New I-80/680 interchange could mean changes on Highway 12, too
http://www.dailyrepublic.com/story.php?id=101.0
Take a ride through the interstates 80 and 680 interchange of the future, some $2 billion and who knows how many years from now. This is the interchange rebuilding option the Solano Transportation Authority recently endorsed to solve one of the region's most vexing, long-standing traffic bottlenecks. If the state adopts the STA's vision, here's what a coming generation of commuters will see as they cruise along a transformed landscape and reflect on the dramatic changes since 2010. Just as Angelo Rodriguez High School nears, a rebuilt section of I-680 swings west of its old alignment, cutting through an industrial park. Several buildings had to be demolished and 22 businesses relocated to make room. Then, near the spot where Highway 12 heads off into Jameson Canyon toward Napa, the new interstates 80 and 680 interchange looms, a half-mile west of the old location. In fact, this bigger-and-better interchange combines two old interchanges. It handles traffic coming to and from Interstates 680 and 80, but also traffic traversing between those freeways and Highway 12, a mass of rampways veering in different directions. Take one of these ramps and head west on I-80 past Costco and toward Fairfield. To the right is the old I-680 alignment leading to what had been the original interchange. That one-mile section of one-time freeway is now among the widest of Fairfield's city roads. And the old interchange that was adequate when built during the 1960s but counted among the county's most notorious traffic chokepoints a few decades later? It's gone, reduced to concrete rubble and hauled off in pieces. R.I.P. - and, no doubt in the minds of motorists who spent hours stuck in congestion there, good riddance. Continue along I-80 toward Fairfield and the changes keep coming. When the STA and state talked about replacing the interstates 80 and 680 interchange, they really referred to a series of projects extending miles beyond the interchange structure itself. Among them is widening this section of I-80. Instead of 12 lanes, with six going in each direction, there are a total of 19 lanes…. Whether this vision endorsed by the STA passes muster with the state Department of Transportation remains to be seen. The answer could come relatively quickly. The interstates 80 and 680 interchange renovation dream is poised to have a high public profile in coming months, now that Caltrans has released a draft environmental impact report. One option for rebuilding the interchange is the one endorsed by the STA that is described above, which involves moving the interchange a half-mile west on I-80. Another option is to rebuild the interchange at its present location. The STA rejected this latter alternative for a number of reasons, among them the difficulty of keeping traffic moving during construction….
Sunday, August 22, 2010
Vallejo's Cal-Maritime strongly ranked
Cal-Maritime strongly ranked
http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_15849268
The California Maritime Academy has again earned a high ranking in U.S. News & World Report's annual survey of the nation's undergraduate colleges and universities. Cal-Maritime in Vallejo, the only maritime academy on the West Coast, placed fourth among 28 ranked baccalaureate schools in the Western states. First place was earned by the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Last year Cal-Maritime earned fifth place in a similar survey, which takes into account the quality of programs and student feedback on their experiences…. Cal-Maritime also earned a second-place spot as a top public regional college, second only to the U.S. Air Force Academy. The school's President William Eisenhardt said while such rankings are popular, they also serve as a measure of how the institution is perceived among students and others over time. The California State University school is one of seven maritime universities in the nation, serving students from California and the western states, and the Pacific Rim. The Vallejo school is unique in its focus on maritime trade and transportation, engineering, maritime policy, maritime security and the environment…. Students get hands-on training while on cruises aboard the 500-foot Golden Bear ship….
http://www.timesheraldonline.com/ci_15849268
The California Maritime Academy has again earned a high ranking in U.S. News & World Report's annual survey of the nation's undergraduate colleges and universities. Cal-Maritime in Vallejo, the only maritime academy on the West Coast, placed fourth among 28 ranked baccalaureate schools in the Western states. First place was earned by the U.S. Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs. Last year Cal-Maritime earned fifth place in a similar survey, which takes into account the quality of programs and student feedback on their experiences…. Cal-Maritime also earned a second-place spot as a top public regional college, second only to the U.S. Air Force Academy. The school's President William Eisenhardt said while such rankings are popular, they also serve as a measure of how the institution is perceived among students and others over time. The California State University school is one of seven maritime universities in the nation, serving students from California and the western states, and the Pacific Rim. The Vallejo school is unique in its focus on maritime trade and transportation, engineering, maritime policy, maritime security and the environment…. Students get hands-on training while on cruises aboard the 500-foot Golden Bear ship….
