Daily Business Report-April 3, 2014
A rendering of the Lane Field North Hotel. The hotel will be operated as a 253-room Springhill Suites by Marriott and a 147-room Residence Inn by Marriott.
Port Commissioners Move Ahead
On 3 Major Tidelands Projects
Three major projects that will be developed on Port of San Diego tidelands made progress as a result of actions by the Board of Port Commissioners.
The Lane Field Hotel project, which consists of a 400-room, dual-branded hotel that will be developed on Lane Field, the former home of the Pacific Coast League Padres at the corner of West Broadway and North Harbor Drive, received approvals for financing and managing the project, as well as an amendment to the option and lease agreements.
The project’s developer, LLP Lane Field LLC, received approval to assign its option to lease agreement to a new, single-purpose entity. LLP Lane Field has also negotiated with Marriott to operate a 253-room Springhill Suites by Marriott and a 147-room Residence Inn by Marriott on the site.
Also included in the hotel project will be 5,600 square feet of meeting space, 23,000 square feet of visitor-serving retail and parking for about 414 vehicles.
The Port estimates construction to begin within the next few months, depending on the close of financing.
Downtown High-Rises Purchased for $154.9 Million
Two high-rise buildings in Downtown San Diego — 701 B St. and 707 Broadway — have been acquired by Emmes Asset Management Company LLC for $154.9 million.
The Class A 701 B Street property stands 24 stories and totals 560,329 square feet. It is 84 percent leased and has national tenants including Merrill Lynch and JP Morgan Chase.
The 18 story, 187,304-square-foot 707 Broadway building offers a boutique design and full panoramic views. Both buildings are Energy Star certified and are located within two blocks of each other.
Jones Lang LaSalle brokered the transaction on behalf of Equity Office Properties.
Fieldstone Plaza Sells for $9.4 Million
TA Associates Realty has purchased Fieldstone Plaza in Sorrento Mesa for $9.4 million. Fieldstone Plaza is a
44,307-square-foot, two-story, multi-tenant office building at 5465 Morehouse Drive. The building was built in 1986 and is situated on a 1.99-acre lot. The project was 92 percent occupied at the time of sale. CBRE Institutional Investment Properties represented the seller.
Santee Town Center Retail Building Sold
SANTEE — The retail building at 215 Towne Center Parkway in Santee Town Center has been sold for $3.5 million to Chasra LLC. The 21,499-square-foot building, built in 1991, includes national tenants including Home Depot, Costco, Wal-Mart, Lowe’s, Kohl’s, Ross, Michaels, Office Depot, among others. In 2009, MIS Limited LLC leased the building to Chuze Fitness, a regional fitness center and health club. The two founders of Chuze Fitness later purchased the building. Cushman & Wakefield and Cassidy Turley were the brokers in the transaction.
Warehouse Building Sells for $2.55 Million
A 16,380-square-foot warehouse building at 7747 Ostrow St. in Kearny Mesa has been sold for $2.55 million to 4030 Goldfinch Investments LLC. The brokers involved in the transaction were Cushman & Wakefield and Voit. The warehouse building was built in 1979. The buyer intends to occupy a portion of the building and lease out the remainder.
With Tepid Growth in Software Startups, San Diego Turns to ‘Swarm’
San Diego’s software sector, struggling to gain some footing against a litany of setbacks, might be taking a step forward — but it will take a collective effort. Xconomy San Diego reports that a proposal to establish an investor forum that would draw dozens of local software and Internet investors to meet with selected Web entrepreneurs and tech founders is gaining momentum. The inaugural session has been set for May 8 at the Cooley law firm’s San Diego office, and at least three-dozen angel investors and venture firm partners have been invited to attend.
Jeb Spencer, the founder and managing partner of San Diego-based TVC Capital, says he proposed the idea, dubbed Swarm, to create a rally point for local software entrepreneurs and investors at a time when local investment capital has been evaporating. Spencer says he wants to apply swarm theory to improve the state of software investment in San Diego.
Enterprise Holdings Hiring
Car rental company Enterprise Holdings is hiring more than 300 additional men and women throughout Southern California — including more than 40 in San Diego — into its management training and internship programs through the end of summer. These hires are in addition to the 200 management trainees and interns that have already joined the local Enterprise team since last August.
