”Survey says” looks at various rankings and scorecards judging geographic locations while noting these grades are best seen as a mix of artful interpretation and data.

Buzz: The pay gap between California’s upper and lower halves of the pay scale is larger than any other state.

Source: My trusty spreadsheet looked at some federal jobs data for May 2023, tracking two noteworthy slices of wages by state – the 75th and 25th percentiles, or the medians of the top half and bottom half of salaries. This spread offers clues about uneven paychecks across a state.

Topline

There’s a 146% difference between what California bosses typically paid in the top half of salaries versus the bottom half. That’s the No. 1 chasm among the states and well above 108% nationally.

After California came Massachusetts and New York at 144%, then Maryland at 142%. The smallest gap was in Maine at 81%, then South Dakota at 82%, Iowa at 84%, and North Dakota at 85%.

And this measure of income inequality in California’s two big economic rivals? Texas ranked No. 8 at 128% and Florida was No. 32 at 100%.

The details

How did we get to this gap?

Well, California homes still sell (slowly), our roads are filled with new vehicles, and our shopping centers are busy because many bosses in the Golden State pay really well.

The state’s 75th percentile pay – the mid-point of the upper half – ranked No. 3 in the U.S. at $93,250 a year. Nationally, that pay is $70,035. So Golden State bosses pay 33% better for the higher-pay work.

Topping California were Massachusetts at $98,110 and Washington at $95,180. The lowest was Mississippi at $55,870, Arkansas at $58,900, and South Dakota at $59,980.

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By the way, Texas was No. 22 at $72,640 and Florida, No. 30 at $67,600.

Yet, many California jobs don’t pay well – thus the huge have-versus-have-not divide.

Wages at the 25th percentile – mid-point of the lower half – in California ranked No. 7 at $37,890 vs. $35,030 nationally. So, for the lower-salaries worker, Golden State bosses pay only 8% better than US peers.

Tops? Washington at $43,370, Massachusetts at $40,130, and Colorado at $38,830. Lows? Mississippi at $27,910, Louisiana at $28,900, and West Virginia at $29,260.

And Texas was No. 41 at $31,920 and Florida, No. 32 at $33,730.

Bottom line

Whenever you wonder who can afford California, don’t forget that some people can – as this math shows.

However, while California pay level for the upper half may seem generous – it does not go very far in the Golden State. For example, ponder those paychecks as fuel for house hunting.

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The California Association of Realtors estimated buyers needed a $208,000 household income to qualify to buy the median priced home in the spring of 2023 – when this wage data was tabulated.

That’s more than double the 75th percentile wage. Yes, a household with two jobs paying more than what three-quarters of Californians make doesn’t cut it.

And that why’s the Realtors math says only 16% of households could “afford” to buy.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

“How expensive?” tracks measurements of California’s totally unaffordable housing market.

The pain: Even California workers making more than 75% of all jobs will struggle to buy a home.

The source: My trusty spreadsheet created an “affordability” index comparing the 75th percentile income in 50 states as of May 2023 – that’s the median of the upper half of all annual wages – from the Bureau of Labor Statistics against the median home value, as tracked by Zillow.

The pinch

In a state where roughly half of all households own their home, it’s not hard to see why the 75th percentile pay is typical for house hunters.

In California this annual pay ranks third-highest in the nation at $93,250 versus $70,035 nationally. That’s 33% higher.

Tops for upper-crust paychecks was Massachusetts at $98,110, then Washington at $95,180. Lows? Mississippi at $55,870, Arkansas at $58,900, and South Dakota at $59,980. California rivals Texas was No. 22 at $72,640 and Florida was No. 30 at $67,600.

Then ponder pricing, California’s bane.

The typical statewide residence was No. 2 costliest in the US last year at $753,800 versus $325,750 nationally. That’s 131% higher. Yes, more than double.

Top home prices were in Hawaii at $848,700. No 3. was Massachusetts at $586,600. Lows? West Virginia at $157,400, Mississippi at $177,100, and Kentucky at $200,300. Texas was No. 29 at $305,600. Florida was No. 17 at $390,800.

The point of pain

Now, think about who can afford to buy a home.

Imagine the buying power of a 7% mortgage for a borrower devoting 40% of those 75th percentage wages to the house payment.