Friday, August 20, 2010
Civic, business leaders help Meyer Corp. open new automated warehouse in Fairfield
Civic, business leaders help Meyer Corp. open new automated warehouse
By Sarah de Crescenzo | Daily Republic | August 19, 2010 18:08
Description:
http://www.dailyrepublic.com/lingo_news/busi_business/meyer081910/meyer_tour
%20copy.jpg
An automatic rail system moves pallets of cookware at the opening of the Meyer Corporation's new automated warehouse on Thursday. Photo by Robinson Kuntz
FAIRFIELD - Local VIPs praised the new automated warehouse and distribution center recently completed by cookware giant Meyer Corp. at its grand opening ceremony today, saying it will keep jobs and money in the community.
The newly constructed building stands 100 feet tall, covers 165,000 square feet and can house 66,000 pallets of kitchen products -- doubling the speed and volume of the company's shipping capabilities.
More than 100 government officials and business representatives took a tour of the facility and witnessed a demonstration of the center's storage and handling capabilities.
'You really have put together an impressive facility here,' Rep. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Creek, said. 'What's more impressive is that you are keeping jobs in this area -- we need that.'
Garamendi was one of a number of local politicians in attendance, including Solano County supervisors Jim Spering, Linda Seifert and John Vasquez, and Fairfield City Councilman Rick Vacarro.
Vacarro gave a short speech listing a number of other businesses making investments in Fairfield and thanking Meyer Corp. for being among them. He called the company a 'formidable partner' that has been working with the city since the early 1990s.
Meyer CEO Stanley Cheng described the center's design to the assembled guests and said the facility would assure his company's continued growth in the U.S. It is currently the largest cookware company in the nation. . .
Due to its automated nature, the building was built up -- rather than out -- and is 11 stories high. Its square footage would be 750,000 were it a traditional-style warehouse, he said.
The building has minimal lighting needs due to skylights and extensive automation. Plans have already been drawn up for a solar installation that would cover the energy needs of the new building entirely, Cheng said.
The warehouse is at 2001 Meyer Way.
Reach Sarah de Crescenzo at 427-6935 or sarahdc@dailyrepublic.net.
By Sarah de Crescenzo | Daily Republic | August 19, 2010 18:08
Description:
http://www.dailyrepublic.com/lingo_news/busi_business/meyer081910/meyer_tour
%20copy.jpg
An automatic rail system moves pallets of cookware at the opening of the Meyer Corporation's new automated warehouse on Thursday. Photo by Robinson Kuntz
FAIRFIELD - Local VIPs praised the new automated warehouse and distribution center recently completed by cookware giant Meyer Corp. at its grand opening ceremony today, saying it will keep jobs and money in the community.
The newly constructed building stands 100 feet tall, covers 165,000 square feet and can house 66,000 pallets of kitchen products -- doubling the speed and volume of the company's shipping capabilities.
More than 100 government officials and business representatives took a tour of the facility and witnessed a demonstration of the center's storage and handling capabilities.
'You really have put together an impressive facility here,' Rep. John Garamendi, D-Walnut Creek, said. 'What's more impressive is that you are keeping jobs in this area -- we need that.'
Garamendi was one of a number of local politicians in attendance, including Solano County supervisors Jim Spering, Linda Seifert and John Vasquez, and Fairfield City Councilman Rick Vacarro.
