The top 10 stories in Bay Area sports in 2011

1. The Death of Al Davis

When Davis died Oct. 8, at age 82, it left obituary writers scrambling for ways to sum up a man who not only was the face of the Raiders franchise but also its heart, its brains and its combative personality.

The Raiders themselves took their best crack on the day Davis died, describing their patriarch as "unique -- a maverick, a giant among giants, a true legend among legends, the brightest star among stars, a hero, a mentor, a friend."

Davis spent 48 years defining the franchise, as a coach, as general manager and, most famously, as an owner. He controlled everything, right down to the team colors. (Davis picked silver and black because he thought it would look intimidating.)

Stocked with misfits that only Davis and his fans would love, the Raiders went 372-219-11 and won three Super Bowls from 1963 through 2002.

By the time Davis died, his team hadn't finished with a winning record in its past eight seasons. But this year's Raiders are within reach of a playoff spot, buoyed by the audacious trade for quarterback Carson Palmer, a deal that coach Hue Jackson said his old boss would have loved.

As Raiders safety Michael Huff said when the Raiders beat Houston less than 24 hours after Davis' death: "He's never gone in our eyes. We'll never let him go. He's with us."

2. Harbaugh leads 49ers resurgence

A division title. An invigorating new coach. A new stadium on the way. This was the year in which a long-dormant dynasty came roaring back to life.

The 49ers are 12-3 behind a top-ranked defense that could have them playing deep into January.

Team president Jed York hired Jim Harbaugh as his coach and Trent Baalke as his general manager in January, and the 49ers have done nothing but press the right buttons since.

The list of transformative feats includes a sensational first-round draft pick (sack-machine Aldon Smith), a wave of bargain free agents (kicker David Akers, defensive back Carlos Rogers, safety Donte Whitner) and a surprisingly solid season from quarterback Alex Smith.

Summing up Harbaugh's impact, 49ers Hall of Famer Ronnie Lott told Sirius XM radio that "this might be the greatest coaching that I've ever seen in the history of the game of professional football."

3. Buster Posey busted at home plate

Scott Cousins didn't slide, but the Giants sure did. They were 21/2 games up in the National League West on May 25 when Cousins, the nicest villain you will ever meet, blasted into Buster Posey in a home-plate collision.

A broken bone in his lower left leg and three torn ligaments in his ankle cost the star catcher the remainder of the season.

The defending World Series champs never recovered, finishing last in the National League with a .303 on-base percentage.

"If I never hear from Cousins again, or he doesn't play another day in the big leagues, I think we'll all be happy," general manager Brian Sabean told KNBR in June. (Sabean has since reached out to apologize.)

Major League Baseball officials deemed it a clean play and have resisted the Giants' pleas for a rule change to protect catchers from being targeted in home-plate collisions.

4. Andrew Luck stays in school

Andrew Luck had an opportunity to take the money and run. Instead, he passed.

The quarterback delayed entry into the NFL so that he could keep Stanford humming as a national power. And Luck delivered as hoped, leading the Cardinal (11-1) to a No. 4 national ranking and a Fiesta Bowl showdown against No. 3 Oklahoma State (11-1)

For the picky, there was a whiff of disappointment: He threw two interceptions in a loss to Oregon that dashed Stanford's hope of a national title and sank Luck's chances of a Heisman Trophy (he was the runner-up again).

But he mostly flourished, securing Stanford career records for passing touchdowns (80) and passing efficiency (161.7), among legions of other records.

The NFL won't have to wait much longer. Luck is expected to be the No. 1 pick in the April draft.

5. Giants oust owner Bill Neukom

In the span of less than a year, Bill Neukom went from waving in a victory parade to waving goodbye.

The Giants' managing general partner and chief executive officer was ousted after an apparent series of disagreements with the 10-member executive committee.

This newspaper broke the news of the shake-up in September, less than 11 months after Neukom hoisted the first World Series trophy in the Giants' 53 years in San Francisco.

In the wake of the report, the Giants announced that Neukom would "retire from his position effective Dec. 31," with Larry Baer taking over CEO duties.

Baseball sources said Neukom's falling out with the executive committee stemmed from how to divvy up the additional millions of dollars that flowed into team coffers after the World Series championship.

6. The Warriors rebuild with splashy names

Though NBA action was disrupted by a labor dispute, Warriors ownership still managed to treat 2011 like one long fast break. New managing partners Joe Lacob and Peter Guber restructured the basketball operations staff, replaced an entire coaching staff and made several changes at the executive level on the business side.

Needing help, ownership also added two men with a combined 16,000 assists. They hired Jerry West, the Hall of Famer and respected front-office architect, in May and added former All-Star guard Mark Jackson as their coach weeks later.

"I fully expect, put it in bold letters, the Golden State Warriors to be a playoff team next year," Jackson said. "If I did not expect that, I would not have taken the job. ... We are looking to turn the Bay Area upside down."

7. The saga of Bryan Stow

In a horrific chapter to a storied sports rivalry, Giants fan Bryan Stow was punched in the head, kicked and slammed to the ground outside Dodger Stadium in March.

"It brings tears to my eyes," longtime Dodgers manager Tommy Lasorda said, reacting to the news. "This is not what baseball is all about."

Stow, a paramedic and father of two young children, spent months in a medically induced coma and only recently became able to hold a simple conversation. He is fed by a tube and needs round-the-clock care. Stow, 43, is expected to be permanently disabled.

