Staff Reporter with Los Angeles Business Journal, covering public policy and energy
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Articles by Howard Fine
Air Traffic Continues Slide
Passenger traffic was down at all four local airports in August for the third straight month as higher fuel costs due to the war in the Persian Gulf have forced airlines to cut flights and raise fares. Overall, 7.84 million travelers went through the gates at Los Angeles International, Ontario International, Hollywood Burbank and Long Beach airports in August, down 4.5% from the same month last year.
Cedars-Sinai CEO Urges Teamwork
To make the Los Angeles region more of a life sciences powerhouse, industry, academic and civic leaders should take a page out of Boston’s playbook and collaborate more intensely, Peter Slavin, the chief executive of Beverly Grove-based Cedars-Sinai Health System, told a group of industry executives and investors at a recent BioscienceLA conference in West Hollywood. Slavin spent 18 years as chief executive of Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston before taking the top post at Cedars-Sinai.
Physicians Association Names CEO
The oldest healthcare group in Los Angeles County is getting a new chief. The Los Angeles County Medical Association has chosen veteran healthcare organization leader Katie Jordan as its next chief executive. She is replacing Gustavo Friederichsen, who is retiring at the end of the year after 10 years in the post. Jordan will start transitioning into the chief executive post on Nov. 16 and take over sole leadership responsibilities at the start of next year.
USC’s Keck Shakes Up Leadership
In the most sweeping moves in years, several leadership changes were recently announced at healthcare-related institutions within the University of Southern California. After six years, Rod Hanners stepped down on Sept.
Tutor Perini Lands Work
Subsidiaries of Sylmar-based civil construction firm Tutor Perini Corp. last week reeled in a pair of contracts that combined are worth $88.2 million. The first contract of $45.2 million was awarded to Tutor Perini’s Guam-based subsidiary Black Construction by the Guam Department of Public Works. It involves the reconstruction of two bridges located along Route 1 in the U.S. Pacific to ensure their long-term functionality and safety for the local community and for U.S. military operations.
EVgo Amps Up Partnership
El Segundo-based electric vehicle charging infrastructure company EVgo Inc. is expanding its partnership with Jacksonville, Florida-based shopping center developer and owner Regency Centers Corp. to add more than 400 fast-charging stalls at Regency centers across the country. The two parties first partnered on building electric vehicle charging facilities in 2020, resulting in EVgo installing roughly 150 charging stalls at Regency Centers locations. This new agreement, announced Sept.
Calstart Is Now Catalyst Mobility
Calstart, the Pasadena-based zero-emission vehicle industry consortium, now has a new name: Catalyst Mobility. And it has gotten a little larger after merging into its organization an Oregon nonprofit working to advance the electrification of transportation. These are the most significant developments for the 34-year-old consortium since Michael Berube took over as chief executive late last year, replacing longtime chief John Boesel.
SkyLink Lenders Grant Reprieve
Bondholders for the contractor consortium building the Skylink People Mover project at Los Angeles International Airport have granted a two-month reprieve on a deadline that could have resulted in a technical default. The move gives the contractor team two additional months to complete final-stage testing on the much-delayed project. Bondholders have agreed to waive the Oct. 8 “lenders’ longstop date,” merging that date into the Dec.
Missed World Cup Boost
Passenger traffic declined at all four local airports in July for the second straight month as higher fuel costs drove up fares and prompted consumers to cut back on unnecessary flights. This second consecutive monthly drop also makes definitive the lack of a forecast passenger surge resulting from the FIFA World Cup matches played in Inglewood during June and July.
Home care firm lays off 738 workers
The statewide cuts are mostly in Fresno, Imperial Valley El Segundo-based 24 Hour Home Care is laying off 738 caregivers across the state beginning this week, the company said in a recent state filing. Most of the cuts appeared to be centered in the Fresno and Imperial Valley areas. Founded in 2008, 24 Hour Home Care provides non-medical in-home and community care services for seniors and people with physical or developmental disabilities.