Vacarro gave a short speech listing a number of other businesses making investments in Fairfield and thanking Meyer Corp. for being among them. He called the company a 'formidable partner' that has been working with the city since the early 1990s.
Meyer CEO Stanley Cheng described the center's design to the assembled guests and said the facility would assure his company's continued growth in the U.S. It is currently the largest cookware company in the nation. . .
Due to its automated nature, the building was built up -- rather than out -- and is 11 stories high. Its square footage would be 750,000 were it a traditional-style warehouse, he said.
The building has minimal lighting needs due to skylights and extensive automation. Plans have already been drawn up for a solar installation that would cover the energy needs of the new building entirely, Cheng said.
The warehouse is at 2001 Meyer Way.
Reach Sarah de Crescenzo at 427-6935 or sarahdc@dailyrepublic.net.
Thursday, August 19, 2010
UC Davis - PUTTING THE SQUEEZE ON ALZHEIMER'S
University of California, Davis
August 19, 2010
PUTTING THE SQUEEZE ON ALZHEIMER'S
Brain cells exposed to a form of the amyloid beta protein, the molecule linked to Alzheimer's disease, become stiffer and bend less under pressure, researchers at UC Davis have found. The results reveal one mechanism by which the amyloid protein damages the brain, a finding that could lead to new ways to screen drugs for Alzheimer's and similar diseases.
The researchers, led by Gang-Yu Liu, professor of chemistry, and Lee-Way Jin, associate professor of pathology and a researcher at the UC Davis Alzheimer's Disease Center, used a cutting-edge microscope to measure how cells respond to physical pressure. Their findings are published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The microscope, located at UC Davis' Spectral Imaging Facility, combines an atomic force microscope and a confocal microscope. It is one of a handful in the United States and one of the most advanced of its type, Liu said.
An atomic force microscope uses a fine needle to visualize the features of a surface with exquisite resolution and precision; it is used more often in materials science than in cellular biology. A confocal microscope can view living cells in culture media and in three dimensions.
The team put a glass microbead on the tip of the AFM needle and used it to press down on living cells. By measuring the forces required to squeeze the cell under the bead, they could calculate the stiffness of both the cell membrane and the cell contents.
"This is a simple method for measuring the stiffness of a cell -- like pushing down on a spring," Liu said.
Amyloid-beta peptide is found in tangled fibrils and plaques in the brains of Alzheimer's patients and is thought to be the cause of the disease and similar conditions, such as "mad cow" disease. It can exist in different forms: as individual peptide units (monomers); as short chains of peptides (oligomers); and as fibrils.
Liu and Jin exposed cultured neurons (brain cells) to the three different types of amyloid, and measured their response to pressure.
They found that the intermediate, oligomer, form had the greatest effect in stiffening the cells.
From the measurements, Liu and Jin deduced that the amyloid oligomers probably insert themselves into the cell membrane, changing its properties. Some of the molecules cross the membrane completely and affect the network of proteins that provides a "skeleton" within the cell.
They also found that when the cells were treated with amyloid oligomers, other ions flooded into the cell, showing that the membrane's function had been damaged.
The "squeeze" test could be used as a screening method for potential drugs for Alzheimer's and other diseases, Liu and Jin predicted.
Normal brain cells are the "squishiest" among the cell types they have tested with the technique, Liu said. The cells readily deform under pressure, but recover. At the other end of the scale, skin cells (keratinocytes) are very stiff and resistant to pressure, but shatter under stress.
Other co-authors on the paper are postdoctoral researchers Hyun-seok Hong and Valentin Lulevich and graduate student Christopher Zimmer.
The research was funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health and pilot grants from UC Davis and the UC Davis Alzheimers Disease Center. The AFM-confocal microscope was acquired in late 2005 with the support of the National Science Foundation.
About UC Davis
For more than 100 years, UC Davis has engaged in teaching, research and public service that matter to California and transform the world.
