Outlook Feb 2011

FINDING new paths to SUCCESS Transformation Transformation Innovation Innovation

Partnership Partnership

genova bakery: making dough since 1918 At Genova Bakery in Stockton, the old — Italian being spoken over the counter — mingles with the new — the ability to “like” the venerable Stockton institution on Facebook. PAGE 14

after 60 years, much remains the same at stockton’s lincoln center The shopping center opened near Pacific Avenue and Benjamin Holt Drive in 1951. Stores, many in place since Day One, work hard at maintaining their customers. PAGE 10

stockton’s hockey team enjoys thunderous support Stockton Thunder fans come to games for many reasons, but one thing’s been the same — the team’s popularity among San Joaquin County sports fans. PAGE 22

2 Sunday, February 27, 2011 The Record o u t l o o k 2 011

part i: the experts speak

recordnet.com

part I: the experts speak

Get ready for more rough sledding in ’11 The Record STOCKTON — You don’t have to be an expert to know it’s rough out there.

The year 2010 wasn’t much better than 2009.

And 2011 may not be much better than 2010.

With varying degrees of optimism, economists, business persons and elected officials say it’ll be a long road to recovery.

In January, the University of the Pacific’s Business Forecasting Center said the

Central Valley’s unemployment rate may actually inch higher this year, although economic recovery is technically under way.

As eager as we may be to leave 2010 behind, today we ask some local leaders how they’ll remember last year and what they see going forward.

The good, the bad, and the ugly.

As Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston acknowledged, “Most of it is bad and ugly.”

OUTLOOK 2011 CALIXTRO ROMIAS/The Record

Mark Martinez, who runs the San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, says San Joaquin County’s fortunes are tied to those of Sacramento and the Bay Area, and that “it’s important to know the economy will turn.”

Mark Martinez

part I: the experts speak Don’t stop thinking about tomorrow: We asked four local people with extensive business and political experience to talk about where we’ve been and where we’re going. PAGES 2, 4

CEO, San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce

By Alex Breitler Record Staff Writer

Question: How have things gone over the past year? What are you hearing from businesses for which you advocate?

Answer: We’ve heard access to capital is a challenge right now.

Many businesses, especially the small-business community in past years, have utilized their home as lines of credit or access to equity to float their cash flow in lean times. And it’s gone. So businesses are having to become very resilient. They’re ­really having to streamline their operations to be as efficient as possible. We will continue to see that over the next couple of years. I would imagine right now in our economy, although you’re starting to see things moving slowly in the right direction, right now everyone is still a little bit timid and really focusing on how they can create more efficiency and to just keep their doors open.

Q.: How can your chamber help facilitate that?

A.: Our organization has been very proactive in providing workshops and programs

Mark Martinez Age: 48 Background: born in Monterey County; moved to Stockton in 1998 Title: chief executive officer of the San Joaquin County Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, which advocates for 250 businesses Personal: three children, ages 9, 7 and 5

on marketing your business in a challenging economy, looking at low-cost methods of getting your message out to drive business through your doors.

We’ve really pushed “buy local” throughout our campaign. It’s so key. Think before you spend your money. That dollar you spend here in town employs our families and our neighbors and people that you work with. We want to make sure those businesses survive and succeed.

Q.: You said you want to educate businesses about low-cost methods. Could you give us an example?

A.: We have provided a work-

shop in the past on utilizing technology. Facebook, online newsletters and the social media have been such an advantage at a low cost when advertising budgets are down with not only large businesses but small as well. These are things that are so important to businesses. Many times they want to cut in that area, and we try to say, “Don’t do that.” You still need to get that message across. We’ve just provided other vehicles for them to think about, to train them on.

Q.: Looking into your crystal ball, what do you see for 2011?

A.: We have to anticipate more of the same. In San Joaquin, we are unique in the fact that we have large infrastructure projects that will be coming — the prison hospital, major highway improvements on (Highway) 99 and (Interstate) 5 that will create more construction jobs. And eventually the VA hospital will break ground as well. I know that doesn’t help us right now, but there are many other communities that do not have these types of major projects that will stimulate our economy. So we’re very fortunate in that sense.

Q.: How dependent is our recovery upon neighboring areas?

A.: We are a product of the success of the Bay Area and Sacramento. When they’re doing well, generally we tend to do well. When they’re hurt, we hurt. We have so much of our work force heading over to the East Bay and to Sacramento, and both areas have been hit substantially harder in terms of loss of net jobs. When they start to recover, we start to recover.

We are linked to them in a big way, I think more so than people really know.

Q.: Anything you want to say to sum up the situation?

A.: I think it’s important to know the economy will turn. It will turn. It’s a given. It will be a slower turn than before, but I think this is a time for businesses to really evaluate how to create efficiency. Businesses can retool and come back and become very prosperous when the economy has recovered fully.

Contact reporter Alex Breitler at (209) 546-8295 or abreitler@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ breitlerblog.

part II: how green is the valley?

It’s not easy being green: Business leaders have banded together to support efforts aimed at improving environmental stability.

PAGES 6-9

part III: riding out the storm I will survive: From bakeries to parts suppliers to shopping centers, San Joaquin County businesses are doing the little things necessary to weather the storm. PAGES 10-19

part IV: things that unite us Come together: San Joaquin County residents are a diverse lot on many levels — ethnic, socioeconomic, educational — but there are several things about the area that unite us all. PAGES 21-25

Ann Johnston

Mayor of Stockton; owner of The Balloonery, a small business on Harding Way

By Alex Breitler

ann johnston

Record Staff Writer

Question: In a few years, what will we be saying about 2010?

Answer: Despite it being a difficult year, I see it as the year we started to turn the city around.

The decisions that we made to get a grip on our financial situation were key. We declared a fiscal emergency so that we could move forward with negotiations, move forward with trying to get all our unfunded liabilities under control. We also hired a city manager, and that was critical. I believe that’s probably going to be the most important decision we as a council have made, to hire a leader who is experienced and knows what he’s doing. And we balanced the budget. That was a feat in and of itself.

Q: But you’re looking at a long haul toward recovery?

A: There’s no doubt about that.

Look at the state; it’s looking at five years down the road before maybe coming out of this and starting to see improvement.

This Great Recession didn’t happen overnight, although it seems like it did, and we’re not going to come out of it that quickly because people have learned to be cautious, to be careful. This recession has I think changed the minds of a number of people especially when it comes to investment and expansion, things that

Age: 68 Background: Born in Oakland, raised in Merced Title: Mayor of Stockton, and 30-year owner of The Balloonery on Harding Way Personal: Husband Cliff, two grown sons, three granddaughters Education and experience: Got teaching credential at San Francisco State University; served on Lodi school board and Stockton City Council before becoming mayor in 2008.

Record File 2010

Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston believes that, in time, 2010 will be seen as the year Stockton began to turn itself around. She describes the business mood as “cautiously hopeful.” drive the economy.

Q: As the owner of a small business, how are things holding up?

A: Business has been bad. I as a businessperson know we have been holding our own the last two years, but that’s all. Hanging on by our fingertips. Right now I’m just happy to be able to pay salaries, pay bills, to keep the doors open. We see every day the businesses that are closing. I am hearing that so far this year it’s better. December was better, January’s been better.

Not huge, but the index is moving up. The mood is cautiously hopeful. You have to be that way as businesspeople.

Q: Putting your mayor’s hat on, does managing a city require the same kind of fiscal prudence?

A: It truly is the same. It’s really looking at what you need, what you absolutely have to have and what you’d like to have. It’s also going outside the city using every opportunity we have to get grant funding through private agencies, through the fed-

eral government, through the state government. We’re doing better at that. In the meantime, we’re going back to our employees and asking the question: Would you rather have a job or a salary increase? What’s more important, keeping your job and taking a pay cut or losing your job? Because somebody’s going to have to go if we can’t all come to the table and do our part.

Q: To what degree has the city’s budget cuts affected services?

A: We’re in the middle of

some contracts we can’t change unless we get concessions. We have to make cuts where they have to be made. Public safety is the biggest budget item there is. It’s sad for me as mayor to say we’ve lost 90 police officers in the past 21/2 years. That’s huge.

From a force of 430 down to 340. It’s a huge reduction, and it’s not something we need to have happened, but the money isn’t elsewhere. We can’t close down all city services in order to fund police and fire. With the state government dealing with its own budget issues, we’re looking at the potential loss of redevelopment funds, and the loss of staff funded through that agency. We’re talking about a

lot of our activities coming to a grinding halt when that money goes away.

Q: What do you see coming in 2011?

