4 tips for launching a side hustle at any age

• January 23, 2025

By Kimberly Palmer, NerdWallet

When it comes to launching a side hustle after years of experience in the working world, Kathy Kristof, founder of the website SideHusl.com, says you have a choice: Either start your own business or join an existing side-hustle platform that matches people with opportunities.

The former can be riskier but gratifying, while the latter allows you to take advantage of the many existing websites that offer side hustlers options for short-term contract work, hourly gigs, focus group work and much more.

“Today, there are thousands of side gig companies and they span every type of work you can possibly imagine, so you can get a lucrative gig from anywhere in the world,” Kristof says. Her website reviews hundreds of side-hustle websites to help users find the best fit.

Workers with relevant experience can generally command higher rates. “If you are mid-career, you can generally do the high-end side hustles that pay you $50 to $100 an hour,” she says. That might include consulting work, tutoring or freelance gigs.

For the side hustlers that opt to launch their own businesses, Kristof cautions against sinking a lot of money into start-up costs, which can threaten your financial stability. She says side hustlers, especially those in their 30s, 40s, and 50s, need to protect their future retirement plans.

Here are more lessons from side hustlers who launched their businesses after a decade or more in the workforce.

Embrace your passion

Douglas Frazier, a magician (as well as a full-time employee in the world of business) in the New York City area, says it’s easy to focus so much on earning extra money that you forget why you connected with your side hustle in the first place.

For him, it was a love of magic that started in childhood. He checked out every book on magic he could find from his public library and created a 30-minute show for family members and then birthday parties. “Word of mouth grew,” he says, recalling the business cards he handed out at age 12. “I was young, talented and affordable.”

Today, he performs primarily for corporate events for Fortune 500 companies under the name “Douglas Frazier the Brand Magi.” He cautions against letting your pursuit of earning extra cash dampen your enjoyment of the experience.

“I need to focus on the markets and audiences that interest me or it won’t be emotionally sustainable,” he says.

Leverage your life experience

After starting her career in journalism, Gail Sullivan was ready for a change that would give her more flexibility after she had her first child in 2015. On the side, she also started helping friends develop home organization systems based on methods she used herself in her Los Angeles home.

“I loved creating different systems in my home that allowed my life to function more easily, and then friends started asking me to help with their organizing projects,” Sullivan says. Soon, she took up a side job as an assistant to a professional organizer.

Eventually, that side job turned into Sullivan’s own company, Calm Space LA, which she continues to run today.

Invest in marketing

Unless you’re relying primarily on an existing side-hustle platform, it’s up to you to get the word out to potential clients. “Make sure you focus on the business side of your side gig. You’ll be spending as much time on the marketing and selling of your services as you will be doing the service,” Frazier says.

Local broadcast stations, radio shows and events guides can all help you get the word out. While it’s not always easy to get the attention of producers, sending a message through the posted contact information can land you valuable press coverage.

Sullivan also suggests relying on word of mouth and social media. “There are a lot of mom groups on Facebook and a lot of clients come from referrals on there,” she says.

Emphasize what makes you unique

Sullivan says that she was initially drawn to design home organization systems that helped her because she has attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder, and her systems help her manage it. “I needed my environment to be really organized,” she says.

For example, she creates a meal plan schedule with visual reminders to help her plan grocery shopping and other tasks on a daily, weekly and monthly basis. Visual checklists help her stay on task.

Today, many of her clients also have ADHD, which has become a way for her to stand out in the crowded field of home organization. “I can see on clients’ faces what a difference it makes,” she says.

Kimberly Palmer writes for NerdWallet. Email: kpalmer@nerdwallet.com. Twitter: @kimberlypalmer.

The article 4 Tips for Launching a Side Hustle at Any Age originally appeared on NerdWallet.

​ Orange County Register 

Trump raises possibility of withholding disaster aid from California

• January 23, 2025

President Donald Trump once again raised the possibility of withholding federal disaster aid for Southern California’s wildfires unless certain conditions are met.

“I don’t think we should give California anything until they let water flow down” from the northern part of the state to the south, he told Fox News host Sean Hannity in an interview Wednesday, Jan. 22.