Enterprise Holdings operates the Enterprise Rent-A-Car, National Car Rental and Alamo Rent A Car brands. These new full-time employees are being hired for the Enterprise Rent-A-Car Management Training program or the Management Internship program in the Southern California region.
Susan G. Komen Announces 2014-2015 Grantees
Susan G. Komen San Diego will award grants to local breast health programs at its annual grants award ceremony on April 10 at AMN Healthcare. Lorraine Hutchinson, deputy chief of the San Diego Fire-Rescue Department, will be named Komen’s 2014 Honorary Breast Cancer Survivor at the ceremony.
2014-2015 Grantees:
Diagnostics and Services
San Diego County Medical Society Foundation
Mama’s Kitchen
Jewish Family Services of San Diego
Community Clinics Health Network
Breast Cancer Solutions
2-1-1 San Diego
Education and Outreach
Vista Community Clinic
Chula Vista Collaborative
La Maestra Family Clinic, Inc.
San Ysidro Health Center
Somali Family Services of San Diego
Patient Navigation
Family Health Centers of San Diego
Alex Schiffer Hired As Managing Director
CARLSBAD — Alec E. Schiffer has been appointed managing director for the Western Division of Trammell Crow Residential. He will be responsible for land acquisition and all phases of multifamily real estate development.
Schiffer previously was with Strata Equity Group Inc. of San Diego, serving as vice president of acquisitions. Earlier, he worked as a regional associate at a senior housing advisory firm and as a principal at a Southern California real estate investment and advisory firm. He holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Colorado Boulder.
Landscape Architects Hold ‘Meet the Fellows’ Event
As part of Landscape Architecture Awareness month, the American Society of Landscape Architects, San Diego chapter, is holding a free “Meet the Fellows” event on April 23 at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design, 1249 F. St. in Downtown San Diego from 6 to 8 p.m. Fellows on the speaking panel include: James Burnett, Laura Burnett, Pat Caughey, Vicki Estrada, Kathy Garcia, Martin Poirier, Glen Schmidt, Andy Spurlock, Roger Deweese, Bill Burton, Frank Kawasaki, Kelly Broughton and Dennis Otsuji.
Fellowship is among the highest honors the ASLA bestows on members and recognizes the contributions of these individuals to their profession and society at large based on their works, leadership and management, knowledge, and service.
Searching for Memories
More than 4,000 people attended Martin Luther’s King Jr.’s speech at San Diego State in 1964, yet few remnants of that historic day remain.
“When Dr. King came to San Diego State, he had just been named Time Magazine’s Man of the Year and was about to be named the youngest Nobel Peace Prize winner in history; he was already a global icon,” said Seth Mallios, chair of SDSU’s anthropology department.
“Yet, the audio and transcript of the speech have been lost, there is no video, and there is only one grainy newspaper photograph of Dr. King at San Diego State’s Open Air Theatre. Furthermore, we have only been able to find two people who attended the historic event.”
As SDSU prepares to celebrate the 50th anniversary of King’s campus address, the university is calling on the community for help. An email has been set up, asking those who attended the event to share their memories and photos.
“Martin Luther King Jr.’s visit to San Diego State is undoubtedly one of the most important moments in campus history,” Mallios said. “I desperately hope that local community members have some mementos from this event that will shed light on the Civil Rights Movement in San Diego and on Dr. King’s vision for racial harmony across the nation and world.”
On May 29, 1964, King visited what was then San Diego State College and gave a public address in the Open Air Theatre. His impassioned speech urged all Americans to push for the passage of legislation that would help counter racial prejudice, bigotry and intolerance.
SDSU will commemorate King’s landmark appearance and speech at 3:30 p.m. on Wednesday, April 30, during a free public event featuring addresses by local community leaders, civil rights advocates, historians and students.
The event will be held in the courtyard of the California Coast Credit Union Open Air Theatre and will be immediately followed by SDSU’s annual Diversity Awards at 4:30 p.m. in Montezuma Hall at the Conrad Prebys Aztec Student Union.
— Reported by Beth Downing Chee/SDSU NewsCenter