A: It’s budget, budget, budget.

It’s negotiations, negotiations, negotiations. Our goals are fiscal accountability, fiscal stability, economic development, crime prevention, and getting our city structure reorganized and reinvented. We have to look at how we do business internally for this new normal, because it truly is a new normal. We’re very pleased (City Manager) Bob (Deis) is leading the charge. He has this team of people that he trusts and relies upon to be honest.

And we want honesty. We want them to tell us the truth. No sugarcoating. We need the good, the bad and ugly, and most of it is bad and ugly. If nothing else, this council and I are united in making those tough decisions.

A lot of people are not going like the decisions we make. But we have to take on the problem. We believe we have a window of opportunity to make significant change that will set the stage for our future, and if we don’t do it now, this opportunity may never come around again.

Contact reporter Alex Breitler at (209) 546-8295 or abreitler@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ breitlerblog.

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part I: the experts speak

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Ken Davis

Member, Lodi Unified School District Board of Trustees; small-business entrepreneur

By Alex Breitler

ken davis

Record Staff Writer

Question: What’s your outlook on the economy?

Answer: First of all, we all know this is a long term problem. Everything we’ve been doing up to this point has been short term. We have built a system around inflated values, and now that that has come crashing down around us, we’re left with a problem that is going to take years to fix and correct. We have a system that’s broken. And the problem has been kicked down the road to the school districts to deal with at the local level. At the state level, they’ve abdicated their responsibility.

Q: How is Lodi Unified doing?

A: We are barely keeping our doors open. We’ve got to cut another $11 million to $15 million, and we’ve already cut $30 million to $40 million in the last 21/2 years. I’ve been on the school board 19 years, and I’ve seen everything. I’ve seen the highs and lows. I’ve never seen it this low. It looks like this year is going to be the worst year in education in this state. It is really hard to be optimistic about 2011 at this point.

Q: But you believe a new after-school program started last fall may be a bright spot?

A: The Achievement Gap Education Foundation partners with Humphrey’s College and Lodi Unified School District.

What we do is we actually put juniors and seniors into Humphrey’s College after-school classes. Lodi Unified provides

Age: 60 Background: Moved from Sacramento to Stockton in 1985 Title: Businessman, interim director at the Mediation Center of San Joaquin, teacher at Humphrey’s College Personal: Two grown sons and a daughter, and two grandchildren Experience: Has served as a trustee at Lodi Unified School District for 19 years

CRAIG SANDERS/The Record

Lodi Unified Trustee Ken Davis is amazed that schools aren’t keeping up with technology. “A student who comes to school now has more technology on their cell phone than we have in the classroom,” he said, “and what do we tell them? Put that cell phone down, sit down and listen to us lecture you.” the classrooms. And my foundation, we pay for the teachers and we pay for the books. So it costs the school district nothing, it costs Humphrey’s College nothing and it costs the students nothing. The beauty of this program is that the college professors actually go out to the school site and they teach a col-

lege program on a high school campus.

Q: Why is that important?

A: What I was seeing with this particular group of young students, is they are socioeconomically disadvantaged. There was no college opportunity for these kids. What this creates is a pathway for students who otherwise

would not have an opportunity to attend a four-year college. If we’re optimistic, it’s because of the partnerships between a public school district, a private college, a community-based organization and businesses.

We’ve got four strong partners working at a local level, and we don’t have the outside controls

that come from the California Department of Education and our state Legislature, which doesn’t understand local education.

Q: What kinds of skills are important for students these days?

A: Critical thinking is absolutely paramount, because we live in such a fluid business

world. It’s global, and we’re falling behind because our kids aren’t getting the higher level math skills and science skills that the world requires right now. We’ve also fallen behind in technology. Here we are with one of the most technologically advanced societies, but we can’t afford to put that technology in the classroom. A student who comes to school now has more technology on their cell phone than we have in the classroom, and what do we tell them? Put that cell phone down, sit down and listen to us lecture you.

There’s more information they can get off the Internet (on a phone) than they’ll ever get in a classroom. To me, that is absolutely amazing that we’re not able to keep up.

Contact reporter Alex Breitler at (209) 546-8295 or abreitler@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ breitlerblog.

Lewis Gale

Dean, University of the Pacific Eberhardt School of Business

By Alex Breitler Record Staff Writer

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Lewis Gale, dean of the Eberhardt School of Business at the University of the Pacific, believes the forthcoming corrections facility, a project worth about $900 million, will bring a large number of one-time and recurring jobs.

Question: What’s holding us back from economic recovery?

Answer: I think it’s more accurate to ask what’s holding us back from a typical economic recovery, one in which we experience strong quarterly growth.

While there is some construction activity locally, we aren’t seeing significant single-family home construction. The most significant ingredient to success locally is how we look socioeconomically compared to average for California. For example, educational attainment and highwage jobs are correlated. When you measure the percentage of people who have earned at least a bachelor’s degree in San Joaquin County, we’re below the educational attainment average for California. What that means is that when we want to see growth in high-wage jobs, our labor force is not correctly aligned with potential growth in those sectors if we won’t see construction come back any time soon.

Q: What about at the state level?

A: There are a few regions that have been in recovery for several quarters, and we’re seeing stable employment markets in those regions. But because of the current fiscal situation in the state, the economic effects of a reduced budget and potentially higher taxes will hit the state disproportionately. For communities that are either highly reliant on state funding or have a large proportion of public-sector jobs, those communities will likely experience a less of a recovery than those communities that have smaller proportions of public-sector jobs. Stockton is close to the hub of California public sector (Sacramento). We have an integrated economy between those cities, as evidenced by the number of people who commute. We have a large school system here, a public community college, and

lewis gale Age: 44 Background: Born in Fresno; grew up in Auburn area Title: Dean of the Eberhardt School of Business at the University of the Pacific Personal: Wife and two children Education and experience: Undergraduate degree at California State University, Fresno; master’s and doctorate in economics at Arizona State University; most recently served as business dean at Weber State University in Utah.

other public-sector employees, so I would expect that regions in the state like us will experience a mitigated and lackluster recovery.

Q: Are there any bright spots?

A: The new corrections facility hospital on the horizon, a project in the $900 million range for total construction, would generate a significant amount of one-time jobs. Once the construction project is complete, the recurring jobs associated with running the facility will be mostly high-skill employees, in some cases very high-skilled and highly educated personnel, and one of the hopes is that workforce will be located primarily in the region.

The benefit of higher wages earned locally is that a portion will be spent locally, generate new and sustain existing jobs, and increase the average payroll in the county.

San Joaquin County also has some elements to offer to firms relocating, firms expanding, or entrepreneurs who launch businesses in existing industries as well as creating new industries.

We have some of the most affordable real estate anywhere.

We have commercial properties that can be used for a variety of small office space but can also be reconfigured for other businesses. We do have some of the

key ingredients … but I do think locally we’re always going to be challenged until we see sizable increases in the percent of our population that has at least a bachelor’s degree.

Q: How can the Eberhardt School of Business help?

A: Our business forecasts are providing information that allows regional organizations, both private and not-for-profit, to make better-informed decisions. My hope is that prospective students from this region see us as their first choice for a quality degree. We have and will continue to bring a high level of executive professional development to the region as well as innovate into new markets. Traditionally, the Eberhardt School has been a part of improving the prosperity of this region, innovating new ideas to launch businesses, and assisting industries with a highly qualified labor force. We are an asset to the community, and we are an integral component of the community.

Q: What will characterize workers of the future, and what advice would you give them?

A: We’ll never get away from the need of having the core set of critical skills and analytic thinking. The overarching expectation from the employers is a prospective employee possesses that skill set and knows how to use those tools. It takes discipline to acquire this kind of acumen, and students need to take a very rigorous approach to their education. Future students need to be highly ambidextrous and need to be able to perform well in multiple aspects in their careers. It’s going to be challenging, but I believe the students of the future will actively seek out those challenges.

Contact reporter Alex Breitler at (209) 546-8295 or abreitler@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ breitlerblog.

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part II: how green is the valley?

recordnet.com

Green Team aims to leave children a clean Stockton Chamber effort brings together area businesses

part II: how green is the valley?

Environment is now a major selling point The Record In a world of paper-thin profit margins and shrinking job opportunities, a few companies are using environmental awareness — and responsibility — to create new marketplaces. And products.

In California, savvy business owners are moving beyond just the embrace of green technology into emerging fields of eco-friendly endeavor.

The environmental trend long ago moved inland from the state’s coastal regions and has a growing presence in San Joaquin County.

The Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce has

By Denise Ellen Rizzo Special to the Record

STOCKTON — The desire to have cleaner air and water are mere dreams to most people, but Frank Ferral is part of a Stockton group working to make this dream a reality.

Ferral is the program and public policy director of the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce and his focus is on an eco-friendly Green Team San Joaquin project.

The team is a collaboration to promote environmentally friendly alternatives to businesses across San Joaquin County, particularly in Stockton.

“We all have kids, and we want to leave this world better than when we came into it,” Ferral said. “If we can do that, we help businesses and the environment at the same time. It’s a win-win. We can make a better place for all of us to eat, work and play in.”

For the past 14 years, Ferral has worked at the chamber, but it wasn’t until 2006 that he turned his focus to the Green Team.

According to the team’s web site, the group works with business and community leaders to increase awareness of available resources, programs and incentives to assist them in reducing the cost of doing business. Each month, business representatives, both in and outside of the chamber, meet to discuss new ideas and showcase green products and services. Current spon-

Denise Ellen Rizzo/Special to The Record

Frank Ferral does his work with young people in mind. “We all have kids, and we want to leave this world better than when we came into it,” Ferral said. “If we can do that, we help businesses and the environment at the same time.”

Frank Ferral

novative and help companies,” Ferral said. “It’s why I’m here — Age: 46 to reduce cost through environBackground: Political scimental stewardship. We’ve got ence and public administration to work together. Everything we degrees do is about jobs. You shouldn’t Title: Program and public make a new (environmental) policy director at the Greater rule or regulation without creStockton Chamber of Comating jobs.” merce.

The team also is focused, he Personal: Wife, Elizabeth; said, on helping the environthree children ment by promoting products Experience: Employed at or businesses that are ecoGreater Stockton Chamber of friendly.

Commerce since 1997.

Among some of the Green Team’s success stories are Stockton-based Onsite Elecsors of the Green Team initia- tronics Recycling, which is a tive include Walmart, Simplot full-service recycling firm that creates jobs by using workers to and Granite Construction Co. “It’s an opportunity to be in- dismantle the electronic waste.

The Green Team recently recognized the company as the second business in the county to pass a vigorous assessment process.

Another company achieving success through its green practices is the Dart Container Corp. in Lodi, which uses postconsumer foam food service and packaging containers. The materials are recycled and the foam is diverted from landfills and made into reusable products such as crown molding, picture frames and agricultural products.

“It’s cool, innovative stuff,” Ferral said. “We’re developing these mechanisms to make it easy (for businesses).”

Twice a month, Ferral and members of the team’s REACON group — which includes private businesses, municipal and county solid-waste divisions and economic development professionals — go on visits to businesses to help them identify ways their company can reduce costs through green methods. Among the sponsors are American Recycling, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and San Joaquin County Public Works.

Ferral said the group makes suggestions such as the use of energy-efficient light fixtures, shutting off computers and unplugging unused appliances.

By working cooperatively with local businesses, Ferral said, Stockton is leading the way for the rest of the Valley through example, engagement and collaboration.

In late August, chamber officials were presented with the 2010 Golden Arrow Award for Overall Excellence by the Cali-

created a Green Team San Joaquin that promotes, encourages and helps establish eco-friendly practices.

Each spring, it hosts a sustainable collaboration conference known as known as REXPO. The event — in its seventh year — will be held March 9 in Stockton. (For more on the expo, turn to Page 8.)

It brings together businesses interested in better protecting the environment and in creating new, green jobs.

The idea is that success tomorrow means changing today the way businesses and industry work. fornia Product Stewardship Council.

The award was created to promote California businesses that are reducing waste, saving money and creating green jobs.

Ferral said receiving the award was a humbling experience.

Douglass Wilhoit, chamber chief executive officer, said, “It is our board of directors, our volunteers, support staff … it’s truly a team effort.”

The next big event for Ferral and the Green Team will be March 9 at their REXPO VII: Sustainable Collaboration to be held at the Hilton Stockton.

The event will feature ways for businesses and public agencies to incorporate energy-efficient methods, recycling and ways to implement water conservation and clean-air values into everyday operations.

Information: (209) 547-2770 or stocktonchamber.org.

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PART ii: HOW GREEN IS THE VALLEY?

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REXPO will put on a green show

By Reed Fujii

If you go

Record Staff Writer

Improving the environment and growing a business don’t have to be separate pursuits.

REXPO VII: Sustainable Collaboration, a March 9 conference presented by Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce’s Green Team San Joaquin and Valley CAN (Clean Air Now), is built to highlight practices, programs and products that can serve both purposes.

“It’s bringing people together and finding that common ground of environmental stewardship and lowering the cost of doing business,” said Blain Bibb, Green Team chairman and chief executive of ServiceMaster Building Maintenance in Stockton.

He pointed to his own business as an example.

After launching it in 2007, even as the housing and mortgage collapse were under way, Bibb decided to turn the janitorial business into a sustainable venture. “(We) started the investment in our company to become the standard for green cleaning,” he said.

ServiceMaster began using just three environmentally friendly cleaning products, which replaced eight standard cleansers. It started using microfiber cleaning cloths, which are more costly than plain terrycloth but use less water and last longer. New types of vacuum cleaners produced less noise and dust but increased productivity.

As a result of those and other changes, Bibb said, “We were able to work faster, keep up the quality, be green and were able to cut our rates anywhere between 20 and 30 percent, depending on the type of building we were cleaning.”

And the company grew ten-

REXPO VII When: 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. March 9 Where: Hilton Stockton, 2323 Grand Canal Blvd.

Agenda

Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce

Visitors to last year’s REXPO at the Hilton Stockton, above, found an array of products designed to boost their businesses’ bottom lines as well as improve the environment.

Stockton-based Electric Vehicles International displayed an electric car, right, last year. The expo is produced by the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce’s Green Team San Joaquin and Valley CAN (Clean Air Now).

fold during the period, certainly the worst economic period since the Great Depression, to having more than 50 employees up from five and serving more than 100 buildings from just 10.

“Being green helped us to do that,” Bibb said.

REXPO VII — to run from 7 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Hilton Stockton, 2323 Grand Canal Blvd. — will provide a showcase of green business boosters ap-

plicable to all kinds of companies.

Two speaker panels in the morning and one in the afternoon will cover opportunities for public-private collaboration, how being a leader on climate change issues can benefit business, and current grant and loan programs.

In addition, Panama Bartholomy, deputy director of the California Energy Commission

who oversees the Energy Efficiency and Renewables Division, will be the luncheon keynote speaker.

Entry to the event is $30, which includes lunch. For more information, call the Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce, (209) 547-2770.

Contact reporter Reed Fujii at (209) 546-8253 or rfujii@ recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/fujiiblog.

6 a.m. to 2 p.m.: Electronic waste and clean polystyrene collection: sponsored by Onsite Electronics Recycling 7-7:45 a.m.: Exhibits open 8 a.m.: Welcome by San Joaquin County Supervisor Leroy Ornellas 8:10 a.m.: Introduction by Blain Bibb, Green Team San Joaquin chairman 8:15-9:45 a.m.: Clean Energy Collaboration for Business, Education and Government.

Panelists: • Mike Dozier, San Joaquin Valley Partnership, moderator • DeeDee D’Adamo, office of Rep. Dennis Cardoza, D-Atwater • Paul Johnson, San Joaquin Valley Clean Energy Organization • Jim Genes, University of California, Merced • Sam Geil, Geil Enterprises Inc. 9:45-10 a.m.: Coffee break/ exhibits 10-11:30 a.m.: Bottom Line Benefits of Being a Leader on Climate Change Panelists: • Susan Eggman, Stockton City Council, moderator • Judy Corbett, Local Government Commission

• Trish Kelly, Applied Development Economics • Lisa Mortenson, Community Fuels • Joseph Oldham, city of Fresno 11:30 a.m. to 12:15 p.m.: Exhibits open / Tours of Hilton Stockton’s Green Conference Room 12:15 p.m.: Rick Goucher, president of Greater Stockton Chamber of Commerce, introduces keynote speaker Keynote luncheon speaker: Panama Bartholomy, deputy director of the California Energy Commission 1:30-1:50 p.m.: Exhibits open 1:50 p.m.: Introduction of Stockton Mayor Ann Johnston

by Blain Bibb 1:55-3:15 p.m.: Show me the Dough!: Grant Programs and Financing Panelists: • Tom Knox, Valley Clean Air Now, Moderator • Tom Wilson, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. • La Ronda Bowen, California Air Resources Board • Calvin Young, CalRecycle • Seyed Sadredin, San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District • Mather Kearney, Governor’s Office of Economic Development • John Sugar, California Energy Commission 3:15 p.m.: Prize drawings 3:30-4 p.m.: Exhibits open

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part II: How green is the valley?

recordnet.com

Businesses using Valley CAN to help clear air

By Reed Fujii Record Staff Writer

The idea of businesses trying to improve air quality in the San Joaquin Valley isn’t so odd, said Douglass Wilhoit, chairman of Valley Clean Air Now. “It’s the business of everybody to try to clear up the air,” he said.