Located close to the state capital, UC Davis has 32,000 students, an annual research budget that exceeds $600 million, a comprehensive health system and 13 specialized research centers. The university offers interdisciplinary graduate study and more than 100 undergraduate majors in four colleges -- Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering, and Letters and Science. It also houses six professional schools -- Education, Law, Management, Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing.
Media contact(s):
* Gang-Yu Liu, Chemistry, (530) 754-9678, liu@chem.ucdavis.edu
* Phyllis Brown, UC Davis Health System Public Affairs, (916) 734-9023, phyllis.brown@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu
* Andy Fell, UC Davis News Service, (530) 752-4533, ahfell@ucdavis.edu
------------------------------------------------
Our full UC Davis directory of media services and 24-hour contact information is available at.
------------------------------------------------
Need information from campus news archives? The UC Davis News Service database contains past (and current) UC Davis news stories dating to 1991. Go to
-------------------------------------------------
More university news and an experts directory:
-------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, please send an e-mail message to newsservice@ucdavis.edu.
-------------------------------------------------
UC Davis News Service
One Shields Avenue
Davis, California 95616-8687
newsservice@ucdavis.edu
Phone: (530) 752-1930; Fax: (530) 752-4068
August 19, 2010
PUTTING THE SQUEEZE ON ALZHEIMER'S
Brain cells exposed to a form of the amyloid beta protein, the molecule linked to Alzheimer's disease, become stiffer and bend less under pressure, researchers at UC Davis have found. The results reveal one mechanism by which the amyloid protein damages the brain, a finding that could lead to new ways to screen drugs for Alzheimer's and similar diseases.
The researchers, led by Gang-Yu Liu, professor of chemistry, and Lee-Way Jin, associate professor of pathology and a researcher at the UC Davis Alzheimer's Disease Center, used a cutting-edge microscope to measure how cells respond to physical pressure. Their findings are published this month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
The microscope, located at UC Davis' Spectral Imaging Facility, combines an atomic force microscope and a confocal microscope. It is one of a handful in the United States and one of the most advanced of its type, Liu said.
An atomic force microscope uses a fine needle to visualize the features of a surface with exquisite resolution and precision; it is used more often in materials science than in cellular biology. A confocal microscope can view living cells in culture media and in three dimensions.
The team put a glass microbead on the tip of the AFM needle and used it to press down on living cells. By measuring the forces required to squeeze the cell under the bead, they could calculate the stiffness of both the cell membrane and the cell contents.
"This is a simple method for measuring the stiffness of a cell -- like pushing down on a spring," Liu said.
Amyloid-beta peptide is found in tangled fibrils and plaques in the brains of Alzheimer's patients and is thought to be the cause of the disease and similar conditions, such as "mad cow" disease. It can exist in different forms: as individual peptide units (monomers); as short chains of peptides (oligomers); and as fibrils.
Liu and Jin exposed cultured neurons (brain cells) to the three different types of amyloid, and measured their response to pressure.
They found that the intermediate, oligomer, form had the greatest effect in stiffening the cells.
From the measurements, Liu and Jin deduced that the amyloid oligomers probably insert themselves into the cell membrane, changing its properties. Some of the molecules cross the membrane completely and affect the network of proteins that provides a "skeleton" within the cell.
They also found that when the cells were treated with amyloid oligomers, other ions flooded into the cell, showing that the membrane's function had been damaged.
The "squeeze" test could be used as a screening method for potential drugs for Alzheimer's and other diseases, Liu and Jin predicted.
Normal brain cells are the "squishiest" among the cell types they have tested with the technique, Liu said. The cells readily deform under pressure, but recover. At the other end of the scale, skin cells (keratinocytes) are very stiff and resistant to pressure, but shatter under stress.
Other co-authors on the paper are postdoctoral researchers Hyun-seok Hong and Valentin Lulevich and graduate student Christopher Zimmer.
The research was funded by grants from the National Institutes of Health and pilot grants from UC Davis and the UC Davis Alzheimers Disease Center. The AFM-confocal microscope was acquired in late 2005 with the support of the National Science Foundation.
