After a failed, last-minute attempt to sell itself to investors who would have kept bankrupt Gottschalks Inc. open, a group of liquidators has emerged as the winning bidder and will shut down the 105-year-old department store chain.

Liquidation may begin as soon as Thursday, and is expected to conclude on or before July 15, according to a news release issued Tuesday.

— Courtenay Edelhart

Click on the blue boxes to read original documents related to the court case for yourself!

Chuck E. Cheese’s has applied for a permit to add about 3,000 square feet to its 12,023-square-foot store at 3760 Ming Ave.

Chuck E. Cheese’s is owned by CEC Entertainment, Inc., which is based in Irving, Texas. CEC spokeswoman Brenda Holloway confirmed the expansion plans, but said there is no firm timeline for construction.

If the project is approved, the restaurant will hire additional employees, Holloway said, but she didn’t know how many.

— Courtenay Edelhart

Since our original post Monday, we now have more details about the plans. Read the full story here.

Go & Do

What: Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce Business After Hours Trade Show Mixer, sponsored by Bright House Networks Business Solutions. It features 50 exhibitors, hors d’oeuvres, prize giveaways and networking.

Where: DoubleTree Hotel, 3100 Camino del Rio Court

When: 5:30 to 8 p.m. Thursday

More: General admission is $5, or a free admission coupon is available at bakersfieldchamber.org. Reservations are not required. Call 327-4421.

Go & Do

What: Central Valley Business Summit powered by the Executives’ Association of Kern County. It includes two speakers and a vendor fair. The theme is “Green for Green.”

Where: Marriott Hotel, 801 Truxtun Ave.

When: 7 to 10 a.m. Wednesday, March 25

Speakers: Carol Tombari, manager, National Renewable Energy Laboratory, talking about renewable energy, energy efficiency and environmental impacts.
Keynote speaker is Ed Begley Jr., actor and sustainable living advocate.

More: Call 634-0641, go to www.eakc.com or buy $75 tickets at the door.

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What deals are out there? See our home sales map.

We regularly publish single-family home sale transactions that occurred between individuals, as well as foreclosures.

The homes are color-coded by price, with information from First American Real Estate Solutions compiled by reporter Jenny Shearer.  Highlights for Jan. 26 to 31:

87 homes are newly listed on the map.

Priciest? One sold for $625,000 in the 93306 ZIP code. It was 3,973 square feet.

Cheapest? One sold for $37,500 in the 93308 ZIP code. It was 1,544 square feet.

Any comments on the prices?

— Christine Peterson

Curl Up and Dye!, a salon and boutique that opened downtown on Feb. 24, will hold a grand opening celebration from 4 to 7 p.m. Saturday at the salon, 1416 18th St.

All merchandise is 15 percent off, and a portion of proceeds benefits the Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals. Valentien Restaurant and Wine Bar will serve complementary food and drinks.

Owned by Claudette and Janae Hulsey, Curl Up and Dye! signed a two-year lease and has five workers, including three independent stylists renting booth space.

The 900-square-foot business sells salon products, “edgy, funky” baby products, jewelry and accessories.

— Courtenay Edelhart

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Kayzie’s Collection, a women and children’s boutique that until recently sold toys, clothes and baby products at The Marketplace, has reinvented itself as an online retailer of dolls and figurines.

Kay Wilson, co-owner of the store with daughter-in-law Carol Wines, will now sell exclusively at Kayzies.com.

The e-retailer features Lee Middleton Newborn Nursery Adoption Babies, which “nursing staff” deliver to the buyer’s home, party or other special event via a custom PT Cruiser.

The Web site also will sell Wee Forest Folk collectible figurines.

The 1,400-square-foot store at The Marketplace closed in February because the family was wary of renewing a long-term lease in a soft economy.

— Courtenay Edelhart
 

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I decided this weekend it was time to try Chick-fil-A.

Reporter Courtenay Edelhart had written about the chicken place before it opened, then saw people camped out for 24 hours before the official opening.

So what's the draw?

I went around 1 p.m. Saturday and the place was PACKED. The line was out the door. The drive-through snaked around the parking lot. I parked by Mexicali.

I contemplated leaving. Did I really need to eat a chicken sandwich? But I was on a "research mission" — I wanted to see why people were so attracted to this place.

Here's what struck me: The chicken on the regular chicken sandwich is breaded, and then it's on a bun. So it's a double-dose of breading. A friend of mine said that's likely part of what makes it good. It had to be the juciest chicken sandwich I've tried.

The customer service was great, with staff members making rounds asking customers if they'd like refills on their drinks. I asked the person who offered me a refill if they'd been this busy all along. She said it had slowed down "a little." She didn't sound convinced, though!

— Christine Peterson

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There are lots of deals as home prices fall. See our sales map.