In California, these wages buy you 61% of the typical residence. That ranks next-to-last and well below the 110% nationally.

Only Hawaii was worse at 45%. No. 3 was Utah at 69%. Tops was West Virginia at 193%, Ohio at 165%, and Illinois and Mississippi at 157%.

And Texas was No. 20 at 118% and Florida was No. 38 at 86%.

Jonathan Lansner is business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Buzz: California’s homeownership rate hit a 13-year high last year – if you ignore the data-challenged, pandemic-twisted 2020 result.

Source: My trusty spreadsheet reviewed annual state homeownership figures from the Census Bureau.

Fuzzy math: In 2023, 55.8% of California households lived in a home they owned – up from 55.3% in 2022. And before COVID-19, you have to go back to 2010 at 56.1% to find a higher rate.

Reality check

Asterisk No. 1: Well, 2020 was better at 55.9%, according to the Census database.

Yet the bureau’s reports largely disavow much of its nationwide ownership stats from that year due to complications in data collection tied to various coronavirus lockdowns.

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Still, 2023 was clearly the second-best in 13 years.

Asterisk No. 2: Last year’s 55.8% ownership rate was second worst among the states – and far below the nation’s 65.9%.

Only New York was worse at 53.3%. No. 3 was Nevada at 61.2%, then Hawaii at 61.8%.

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Highest ownership was found in West Virginia at 77%, Delaware at 75.7%, Maine and Mississippi at 75.5%. The Golden State’s economic rivals Texas was No. 44 at 63.6% and Florida was No. 32 at 67.3%.

Asterisk No. 3: It’s a meek improvement.

California ownership was only 1 percentage-point better than the 54.8% in pre-pandemic 2019. That was the 34th-best performance among the states and below the 1.7 gain nationally.

The biggest gains were found in North Dakota (4.3 points), Connecticut and Arizona at 3.9. Biggest drops New Jersey, off 2.3 points, Ohio and Utah, off 1.6 points). Texas was No. 31, up 1.2 points. Florida, No. 29, up 1.3.

Simply average

Last year’s California homeownership rate was equal to the state’s 40-year average at 55.8%.

And the nation’s 2023 rate was only 0.2 percentage points better than the 65.7% norm since 1984.

Considering how much effort is put into boosting ownership, not much progress.

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It took the crazy subprime lending era (which ended badly) to create record high ownership – 60.2% in California in 2006, while the nation peaked in 2004 at 69%.

Jonathan Lansner is business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

The number: California is suffering from the nation’s second-biggest drop in job openings since the Federal Reserve began hiking interest rates two years ago.

The source: My trusty spreadsheet looked at job openings for the 50 states and Washington, D.C., for March – the latest available – and compared them with March 2022.

The why: The Fed began its battle against four-decades-high inflation two years ago in March, using costlier financing to cool an overheated economy. So we also looked at pre-pandemic 2018-19 as a measurement of “normal” hiring patterns.

Quick analysis 

California had the nation’s second-largest number of openings in March 2024 – 734,000, or 9% of the 8.3 million US total. Texas was No. 1 at 807,000. Florida was third at 543,000, followed by New York at 532,000 and Illinois at 385,000.

If you want to see one example of how effective the Fed has been at chilling the economy, consider how many workers bosses say they need – now versus two years ago.

California job openings have tumbled 42% since March 2022. It’s not just this state, though, as there’s been a 31% decline nationally.

On a percentage-point basis, California had the second-largest drop. The largest dip was in Kentucky, off 43%. Coming in third was Arizona, followed by Pennsylvania, and then Tennessee, off 40%.

Every state saw fewer job openings since the Fed acted. Colorado had the smallest decrease at 8%, then Kansas, off 11%, New Jersey, off 12%, Oklahoma, off 14%, and Illinois, off 16%.

Among California’s economic rivals: Texas ranked No. 21, off 26%, and Florida was No. 40, off 33%.

Bottom line 

You can’t simply blame the Fed.

Two years ago, job openings had soared because many bosses across the nation were trying to refill staffs that shrank because of pandemic business limitations.

