENTERPRISES, INC.

New York – September 1, 2009 – Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP (“Coughlin Stoia”) (http://www.csgrr.com/cases/fleetwood/) today announced that a class action has been commenced in the United States District Court for the Central District of California on behalf of purchasers of the common stock of Fleetwood Enterprises, Inc. (“Fleetwood” or the “Company”) (NYSE:FLE) between December 6, 2007 and March 10, 2009, inclusive (the “Class Period”), seeking to pursue remedies under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the “Exchange Act”). Fleetwood is not named in this action as a defendant because it and its core operating subsidiaries filed for bankruptcy protection in March 2009.

If you wish to serve as lead plaintiff, you must move the Court no later than 60 days from today. If you wish to discuss this action or have any questions concerning this notice or your rights or interests, please contact plaintiff’s counsel, Samuel H. Rudman or David A. Rosenfeld of Coughlin Stoia at 800/449-4900 or 619/231-1058, or via e-mail at djr@csgrr.com. If you are a member of this Class, you can view a copy of the complaint as filed or join this class action online at http://www.csgrr.com/cases/fleetwood/. Any member of the putative class may move the Court to serve as lead plaintiff through counsel of their choice, or may choose to do nothing and remain an absent class member.

The complaint charges certain of Fleetwood’s former executives with violations of the Exchange Act. Fleetwood, together with its subsidiaries, produces and distributes manufactured housing primarily in the United States and Canada.

The complaint alleges that, throughout the Class Period, defendants made numerous positive statements regarding the Company's financial condition, business and prospects. The complaint further alleges that these statements were materially false and misleading because defendants failed to disclose the following adverse facts, among others: (i) that demand for Fleetwood’s manufactured houses and the big homes-on-wheels was rapidly declining, and was adversely affecting the Company’s liquidity; (ii) that the Company’s RV Group sales, especially in its travel trailer division, were declining because of softening consumer demand due to high gasoline prices and the credit crisis; (iii) that the Company’s financial condition was declining precipitously such that the Company was nearing insolvency and would have to file for bankruptcy protection; and (iv) based on the foregoing, defendants had no reasonable basis for their positive statements regarding the Company’s ability to control its deteriorating financial condition.

On March 10, 2009, Fleetwood issued a press release announcing that it had “filed voluntary Chapter 11 petitions for itself and certain operating subsidiaries in the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California.” The Company also announced that it was closing its travel trailer division. As a direct result of information disclosed at the end of the Class Period, the price of Fleetwood common stock fell precipitously, falling to $0.0103 per share on March 10, 2009.

Plaintiff seeks to recover damages on behalf of all purchasers of Fleetwood common stock during the Class Period (the “Class”). The plaintiff is represented by Coughlin Stoia, which has expertise in prosecuting investor class actions and extensive experience in actions involving financial fraud.

Coughlin Stoia, a 190-lawyer firm with offices in San Diego, San Francisco, Los Angeles, New York, Boca Raton, Washington, D.C., Philadelphia and Atlanta, is active in major litigations pending in federal and state courts throughout the United States and has taken a leading role in many important actions on behalf of defrauded investors, consumers, and companies, as well as victims of human rights violations. The Coughlin Stoia Web site (http://www.csgrr.com) has more information about the firm. Contact: Coughlin Stoia Geller Rudman & Robbins LLP Samuel H. Rudman, 800-449-4900 David A. Rosenfeld djr@csgrr.com