BALLOT REFERENDUM: California’s statewide plastic bag ban is on hold after opponents, along with plastic bag manufacturers, qualified a referendum for the November 2016 ballot. The Washington-based trade group American Progressive Bag Alliance turned in more than 800,000 signatures to the California Secretary of State’s Office, more than the roughly 500,000 needed to put the referendum on the ballot. The state Legislature and Gov. Jerry Brown approved the ban last year. In addition to banning single-use plastic bags, the law requires grocery stores and other merchants to charge 10 cents for each paper bag given to customers. The referendum puts the state ban on hold but does not affect local bans in place in Los Angeles, Long Beach and dozens of other jurisdictions.

UP FOR SALE: Real estate brokerage Cushman & Wakefield Inc. will soon be sold, sources told the Wall Street Journal. Rising property prices are increasing the value of rivals, which led to the decision to sell by Exor SpA, the Italian company that owns Cushman, one of the world’s largest real estate services firms. The firm has a big presence in Los Angeles but is based in New York. Exor will reportedly work with Goldman Sachs and Morgan Stanley to look for a buyer.

NO GO: Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa has decided against running for the U.S. Senate seat left vacant by retiring incumbent Barbara Boxer. Some members of the state’s Legislative Latino Caucus are interested in finding another viable Latino candidate to run instead. The only major candidate to announce a bid so far is State Attorney General Kamala Harris. Other Democrats who might be considering running are U.S. Reps. Adam Schiff of Burbank, Loretta Sanchez of Garden Grove and Xavier Becerra of Los Angeles.

NFL HOPEFUL: The Inglewood City Council has unanimously approved the construction of an 80,000-seat National Football League stadium proposed by St. Louis Rams owner Stan Kroenke. He said he plans to build the stadium without public money. The project would be part of a 238-acre retail, office, hotel and residential project at the former Hollywood Park race track. The project could generate an estimated $25 million in annual revenue for Inglewood, according to developers.

PASCAL OUT: Sony Pictures Entertainment has announced Hollywood executive Tom Rothman will replace Amy Pascal as chairman of the company’s motion picture group. Rothman, who headed Fox Filmed Entertainment for more than a decade, helped bring hits including “Avatar” and “Titanic” to the big screen. He most recently helmed Sony’s TriStar Productions. He will report to Michael Lynton, who has had his contract as chief executive of SPE and Sony Entertainment extended.

DREAM ON: DreamWorks Animation SKG Inc. has announced it will sell then lease back its Glendale campus. The move follows a string of box-office bombs for the animation studio. DreamWorks Chief Executive Jeffrey Katzenberg announced the plans while on a conference call discussing the company’s fourth-quarter earnings, which fell below analysts’ estimates. DreamWorks Animation had a net loss of $263 million for the quarter ended Dec. 31. The 400,000-square-foot campus, which is located on Flower Street, was built in 1997.

Cities UNITE: The mayors of Los Angeles and Long Beach say they will collaborate on supply chain issues affecting the cities’ twin ports to avoid future backlogs. The two announced at a joint press conference that a proposal has been submitted to the Federal Maritime Commission calling for collaboration on several issues, including wait times for trucks at terminals and better coordination of when ships call on the ports.

PARK RANGER: Bob Chapek, who has been president of consumer products for the Walt Disney Co., has been named the company’s new chief of parks and resorts. He replaces Thomas Staggs, who was named chief operating officer earlier this month. Chapek has been with Disney for more than 20 years. He is also a former president of distribution for Walt Disney Studios and former president of Walt Disney Studios Home Entertainment.

GAS EXPLOSION: A pressure buildup was cited as the cause of an explosion last month at the ExxonMobil refinery in Torrance. Four contractors were injured by the blast, which sent ash into surrounding neighborhoods and led to a hydrocarbon leak that caused smoke in the area, panicking residents. The California Division of Occupational Safety and Health closed the damaged refinery unit.

PORTS SLUMP: Cargo volumes at the Port of Los Angeles fell in January by 23 percent compared with the same month last year, a result of congestion exacerbated by slowdowns stemming from contentious labor negotiations at the harbor. Gene Seroka, the port’s executive director, said last month’s tentative agreement between the International Longshore Warehouse Union and Pacific Maritime Association, which represents shipping companies and harbor terminal operators, is one step toward a solution to ease congestion. The Port of Long Beach saw similar declines in container cargo volumes in January. Officials there reported an 18.8 percent drop in cargo compared with January 2014.