About UC Davis
For more than 100 years, UC Davis has engaged in teaching, research and public service that matter to California and transform the world.
Located close to the state capital, UC Davis has 32,000 students, an annual research budget that exceeds $600 million, a comprehensive health system and 13 specialized research centers. The university offers interdisciplinary graduate study and more than 100 undergraduate majors in four colleges -- Agricultural and Environmental Sciences, Biological Sciences, Engineering, and Letters and Science. It also houses six professional schools -- Education, Law, Management, Medicine, Veterinary Medicine and the Betty Irene Moore School of Nursing.
Media contact(s):
* Gang-Yu Liu, Chemistry, (530) 754-9678, liu@chem.ucdavis.edu
* Phyllis Brown, UC Davis Health System Public Affairs, (916) 734-9023, phyllis.brown@ucdmc.ucdavis.edu
* Andy Fell, UC Davis News Service, (530) 752-4533, ahfell@ucdavis.edu
------------------------------------------------
Our full UC Davis directory of media services and 24-hour contact information is available at
------------------------------------------------
Need information from campus news archives? The UC Davis News Service database contains past (and current) UC Davis news stories dating to 1991. Go to
-------------------------------------------------
More university news and an experts directory:
-------------------------------------------------
To unsubscribe, please send an e-mail message to newsservice@ucdavis.edu.
-------------------------------------------------
UC Davis News Service
One Shields Avenue
Davis, California 95616-8687
newsservice@ucdavis.edu
Phone: (530) 752-1930; Fax: (530) 752-4068
Tuesday, August 17, 2010
Solano EDC to tackle greenhouse gas rules at next session
EDC to tackle greenhouse gas rules at next session
By Sarah de Crescenzo | Daily Republic | August 15, 2010 21:25
Description:
enhouse%20copy.jpg Wind turbines in the Montezuma Hills. The Solano Economic Development Corporation will feature a discussion on greenhouse gas reduction at their Aug. 26 breakfast. Photo by Brad Zweerink
FAIRFIELD - A panel of local business people will discuss the possible effects of state regulations aimed to reduce global greenhouse gases Aug. 26 at a Solano Economic Development Corp. breakfast event.
Featured keynote speaker will be Steve Heminger, executive director of the California Metropolitan Transportation Commission.
'These are recent regulations that are going to be set by the end of September and will have an impact on a large cross-section of our business community,' Solano EDC President Mike Ammann said.
Heminger will explain the process the regulations will establish to reduce emissions to specific targets by 2020 and 2035.
MTC will give the California Air Resources Board a recommendation about appropriate reduction levels by the end of September, Ammann said. Heminger will be able to hear how Solano County business people feel about the issue at the talk.
'It's a complex issue but hopefully Steve's going to be able to simplify it and hopefully get some input back from our business community,' he said.
Ammann said this meeting is the beginning of what he hopes will be regional groups that meet and discuss how state regulations affect businesses regionally.
The breakfast event will begin with registration and networking from 7:30 to
8 a.m. and the program from 8 to 9 a.m. at the Hilton Garden Inn, 2200 Gateway Court, Fairfield.
It costs $25 for Solano EDC members (complimentary tickets available depending on membership level) and $35 for non-members.
To register, call 864-1855 or e-mail pat@solanoedc.org.
Monday, August 16, 2010
Benicia exploring ways to attract technology companies
- North Bay Business Journal - http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com -
Benicia exploring ways to attract technology companies
Posted By Dan Verel, Business Journal Staff Reporter On August 16, 2010 @ 2:10
BENICIA — As a means of attracting more jobs to the city, Benicia is considering adjusting zoning and land-use laws that would permit more tech and development companies to occupy about one third of the city’s land area, including all of its industrial park.
