Daily Business Report — Sept. 28, 2012
DeMaio and Filner to Debate Monday at San Diego State
San Diego State’s School of Public Affairs will sponsor a mayoral debate Monday in partnership with KPBS at 8 p.m. in the KPBS studio on campus. Candidates Rep. Bob Filner (D-San Diego) and Councilman Carl DeMaio, a Republican, will focus on topics specific to the San Diego region — crime, safety, infrastructure and city government. Maureen Cavanaugh of Midday Edition will moderate the debate, which will be broadcast live on KPBS television and radio. The debate is part of an annual public forum hosted by the School of Public Affairs. On Nov. 6, KPBS will have election returns on radio, TV and online.
Major Convention Center Decision Coming Monday
Voice of San Diego — On Monday, the San Diego City Council is set to approve a plan to pay for the $520 million Convention Center expansion. The council will decide whether to borrow money and pay it back using three different sources: a special tax on hotel guests, a contribution from the Unified Port of San Diego and money from the day-to-day operating budget. This is the first time the council will weigh in on the entire package.
The Three Sources of Money:
• A Special Tax on Hotel Guests. In the spring, hotel owners approved a special tax that will charge their guests an extra 1 percent to 3 percent on their bills to finance the majority of the expansion. This tax is expected to raise up to $37 million a year for the next three decades.
• The Port District. The port, which controls the land planned for the expansion, has pledged $60 million, or $3 million a year for the next two decades.
• The City’s Day-to-Day Budget. The city plans to spend $3.5 million a year for the next 30 years, ($105 million total), to make up the final piece of the financing puzzle.
Read Liam Dillon’s full report on the Monday vote at www.voiceofsandiego.org.
Taxable Sales Show San Diegans Spending More
San Diegans are among Southern Californians opening up their wallets and purses and spending more. At least that’s what a state Board of Equalization report says, basing its claim on taxable sales in the region. The report shows that taxable sales in the Southern California region grew by 9.1 percent in the second quarter of 2011, while in the Third District, taxable sales grew 9.6 percent, compared with the second quarter of 2010. Taxable sales in the city of San Diego increased by 10.7 percent. Statewide, taxable sales increased by 9.6 percent in the second quarter of 2011compared with the same period in 2010.
City Ends Fiscal Year With $43 Million Surplus
The city of San Diego ended the most recent fiscal year with a $43.6 million surplus following years of battling deficits, but future budgets are clouded by uncertainties, city financial staff reported Wednesday. The city brought in $111 million more revenue in the fiscal year that ended June 30 than the previous year, according to a presentation to the City Council’s Budget Committee on as-yet unaudited results. Jay Goldstone, the city’s chief operating officer, added several cautionary notes about the future. He said the annual contribution to the San Diego City Employees Retirement System could jump between $5 million and $25 million next year because the agency experienced low investment returns. Also, the full impact of implementing the voter-passed pension reform initiative is unknown, property values remain flat and the recovery of the economy as a whole remains soft, he said. From City New Service report
Consumers Can Unload Unwanted Electronic Waste on Saturday
An electronic waste recycling event will be held Saturday from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the parking lot at 10405 San Diego Mission Road, across from the San Diego Habitat for Humanity offices and Restore. San Diego Habitat and Green 4 Good are the sponsors. It will be a drive-through event, with volunteers unloading heavy items. E-waste includes electronic products or devices, such as computer monitors, televisions, PC systems, printers, copiers, facsimile machines and home entertainment systems that have reached their useful end, whether in working condition or not.
County Water Authority Releases Desalinated
Water Purchase Agreement for Public Review
The San Diego County Water Authority has released a proposed water purchase agreement with Poseidon Resources, the private developer of the planned seawater desalination plant in Carlsbad. The release opens a public review period that includes two special evening public meetings to share information on the agreement and to receive public comment. The public meetings will be Oct. 2 at 6:30 p.m. at the Water Authority headquarters, 4677 Overland Ave., Kearny Mesa; and Oct. 10 at 6:30 p.m. at the city of Carlsbad’s Faraday Center, 1635 Faraday Ave., Carlsbad. The agreement specifies the proposed commercial and financial terms for the production and delivery of water from the planned desalination plant to the Water Authority’s regional water delivery and treatment system. It also includes terms for the potential purchase of the plant by the Water Authority. The full proposed water purchase agreement and appendices are available at www.sdcwa.org/issue-desal.
Water Authority Board Elects New Officers
Thomas V. Wornham, retired executive vice president and regional manager of Wells Fargo Bank and a representative for the city of San Diego, has been elected the next chairman of the San Diego County Water Authority board of directors. Richard K. Smith, a retired geotechnical consultant and a representative of the Helix Water District, will be vice chair. Outgoing chair Michael T. Hogan, Santa Fe Irrigation District representative and retired general manager of Encina Wastewater Authority, will serve as secretary. Their two-year terms begin Oct. 1.
CBRE San Diego Names Practice Group Leader 
Kristina Metzger has been named leader of CBRE San Diego’s critical environment practice group for the Southern California region. Metzger specializes in advising clients in the evaluation, site selection and acquisition of data center real estate across North America. She began her career in CBRE’s financial consulting group in Newport Beach where she provided consulting to to institutional, financial and corporate clients.
The Daily Business Report is produced by SD METRO. Contact: Manny Cruz (619) 287-1865. manny@sandiegometro.com.