But what can the businesses provide — the Valley CAN board includes owners and executives of large farm companies, a food processor, Pacific Gas & Electric Co. and Chevron Corp. — that regulators such as the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District does not? “The simple answer. and this may ruffle some feathers, is the business community is the best one to get things done,” Wilhoit said.

With its business perspective, Valley CAN offers programs and methods with which companies help improve air quality, while also benefitting the bottom line and without imposing unwanted rules and regulation, he said.

“If given the tools, private en-

Courtesy

Valley CAN held a Tune Up event last month in Stockton, where older cars and trucks had their pollution levels checked. terprise can do it best,” he said.

The San Joaquin Valley is a large bowl that collects and holds emissions from the region’s million residents, their businesses and their 2 million vehicles, as well as vehicles from other areas traveling on Highway 99 and Interstate 5. Pollution from the Sacramento and San Francisco Bay areas also contribute to the air basin’s problems.

The Valley falls short on standards for ozone and particulate

matter, typically exceeded state ozone standards more than 100 days a year and for fine particulates from 90 to 100 days a year.

With funding largely from Chevron, Valley CAN sponsors a variety of small-scale approaches aimed at having people take personal responsibility for air pollution, said Tom Knox, a staff member of the nonprofit agency.

“We give out about a quarter million dollars a year in grants to a whole variety of projects

that are usually tangible things that you can look at and say that makes sense,” he said.

For example, Valley CAN underwrote a best-practices manual for the region’s metal plating industry to help the industry reduce its emissions.

Also it helped a number of Hmong farmers in the Fresno area get away from the traditional practice of burning crop stubble.

Working through local community groups to connect with the farmers, it provided crop shredders, currently shared by about two dozen farm families, and training in how to use them.

As a nongovernmental agency, Valley CAN is able to quickly identify and respond to such needs, Knox said.

“There’s really no other shortterm access to this kind of environmental grant money.”

It also helps sponsor of the upcoming REXPO, sustainable collaboration conference, planned March 9 in Stockton.

But Valley CAN’s signature is the series of Tune In & Tune Up

events it sponsors throughout the Valley, aimed at getting older “gross-polluting” vehicles repaired and smog certified.

The problem is older, out-oftune cars are responsible for large amount of vehicle pollution, but their owners often can’t afford the necessary smog repairs. They are usually unregistered.

“Since the state doesn’t acknowledge the existing of unregistered vehicles, they fall into a black hole,” Knox said.

Events are usually held at community college campuses in the region and Valley CAN offers $500 vouchers for vehicles failing a simple emissions test.

“The hard work is getting out into low-income neighborhoods and getting the word out that we’re not the government, … we just care about your car,” Know said.

Organizers work through community groups and social agencies in touch with low-income and immigrant communities to make the connection.

This year, with funding from

the Foundation for California Community Colleges and the San Joaquin Valley Air Pollution Control District, Valley CAN plans 15 Tune Up events, the first held in January at San Joaquin Delta College. Knox said more than 350 vehicles were checked at the Stockton event, and 250 owners received vouchers good for a full smog check and repairs.

“We are now working hard to plug these people into smog appointments,” he said.

In 2008, the Tune In & Tune Up program was one winner of the annual Governor’s Environmental and Economic Leadership Awards.

Officials granting that award noted a typical Tune In & Tune Up event removes approximately 3,000 tons of carbon monoxide, 300 tons of hydrocarbons, and 150 tons of oxides of nitrogen from the air in one year.

Contact reporter Reed Fujii at (209) 546-8253 or rfujii@ recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/fujiiblog.

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Local companies find ways to survive The Record

Michael McCollum/The Record

Flair Boutique owners Carolyn Walker, left, and Starr Donati work inside their store Feb. 8. Flair is among several Lincoln Center shops that has been in business at the corner of Pacific Avenue and Benjamin Holt Drive since the center’s opening in 1951.

Greenlaw Grupe Sr. built the original center for $300,000.

Lincoln Center an oasis of stability

Some local businesses, standing for decades, seem now to be standing alone among shuttered storefronts in neighborhoods that have not yet recovered in the country’s latest economic downturn.

Many of them – Solorio’s Enterprises in downtown Stockton, for example, or Janis Music Company in Manteca – are community institutions.

One, Genova Bakery, has been named a historical landmark by the City of Stockton.

Open since 1918, the bakery has weathered 18 economic recessions.

Throughout the county, business owners agree they are facing hard times unlike others that have come before.

But they are optimistic.

They have survived in the past.

They expect to survive now.

Some have chosen to expand and innovate: Noting that the bridal apparel business — the original focus of Solorio’s — seemed to be a largely seasonal affair, owner Jose Solorio started selling jewelry and furniture as well.

In Manteca, unable to compete with the prices offered online and at big-box retailers, businessman George Janis decided to focus on customer service. In addition to instruments and accessories, his music store also offers instrument repair and lessons.

At the other end of the spectrum are businesses such as Gaby’s Café and Genova Bakery, whose owners rely on a stick-with-the-basics approach that they say has won them loyal customers: At Genova, owner Tim Canevari said, you can sometimes still hear Italian at the counter.

At Gaby’s, you can still get a $1 cup of coffee.

Stockton shopping venue has had only three owners since 1951, all Grupe-connected; it also retains many of its original businesses

By Brent Tubbs Special to The Record

STOCTKON — For the last 60 years, the giant “L” that rotates at the corner of Benjamin Holt Drive and Pacific Avenue has come to stand for more then just the name it represents.

Local. Loyal. Limitless.

These are the traits that the businesses of Lincoln Center pride themselves on. And, they believe, those three Ls keep customers coming back.

As the second-oldest shopping center west of the Mississippi River, Lincoln Center started in 1951 as a place to shop for the 1,900 homeowners in the new Lincoln Village area.

Greenlaw Grupe Sr. made a contract with Benjamin Holt to develop the land, and when enough homes were finished, he built a shopping center at a cost of $300,000.

Grupe went around to local merchants in the Stockton area and told them of his dream and vision for the center, then he asked if they would like to bring their stores to Lincoln Center.

In November 1951, Lincoln Center had its official grand opening with its first store, Black’s Grocery’s. With a 200-space blacktop parking lot and a 14-foot covered walkway to protect shoppers from the weather, Lincoln Center was off and running.

From the start, Lincoln Center has prided itself on having local — and family-owned — businesses as cornerstones to its operations.

Fritz Grupe Jr., son of Greenlaw and chairman and founder of the Grupe Co., speaks of the early days: “My dad used to go around every day with a note pad and visit each merchant and ask, ‘What can I do to help you?’ It is a close-knit association between the owner and all the merchants.”

Some of the original and early shops are still in business today, including Cavagnaro’s Shoe Repair, Village Barber, Campbell’s department store and the Flair Boutique.

In the center’s 60-year history, it has only had three owners, all under the Sims-Grupe Management Co. “I think it’s great anytime you can get a business endeavor to stay in the same ownership and a continuation of management from one generation to another; it’s unusual and nice to see. Makes you feel proud,” Fritz Grupe said.

Not only are the relationships between owner and merchants

Michael McCollum/The Record

Brandon Smith and Melaney Morton take advantage of springlike weather Feb. 9 to visit Lincoln Center.

Michael McCollum/The Record

The Lincoln Center tower and revolving “L” have towered over Pacific Avenue just north of Benjamin Holt Drive for six decades. One loyal shopper even spoke of being buried at the center when his time comes, so his wife will visit.

CRAIG HUBBARD/Contributed photo

Lincoln Center was built in 1951 for about $300,000. Boggiano’s sportswear now stands at this corner, seen in an undated view. close, but so are the relationships between merchants and customers.

In many cases, customers deal directly with store owners.

“The merchants pride themselves on knowing their customers,” Grupe said.

Sims-Grupe President Phil Johnson is proud to continue that tradition.

“When our merchants go on buying trips, they buy specifically for their clients. A lot of them will call their customers

at home and say they got something they think they’ll like, and they should come have a look.