Emmaus, Cedars-Sinai Extend Pact
Torrance-based Emmaus Life Sciences Inc. announced Aug. 31 an option agreement with Beverly Grove-based Cedars-Sinai Medical Center to continue researching the use of Emmaus’ existing drug Endari in treating pancreatic cancer. The Food and Drug Administration in 2017 approved the L-glutamine oral powder drug to treat pediatric sickle cell disease. The drug has also been approved for this use in several Persian Gulf countries.
Unite HERE Opens Health Center
An unconventional healthcare and dental center serving hospitality union workers officially opened last month in L.A.’s Pico-Union District. The medical center, run by the Unite HERE Local 11 hospitality workers union in partnership with Willowbrook-based MLK Community Healthcare and the Nashville-based Dyntl chain of dental clinics, is one of a very few exclusively serving union members. Most union members use traditional primary care and dental providers.
Home Care Firm Lays Off 738
El Segundo-based 24 Hour Home Care is laying off 738 caregivers across the state beginning this week, the company said in a recent state filing. Most of the cuts appeared to be centered in the Fresno and Imperial Valley areas. Founded in 2008, 24 Hour Home Care provides non-medical in-home and community care services for seniors and people with physical or developmental disabilities.
Bluecore Lands $50M Round
Two months after emerging from stealth, Port of Long Beach-based Bluecore Energy has raised $50 million in a seed funding round to speed development of its nuclear microreactors for maritime use. Bluecore Energy founder and chief executive, Kofi Asante, said the funding round announced last week was led by Austin, Texas-based Silverton Partners. Ten other investors also joined, most of whom are venture capital firms.
George Joseph Dies at 104
George Joseph, a World War II bomber pilot who went on to found Mid-Wilshire-based insurance company Mercury General Corp. and in his final years was the world’s oldest billionaire, died on Aug. 26. He was 104. His death was announced in a post on Mercury General’s website. No cause of death was given. Joseph established Mercury in 1962 as an auto insurance company. He served as chief executive for 45 years, helping transform the company into a major multi-line property and casualty insurer.
CEO Rotation at Herbalife
The revolving door of chief executives at downtown-based nutrition supplement maker Herbalife Ltd. is making yet another turn. On Aug. 31, Herbalife announced its chief executive, Stephan Gratziani will step down on Oct. 31, after just 17 months at the helm. Chief Financial Officer John DeSimone will take over as interim chief while a search is under way for a permanent replacement.
Optimizing Corticosteroid Therapy in Uveitis
Few conditions remind us as forcefully as noninfectious uveitis how urgently we must act when inflammation takes hold in the eye. If caught early and treated appropriately, the inflammatory cascade may be suppressed before it becomes chronic. If left untreated, however, the consequences may be severe and lasting.
Cordoba Taps VSS for Growth
Elysian Park-based civil engineering and construction management firm Cordoba Corp. has received a private investment from New York-based VSS Capital Partners. The undisclosed investment amount, which VSS Capital announced earlier this month, is aimed at helping Cordoba expand. One of VSS Capital’s specialties is investing in founder-led companies. Cordoba was founded in 1983 by George Pla, who still serves as the company’s chief executive.
Port Preps Waterfront for Games
With less than two years before Los Angeles host the 2028 Olympic and Paralympic Games, the Los Angeles Harbor Commission approved more than $70 million in constructions projects to ready the waterfront near San Pedro for the boating competitions. The bulk of the work comprises a $67 million construction contract that was awarded to Brea-based general contractor Griffith Co., according to the Port of Los Angeles.
Metro Awards $1.9B Light Rail Deal
The first Metro rail project built entirely within the San Fernando Valley has its builder: a joint venture of Stockholm-based Skanska and Alameda-based Stacy and Witbeck Inc., which was awardeda$1.9 billion main construction contract. This joint venture is currently engaged in pre-construction work on the 6.7-mile Metro East San Fernando Valley Light Rail Transit line that will run from the Van Nuys Metrolink station north along Van Nuys Boulevard to Pacoima.