Trump’s comments, made during his first television interview since he reclaimed the White House, reignites concerns among Democrats that the newly installed president will politicize a large-scale natural disaster in a blue state, thus breaking from the tradition where federal aid has been sent to states after a natural disaster without strings attached.

The Republican president has long sparred with Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom and criticized California’s policies on forest management and water supplies.

Before his reelection, Trump had suggested that if he were president again, he’d withhold federal disaster aid to California in the event of future wildfires if Newsom would not agree to divert more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to farmers in the Central Valley. Trump, in his interview with Hannity, repeated false claims that the state’s water issues are because of conservation efforts related to the Delta smelt, considered an endangered fish under the California Endangered Species Act.

On Monday, after being sworn in as the 47th president, Trump directed the secretary of commerce and the secretary of the interior to start work on routing “more water from the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta to other parts of the state for use by the people there who desperately need a reliable water supply.”

Karla Nemeth, director of the California Department of Water Resources, told CalMatters that reverting to prior rules during Trump’s first term “has the potential to harm Central Valley farms and Southern California communities that depend upon water delivered from the Delta, and it will do nothing to improve current water supplies in the Los Angeles basin.”

After the wildfires broke out, Newsom invited Trump to come to California to see the devastation for himself. The governor urged Trump not to politicize the catastrophe.

During his interview with Hannity, Trump — who plans to travel to Southern California on Friday — said he wasn’t sure if he’d meet with Newsom.

“I don’t know,” Trump said. “I haven’t even thought about it.”

A spokesperson for the governor did not respond to a question about whether the two had spoken about the fires in recent days or if the state’s chief executive planned to meet with the president.

“We are glad President Trump accepted the governor’s invitation to come to Los Angeles,” said Newsom spokesperson Izzy Gardon.

Besides Newsom, Rep. Judy Chu, a Democrat representing residents who lost their homes in the Eaton fire, and L.A. County Board of Supervisors Chair Kathryn Barger, a Republican, have sent invitations to Trump — prior to his inauguration on Monday — to come see the devastation for himself.

Members of Congress representing Southern California, Republicans and Democrats, have largely agreed that aid from the federal government should come with no strings.

“We cannot prioritize potential future political battles over supporting first responders battling those wildfires in our state,” said Rep. Young Kim, R-Anaheim Hills.

Trump’s expected visit would take place two-and-a-half weeks after massive wildfires first broke out in Los Angeles County. The fires have so far damaged or destroyed over 17,000 structures and killed at least 28 people.

Fires have continued to break out around Southern California since the first sparks on Jan. 7, including the Hughes fire in the Antelope Valley that has burned over 10,000 acres since Wednesday.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.

​ Orange County Register 

500 Marines and sailors from Camp Pendleton are headed to the southern border

• January 23, 2025

Troops from Camp Pendleton have been ordered to immediately deploy to the nation’s southern border, Marine Corps officials announced Thursday, Jan. 23.

The 500 Marines and sailors from the I Marine Expeditionary Force will be tasked “to carry out directed missions called for by the president to secure the border and protect and defend the territorial integrity of the United States,” IMEF officials said. The deployment is through the U.S. Northern Command and Joint Task Force North.

President Donald Trump took office Monday and quickly declared a national emergency at the southern border, directing the Department of Defense to help in addressing the situation.

The troops are part of a deployment of 1,500 troops announced Wednesday by Department of Defense officials to augment troops already conducting enforcement operations in that region, Acting Secretary of Defense Robert Salesses said in a statement.

In 2023, about 200 Camp Pendleton Marines and Sailors were also ordered to the border to work with Customs and Border Protection as pandemic restrictions expired and a surge of migrants arrived.

In 2018, about 1,100 Camp Pendleton Marines deployed to the border as caravans of migrants from Central America approached.

Marines then supported the Border Patrol agents by helping build barriers, barricades and fencing. They also worked as medical teams, set up command and control facilities, constructed temporary housing for Customs and Border Protection personnel, and provided personal protective equipment for those troops.

