Daily Business Report — Sept. 17, 2012

Local Architecture School Instructors
To Address Annual Conference Here

NewSchool of Architecture and Design instructors who are involved in exploring links between neuroscience research and architecture will speak at the Academy of Neuroscience for Architecture annual conference Sept. 20-22 at the Salk Institute of Biological Studies. Speakers include Eve Edelstein, instrumental in developing neuroscience and architecture courses at the school, and dean emeritus Gilbert D. Cook and Alison Whitelaw, sustainable design lecturer — founding members of the academy. Whitelaw is current president of the academy and senior principal of the North Park firm Platt/Whitelaw Architects.

Cox Communications Names
Director of Government Affairs

Ileana Ovalle Engel has been promoted to director of government affairs for Cox Communications in California. Ovalle Engel will be responsible for leading local and state franchising in all of Cox’s California markets, including San Diego, Orange County, Palos Verdes and Santa Barbara. She will continue to serve as a liaison between the company and the communities Cox serves throughout Southern California. Ovalle Engel has 25 years of experience in government and community relations. Before her promotion, she was senior manager of government relations for Cox Communications’ San Diego market. She joined Cox in 2006.

Oceanside School Getting $11.6 Million Renovation

Echo Pacific Construction Inc. has begun an $11.6 million campus modernization of the Palmquist Elementary School, which is part of the Oceanside Unified School District. The modernization project is the fourth lease-lease-back project or Echo Pacific with the district. The work will involve modernization of five 1960s-era classroom buildings, including new interior and exterior finishes, construction of two framed buildings, 11 portable buildings and new playgrounds. Financing is from Proposition H matched by state funds.

Voit Real Estate Services Names Regional Director

Joe Newman has been named regional director of asset services in Southern California by Voit Real Estate Service. He will oversee asset services operations in San Diego, Orange County, Los Angeles and the Inland Empire. Prior to joining Voit, Newman served as director of CBRE San Diego’s asset services division and Downtown brokerage office. There he led over 50 professionals who managed a commercial property portfolio of 16.5 million square feet throughout San Diego County. Newman has more than 30 years of experience in the commercial real estate industry, including 25 years with CBRE.

Scripps Research Institute Study Shows Protein
Linked To Hunger Also Implicated in Alcoholism

Researchers at The Scripps Research Institute have found new links between a protein that controls our urge to eat and brain cells involved in the development of alcoholism. The discovery points to new possibilities for designing drugs to treat alcoholism and other addictions. The new study, published online by the journal Neuropsychopharmacology, focuses on the peptide ghrelin, which is known to stimulate eating. “This is the first study to characterize the effects of ghrelin on neurons in a brain region called the central nucleus of the amygdala,” said associate professor Marisa Roberto, the team leader. “There is increasing evidence that the peptide systems regulating food consumption are also critical players in excessive alcohol consumption. These peptide systems have the potential to serve as targets for new therapies aimed at treating alcoholism.”