North Bay business briefs from The Fountaingrove Club, Santa Rosa Junior College, Hennessy Funds and more

NORTH BAY BUSINESS JOURNAL

November 2, 2018

Novato- and Sonoma-based SolarCraft completed of a 161-kilowatt solar energy installation at The Fountaingrove Club in Santa Rosa. The Fountaingrove property was devastated by the Tubbs Fire of October 2017, including over 200 employees and club members that lost their homes. The golf club lost its clubhouse and maintenance facilities, including all its maintenance vehicles, while its athletic club, located near the club entrance down the hill from the golf facilities, survived intact.

The solar power system consists of 446 solar panels and will produce 230,940 kWh annually, converting sunlight directly into electricity, offsetting almost 70 percent of the yearly PG&E electricity usage of the athletic club.

Santa Rosa Junior College will celebrate the start of several new bond-funded projects with two groundbreaking events on Tuesday, Nov. 6.

At 4:15 p.m. there will be a ribbon-cutting for the new SunPower solar photovoltaic array in the Bech parking lot and a signature ceremony for the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment. At 4:30 p.m. there will be a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Elliott classroom building, the first phase of construction associated with the new Lindley Center for STEM Education.

Hennessy Advisors Inc. (Nasdaq: HNNA) completed the acquisition of assets related to the management of the BP Capital TwinLine Energy Fund and the BP Capital TwinLine MLP Fund.

As a result, these funds will be reorganized into two newly formed series at Hennessy Funds: the Hennessy BP Energy Fund and the Hennessy BP Midstream Fund. This acquisition represents nearly $200 million in assets.

St. Helena Hospital Foundation has awarded a three-year grant to Mentis to support its Healthy Minds-Healthy Aging program, providing mental health and wellness services to adults over 60 who show early signs of depression, anxiety and/or memory impairment.

The foundation stated the award is part of the foundation's effort to strengthen health care in the upper Napa Valley for older adults. It stated more than 31 percent of the population of St. Helena and 27 percent of Calistoga is composed of adults 60 or older – and that population is expected to grow by 50 percent in the next 20 years.

Sonoma's Victory Station was named 2018 Development Project of the Year by the American Council of Engineering Companies North Coast chapter at the association's Oct. 18th awards presentation in Santa Rosa

Adobe Associates is the engineering firm on the Victory Station industrial project. McNeill Real Estate Services is the developer. Adobe Associates Vice President Tim Schram accepted the award on behalf of the engineering firm and the Victory Station development team at the eighth Engineering Excellence Awards ceremony held at the DeTurk Round Barn in Santa Rosa.

The Victory Station project broke ground last May at Eighth Street East and Fremont Drive (Highway 121) and is now in the final stages of construction. The building is estimated to be ready for occupancy by November 2018.

The 250,000-square-foot industrial building is situated on a 19-acre parcel zoned M-3 (light manufacturing, research and development, warehousing, distribution, retail and office uses) located at the south end of Sonoma's Eighth Street East industrial district. The building' has 22 truck-dock doors and 28-foot clear height, which allows stacking of up to four pallet-loads.

Those interested in serving on the board of directors of some of Napa County's key nonprofit organizations are being invited to participate in the 2018 Napa Valley Board PICK, Nov. 14, 4 to 6 p.m., Napa Valley College's Upper Valley Campus, 1088 College Ave., St. Helena.

Prospective board members are asked to bring their resume and business cards to the event.

Current board members and staff of 17 organizations working in the arts, health and human services, animal welfare, education, youth empowerment, museums, libraries, and more will be on hand to meet prospective board members and share information about their organizations' mission, services, activities, and board expectations:

Additionally, representatives from various Napa County municipalities and the County itself will be available to answer questions about how to apply for their civic commissions and advisory boards.

For more information, contact the Upper Valley Campus at 707-967-2901. Prospective board members are asked (but not required) to RSVP online: bit.ly/LNV-BP.