​ Orange County Register 

How to find a down payment to buy a replacement home after LA County fires

• January 23, 2025

This column goes out to anyone who has lost a home to a natural disaster.

My heart goes out to the thousands of people in Los Angeles County who are displaced and dealing with this very scenario.

Perhaps you plan on rebuilding your burned down home. Maybe you don’t.

Either way, you’ll need to make important long-term housing decisions and arrangements.

Also see: California’s home insurance prices set to soar

If you decide to buy another home, and you don’t have the ability to pay cash, you’ll need to come up with a down payment (in most cases) and closing costs. And you’ll need credit and income to qualify for a new mortgage.

This column today offers some options to consider.

Down payment funds may come from your own savings or retirement account, or they can be a gift from a relative.

Or, if you have a home equity line-of-credit with available funds left, try to tap that.

More on fires: Should some parts of Los Angeles never rebuild?

Wells Fargo’s Home Equity Line of Credit customers can use available funds up to the credit limit, according to their HELOC agreement, said Sunny Rodriguez, a Wells Fargo spokesperson. HELOC borrowers also can use available funds if the collateral is insufficient.

Bank of America and Chase Bank did not respond to questions regarding their HELOCs.

I recall from the Great Recession days a plethora of homeowners nationwide were cutting off from the available funds left on their HELOCs when they really needed the money in case of emergency. It became a race against time. Pull the funds and put them in your bank account before your lender cuts you off.

There are other sources for down payment funds.

Also see: ‘Wildfire refugees’ scramble to find housing as rental prices soar

If your furnished home is a total loss resulting from a state of emergency, the insurer shall offer a lump-sum payment under the personal property coverage. The amount will be no less than 30% of the policy limit, applicable to the covered dwelling structure, up to a maximum of $250,000, without requiring the insured to file an inventory, according to a California Department of Insurance bulletin.

Early on, you can also ask your insurance company for an advance or full settlement under the covered dwelling structure to go toward the down payment on your new home?

If you have a mortgage on your burned down home, the insurance check will be written to both you and your lender. Upfront, you should clear or negotiate any potential advances from your insurer with your mortgage lender.

“Insurance companies cannot give you less (of a settlement) if you choose to purchase another home instead of rebuilding,” said Michael Soller, deputy commissioner with the DOI. “People need options after a disaster.”

When qualifying for a mortgage on your new purchase, your lender will have to include your mortgage payment, property taxes, insurance and any HOA fees on your burned down home. You are still responsible for paying that mortgage after any payment forbearance is provided by your mortgage servicer. You have up to one year of forbearance from most lenders. You must be financially comfortable enough to cover both house payments.

If you can’t qualify on your own, perhaps you can get a co-signer. Ideally, that might be a parent, in-law, sibling or child.

What about retirees on a fixed income or disabled adult children who have lost their homes?

Formerly named Parent Loan, Fannie Mae has a loan program named Family Opportunity Mortgage or FOM where an adult child can sign for the parent(s) who cannot qualify on their own or a disabled adult child. Fannie Mae will also give more competitive owner-occupied pricing, even though the adult child signing for the mortgage isn’t occupying the property.

There is always what I call the “fog the mirror mortgage,” which is designed for someone who has excellent credit and 20% down but cannot document their income. Income and job sections of the application are left blank. The catch is the rate for this type of mortgage is much more expensive.

Also consider that Proposition 19 enables certain homeowners an option to save money on property taxes.

“Prop. 19 allows the property owner to transfer their tax base to a new home anywhere in California,” said Jeff Prang, the tax assessor at Los Angeles County.

Homeowners have two years to affect the transfer.

“I am certain that many fire victims may find this to be easier than the rebuilding process.” There are no age restrictions on a tax base transfer when the homeowner suffers the loss of their property due to natural disasters.

Be mindful that you must sell your burned down departing residence within two years of an up-leg purchase. You will pay property taxes at fair value (without any future refund) on your purchase until your departing residence is sold, according to the California State Board of Equalization.

As an aside, what if there is wildfire litigation and a settlement from a public utility, for example? Can the wildfire victim homeowner retain the right to the settlement funds when selling the remaining lot?