As those staffing needs dried up, there were the employers who added too many workers in that 2021-22 hiring spree. Now, they’re readjusting their workforces to meet 2024’s cooler economic climate.

All these gyrations leave early 2024’s California job opportunities looking somewhat like the pre-pandemic days of 2018-19.

California’s March openings were 4% below the 2018-19 average, but that’s the sixth-worst performance among the states. Note that nationwide openings are up 16% in this period.

Bigger drops were found in Hawaii, off 10%, then Ohio, off 9%, North Dakota, off 8%, and North Carolina and Arizona, off 5%.

Also, 43 states have more openings than in 2018-19, led by South Carolina, up 50%, Oklahoma and New Jersey, up 41%, and Texas and Maryland, up 39%. Note: Florida was No. 18 with a 28% gain.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

The number: California is suffering from the nation’s second-biggest drop in job openings since the Federal Reserve began hiking interest rates two years ago.

The source: My trusty spreadsheet looked at job openings for the 50 states and Washington, D.C., for March – the latest available – and compared them with March 2022.

The why: The Fed began its battle against four-decades-high inflation two years ago in March, using costlier financing to cool an overheated economy. So we also looked at pre-pandemic 2018-19 as a measurement of “normal” hiring patterns.

Quick analysis 

California had the nation’s second-largest number of openings in March 2024 – 734,000, or 9% of the 8.3 million US total. Texas was No. 1 at 807,000. Florida was third at 543,000, followed by New York at 532,000 and Illinois at 385,000.

If you want to see one example of how effective the Fed has been at chilling the economy, consider how many workers bosses say they need – now versus two years ago.

California job openings have tumbled 42% since March 2022. It’s not just this state, though, as there’s been a 31% decline nationally.

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On a percentage-point basis, California had the second-largest drop. The largest dip was in Kentucky, off 43%. Coming in third was Arizona, followed by Pennsylvania, and then Tennessee, off 40%.

Every state saw fewer job openings since the Fed acted. Colorado had the smallest decrease at 8%, then Kansas, off 11%, New Jersey, off 12%, Oklahoma, off 14%, and Illinois, off 16%.

Among California’s economic rivals: Texas ranked No. 21, off 26%, and Florida was No. 40, off 33%.

Bottom line 

You can’t simply blame the Fed.

Two years ago, job openings had soared because many bosses across the nation were trying to refill staffs that shrank because of pandemic business limitations.

As those staffing needs dried up, there were the employers who added too many workers in that 2021-22 hiring spree. Now, they’re readjusting their workforces to meet 2024’s cooler economic climate.

All these gyrations leave early 2024’s California job opportunities looking somewhat like the pre-pandemic days of 2018-19.

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California’s March openings were 4% below the 2018-19 average, but that’s the sixth-worst performance among the states. Note that nationwide openings are up 16% in this period.

Bigger drops were found in Hawaii, off 10%, then Ohio, off 9%, North Dakota, off 8%, and North Carolina and Arizona, off 5%.

Also, 43 states have more openings than in 2018-19, led by South Carolina, up 50%, Oklahoma and New Jersey, up 41%, and Texas and Maryland, up 39%. Note: Florida was No. 18 with a 28% gain.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

”Survey says” looks at various rankings and scorecards judging geographic locations while noting these grades are best seen as a mix of artful interpretation and data.

Buzz: California has the nation’s harshest conditions to run a fast food joint, according to my ranking of key industry benchmarks.

Source: My trusty spreadsheet created a fast food business scorecard for the 50 states, gauging the relative hurdles faced by operators of quick-serve restaurants. The overall benchmark included rankings of wages, prices, food expenses, utilities, overall business costs and food spending.

Topline

When Rubio’s Coastal Grill recently closed 48 California restaurants, the chain blamed “business conditions” and “the rising cost of doing business in California” – no doubt a shot at the state’s new fast food law that mandates a minimum hourly wage of $20 for fast-food workers at certain large restaurant chains.

Well, California ranked dead last on my fast food business climate scorecard. Next worst were Hawaii, Alaska, Connecticut and Maryland.

The best place to own a fast food restaurant, by this math, is Texas – then North Carolina, Arkansas, Louisiana, and Mississippi. By the way, Florida was No. 26.

Details

Let’s look inside the five slices in this ranking recipe.

