Daily Business Report-Aug. 17, 2016
State Sen. Marty Block, author of SB 1257, during an interview in Sacramento. (Courtesy Block’s office)
Bill Requiring Volunteer Service Hours for
California Law Students Goes to Governor
A bill that would require law students to complete 50 hours of supervised volunteer or pro bono service before taking the bar exam will go the governor after the state Senate voted late Monday to approve changes made in the Assembly.
“This bill, SB 1257, provides law students with hands-on experience in addition to classroom theory before going on to practice law, and provides California’s indigent with a new resource for legal assistance,” said Sen. Marty Block (D-San Diego), the measure’s author. He added that representing low-income clients might also spur law student interest in high need, but relatively low-paid fields of law.
Under the bill, law students will be required to complete, sign and submit a form to the State Bar confirming completion of 50 hours of pro bono service. Acceptable service under the bill would include work that benefits the public interest or persons who are indigent or of modest means. Partisan political activities would not qualify as pro bono service.
In the Assembly, the bill was amended to allow students to receive payment for their work, so long as payment was not from the client who benefited from the service. Students who are already licensed in foreign countries or other states are exempt from the bill.
“SB 1257 will provide practical experience for law students, legal assistance for needy Californians and staff support for organizations that already represent the underserved,” Block said.
SB 1257 is supported by the Conference of California Bar Associations and the Monterey College of Law. It was approved by the Senate on a 26 –12 vote.
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Grantville 36-Unit Apartment Complex
Sold to East Eight LLC for $7.45 Million
Waring Gardens Apartments, a 36-unit complex on Adobe Falls Road in the Grantville area of San Diego, has been sold for $7.45 million to East Eight LLC. Waring Gardens LP was the seller.
The complex was built in 1980 and consists of three two-story buildings. The buildings total 29,600 square feet and features one and two bedroom floor plans, with an average unit size of 822 square feet. All units include air conditioning, carpeted floors and walk-in closets. The community amenities include a swimming pool, spa, picnic area with barbecue, common laundry room and limited tucked-under garage parking.
CBRE represented the seller. The buyer was represented by Performa Property Management.
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Community College District Expands
Fall Online Courses by 21 Percent
In response to strong student demand, the San Diego Community College District is increasing the number of online courses by 21 percent from last year when fall classes begin Monday, Aug. 22.
The approximately 20,000 students taking online courses this year at San Diego City, Mesa, and Miramar colleges is up 11 percent compared to last year, and students say they are more than satisfied with their online experiences. In a recent survey, 91 percent of students said they had a good environment in which to study for their online course, and 86 percent said they were comfortable communicating electronically. Ninety-five percent agreed that taking charge of their own learning was very important for their success in school and future career.
“I found it very convenient,” said Daron Woods, Associated Student Government President at San Diego City College, who took an online history course over the summer while in Costa Rica. “You still have deadlines and you still have to do the assignments, but you have more flexibility in building your schedule.”
Students in the district will have an additional 140 online courses to choose from this year. Among them is an online Personal Financial Management course taught by Assistant Professor David Wilhelm at Miramar College. Forty-three students have already registered for the course and an additional eight students are on a wait list.
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Jewish Family Service of San Diego
Offering Interest-Free Loans
Residents of San Diego can apply for interest-free loans from Jewish Family Service of San Diego for personal and business expenses aimed at improving self-sufficiency.
JFS’s Hand Up Loan program is designed to offer a hand-up, not a hand-out — meaning that loans must be used in relation to increasing recipients’ financial independence. Qualifying expenses include education, small business loans, business development, job training, car purchase or repairs, refugee/immigration resettlement and more.
“Our loan program is open to all San Diegans who are in need and want to live more successful lives,” said JFS CEO Michael Hopkins. “The loans are used for a variety of purposes —we’ve helped a local man earn his chauffer license and start a small company and enabled an East County family to buy agricultural equipment and educate themselves how to use it after the fires.”
The loan approval process takes an average of three weeks, from initial application to loan closing. Maximum loan amounts range from $3,000 to $7,500. Upon closing, applicants have up to 36 months to repay the loan by making monthly payments.
To qualify, applicants must live in San Diego County and have a verifiable source of income. For loans of up to $3,000, applicants must have one co-signer. For loans of $3,001 to $7,500, two co-signers are required. All co-signers must reside in Southern California.
To learn more, or apply for an interest-free loan, visit www.jfssd.org/loan or call (858) 637-3210.
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Navy Accepts 8th Littoral Combat
Ship Headed for Home in San Diego
Times of San Diego
The Navy has accepted delivery of future USS Detroit, a Freedom-class littoral combat ship that will be based in San Diego.