The Planning Commission discussed last week some of the land-use designations that might occur. Potential new acceptable uses include zoning for companies in the fields of biotechnology, clean tech, dry labs, information technology, occupational health clinics and wet labs, according to a report provided to the planning commission dated Aug. 1.
City staff has not yet identified the precise economic benefits or the amount of potential jobs from allowing for more tech-related businesses, according to the report by Economic Development Manager Amalia Lorentz and Land Use and Engineering Division representative Mark Rhoades. But “there is the potential that the implementation of policy changes for the business park will result in greater city revenues and substantial new job creation.”
The Planning Commission and city staff are currently studying environmental impacts of any rezoned land. An environmental impact review may need to be conducted in order to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act, which requires that cities prepare an environmental study on proposed policy and land-use changes. An appropriate determination of CEQA review could include a negative declaration, a mitigated negative declaration or an EIR, the report said.
City staff so far said the new changes likely would not trigger an EIR, but further study is needed before any final determination.
“These uses are not new to the universe,” said Ms. Lorentz. “They’re new to us, but they’re very consistent with what’s happening around California.”
The possible land-use changes are a part of the city’s larger attempt to redefine the role of its business mix and are consistent with other efforts to attract a diversified cross-section of business that will stimulate the economy.
“Benicia has a significant opportunity to prepare itself for new market economies and emerging business and technology sectors,” the report said. The land-use changes would also “allow Benicia to capture revenues and jobs that would otherwise locate in jurisdictions or locations that provide more favorable land-use and entitlement conditions.”
The issue of allowing animal testing could be the biggest hurdle among the proposed changes, the report said, with several Planning Commission staffers raising concern about thresholds, criteria and rationale. Animal testing is currently not allowed within the city, and subsequent environmental issues related to it could spur “specialized study for CEQA purposes.”
Although concern surrounds the inclusion of animal testing, city staff recommends that it be permitted as an accessory use to biotechnology sites. A stand-alone testing center would require a use permit, the report said.
Ms. Lorentz said the animal testing component of biotech is a common part of such business, and ultimately it’s a minor element of the overall changes.
“It’s a very minor piece of the proposal. It’s a fairly common element of biotech that a lot of cities don’t acknowledge. That doesn’t mean it’s not happening, though,” she said, noting that the city included it in an attempt to be more transparent.
The city’s overall intent “is to expand opportunities for high-tech and clean-tech type businesses in Benicia as a sustainable growth and part of the city’s larger economic development strategy.”
The city is facing a budget deficit of nearly $1.6 million.
Article printed from North Bay Business Journal: http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com
URL to article: http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/23930/benicia-exploring-ways-to-attract-technology-companies/
Copyright © 2009 North Bay Business Journal. All rights reserved.
Benicia exploring ways to attract technology companies
Posted By Dan Verel, Business Journal Staff Reporter On August 16, 2010 @ 2:10
BENICIA — As a means of attracting more jobs to the city, Benicia is considering adjusting zoning and land-use laws that would permit more tech and development companies to occupy about one third of the city’s land area, including all of its industrial park.
The Planning Commission discussed last week some of the land-use designations that might occur. Potential new acceptable uses include zoning for companies in the fields of biotechnology, clean tech, dry labs, information technology, occupational health clinics and wet labs, according to a report provided to the planning commission dated Aug. 1.
City staff has not yet identified the precise economic benefits or the amount of potential jobs from allowing for more tech-related businesses, according to the report by Economic Development Manager Amalia Lorentz and Land Use and Engineering Division representative Mark Rhoades. But “there is the potential that the implementation of policy changes for the business park will result in greater city revenues and substantial new job creation.”
The Planning Commission and city staff are currently studying environmental impacts of any rezoned land. An environmental impact review may need to be conducted in order to comply with the California Environmental Quality Act, which requires that cities prepare an environmental study on proposed policy and land-use changes. An appropriate determination of CEQA review could include a negative declaration, a mitigated negative declaration or an EIR, the report said.
