Sea lions weren't the only characters to make news in 2005. Here's a sampling of some of the bigger business stories generated by Newport-Mesa's movers and shakers.
Business tends to slow down during the fall and winter around Balboa Village. Nevertheless, the closing weeks of 2005 witnessed two major transactions at the seaside locale.
In the first deal, Newport Beach businessman Leo Gugasian and his son bought what may be the most famous building in all of Newport Beach -- the Balboa Pavilion. Gugasian, whose Newport Beach real estate holdings include properties at McFadden Square and Mariner's Mile, said he plans no major changes for the building. The Pavilion, which opened in 1906, houses the Harborside Restaurant and Grand Ballroom, Davey's Locker Sportfishing and the Catalina Passenger Service. Gugasian also agreed to purchase the Catalina Passenger Service.
Though Gugasian has indicated plans to stay the course at the Balboa Pavilion, significant changes are in the works for the Balboa Fun Zone. Newport Harbor Nautical Museum operators closed a deal to buy the Fun Zone's land on Thursday. The Fun Zone's previous ownership company, Balboa Fun Zone Rides Inc., has a 30-year deal to keep the Fun Zone's famous Ferris wheel turning, but other attractions at the almost 70-year-old amusement arcade are expected to be cleared out for museum exhibits.
Staying competitive costs money. The Newport Beach Marriott Hotel & Spa spent more that $67 million to give its Newport Center digs an updated look. The renovations included the additions of Sam & Harry's steakhouse and Pure Blu spa, both of which were scheduled to open today.
In Newport, the Marriott was not the only hotel that finished or started remodeling efforts in 2005. In January, the Island Hotel Newport Beach added a spa when the hotel was still operated under the Four Seasons brand. The Hyatt Regency Newport Beach wrapped up a $13-million makeover in February. At least $27 million is set to be spent on renovations that should be completed by June at the Fairmont Newport Beach, the Fairmont's Barbara Eidson said. Both the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach and Fairmont Newport Beach are owned by San Clemente-based Sunstone Hotel Investors Inc. Sunstone purchased the Fairmont in 2005.
Homeowners in both Newport Beach and Costa Mesa saw home values continue to climb in 2005. Though year-end figures are not yet available, statistics released in December by La Jolla-based DataQuik Information Systems showed that from November 2004 to the same month in 2005, median home prices rose throughout Newport-Mesa. November statistics showed median home prices in the ZIP Code that includes Newport Coast exceeded $2.1 million and median values in southern Costa Mesa were more than $700,000. Median prices in all Newport-Mesa neighborhoods exceeded the county's median of $616,000.
Where does it all end? Or does it? Rising prices have led economists to debate whether or not a "bubble" exists in the housing market, but although some forecast price declines, other analysts predict appreciation to continue, though the pace of price increases may slow down.
In February, Cincinnati's Federated Department Stores Inc. announced plans to buy St. Louis-based May Department Stores Co. Both companies' headquarters might be a long plane ride from John Wayne Airport, but the deal is set to cause significant changes at Newport-Mesa's biggest shopping centers.
Federated owns the Macy's brand, and May owned Robinsons-May. Federated executives decided to phase out the Robinsons-May chain, which means that new stores will be needed to replace the Robinsons-May shops at South Coast Plaza and Fashion Island.
At South Coast Plaza in Costa Mesa, Federated is expected to stay in business at Robinsons-May's current location by converting the department store into a Bloomingdale's. At Newport Beach's Fashion Island, the future is less clear. In August, Federated announced the company would convert Fashion Island's Robinsons-May store into a Macy's but would not keep the Macy's Women's Store at that center. Friday, Irvine Co. spokeswoman Jennifer Hieger said officials with the Irvine Co., which owns Fashion Island, do not know what will replace the Macy's Women's Store.
This year's troubles started in January, when Niketown left the Costa Mesa shopping center. Virgin Megastore shut its doors in September. As if those losses were not bad enough, Barnes & Noble is set to depart Triangle Square later this month. The mall added Kelly's Coffee & Fudge Factory in 2005 and a Mexican restaurant is expected to open at Triangle Square in the spring. However, the departures have tended to overshadow announced arrivals.
Some have said Triangle Square's ownership, listed in public records as a company called Triangle Square Investments LLC, has not done enough to market the mall. Mall managers have not been completely inert. In June, a new leasing agent with Colliers Seeley International was hired to bring business back to Triangle Square. Recently, there has been talk of bringing a furniture store to the mall, but as of mid December, no formal announcement had been made.
* ANDREW EDWARDS covers business and the environment. He can be reached at (714) 966-4624 or by e-mail at andrew.edwards@latimes.com.