We regularly publish single-family home sale transactions that occurred between individuals, as well as foreclosures.

The homes are color-coded by price, with information from First American Real Estate Solutions compiled by reporter Jenny Shearer.

Highlights for Jan. 19 to 25:

90 homes are newly listed on the map.

Priciest? One sold for $512,500 in the 93311 ZIP code. It was 2,774 square feet.

Cheapest? One sold for $55,500 in the 93308 ZIP code. It was 765 square feet.

Any comments on the prices? Anyone out there buying?

— Christine Peterson

The daily deluge of bad economic news is enough to make you wince just opening the paper. We could all use a little good news, so why not share yours?

Send us 100 words or less about your job and why you love it, along with a picture of you at work. Here’s how:

Online at Bakersfield.com/youreport

E-mail to jbaldwin@bakersfield.com

Text by cell phone to mobile@bakersfield.com

Drop off at 1707 Eye St., Bakersfield

Mail to Jennifer Baldwin, The Bakersfield Californian, P.O. Bin 440, Bakersfield, CA 93302-0440

Questions? Call 395-7568.

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Find the Right One® with hiring solutions from Hot Jobs and The Bakersfield Californian. In this hour-long presentation, let our Recruitment Specialists show you how to:

Drive more targeted candidates to your jobs

Position your company and brand in front of the Bakersfield’s largest audience of active and passive job seekers

Boost the performance of your job listings with our innovative recruitment media products

Tuesday, March 17th
1:30 - 2:30 pm
The Bakersfield Californian
1707 Eye St.

Register by contacting Mary Russo at 395-7318 or mrusso@bakersfield.com.

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Many organizations have supported CASA, the Court Appointed Special Advocates of Kern County. Here are some notable donations:

The Rotary Club of East Bakersfield provided $1,500 in backpacks and school supplies so CASA children were ready for the school year.

Aera Energy LLC printed 40 copies of the CASA volunteer training manual.

Steve Barter of Tejon Ranch (designed), Castle Print and Publications (printed), Junior League of Bakersfield (addressed), and students from West and South high schools and The Exchange Club of Bakersfield (stuffed and sealed) the CASA Holiday Appeal.

Klassen Corp. collected holiday toys and items for CASA teenagers.

Barnes and Noble collected books from customers for each of our CASA children.

Casa received a $10,000 grant from the Bank of American Charitable Foundation.

Bright House Networks produced and ran our recruitment spot. 

Kaiser Permanente awarded a $15,000 community service grant to continue our “Tweens” Project. 

Thanks goes to the County of Kern for its $135,000 support of  “stand up for children.”

Target awarded CASA a $1,000 grant for the “Let’s Read Program” and a $3,000 case management grant.

San Joaquin Community Hospital printed 6,000 CASA fliers.

Bakersfield Blades Figure Skating Club hosted a benefit ice skating party for foster children and fundraiser for CASA at the Bakersfield Ice Sports Center on Dec. 14.  

Wells Fargo awarded a $2,500 technology grant.

Univision produced and ran our Spanish recruitment spot.  This year’s Volkslauf  awarded $17,500.

— “Speak Up!” the CASA newsletter
 

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CASA of Kern County was recently awarded a $10,000 grant from Jewelers for Children to increase the number of volunteers who represent abused and neglected children in court.

The award is part of a $1 million grant that JFC made to the National CASA Association.
There are more than 2,800 children in the foster care system in Kern County. Last year, volunteers helped 95 percent of our closed cases find the gift of safe, permanent homes. 

CASA of Kern County started in 1994. We have trained more than 602 advocates and have served 1,668 dependent foster children in Kern County. Our next volunteer training is scheduled to begin in mid-May.

Contact CASA of Kern County at 631-2272 or visit kerncasa.org.

— CASA of Kern County press release
 

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Local oil producers’ complaints that their regulators should be exempt from state worker furloughs have been duly added to the pile.

The industry’s primary regulatory body — the state Division of Oil, Gas & Geothermal Resources — is funded through a tax on oil produced in California. Even so, the division’s workers remain state employees subject to the governor’s budget knife, a spokeswoman for the state Department of Personnel Administration said Tuesday.

Lynelle Jolley added that she knows of “thousands” of attempts to secure exemptions to the 16-hours-a-month furloughs, all of them based on various departments’ funding sources. So far, she said, none has succeeded.

— John Cox

The Bra Shoppe’s expansion gamble seems to be paying off.

The southwest Bakersfield store at 600 Coffee Road sells custom lingerie to women who want underclothes tailored to their unique body shape and size, including many breast cancer survivors. In November, the shop moved from a 960-square-foot store to a 2,100-square-foot space in the same plaza.