The Stow family chronicles Bryan's recovery on their blog (support4bryanstow.com).

8. Cal sports make a comeback

Giving new meaning to the term elimination games, the Cal baseball team rallied back from an incredible deficit -- as in $10 million.

The Bears athletic department had announced in the fall of 2010 that it was cutting four sports and reclassifying men's ruby as a varsity club sport as a drastic move to bridge a budget shortfall.

But the endangered Bears rallied. Chancellor Robert J. Birgeneau announced in February that enough money had been raised to keep rugby, women's lacrosse, women's gymnastics and men's gymnastics.

The comeback was complete April 8, when Cal announced that baseball would be saved thanks to the former players and alumni who generated $9 million in financial commitments.

Instead of going extinct, the Bears rolled all the way to the College World Series. "A wild ride," coach David Esquer called it.

9. Sharks bounced short of the Cup

Even for fans accustomed to coming up short, this one was tough to take. A freakish bounce off a stanchion finished the Sharks' title hopes May 24, when Vancouver's Kevin Bieksa scored a strange and fortuitous goal during the second overtime of Game 5 of the Western Conference finals.

As Bieksa screamed in delight, almost everybody else was still looking for the puck.

"It came right to Bieksa. One more bounce he probably whiffs on it, we're still playing. Nothing we can do about it," Sharks coach Todd McLellan said after the game.

10. Stanford women win first soccer title

With one last spectacular goal, the seniors on the Stanford women's team secured the status as one of the greatest classes in college soccer history.

The Cardinal beat Duke 1-0 in the College Cup final Dec. 4, capping a 95-4-4 record for a senior class and easing the pain from losses in the previous two national title games.

Camille Levin delivered a cross to Teresa Noyola for a point-blank header in the 53rd minute.

"I've never seen a team work so hard for each other and want to win for each other," Levin said. "I've never played on a team like that in my life."

Also receiving consideration: "Moneyball" movie fares better than current A's; Kelly Slater wins 11th surf title at Ocean Beach; Barry Bonds sentenced to 30 days' house arrest, pending appeal; Chris Mullin and Tara VanDerveer inducted into Basketball Hall of Fame; Stanford women's basketball team makes fourth consecutive Final Four; Tiger Woods helps lure record crowds to Frys.com Open; America's Cup awarded to San Francisco for 2013.

Bay Area Mattress Store, Brass and Glass Announces Retirement Sell-Off

As a farewell event to its owner, Bay Area mattress store, Brass and Glass, located at 5377 College Ave. in Oakland, is offering 30 to 70 percent off all mattresses, iron and brass bedsteads, fireplace accessories, lighting (chandeliers, floor lamps, table lamps, etc), bedroom furniture and more. This limited discount commemorates 33 years of hard work in keeping the business strong and competitive.

"At Brass and Glass, you will find the largest selection of brass- and iron-bed designs, on hand, in Northern California. We also offer complete and unlimited custom design," Willa Jacobs of Brass and Glass said. "If you're searching for that special bed - a romantic or whimsical canopy bed, or a shabby-chic or distressed-iron bed - we can accommodate your unique needs. With our huge selection of brands and models, you can find your perfect bed at Brass and Glass."

Brass and Glass, the Bay Area's lighting store and mattress store opens seven days a week from 10 a.m. to 6:30 p.m. Monday through Friday, 10 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. on Saturday and 11 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. every Sunday. Clients who purchase an item can expect next-day delivery of goods.

For more information about the Retirement Sell-Off or Brass and Glass's products or services, call 510-768-7699, view Brass and Glass on the web at www.ironandbrassbeds-bayarea.com or visit the store at 5377 College Ave., Oakland, CA 94618.

About Brass and Glass

The Bay Area's Brass and Glass specializes in selling top quality Tempur-Pedic mattresses, bed covers and brass-bed frames. It is a one-stop shopping mattress and lighting store that offers large selections of home furniture with lighting products at competitive prices. An available and experienced staff guides customers and makes their shopping experience as easy as possible.

Bay Area Firms Carve Out Socially Responsible Niche Within Financial Industry

Starting a company at the tail end of a recession is a risky bet for any would-be entrepreneur. But for a single mother of three who is living in Section 8 housing and has been making ends meet by carefully rationing her (now exhausted) unemployment checks, it’s a high stakes gamble.

Jessica Nowlan, 32, prefers to call it “a leap of faith.” The single mom launched Hope Solutions last year—a company that equips small businesses with payments processing and e-commerce capabilities—despite having no savings, no business loan and just 6 months of experience in the merchant services industry. “This is not the ideal way to start a business,” said Nowlan.

Today, she has about 50 clients—mostly very small businesses—but said that she needs about 250 more to become financially healthy.

Hope Solutions grew out of Nowlan’s own short-lived experience as a sales agent for a national merchant processing company. Tasked with finding new clients and setting up their credit processing systems, Nowlan grew disenchanted with the nature of her job, which she said included misleading business owners into buying costly services they didn’t need—and, sometimes, couldn’t afford. Such practices, she later learned, were not particular to her own company, but endemic to the industry as a whole.

Merchant services is a part of the credit card industry that flies under the radar of most consumers, but it’s familiar to business owners. Before retailers can take credit cards or web developers can accept online billing, for example, they require a host of services and equipment: debit machines, e-commerce gateways, technical support and financial backing, among others. Big banks and credit processing firms like the one for which Nowlan worked deal with the set-up and administration of these payment systems—for a percentage fee that is lopped off the top of every transaction.

