Business Closings

The Schwarzenegger administration plans to close one of California's last large institutional care centers for people with profound developmental disabilities. The 82-year old Lanterman Developmental Center in Pomona, which houses 398 people with severe autism, cerebral palsy and other lifelong disabilities, could shut its doors within two years, said Terri Delgadillo, director of the state Department of Developmental Services. The population of the 302-acre campus has dwindled from a peak of nearly 3,000 in the late 1960s, when a change in state law discouraged housing the developmentally disabled in large institutions.

Sixty-two years after Ken Crane started selling early-model television sets out of a storefront on Crenshaw Boulevard, the venerable local chain is going out of business. Over the weekend, the six remaining stores in the Ken Crane's Home Entertainment chain began liquidating their inventory of big-screen TVs, and a big sale drew crowds. But the ongoing sale was bittersweet for Crane's daughter and son, who grew up in the family's stores and took over the company after their father's death in 2004.

Home Depot Inc. announced Monday that it was closing its 34 upscale Expo and other home specialty centers and laying off 7,000 people as a result of the crumbling U.S. housing market and worldwide economic downturn. The company said it would close its 34 sprawling Expo Design Center stores by April, including eight in Southern California, and 14 smaller stores. Some employees were stunned. "Shock. It was shock.

Walt Disney Co. is shutting down most of its ESPN Zone stores, a chain of sports-themed restaurants in seven cities, according to a person familiar with the matter. The only outlets to remain open are those tied to a Disney property, such as the Downtown Disney shopping district in Anaheim. ESPN Zone opened in 1998 to capitalize on ESPN's brand, while bringing Disney's family-friendly atmosphere to the sports bar concept. The upscale eateries serve burgers and brews as walls of big-screen TVs beam baseball and other sporting events into the dining area.

For 111 years, the stores were symbols of decorum and good taste, places guaranteed to make a lasting impression on generations of wide-eyed children who tiptoed around, careful not to scratch the mahogany or crack the crystal. Yet 6-year-old Sarah Meyers and her brother, Bobby, 9, will have another reason for remembering how the end came Thursday to the venerable Barker Bros. furniture chain.

Lanz of California Inc., the sales arm of a longtime Southland apparel manufacturer, said Monday that it is closing its 14 stores in the state and withdrawing from retailing after about 55 years in the business. The company announced its store-closing plans in a news release but did not provide a schedule for the closings and declined to discuss the fate of those employed at the stores. Company officials acknowledged that California's poor economy influenced their decision to close the stores.

Determined to prevent the Mongols motorcycle club from using a Lancaster motel to host its annual meeting this weekend, the city's mayor has taken steps to shut down the establishment. Mayor R. Rex Parris said the members of the Mongols, which law enforcement agencies consider a violent biker gang, are not welcome in Lancaster because they "are engaged in domestic terrorism . . . and they kill our children."

Judy's Inc., a Van Nuys-based operator of 94 apparel stores in the western United States, has filed for reorganization under federal bankruptcy laws, Judy's president said Thursday. The privately held company thus becomes the latest casualty in retailing, where the recession--combined with excessive debt burdens in some cases--has forced such giant chains as R. H. Macy & Co. to seek protection from their creditors.

The Los Angeles Sol of Women's Professional Soccer announced Thursday that it is ceasing operations after one season. The Sol was one of the league's seven teams in the inaugural WPS season in 2009 but was underfunded and did not attract the crowds it expected to the Home Depot Center in Carson. One of the team's co-owners, AEG, has been trying for several months to sell its share of the team without success. The league hoped it had found another ownership group to take on the Sol, but that plan fell apart at the last minute.

Amber LaPointe's introduction to one of the country's greatest tourist attractions came from small square pictures on a white wheel. "It was like you could look into a world away," said the 28-year-old from Toledo, Ohio. "My only image of the Grand Canyon was from the View-Master." The iconic reels of tourist attractions, often packaged with a clunky plastic viewer and first sold to promote 3-D photography, are ending their 70-year run after years of diminishing sales.

The long-troubled Koo Koo Roo restaurant chain planned to close 10 of its last 13 locations Wednesday night, its parent company said. The stores are being closed as part of a bankruptcy reorganization announced last week by Magic Brands, the Austin, Texas, company that now owns Koo Koo Roo along with the Fuddruckers hamburger chain. Dwayne Chambers, senior vice president for marketing of Magic Brands, said the chain will continue to operate three of its stores, those in Santa Monica, West Hollywood, and the Larchmont neighborhood of L.A..