“In most situations, the insurance company through subrogation will recover wildfire litigation settlement funds. If there are no insurance company subrogation issues, I think the plaintiff (old owner) and new buyer can decide how they divide these proceeds as they want,” said Mike Hensley, an attorney at the law firm Frost Brown Todd. “A tricky part of this is that the tax treatment of casualty loss proceeds may make this division unrealistic.”

Hensley recommends homeowners in this position consult a tax professional.

Short-term ownership of another home (until your home is rebuilt) is not advisable.

If it’s temporary shelter and you plan on selling the pad after your home is rebuilt, you might be better off just renting.

Transaction costs to buy and then sell a property add up quickly. Between commissions, other settlement charges, moving expenses, inspections and repairs (not to mention your valuable time and attention), it could add up to around 8% in direct charges of that property’s value.

And, under your insurance policy’s additional living expenses or ALE, your insurer must pay for 24 months of temporary rent, according to a California Department of Insurance bulletin. This includes Fair Plan customers. You are unlikely to receive the 24 months of rent if you buy another property, even temporarily.

The DOI is offering free appointments with its insurance experts who will look over and explain insurance policy benefits. Sessions are being held this weekend at Pasadena City College. Call 800-927-4357 to reserve a spot.

Next week: Construction and financing for those wildfire victims wanting to rebuild.

Freddie Mac rate news

The 30-year fixed rate averaged 6.96%, 8 basis points lower than last week. The 15-year fixed rate averaged 6.16%, 11 basis points lower than last week.

The Mortgage Bankers Association reported a 0.01% mortgage application increase compared with one week ago, which included an adjustment for the New Year’s holiday.

Bottom line: Assuming a borrower gets the average 30-year fixed rate on a conforming $806,500 loan, last year’s payment was $145 less than this week’s payment of $5,344.

What I see: Locally, well-qualified borrowers can get the following fixed-rate mortgages with one point: A 30-year FHA at 5.875%, a 15-year conventional at 5.625%, a 30-year conventional at 6.5%, a 15-year conventional high balance at 6.125% ($806,501 to $1,209,750 in LA and OC and $806,501 to $1,077,550 in San Diego), a 30-year-high balance conventional at 6.875% and a jumbo 30-year fixed at 6.75%.

Eye-catcher loan program of the week: A 30-year mortgage, with 30% down locked for the first 5 years at 5.99% with 1 point cost.

Jeff Lazerson, president of Mortgage Grader, can be reached at 949-322-8640 or jlazerson@mortgagegrader.com .

​ Orange County Register 

Commitments to colorblindness and merit are not Trumpian extremism, they’re common sense

• January 23, 2025

On Inauguration Day, President Donald Trump proclaimed that we as a nation would “forge a society that is colorblind and merit-based.” This pledge not only captures the timeless American spirit, but also echoes the words of Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., that Americans should “not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character.” 

In the ensuing days, President Trump followed up with a fresh array of executive actions taken to reclaim our country’s foundational values, including orders ending federal diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) programs, combatting racial discrimination in institutions that receive federal funding, restoring merit in the Federal Aviation Administration, and pushing back against gender ideology. 

The federal Office of Personnel Management issued a memo to all federal agencies and departments, urging them to begin taking steps to close all DEI offices by the end of the day on January 22. In Trump’s January 21st executive order on reviving the traditional American values of hard work, excellence, and individual achievement, the federal government is ordered to dismantle discriminatory DEI practices in the public sector and discourage similar practices in the private sector. The rationale is simple: both public agencies and private entities must comply with all federal civil-rights laws.

Altogether, these drastic policy developments reflect the new administration’s resolve to embrace a national (and bipartisan) consensus against endemic abuses of race, gender, and other immutable group characteristics in grievances-based public policies. Pernicious racial politics and illiberal impulses of tribalism have poisoned American society for so long that a decisive repudiation from top down is required. But in a progressive state like California where the political apparatus is focused on “Trump-proofing” the state with a $50 million legal fund, the trickle-down trajectory from national policy redress to local implementation will be long, winding and fraught with defiance. 