They’re not just sitting back and waiting for their customers to walk in the door.”

A 60th anniversary is a big one. Events through 2011 will celebrate the milestone.

“We’ll be celebrating with contest, drawings and give-aways. We really want to thank our shoppers for supporting their community shopping center,” said Janelle Meyers of

Stockton-based SASS! Public Relations.

Lincoln Center has been Stockton fixture for so long that some residents take the relationship to an extreme.

“One loyal customer put it this way: ‘Lincoln Center has been a tradition for us for so long that when I die, I want to be buried there. That way, every Saturday, come rain or shine, my wife will come and visit me,’ ” said Johnson, quick to add that the management isn’t interested.

Contributed photo

The Islander restaurant, now gone, is seen circa 1970.

let’s celebrate A 60th birthday party will be held July 15 during that evening’s Lincoln Center Live event. The center celebrated

its grand opening in November 1951.

Information: www.lincoln centershops.com.

Fritz Grupe Jr., son of Lincoln Center founder Greenlaw Grupe Sr., on the shopping center’s early days: “My dad used to go around every day with a note pad and visit each merchant and ask, ‘What can I do to help you?’ It is a closeknit association between the owner and all the merchants.”

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solorio’s enterprises

guillermo’s jewelers

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Jose Solorio, owner of Solorio’s Enterprises.

Michael McCollum/The Record

Guillermo Garcia, owner of Guillermo’s Jewelers

Making downtown work Two local shops stick it out in a place many others have abandoned

By Jennie Rodriguez Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — For years, small shops have come and gone in downtown Stockton.

Some remember a downtown thriving with retailers until the late 1980s.

“We had 11 jewelry stores back them,” shop owner Jose Solorio said.

Today, many of the buildings surrounding his store are empty — remnants of retail concentration moving north and the economic decline that has followed a housing boom.

But Solorio’s Enterprises has remained in the same Main Street spot since 1979, and it’s one of only a few such business still operating downtown.

A glance into two mom-andpop jewelry shops, including Solorio’s, explains what they’ve done to stay in business — one diversified its services and gained the loyalty of generations of customers, and the other formed a niche in creating custom jewelry and counts on the patronage of a bustling city core work force.

Solorio’s

Solorio’s Enterprises initially started as a bridal and tuxedorental store more than 30 years ago. Jose Solorio was a father-tobe and recently married.

It was the kind of store where Spanish-speaking clients felt comfortable making deals in their own language.

Some clients even seemed part of his family. He can recall the times that customers would pick up his first baby, Arlene, from her bassinet when she started to cry in the store, while he and his wife, Angie, tended to business.

As time passed, he saw that wedding apparel was more of a seasonal operation. The store evolved into jewelry and furniture.

Solorio’s children, Arlene, Jose and Paul, grew up working alongside their parents.

But business began to decline when retailers started moving north in the 1980s. Without anchor stores, such as JCPenney, the core area steadily lost its vibrancy.

Even worse, the housing market crises deeply affected other industries, including the furniture business.

Solorio has had to make concessions to stay open. He stopped using the heating system, ordered less furniture and laid off two employees.

But Solorio’s has been able to

Guillermo Garcia on his work: “I like making things. It’s just a feeling I can’t explain when people tell you, ‘It’s so beautiful.’ ” Jose Solorio on some of his longtime customers: “Now they’ll see my daughter and say, ‘Hey, you’re the Solorio girl.’ ” count on the loyalty of generations of patrons, who sometimes reminisce with the family about the old days.

“Now they’ll see my daughter and say, ‘Hey, you’re the Solorio girl,’ ” Solorio said.

He now owns the 8,500 squarefeet building at 520 E. Main St., where his business operates.

And he also has been able to compensate for some of the losses by adding services, including money transfers and religious celebration accessories, for his diverse clientele.

Guillermo’s

Another downtown cornerstone, Guillermo’s Jewelers, has had two decades of serving professionals, who drop off their watches for repair or order custom jewelry pieces during lunch break errands.

Guillermo’s is owned and operated by married couple, Guillermo and Betty Garcia.

The couple opened their storefront at 39 S. San Joaquin St. in 1991, after Guillermo Garcia completed a degree in jewelry arts from Revere Academy of Jewelry Arts in San Francisco.

Guillermo, who considered himself a crafty man, wanted to start a business that his wife would enjoy — and she enjoys jewelry.

“It was either that or brain surgery,” he said with a chuckle.

Despite the fall in retail sales the past few years, Guillermo’s is still enjoying a continuous sales flow.

In fact, the couple said, the downturn has resulted in more people opting to recycle their old jewelry instead of buying new pieces.

And that has created an opportunity for the shop.

Guillermo Garcia is able to melt an existing piece of gold jewelry — even turn it into white gold — and reshape it into a different design.

“It’s people being innovative.

Where before when times were good, everything was disposable,”

Michael McCollum/The Record

Betty Garcia, front, and her husband, Guillermo, run Guillermo’s Jewelers in downtown Stockton. The business is holding steady in sales despite the economic turmoil of the past few years. The two have noticed that, with hard times befalling the country, many people are choosing to recycle old jewelry in lieu of buying new pieces.

Betty Garcia said.

The shop charges anywhere from $250 to $650 to reinvent a piece, and the process saves customers hundreds, even thousands of dollars.

“Many jewelers don’t have all the equipment to do that,” Guillermo Garcia said. “That’s why customers just keep coming back.”

At Guillermo’s Jewelers, you won’t see mass-produced trinkets. Some are products of Guillermo Garcia’s imagination, while others are made to order.

“I like making things,” he said.

“It’s just a feeling I can’t explain when people tell you, ‘It’s so beautiful.’ ” The shop is conveniently located a block away from the San Joaquin County Superior Courthouse. Most of the clients are employed in the downtown area, and usually drop by en route to lunch, the bank or the cleaners.

“We have a lot of lawyers. We have police. We have a lot of traffic in this area,” Betty Garcia said.

“It’s surprising to me that for all these years it’s been recession proof.”

Contact reporter Jennie Rodriguez at (209) 943-8564 or at jrodriguez@recordnet.com.

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Jose Solorio waits on a customer Feb. 9 at Solorio’s Enterprises in downtown Stockton. While Solorio has had to cut back to keep his buisness open, he’s been able to count on the loyalty of multiple generations of customers.

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Slices of life at Genova Bakery Since its founding by Italian immigrants in 1918, business has maintained loyal customer base

By Zachary K. Johnson Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — The Genova Bakery has a style that’s both Old World and old-time Stockton.

Nearly a century’s worth of history pours out of the east Stockton business to its sidewalk, where a pair of hitching posts remain, painted Italianflag green, white and red.

And since its founding in 1918, Genova Bakery has made it through its share of tough economic times. Including the Great Depression and the more recent economic upheavals, the venerable Stockton institution has stayed in business through 18 national recessions.

Owner Tim Canevari says it will continue doing so, though it hasn’t been easy this time around. “We plan to weather the storm,” he said. “We’re struggling just like everyone else out there.”

The bakery’s bread is wellknown locally, and is served up at restaurants, sandwich shops and grocery stores. But when local eateries struggle in the down economy, it affects the bakery’s wholesale business, Canevari said.

Regular customers keep coming back to the store on Flora and Sierra Nevada streets because the bread and sandwiches are fresh and the store carries speciality groceries that are hard to find. But the regulars don’t come in as often as they used to, he said.

During the Great Depression, then-owner Angelo Rolleri told the farmers to whom he delivered bread that they could settle their bill when their crops came in, Canevari said.

Unfortunately, that’s not an option now, said Canevari, who took over the business in 2004.

Before that, he had been an employee since 1992, though he had an earlier stint working at the bakery while he was a high school student. But the bakery is trying to do all it can maintain prices, in spite of the rising cost of wheat.

“We understand that most of our customers are local, so we try to keep our prices down,” he said.

For the lunchtime crowd, a customer can leave with a sandwich, soda and chips for a little more than $5, he said.

Genova Bakery’s original owners came to Stockton from Genoa, Italy, more than a century ago, and it is still possible to overhear an occasional conversation in Italian over the deli counter, Canevari said.

The bakery was founded

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Maria Cerri slices deli meat for sandwiches Feb. 11 at the Genova Bakery in Stockton. The bakery has been operating at Flora and Sierra Nevada streets since 1918, when brothers Giovanni and Angelo Rolleri and their brother-in-law, G.B. Dentoni, launched the business. by brothers Giovanni and Angelo Rolleri in 1918 along with a third partner, brother-in-law G.B. Dentoni. It was named a historical landmark by the city in 1985, and it’s still operating at the original corner location.

