Daily Business Report — April 24, 2012

Tuesday, April 24, 2012

Hines Starts Construction of La Jolla Commons Office Building

Hines and joint venture partners have started construction of a 13-story, 415,000-square-foot office building at La Jolla Commons in University Towne Center that will be leased by LPL Financial under a long-term lease. LPL will consolidate its operations from seven UTC locations and employees will relocate to the property when it is completed in mid-2014. Hines is an owner and is managing the development for the joint venture. The general contractor is the San Diego office of Whiting-Turner Contracting Co. The new structure will be the second office building at La Jolla Commons. AECOM of Los Angeles was the design architect. Tenant improvements are being designed by the Charlotte, NC. office of Gensler.  The building’s exterior will be a predominately glass curtainwall system incorporating insulated double-paned glass with a clear, low-emissivity coating. Hines is pursuing LEED certification and will incorporate many sustainable features including under-floor air distribution and extensive use of reclaimed water for building systems and waste water. Hines’ joint venture partners are institutional investors advised by J.P. Morgan Asset Management.

Scripps Researcher Leads Team to Develop Vision Ailments Cure

A research team led by Martin Friedlander, a professor at Scripps Research, has been awarded a five-year, $10.2 million grant from the National Eye Institute to develop a new type of treatment for diabetic retinopathy, macular degeneration and other common vision disorders. The new treatment strategy targets a strand of regulatory “micro-RNA” in retinal cells that acts as an on-switch for new blood vessel growth. The inappropriate blooming of new blood vessels at the back of the eye, triggered by a decline in blood flow from aging, diabetes, or other conditions, is the leading cause of sight loss in adults. Diabetic retinopathy is estimated to affect a large proportion of diabetics, totaling more than 100 million people around the world.

AstraZeneca to Acquire Ardea

Ardea, a San Diego-based biotechnology company focusing on the development of a treatment for gout, is being acquired by AstraZeneca.  AstraZeneca will acquire Ardea for $32 per share, which represents a total cash value of about $1.26 billion.  According to AstraZeneca, this represents a premium on the value of Ardea’s stock of 50 percent based on the one month average price and 54 percent based on the closing price on April 20.

PERSONNEL MOVES ____________________________________

San Diego — Kelley Brewster has joined N.N. Jaeschke Inc. as a community association management supervisor, where she will oversee a team of community association portfolio managers and administrative assistants. Brewster began her community management career in 1999 and has experience overseeing more than 280 communities representing more than 35,000 units. She has held positions as a business development manager and corporate trainer and served as the chief executive officer for a California community management company.

20 Women Who Rock (Impact) San Diego

SD METRO is soliciting nominations for our annual selection of 20 Women Who Rock, a group of outstanding professionals who have made a name for themselves in their careers and are making significant contributions to our community. Deadline is Tuesday, May 1. Send your nominations to rebecapage@sandiegometro.com. Tell us how your nominee impacts San Diego.