In September, the company opened a second location in Wilmington, N.C., run by the daughter of Bakersfield store owner Susan Pudiwitr. Expanding in a recession wasn’t a sign of optimism about the economy.

“We had it all in the works before everything hit the fan,” Pudiwitr said. “But we’re doing fine.”
 

— Courtenay Edelhart

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While skimming through bankruptcy filings, reporter Gretchen Wenner discovered a nice handwritten note, sent from — well, Nice, Calif.

“March 4, 2009
The Honorable Kevin J. Carey
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge

Dear Sir: Regarding the bankruptcy of Gottschalks, I hope you will consider the many small stockholders of Gottschalks. This is a small town type of business. In many instances, the only store of its kind nearby. Gottschalks has a very loyal following. Many of these small stockholders bought the stock to help the store and to be a part of it. It would be sad to lose both their money and their store.

Sincerely,
Clinton J. Norman Jr.”

Read more of our stories about Gottschalks.
 

Layoffs are gathering momentum as the economy continues to slow.

But hold on a second, trigger-happy managers: The Greater Bakersfield Chamber of Commerce sponsored a seminar Tuesday called, “Cost of Vacancy: Will saving a salary really save your company money?”

Reporter Courtenay Edelhart listened in for a column for the April issue of Kern Business.

For now, the highlights: Guest speaker Anne Michael, national sales trainer for Act 1 Personnel Services, gave about 25 business leaders specific math formulas they could use to calculate the real cost of leaving positions vacant, including blows to productivity, sales, morale and customer service.

“A company is only as good as its best employee, or sometimes, its weakest,” Michael said.

It’s not that cuts are inherently a bad idea, she added. In these lean times, nobody can afford employees who aren’t pulling their weight. But Michael advocates careful, “surgical” cuts, not broad chain saw cuts.

— Courtenay Edelhart
 

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Looking for work? This press release came over to us. We're sharing it as is for anyone who might need some ideas.

This comes from Rebecca Metschke, career consultant and author of The Interview Edge.
 
Myth 1. The best qualified candidate gets the job. Actually, it’s the best candidate who gets the job. That person may or may not be the best qualified. Understand the difference – and how to make yourself the best candidate.
 
Myth 2. Job boards are the best source of leads. In reality, your most valuable leads are going to come from your network. It’s fine to check online and to peruse the want ads…but don’t spend an inordinate amount of time there. Most jobs are never posted.
 
Myth 3. It’s nearly impossible to find those “hidden” jobs. Not if you’re willing to dig in, and if you’re purposeful about how you go about it. The best way to tap into the vast hidden market is through contacts with others. Make sure people know about your search; they can’t help you if they don’t know you’re looking. Focus on expanding your network. Every meeting with another person is a potential networking opportunity. Think about who might be able to help you – even if it’s someone you don’t know yet – and figure out how you can go about meeting that person.
 
Myth 4. Thank you letters are passé. If you don’t really want the job, skip the thank you letter. Otherwise, you’d better write one. It’s your last chance to sell yourself – to underscore why you’re the person who can help solve whatever problem it is the hiring manager is faced with.
 
Myth 5. The hiring company will contact you if they’re interested. Maybe. Maybe not. Don’t sit back and wait for the phone call, especially in this tight job market. Submit your resume, wait a week, and then follow up.
 
Myth 6. Offering to take a cut in salary will boost your chances of landing the job. That depends – on how much of a cut and how you bring it up. Flexibility is important. Even in this market, you’d be surprised how many candidates draw a line in the sand regarding what they will and will not accept. Still, you’ve got to be careful. It’s essential that you broach the subject at the right time, especially if it’s a significant decrease from what you were previously earning (say, 20%). You don’t want to come off as desperate, and neither do you want to be perceived as someone who will bolt the minute the employment situation improves.

A press release straight from the state attorney general's office:

Brown Warns Homeowners that Scam Artists are Using Forged Letterhead of Lenders to Con Californians

LOS ANGELES- California Attorney General Edmund G. Brown Jr. today warned that scam artists have "sunk to a new low" and have used the forged letterhead of major lenders to con worried Californians into paying thousands of dollars for non-existent loan modification services.

"Scam artists have sunk to a new low and are using the forged letterhead of lenders to con worried Californians into handing over their hard-earned money," Attorney General Brown said. "Californians should be deeply skeptical of anyone who demands money up front and makes extravagant promises that they can save their home."

Attorney General Brown also advised consumers about seven steps they can take to protect themselves from loan modification fraud. (See below).

Today's warning comes on the heels of the arrest Wednesday of Anna Santos, 22 - a key player in a loan modification scam using forged letterhead - on charges of money-laundering, conspiracy, and four-counts of grand theft.

