Business 7-10
Outside Magazine placed two Santa Barbara companies-shoe manufacturer Deckers Outdoor Corporation and apparel company Horny Toad-among its first annual Best Places to Work list in recognition of the companies’ superb employee benefits and environmental stewardship incentives.
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Steve Baker, president of Santa Barbara-based IChange, Inc., won the bronze medal in apparel and accessories at the 2008 INPEX invention tradeshow for DUS-T, a shirt with a built-in facemask that can cover the mouth, nose, and ears. Originally created for construction workers, many shirts have been donated to those fighting the Gap Fire.
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La Arcada cafe Finestra closed its doors on 7/3. In place of the Calvary Chapel-owned shop-which was characterized by a laid-back atmosphere and a selection of Christian books-will be a new Jeannine’s Bakery location, which has three other Santa Barbara County locations and which will open at an unspecified date.
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The number of California home sales has increased 18.1 percent since mid 2007, according to the report by the California Association of Realtors (CAR). At the same time, the median price of a home decreased 35.3 percent. The current median price for a single-family, detached home on the South Coast is $1,199,000, while the median North County price is $297,820. Since April, prices have increased 6.6 percent in South County, while they have decreased 1.3 percent in North County.