City staff so far said the new changes likely would not trigger an EIR, but further study is needed before any final determination.
“These uses are not new to the universe,” said Ms. Lorentz. “They’re new to us, but they’re very consistent with what’s happening around California.”
The possible land-use changes are a part of the city’s larger attempt to redefine the role of its business mix and are consistent with other efforts to attract a diversified cross-section of business that will stimulate the economy.
“Benicia has a significant opportunity to prepare itself for new market economies and emerging business and technology sectors,” the report said. The land-use changes would also “allow Benicia to capture revenues and jobs that would otherwise locate in jurisdictions or locations that provide more favorable land-use and entitlement conditions.”
The issue of allowing animal testing could be the biggest hurdle among the proposed changes, the report said, with several Planning Commission staffers raising concern about thresholds, criteria and rationale. Animal testing is currently not allowed within the city, and subsequent environmental issues related to it could spur “specialized study for CEQA purposes.”
Although concern surrounds the inclusion of animal testing, city staff recommends that it be permitted as an accessory use to biotechnology sites. A stand-alone testing center would require a use permit, the report said.
Ms. Lorentz said the animal testing component of biotech is a common part of such business, and ultimately it’s a minor element of the overall changes.
“It’s a very minor piece of the proposal. It’s a fairly common element of biotech that a lot of cities don’t acknowledge. That doesn’t mean it’s not happening, though,” she said, noting that the city included it in an attempt to be more transparent.
The city’s overall intent “is to expand opportunities for high-tech and clean-tech type businesses in Benicia as a sustainable growth and part of the city’s larger economic development strategy.”
The city is facing a budget deficit of nearly $1.6 million.
Article printed from North Bay Business Journal: http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com
URL to article: http://www.northbaybusinessjournal.com/23930/benicia-exploring-ways-to-attract-technology-companies/
Copyright © 2009 North Bay Business Journal. All rights reserved.
Bond offerings help Fairfield attract bottling company
August 16th, 2010 02:29am
Bond offerings help Fairfield attract bottling company
By Jenna V. Loceff, Business Journal Staff Reporter
Print Friendly
Frank-Lin to employ 160; city helps with permitting, rail access
NORTH BAY – Frank-Lin, the family-owned bottling company with 160 employees, 2,000 brands and currently located in San Jose, lost rail access and needed to move.
The California Enterprise Development Authority issued the first Recovery Zone Facility Bond through the state’s reallocation process to Frank-Lin totaling $22 million to help finance a 298,000-square-foot industrial building in Fairfield.
Curt Johnston
Curt Johnston, the Economic Development Division manager at the city of Fairfield, said the recovery zone bond issued came out of the stimulus package.
“It was from Build America bonds,” he said. “There were tiny allocations given to jurisdictions all over, and we went to the state and we encouraged them to create a system where the small bonds could be packaged together and used for larger projects.”
It was done, and the Frank-Lin plant is the first to be financed this way.
The Recovery Zone Facility Bonds were created through the Recovery Act. The federal government gave direct allocation, or the ability to issue these bonds to large cities and counties with a population greater than 100,000 that experienced an increase in unemployment in 2007 when compared to the national average, according to the California Enterprise Development Authority.
The reallocation process was developed as a way for any business in a city or county in the state of California that had a small direct allocation to access this bond program.
That is how the direct allocation of $1.4 million was able to be supplemented by $20.599 million in reallocation from the state.
Because Frank-Lin ships product from the distillery in tank cars and then blends and bottles it, rail access was required wherever the plant was located.
“At the current location, rail was across the street, and the city assisted with getting a line across to the site,” Mr. Johnston said.
He said because of the fast approval process Fairfield has, the permitting process was done expeditiously.
“It was just eight weeks,” he said.
The entire project is $34 million, and there was public financing for permit fees.
He said $1.9 million was paid for rail crossing and permit fees as well as adjacent public improvement to be paid off on tax bills over the next 30 years.
