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- Written by: Editor
CLEARLAKE, Calif. – Husband and wife entrepreneurs Mitch and Carol Beare are proud to celebrate the opening of a brand-new Grocery Outlet in Clearlake on Thursday, July 22, with a grand opening celebration planned for Saturday, July 24.
Clearlake and surrounding Lake County area residents can expect to save up to 50 percent on brand name, quality foods and merchandise at the new Grocery Outlet, the largest “extreme-value” grocer in the U.S.
The new store, located in the Burns Valley Mall at 14806 Olympic Drive, is located directly across the street from the Rite-Aid and Lakeshore Fire Department.
In a time when mom-and-pop shops – let alone large corporations – are shuttering store windows instead of opening them, the Beares are striking out on a new venture.
Mitch Beare, originally from Sonoma County and a resident of Lakeport for almost 25 years with wife Carol and six children, has been in the retail business since 1987. He worked his way up the corporate ladder into management positions for Safeway, Pay-less, Rite-Aid and Thrifty.
Carol was born and raised in Lakeport and in addition to being a stay-at-home mother to their six children, is a part-time Lakeport Unified School District substitute teacher, soccer coach and PTA president. In 2008 and after 10 years of Mitch serving as store manager for Safeway in Lakeport, the Beares answered a regional recruitment advertisement for Grocery Outlet.
The Beares were drawn to Grocery Outlet’s dedication to the family-oriented credo of business ownership and the opportunity to own a thriving business near the area they’ve called home for so many years.
After a year-and-a-half-long owner/operator training with Grocery Outlets in Lakeport and Ukiah, the Beares will finally own their own store – one that stands near the very location that Carol’s father, Richard Hall, purchased his longstanding business in 1976.
Hall was known for his robust community support and the Beares are thrilled to continue their volunteerism through Grocery Outlet with local nonprofit organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, the local VA clinic and surrounding area schools.
To support operations for the new store, the Beares have hired 37 local residents, many through Lake One-Stop, as well as few from their immediate family, including their son-in-law who will serve as the store’s manager.
Hired positions range from everything from merchandisers to department managers. Hiring at this time is significant, especially considering local unemployment rates recently were reported at 16.8 percent, one of the highest rates experienced in the county within the past 20 years.
The new store will occupy a former Rite-Aid and Pay-Less. Originally at 36,000 square feet, the space will be divided into two businesses. The Clearlake Grocery Outlet will occupy a majority of the space and Dollar Tree, which is expected to open at the end of August, will occupy the other portion.
At 20,000 square feet, the newly renovated Grocery Outlet space will feature a spacious nine aisles of product offerings, an 8-foot premium fresh meat case with all natural USDA top-cuts, large seasonal produce displays, a dedicated organic section, and an enhanced wine and beer department.
As is the case with most Grocery Outlets locations nationwide, the new Clearlake store site will provide a once underserved area with much needed fresh and nutritious foods at affordable prices.
“Having worked in the retail industry for many years, I’m excited to be able to offer Clearlake and surrounding area Lake County residents the opportunity to save a significant amount of money on through Grocery Outlet,” said Mitch Beare. “Our customers will notice that discount shoppers don’t have to shop in a discount atmosphere, nor sacrifice on name brands or quality.”
Even amidst challenging economic times, Grocery Outlet stores across California are thriving, especially in Northern California, where additional stores are being planned beyond Clearlake and the recent opening of the Pinole location.
The Beares are marking the grand opening of the new Grocery Outlet with a host of community-driven, celebratory events.
The store will host the opening celebrations on Saturday, July 24, with an array of events including free food sampling, free eco-friendly Grocery Outlet bags for the first 700 customers, face painting and games, giveaways, balloons, a local charity fundraiser on behalf of the Lake County 4-H and the chance to win more than $3,300 in prizes.
Based in Berkeley, Calif., Grocery Outlet offers extreme bargains on brand name merchandise, with prices often up to 50 percent cheaper than conventional retailers.
The largest “extreme-value” grocer in the U.S., Grocery Outlet has 140 locations in Arizona, California, Idaho, Nevada, Oregon and Washington.
Grocery Outlet carries refrigerated and frozen foods, fresh produce, organics, dry groceries, beer and wine, health and beauty care, over-the-counter drugs, household products, toys and gifts.
A third-generation family-led company founded in 1946, Grocery Outlet’s mission has always been to provide customers a fun place to find extreme values on name brands they trust. Most stores are independently owned and operated by locally-based families.
For more information, please visit www.groceryoutlets.com.
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- Written by: Office of Congressman Mike Thompson
WASHINGTON, DC – On Thursday Congressman Mike Thompson (D-CA) was joined by 29 other members of Congress in introducing legislation to protect clean energy initiatives that are important to homeowners in California and the rest of the country.
The PACE Assessment Protection Act of 2010 would order lenders to adopt standards that support Property Assessed Clean Energy (PACE) programs, rather than stymie green energy efforts.
“PACE programs are an important part of the push to create a green economy and reduce our reliance on foreign oil,” said Congressman Thompson. “They create jobs, and are an exciting way for homeowners to reduce their energy bills while also reducing greenhouse gas emissions. This is especially important in California, which has already taken significant steps to ensure that PACE programs are available to 70 percent of Californians by the end of 2010. And our district has been a national leader in getting these programs up and running – lending institutions should not interfere with these great green energy programs.”
“I join Congressman Thompson in introducing legislation that will allow Sonoma and other counties around the country to continue to allow homeowners to finance innovative energy-efficiency and renewable-energy projects in an affordable and responsible way,” said Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA). “Projects like the Sonoma County Energy Independence Program can promote the development of local renewable energy projects that will decrease our consumption of fossil fuels, reduce our impact on the environment, and create good-paying green jobs in our communities.”
