Daily Business Report-April 28, 2014

The $169 million housing facility will be built on the grounds of the R.J. Donovan Correctional facility on Otay Mesa.

New Inmate Housing Facility to be Built

At the R.J. Donovan Correctional Complex

OTAY MESA — More prison beds are coming to San Diego.

Construction will start next year on a $169 million correctional housing facility for 792 nonviolent inmates on the grounds of the R.J. Donovan Correctional facility in Otay Mesa.

A state law approved in 2011 required counties to reduce the prison populating by putting persons who have committed less serious and nonviolent offenses in local facilities. Senate Bill 1022, passed in June 2012, authorized the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation to design and construct three dormitory facilities adjacent to specified institutions.

Sundt Layton, a joint venture of Sundt Construction Inc. and Layton Construction, was awarded the contract by the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation.

Teaming with Arrington Watkins Architects, Sundt Layton will design and construct the new 317,000-square-foot housing facility. The project will include three Level II 264-bed housing units for a total of 792 inmates. In addition to these housing units, the project will include programming, health care, visitation and other support components.

Architect Selected for Large-Scale Downtown Project

Developers Lowe Enterprises Inc. and I.D.E.A. Partners LLC have selected West Coast architectural firm The Miller Hull Partnership to design IDEA1, an urban mixed-use project in Downtown San Diego’s East Village with creative office space, apartments and street-level retail.

Located on the full block bounded by E, F, Park and 13th streets, IDEA1 will anchor the I.D.E.A. District, a proposed 35-block area for development.

The Miller Hull Partnership has chosen IDEA1 as the site of its new San Diego headquarters.

IDEA1 will occupy a 1.37-acre site, which was acquired by Lowe Enterprises and I.D.E.A. Partners through a 99-year ground lease from the San Diego Community College District. The five-story, 225,000-square-foot, mixed-use project is planned to include 63,000 square feet of office space, 10,000 square feet of street-level retail and eateries, and 218 apartments surrounding a large interior courtyard.

The Miller Hull Partnership’s other projects include the design of the “Africa Rocks” exhibit at the San Diego Zoo, the San Ysidro Land Port of Entry, and the Mesa Community College Cafeteria and Bookstore.

Water Authority Wins Key Ruling in Battle With MWD

A court ruling last week confirmed that the San Diego County Water Authority has prevailed in the first phase of a long-running, historic rate litigation against the Metropolitan Water District of Southern California.

San Francisco County Superior Court Judge Curtis E. A. Karnow affirmed his Feb. 25 tentative ruling in the water authority’s favor. Karnow determined that Los Angeles-based MWD violated cost of service requirements of California’s Constitution, statutes and common law when setting rates for 2011, 2012, 2013 and 2014.

The litigation could save San Diego water users up to $2 billion in alleged overcharges by MWD.

“Today’s decision seals our victory in this pivotal phase of the litigation,” said Thomas V. Wornham, chair of the water authority’s board of directors on Thursday.  “There’s still a long road ahead, but such a strong validation of our efforts only enhances our determination to continue this fight on behalf of San Diego County ratepayers.”

During its regular monthly meeting on Thursday, the water authority’s board voted unanimously to authorize another lawsuit against MWD over rates it adopted on April 8 for 2015 and 2016 despite the legal challenge.

The Water Authority filed its first lawsuit against MWD in 2010, then filed a second suit in 2012 because MWD refused to reform its rates, which effectively force San Diego County ratepayers to subsidize water ratepayers in other parts of Southern California.

San Diego Employers Association Offers

Advanced Management Essentials Course

San Diego Employers Association (SDEA) introduces a new Advanced Management Essentials Certificate Course — a six week program beginning on Wednesday, April 30, at SDEA, 4180 Ruffin Road, No. 295, San Diego.

The new course will be offered on Wednesday evenings from April 30 through June 4 from 5 to 8 p.m.

Topics covered during the course include: Leading Organizational Change, Project Management Skills, Advanced Employment Law, Accountability, Business Ethics and a personal DISC Assessment.

Each course is taught by a different instructor, so participants receive training from a variety of experts on a number of topics essential to  manager or supervisor.

Registration costs $650 for SDEA members and $775 for nonmembers. For more information and to register, visit www.sdea.com.

Robert Price and Patty Roscoe to Receive Honorary Doctorates

Author and philanthropist Robert Price and architect and international tourism advocate Patricia L. Roscoe have been selected to receive honorary doctorate degrees from San Diego State University. The two distinguished San Diegans were scheduled to receive honorary degrees of Doctor of Humane Letters during SDSU’s commencement ceremonies May 16. About 9,300 students are expected to participate in the school’s seven graduations May 16-18.

President Elliot Hirshman said Price and Roscoe had been extraordinary contributors to both SDSU and to the entire San Diego region.

Price and his family are known for founding Price Club and pioneering membership warehouse club merchandising, but SDSU officials said he also was known for his philanthropic support.

Price will become a second generation honorary degree recipient. His father, Sol, received the award in 2003.

Roscoe grew her business, PRA Destination Management Company, from a local firm to an international business. She also co-founded SDSU’s L. Robert Payne School of Hospitality and Tourism Management and helped raise more than $20 million to support it. She continues to support the Payne School through her seat on the Board of Advisers, mentors students and uses her professional relationships to develop internship and employment opportunities

Search for Next Infomercial Hit

Inventors from across the United States will converge on San Diego on Thursday to attend TeleBrands Inventor’s Day, an open casting call for those with the dream of creating the next infomercial product. AJ Khubani, the CEO and founder of TeleBrands, the marketer of “As Seen on TV” products, is searching for the next hit consumer gadget

Each inventor has five minutes to pitch his invention, as if they were the TV pitchman in their own infomercial to the largest marketer of “As Seen on TV” gadgets.

Inventor’s Day will be held from 9 a.m. to noon at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront’s Sapphire Greenroom.

Petco Names Executive VP and CFO

Larry Rutkowski has joined Petco as executive vice president and chief financial officer. Rutkowski previously was executive vice president and chief financial officer for The Warnaco Group, an American textile and clothing corporation, and Primedia, a consumer advertising, new media and publishing company, both in New York City. He also held senior financial leadership positions at General Electric and Walt Disney Co. Rutkowski holds a bachelor’s degree in education from the University of Michigan and an MBA from Michigan State University. He will be based out of Petco’s corporate support center in San Diego.

 

SDSU Team Wins University Challenge

A proposal by a San Diego State University team to transform the Midway post office into a mixed-use project of apartments, offices and retail establishments was the winning entry in the fourth annual University Challenge sponsored by the San Diego chapter of the Commercial Real Estate Development Association that was announced today.

Winning team members from SDSU’s Corky McMillin Center for Real Estate are Jared Anderson, Ian Bradley, Carolina Conway, Austin Harrison, Kelli Knapp and Bharat Madan. They called their project The Flats Point Loma.

“The students were challenged to find the best use of the land, keeping in mind the guidelines and zoning regulations of the proposed Midway Community Plan, to create an office, industrial and/or mixed-use development,” said Karen Burges, executive director of NAIOP San Diego. “We are blown away year after year by the talent emerging from the real estate programs at our local universities.”

With today’s win, SDSU reclaims the title from UCSD, which boasted the top team in 2013. SDSU teams won each of the two previous years.

Other teams in the competition were from the UC San Diego Department of Urban Studies & Planning and the University of San Diego Burnham Moores Center for Real Estate.