Inside, it is stacked high with specialized groceries that have been building blocks of homecooked Italian meals for decades.

During a recent afternoon, patrons lined up between grocery shelves to get to the business’s deli counter to buy sandwiches for lunch or cheese or meat by the pound to bring home.

The inside hasn’t changed much over the years, Canevari said. “It’s almost like walking back in time,” he said. That’s a sentiment fans have posted online since the bakery started its Facebook page last year, he said.

As of early February, more than 1,600 Facebook folks used the new technology to show their appreciation for the old business by clicking the “like” button on the Genova Bakery page.

Contact reporter Zachary K. Johnson at (209) 546-8258 or zjohnson@recordnet.com.

Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ johnsonblog.

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Maria Cerri, left, waits on customer Ann Castiglione on Feb. 11. The bakery was started by Italian immigrants; even today, owner Tim Canevari said, it’s possible to hear Italian being spoken at the deli counter.

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Making it work since 1945 Delta Rubber relies on strong employee base

By Jennie Rodriguez Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — So long as machines use conveyor belts and rubber hoses are in demand, there will be a need for a parts distributor.

Delta Rubber in Stockton has counted on that truth since 1945, when two shipyard workers founded the business.

The company provides rubber products to numerous customers, mostly agriculturerelated companies in California and the mining industry in Nevada.

There’s something else on which company leaders have relied throughout the years: a strong employee base.

Paralleling its longevity in the marketplace is its enduring staff. Many employees have spent most of their careers at Delta Rubber.

The newest worker has served seven years.

Delta Rubber had been employee owned and operated since 1945.

Damond Freeman, Douglas John and John Wulff purchased it in 1994.

More recently, however, the company was sold to GHX Industrial, a Houston based corporation that offers similar services to the oil industry.

But Wulff, the only former owner who hasn’t retired, agreed to stay on for an additional five years to oversee a smooth transition.

He said taking great care of customers and the employees who make that possible will continue to take precedence.

Economic survival

Like most businesses, Delta Rubber benefits from increased sales during a good economy — and it has been through its share of ups and downs for the past five decades.

But even a sluggish economy can open doors. While most manufacturing, packaging and transportation companies are not buying new equipment, they are maintaining existing equipment.

And that requires parts, such as those distributed by Delta Rubber. Being able to recognize opportunities has allowed Delta Rubber not only to stay above water when others have gone under, but it also has led to expansion into new regions.

Over the years, the company has grown to seven locations throughout California and Nevada, providing rising industries in other regions with conveyor belts, hydraulic hoses, industrial hoses and numerous other products. Today, it employs 70 people.

“It’s not a glamorous business,” Wulff said. “But it’s main-

CRAIG SANDERS/The Record

Delta Rubber employee Matt Wyman, above right, helps a customer Feb. 10 in Stockton. The company, founded in 1945, supplies rubber products mainly to agricultural companies in California and the mining industry in Nevada. At right, Wyman crimps fittings on a hose designed to operate at a pressure of 6,000 pounds per square inch. Many of Delta Rubber’s employees have devoted their careers to the enterprise; the newest member of the staff has been on the job for seven years. tenance items that will always be needed.”

People first

The management team at Delta Rubber certainly understands that without customers, there is no reason for a business to exist, Wulff said.

The philosophy has always been that customer service comes first. And the best solutions come from experienced and knowledgeable employees, he said.

Finding employees who last has been key. Wulff said the company looks for employees who reflect ethics, loyalty, teamwork and the ability to solve problems.

“I hire people I like to be with and (who) will represent the company well,” Wulff said.

“You can always teach somebody to do the job, but you can’t teach them to get along with

people and have a good work “It’s just my own personal ethic.” philosophy,” Wulff said.

In the past, when the comValuing employees pany had changed hands, it was The secret to employee re- sold to other employees who tention has been a positive work had the means to invest. environment, Wulff said.

However, this time, Wulff The company puts teamwork said the company had grown to at the forefront, so everyone can such an extent over the past two feel part of the solution, he said, decades that no group of emand no one has a title printed on ployees could afford it. his or her business card.

But Wulff said Delta Rubber’s

work force remains a priority, and the company was sold only on the condition that there be no layoffs.

Workers such as Bob Grimm, who has spent 30 years there, appreciate that.

Grimm, who builds rubber belt components, enjoys coming to work every day in the 63,000-square-foot warehouse at 2648 Teepee Drive.

“I show up just for you, John,” he told Wulff, passing by and laughing.

“I’ve always been treated fair here,” said Grimm, 49. “I’ve grown up in this company.”

Contact reporter Jennie Rodriguez at (209) 943-8564 or jrodriguez@recordnet.com.

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Gaby’s represents new child, new beginning Owner jumps back into game on MLK Jr. Blvd.

By Jennifer Torres Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — Joel Mandujano, a longtime business owner, calls his latest venture, a diner at 405 E. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Blvd., Gaby’s Cafe. It’s named after his daughter, Gabriela, a 2-year-old girl who comes with her mother to visit him around noon — because he can rarely get away to see them at home.

“She is beautiful. She is my first and last child,” Mandujano said.

He has about 30 years of experience in the restaurant business and for the past 24 years has owned the building that houses Gaby’s and the adjacent bar, Harry’s Lounge.

For many years, he leased out the restaurant space, but when the tenant moved out last year, he said, he wasn’t able to find a new renter.

He had previously run a diner there and decided to try it again.

This time, he said, it has proved far more difficult.

“The early ’80s was bad,” Mandujano said. “But it was nothing like this. This is the worst.”

With unemployment levels so high for so long, he said, there has been no breakfast rush, no lunchtime crowd at Gaby’s, which opened in November.

“We need more jobs,” he said. “There is no work. When I bought this place, the coffee shop had a very good clientele.

For nine years it was like that.”

Mandujano said he plans to survive the downturn — not by launching new techniques or by overhauling his business but by retreating to the personal, hands-on approach that has won him loyal customers in the past.

Joel Mandujano, owner of Gaby’s Cafe: “I make everything from scratch here. The only thing out of a can is ketchup.”

He has left the diner mostly as he found it, with woodpaneled walls and roomy booths.

Gaby’s is open every day from 6 a.m. to 8 p.m. Breakfasts are inexpensive, ranging from $2.99 for two eggs, hash browns and toast to $4.99 for Mexican combination plates including chorizo and eggs, huevos rancheros or chilaquiles.

Coffee is $1.

“I make everything from scratch here,” Mandujano said.

“The only thing out of a can is ketchup.”

A waitress said he is there all the time — early in the morning to cook and at happy hour to pour drinks next door.

“I try to do everything myself,” Mandujano said.

He is a handyman, he said, and saves money by making repairs on his own.

“I don’t need an electrician,” he said. “I can do my own plumbing — I have three snakes.

Believe me, it helps a lot.”

Mandujano is planning a $30-a-plate crab feed for next month. He has held one annually for 18 years.

“It’s the first time I have raised the price,” he said. “My people can’t afford to pay $50 each.”

And every Christmas, he hosts a steak dinner for longtime patrons.

“I don’t like the hours I am working now,” he said. “Ten to 12 hours a day. But I enjoy cooking, and I like people.”

Contact reporter Jennifer Torres at (209) 546-8252 or jtorres@recordnet.com. Visit her blog at recordnet.com/ parentingblog.

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Joel Mandujano, above, is the owner of Gaby’s Cafe on Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in Stockton. The eatery, which opened in November, is named for Mandujano’s daughter. “She is beautiful,” Mandujano said of 2-yearold Gabriela. “She is my first and last child.” At left, cook Pancho Torrez cooks a dish in Gaby’s kitchen. Mandujano decided to re-enter the diner business last year after the tenant in his restaurant space moved out and he couldn’t find a new one.

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Safety prompts Specialty to shell out for Lodi Nut Century-old company is no stranger to change

By Keith Reid Record Staff Writer

LODI — The next time you bite into a white chocolate chip and macadamia nut cookie, take heart in knowing that a piece of that snack was likely processed in Lodi at the plant formerly known at the Lodi Nut Co. Started in 1919 packaging walnuts, the nut processor has had long relationships with companies such as Kraft Foods, Hershey and Harry & David.

The company has seen many changes in the nearly one century it has been in business and employing Lodians, and many ups and downs with the economy.

“You know, nothing ever stays the same,” company President Kelly Suess said. “We were once 100 percent in black walnuts, and now we don’t even handle them at all anymore. If there is no change, there’s no survival.”