To start, progressive lawmakers and public policy bureaucrats are not shying away from pushing out race-based proposals. So far, two reparations bills (Assembly Bill 7 and Assembly Bill 62) have been introduced into the state Assembly. The former seeks to give admissions preferences to descendants of slavery in all private and public institutions of higher education. The latter intends to enact legislation on reparations for “racially motivated eminent domain,” effectively reviving Senate Bill 1050, which was vetoed by Gov. Gavin Newsom in September 2024. 

Just around the New Year, my organization took Sacramento County to court to challenge its race-based child welfare program, which offers $725 in monthly stipends only to low-income parents of “child age 5 or younger, who is Black, American Indian, or Alaska Native.” Families should not be discriminated against on the basis of race. We will prevail in halting this blatant racial discrimination done in the name of “health equity.”

In addition to facing political animosity and policy resistance, reforms to dial down DEI will also encounter institutional inertia. 

For instance, most California colleges and universities, private and public, have the ideological function baked into their organizational structures, strategic goals, and daily operations. Last summer, the University of California, Santa Barbara offered up to $430,000 in annual compensation for an administrative post titled “Vice Chancellor for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion” and filled the position in five months. A recent College Fix analysis reveals that UC Berkeley implements 30 different DEI programs on a $25 million annual budget. California State University is also a corporate partner to the PhD Project, a public-private partnership that provides certain business Ph.D. students with financial support on the basis of race. UC Riverside platforms a “Structural Racism Reading Group,” which tasks members to read books relating to “Justice, equity, diversity, inclusion, and belonging.”

One may brush aside the fact that over six million Californian voters chose Trump in last year’s presidential election. But it is hard to discount the resolute majority of the electorate, numbered at 9.65 million, who rejected Proposition 16 over four years ago, which sought to legalize government preferences on the basis of race, sex, gender, ethnicity or national origin. 

In this sense, Trump’s January 20th executive order, which revokes Executive Order 11246 (federal affirmative action with a focus on preferences rather than non-discrimination), mirrors the civil rights battles fought in California. 54.55% of Californian voters supported the passage of Prop. 209 in 1996 and a larger, 57.23% reaffirmed the state’s ban on race-based affirmative action in 2020. While California policymakers might support such discriminatory policies, both Trump and the vast majority of Californians do not. 

Moving away from racialized politics and toward the common-sense center should be valued by Americans of all political persuasions.

Policy adjustment at the federal level is only the beginning. It is up to local stakeholders and advocates to concretize the changes and help enforce the rule of our land – the U.S. Constitution and its guarantee of equal protection under the laws. 

Eternal vigilance is the price of liberty.

Wenyuan Wu is the executive director of the Californians for Equal Rights Foundation.

​ Orange County Register 

Daxon: If there’s an emergency, are you prepared? Here are some ideas

• January 23, 2025

The horrible wild fires that destroyed so much of Los Angeles County could happen here, and we need to be prepared to leave our homes in case of wildfires, earthquakes or who knows what else.

One way to be ready to leave in a hurry is to have a go bag. I’ve had mine in my car’s trunk for several years. The only items I’ve used out of it are gym shoes that came in handy recently when my shoe strap broke just before I walked into church. I changed shoes and got into church on time.

You never know when you may need your go bag. Many of us living north of State College Boulevard had to evacuate in 2008 when the Freeway Complex Fire came roaring over the hills. That was when I took the go bag seriously, and we all should today.

According to the American Red Cross and other emergency services, your go bag should include a first aid kit, a gallon of water per person per day and granola bars or other non-perishable food like nuts, seeds and raisins, for example.

I keep a case or two of bottled water on hand. It would be easy to pop into the car trunk if I had to leave in an emergency.

Your go bag also should have a flashlight and extra batteries, a hand-cranked or battery-powered radio, cell phone, your computers and chargers, a Swiss army knife or other multi-use hand tool and a manual can opener. Also pack medications and personal hygiene items, including a hairbrush, toilet paper and hand sanitizer.

Also include an emergency blanket, copies of your birth and marriage certificates, passports, insurance policies and other personal documents, including checkbooks and bank books, credit cards, a copy of your will or trust, at least $200 in cash, including a roll of quarters for buying food from vending machines.