Pay: Even before California upped its minimum wage by $4 an hour for fast food workers, labor costs were high.

California ranked No. 2 with a $16.91 median hourly wage for front-line fast-food workers as of May 2023. The Bureau of Labor Statistics’ figures show California was 19% above the $14.20 national rate. (We’ll note here that California’s minimum wage in 2024 for other larger companies is $16 hourly.)

Top fast food pay was found in Washington at $17.16, and after California came Massachusetts at $16.75. The lowest pay was Mississippi at $10.39, Louisiana at $10.74 and Alabama at $10.99.

Pricing: California diners pay up for their quick-serve meals. That can be seen as a marketing challenge compared to home cooking.

The state had the second-costliest fast food – 18.5% above the national norm, the combined reports from NetSpend, World Population Review and Datassential show us.

Tops was Hawaii at 19.5% above average, and after California came Alaska at 16%. The cheapest fast food was found in Mississippi, 6.3% below average, Alabama, 5.6% below and Nebraska, 4% below.

Food costs: It’s not just wages boosting pricing. Ingredients are a big slice of restaurant expenses.

California ranked No. 3 with costs 12% above the national norm, using a grocery cost index from the Council for Community & Economic Research as a yardstick of food prices.

The priciest ingredients were found in Alaska, where they’re 24% above average, then Hawaii, 17% higher. Cheapest? North Dakota and Oklahoma, 6% below average, and Louisiana, 5% under.

Utility bills: Fast food joints use lots of electricity, natural gas, water, etc., and California isn’t a cheap spot for those services either.

The state ranked 10th-highest with expenses 11% above the US norm, as measured by a loose yardstick for these bills – scorecards on residential utility prices by Move.org and RubyHome.

Costliest was Hawaii, 46% above average, Georgia, 23% above, and Alaska, 21% above. Utility bargains were New Mexico, 20% below the norm, Wisconsin, 18% below, and Michigan, 14% below.

Business expenses: California is a costly place to run any company.

The state ranked fourth-highest on overall business expenses, according to recent rankings from Forbes magazine. The only pricier states were Hawaii, New Jersey and Massachusetts.

The cheapest place to run a business was South Dakota, then Delaware and Texas.

Food spending: The Golden State’s key business lure are consumers with deep pockets.

Californians spent $9,362 per capita on food, beverages and hotels in 2022, according to the Bureau of Economic Analysis. That’s the third-largest consumer outlay among the states and 19% above the $7,893 nationally.

The top spot was Hawaii at $10,147, then Colorado at $9,620. Arkansans spent the least at $6,079, then Oklahoma at $6,361, and Idaho at $6,512.

Bottom line

It’s tough for California fast food operators. It’s also tough for fast food workers, too.

Let’s not forget that low-wage jobs in California buy quite a bit less when the state’s expensive life is factored into the math.

California’s seemingly high fast food wage – after it’s adjusted for the cost of living – was only $13.47 hourly as of May 2023. That’s 17th lowest among the states and 5% below the $14.20 national norm.

The best spot for cost-adjusted fast food pay was Colorado at $16.12 an hour, South Dakota at $15.54, and North Dakota at $15.48. Lowest pay? Hawaii at $9.60, Louisiana at $11.83, and Mississippi at $11.97.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Our “crystal ball” feature helps decipher numerous forecasts that ponder the future ups and downs of the economy.

Buzz: Home-price appreciation is projected to slow in California and 35 other states in the next 12 months.

Source: My trusty spreadsheet’s reviewed the April edition of CoreLogic’s state-by-state price indexes, which look 12 months ahead and 12 months back.

Look ahead

Let’s start with the forecast. If it’s correct, California prices will rise 4.6% in the year ending in April 2025. That’s 12th best among the states and above the 3.4% forecast nationally.

Tops? Hawaii with a 6.4% gain, then Alaska at 6.3%, Idaho at 6.2%, Wyoming at 5.8%, and Washington state at 5.8%.

Lows? Texas at 1.4%, then Arizona at 1.5%, Indiana at 1.7%, Oklahoma at 1.7%, and Virginia at 2.3%.

Look back

The crazy lack of housing affordability has to catch up with the market eventually. Contrast these forecasts to what happened in the 12 months ended in April.