That’s where things tend to get muddy. Shop owners seeking merchant services deal with many of the same questionable business practices endured by consumers seeking credit cards: Banks may charge a host of dubious fees, agents may exploit customer naiveté to up-sell accounts and customers may buy into a sales pitch that may be much different than what’s detailed in the fine print of their contracts.

Over the last two years, as public trust has eroded and consumers have increasingly chosen to divest from corporate financial institutions, business owners have similarly looked for alternatives to big bank merchant services. Nowlan thought she could satisfy that demand by starting her own firm. “I thought, wouldn’t it be cool if I could create my own credit processing company that would really meet people’s needs,” she said.

In 2010, she launched Hope Solutions. She started small, taking on one client, then using that revenue to take on another, until she was able to rent a “smallish, kind of dumpy,” one-room office in the Laurel neighborhood of East Oakland, as well as hire a part time administrator.

Area Businesses Happy Packers Playoffs Are At Lambeau

With Sunday's victory over the Chicago Bears, The Green Bay Packers secured the NFC's number one seed and a home-field advantage for as long as they remain in the postseason.

For some local businesses, that means more money coming in.

"Everyone makes more money when it's a home game. A significant amount more," said Jerry Watson, Owner of the Stadium View Bar & Grille.

"It's almost like Super Bowl or bust for most of the fans. Everybody is saying we gotta make the Super Bowl, we gotta win it again," said Jersey Store Manager Mike Walters.

Local owners say the boost to business comes not only from Packers fans, but also from people traveling in to support a rival team.

"They spend a lot of money. It's like any vacation you take, if you go home with money in your pocket, you've had a lousy vacation," said Watson.

"Any time you can pack this many people in after Christmas and throughout January in a retail setting and to still sell your product, it's just a tremendous bonus for business," says Walters.

Charities Concentrate in Bay Area

If it feels like there are more charities found locally than anywhere else in the country, that's because the perception isn't far from reality. 

According to Ken Berger, chief executive officer and president of Charity Navigator, the San Francisco Bay Area has a higher concentration of charities than even the region surrounding New York City. 

Berger's New Jersey-based company is an online organization dedicated to tracking and evaluating the practices and performances of charities across the globe, and ranking their quality according to performance in categories such as financial health, accountability and transparency. 

"New York has most charities in the world," said Berger. "But San Francisco is equal to it, or may have more based on a city of the size."

According to Berger there is no hard data available to back up his claim, but he said that charities favoring San Francisco have had a widespread influence on the surrounding area. That impact is not only in terms of popularity. He said that the Bay Area is recognized within the charity industry as the home of an innovation that is altering the current landscape. 

Continuing the legacy of groundbreaking advancement spawned in Silicon Valley, companies in the Bay Area are on the cutting edge of developing a hybrid business model that blends traditional charity practices with an entrepreneurial philosophy, said Berger. 

"Creating for-profit businesses that have a social mission; that can do more good with new money because it is venture capital," said Berger, of the new business model. 

He said that the industry is changing thanks to the creative spirit of companies that favor methods familiar in the business realm, such as analyzing return on investment. 

"It is driving a change to the culture of the way that we help people," said Berger. "Changing the way charities operate, and creating whole new ways of doing it."

Hybrid charities follow how money invested into the business make a difference in the communities that are targeted for improvement. This new method has become increasingly popular over the course of the past few years in the midst of a stagnant economy, said Berger. 

He said that now, more than ever, people are looking to get more bang for their scarce dollars. 

"Business savvy and skills can make helping others even more attractive," said Berger. 

He said impact of gauging such techniques is being felt across the industry. 

"If you ask any mid to large sized charity today, if measuring results of performance matters more today than it did 10 years ago? To a person, they would say yes," said Berger.

But according to Berger, not all charities are embracing the change brought forth by hybrid companies.

"Whether they like it or not, they are being forced to change," Berger said. 

Despite the new wave of methods and influences, Berger was reluctant to predict that the charity industry would be permanently transformed. 

"The notion that you can do good, and do well financially at the same time is enticing," said Berger. "But it may be too early to tell how it will catch on for the long term."

San Francisco Bay Area Schools Raise $20,000 on Causera’s Social Fundraising Service

Causera today announces that community groups in the greater San Francisco Bay Area have collectively raised, on its platform, over $20,000 towards important programs that include student scholarships, K-8 music, field trips, technology improvements, second language programs, graduation ceremonies and smaller classroom sizes.

In today’s economically challenging environment, fundraising has become an even more important initiative for non-profit organizations. Causera, a San Francisco Bay Area startup, connects fundraisers with local and national businesses to offer incentive programs throughout the year that encourage fundraising participation and social sharing. Organizations who have run Causera-based fundraising programs include UC Davis Cal Aggie Alumni Association, Hillsborough School Foundation, Scotts Valley Educational Foundation and schools in the Palo Alto, San Mateo, San Francisco, San Jose, East Bay, Marin and Sacramento areas.

By partnering with local, regional and national businesses, schools and nonprofits are able to offer commerce-based fundraisers that provide unique value to their membership and enable businesses to build positive brand reputation and give back to the community. “Parents actually receive value and are enthusiastic about sharing our fundraisers with their friends,” says Nazy Attarzadeh, committee chairperson at Escondido Elementary in Palo Alto. “In these challenging economic times and with volunteer fatigue, we are very excited with the Causera fundraising platform.”