Don’t forget your family and emergency contact information, even your Christmas card address list. You might need to bunk with someone on the card list.

My go bag also includes extra socks, undies, a change of clothes and N95 masks.

The Red Cross and other sources sell go bags filled with emergency needs. But you’d still want to add some clean socks and undies in your kit. And if you have little ones, be sure they leave with their favorite toy or stuffed animal and their blankie.

What about your pets? Diane Wiltsie, a Crestline resident who has evacuated twice due to fires, told me to not pack cat litter or bags of pet food.

“You can get pet food and litter at a pet store,” said Wiltsie. Maybe pack a small bag of dry food, just in case. And don’t forget Lassie’s leach and a sturdy carrier for Sammy the cat.

Cheryl Pirih, another Crestline resident and past evacuee said, “Take photos of the outside of your house, each room and even contents of drawers.”

If your house burns down, those photos will be a big help dealing with insurance and rebuilding. She also recommends taking irreplaceable items like special photos.

One Christmas I received a gift of a “Survival in a Bottle,” a 32-oz. plastic water bottle filled with a flashlight, AA batteries, a survival blanket, an emergency poncho, a whistle, a reusable zip-lock bag and a carabineer to clip to a belt loop. I keep this mini- survival kit in my car. It can hook onto my go bag if the need to evacuate happens again.

To be even better prepared, take a first aid class or the next CERT – Citizens Emergency Response Team – 20-hour training, starting Feb. 27.

Terri Daxon is a freelance writer and the owner of Daxon Marketing Communications. She gives her perspective on Brea issues twice a month. Contact her at  daxoncomm@gmail.com.

​ Orange County Register 

Wally’s Cafe brings heavily, heavenly spiced Lebanese food to Costa Mesa

• January 23, 2025

“We use around 15 to 20 spices in our chicken and beef,” said Roni Matar, son of Wally’s Cafe’s namesake founder, Walid Matar, a former dentist turned chef and restaurateur. Marking its third location, Wally’s Cafe, which specializes in house-made Lebanese fare, opened in Costa Mesa in December.

Walid Mater, a native of Lebanon, ditched his dental scrubs and mouth mirror after leaving his homeland for the United States in 2001. Wasting no time and using traditional Lebanese recipes handed down to him from his family, Walid opened the first Wally’s Cafe in 2007 in the Bay Area.

Menu highlights at Wally’s Cafe include the chicken or beef shawarma plates, which come with slices of grilled meat; a chicken pomegranate plate with sliced chicken marinated in pomegranate molasses; and kabab plates, all of which come served with rice, salad, tzatziki sauce, garlic sauce and pita bread.

Wally’s also serves wraps galore, including chicken or beef shawarma, kafta and falafel iterations, as well as beef and lamb gyros.

Other notable treats include a homemade Lebanese mint lemonade with black currant syrup; a baklava with a cashew center and pistachio-flecked top (a nice change from the walnut-laden ones found elsewhere); and, best of all, a baklava ice cream made by using the crispy, caramelized remnants of baklava as a mix-in.

While the Costa Mesa space is small compared to the first two spots (it’s one of a handful of kiosk-style restaurants inside the Costa Mesa complex), all of the dishes here are made fresh at Wally’s Cafe. Guests are welcome to place an order once inside or for pickup via delivery.

ALSO SEE: James Beard Award 2025 semifinalists announced, including two OC names

The first Wally’s Cafe opened in Emeryville, a few blocks away from Pixar Studios. (A fun yet unconfirmed rumor has it that the creators of the Oscar-winning “WALL-E” might have been inspired by Matar’s restaurant name; a poster of the robotic trash compactor at the original Wally’s was reportedly a gift from Pixar employees to the eatery’s owner, aka Walid “Wally” Matar.) In 2017, Walid moved just outside of Sacramento to open a larger location with more seating in Rocklin.

His latest spot, which is also his first foray in Southern California, is led with help from Roni Matar and his wife, Jessica Alvarez.

