Daily Business Report-May 16, 2016
Alison Brown is the sculptor who created the statue. To create the monument, Brown took exact measurements of Walton’s bicycle, his shoes, and other personal items (including, of course, the Grateful Dead shirt). These were carefully replicated in the finished work, a life-size, highly-detailed replica of the man himself. (Courtesy Dugan Strategic Marketing)
San Diego Legend Gets His Own Statue
Local legend Bill Walton now has his very own statue commemorating his love of cycling.
The bronze statue was unveiled Saturday at Ski Beach Park in Ski Beach Park in Mission Bay.
Walton has long been a cycling enthusiast and has led countless charity and memorial rides, including one on Saturday morning to honor military veterans.
Alison Brown, the bronze sculptor who created the monument,
is the founder/owner of Campus Sculptures, and is also known for creating the bronze sculpture of the University of Southern California (USC) Trojan, among other collegiate mascot monuments.
Pat Kilkenny, former University of Oregon athletic director, had seen Brown’s sculpture of the University of Oregon Duck mascot and work she had done for Nike founder, Phil Knight. Kilkenny recommended Brown to those coordinating the Bill Walton statue in San Diego.
Says Brown, “I was so pleased to be asked to create this commemorative monument to such a legend and icon as Mr. Bill Walton. It’s been an honor and thrill to work on this project.”
The statue stands 6 feet, 11 inches tall and weighs 1,200 pounds.
Walton, a Helix High graduate, led the UCLA Bruins to national championships in the early 1970s before joining the NBA and playing for the Portland Trail Blazers, San Diego Clippers and Boston Celtics. Walton won two NBA Championships and was named the NBA’s most valuable player. He was eventually inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame and named as one of the NBA’s 50 Greatest Players of all time.
The statue will likely be moved to several places around San Diego County before a final destination is decided upon.
__________________________________________________
UC San Diego to Participate in
National Microbiome Initiative
By City News Service
UC San Diego will participate in a national research effort to better understand microbiomes — communities of microorganisms that live on and in people, plants, soil, oceans and the atmosphere — announced by the White House Friday.
The $121 million National Microbiome Initiative will also seek to develop tools to protect and restore healthy microbiome function, according to the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy.
“This ambitious undertaking cannot be accomplished by individual laboratories working in isolation — developing advanced microbiome tools and treatments requires new collaborations among many disciplines,” said UCSD Chancellor Pradeep Khosla. “Advancing this relatively new field also depends on attracting and training multidisciplinary networks of scientists and engineers.”
UCSD began its own $12 million, campus-wide microbiome research project last October, involving around 100 faculty members.
The national research program’s goals are to support interdisciplinary research, develop technologies and academic-industry partnerships, and expand the microbiome workforce.
“Microbes pervade all kinds of processes — from our bodies to our planet to industrial fermentation and drug synthesis,” said Rob Knight, director of the UC San Diego Center for Microbiome Innovation.
“Working closely with other researchers in the White House’s National Microbiome Initiative will help us unravel the fundamental science so we can understand how microbes do all these things, and help us improve the speed and accuracy in which we can read out microbes,” said Knight, also a professor of pediatrics in the School of Medicine and professor of computer science and engineering in the Jacobs School of Engineering.
Knight developed a genetic sequencing technique that allows researchers to differentiate unknown microbes in hundreds of samples at once.
According to the White House, dysfunctional microbiomes are associated with chronic diseases like obesity, diabetes, and asthma; ecological disruptions such as an area in the Gulf of Mexico with a low oxygen supply; and reductions in agricultural productivity.
Numerous industrial processes such as biofuel production and food processing depend on healthy microbial communities.
Although new technologies have enabled exciting discoveries about the importance of microbiomes, scientists still lack the knowledge and tools to manage microbiomes in a manner that prevents dysfunction or restores healthy function, the White House said.
Old Globe Theatre Selects
Director of Development
The Old Globe Theatre has selected Llewellyn Crain, former director of development for the Kansas City Symphony, as its new director of development.
“Crain comes to San Diego following a rigorous national search. She is an accomplished senior arts development professional with a track record in building sustainable high-performing development departments, and a demonstrated history of successful interactions with high net-worth individuals and institutional leadership,” the Globe said in announcing the appointment.
Crain will oversee an 11-person development department that raises funds through major gifts, institutional giving, planned giving, annual giving, membership, and special events, and she will serve as the lead executive responsible for maintaining and growing the Globe’s base of individual and institutional support, working with the managing director and artistic director.
Crain was the lead manager of the Kansas City Symphony’s $55 million endowment campaign, working with board and executive leadership, which has brought in more than $51.2 million to date. She also managed six auxiliary groups that raised over $1 million annually through special events, the Symphony Shop, and other fundraising projects, and a portfolio of approximately 200 donors and prospects.
San Diego Ranks as Digital Hub
Among 25 U.S. cities, San Diego ranks fifth in its readiness to become a digital economy hub — outpacing Austin and Los Angeles — according to the latest Innovation That Matters 2016 report.
The study outlines metro readiness to foster entrepreneurial growth and innovation in the next wave of the digital economy. Read the study here.
How Transportation Drives San Diego’s Economy
Expansions to our roads, highways, bike lanes and public transit reduce congestion, decrease travel times and increase business productivity. A study released this week by EDC quantifies our transportation network’s impact on San Diego and looks at how TransNet — the voter approved half-cent sales tax — has pumped $20B into our regional economy.
Cubic Awarded $5 Million+
U.S. Army Service Order
Cubic Corporation subsidiary GATR Technologies has been awarded an engineering services order valued in excess of $5 million to support the U.S. Army’s Transportable Tactical Command Communications (T2C2) program.
