Local Unemployment figures for January 2009

These are very interesting numbers and shows the wide disparity of impact of the recession. We need to know what the relative figures were before Dec 2007 when the recession officially started to make any sense out of these numbers. We suspect that the relative disparity in numbers was about the same before the recession.

JOBLESS FIGURES

Unemployment rates as of January 2009

California: 10.1 percent

Los Angeles County: 10.8 percent

Bellflower: 11 percent

Cerritos: 5.9 percent

Compton: 18.4 percent

Cypress: 8 percent

Downey: 8.7 percent

Hawthorne: 14 percent

Lakewood: 7 percent

Long Beach: 11.9 percent

Los Alamitos: 3.8 percent

Los Angeles: 12 percent

Manhattan Beach: 3.8 percent

Norwalk: 11.4 percent

Palos Verdes Estates: 2.2 percent

Paramount: 15.8 percent

Redondo Beach: 5.7 percent

Seal Beach: 5.5 percent

Signal Hill: 8.1 percent

Torrance: 5.4 percent

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

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Fresh & Easy not looking so good

As we reported about a year ago, Fresh and Easy opened with great fanfare in November 2007 but its parent company Tesco PLC is getting hammered in the market. Its stock price is down. Tesco is the U.K.’s biggest supermarket chain. Its share of grocery spending dropped to the lowest in three years last month as shoppers turned to Wal-Mart Stores. Tesco’s share of the UK market fell to 30.3 percent in the 12 weeks ended Feb. 22.

Of course the other problem is that Fresh and Easy is not going smoothly in the USA as it appears that the marketing gurus that conceived of the concept did not do their homework that well and made some big assumptions that are turning out to be wrong. This marketing article details the problems.

Of course Costco just opened at the mall (first ever in a mall setting) at the worst time in history. More on Costco here

We have noticed many more "red tag" specials at Pavillions and Vons lately, likely in response to Costco pressure and pressure by Safeway (which owns Vons and Pavillions) on name brand food suppliers to lower their prices. The Wall St. Journal did a recent article on this issue. This is also placing pressure on Fresh and Easy.

So we have a race to the bottom in retail, which includes food retailers. We have a long way to go before this over and its likely to get worse. The retail landscape may completely change by the time this "depression" is over. How Lakewood and its shoppers will fare is anyone's guess.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

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Costco is not immune from the recession

Costco Wholesale Corp.'s second-quarter earnings fell 27%, while the quarterly profit generated by rival BJ's Wholesale Club Inc. rose 4.8%, financial results showed this week.
Costco's profit for the second quarter ended Feb. 15 fell more than expected. Shares of Costco, down 23% so far this year. The results reflected lagging demand for non-food items and increased discounts and price reductions to attract budget-conscious shoppers. Quarterly profit at Costco fell to $239.7 million, or 55 cents a share, from $327.9 million, or 74 cents, earned in the year-earlier second quarter. Total revenue, reflecting membership fees, eased to $16.84 billion from $16.96 billion, off 0.7%. Costco also cut prices or held back increases in an intense industry fight for market share with rivals including the Sam's Club. The recession and rising job losses also have led shoppers to cut back on bulk purchases

BJ's Wholesale (a Costco competitor only on the east coast) came in with financial results that exceeded expectations and reported fourth-quarter profit rose 4.8% to $52.7 million, or 91 cents a share, from $50.2 million, or 80 cents, earned in the same period a year earlier.

Big Lots (another Lakewood retailer) said fourth-quarter profit fell 14% to $78.8 million, or 96 cents a share, from $92 million, or $1.04, a year earlier.

So the verdict is still out on Costco at the mall. Customer traffic has been brisk the first week but we will want to see how that holds up once the novelty wears off. Plus this store is just cannibalizing traffic from the Norwalk and Long Beach Costcos. The state of retail will likely undergo a metamorphosis in the next 12 months. Who knows what Lakewood retail will look like by then.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

Now we're "policing" the sheriffs...

I guess this is good news but a few lawsuits too late. As we said last year, bad cops discharged from one agency for "problems" should NEVER be able to work in law enforcement again, given that its virtually impossible to get fired as a cop unless you are a complete idiot or psychopath. Oh and now LASD wants to take federal stimulus money and hire some more of these gems? I say lets save the money to clean up the mess from the last "recruiting drive".

http://www.publicradio.org/columns/kpcc/kpccnewsinbrief/2009/03/los-angeles-county-supervisors.html

The Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors today ordered a watchdog agency to monitor sheriff’s deputies hired in the last three years. The action follows a report by the country’s Office of Independent Review; it found the department had lowered standards during a hiring push. Mike Gennaco heads the office.

Mike Gennaco: “One of the illustrations that’s noted in our report was an individual who had been hired by another agency up in Northern California, had run into problems with that agency – particularly allegations of unnecessary or excessive force – and eventually was released from that agency for that very reason.”

The L.A. County Sheriff’s Department hired that individual, who later left because of problems with use of excessive force. The department hired about 2700 of its 9,000 deputies under relaxed standards. The Office of Independent Review will monitor those deputies for their first five years with the department.

Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email

We need more fireworks money?

I guess this is the reason these "sports" groups need so much fireworks money...fraud. If this guy allegedly took $59,000, how much was their available to take? Was there so much cash floating around that the embezzler did not think they would miss the money? I think the city seriously needs to start taking a closer look at how all that fireworks money is being spent. Looks to us like its going up in smoke. Also of note the LASD was not the agency that uncovered this. Likely too busy trying to push their own problems to the back page of the news.

Embezzlement charges filed
COURTS: Ex-president of sporting league is accused of taking $59,000.
By Tracy Manzer and Sandy Mazza, Staff Writers
Posted: 03/02/2009
http://www.contracostatimes.com/california/ci_11823185?nclick_check=1

Embezzlement charges were filed against a 40-year-old Lakewood man, who is among three people accused of stealing from local youth sports groups in two separate crimes, authorities said Monday.

Michael Sweet was arrested at his Lakewood home on Thursday and appeared in Torrance Superior Court that same day to answer to a charge of embezzling nearly $60,000 from the Pacific Coast Football Association, an umbrella group that oversees a number of community youth sports groups, including Lakewood Pacific Junior Football, according to the Redondo Beach Police Department.

Sweet, who served as president of the Pacific Coast organization until his resignation last year, is accused of writing $59,000 worth of checks from the umbrella group's bank account to pay personal bills over several months in 2008, Redondo Beach Police Lt. Paul Wrightsman said.

Redondo Beach investigators began looking into Sweet while investigating two other women who served on the board of the Redondo Beach Youth Football and Cheer Association and who were accused of pocketing the smaller group's snack bar money, police said.

Patricia Cotton, 63, of Buena Park, and Alesia Fleming, 42, of Palmdale, were arrested the same day as Sweet and arraigned on charges of stealing the concession stand money from the Redondo group while they served on its board of directors, Wrightsman said.

Cotton was the president, and Fleming was the treasurer.

The charge against Sweet does not include the time he served as president of the Lakewood Pacific Junior Football group, authorities said Monday.

Neither Sweet, nor anyone else with the Pacific Coast Football Association, could be reached for comment Monday.

tracy.manzer@presstelegram.com, 562-499-1261.


Lakewood Accountability Action Group™ LAAG | www.LAAG.us | Lakewood, CA
A California Non Profit Association | Demanding action and accountability from local government™

click here to receive LAAG posts by email