Daily Business Report-Nov. 15, 2013
Above: Environmental Health Coalition executive director Diane Takvorian speaks at a press conference announcing the lawsuit outside of the San Diego Hall of Justice. (Photo: Sandhy Dirks/KPBS)
Lawsuit Says Maritime Industry Lied
About Barrio Logan Referendum
The proponents of a new community plan in the largely low income Latino neighborhood of Barrio Logan are fighting back against a referendum effort they claim is lying to voters illegally, KPBS reports.
The maritime industry has balked against the community plan, even as it passed San Diego City Council on a 5-4 vote. They say the plan would directly threaten San Diego’s shipbuilding industry and could lead to the end of lucrative Navy contracts.
Over the past two months, the maritime industry has waged a referendum campaign, paying signature gatherers to be out in full force across the city. (They need John Hancocks on two petitions to put the full community plan on a citywide ballot.) Industry supporters say they’ve turned in 50,000 unverified signatures to the City Clerk’s office — about 15,000 more than is needed. That’s for the first drive; they report similar success on the second.
Now the Environmental Health Coalition, who championed the new community plan, is striking back, claiming the signatures were obtained with misleading information — and even flat out lies. If a judge agrees, the ruling would “invalidate the referendum process,” according to Livia Borak, the lawyer filing suit on behalf of the EHC.
Port of San Diego Ship Repair Association president Derry Pence called the lawsuit “frivolous” and said the EHC and key supporter San Diego Councilman David Alvarez were trying to “silence the will of voters.”
“Make no mistake,” Pence said in a press release, “EHC’s goal is to kill the shipbuilding and repair industry by jamming as many houses as possible into an industrial area to create future land-use conflicts.”
San Diego’s Fiscal Outlook Begins With Projected Deficit
The city of San Diego will be able to maintain current service levels over the next five years, but mayoral candidates and the City Council will need to temper their demands for new spending, Interim Mayor Todd Gloria said Thursday. The city’s new five-year financial outlook starts off with a $19.1 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, but Gloria and Financial Management Director Jeff Sturak called the figure “manageable.”
Without additional spending, surpluses are projected over the following four years. However, the City Council has approved various initiatives that will add costs, including arts funding, construction of new fire stations and boosting the ranks of police officers.
Combined with state and federal mandates, the council actions swell the deficit to $62.1 million for the next fiscal year, and no surpluses are projected through fiscal year 2019. The list does not include other things on the wish lists of either council members or city department heads, such as additional personnel or technological improvements. (City News Service report)
Drawbridge Realty Trust Acquires
Discovery Corporate Center Building
Drawbridge Realty Trust has acquired the Discovery Corporate Center Building A, located at 16340 West Bernardo Drive in San Diego, for $36.5 million. The seller was Menlo Equities. The three-story, Class A office building totals 90,610 square feet on four acres, and is 100 percent leased to Broadcom Corp., which uses it as its regional headquarters. Building A was built in 2007 and is one of four buildings in the 318,235-square-foot campus.
The acquisition Drawbridge Realty Trust’s third purchase of property in the Discovery Corporate Center.
Domain San Diego Sold for $121 Million
Domain San Diego, a newly constructed 379-unit luxury apartment complex in Kearny Mesa, has been sold for $121 million to Essex Property Trust in an all-cash transaction. A joint venture between Wood Partners and a fund sponsored by CBRE Global Investors was the seller. Located at 8798 Spectrum Center Blvd. in San Diego, the property is part of the San Diego Spectrum, a master-planned community. It is Wood Partners’ first multifamily development acquisition in San Diego County.
Constructed in 2012, Domain San Diego is a podium-style asset consisting of two residential structures built over two levels of subterranean parking. Community amenities include an adjacent two-acre park, three landscaped courtyards with sitting and dining areas, a Serenity pool with pool deck and spa, a two-story clubhouse with a residents’ lounge and a fitness center, an outdoor fireplace, barbecue stations, gated underground parking, elevator access and on-site maintenance, management and package receiving.
