First Commerce Bancorp based in Encino said today that net income rose 31 percent to $923,000 or $0.12 per diluted share for the third quarter ended Sept. 30, up from $702,000 or $0.07 per share in the same period last year. Assets increased 11 percent to about $2.7 million for the third quarter. Another local Valley bank, Western Commercial Bank, also announced its third quarter results. The bank, which launched in February, reported assets grew to $25.9 million and total deposits were $14.5 million for the quarter ended Sept. 30. The bank’s losses were $557,000 in the quarter.

StarPoint Properties LLC has acquired a portfolio of multifamily properties for $86 million. Nine of the 10 buildings included in the portfolio are located in the San Fernando Valley with one building in Granada Hills, two in Van Nuys, three in North Hollywood and three in Canoga Park. One Los Angeles building is also included in the sale. The properties include class B and class C buildings ranging from 42 units to 152 units. They were purchased from three different investors.

The new superintendent of the Los Angeles Unified School District said he plans to involve Valley business owners in reforming the city’s troubled school system. David L. Brewer III, who was unanimously nominated by the school district board Thursday, said he wants local businesses to help pay for a wide range of educational programs he plans to develop to turn the district into “a world-class school system so our children can be the best.” “One of the things I’m going to need is money. And it’s not going to come from the state or the city,” he said. Later, he added: “We’re going to come to the business community and say we need funds to pay for these programs.” The comments from Brewer came as he opened the “Reaching For the Stars,” a regional job fair organized by the Economic Alliance of the San Fernando Valley at the Beverly Garland Inn in North Hollywood. The speech and brief Q-and-A session was Brewer’s first appearance in the Valley since the surprise nomination, which initially drew criticism from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa, who was in the middle of a broad trade mission of Asia. Brewer, who lives in Virginia, has no experience in education but has had an management extensive background in the U.S. Navy, where he retired this year as vice admiral. On Tuesday, Brewer talked at length but offered few specifics about how he plans to reform the district, which includes more than 700,000 students in Los Angeles and several adjoining cities. He said the keys would be helping parents navigate the school system, providing mentors and preparing students to compete for jobs internationally. “You have to compete at the global level,” he said. “In the 21st Century, you can’t do the same things and expect the same results,” he added later. The Tuesday speech followed a round-the-clock series of community meetings with school leaders, community members and media outlets across the city Monday. Brewer on Tuesday denied that the saturation is because Villaraigosa is traveling overseas. The mayor’s office has indicated that Villaraigosa plans to meet with Brewer “as soon as he returns from his trade mission in Asia.” The morning speech also included an appearance by outgoing Superintendent Roy Romer, who will likely step down next month.

The Encino Chamber of Commerce holds its business and professional luncheon. 11:45 a.m. Monterey at Encino 16821 Burbank Blvd., Encino (818) 789-4711 encinochamber.org

Ralphs Grocery Co. has agreed to pay $70 million to settle charges it illegally hired workers during the 2003-2004 grocery strike. The Kroger Co. supermarket unit in July pled guilty to five counts related to charges it illegally hired hundreds of workers under false names during the five-month labor dispute that locked out 19,000 Ralphs workers in Southern California. Prosecutors have said they believe some 1,000 workers were involved in the illegal hiring, although Ralphs has put the number at fewer than 300. The deal requires Ralphs to pay $20 million in criminal fines and $50 million into a restitution fund for employees who were locked out during the dispute and for union chapters that paid out lockout benefits. The chain was also placed on three years probation and it agreed to cooperate with the government as it pursues criminal charges against individuals in the company.

Los Angeles finds itself as a center of automotive-related industries despite a difficulty in accurately knowing the economic impacts, a study released Monday by the Los Angeles County Economic Development Corp. has found. Support industries to vehicle manufacturing thrive in the area because of close proximities of ports, an environment of promoting creativity, educational institutions, and expertise in related fields, such as design innovations, and marketing and advertising, the 20-page report concluded. “Leaders in Los Angeles need to pay a little more attention to this industry, because of the multiple benefits it yields,” said Jack Kyser, senior vice president and chief economist for the LAEDC, in a statment “The auto industry is also a component of Southern California’s unique collection of industries driven by creativity.” Research centers and design studios are plentiful in the region with the San Fernando and Conejo valleys having their share. BMW: Designworks USA is located in Newbury Park; the General Motors Advanced Design Center is located in North Hollywood; and the Volvo Monitoring and Concept Center is located in Camarillo. Van Nuys was home to the last auto-manufacturing plant in the Los Angeles area, a GM facility that closed in 1992. Eight Asian carmakers have U.S. or North American headquarters in the Southland, although none located in the Valley, the report said. The study also found that as of 2005, the five-county area had more registered vehicles than licensed drivers. In California, more than half of the new car market is held by imported brands, with Toyota/Scion in the lead with a 23.4 percent market share, the study said.

A top executive at Health Net Inc. has accepted a position with the mortgage company Freddie Mac. Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer Anthony Piszel will step down Nov. 10 to become executive vice president and chief financial officer at McLean, Va.-based Freddie Mac. James Woys, president of government and specialty services, will act as temporary chief financial officer while the company looks for a permanent replacement. Piszel has been with the Woodland Hills managed healthcare company since 2004.

Blue Cross of California has launched a bond-financing program to provide smaller health facilities more access to capital. The program, part of the company’s $200 million Investment in a Healthy California, looks to boost health care deliver in lower income and underserved parts of the state. As part of the program, companies under the Blue Cross, WellPoint and Anthem Inc. nameplates direct a portion of their investment portfolios over a 20-year period to underserved areas. So far, $135 million has been invested. The program will help small health providers finance projects through financing options commonly used by larger healthcare companies, and at interest rates lower than conventional loans.

Robust television production for the fall season helped increase overall on-location production in Los Angeles County by 7 percent for the third quarter when compared with the same period last year. But feature film production dropped in the county, keeping local production far below its peak in 1996. “While we have been fortunate to host a few high profile feature films and retains several promising new TV shows, you can’t discount the toll in lost jobs and local spending when features pass on L.A. in favor of lower-cost locales,” said Steve McDonald, president of Film LA, the not for profit agency assisting with the permitting process in the county. For the third quarter, 9,930 permitted production days took place for feature films, television shows and commercials. That is an increase over the 9.262 permitted days during the same period in 2005. Television production jumped 15.5 percent to 5,833 permitted days as compared with the 5,049 permitted days in the third quarter of 2005. Reality television programming accounted for 41 percent of all on-location television activity, followed by 36 percent for dramas. Feature film production accounted for 2,423 permitted days for the third quarter, a drop of 5 percent from the 2,559 permitted days in the same time period in 2005. Feature film production hit a high of 3,580 permitted days in the third quarter of 1996. Feature films that have shot in the Los Angeles area recently include “Spider-Man: 3,” “Transformers: Prime Directive,” and “Live Free or Die Hard.” Los Angeles-based fall television series include “Ugly Betty,” “Jericho,” and “The Nine.” “All of these productions provide work and steady paychecks for local crews,” McDonald said.

Nestle has renewed its lease at 800 N. Brand Blvd. in Glendale through 2010 for some floors and 2015 for others. The company has, however, relinquished its most prestigious real estate, the top floor, along with one other floor in its U.S. headquarters building. R. Todd Doney, vice chairman of CB Richard Ellis, represented Nestle in the deal. The building owner, Wells Real Estate Investment Trust, was represented by its vice president for asset management, Scott Brown and CBRE’s Patrick Church.