Radiant Snags $750M U.S. Army Deal
El Segundo-based nuclear microreactor developer Radiant Industries Inc. has snagged a U.S. Army contract worth up to $750 million to deploy about 15 of its microreactors at military installations and for other critical national security missions. The contract award, announced last week, is the third major one for Radiant Industries in the last year. In April, the U.S. Air Force chose the company to build and operate one of its microreactors at Buckley Air Force Base in Aurora, Colorado.
CRC Expands Beyond Oilfield
Long Beach-based California Resources Corp., the state’s largest oil and natural gas producer, has purchased an Irvine-based pipeline company and plans a data center next to its Kern County oilfield operations. California Resources, or CRC, announced earlier this month that it has acquired Crimson Midstream Holdings from Kansas City-based CorEnergy Infrastructure Trust for a cash price of $63 million.
SkyLink Stalls Near Finish
So close, yet so far. The long-delayed $3.3 billion SkyLink automated people mover project at Los Angeles International Airport is 99.6% complete, according to a recent bond rating service report. All that’s left is the train and system testing and the finalization of interagency agreements. But the project in recent weeks has become entangled in a legal morass, as the contractor consortium filed suit against the agency running the airport.
Airports See 1.7% Decline
The slide in local airport passenger traffic continued through the first half of the year – and not even the 2026 FIFA World Cup could offer any relief. The four airports serving Los Angeles County reported a combined tally of 43.3 million passengers for the first six months of this year, down 1.7% compared to the same period of last year. That followed a 3% drop last year from the same six-month stretch of 2024.
Latigo Nets $346 Million from Public Offering
Pharmaceutical companies have been racing to develop effective pain treatment alternatives that don’t have the addictive properties of opioids. Now investors can put their money on a Thousand Oaks company in this race. Thousand Oaks-based Latigo Biotherapeutics Inc. netted $346 million from its Aug. 7 initial public offering on the Nasdaq stock exchange. The offering was priced at $18 a share; over the next five trading sessions, the price edged up to about $20.
VEG ER Opens in Beverly Grove
White Plains, New York-based Veterinary Emergency Group has opened a pet emergency hospital in Beverly Grove, the firm’s fifth center in Los Angeles County. Veterinary Emergency Group, which does business as VEG ER for Pets, opened the 5,000-square-foot emergency hospital at the Beverly Connection shopping center, which was purchased by nearby Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in March for $270 million.
Precise Behavioral Raises $14 Million
Westlake Village-based Precise Behavioral Inc., a tech-enabled mental health company providing in-person and virtual care services, has secured $14.2 million in venture funding. Chicago-based A1 Health Ventures led the funding round, which was announced July 29. Also participating were Ziegler Link-Age Fund, which has headquarters in both Chicago and Mason, Ohio; Converge Capital Partners of Austin, Texas; and Granite Financial Holdings, an affiliate of Meridian, Idaho-based Blue Cross of Idaho.
Hospital Gets $32 Million Infusion
Financially struggling Martin Luther King Jr. Community Hospital has received a funding infusion up to $32 million from Oakland-based Kaiser Permanente. The funding is split between a $25 million grant to bolster emergency services and a loan of up to $7 million for modular building capacity to relieve overcrowding, Kaiser Permanente announced last week. MLK Community Hospital is licensed for 131 licensed beds but has been staffing approximately 152 beds.
Edison Shares Take Two Hits
Shares of Rosemead-based Edison International have tumbled 15% over the last couple of weeks, thanks to a double-dose of unwelcome news related to the destructive Eaton Fire in January 2025.
L.A.’s Nuclear Hat Trick
L.A.’s South Bay is emerging as a hub for the next generation of nuclear reactor development. Three of the 11 projects in the U.S. Department of Energy’s reactor pilot program are from South Bay companies. Two of them, Radiant Industries Inc. and Valar Atomics Inc., are headquartered in El Segundo. The third, Antares Nuclear Inc., is just a dozen miles down the road in Torrance.
