NEWSMAKERS

Arriving Editor Makes Jump From Doyenne to Dormers

Jesse Brink, newly named editor-in-chief of LA Architect magazine, is about to experience a whole new kind of pressure.

Brink is making the jump to a narrowly read, 5,500-circulation publication from Martha Stewart Living (circulation 1.8 million), where he was a senior staff writer.

While the 31-year-old Pennsylvania native will be out from under the stress associated with the New York publishing world, and the glare associated with a high-profile boss on the verge of being sentenced, he will now be responsible for writing nearly all the content for LA Architect.

It’s not a prospect he relishes.

“It’s not that I don’t like writing, but it takes up so much time,” Brink said. “It’s the best way to establish the tone, the voice of the magazine. I haven’t developed a stable of writers yet.”

LA Architect, a glossy bi-monthly published by Balcony Media Inc., features how-to articles for professionals seeking to build their practices, as well as reviews of architecture books and projects. It claims a readership of about 22,000 design professionals.

After receiving a bachelor’s in history from Haverford College, outside Philadelphia, in 1994, and a master’s in medieval art and architecture from the University of Toronto in 1995, Brink diverted his career toward the modern and worked in media relations for Ferguson & Shamamian Architects LLP.

“With a master’s, you can’t get the real jobs in museums. You need a doctorate,” Brink said. “And I ran out of money to go to school.”

Writing was the part of his job Brink liked best, so in 1998 he took a position as staff writer at Martha Stewart Living and spent the next five years there.

“The nice thing about the place was, because (Stewart) had this wide-ranging curiosity, I got to write about everything from wedding etiquette to the history of the wastepaper basket to a natural history of the moon,” Brink said.

Brink, who is single, lives in Culver City and enjoys restoring cars.

Matt Myerhoff

Accounting

CBIZ Valuation Group has named James L. Greene director of business development in the Los Angeles office. Prior to joining the firm, Greene served as a director of marketing and business development for the Southern California economic unit of RSM McGladrey Inc.

Banking & Finance

GMAC Commercial Finance, part of General Motors Acceptance Corp. has hired Tom Higgins as executive vice president and West Coast regional manager in Los Angeles. Previously, Higgins held senior management positions at Creative Commercial Funding LLC, CIT Commercial Services and Heller Financial.

Parke Guptill & Co. CPA has hired Diego Vanegas as a staff accountant. Vanegas is a recent graduate from California State University, Los Angeles.

City National Bank named Tony Orme senior vice president and sales manager for its wealth management services division. Prior to joining City National, Orme was a managing director of Knightsbridge Asset Management LLC in Newport Beach.

Leticia Aguilar, consumer executive for Bank of America’s greater Los Angeles division and president, Bank of America central Los Angeles market, will take on added duties as consumer executive for the greater Los Angeles and central California division. Aguilar joined the bank in 1972 as a customer service representative, and held a number of customer service, sales and operations positions in Los Angeles County.

Wescom Credit Union has appointed Dean Lambertson as vice president for the credit union’s new commercial real estate division. Lambert previously served as vice president at First Regional Bank in Glendale.

Michael Watchorn, a managing director of Los Angeles-based Oaktree Capital Management LLC, was named as a temporary member of the board of NES Rentals Holdings Inc. Chicago-based NES formed a new seven-member board in April, after emerging from Chapter 11 bankruptcy in February. The board is searching for a new chief executive, who will replace Watchorn on the board.

Entertainment

Vivendi Universal Games appointed Mark J. Halacy as executive vice president, global human resources. Most recently, Halacy was senior vice president of global human resources development at Vivendi Universal’s corporate headquarters.

Government

Mayor James Hahn has appointed Bruce Stenslie as executive director of the Los Angeles Workforce Investment Board. Stenslie has served as human services and workforce investment board director for Ventura County since 1995.