California ranked No. 15 with 7% price gains vs. 5.3% nationally.

Tops? New Hampshire at 11.9%, then New Jersey at 11%, South Dakota at 10.8%, Connecticut at 9.9%, and Rhode Island at 9.8%.

Lows? Washington, D.C. at 0.4%, then Louisiana at 1.2%, Texas at 1.4%, Wyoming at 1.6%, and Mississippi at 1.9%.

The chill

Now compare the forecast to history to see the cooldown.

For California, we see a projected 2.4-percentage-point slowdown in appreciation. It’s the 24th-biggest reversal among the states. And it’s bigger than the 1.9-point cooling foreseen nationally.

The largest projected chill in price appreciation was found in New Jersey (down 8.6 percentage points in a year to 2.4%), then South Dakota (down 7.2 points to 3.6%), New Hampshire (down 7 points to 4.9%), Rhode Island (down 6.4 points to 3.5%), and Wisconsin (down 5.7 points to 2.8%).

But like many real estate trends, it’s not universal.

Ponder that 15 states are projected to have appreciation increases, topped by Wyoming (up 4.2 points to 5.8%), then Idaho (up 4 points to 6.2%), Colorado (up 3.1 points to 5.8%), Utah (up 2.9 points to 5.6%), and Alaska (up 2.5 points to 6.3%).

Oh, and Texas appreciation will be flat at 1.4%.

Clear or cloudy?

Any deceleration makes sense. It’s the past year’s price increases that were illogical.

Gains came despite the highest mortgage rates in two decades and a cooling economy – a combo that’s historically bad news for house hunting.

But housing’s high prices and lack of affordability created a dramatic drop in home sales to almost unthinkable lows. That’s this cycle’s debacle.

Quote-able

“There is some cooling expected as SoCal prices have been particularly strong and there is some slowing expected in light of continually high rates,” says Selma Hepp, CoreLogic’s chief economist.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

The company announced this week that the move, expected to be completed by September, is part of its growth strategy. The chain is in 39 states with more than 300 restaurants – with roughly one-third of the eateries in California.

Unlike other companies that have departed the Golden State, Blaze’s statement on its relocation sounded sort of sentimental.

“California is where this brand was born more than a decade ago, and we have tremendous heart for communities across the state where so many of our restaurants are,” said Beto Guajardo, CEO of Blaze Pizza. “Moving our corporate headquarters to Atlanta will help us drive our next wave of growth.”

Blaze said that of its approximately 60 corporate employees, the majority will remain remote workers “with the small percentage of Southern California-based employees being offered relocation opportunities at Blaze Pizza’s Atlanta office. The more than 7,500 restaurant-level employees are not part of this reorganization and will not be affected.”

The company has gone through some changes in recent years. The Wetzels sold their stake in 2020. CEO Guajardo joined Blaze in January 2023. Shortly after that, Brad Kent, Blaze’s co-founder and the cooking smarts behind the concept, left.

Blaze has attracted some high-profile investors including NBA star LeBron James, former California First Lady Maria Shriver, movie producer John Davis, and private equity firm Brentwood Associates.

And the menu is in transition, too. Earlier this year, Blaze added meatballs. Then last week the chain announced its “most significant menu revamp in its history,” which includes five revamped pizzas: a meat-lover’s pie, a vegetarian pie, a meatball pie, a chicken BBQ/ranch pie, and a four-cheese offering.

This exit follows other Southern California corporate departures in recent months including Neutrogena to New Jersey, QuickFee (Texas), Oak View Group (Colorado), and Unical Aviation (Arizona).

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Want to make the big money in California?

Think about becoming a boss in charge of high-skilled workers in big cities.

My trusty spreadsheet looked at an annual report from the Bureau of Labor Statistics with a curious employment analysis – slicing jobs and pay by the type of work done across all industries. The latest stats, as of May 2023, give us a window into how much more supervisors earn compared with the typical worker.

You see, it can pay to be a manager in California. The statewide median annual wage for a boss was $135,840, the eighth-highest managerial pay among the states and Washington, D.C. Those salaries are 16% above the $116,800 paid to bosses nationwide.