Working with major business like Kirkwood SkiResort in Lake Tahoe, to smaller local businesses like The Milk Pail Market and Halo Blow Dry Bar, Causera is changing fundraising by leveraging the support of businesses and the distribution muscle of organizations’ social graphs.

“Without Causera, we would not have been able to raise a much needed three thousand dollars in just a few days,” said Allison Niday, chairperson of the Scotts Valley Educational Foundation. "Causera's unique fundraising platform enables us to easily work with regional businesses to offer significant discounts to our community members, while directly benefiting our students.”

“We are very pleased that Causera has been able to make a significant difference this holiday season,” says Causera CEO, Sophia Chiang. “Businesses have always been one of the most active and important supporters of our schools and local non-profit groups. We are excited that Causera is making it easier for these local groups and businesses to find each other and work together to improve our communities.”

About Causera

Based in the San Francisco Bay Area, Causera is a social fundraising platform that enables local community groups to easily discover and partner with local, regional and national businesses. Launched in mid 2011, Causera has over 75 local groups (schools, alumni groups, civic groups, scouting, faith, foundations) that use its platform to run online commerce-based fundraisers throughout the year. Current organizations include UC Davis Cal Aggie Alumni Association, Hillsborough School Foundation, Scotts Valley Educational Foundation, Vacaville Public Education Foundation and schools in the Palo Alto, San Mateo, San Francisco, San Jose, East Bay, Marin and Sacramento areas.

Company Pays $520 Million for 18 South Bay and East Bay Business Parks

Making a half-billion-dollar bet the Bay Area economy is rebounding, a realty firm Tuesday bought 18 business parks in the East Bay and South Bay in what's believed to be the biggest property purchase in the Bay Area this year.

PS Business Parks said Tuesday it paid $520 million for a portfolio of research, industrial and warehouse complexes in nine Bay Area cities. The seller in the deal was RREEF America REIT II.

"This portfolio acquisition significantly enhances PS Business Park's presence in Northern California, providing a strong concentration of parks in markets that are poised for continued recovery," said Joseph Russell, CEO of Glendale-based PS Business.

The properties total 5.3 million square feet -- roughly the combined size of Sunvalley Shopping Center in Concord, Valley Fair mall in San Jose, Broadway Plaza in Walnut Creek and Stanford Shopping Center in Palo Alto.

"This is the largest transaction we're aware of in the Bay Area this year," said John Yandle, a senior vice president in the Santa Clara office of Cornish & Carey Commercial Newmark Knight Frank, a commercial realty firm. "There is nothing that would beat a half a billion dollars."

The business parks that PS bought are located in San Jose, Oakland, Hayward, Fremont, Milpitas, Santa Clara, Sunnyvale, Concord and San Leandro. They typically consist of buildings with multiple tenants, with an office in the front and manufacturing, research and warehouse space in the rear of the buildings.

The properties have a combined occupancy level of 82 percent. The buyer believes it can profit from leasing the properties because of their location in key sections of the Bay Area. It expects rents to rise in the coming years.

"The economic strength and stability" of these markets, Russell said, "will provide opportunities to create value from this unique opportunity."

Local realty brokers predicted that PS won't have to combat a big surge in newly constructed projects that would compete against the newly acquired portfolio.

"It's a smart purchase," Yandle said. "There is not that much of this type of space left in the area."

So far this year, the Bay Area has added 47,500 jobs. That's four times as many as the 10,700 new jobs the region created during the first 11 months of 2010.

"We are having healthy growth in social networking, Internet companies, software companies, and that is contributing to job growth in the Bay Area," said Ed Hofer, a senior vice president with Colliers International, a realty firm.

And the South Bay is leading that growth. During the 12 months that ended in October, the South Bay job market expanded by 3.2 percent -- the fastest rate of growth among major urban centers in the United States.

"The Bay Area is not going away," Hofer said. "It is going to have a strong economy into the future."

South Bay Leads Bay Area Job Market

Employers added jobs at a brisk pace in the South Bay in November and at a moderate rate in the East Bay, fresh evidence that the Bay Area employment market is on the mend, analysts said Friday.

"The economy has clearly turned the corner, and the South Bay is on the leading edge of that recovery," said Jordan Levine, director of economic research with Beacon Economics. "Now the improvement is picking up steam and spreading to other areas."

By far the strongest job growth in the Bay Area was posted by the South Bay, which powered to a gain of 2,800 jobs for the month, the state's Employment Development Department said. The East Bay added 400 jobs.

The Bay Area will Outpace California in Job Growth Next Year

With the November job gains, the South Bay has added jobs for 15 consecutive months. This surge represents the longest such stretch of employment expansion for that region since a 16-month string that ended in September 2006, before the recession.

The weakest regions in the Bay Area in November were the San Francisco-San Mateo-Marin area, which lost 2,300 jobs; and Sonoma County, which shed 2,100 jobs.

The steep job losses in the San Francisco-San Mateo area may be primarily due to a surge in the dollar triggered by the solvency crisis in Europe, Levine said. Investors have snapped up dollars lately in a flight to safety, causing the dollar to appreciate against other currencies such as the euro and the yen and other Asian currencies. That put a damper on international tourism. San Francisco-area hotel and restaurant employers shed 1,400 jobs in November.

