Category: Uncategorized

Many of you know that I have a pair of young sons. Have been doing a lot of thinking about what, exactly, holds a family together through generations and gives people purpose and a sense of connection. Obviously, there are a whole range of ideas, stories, personal relationships, customs, memories, etc. But there’s one other … Continue reading “Capital, family and meaning”

Had an interesting conversation with a good friend re the impact of zoning on the economy. In the midst of discussing the growth of Silicon Beach, I had kind of an epiphany. Because of how we control land use around the beach (including the Coastal Commission, the Mello Act, specific plans, etc.), we are dramatically … Continue reading “How restrictive zoning slows economic growth”

Want to remind everyone that the vile Neighborhood Integrity Initiative remains a threat to our city. Here’s an update from Curbed on its progress… it’s getting onto the ballot in a March election where turnout out to be like 0.0005% of the population. In case you haven’t heard, the initiative basically creates a moratorium on … Continue reading “Update on the loathsome Neighborhood Integrity Initiative”

Every time I start working on putting together a fund, I run into the same problem. Well before I’m actually ready with the docs, I tell a bunch of people that we’re doing a new one. Then, understandably, they follow-up with me to get the docs. And I don’t have them, because they always take … Continue reading “Mea culpa for my big mouth”

As our career progresses, we’re finding ourselves in the interesting position of carrying out multiple negotiations over time with the same investors. Managing this effectively turns out to be very different from your standard one-off negotiation. Why? Because you always need to be thinking about how that specific negotiation impacts the whole relationship. When I negotiate, … Continue reading “Unilateral disarmament”

Am a voracious consumer of business news… find that I learn all kinds of things from following how other businesses operate, make deals, etc. So I was appalled to discover, over the last couple of days, how Yahoo (mis-)handled disclosing being hacking while conducting its sale auction. To catch you up: In 2014, hackers apparently … Continue reading “Shame on Yahoo”

As you know, we’re not keen on selling properties. But, every once in a while, circumstances force our hand. So, we’ve just placed 132 N Alvarado St. on the market for $1,715,000. What is it? Brand new 4plex seconds from Echo Park All units have 10′ ceilings, private outdoor spaces, hard wood floors, all modern conveniences … Continue reading “Brand new 4plex for sale”

Working on the acquisitions side of our business is weird. How weird? Well, we’re in a deal drought of approx. 3 months right now. That’s causing me to tear my hair out. On the other hand, we have offers out on something like $6MM in projects which, if we get them, would almost certainly be … Continue reading “Staying calm through our acquisitions drought”

Adaptive is embarking on an absolute gem of a project and I thought I’d share just a couple of “before” pics with you. Check back here in about a year to get your mind blown.

If you want to work for yourself, you need to own the means of production. What do I mean by this? When my brother and I started our casting technology business, CAZT, we had a pretty great idea. We figured out how to provide something of value to one set of customers for free, in … Continue reading “Why you need to own the means of production”