LABJ-Digital-Edition, February 7,2011
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Thumbnails LABJ User Guide Front Page Table of Content labusinessjournal.com LOS ANGELES BUSINESS JOURNAL Volume 33, Number 6 THE COMMUNITY OF BUSINESSTM February 7 - 13, 2011 • $3.00 Up Herbalife Heir Makes a Case for $400 Million Trust But in the decade since the death, Mark’s divorced will pursue his mother’s legal actions against the trustees. Front LEGAL: 19-year-old and his mom wife, Suzan, has fought to get more money from the Last month, he applied for an order to have the trustees look to take control from trustees. estate. Since she’s gotten little, in her view, she’s suspended for allegedly misappropriating money. waged a multimillion-dollar legal battle to replace the Conrad Lee Klein, one of the three trustees, said the By ALFRED LEE Staff Reporter trustees charged with overseeing her son’s money. actions indicate there’s no end in sight for the dispute, Trustees hoped that the battle would stop or slow which has dragged on since 2002. He estimated each Ever since he was in grade school, Alex Hughes has when Alex became a legal adult at 18. But now 19, he side has spent more than $10 million in legal fees. been at the center of one of L.A.’s most contentious battles. appears to have joined his mother and renewed the “It’s no more pleasant now than it was before,” said Alex was only 8 in 2000 when his father, Herbal- fight, reinforcing its status as one of the county’s Klein, a solo practitioner who was personal counsel to ife founder Mark Hughes, died and left a $400 million largest, longest and most bitter trust and estate cases. trust for his only son to inherit at 35. In December, Alex filed documents affirming that he Please see LEGAL page 34 How cardiologist John Kennedy is selling his prescription for better breathing. PAGE 3 Sink or News & Analysis Swim? L.A. port plans may torpedo Terminal Island’s Fish Harbor. By DAVID HALDANE Staff Reporter David Farnworth ORNINGS are busy at Terminal Island’s Fish Harbor. is expanding his The day begins around 4:30 a.m. when the first boats pub chain despite Marrive at dockside processing plants, where apron-clad debilitating illness. workers unload, sort and pack the night’s squirming catch. PAGE 5 At midday, dozens of other boats motor in. Many are owned by Vietnamese immigrants who sell such delica- Workers sort cies as slime eel directly to restaurants and bro- sardines at kers. By sunset, most fishermen are back at sea. People Fish Harbor. All told, about 80 boats do business at this little waterfront corner of the Port of Los Angeles. That may sound sizable, but it’s just a fraction of the 300 vessels that serviced what was once the West Coast’s largest cannery row. Now, even these survivors feel their days are numbered. Under pressure to provide more space for containers and Please see FISHING page 36 RINGO H.W. CHIU/LABJ Airline chief Joe Czyzyk is set to Tax Woes Build in Big Credit Unions take off as head of L.A. chamber. Enterprise Zones Banking Again on PAGE 14 GOVERNMENT: State may Real Estate Loans erase companies’ unused credits. MAIL TO: By RICHARD CLOUGH Staff Reporter By HOWARD FINE Staff Reporter Local credit unions are beginning to return to com- Not only does Gov. Jerry Brown want to elimi- mercial real estate lending, a business line that was all nate enterprise zones, he wants to kill more than $900 but abandoned by many lenders during the recession. RINGO H.W. CHIU/LABJ million in tax credits that have been banked by thou- Left Holding the Bag?: Crown Poly’s Browne. Lockheed Federal Credit Union, the second sands of companies in California – including hun- largest credit union in Los Angeles County, began dreds in Los Angeles County’s eight enterprise zones. “We specifically located in an enterprise zone so offering commercial real estate loans last week for the Among them is Crown Poly Inc., a maker of we could hire people and receive the tax credits,” first time since 2006. The move comes just months plastic grocery bags. The company moved from said Crown Poly General Manager Cathy Browne. after Kinecta Federal Credit Union, the largest, Vernon to an enterprise zone in Huntington Park “We go out and hire people, and we should get the resumed real estate lending after a yearlong hiatus. four years ago; since then, the company has added credits that are owed us for hiring those people.” While many commercial banks remain hesitant to 110 workers