The San Francisco-San Mateo-Marin region also shed 1,300 construction jobs, which could be due to contractors deciding to delay building permits for new projects.

The sharp declines in those areas countered the gains in the South Bay and East Bay, leaving the Bay Area with an overall loss of 700 jobs for November.

Still, the Bay Area this year has added four times the number of jobs it added last year. Over the first 11 months of 2011, the Bay Area added 47,500 jobs, compared with 10,700 new jobs over the same period last year.

"The East Bay and the San Francisco region are in an up-and-down pattern," said Jeffrey Michael, director of the Stockton-based Business Forecasting Center at the University of the Pacific. "The South Bay is the only area that is posting consistent job growth month after month."

The South Bay improvement meshes with a forecast commissioned by NOVA, a Sunnyvale-based economic development agency. The forecast said tech companies in the Bay Area are planning to increase employment in the coming year.

"This is not just an anecdote; it is not an exception," said Kris Stadelman, NOVA's executive director. "This is a trend. We are seeing a lot of people who are in our inventory of job seekers who are going back to work."

California overall posted November numbers that pointed to an improving labor market. Employers added 6,600 jobs statewide, according to the Employment Development Department's survey of employers.

The state's jobless rate improved to 11.3 percent, down from 11.7 percent in October, the department said. The jobless rate is culled from a separate survey of households.

Unemployment rates in the Bay Area also improved, according to an analysis of the department's figures.

The East Bay posted a November jobless rate of 9.9 percent, down from 10.1 percent the previous month. That was the first time since April 2009 that East Bay unemployment was below 10 percent.

"The East Bay is lagging behind other areas in turning the corner," Levine said. "But that region has found the bottom. Once the East Bay gets going, we expect it will be one of the strongest growth regions of California."

The South Bay had a 9.6 percent unemployment rate, down from 9.8 percent in October, while the San Francisco-San Mateo-Marin region had a jobless rate of 7.9 percent, down from 8.1 percent.

The upswing in the regional job market is being driven by the private sector.

In the South Bay, private companies added 3,200 jobs, while government agencies shed 400 positions. In the East Bay, private-sector employers added 900 jobs and government organizations jettisoned 500.

For the entire Bay Area in November, private employers added 800 jobs, while the government sector lost 1,500.

"November's good news is tempered by the realization that there are still 1 million jobs to recover in California from before the recession," said Stephen Levy, director of the Palo Alto-based Center for Continuing Study of the California Economy. "The process of recovery is under way but still much slower than hoped for or needed."

Hearst Media Services/Bay Area's Latest Service Offers Bay Area Businesses the Ability to Seamlessly turn their Current Websites into Highly Readable Mobile Sites

Hearst Media Services/Bay Area's latest service offers Bay Area businesses the ability to seamlessly turn their current websites into highly readable mobile sites so that customers can quickly and easily find information on their products and services.

According to Google, one in seven queries is from a mobile device with some business segments getting as much as 30% of their queries from these devices. Google also reported that 77% of all smart phone owners conduct online searches, compared to the 68% who use apps. This trend, along with the forecast that mobile devices will surpass PCs for web access in 2013, means that businesses must have mobile-ready websites that are user-friendly and readable to connect to this audience.

The Mobile Optimization service allows businesses to present their websites in a user-friendly, readable format for mobile devices. It connects them with this hard-to-reach mobile audience where they search -- online and on-the-go.

Hearst Media's Special Services for Bay Area Businesses

"It's more important than ever that businesses showcase their products and services on mobile devices to reach an ever-growing, search audience," said Mark Adkins, president of Hearst Media Services/Bay Area and the San Francisco Chronicle/SFGate.com. "Our Mobile Optimization service gives businesses the help they need to have user-friendly, highly readable mobile displays that reach this active audience."

Mobile Optimization is a part of Hearst Media Services/Bay Area's GateList program, a digital marketing service for small and medium-sized businesses. It is designed to save business owners valuable time and resources while delivering a high return on investment.

Find out more about mobile optimization for your website by visiting us online at SFGate.com/adsolutions or by calling 877-775-1868 to speak with one of our consultants about the program.

About Hearst Media Services/Bay Area 

In addition to the vast resources of the San Francisco Chronicle and SFGate.com, Hearst Media Services/Bay Area provides everything from social media campaigns to search engine marketing to direct mail and e-mail advertising. Whether targeting customers based on behavior, demographics and geography or using the broad reach of Hearst Media Services products to reach 1.7 million Bay Area adults each week, advertisers can find all their marketing solutions in one, easy-to-implement place.

How to Hide Hair Dandruff

It is a fact that men are concerned about their hair. They fuss over the hair when it falls, or stat turning gray, and, according to the study undertaken by Head and Shoulders, almost twenty-nine percent of men say that they fret about dandruff. Maybe you are one of them. If so, then you possibly know that dandruff a frequent problem for the scalp distinguished by either dry skin flaking or oil, which have the annoying habit of falling down on to your clothes. For guys who desire must to look their finest, this unfortunate health problem can be distressing.

For further reading, go to lens: Which color dress shirts are best to hide hair dandruff?

Area Students to Compete at JA Event

More than 80 area high school students, assisted by more than 20 community volunteers, will participate in the Junior Achievement Titan Business Challenge at Davenport University's Saginaw campus from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m. on Friday.