The original Pinkberry location in West Hollywood, also known as the yogurt shop that spawned 1,000 parking tickets, has closed permanently after five years. Pinkberry spokeswoman Mary Sadeghy said the lack of parking contributed to the decision Sunday to close the store at 868 Huntley Drive. She added that it would remain as an administrative building for Los Angeles-based Pinkberry, which now operates 83 frozen yogurt shops worldwide. "We just decided that we had enough other locations within that vicinity to service that market," Sadeghy said.

In Whittier, city officials are clearing the way for office buildings, retail shops and even homes to take root on the land where the vacant car lots stand. Classrooms offering lessons on green technology are being considered as a replacement for the deserted dealerships in Riverside County. And in coastal Ventura, a card club could soon take up residence among the Toyotas, Chevys and Jaguars being sold at the struggling Ventura Auto Center. For decades, cities have set aside vast expanses of land for auto malls and the dealerships have rewarded them with a steady flow of tax dollars, often providing 20% or more of an average town's sales receipts.

When the five-minute bell rang Friday evening in the courtyard of the Pasadena Playhouse, it sounded almost like a summons to a funeral. The subdued crowd, which had come to a performance of "Camelot," slowly entered the lobby, murmuring quietly in small groups. In interviews earlier in the evening, some of them expressed surprise and dismay that the theater company has decided to close its doors Feb. 7 as a result of financial hardship. On Friday, Stephen Eich, the playhouse's executive director, said the theater is out of cash and faces more than $500,000 in immediate bills, as well as payments on more than $1.5 million in bank loans and other debts.

The Schwarzenegger administration plans to close one of California's last large institutional care centers for people with profound developmental disabilities. The 82-year old Lanterman Developmental Center in Pomona, which houses 398 people with severe autism, cerebral palsy and other lifelong disabilities, could shut its doors within two years, said Terri Delgadillo, director of the state Department of Developmental Services. The population of the 302-acre campus has dwindled from a peak of nearly 3,000 in the late 1960s, when a change in state law discouraged housing the developmentally disabled in large institutions.

The Los Angeles Sol of Women's Professional Soccer announced Thursday that it is ceasing operations after one season. The Sol was one of the league's seven teams in the inaugural WPS season in 2009 but was underfunded and did not attract the crowds it expected to the Home Depot Center in Carson. One of the team's co-owners, AEG, has been trying for several months to sell its share of the team without success. The league hoped it had found another ownership group to take on the Sol, but that plan fell apart at the last minute.

This week's closure of Clark Foam will help fuel the offshore production of surfboards, a trend that has been accelerating in recent years, industry experts say. The Laguna Niguel factory's closure Monday roiled the surfing world, leading to price hikes and a run on surfboards amid fears of shortages.

For most retail stores, staying in business for only a few days would be considered a major flop. But a growing number of merchants are opening shops and abruptly shutting them down soon after -- on purpose. These quickie retail operations -- known as pop-ups -- are showing up throughout Southern California and around the nation, filling in the gaps at recession-battered shopping centers for a fraction of the regular rents. Once limited to seasonal shops and dusty liquidation centers, pop-up stores are now being opened by some of the nation's biggest retailers.

John Papadakis' restaurant is a lot like its owner -- big, brash and loud. No dim lights, no quiet romantic evening here. On a typical night, the music builds and Papadakis breaks into a Greek dance with a waitress, a pair of belly dancers wriggle through the aisles as the owner tosses dollar bills at them, an 88-year-old tuxedo-clad violinist who played with Frank Sinatra strolls through the restaurant. Plates break, a dish of saganaki is set on fire. A tap dancer in a baggy suit stomps in front of a self-portrait of Anthony Quinn as Zorba the Greek.

It isn't easy being the only restaurant for a 57-mile stretch of Angeles Crest Highway. The 20 inches of rain that are expected to fall on the San Gabriel Mountains this week, and the closure of California 2 above Mt. Wilson on Sunday, are just the latest in a series of calamities that have befallen Newcomb's Ranch in the last six months. Since August, the high-altitude eatery has been threatened by fire, mudslides, road access issues -- and even the Air Quality Management District, which fined the restaurant for using a diesel generator after Southern California Edison's electricity-distribution circuit for the area was fried in the Station fire.