Navy Veteran Named 2013-2014 Veteran of the Year
Navy veteran RanDee McLain has been named 2013-2014 San Diego County Veteran of the Year by the Veterans Museum and Memorial Center in Balboa Park. McLain was selected by a panel of judges from a field of 28 nominees, each recommended by a San Diego organization based on their contributions to the organization and the community. McLain, who served in the Navy from 2002 to 2009, has been volunteering and mentoring at the Veterans Treatment Court, and the Homeless Veteran Stand Downs in 2012 and 2013. She also has worked on behalf of Wounded Warriors, Ronald McDonald House, Veterans Day Parade, and numerous activities for the Student Veteran Organization.
The organization also honored Mental Health Systems with its Veterans Allegiance Award for its contributions to the military and veterans in San Diego. The Home Depot received the Meritorious Support Award.
Medical Society Foundation Gets $20,000 Grant
The San Diego County Medical Society Foundation has received a $20,000 grant from the RGK Foundation to benefit its Project Access San Diego, which provides free speciality medical care to low-income uninsured residents. The RGK Foundation is an independent foundation supporting health care, education and the community, based in Austin, Texas.
Mission Federal Credit Union
Opens New Mira Mesa Branch
Mission Federal Credit Union will hold a grand opening of its Mira Mesa West Branch, 8198 Mira Mesa Blvd., on Saturday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Food and prizes will be featured. The new branch is Mission Fed’s 24th branch in San Diego County. It offers a full range of financial services, including walk-up and drive-up ATMs.
Murphy Development Names Marketing Director
Andy Irwin, part of the Cassidy Turley industrial division for two years, has been named director of marketing for Murphy Development, responsible for sales, leasing and new acquisitions. He also will market the company’s two corporate industrial and technology parks in Otay Mesa, Siempre Viva Business Park and Brown Field Technology Park. Irwin has more than 12 years of broker experience.
AT&T Taps Tammi Terrell to Head Southwest and Hawaii Operations
Telecommunications industry veteran Tammi Terrell has been chosen by AT&T to oversee operations in the Southwest and Hawaii, where she will oversee sales and operations for more than 1,500 employees, 90 AT&T-owned retail locations and more than 600 national retail partners and authorized resellers across the region. Before being named vice president and general manager for Southwest and Hawaii, Terrell served as vice president and general manager for San Diego, Las Vegas and Hawaii. She will continue to oversee those markets as well as Arizona and New Mexico. Terrell will remain based out of AT&T’s San Diego offices. Terrell began her telecommunications career in 1987 with Southern Bell in northwest Florida.
Diplomacy Council to Host Azerbaijan Program
The San Diego Diplomacy Council will host “Azerbaijan: An Evening of Music, Culture and Citizen Diplomacy” on Nov. 20 at Institute of the
Americas on the campus of UC San Diego. Organized jointly by the San Diego Diplomacy Council and the Consulate General of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles, the event will be an evening of Azeri culture, live music, and exploration with the Honorable Nasimi Aghayev, Consul General of the Republic of Azerbaijan in Los Angeles.
“Community events such as this are extremely important in expanding San Diego’s relations with Azerbaijan and encouraging global understanding,” said Jill Secard, executive director of the Diplomacy Council. “This exciting cultural experience will not only strengthen San Diego’s diplomatic engagement with Azerbaijan but will also create opportunities between our regions.” The Consul General will discuss current developments in Azerbaijan, an emerging major energy producer with rising international presence.
Biotech, Bioenergy Conference in San Diego
Congressman Scott Peters (D-San Diego) will deliver opening remarks at the 2013 Pacific Rim Summit on Industrial Biotechnology and Bioenergy Dec. 8-11 in San Diego. The conference, focusing on the growth of the industrial biotechnology sector in Asia and the Americas, is being co-organized by Biocom. Biochemist and businessman Craig Venter will deliver the keynote address.