“I have nothing to do with making the food, experience-wise, so that’s why I brought in the big guns here,” Roni Mater said, nodding to Jessica, who leads the kitchen at Wally’s Cafe. “I’m the feeder and he’s the eater,” she quipped.

The reputation of Walid’s fare has already drawn in customers from around the Golden State, especially Bay Area expats who are familiar with his previous restaurants.

“We’ve had a lot of people already that come here who are already familiar with what we do in Emeryville or Rockland,” said Alvarez. “And so that kind of reaffirms for us that we’re on the right path, and that we should be here helping to build what Wally started.”

Since opening its first location, Wally’s has also been named a four-time Yelp Top 100 Restaurant — no small feat.

Another interesting tidbit is its location, inside a ghost kitchen. Those newfangled food-preparation spaces that, by and large, serve customers through online fulfillment apps can bring to mind a dystopian future of gastronomic proportions, but they can also offer smaller eateries the chance to spring to life. Costa Mesa Kitchens, just off Newport Boulevard, fulfills orders from major chains like Wingstop and Goop Kitchen, a spinoff of Gwyneth Paltrow’s lifestyle brand. But the commercial kitchen complex also lays claim to Wally’s, a beating heart inside an otherwise automated space.

Wally’s Cafe is open Monday through Saturday from 11 a.m. until 8 p.m.

Find it: 750 Newport Blvd., Costa Mesa

​ Orange County Register 

Purdue Pharma owners could pay $7.4 billion settlement over OxyContin toll

• January 23, 2025

By GEOFF MULVIHILL | Associated Press

Members of the family who own OxyContin maker Purdue Pharma agreed to pay up to $7.4 billion in a new settlement to lawsuits over the toll of the powerful prescription painkiller, New York Attorney General Letitia James announced Thursday.

The deal, agreed to by Purdue Pharma, the Sackler family members who own the company and lawyers representing state and local governments and thousands of victims of the opioid crisis, represents an increase of more than $1 billion over a previous settlement deal that was rejected last year by the U.S. Supreme Court.

It’s among the largest settlements reached over the past several years in a series of lawsuits by local, state, Native American tribal governments and others seeking to hold companies responsible for a deadly epidemic. Aside from the Purdue deal, others worth around $50 billion have been announced — and most of the money is required to be used to stem the crisis.

The deal still needs court approval, and some of the details are yet to be ironed out.

Under the new proposal, members of the Sackler family who own Purdue would contribute up to $7.4 billion over 15 years and give up ownership of Purdue, which would become a new entity with its board appointed by states and others who sued the company. A portion of the money is also to go to victims of the opioid crisis or their survivors.

The family’s contribution will be higher than the $6 billion agreed to under the previous version. The Supreme Court blocked the agreement last year because it protected members of the wealthy family from civil lawsuits over OxyContin — even though the family members themselves were not in bankruptcy. The new agreement protects family members from lawsuits only from entities that agree to the settlement.

There’s been mediation seeking a new deal since the court’s ruling was delivered. If one is not reached, it could open the floodgates to lawsuits against Sackler family members.

The new settlement could bring to a close a chapter in a long legal saga over the toll of an opioid crisis that some experts assert began after the blockbuster painkiller OxyContin hit the market in 1996. Since then, opioids have been linked to hundreds of thousands of deaths in the U.S. The deadliest stretch has been since 2020, when illicit fentanyl has been found as a factor in more than 70,000 deaths annually.

Members of the Sackler family been cast as villains and have seen their name removed from art galleries and universities around the world because of their role in the privately held company. They’ve continued to deny claims of any wrongdoing.

Collectively, family members have been estimated to be worth billions more than they’d contribute in the settlement, but much of the wealth is in offshore accounts and might be impossible to access through lawsuits.

Purdue sought bankruptcy protection in 2019 as it faced thousands of lawsuits over the opioid crisis. Among the claims are that the company targeted doctors with a message that the addiction risk to the powerful painkillers was low.

In an October 2024 filing, one branch of the family pledged to defend itself in any cases that are allowed to move ahead, saying that the legal theory at the heart of the lawsuits — that Purdue and Sackler family members created a “public nuisance” — “is utterly devoid of merits.”

​ Orange County Register