Airports Nab More Than $44 Million in FAA Grants
Three of the local airports serving Los Angeles County earlier this month received a cumulative total of more than $44 million in infrastructure grants from the Federal Aviation Administration. The grants were part of a massive $1.8 billion round in grants distributed to airports in 46 states that the FAA announced on July 2. The largest local grant was $27 million for reconstruction of a 4,200-foot taxiway at Long Beach Airport, about 90% of the total cost of the Taxiway F reconstruction project.
Clean Power Alliance Inks Deal
Downtown-based Clean Power Alliance has signed another deal for power from renewable resources. In July, Clean Power Alliance signed a power purchase agreement with San Diego-based renewable energy developer Avantus Clean Energy. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.
Tetra Tech Snags Three Contracts
Pasadena-based Tetra Tech Inc.’s latest trio of contracts have the 60-year-old company going back to its roots providing engineering services related to waterways and coastal zones. Earlier this month, Tetra Tech announced a five-year, $25 million contract from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Office of Water to provide support to the EPA, state agencies and local communities to maintain clean water resources.
Passenger Traffic Down at Local Airports in May
Passenger traffic declined at local airports in May as the impacts of higher fuel costs continued to push up ticket prices and drive away travelers. Overall, 7.71 million passengers went through terminal gates in May at the four airports serving Los Angeles County – Los Angeles International, Ontario International, Hollywood Burbank and Long Beach. That was a drop of 3.4% from May of last year, slightly less than the 3.7% drop in April compared with that same month last year.
Healthcare: Cedars Goes Global
Most hospitals in Los Angeles County and elsewhere focus exclusively on serving the healthcare needs of their local communities. Beverly Grove-based Cedars-Sinai Health System has maintained this tradition, continually expanding its local medical care presence. But Cedars-Sinai is also increasingly going global. In the last four years alone, Cedars-Sinai has opened patient referral offices in Doha, Qatar; Mexico City; Quito in Ecuador; Shanghai; and Singapore.
America 250: Feds Powered a New Region
For roughly a century, a combination of local drive and federal resources built up L.A. County’s infrastructure, helping to transform the region into a global powerhouse. Federal funds helped link the region to the transcontinental railroad 150 years ago. Water and power projects, such as Hoover Dam, and flood control efforts also boosted the local economy. Then the Federal Highway Act led to the construction of L.A.’s iconic freeways, which turned the region into the world’s car capital.
Port Panel OKs Truck Staging Lot
The Los Angeles Harbor Commission this month approved the development of a truck staging lot in Wilmington, advancing a controversial project near the Port of Los Angeles. The staging lot sits on 18-plus acres of vacant land next to Interstate 110, south of Harry Bridges Boulevard. It would contain 393 parking stalls. The aim is to reduce congestion caused by trucks waiting on city streets for their turn to pick up cargo from the docks.
Tutor Perini Snags $800-Plus Million in Work
Sylmar-based construction contractor Tutor Perini Corp. recently announced a trio of contract awards that combined to top $800 million. By far the largest contract is $652 million to underground power lines at a U.S. Navy base in Guam, a U.S. territory in the Western Pacific.
Work Begins on Desalter Project
When one thinks of desalination plants, they are generally connected directly to the ocean. But on June 11, groundbreaking took place for an expanded desalination effort a few miles inland in Torrance. The purpose: to take salt out of groundwater contaminated through ocean water intrusion. The $187 million project to expand an existing desalination plant is being spearheaded by the city of Torrance and the Lakewood-based Water Replenishment District of Southern California.
FDA to Review Expanded Use of Cancer Drug
Culver City-based ImmunityBio Inc. announced a couple of key developments last month that it hopes will eventually boost sales for its signature Anktiva drug to treat certain forms of bladder cancer. On May 18, ImmunityBio said in a statement that the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has accepted for review the company’s application for expanded use of Anktiva, with a decision deadline of next Jan. 6.