"Davenport University is proud to present this fun and educational event for Saginaw Bay Area students," said Denise Sherman, campus director of Davenport's Saginaw campus. "The missions of Junior Achievement and Davenport are very similar in that we both focus on preparing individuals to excel in the knowledge-driven environment of the 21st century."

The JA Titan Business Challenge is a business strategy tournament that pairs area youths with representatives from local businesses. Using the "Titan Program," an online business simulation, JA runs each team through a gauntlet of real-world situations faced by businesses today. The competition is designed to unleash creativity, challenge leadership capabilities and demonstrate the competitive nature of the free enterprise system.

Shoppers Making Christmas Purchases in Glace Bay

An informal survey of area businesses showed that most are pleased with the level at which people have taken their shopping lists to their stores.

“We are doing very well compared to last year. The sales are up for sure,” said Nancy Whyte of Harbax Home Hardware, who believes variety has been the key to success.

“I think it’s because we have a little bit of everything — toys, Paderno, building supplies — that’s bringing people around. People are working on their homes and we are now a one-stop shop.”

Variety was also the reason given for success at Arlie’s Gifts.

“We had a good November,” said store employee Lynne MacIsaac. “It might have been a little bit better than last year. December is not bad.”

At Bay Bye Sports, though, they are waiting for the last minute rush to happen.

“Down in this area, it’s a little bit quiet right now, but in the sports business (customers) wait until the last minute,” said Sean MacNeil. “It was pretty similar last year and everyone waited until the last, so hopefully we’ll see a repeat.”

Meanwhile, downtown Glace Bay’s shoe business is doing well.

“There’s lots of traffic around this week,” said Cecil Saccary of the Glace Bay Shoe Store. “I think everybody is finally starting to get into the spirit. We need a snowstorm now to really wake them up.”

Saccary, who is also chair of the Glace Bay and Area Business Association, said other merchants appear satisfied with the shopping season to date.

He credited unique stores and attention to detail from merchants that has customer satisfaction on the rise.

“We always get good feedback on the service here. It’s an initiative to continue to do that. People appreciate that. In the smaller stores it seems there is a lot more people there to serve you and help you make decisions and to help you get the right size.”

Layoffs that will Total 165 People Began Monday at The Tampa Tribune

Layoffs that will total 165 people began Monday at The Tampa Tribune and its community and weekly publications — a reduction of 16 percent in the total workforce.

The cuts also affect TBO.com but not News Channel 8, the Tribune's TV partner at the News Center.

Most of the employees affected were notified Monday. Among the best-known staffers let go was television critic Walt Belcher, who compiled a column that appeared on the Tribune's page 2. He wrote on his personal Facebook page, "My 35 years at the Tribune was a great ride."

John Schauss, vice president of market operations at Tribune owner Media General Inc., said, "Going forward, we will still have more than 300 content generators across multiple media platforms in the Tampa market.

"Every one of our platforms has content producers who benefit Tampa Tribune readers. We will maintain and over time enhance the quality of our newspaper."

The changes are designed to improve the Tribune's finances and focus more on reaching news readers with more innovative digital and mobile methods, Schauss said. The Tribune is not going away as a print news product, he said, but the newspaper's future will be more defined by digital projects than in the past.

The layoffs follow a leadership change last month at Media General's Florida operations, including the departure of several top executives and more direct links to company headquarters in Richmond, Va.

Bucs in London a Win-Lose Situation for Tampa Area

Laid-off workers will receive severance, though details were not released. After the job cuts, about 675 people will continue to work at the company's print and online operations in Tampa.

Though some photojournalists who were let go Monday worked with both the Tribune and News Channel 8, there were no layoffs in TV operations, and job cuts Monday did not affect on-air reporters and anchors.

That's primarily because News Channel 8 is in a more sound financial position, Schauss said. 2012 will bring several major events, such as the Republican National Convention and the Olympics, that are likely to produce revenue for NBC and affiliates including News Channel 8.

About 80 percent of the planned job cuts occurred Monday. The rest were delayed until the first quarter of 2012 because of contract or other business considerations.

Media General imposed employee furloughs this year and previously to save money, but no furloughs are planned for 2012.

Once an interim phase is complete, Schauss said, the broader organization "will fight back" against competition including the St. Petersburg Times, which is changing its name to the Tampa Bay Times to reflect hopes of expanding across the Bay area.

That fight will include more of the remaining reporters deployed more directly in the communities they cover, whether in bureaus or on their own as mobile journalists.

More reporting and production focus will shift to the core area of Tampa, and on developing more digital news products for mobile and social media.

Overall, the Tribune's finances have been reworked, Schauss said, to match the advertising and sales environment of the Bay area and using financial models that don't envision any economic recovery.

That way, he said, any recovery that does happen would only benefit the organization.

New Law May Help Local Crab Fishermen

The price strike by Bay Area crab fishermen against seafood distributors broke this season along a historic fracture: the competing interests of local fishermen and larger boats from Northern California, Oregon and Washington that swoop to our coast and scoop up Dungeness crab every year.

While most fishermen from Bodega Bay, San Francisco and Half Moon Bay were prepared to hold out for their asking price of $2.50 a pound, locals say, a small group of fishermen, many of them from out of state, decided $2.25 was good enough. They headed out Nov. 28 to soak their traps, abruptly ending a two-week standoff and touching off a mad dash to sea.

