WESTSIDE
MALIBU
Venture Funding: NexSteppe, a Malibu bioenergy company, has raised $14 million in a Series B round of venture funding. The company’s cultivated feedstock is designed for processing into products including fuels, plastics and cosmetics. NexSteppe will use the proceeds to scale up its sorghum and switch grass breeding programs, and move its first products toward commercialization. The funding round was led by Braemar Energy Ventures, a New York venture capital firm.
SAN FERNANDO VALLEY
ENCINO
Bank Acquisition: Encino’s California United Bank has acquired Anaheim-based Premier Commercial Bancorp and its Premier Commercial Bank subsidiary in a deal valued at $38.1 million. The purchase brings California United’s assets to more than $1.2 billion and more than $1 billion in deposits, and adds offices in Orange County.
TOLUCA LAKE
Real Estate Pickup: Ramsey-Shilling Commercial Real Estate Services Inc., a Toluca Lake real estate firm, has been acquired by Toronto-based real estate services company Avison Young. Ramsey-Shilling’s Toluca Lake and Valencia offices have been rebranded as Avison Young, and the firm’s chief executive, Christopher Bonbright, and president, Mark Evanoff, have joined Avison Young as principals. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.
WEST HILLS
Hospital Renovation: West Hills Hospital & Medical Center is launching the renovation phase of a $72 million infrastructure improvement project. The $6 million phase will include the overhaul of the hospital’s lobby, cafeterias, nursing stations and patient rooms. The hospital has completed the $66 million expansion phase, which included a brand-new two-story, 30-bed emergency room, double the capacity of the previous facility.
WOODLAND HILLS
Revving Up: Ontario-based Oremor Automotive Group has purchased the former Vista Lexus dealership location in Woodland Hills. The new dealership, at 21611 Ventura Blvd., has been named Lexus of Woodland Hills. Oremor, which also owns Southern California dealerships in Ontario and Glendale, plans to build a larger showroom. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
VAN NUYS
New Digs: Apparel maker Cherokee Inc. is moving to a new headquarters, but will remain in Van Nuys. The company has leased a larger space, at 5990 Sepulveda Blvd., in anticipation of company growth. It was previously headquartered at 6835 Valjean Ave.
TRI-CITIES
GLENDALE
Office Deal: Melby & Anderson LLP, a Glendale law firm, has sold its nearly 5,000-square-foot office building for $1.69 million to geologist Tyler MacCready. The property, at 505 E. Wilson Ave., was built in 1977. The firm said it needed less space after several attorneys departed in recent years, and is looking for office space in Glendale and La Canada Flintridge.
CORRECTIONS
The chart under the headline “Volume Leaders” for the List of SBA Lenders in the Dec. 12 issue was incorrect. The correct ranking of the lenders by dollar volume is:
No. 1: Center Bank, $140 million; No. 2: CDC Small Business Finance, $115 million; No. 3: Mortgage Capital, $110 million; No. 4: Wells Fargo, $69 million; No. 5: U.S. Bank, $65 million; No. 6: EDF Resource Capital, $60 million; No. 7: Wilshire State Bank, $54 million; No. 8: Open Bank, $52 million; No. 9: California Statewide CDC, $47 million; No. 10: JPMorgan Chase, $45 million.
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An article in the Dec. 19 issue headlined “Spanish-Language Broadcaster Signals Recovery” should have said analyst Anil Gupta works at Imperial Capital headquarters in Los Angeles.
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An article in the Dec. 19 issue headlined “Thrift Store Looks to Get on Roll With Mobile Shop” should have said that Aether makes outdoor jackets and shorts, and is based in the Hollywood Media
District. Also, the company launched its trailer in October.