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has made the following appointments to the California Community College Board of Governors: Catherine Unger, a private and public affairs consultant representing clients including USC’s Annenberg School for Communication; Margaret Quinones, a counselor at El Camino College and member of the Santa Monica College board; and J. Steven Rhodes, founder, chairman and chief executive of Claiborne-Rhodes Inc. Also, Richard Loa of Palmdale was appointed to the Board of Prison Terms. He has served as a deputy alternate public defender for the county of Los Angeles since 1994. And Cynthia Simon of Pacific Palisades has been appointed to the State Council on Developmental Disabilities. Simon serves as president of the Village Glen West parent association.

Movie producer Robert Simonds (“The Wedding Singer,” “The Waterboy”) was named to the board of the Metropolitan Water District. Simonds, one of four members representing the city of Los Angeles on the 37-member panel, replaces Bonny L. Herman, who had served since April 1995.

Health Care

Todd E. Gillenwater was appointed vice president of public policy for the California Healthcare Institute. Prior to joining the institute, Gillenwater was legislative director for Rep. David Dreier, R-Glendora.

Hospitality

Loews Beverly Hills Hotel has named Sarah Kleinrock director of special events, specializing in kosher catering. Prior to joining Loews, Kleinrock served as sales and event manager for Le Parc Suite Hotel in West Hollywood.

Specialty Laboratories Inc. named Kevin R. Sayer executive vice president and chief financial officer. Sayer was chief financial officer of Minimed Inc. and co-led the integration team in 2001 and 2002 after its acquisition by Medtronic Inc. His most recent position was vice president and general manager of Medtronic Minimed’s external pump and disposable product business unit.

Human Resources

Outsource Partners International Inc. appointed Jamie Mearns director of finance, a newly created position. Mearns most recently served as senior vice president of corporate development and corporate controller for Transtar Metals Inc.

Insurance

EPolicy Solutions Inc. has elected Geoff Smith to its board and has promoted William S. “Billy” McCarter to executive vice president and chief operating officer. McCarter joined ePolicy Solution in 2002 after serving as senior vice president and chief information officer at Fireman’s Fund Insurance Co. Smith served in numerous positions, including executive vice president and chief operating officer, since joining the company soon after it was founded.

Law

Los Angeles sports marketing attorney Maidie E. Oliveau has been named to the Ad Hoc Division of the Court of Arbitration for Sport. The 12-member court was set up to settle disputes that arise during the 2004 Athens Olympics. Oliveau, who has served on previous courts in Sydney and Salt Lake City, represents sponsors, event organizers, television broadcasters, sports associations and other rights holders. She established her own firm in 1990.

Media

KMEX (Channel 34), the flagship station of the Univision Television Group, announced the appointment of Lori Morley as local sales manager. Morley previously served as vice president of sales and marketing for Univision’s Eastern region.

Non-Profit

The Mexican American Legal Defense and Educational Fund has chosen board member Ann Marie Tallman to be its president and general counsel, beginning June 1. Tallman is senior vice president of Fannie Mae, the mortgage lender, and has been on the Maldef board for six years.

Real Estate

Transwestern Commercial Services, a privately held commercial real estate firm, appointed George H. Garfield Jr. as president, West region. Garfield previously was executive vice president at Vivendi Universal, where his responsibilities included global development, entitlements, acquisitions, dispositions and worldwide leasing activity.

Shorewood Realtors named Tom Nickl of its Manhattan Beach Boulevard office as its new director of training. Nickl replaces Carole Stonich, who will continue as a full-time agent. Nickl held a variety of positions in sales training and management prior to joining Shorewood in 2002.

Technology

NeoStem Inc., a venture formed to collect adult stem cells and store them for potential future use, has named Edward Garnett vice president of sales and marketing. Garnett, a former director of sales and marketing at Amgen Inc., has been a business advisor and angel investor since retiring.

Guy Copeland, president of information infrastructure advisory programs for Computer Sciences Corp.’s federal sector business unit, was appointed vice president of the Information Technology Information Sharing and Analysis Center.

Telecommunications

Former California Senate Majority Leader and Assemblyman Richard Polanco has joined the board of Telscape Communications. Polanco served from 1986 to 1994 in the state Assembly and from 1994 to 2002 in the state Senate. Telscape is a facilities-based local and long-distance phone service provider, marketing to the Hispanic sector.