Sometimes the owner is the company. Such was apparently the case with the Wine Cask, a popular Santa Barbara watering hole and wine shop that closed abruptly in mid-February.

Owner Doug Margerum sold the operation a year or so ago and the new owners tried hard. But with the down economy and without Doug’s magic, it just didn’t work out.

Meanwhile, Naval Base Ventura County undergoes a transition of its own with the retirement of “Brick” Conner at the end of February. He’s done a great job of connecting the massive military base with the business community and his will be a hard act to follow.

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