and accumulated more than $900,000 Browne is worried that the company would have expand their loan portfolios due to regulatory pressures in tax credits. Now that its tax bill may zoom up, Crown Poly has put its hiring plans on hold. Please see GOVERNMENT page 35 Please see LENDING page 34 Real World Insight for Middle Market Companies www.gscpa.com 310.828.9798 Thumbnails LABJ User Guide Front Page Table of Content 2 LOS ANGELES BUSINESS JOURNAL FEBRUARY 7, 2011 LOS ANGELES BUSINESS JOURNAL® FEBRUARY 7 - 13, 2011 VOLUME 33, NUMBER 6 RINGO H.W. CHIU/LABJ Page 12: Susan and Jim Morris at JCL Barricade in downtown Los Angeles. ON THE COVER PROFILE FISHING – Port of L.A.’s plans for Terminal NICHE – Traffic control services firm JCL Island may force local fishermen to weigh Barricade looks to make inroads in industries anchor. beyond the movie business. .12 GOVERNMENT – Gov. Jerry Brown’s call to kill enterprise zones could cost local PEOPLE businesses their stockpiled tax credits. INTERVIEW – Mercury Air CEO Joe LENDING – Some of L.A.’s biggest credit Czyzyk uses the word “fly” even when he’s unions are ready to check back into fishing. .14 commercial real estate lending. LEGAL – 19-year-old Herbalife heir Alex Hughes doesn’t seem willing to wait until THE LIST he’s 35 to tap his $400 million trust. RANKING – The 25 biggest business improvement districts in Los Angeles County, UP FRONT ranked by 2011 budgets. .18 The 20 biggest securities brokerage firms in HEALTH CARE – A Marina del Rey Los Angeles County, ranked by full-time Bringing your global accounting needs cardiologist wants workers to take his registered brokers in the county. .19 stress-reduction program to heart. .3 togetherinover100countries. SPORTS – Burbank investment firm was INVESTMENTS & FINANCE willing to jump through hoops to take over the Harlem Globetrotters. .3 Columns & features – Econowatch 21, TECH – Twitter-based business thinks it LABJ Stock Index 22 may finally have a handle on the company name. .3 REAL ESTATE Columns & features – Page 3, Regional Report 4 HOUSING – January threw a chill into the Los Angeles County home market as prices fell and sales slowed. .25 NEWS & ANALYSIS CHART – A list of January home and condo HOSPITALITY – Pub chain Lucky sales by neighborhood. .25 Baldwin’s continues to move forward even Columns & features – Real Estate as its co-owner copes with a serious Column 29 degenerative disease. .5 INTERNET – Online auctioneer Bidz.com COMMENTARY has investors calling out for more. .5 COMMENT – Charles Crumpley believes APPAREL – American Apparel is trying on a enterprise zone businesses are getting a raw new management structure as it looks to deal from Gov. Jerry Brown. .38 revive slumping sales. .6 GOVERNMENT – Beverly Hills BANKING – Analysts are talking rebound as Councilman John Mirisch rips medical earnings of most local banks bounced even building landlords for wanting the city to pay Access to professionals with on-the-ground knowledge of local regulations, higher last quarter. .7 for their parking. .39 language and culture. Responsiveness, thoughtful recommendations, MANUFACTURING – A New York equity EDUCATION – It’s business that will and partner accessibility. That’s the hallmark of Grant Thornton. firm thinks it has better fits for Pasadena pipe ultimately pay the price for poorly educated Contact Joel Anik, SoCal Managing Partner, at 213.596.3484 or maker’s board. .8 workers, warn Gary Mangiofico and Bill [email protected]. Visit us at GrantThornton.com. Columns & features – Media Watch 8, Allen. .39 News of the Week 10 Columns & features – LABJ Forum 38 Los Angeles Business Journal (ISSN 0194-2603) is published weekly. © 2011, Los Angeles Business Journal. Offices are located at 5700 Wilshire Blvd., Suite 170, Los Angeles, CA 90036. Periodicals postage paid at Los Angeles, CA and additional offices (USPS #492-930). Subscription prices: 51 issues and special issue, $99.95. For new and renewal subscriptions, call 1-800-404-5225. All other inquiries (323) 549-5225. Single copies, $3.00. Mailed copies, $5.00. Back issues, $8.00. Address and subscription inquiries to: Circulation Department, Los Angeles Business Jour- nal, 5700 Wilshire Blvd. Suite 170, Los Angeles, CA 90036. This newspaper is designed to inform decision-making executives, investors and man- agers on the trends, the growth and the ideas important to commerce and industry in Los Angeles County. 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