North Bay Business Journal

Sonoma-based wine company Don Sebastiani & Sons upgraded its south Napa winery, now called Steelbird Cellars after birds that populate the area, with new bottling capabilities, high-tech treatment of water to reduce chemicals used, energy-efficient lighting and “showcase” offices and client reception area. …

Fresh off the dissolution of the Mendocino Wine & Winegrape Commission this summer, the new marketing organization, Mendocino Winegrowers, has partnered with Amazon.com to sell more than 500 wines from the county’s appellations in the large online retailer’s second attempt at wine-to-consumer sales. …

Nearly three years after expanding from franchisees of two Napa UPS Store locations into owner-operators of a wine order fulfillment business in south Napa, Bill and Patti Myers are expanding Eagle Rock Fulfillment for the fourth time. …

Wine Direct to Trade is St. Helena-based company started by two veterans of wine direct sales, marketing and wholesaling are trying to create an Internet-based platform to simplify the process of selling wine to trade accounts. …

Sonoma County Vintners hired Dana Macaulay as director of events. She will be managing the 200-member trade group’s U.S. and international events such as Sonoma Wine Country Weekend, a joint production with Sonoma Valley Vintners & Growers Alliance. …

Seguin Moreau Napa Cooperage hired Marion Ghiringhelli for a new position in North American sales and marketing of the company’s rapidly expanding oak-alternatives business. …

Novato-based wine accessories developer and distributor Cork Pops, which came up with the eponymous product for opening wine corks two decades ago and the vinOair bottle spout-aerator more recently, just released vinOice, a drip-resistant spout designed to chill a bottle of white or sparkling wine to an optimum temperature and keep it that way for up to an hour.

NOVATO — Assets under management at Hennessy Advisors, Inc. (OTCBB: HNNA) increased 22.7 percent for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30, to $919 million, according to an announcement today.

The period does not include impact from the firm’s acquisition of ten investment funds under management of Arlington Va.-based FBR Funds, a major move orchestrated throughout that fiscal year that ultimately increased Hennessy’s total assets under management to more than $3 billion.

NOVATO — Ctuit Software has been helping restaurant chain owners better manage finances and operations for more than a decade, and now the maker of those tools is seeing to it that it has the talent and infrastructure in place to manage its own fast growth.

Western Health Advantage formally filed plans with the state to be a part of Covered California, the state’s online health exchange that will go live in 2014 as part of the federal health care reform bill, the Affordable Care Act. …

On the federal level, the Obama Administration last week issued a host of new rules and details on how insurers can structure benefits and premiums beginning in 2014. …

Fireman’s Fund Insurance Company announced the appointment of Travis Bethune to the position of vice president, distribution management and services leader. …

Address: 16 Digital Dr., Ste. 130, Novato 94949; 415-382-9083; okizu.org Age: 74 Residence: Novato Professional background: Supervisor and then Vice President of Matson Lines and Pacific Far East Line Steamship Travel. Founder and Chairman of Golden Bear Travel, retired. Education: Bachelor of Arts, San Francisco State (Liberal Arts) Staff size: 10 salaried, 670 volunteers  Describe your organization. [...]

NOVATO — Raptor Pharmaceutical (Nasdaq: RPTP) reported a net fourth quarter loss, ended August 31, of approximately $10.2 million, or 20 cents per share, compared to a $3.8 million, or ll cents per share, loss for the same period last year.

Raptor’s net loss for fiscal year 2012 was approximately $38.6 million or 80 cents per share, compared to $37.2 million or $1.15 per share for the prior fiscal year.

NOVATO — Umpqua Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq: UMPQ), the parent company of Portland, Ore.-Umpqua Bank, today announced the completion of its acquisition of Novato-based Circle Bancorp, parent company of Circle Bank.

A definitive agreement between the two companies was first announced in August. Umpqua acquired Circle Bank for nearly $25 million.

NOVATO — SPG Solar, which designs and installs commercial photovoltaic energy systems, plans to move its headquarters to Petaluma to have room to grow, particularly in product development.

NOVATO — The Buck Institute for Research on Aging today said it received a $5 million donation from architecture entrepreneurs M. Arthur Gensler Jr. and Drucillia Cortell Gensler of Mill Valley.

NOVATO — Bank of Marin Bancorp (Nasdaq: BMRC), the parent company of Bank of Marin, today reported net income rose nearly 24 percent in the third quarter and nearly 8 percent in the first nine months of this year, compared with a year before.

