SAN FERNANDO VALLEY Studio City Henry’s Tacos closed this month after 51 years at the corner of Moorpark Street and Tujunga Avenue in Studio City. The business received citywide attention in recent months after announcing the planned closure. Despite a massive online effort to avoid shuttering the popular local landmark, and long lines of customers in its closing days, the family-owned and operated taco stand served its final taco on Jan. 12. Owner Janis Hood said she decided to close the stand founded by her grandfather Henry Comstock following a lengthy dispute with the landlord over a historic landmark designation she sought for the stand. While the location may be closed, Henry’s Tacos may live on. Hood plans to sell the name to Omar Vega, a 21-year employee who hopes to reopen the business under the same name in a different location. Vivid Entertainment, one of the largest producers of adult films in the San Fernando Valley, is among several plaintiffs in a lawsuit filed this month challenging the legality of Los Angeles County’s mandatory condom law. The ballot initiative, approved by voters in November, would require condoms be used on film shoots. Also, adult film producers would have to obtain a public health permit from the county health department and complete a blood-borne pathogen training course prior to filming. A fee collected by the county would offset the cost of enforcement. The federal lawsuit claims the ballot initiative restricts speech protected by the First Amendment, does not set out guidelines to determine the cost of the permit fee and uses terms that are unconstitutionally vague. Calabasas The Cheesecake Factory opened its largest restaurant to date at the Mall of the Emirates in Dubai on New Year’s Eve. The 22,800 square-foot restaurant is the third location the Calabasas chain has opened outside of the Unites States under a licensing agreement with Alshaya Trading Co. W.L.L., a Kuwait franchise retailer that operates popular brands such as Starbucks and Victoria’s Secret internationally. Under the agreement, Alshaya can develop locations for the Cheesecake Factory in several counties across the Middle East, North Africa, Russia, Turkey and Europe. Earlier this year, Alshaya opened Cheesecake Factory restaurants in the Dubai Mall in the United Arab Emirates and The Avenues Mall in Kuwait. There are more than 175 restaurants in the United States. Reseda Los Angeles Jewish Home, one of the Valley’s largest nonprofits, has named a new chairman of its board of directors. Jeffrey Glassman was installed to the post, taking over from outgoing chairman Michael Heslov. Glassman is chief executive of Convington Capital Management, an L.A. investment advisement firm. He previously worked at two other investment firms and spent more than 30 years as an attorney specializing in estate planning, probate and trust administration. The Los Angeles Jewish Home was founded in 1912 and serves more than 2,600 seniors annually through its programs, including more than 1,000 men and women who reside at its two campuses. CONEJO VALLEY Westlake Village Target Corp. purchased 10.3 acres of land in Westlake Village earlier this month, where the retailer will anchor the new The Shoppes at Westlake Village development. The Minneapolis-headquartered retailer plans to build a 138,500 square-foot store on the property near Lindero Canyon road along the Ventura (101) Freeway. The 243,000 square-foot shopping center, developed by Westlake Village firm Selleck Development Group, is scheduled to open next year. The retailer currently operates three locations in Woodland Hills and its Thousand Oaks location on Teller Road in Ventura County. SANTA CLARITA VALLEY Santa Clarita U.S. Energy Initiative Corp. has announced plans to build several small biodiesel fuel plants in California. The Santa Clarita company has partnered with Las Vegas manufacturing firm Methes Energies International Ltd. on the project. Methes manufactures products used in the production of biodiesel fuel. U.S. Energy Chief Executive Anthony Miller said the company plans to construct plants with the capacity to produce 1 million gallons of fuel annually. – Compiled by Elliot Golan
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