The nation’s top-paid bosses were in bureaucratic-heavy economies: D.C. at $161,300, New Jersey at $160,410 and New York at $152,520. The lowest management wages were found in less-populated places: Arkansas at $80,570, Mississippi at $80,930 and Idaho at $82,260.

And boss pay in California’s economic arch-rival states was middle-of-the-pack: Texas was No. 24 at $105,170 and Florida was No. 26 at $104,170.

The bump

Why put up with all the managerial headaches?

Well, boss pay is a hefty bump from the common paycheck. Consider that management across California gets paid $81,810 more a year than the median wage of $54,030 for all workers statewide.

That 151% gap is the sixth-largest boss premium among the states. The typical U.S. supervisor gets a $68,740 bigger paycheck – or 143% more than the $48,060 all-worker median.

The largest boss premiums were found in New Jersey at 192%, Delaware at 184% and New York at 168%. The smallest were in Idaho at 86%, D.C. at 91% and Alaska at 94%.

And Texas was No. 24 at 129% while Florida was No. 22 at 131%.

Opportunity knocks

Want to become a boss in the Golden State? Good news: There’s plenty of opportunity.

California had 1.3 million bosses in May 2023, the most in the U.S. Then came Texas at 1.1 million, New York at 611,690 and Florida at 601,150.

Note that California managers were 7.3% of all jobs statewide, the 13th largest share among the states and higher than the 6.9% U.S. share.

The most boss-heavy places were D.C. at 14.5%, Massachusetts at 9.5% and Maryland at 9.1%. Texas was No. 6 at 8.3%. Meanwhile, bosses were hardest to find in South Dakota, 3.5% of all jobs, Wisconsin at 4.7% and Rhode Island at 4.8%. Florida was No. 30 at 6.3%.

On the ladder

These stats also slice management work into various chores. This gives us a view into how California’s managerial pay varies by one’s rung on the corporate ladder.

The 38,920 chief executives across California had a median wage of $231,080. That may seem low for a corporate leader, but remember that the giant CEO compensation packages you hear about are primarily inflated with hefty bonuses and enormous stock-option payouts.

One notch lower in the boss world – California’s 273,630 general and operations managers – are the folks who supervise multiple managers (think, senior vice presidents or divisional presidents). They have a median wage of $122,140.

The report also identified 892,910 front-line supervisors in California overseeing 34 different skills. The spreadsheet found these jobs were worth a $113,700 salary.

Hot spots

Managerial pay also varies depending on the specific chores of the workers they supervise. Basically, bossing higher-skill staffs equals higher pay.

Is it much of a surprise that the top-paid front-line supervisors oversee work on computer and information systems? These bosses had a $210,490 median wage across 98,430 positions statewide.

Other top-paid front-line supervisors …

Natural sciences: $198,580 wage for 14,080 positions.

Architectural and engineering: $197,420 wage for 35,630 positions.

Marketing: $174,480 wage for 59,830 positions.

Financial: $169,780 wage for 97,400 positions.

So, where is managerial pay the lowest?

Lodging: $74,660 wage for 6,220 positions.

Property, real estate and community associations: $69,560 wage for 50,100 positions.

Food service: $67,740 wage for 44,500 positions.

Other personal services: $66,040 wage for 2,120 positions.

Preschool and daycare: $60,620 wage for 8,140 positions.

Geographically speaking

Where a boss is employed – and what industries are concentrated in a locale – changes a manager’s paycheck.

This report, tracking 29 California regions, found the state’s best-paid managers were in heavily populated regions filled with high-skilled labor.

Top boss pay was found in the high-paying tech hub of San Jose, home to a $206,650 median wage for 119,300 supervisory positions.

Then came San Francisco ($171,350 wage for 237,070 positions), San Diego ($134,250 for 114,190 positions), Los Angeles/Orange County ($130,300 for 437,530 positions) and Santa Maria/Santa Barbara ($124,690 for 12,900 positions).

And the lowest boss pay was located in remote, lightly populated parts of the state with significant employment in low-paying tourism work.

The 3,620 bosses in the eastern Sierras had a $96,430 median wage, while 5,820 managers in the state’s northern mountains had a $99,610 typical paycheck.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com

Take the mix of orange and cream. Recently I wrote about a renewed culinary interest and marketing push for the creamsicle flavor, highlighted by fast food’s Wendy’s chain using the combo in its Frosty.