Ms. Santos joined with members of the defunct First Gov loan modification ring in a separate criminal enterprise with a disturbing twist. They used forged mail and envelopes that appeared to be from victims' lenders.

Ms. Santos obtained a fictitious business permit through the City of Los Angeles for "Payment Processing Department." She opened several bank accounts and two post office boxes under that name. She and other members of the ring mailed flyers that appeared to be from victims' lenders or a government entity. The flyer used a large, bold header that read "Final Notice" and advised homeowners that they qualified for a special program to save their home from foreclosure.

After providing their mortgage information, homeowners received what appeared to be "confirmation" that the lender had been notified about the loan modification. Many victims also received loan modification documents that appeared to be from the victim's lender. The documents were of course forgeries.

The victims were informed they had been placed in a "probationary" program and their mortgage payments should be submitted to "Payment Processing Department" and sent to a given post office box address. None of the payments were credited to the victims' home loans.

Payments sent to the post office box were retrieved by Ms. Santos and deposited into the bank accounts she had opened. The money was then transferred to bank accounts held by other members of the ring.

Many victims paid over $6,000 to this loan modification scam.

Here's what homeowners can do to avoid becoming a victim:

DON'T pay money to people who promise to work with your lender to modify your loan. It is unlawful for foreclosure consultants to collect money before (1) they give you a written contract describing the services they promise to provide and (2) they actually perform all the services described in the contract, such as negotiating new monthly payments or a new mortgage loan. However, an advance fee may be charged by an attorney, or by a real estate broker who has submitted the advance fee agreement to the Department of Real Estate, new window, for review.

DO call your lender yourself. Your lender wants to hear from you, and will likely be much more willing to work directly with you than with a foreclosure consultant.

DON'T transfer titled or sell your house to the foreclosure rescuer.  Fraudulent foreclosure consultants often promise that if the homeowners transfer title, they may stay in the home as renters and buy their home back later. The foreclosure consultants claim that transfer is necessary so that someone with a better credit rating can obtain a new loan to prevent foreclosure. BEWARE! This is a common scheme so-called "rescuers" use to evict homeowners and steal all or most of the home's equity.

DON'T pay money upfront to people who promise to work with your lender to modify your loan.  It is unlawful for foreclosure consultants to collect before 1) they give you a written contract describing the services they promise to proved and 2) they actually perform all the services described in the contract, such as negotiating new monthly payments or a new mortgage loan.

DON'T pay your mortgage payments to someone other than your lender or loan servicer, even if he or she promises to pass the payment on.  Fradulent foreclosure consultants often keep the money for themselves.

DON'T sign any documents without reading them first.  Many homeowners think that they are signing documents for a new loan to pay off the mortgage they are behind on. Later, they discover that they actually transferred ownership to the "rescuer."

DON'T ignore letters from your lender. Consider contacting your lender yourself, many lenders are willing to work with homeowners who are behind on their payments.

DO contact housing counselor approved by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD), who may be able to help you for free.  For a referral to a housing counselor near you, contact HUD at 1-800-569-4287 (TTY: 1-800-877-8339) or  www.hud.gov.

IF YOU TRANSFERRED YOUR PROPERTY OR PAID SOMEONE TO "RESCUE" YOU FROM FORECLOSURE, YOU MAY BE A VICTIM OF A CRIME.

Please file a complaint with the Attorney General's Office at the following address: Office of the Attorney General -  Public Inquiry Unit, P.O. Box 944255, Sacramento, CA. 94244, or online at  www.ag.ca.gov/consumers.

A bankruptcy court in Delaware approved an incentive program for senior executives at Gottschalks. Click on the document to the left for more details.

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Today's fun and games from bankruptcy filings:

Gottschalks executives have stopped making $40,000 monthly payments on their private jet but continue to fly it anyway.

Now the lender wants the bankruptcy judge to OK a repo.

Gottsie borrowed $3 mill for the Cessna 525 in summer 2006, a rosier time for sure.

The repo request follows previous filings from execs wanting bonuses to stick around during the bankruptcy process.

Buck up, CEOs! The view from 99 ain't bad at all...

-- Gretchen Wenner, staff writer

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Whew! Home prices are falling. See just how much by taking a peek at our home sales map, covering Jan. 5 to 11. It’s posted here.

We regularly publish single-family home sale transactions that occurred between individuals, as well as foreclosures.

The homes are color-coded by price, with information from First American Real Estate Solutions compiled by reporter Jenny Shearer. Highlights for Jan. 5 to 11:

• 107 homes are new on the map.

• Priciest? One sold for $775,000 in the 93314 ZIP code. It was 3,710 square feet.

• Cheapest? One sold for $25,000 in the 93307 ZIP code. It was 1,152 square feet.

Comments on the prices?

— Christine Peterson