It was yet another frustrating episode for crab fishermen from Mendocino to Monterey, who face unrelenting pressure from northern competitors who descend on the area when the local season opens Nov. 15 and then land more crab during the northern Pacific Coast's season, which typically begins Dec. 1.

But help for local fishermen may be on the way in the form of legislation by state Sen. Noreen Evans, D-Santa Rosa, that establishes crab-pot limits in California. Proponents say the bill, by restraining the intensity of fishing, will not only ease competition from large boats, but also diminish the frenzy of the season's opening weeks. Fishermen catch most of the crab for the entire season during those early days. The season ends in June. Slowing the rate at which fishermen haul in their catch would allow crab lovers to enjoy fresh local crab longer, serving it at Super Bowl parties or cracking claws on Valentine's Day.

But the effects of the crab-pot limit may be modest, fishermen and experts say, and the bill could be just a first step toward safeguarding the local fishery.

"It's not a silver bullet, but it's a starting point," said Steve Hackett, chairman of the business school at Humboldt State, who has studied the Dungeness crab industry extensively.

SB 369, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed into law in September, establishes a tiered limit on the number of pots each fisherman can use, ranging from 175 to 500. The number of pots fishermen get will depend on how many pounds of crab they pulled in from 2003 to 2008. The law will take effect during the 2012-13 or 2013-14 season, depending on how long it takes to implement.

Proponents say the new rules will slow fishermen down by restricting how many crab they can catch at one time, which means fewer of the crustaceans will be caught in the first month or two of the season. The limits will have their biggest effect on the largest northern boats, some of which carry as many as 1,000-1,500 pots. If the big boats make off with less crab, there will be more available for smaller operators.

Fishermen do not anticipate a reduction in the total amount of crab that's caught. Washington and Oregon implemented pot limits in 2005 and 2006, respectively, and officials there say the rules haven't caused a drop in the amount of crab. Fishermen have changed how they operate, officials say, often becoming more efficient, catching the same amount of crab while spending less money replacing lost traps.

Changing the dynamics of the Dungeness crab market could benefit California consumers. Nowadays more crab is caught early in the season than seafood processors can sell whole or live. Processors have adjusted by pursuing lucrative markets for frozen or canned crab, much of which is consumed outside California by patrons of cruise-ship and casino buffets. A 2004 study cowritten by Steve Hackett estimated that just half of California's Dungeness crab was sold live or fresh from 1999-2001. Pot limits could result in fresh local crab being available past January, when the local market typically peters out.

"Instead of having it just for Thanksgiving, Christmas and New Year's, you might have it for Valentine's Day and even Mother's Day," said Zeke Grader, executive director of the Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen's Associations, a trade association for commercial fishermen.

But it's unclear how significant this shift will be. Oregon fishermen still catch about 80 percent of their crab in the first two months of the season, according to the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife. Daniel Ayres, a senior biologist for the Washington Department of Fish and Wildlife, said the race for crab has slowed down a bit, but not much.

Hackett said SB 369 is not likely to cause any dramatic changes to California's second-largest fishery. Dungeness crab trails only squid in terms of annual poundage. Fishermen statewide caught 27.5 million pounds of Dungeness crab during the 2010-11 season, the most since records started being kept in 1915, and sold it for $56.7 million.

"The derby aspect is going to be present even when you have trap limits, because the abundance of Dungeness crab is highest at the start of the season, so the economic value of a day at sea is higher than a day later in the season," Hackett said. "There's still going to be a race for crab, there's still going to be north-south issues, but it's a starting point, and I think it will have moderately beneficial effects."

The crab-pot limit was devised by a task force composed primarily of California commercial crab fishermen. If the task force wants to go further to protect operators of small boats and stretch out the season, there are a number of measures it could consider. Hackett's 2004 study found there was support among California fishermen for restricting fishing at night. Such a regulation would favor smaller boats, since bigger boats have more capacity to fish 24 hours a day.

The task force could also recommend pushing back the opening of the central California season to Dec. 1, which would inhibit northern boats from double-dipping. But Grader said fishermen are resistant to the idea of losing the Thanksgiving market.

Alameda Continues Push for America's Cup Business

As the world's most skilled sailors set their sights on winning the America's Cup on San Francisco Bay next year, city of Alameda officials are hoping to catch the financial windfall generated in their wake.

The race is projected to pump $1 billion into the Bay Area economy by September 2013, when the Louis Vuitton Cup takes place and the race culminates with the Oracle Racing Team defending its trophy in the finals.

The San Francisco waterfront, where officials are planning to build an 88,000-square-foot cruise ship terminal and walking plaza for spectators at Pier 27, will attract most of the spinoff business, with local merchants expected to offer everything from specials on accommodation to souvenir T-shirts.

But as an island that boasts eight marinas and a host of shoreline facilities that offer boat repairs and other maritime services, Alameda could attract racing teams, as well as fans just looking for a good vantage point, advocates say.

"My guess is that (San Francisco) will be looking around for support and that they will start to realize Alameda is perfectly poised -- right across the bay," said Chris Seiwald, the chair of the local America's Cup Ad Hoc Committee.

The volunteer group is currently marketing Alameda to race organizers and local business leaders, as well as pitching the Island to racing syndicates as a possible base for their operations. And the group is working with representatives from Oakland, Berkeley and Emeryville -- cities also hoping for a financial boost from the race -- while Alameda officials say they have met with Catellus Corp. about potential support sites. The developer is currently behind the Alameda Landing mixed-use project along the Oakland-Alameda Estuary.