The service order will enable GATR to integrate and test the T2C2 inflatable satellite antenna terminals with software systems in preparation for product verification testing.
ECO Tanker Magnolia State Ends
Week of Successful Sea Trials
The ECO Class tanker Magnolia State returned to the General Dynamics NASSCO shipyard on May 12 following a week of successful tests and trials at sea.
The tanker is the second of a five-tanker contract between NASSCO and APT, which calls for the design and construction of five 50,000-ton, LNG-conversion-ready product carriers with a 330,000 barrel cargo capacity. The 610-foot-long tankers are equipped with a new “ECO” design which will provide a significant improvement in fuel efficiency. Upon delivery, the Magnolia State will join the ranks as one of the most fuel-efficient and environmentally friendly tankers in the world.
“The revolutionary ECO Class provides our customers with an alternative option for transporting product that is cost-effective and friendly to the environment,” said Fred Harris, president of General Dynamics NASSCO.
Cubic to Showcase Maritime
Training and Tactical Programs
Cubic Global Defense, a business unit of Cubic Corporation, announced it will highlight key maritime training and tactical solutions at the Navy League’s Sea-Air-Space Exposition at the Gaylord National Convention Center in National Harbor, Md. today through Wednesday.
As the Navy League’s global maritime exposition, the Sea-Air-Space Expo is considered the largest maritime event in the U.S. that brings together the government’s defense industrial base, private-sector companies and key military decision makers to review the latest technologies and equipment serving the industry.
Cubic will exhibit the high-fidelity, game-based Immersive Virtual Ship Environment courseware and Mission Bay Trainer for the Littoral Combat Ship training program.
________________________________________________
Urban Land Institute Presents
Inaugural Healthy Places Awards
The county of San Diego’s Warfront Park, The Alexandria at Torrey Pines and Celadon at 9th and Broadway were among winners of the inaugural Healthy Places Awards sponsored by the San Diego-Tijuana Urban Land Institute.
The awards, the first of its kind for the San Diego-Tijuana District Council, embody the ULI’s Healthy Places Initiative, recognizing outstanding projects, large and small; healthy programs and policies; and leaders who are forging the way in healthy place building.
The awards were presented on May 11th at Farmer and the Seahorse in La Jolla.
Award Winners:
• HEALTHY PLACE FOR BUSINESS AWARD
The Alexandria at Torrey Pines
• URBAN AGRICULTURE FOR BETTER HEALTH AWARD
Leichtag Commons and Coastal Roots Farm
• GRASS ROOTS HEALTHY PLACE AWARD
Hilltop gARTen
• URBAN MODEL FOR HEALTHY LIVING AWARD
Celadon at 9th and Broadway
• ARTFUL HEALTHY PLACE AWARD
ARTS DISTRICT Liberty Station
• HEALTHY PLACE CROWN JEWEL AWARD
County of San Diego Waterfront Park
• AWARD WINNING VISIONARY
Dr. Jim Sallis, Active Living Research
• CATALYST FOR FOOD HEALTHY MERIT AWARDS
Copley-Price Family YMCA
City of La Mesa’s Urban Trails Mobility Action Plan
Olivewood Gardens
Celadon at 9th & Broadway was developed by BRIDGE Housing and constructed by Turner Construction Company, with SVA Architects as the architect, and Studio E Architects as the design architect.
Celadon offers affordable apartments to low-income residents, youth aging out of foster care, adults under the Mental Health Services Act and seniors under the Program of All-Inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE).
Ernesto M. Vasquez, CEO of SVA Architects, states, “Celadon satisfies the goals of a cohesive urban, sustainable community. It offers affordable housing to an intergenerational population, and easy access to light rail transit for residents to connect with downtown amenities.”
“Celadon was designed to do right by the environment, do right by the city, and do right by those who live there. Everything about the expression and experience brings it back to these core missions,” said Eric Naslund, principal of Studio E Architects.
The Waterfront Park, a project first envisioned by county Supervisor Ron Roberts, is the county’s newest park and is situated next to the County Administrattion Center. It features an expansive civic green along the entire western side of the park with room for 3,900 people on the north lawn and 2,900 on the south lawn, grand promenades and an elevated terrace that wraps around the west side of the building. A spectacular 830-foot-long fountain runs nearly the length of the park and its jets shoot water 14 feet into the air. The fountain’s basins create a one-inch-deep splash area for children.
The Ålexandria at Torrey Pines is home to Biocom, the life sciences trade group, The Farmer & The Seahorse restaurant and other tenants. The Alexandria building originally held the presses of the Pennysaver publication.
Smart & Final Opens All
33 Stores Acquired from Haggen
Smart & Final announced today that all 33 lease locations it acquired in December from Haggen — including 11 in San Diego County — are now open as Smart & Final Extra!
Company officials said each store opening created more than 50 new jobs, with Smart & Final hiring more than 1,900 associates to support the 33-store increase.
For each new store opened, Smart & Final’s Charitable Foundation made donations to local nonprofits, resulting in over $140,000 in philanthropic donations.
San Diego County Smart & Final stores:
Carlsbad: 955 Carlsbad Village Drive
Santee: 9870 Magnolia Ave.
El Cajon: 13439 Camino Canada; 2800 Fletcher Parkway
San Diego: 10740 Westview Parkway; 2235 University Ave.; 10633 Tierra Santa Blvd.
La Mesa: 3681 Avocado Blvd.
Coronado: 150 B Ave.
Chula Vista: 360 East H St.
San Ysidro: 350 W. San Ysidro Blvd.