Suess and his brother, Virgil, acquired the company in 1970 from Ted Hochhalter, and have

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Pumpkin seeds are among the commodities handled at the former Lodi Nut Co. plant. thrived on the packaging and processing of a variety of nuts.

Macadamia is the latest trend, Kelly Suess said, as are the food safety measures they take in pasteurizing nuts.

The most recent change came less than four months ago when the company long known as Lodi Nut Co. was purchased by Specialty Commodities Inc. That company purchases and warehouses nuts and other snack foods and was attracted to Lodi Nut because of the food safety measures the plant takes

to ensure the nuts are free of E. coli or salmonella.

The change ensures the Lodi company — which has operated with a staff of 100 employees for the better part of the Suess ownership — will continue to thrive.

“We are still very much in business,” Kelly Suess said. “We have a new ownership but also the opportunity to expand.”

Contact reporter Keith Reid at (209) 546-8257 or kreid@ recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/lodiblog.

Autos for Sale

Record Classifieds offer countywide classifieds.

Reach 90%+ with The Record and Valley Market Place.

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CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

Raquel Alfaro sorts pumpkin seeds Feb. 11 on a conveyor belt at the former Lodi Nut Co. plant.

The plant is now owned by Specialty Commodities Inc.

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Janis Music has deep Valley roots

By Denise Ellen Rizzo Special to The Record

MANTECA — When it comes to the world of music, there is one Manteca business that has become a Valley institution: Janis Music Co. Co-owner and operator George Janis was raised around music; melody and lyrics run through his veins.

His father, Eddie, was a bandleader and his mother, Jeannette, a singer during the big-band era of the 1940s. After years of working on the road, the couple decided to settle down in 1962, and they chose Manteca to open Janis Music Co., a business still thriving almost 50 years later.

George Janis said his own passion for performing started young — as it did for his two older brothers, Tim and Eddie Jr. As each boy came of age, he was invited to join his dad in the

family group called The Continentals, later renamed California Colours.

It became a well-known musical group performing throughout California in the 1970s.

After performing on the road for more than 10 years, George Janis said the group decided it was time to settle down in 1980 and find a way to spread the Janis Music philosophy.

Using his six-year background in electronics and instrument repair, George Janis partnered with his brother Tim, and together they opened a second Janis Music store, in Tracy.

When his father retired and his brothers said they wanted to pursue different careers in the early 1990s, George Janis sold the Tracy location to Ken Cefalo, who now operates it as Main Street Music, and he reDenise Ellen Rizzo/Special to The Record turned to his roots in Manteca, where he and his wife, Inda, run Music instructor Andrew Perez works with 11-year-old Richard Ellks during a guitar lesson at Janis Music Co. in Manteca.

SEE JANIS, PAGE 19 Perez is one of eight instructors teaching a variety of instruments, including guitar, violin and piano.

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JANIS: Decided to focus on customer service in face of online, big-box competition George Janis on his online competition: “Selling in person cost more, but when you buy online there’s no instruction or guarantee. The thought was that the cheapest was the best, a model of the consumer in the United States, but it left out the service end of the business.”

Continued from PAGE 18

the original store.

George Janis found himself faced with a whole new set of challenges as the Internet and big-box stores made it easy to buy musical instruments at cheaper prices in the 1990s. He decided to focus on customer service.

“Selling in person cost more, but when you buy online there’s no instruction or guarantee,” he said. “The thought was that the cheapest was the best, a model of the consumer in the United States, but it left out the service end of the business.”

Although Janis Music offers an extensive array of instruments and accessories, George Janis said he has decided that the future of his family’s legacy is focusing on customer service, instrument repair and lessons for future musical generations.

It has been this business model that has kept Janis Music Co. successful.

One key in-house service available is the store’s string instrument repair and custom

Denise Ellen Rizzo/Special to The Record

George Janis measures the neck of a 1960 Gibson Les Paul guitar in preparation for the installation of new frets at Janis Music Co. in Manteca. Janis and his brothers got into the family business of making music when they were boys; he now runs his father’s old shop. modification department. Us- specialized services on electric Another favorite is Janis’ ining his more than quarter of a and acoustic guitars, as well as strument and voice lesson procentury of experience, he offers violins. gram. More than 175 children

5 and older, participate. Each student takes part in a half-hour weekly session on a variety of instruments, including guitar, keyboard and violins.

Janis Music is offering an introductory instrument lesson for first-time students. A free tryout lesson is included.

Instruments also can be rented monthly, $15 for guitars and $25 for band instruments.

The goal is to provide a stimulating atmosphere for children and adults to experience the joy of music, George Janis said.

“They’re great people here,” said Bob Ellks, whose 11-yearold grandson Richard takes guitar lessons from Andrew Perez, one of eight trained instructors at the store. “George would do anything for you. They’re great working with the kids.”

Tom Treacy, whose 8-year-

old daughter Mia takes drum lessons, said that at first he was concerned she wouldn’t be able to handle percussion. After showing her natural ability, he said, the lessons gave her the confidence and opportunity to play in front of an audience through Janis’ performance programs; Summer Band and Summer Jazz Ensembles.

“Music is important as part of a child’s growth,” George Janis said. “It’s wholesome and what kids want to do. We provide a safe environment, quality teachers and family friendly (atmosphere).”

Janis Music Co. is at 138 W. Yosemite Ave., Manteca; (209) 823-3067.

Hours are 11 a.m. to 7 p.m.

Monday through Friday and 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday.

20 Sunday, February 27, 2011 The Record

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part iv: things that unite us

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School unites rich, poor

part iv: things that unite us

Bringing a diverse Spanos Elementary thrives in south Stockton population together

By Roger Phillips

By Roger Phillips

Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — On the afternoon of Sept. 17, 2009, the two faces of Stockton had a faceto-face meeting at the forlorn corner of California Street and Hazelton Avenue on the city’s south side.

Well, actually, only three of the corners were forlorn. The sparkling new K-8 school on the northeast corner was the reason Stockton’s elite had turned out in force. It was dedication day for Alex Spanos Elementary.

The ailing billionaire developer did not attend the event, but a group of his relatives did, including his wife, Faye. “Alex and I have always believed education and hard work make up the cornerstones of success,” she told an audience of 500 in the school’s multipurpose room.

“I hope this wonderful school will be a place where the love of learning is instilled in every student.”

Perhaps more than any other public institution, schools by their very nature break down the barriers between the disparate parts of a city.

Stockton Unified’s well-educated and middle-class teaching force, according to California Department of Education statistics, is nearly 60 percent white. Each day, those teachers arrive at schools around the city to teach a student population that is 90 percent minority and 80 percent economically disadvantaged.

Lynn Beck, the dean of University of the Pacific’s Benerd School of Education, says schools serve a valuable function by breaking down economic and ethnic segregation.

“It’s good for everybody for a number of reasons,” Beck said.

“We live in a heterogeneous

Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — Despite Stockton’s wealth of diversity, we are, in many ways, separated by the accidents of birth.

We find ourselves apart based on ethnicity, religion, social class, educational level and political persuasion.

But there are some places that bring us together.

Stop by one of Stockton Unified’s schools, where a staff of well-trained, middleclass teachers — a majority of whom are white — works to educate a population of students that is heavily minority and largely socioeconomically disadvantaged.

When those students advance to San Joaquin Delta College, they walk onto a campus that unites white and black and everyone in be-

tween, whether old or young, rich or poor.

During free time, some of those same people will visit Stockton Arena on a hockey night. There, when the puck is dropped, you will see a rainbow coalition of people from Stockton and the surrounding area supporting the Thunder.

And a few blocks away, the highly successful downtown cinema complex attracts moviegoers from points north, south, east and west.

Lynn Beck, the dean of the Benerd School of Education at University of the Pacific, said coming together helps build a stronger community.

“No one of us,” she said, “is as smart as all of us together.”

Contact reporter Roger Phillips at (209) 546-8299 or rphillips@recordnet.com.

Visit his blog at recordnet. com/phillipsblog.

Spanos Elementary School Principal Danielle Valtierra: “It’s been really positive. It’s only going to get better.”

CRAIG SANDERS/The Record

Spanos Elementary School third-graders head to class after recess Feb. 2. The school, named for developer Alex Spanos, is in south Stockton. “I hope this wonderful school will be a place where the love of learning is instilled in every student,” his wife, Faye, said at the school’s dedication in 2009. world. Look at all that can be gained by all the rich exposure to diversity. … By bringing diversity together of socioeconomics, ethnicity, gender and skills, the shared and collective experience is richer and stronger and better.”