"We have a lot of people working in a lot of different directions," Seiwald said. "We are trying to herd the cats."

The Alameda City Council was briefed on the committee's work on Tuesday, when Seiwald said much of the effort is now aimed at building connections between locals and folks from the racing world. The council took no action, however.

Mayor Marie Gilmore said she was confident that the committee's work "will yield positive results for Alameda."

Last month's races in San Diego, the third stop in the inaugural America's Cup World Series, underscored the potential excitement that the finals will generate in the Bay Area, Councilman Doug deHann said.

"This is going to lead up to a real finale when it takes place," deHaan said.

Meanwhile, San Francisco officials announced Tuesday that Teatro ZinZanni will move from Pier 27 to a parking lot across the street and the nearby Bauer's Intelligent Transportation was moving to Pier 50 to help prepare the Embarcadero for the race. Some 68 other businesses in the area also are expected to eventually move.

Kirkland's Enters Bay Area Market with Antioch Store Opening

Tennessee home décor chain Kirkland's has entered the Northern California market, bringing with it more than 40 new jobs to the Antioch area just in time for the holidays.

Kirkland's, which hosted its grand opening at its Slatten Ranch location last weekend, offers a full line of home accent items, and this time of year, a wide variety of holiday décor items.

"Antioch was just one of several markets on the radar that we've been watching for the last several years," said Sarah Weaver, Kirkland's leasing manager. "This entire area fits our criteria and we've just been waiting for a site to open up."

The Slatten Ranch site, at more than 12,000 square feet, is larger than the typical store that Kirkland's opens, according to Weaver, but it was anxious to get its Northern California stores open. Currently the chain has 306 stores in 30 states with already 11 stores in Southern California, with the closest being Fresno.

"We had a lot of requests for a store in this area," Weaver said.

The company plans to open two other Northern California sites next month. One of the sites is in Vacaville and the other is located in Folsom.

Kirkland's offers products for those looking to redecorate their home or add accents to their décor. Weaver said they do not carry big furniture items. Customers are more likely to find accent chairs for a dining room set rather than dining room tables-and-chair sets.

For the holidays, Kirkland's is offering holiday floral designs and a large selection of gift ideas and decorations.

In addition to the holiday items, there is also a wide selection of lamps, rugs, jars, vases and candleholders, framed art and picture frames. Furniture includes accent tables, cabinets, chests, side and accent chairs and vanity sinks.

Weaver said that Kirkland's was first opened in Tennessee by Carl Kirkland in 1968, hence the name. While they share the same name, Kirkland's is not related in an way to Costco, which sells Kirkland Signature products.

Bay Area Firms Aid Obama's Energy Retrofit Plan

When President Obama announced his $4 billion initiative to finance energy efficiency programs at the White House on Friday, a number of Bay Area allies were, literally, right behind him.

There were senior executives from San Francisco's Metrus Energy, which committed $75 million of private capital to the initiative, and from Sunnyvale's Serious Energy and Santa Rosa's Ygrene Energy Fund, both contributing $100 million.

They're among the 60 private companies and other entities "stepping up," in Obama's words, in an effort to retrofit public and commercial buildings nationwide, pitching in approximately half of the $4 billion needed. The rest of the funding for the "Better Buildings Challenge" will come from the U.S. Department of Energy.

Other Bay Area partners include San Francisco's Shorenstein Properties, which has been instituting a number of energy-saving programs across its real estate portfolio, and Oakland's Renewable Funding, which manages San Francisco's $100 million program to retrofit older commercial buildings.

"It's an effort to bring together the private sector to jump-start the whole energy efficiency sector," said the firm's president, Francisco DeVries, who was also present at the White House launch.

Obama said the aim of the initiative is to increase energy efficiency in commercial and public buildings by 20 percent by 2020 - the retrofits are projected to save U.S. businesses $40 billion in energy costs while creating 50,000 jobs.

With no new legislation needed, and no new taxpayer money, "it's the nearest thing we've got to a free lunch in a tough economy," remarked former President Bill Clinton, who helped round up corporate participants.

Thomas Donohue, president of the U.S. Chamber of Commerce, who has had his differences with the White House, agreed. "This is a surefire way to create jobs and make our nation's buildings more energy efficient," he said in a statement.

In September, Ygrene Energy Fund said it was investing $650 million to finance commercial building retrofits nationwide, beginning with Sacramento and Miami-Dade County.

Metrus Energy, which provides 100 percent financing for private companies' energy efficiency projects, and gets paid back from the savings realized, counts the German company Siemens and the British company BAE Systems among its clients.

Metrus CEO Bob Hinkle, who was at the White House on Friday, says he is greatly encouraged by the initiative.

"Energy efficiency is finally getting the prominence and attention that it deserves," he said. "In terms of importance, it's now on a par with energy supply."

At least, hopefully, getting there.

Sign of the times: From headquarters of major metropolitan newspaper to an international call center.

Such is the destiny of the Oakland Tribune Tower, the 21-story, 85,000-square-foot historic building, which fell into receivership and has just been sold for the low-low price of $8 million to a company called CallSocket.

The sale will result in the creation of 2,300 jobs in Oakland over the next three years, with CallSocket taking up half of the building and hiring 300 people for its operations there, and other tenants moving in, according to Bluett & Associates, the Sacramento real estate firm that handled the transaction.