In addition to working to get all the financing together, the city helped out with a fee deferral agreement and a public improvement deferral to get the project going.
They are in the planning stage of the second phase, which will be an additional 78,000 square feet.
The expectation is that this will open up 160 jobs in the fall.
Mr. Johnston said the company will “encourage many people to move. If employees are able to relocate, they will be able to find affordable housing in Solano County.”
Mr. Johnston said Frank-Lin is not the only project in the area, and there is a fair amount of activity given the economy.
He said one of the things the city has been able to help out with is the question of why people would want to do business in Fairfield.
It has created a marketing campaign about the central location in Northern California with pre-approved business parks with shovel-ready sites.
Mr. Johnston acknowledged that the number of industrial and office deals is low, and speculative industrial development is not occurring because of the tight credit market.
But he said there are some good signs.
“Permits for new single-family homes are on pace to match the total from last year at about 150 permits,” he said. “It’s much better than 2008 when only 34 permits for single-family homes were issued in Fairfield.”
Bond offerings help Fairfield attract bottling company
By Jenna V. Loceff, Business Journal Staff Reporter
Print Friendly
Frank-Lin to employ 160; city helps with permitting, rail access
NORTH BAY – Frank-Lin, the family-owned bottling company with 160 employees, 2,000 brands and currently located in San Jose, lost rail access and needed to move.
The California Enterprise Development Authority issued the first Recovery Zone Facility Bond through the state’s reallocation process to Frank-Lin totaling $22 million to help finance a 298,000-square-foot industrial building in Fairfield.
Curt Johnston
Curt Johnston, the Economic Development Division manager at the city of Fairfield, said the recovery zone bond issued came out of the stimulus package.
“It was from Build America bonds,” he said. “There were tiny allocations given to jurisdictions all over, and we went to the state and we encouraged them to create a system where the small bonds could be packaged together and used for larger projects.”
It was done, and the Frank-Lin plant is the first to be financed this way.
The Recovery Zone Facility Bonds were created through the Recovery Act. The federal government gave direct allocation, or the ability to issue these bonds to large cities and counties with a population greater than 100,000 that experienced an increase in unemployment in 2007 when compared to the national average, according to the California Enterprise Development Authority.
The reallocation process was developed as a way for any business in a city or county in the state of California that had a small direct allocation to access this bond program.
That is how the direct allocation of $1.4 million was able to be supplemented by $20.599 million in reallocation from the state.
Because Frank-Lin ships product from the distillery in tank cars and then blends and bottles it, rail access was required wherever the plant was located.
“At the current location, rail was across the street, and the city assisted with getting a line across to the site,” Mr. Johnston said.
He said because of the fast approval process Fairfield has, the permitting process was done expeditiously.
“It was just eight weeks,” he said.
The entire project is $34 million, and there was public financing for permit fees.
He said $1.9 million was paid for rail crossing and permit fees as well as adjacent public improvement to be paid off on tax bills over the next 30 years.
In addition to working to get all the financing together, the city helped out with a fee deferral agreement and a public improvement deferral to get the project going.
They are in the planning stage of the second phase, which will be an additional 78,000 square feet.
The expectation is that this will open up 160 jobs in the fall.
Mr. Johnston said the company will “encourage many people to move. If employees are able to relocate, they will be able to find affordable housing in Solano County.”
Mr. Johnston said Frank-Lin is not the only project in the area, and there is a fair amount of activity given the economy.
He said one of the things the city has been able to help out with is the question of why people would want to do business in Fairfield.
It has created a marketing campaign about the central location in Northern California with pre-approved business parks with shovel-ready sites.
Mr. Johnston acknowledged that the number of industrial and office deals is low, and speculative industrial development is not occurring because of the tight credit market.
But he said there are some good signs.
“Permits for new single-family homes are on pace to match the total from last year at about 150 permits,” he said. “It’s much better than 2008 when only 34 permits for single-family homes were issued in Fairfield.”
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