Kin Health Raises $9 Million in Seed Funding
Armed with a recent $9 million seed funding raise, Westwood-based Kin Health Technologies Inc. is now trying to make good on its promise as a patient-focused notetaker app. The idea is simple: help bewildered patients, and in many cases, their overwhelmed relatives or caregivers, fully remember and understand their conversations with doctors and specialists. This includes diagnoses, instructions on medications, and other therapies and referrals to specialists.
April Sees Dip in Air Passengers
Passenger traffic was down at local airports in April as the impacts of higher fuel costs and shortages of Transportation Security Administration agents slammed the air travel industry. Overall, 7.22 million travelers went through the gates at Los Angeles International, Ontario International, Hollywood Burbank and Long Beach airports in April, down 3.7% from the same month last year.
From Hospital to Homes
Most people who stay in hospital buildings can’t wait to get well enough to go home. But if L.A. County officials have their way, in a few years, hundreds of Angelenos might be calling one of L.A.’s oldest and most iconic hospital buildings their home. Last month, the county released a master plan for the reuse of the 31-acre Los Angeles County General Hospital campus in Boyle Heights, which first opened in 1934.
New Terminal for Ontario Airport
After years of rapid passenger growth, Ontario International Airport is embarking on a physical expansion plan that would add a new terminal, a multi-story parking facility, a car rental support facility and other improvements. The Ontario International Airport Authority announced the expansion plan on May 8 as the airport is marking its 10th anniversary of a return to local control.
Amgen Drug Reviewed Amid Deaths
Sales of the problematic Amgen Inc. drug Tavneos resumed late last week in Japan with a new warning label after several patient deaths potentially linked to the drug. The drug’s future in the United States is still uncertain amid renewed regulatory scrutiny following revelations of alleged data manipulation in clinical trials for the drug several years ago. Tavneos, which also goes by the generic name avacopan, was developed by San Carlos-based ChemoCentryx Inc.
Wage Hikes to Be Delayed
Last week, L.A. City Council reached a deal to extend the timetable for boosting wages for hotel and private-sector airport workers under the Olympic tourism wage ordinance, in exchange for business groups dropping their measure to repeal the city’s gross receipts tax. The council approved a revised plan in an initial 11-4 vote, delaying the target wage level of $30 an hour by 18 months to Jan. 1, 2030.
‘Green Truck Corridor’ Is Formed
There have been a lot of incentive programs over the years to encourage cargo truck drivers to convert to electric trucks or other clean-burning vehicles to move cargo from the region’s twin ports. Now comes the first concerted effort from stakeholders at both ends of the truck-route line to go green.
Bass Unveils City’s First Capital Fund
Most other major cities have capital infrastructure budgets, but for its 175 years as a U.S. city, Los Angeles hasn’t had one – until now. On May 4, Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass unveiled the city’s first capital infrastructure program that streamlines the budgeting and delivery of infrastructure projects. It lays out a comprehensive roadmap for the city to improve the way it maintains and builds new infrastructure.
Snapshot: Metro D Line Extension Opens to Fanfare
After more than 40 years of waiting and over 11 years of construction, residents and businesses in L.A.’s Mid-Wilshire and Miracle Mile districts finally have their subway. On May 8, the first phase of the Metro D Line extension – a 3.9-mile stretch under Wilshire Boulevard from Western Avenue to La Cienega Boulevard in Beverly Hills – opened to considerable local fanfare.
Santa Monica Airport – Grounded Future?
Scores of businesses at Santa Monica Airport have launched a campaign to head off the planned closure of the airfield at the end of 2028. Flight schools, aircraft maintenance shops, nonprofit organizations and even a business incubator would all be displaced if the century-old airport closes. Most businesses would try to get space at other local general aviation airports such as Van Nuys Airport or Hawthorne Municipal Airport, though many of those airfields are already at or near capacity.
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