This year’s creamsicle craze also hit fast food’s Baskin-Robbins, Carvel, and Wienerschnitzel, and yogurt maker Chobani — just to name a few brands.

Well, that column sparked quite a bit of taste-bud nostalgia amongst readers, not to mention more sightings of orange-cream concoctions in the food business.

“Orange cream was my favorite treat from Scotty Scooter the ice cream man when I was growing up,” one reader wrote. “We were in Flagstaff, Arizona, for a wedding and stopped in a small grocery store. I found orange cream M&M’s!”

Yes, the Mars candy makers recently added “vanilla orange creme white chocolate candy” to its M&M lineup. According to a posting on retailer Dollar General’s website, the candy has “all the flavor of your favorite orange and creme popsicle.”

Of course, they’re colored orange and white.

Craze-sicle

M&Ms is by no means alone. Other entrants this spring to the creamsicle craze have cooked up some limited-time offers …

Sonic: Its Orange Cloudsicle Slush Float is a mix of the fast food chain’s famous ice, soft-serve ice cream, creamsicle flavors and boba-style orange “flavor bubbles.”

IHOP: The pancake place added the “Blossom’s Orangesicle” drink that’s “orange juice, lemon-lime soda and vanilla syrup. Garnished with whipped topping, Fruity Pebbles and a gummi butterfly.”

Arby’s: The sandwich shop brought back its orange cream shake.

Health-Ade: The kombucha maker’s Orange Creamsicle is “the bright and creamy flavors of your favorite childhood popsicle. A perfect balance of sweet and tart.”

Vizzy’s: The hard seltzer maker brought back Orange Cream Pop – “a nostalgic blend of orange and vanilla with a touch of sweetness reminiscent of an orange creamsicle.”

The memories

Why is old the new “new?” Ponder what my readers said.

“You certainly brought back some memories.  The gold standard of the late 60s was the Foster’s Freeze Orange Ice, 42 cents out the door. I often scoured the neighborhood for bottles that I could return for deposit to afford the treat. I thought I could relive the moment with Wendy’s new drink. Not even close.  Probably the best reminder is Rita’s Custard’s orange and vanilla mix. It’s not always available, but when it is, it’s a can’t miss!”

“Around 1950 or so, Foster’s Freeze opened in the San Joaquin Valley. They came up with Orange Freeze – orange soda and the soft ice cream, blended in one of those things used to make milk shakes. It was very flavorful and refreshingly cold.”

“Liquid Gravity Brewing in San Luis Obispo has an amazing brew called Orange Cream Machine. It is a dead ringer for the creamsicles of our youth. It inspired all of us to say, ‘What the heck?! How could this be?!’ If you like beer, try it sometime!”

“I used to love an ice cream that was orange sherbet swirled with vanilla ice cream, sadly discontinued. Now I just make my own — a scoop each from a carton of orange sherbet and a carton of vanilla ice cream.”

“Tillamook ice cream has Orange & Cream. It should be delightful. I say that is because I purchase Tillamook Peaches & Cream, and it is so yummy. One creamy spoonful and you think you went to heaven – but didn’t die!”

“The orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream we had in the ’50s and the ’60s came from the ice cream truck growing up in Lakewood was ‘Pushups.’ You pushed the treat up through a cardboard chamber and eat as you wanted.”

“You left out the best – Jamba Juice Orange Dream Machine. Ingredients are orange juice, orange sherbert, vanilla soy milk, fat-free vanilla frozen yogurt.  It’s been on the menu for decades. It’s super refreshing and my go-to indulgence when I have a sore throat.”

Cheers!

One reader offered a cocktail idea, writing “I thought you might enjoy trying this recipe I created for a party at my home last spring, … ahead of said trend!”

• 3 parts Whipped Cream Vodka
• 1 part frozen orange juice concentrate
• 1 part Triple Sec
• 1/2 part half-n-half
• 1/2 part orange soda

Shake with ice. Strain into a martini glass.

Jonathan Lansner is the business columnist for the Southern California News Group. He can be reached at jlansner@scng.com