Daily Business Report — Oct. 7, 2011
Mayoral Candidates in Forum to Talk Jobs
San Diego mayoral candidates Councilman Carl DeMaio, Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher and District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis and a panel of business leaders will take part in an Oct. 18 forum on the job market sponsored by the San Diego State University Alumni Association. It will be held at 5:30 p.m. at the Parma Payne Goodall Alumni Center. Panelists will include Keith Sutton, president and CEO of Syzergy Technologies Inc.; Phyllis Huckabee, vice president of human resources for Quidel Corp.; Irene Stillings, executive director of the California Center for Sustainable Energy; Julie Cooke, vice president of human resources for Life Technologies; and Vince Mudd, chairman of the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce. Moderator will be Gangaram Singh, associate dead of the College of Business Administration a SDSU. The cost is $20 for students, $35 for Alumni Association members and $45 at the door. For more, call (619) 594-2586.
National University Signs Transfer Deal with City College
National University has signed an agreement with San Diego City College to make it easier for City College students with associate’s degrees in information technology to pursue bachelor’s degrees at the university. The agreement will make it easier for students of San Diego City College to pursue a bachelor’s degree, to enroll in courses at National University concurrently with their enrollment at San Diego City College, or to transfer to a bachelor’s degree program following completion of a certificate or associate’s degree program at City College. The new Baccalaureate degree program at City College will be in Information Technology Management. City College students, employees, and alumni will be eligible to receive a 10 percent discount on the cost of tuition for all National University courses taken onsite at City College. For more information, call David Neville at (858) 642-8163 or visit nu.edu.
Ensign Group Acquires The Springs at Pacific Regent
The Ensign Group Inc., parent company of the Ensign group of skilled nursing, rehabilitative care services, hospice care and assisted living companies, has acquired The Springs at Pacific Regent La Jolla, a 59-bed Medicare-only skilled nursing facility in La Jolla. A subsidiary of Ensign’s Flagstone Group will operate The Springs. Ed McCarthy, executive director of The Springs, said the acquisition will allow the facility to serve a broader segment of the county. The Springs is part of a larger retirement community that includes Pacific Regent Tower, a 21-story independent living condominium project. The acquisition included an undeveloped one-acre parcel adjacent to the facility that has received conditional approval for a second 21-story residential tower. Ensign is considering alternatives for the eventual development of the parcel.
NASSCO Delivers Cargo-Ammunition Ship to Navy
NASSCO delivered the USNS William McLean to the Navy in a signing ceremony on Sept. 28. Named in honor of William Burdette McLean (1914-1976), the Navy physicist who conceived and developed the heat-seeking Sidewinder missile, the William McLean is the 12th ship delivered in the Navy’s 14-ship T-AKE dry cargo-ammunition ship program in five years. NASSCO began constructing USNS William McLean in September 2009. It will carry necessary supplies and equipment required to support U.S. Marine Corps operations in the world.
Public Relations Professionals Honored
The San Diego/Imperial counties chapter of the Public Relations Society of America has presented four public relations professionals with special awards as part of its annual Edward L. Bernays Mark of Excellence Awards program. Honored for outstanding achievements were:
• David Dozier, professor of public relations in the School of Journalism & Media Studies at SDSU, recipient of the Otto Bos Lifetime Achievement Award.
• Diana Lucero, director of public and customer relations at the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, recipient of the Deborah Baker Public Relations Professional of the Year Award.
• Gayle Falkenthal, president of Falcon Valley Group, recipient of the Eva Irving Community Service Award.
• Sarah Rossetto, assistant account executive at Katz & Associates, recipient of the New Professional of the Year Award.
Surgical Specialist Joins Scripps Clinic Medical Group
Mary Wilde, a surgical specialist in diseases of the breast, has joined Scripps Clinic Medical Group. The assets of her single-physician practice, Pacific Surgical Specialists Medical Group, has been purchased by Scripps and it will remain at its current location on the campus of Scripps Memorial Hospital La Jolla. Wilde joins more than 400 Scripps Clinic physicians practicing in more than 50 areas of medicine and surgery. Scripps Health contracts for the exclusive services of the Scripps Clinic Medical Group physicians through the Scripps Medical Foundation. Wilde is a fellow of the American College of Surgeons. She earned a bachelor’s degree in human biology from Stanford University. After receiving her medical degree from UC San Francisco, she completed her postdoctoral training at Beth Israel Hospital, Harvard Medical School.
Landscape Design Awards
Summit Services Inc. honored for six projects
Six of Summit Services Inc.’s landscape design projects have won awards at the California Landscape Contractors Association (CLCA) annual Beautification Awards program held in the water conservation garden at Cuyamaca College in Rancho San Diego. Summit Services took first place in the following 2011 CLCA award categories: Landscape Renovation Large, Design and Build Construction Small B, and Design and Build Construction Medium. In addition to the three first place awards, Summit Services received two second place honors in the Landscape Renovation Large and Water Feature categories. The landscape company also received the Achievement Award in the Landscape Renovation Estate category.
In the Design and Build Construction Small B category, Summit Services’ first place award acknowledged how the company used a small space to its full potential in order to create privacy in a 2,500-square-foot courtyard at a residence in Rancho Bernardo. Stone products in the courtyard were integrated to complement the stone veneered house, as well as the drought tolerant plantings which are complementary of the hardscape.
The Achievement Award for the Landscape Renovation Estate category provided grand scale appeal for the award-winning Rancho Santa Fe estate. The unique lighting of the palms and eucalyptus provides an impressive backdrop for the gathering areas which are creatively terraced on a grand scale.
A first place award in the Landscape Renovation Large category recognized Summit Services’ creative design/build and installation at a residence in San Diego (Scripps Ranch) —combining new stone products with a granite-countered outdoor kitchen for this 3,000-square-foot renovation.
For their work at a Vista residence, Summit Services received the first place award for the Design and Build Construction Medium. The design incorporated a fireplace, outdoor kitchen, pool and water feature, enhanced with exotic foliage and spectacular lighting.
One residential project in Encinitas earned Summit Services two second place awards — one for the Landscape Renovation Large category, as well as one for the Water Feature category. The 4,000-square-foot water feature landscape renovation cuts into the property’s hillside, which provides a natural look and feel that showcases the entertainment and outdoor environment.