NOVATO — Blu Homes, a Vallejo and Massachusetts-based manufacturer of energy efficient, prefabricated homes, has entered into an agreement with Homeward Bound of Marin to construct a $4 million affordable and supportive housing project in Novato.

Santa Monica-based game software maker Activision Blizzard expanded its Toys For Bob development studio at Hamilton Landing in Novato as the team there released a latest installment for one of the hottest-selling games. …

Third-quarter vacancy and absorption figures for Sonoma, Marin and Napa counties have been released. …

Shiloh Oaks Co., owned by the Caletti family that operated Standard Structures in Windsor, has been transforming 300,000-square-foot complex of lumber millwork and storage buildings into a multitenant industrial, warehouse and basic office property called Standard Industrial. There are now more than a dozen existing industrial-use tenants and four newcomers. …

Assemblymember Jared Huffman, D-San Rafael, honored students from Sun Valley Elementary School for their successful effort to urge the makers of felt-tip markers to develop a recycling program for their products.

The Chiligods, a chili sauce company based in Healdsburg, received one of the highest honors — “double gold” — at this year’s Sonoma County Harvest Fair.

ET Water Systems, Inc., a Novato-based “smart” irrigation management systems developer, significantly upgraded its award-winning ETwater Manager web-based system to accommodate rain forecasts.

NonProfitEasy, a technology startup and winner of the North Bay Business Plan Competition, announced a Series A equity funding commitment.

October is National Breast Cancer Awareness Month and Envolve Winery in Sonoma will be promoting their campaign “Real Men Drink Pink” to help raise awareness and funds.

NOVATO — 2K, a video-game publishing label of New York-based Take-Two Interactive Software (Nasdaq: TTWO), is expanding its 64,000-square-foot Novato headquarters and two development studios by 30 percent.

Continuing its commitment to increasing the numbers of primary care physicians in California, the Office of Statewide Health Planning and Development awarded more than $2.89 million to 29 family practice residency training programs. …

Enphase Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq: ENPH) last week announced the availability of the Enphase Microinverter System at Dynamic Solar, a leading distributor of photovoltaic solutions in the United Kingdom. …

Napa-based digital wine tourism pioneer WineCountry.com released a new iPhone app. …

OFFbeat Brands of Petaluma was selected by Grant Burge Wines of Barossa Valley as the Australian brand’s exclusive importer in the U.S. …

Pivot Charter School, North Bay, a free public charter school that offers full-time programs for grades 6–12 in Sonoma and surrounding counties, will offer new two- and five-day-a-week programs for the 2012–2013 school year. …

Assemblymember Jared Huffman presented his Sustainable North Bay Award to Novato’s Andalou Naturals in September in recognition of the company’s commitment to creating personal care products that are both good for people and the planet. …

Hennessy Advisors, Inc., a Novato-based investment manager, is expected to grow its assets under management to $2.7 billion this year, a three-fold increase that follows a definitive agreement in June to purchase assets under management at Arlington, Va.-based FBR Funds.

NOVATO — BioMarin Pharmaceutical will soon move into 120,000 square feet of offices in the San Rafael Corporate Center, the result of a significant expansion that will generate 100 new jobs for the Novato-based pharmaceutical company that specializes in making treatments for rare and serious disease.

Christine Tevini assumed the position of president and CEO of the Windsor Chamber of Commerce and Visitors Center. …

Dominican University of California appointed Steven E. Weisler as provost and Hanna Rodriguez-Farrar as the senior assistant to the president. …

La Tortilla Factory promoted David Trogdon to chief financial officer and Harold “Gene” Russell to vice president of sales, effective immediately. …

The Napa Valley Museum appointed two new members to its board of trustees. Dan Petroski and Marden Plant were named to the museum board for three-year terms. …

Frank Howard Allen announced that Dana Kreuzberger has been named manager of the Novato office. …

Council on Aging Services for Seniors announced that Laura Colgate has been named as the new director of senior nutrition services. …

NOVATO — Umpqua Holdings Corp. (Nasdaq: UMPQ), the parent company of Portland, Ore.-based Umpqua Bank, today announced a definitive agreement to acquire Novato-based Circle Bank and its parent company for $24.9 million.

Upon the completion of the acquisition, all six of Circle Bank’s branches will operate under the Umpqua name, joining Umpqua’s other branches in the North Bay.

The transition is expected to be completed in the fourth quarter.

PETALUMA — Biosearch Technologies Inc., an early pioneer in developing life science tools, plans to expand to Petaluma to provide room for continued growth.