Beck said schools would benefit greatly if there were more diversity among their students as it relates to their socioeconomic status. She acknowledges it’s a difficult gap to bridge given that — especially at the K-8 level — children usually attend

schools within walking distance of where they live.

Beck said Stockton Unified’s current trend of creating “schools of choice” has the potential to break down the economic walls that so often divide affluent and disadvantaged

students.

Regardless of the neighborhood in which they are located, such schools have the power to bring together children from very different backgrounds who are attracted by a specific program. Such schools “are just so cool that everyone wants to go there,” Beck said.

Seventeen months after the elite of Stockton gathered at California and Hazelton, Spanos Elementary has settled into its role as a neighborhood school.

Principal Danielle Valtierra says the school she opened in 2009, which is named after a

member of the Forbes 400, continues to blend into the fabric of its community.

Families, she said, can be seen visiting neighboring Gleason Park, once a haven for crime. New low-income housing is being built just down the street that will bring more families into the neighborhood and more children to the school.

“It’s been really positive,” Valtierra said. “It’s only going to get better.”

Contact reporter Roger Phillips at (209) 546-8299 or rphillips@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ phillipsblog.

22 Sunday, February 27, 2011 The Record o u t l o o k 2 011

part iv: things that unite us

recordnet.com

Same game, many reasons Thunder fans’ interests as diverse as the crowds at Stockton Arena

By Scott Linesburgh Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — If you ask fans why they like to go to Thunder ice hockey games, you are unlikely to get the same answer twice.

Some will talk about the fastpaced game, hard hits and the fights. Others are looking for an affordable night out for the family, an adrenaline rush or the chance to wear a bright yellow wig and scream their heads off for 21/2 hours at Stockton Arena.

What is certain is that Stockton’s professional ice hockey team — in its sixth season — has managed to remain a top draw and remains one of the attendance leaders of the 19-team ECHL despite the Valley’s economic woes.

“It’s just the best,” said Valerie Perry of Stockton, who is a season-ticket holder along with her husband, Mike. “It’s a pure adrenalin rush. The games are so fast, if you don’t keep your eyes on it, you’ll miss something.”

Stockton’s loyal fan base has helped it lead the ECHL (formerly the East Coast Hockey League) in attendance its first four years and was third in 2009-10. The team has been drawing at about 5 percent ahead of last year’s numbers this season.

“Obviously we’re very happy with the situation,” said Dave Piecuch, the Thunder’s vice president of sales. “The economy has affected everyone, but we are bouncing back a bit from last year and showing growth.”

Piecuch said the seasonMichael McCollum/The Record ticket base has held steady at about 2,300, and its mini plans Thunder fans Valerie Perry, 48; daughter Brooke, 10; and niece Kelli Barr, 30, all of Stockton, watch the Thunder take on the Utah Grizzlies on Feb. 5 at Stockhave increased slightly. Group ton Arena. “It’s just the best,” said Valerie Perry, who holds season tickets. “It’s a pure adrenalin rush. The games are so fast, if you don’t keep your eyes on it, SEE THUNDER, PAGE 23 you’ll miss something.”

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part iv: things that unite us

recordnet.com

thunder: ‘We’re in the sports business, but we’re also in the entertainment business’ Continued from PAGE 22

sales and new promotional events have also helped the recent increase in fans.

Thunder President Dan Chapman said the key for the franchise is to get people in the door, and show them a good time once they are in their seats.

“We’re in the sports business, but we’re also in the entertainment business,” Chapman said.

“You want to put a successful product on the ice, and make it fun for people with lights, music and video presentations. I think our staff does a very good job of providing affordable entertainment.”

The Thunder has slightly increased the prices of some of its higher-end seats since its first season in 2005-06, but the least-expensive seats have remained the same — $7 for seniors and children, $9 for adults.

“It’s just such a fun time, and everyone I’ve ever dealt with at the games has been very pleasant,” said Mike Perry, whose family has been fans for a few years and decided to become season-ticket holders this season.

“We really enjoy the fast pace of the games and the hitting, and everyone likes a good fight once and a while,” Perry said.

“It’s a good time, they keep it interesting and they treat the fans well.”

Record File 2008 The Thunder often bring up how they enjoy playing in front The Stockton Thunder have often drawn capacity crowds to Stockton Arena. One such night was Oct. 18, 2008, when the Thunder played host to the Fresno of a large crowd. And Wayne Falcons. Two months after this game — on Dec. 22, 2008 — the Falcons ceased operations, citing the economy, among other factors. One week later, Matt Thomas, vice president and Thomas, who had been coaching the Falcons, was hired as head coach of the Thunder, a position he still holds. assistant general manager of Jeffery Allen Lound of Stockthe San Jose Sharks, one of the ton, far left, fires up the red Thunder’s NHL parent clubs, light on his hat to celebrate a said, “I think it really helps Thunder goal during a playoff when you play in a pro building game in May. The light is like this.” modeled after the red lights “The fans here are great, and behind hockey nets; a goal it does pump you up when you judge turns on the light to play in front of the big crowds,” signal a goal. Left, Thunder Thunder player Fraser Clair fans John and Shelly Laack said. “You want to win for of Stockton pound on the them.”

Plexiglas to help out the home Contact reporter Scott team during a game with the Linesburgh at (209) 546-8281 or slinesburgh@recordnet.com.

Ontario Reign in October.

Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ sportsblog.

CLIFFORD OTO/Record File 2010

Michael McCollum/Record File 2010

A24 Sunday, February 27, 2011 The Record

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part iv: things that unite us

recordnet.com

Melting Pot 101 in session at Delta College brings together students from wide variety of backgrounds, ethnicities

By Alex Breitler Record Staff Writer

STOCKTON — Cancer survivor Teresa Narez, 63, met former foster child Angela Brott, 24, at San Joaquin Delta College.

They became friends. Then roommates.

With almost four decades separating them, it wasn’t your typical college-roomies arrangement. But it never seemed strange, either.

“We get along fine,” Narez said.

“She’s become part of the family,” Brott said.

Such a coming-together might happen only at Delta College, where old and young, rich and poor, black and white and everyone in the middle meet in one place — a 148-acre microcosm of a diverse surrounding community.

Perhaps nowhere is this microcosm more evident than the campus quad during lunch hour on a sunny day. Guitar strumming mixes with hip-hop; older students talk while younger students text.

“We have just about everybody here,” 43-year-old Mark Smith said with a smile.

In 2009, the college was 31 percent white, 28 percent Latino, 19 percent Asian or Pacific Islander and 12 percent black.

Proportionately, the college had fewer Latinos than San Joaquin County as a whole, but more blacks.

Women regularly outnumber men at Delta, and about onethird of the students are older — at least 25 years old.

But the numbers don’t tell the whole story. Cultural lines are not as rigid as they appear on paper.

Jentela Deloney, a 20-yearold black student, joined the MEChA club for Chicanos.

“I’ve always been open to different cultures,” she said. “I did have a few Mexican friends in high school, and being openminded is really important.”

The campus Japanese club has no Japanese members, said its president, Justin Crudup, 22.

But it meets twice a week. Club members have been learning how to write Japanese language characters.

“People just love the culture, the music, the clothing, the art,” Crudup, who is black, said as he stood over a table of anime cartoon drawings.

On one recent afternoon, a Christian group set up a booth and took prayer requests. The campus Muslim Student Association had been out the day before.

“It’s a different range of personalities and different kinds of people. And that’s always a good thing,” said Deloney, who wants to transfer to a university and major in cultural anthropology.

Narez, the cancer survivor, was “different” when she arrived at Delta in 2006. She had lost her hair. She had gained, however, a desire to help those who had gone through the same experience; that’s why she wants to become a counselor for cancer patients and their families.

“Someone with cancer, you really don’t know how that person feels,” she said. “When I got it, I said, ‘Now I know.’ ” Delta College brings together families, too. Narez shares a few classes with her granddaughter, which begs for a good-natured joke.

“She sits in back so Grandma can’t see her texting,” Narez said.

Contact reporter Alex Breitler at (209) 546-8295 or abreitler@recordnet.com. Visit his blog at recordnet.com/ breitlerblog.

CLIFFORD OTO/The Record

The San Joaquin Delta College student body reflects the ethnic diversity of San Joaquin County. What isn’t obvious at first glance is the diverse backgrounds of the students — everyone from grown-up latchkey kids to wealthier young people to former continuation school students getting their lives back on track. It’s not just students fresh out of high school, either. About a third of the students are 25 or older.

A26 Sunday, February 27, 2011 The Record