“Where enacted, the PACE program has proved to be a very successful resource for homeowners wanting to reduce their energy consumption. It has also created jobs, increased clean energy investments, and has the potential to further our goal of making the Sacramento region a leader in the clean energy economy,” said Congresswoman Doris Matsui (D-CA). “However, I am deeply concerned by the recent decision by the FHFA to effectively shut down the PACE program. That’s why I am pleased to join Rep. Thompson in introducing legislation that will allow PACE financing programs to continue while ensuring that both the taxpayer and private mortgage investments are protected. And we will continue to fight to ensure this program is restored.”
“My congressional district on Long Island is home to a successful home retrofit program and is set to expand PACE programs to several more communities. Now our programs are at risk of shutting down. PACE programs are helping homeowners save money on their energy bills, making energy efficiency affordable and helping expand our green technology economy. I’m proud to be working with Congressman Thompson to support PACE programs,” said Rep. Steve Israel (D-NY).
“Our PACE program is yielding real positive results for our community – hundreds of good paying local jobs, reduction in energy and water use and cost savings for consumers,” said Sonoma County Supervisor Valerie Brown. “Congressman Thompson’s legislation will protect these outstanding efforts and we thank him for his support of all of our efforts.”
PACE financing is an innovative means to create jobs, reduce energy bills and dramatically cut greenhouse gas emissions. It is estimated that capturing just 10 percent of potential greenhouse gas reductions through PACE could result in a 220 megaton cut in CO2 emissions annually. Even modest implementation of PACE programs could create 160,000 green jobs in the United States. And because PACE-financed energy efficiency measures would cut consumers’ utility bills, they would generate average homeowner savings of $5,000 to $14,000 over the lifetime of the benefits.
Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have asserted that homeowners are in default of their mortgages if they finance energy improvements with PACE. The Pace Programs have the strong support of the Department of Energy and the White House, which issued its White House PACE Policy Framework on October 18, 2009.
California PACE programs are currently operational in the City and County of San Francisco, Sonoma County, Placer County, Palm Desert and Yucaipa. Programs are set to launch in 2010 in the following jurisdictions: Los Angeles County, San Diego City, Alameda County, Fresno County, Kern County, Monterey County, Sacramento County, San Diego County, San Benito County, San Luis Obispo County, San Mateo County, Santa Barbara County, Santa Clara County, Santa Cruz County, Solano County, Ventura County.
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SAN DIEGO – On Wednesday Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. filed a lawsuit against mortgage giants Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac for blocking an innovative California clean energy program that was designed to create tens of thousands of jobs, promote energy independence and lower utility bills.
“As the nation struggles through the worst recession in modern times, California is taking action in federal court to stop the regulatory strangulation of the state's grass-roots program that is spreading across the country,” said Brown.
The PACE (Property Assessed Clean Energy) program stimulates the economy and promotes energy independence by assisting homeowners and small businesses in securing funding to make their properties more energy efficient. Property owners repay the costs of energy improvements through assessments spread out over a decade or more. Under California law, these costs are classified as tax assessments.
Ignoring California law, Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac have effectively shut down the program by wrongly characterizing PACE assessments as loans that must be subordinate to their own mortgages.
The Federal Housing Finance Agency affirmed Fannie and Freddie's decision on July 6 over the objections of Attorney General Brown and congressional leaders.
For California, the stakes are high. Almost half the counties in California have developed PACE programs or plan to start one.
The mortgage giants' actions have stopped these programs dead in their tracks, destroying job creation, stifling energy independence and hampering California's economic recovery.
Clean energy companies have had to lay off workers, and California risks losing more than $100 million in federal stimulus money.
"Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac received enormous federal bailouts," Brown said, "but now they're throwing up impermeable barriers to bank lending that creates jobs, stimulates the economy and boosts clean energy."
One example of the effects of this: San Diego planned to launch a PACE program this summer but it has now been suspended indefinitely, leaving more than 100 people trained in energy retrofits without jobs.
"I believe that the PACE program is critical to stimulating our local and statewide economy," said San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders. "I'm glad to see this lawsuit filed so that this novel program can continue."
In his lawsuit, Brown asks the court to apply California law, require Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac to recognize PACE assessments for what they are, and allow PACE to move California's economy forward.
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LAKEPORT – Angelina’s Bakery and Espresso in Lakeport has announced the grand opening of Angelina’s Ice-Creamery, a unique ice-cream experience, on Saturday, July 17.
A new stone slab ice cream shop, featuring 16 flavors of ice cream and fresh baked, mix-in treats from the bakery.
“We want to provide something for everyone and we have the first and only ‘cold stone’ ice cream set up in Lake County, except even more unique, we are using our own fresh baked goods to mix into the ice cream creations,” said Joya DeSimone, whose family owns the business.
Customers are encouraged to invent their own creations, choosing from endless mix-in treats and fresh baked goods.
Signature creations also are available and include the “New-Yorker,” which is ice cream, cheesecake, strawberries and graham crackers, or the “P-Nutty” with ice-cream, peanut butter cups, homemade brownies and fudge topping.
The Creamery also offers a full line of smoothies, milkshakes, Italian sodas, blended coffees and teas.
Since 1994 Angelina’s Bakery & Espresso has been a full service, family owned scratch bakery, providing a variety of gourmet baked goods, fresh baked bread, coffee, Italian espresso, sandwiches, homemade soups, salads and ice cream.
Creamery hours are 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday through Friday, and 11 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday.
Angelina's is located at 365 N. Main St, Lakeport, telephone 707-263-0391.