The Detroit is the eighth littoral combat ship to be delivered to the Navy and the fourth Freedom variant to join the fleet. All of the ships have been based in San Diego as part of the Navy’s pivot to the Pacific.
“We are pleased to receive the future USS Detroit into the LCS class,” said Capt. Warren R. Buller II. “Detroit will be the sixth ship in the U.S. Navy honored to carry the name of this great American city, and will soon be joining her sister littoral combat ships operating with the fleet in critical missions around the globe.”
The ships are being built in two variants, the single-hull Freedom class constructed by Lockheed Martin and the trimaran Independence class built by Austal USA. There are 12 ships currently under construction.
Two of the ships in the Freedom class have experienced significant mechanical problems, and critics say both types lack firepower, but the Navy has said it is confident that the new ships will prove successful.
The flexible vessels are designed for surface warfare, mine countermeasures and anti-submarine missions. Each carries a variety of missiles, deck guns and two helicopters.
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General Atomics Conducts
Missile Detection Test
ExecutiveBiz
General Atomics used its remotely piloted aircraft to perform a ballistic missile tracking test as part of a three-day biennial exercise held in June in Kauai, Hawaii.
Two General Atomics Aeronautical Systems-built Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper used in the Pacific Dragon exercise have Raytheon-made Multi-spectral Targeting Systems-B electro-optical infrared turret systems that work to detect and monitor ballistic missile targets, the company said Monday.
The U.S. Navy performs the Pacific Dragon exercise with Japan’s maritime self defense force and South Korea’s naval force in an effort to build up technical and tactical coordination for ballistic missile detection.
General Atomics also carried out the missile tracking test as part of a contract with the Missile Defense Agency.
Predator B/MQ-9 Reaper is designed to fly at an altitude of more than 45,000 feet and works to support military reconnaissance, targeting and surveillance missions.
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Navy Destroyer to be Named After
Medal of Honor Winner Basilone
In a ceremony at Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton, Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus announced Arleigh Burke-class destroyer DDG 122 will be named John Basilone in honor of the Marine Corps gunnery sergeant and Medal of Honor recipient.
He was awarded the Medal of Honor for heroism during the Battle of Guadalcanal, and was the only enlisted Marine to receive both the Medal of Honor and the Navy Cross in World War II.
This is the second ship to be named for John Basilone. The first USS Basilone was a Gearing-class destroyer, decommissioned in 1977.
“It is a great honor to name this ship in recognition of John Basilone,” said Mabus. “I have no doubt that all who serve aboard her will carry on the legacy of service and commitment exemplified by this Marine Corps hero.”
This is the seventh ship Mabus has named honoring a Medal of Honor recipient. Others include John Finn, Ralph Johnson, Thomas Hudner, Daniel Inouye, Harvey C. Barnum Jr., and Woody Williams.
Arleigh Burke-class destroyers conduct a variety of operations from peacetime presence and crisis response to sea control and power projection. DDG 122 will be capable of fighting air, surface and subsurface battles simultaneously, and will contain a combination of offensive and defensive weapon systems designed to support maritime warfare including integrated air and missile defense and vertical launch capabilities.
The ship is expected to enter the Navy fleet in 2022. The ship will be 509 feet long, have a beam length of 59 feet and be capable of operating at speeds in excess of 30 knots.
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UC San Diego Named
World’s 14th Best University
The University of California San Diego has been named the 14th best university in the world for the fourth year in a row by the 2016 Academic Ranking of World Universities (ARWU). Nationally, UC San Diego was named the country’s 12th best university.
The ARWU rankings were released by the Center for World-Class Universities at Shanghai Jiao Tong University, a public research university located in Shanghai.
According to ARWU, the rankings are based on six objective indicators including the number of alumni and staff winning Nobel Prizes and Fields Medals, the number of highly cited researchers, the number of articles published in journals of nature and science, the number of articles indexed in science citation index – expanded and social sciences citation index and per capita performance.
More than 1,200 universities are actually ranked by ARWU every year and the best 500 universities are published.
The campus was recently ranked the 17th best university in the world by the Center for World University Rankings (CWUR) and it took the 35th spot in the Times Higher Education World Reputation Rankings.
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Developers Begin Construction of $57M
Townhomes Project in Oceanside
Cornerstone Communities and Presidio Residential Capital have begun construction at Brisas at Pacific Ridge, a gated community that will have 117 two-story triplex townhomes at College Boulevard and Old Grove Road in Oceanside.
A grand opening will be held at the new neighborhood — the last piece of land to be developed within the Rancho Del Oro master-planned community — in late December or January 2017. The retail value of the Brisas development will exceed $57 million.
Each home at Brisas at Pacific Ridge will have a private yard. Designed by San Diego-based Stark Architecture and Planning, the up to four-bedroom, two-and-a-half bath triplex homes will offer three floor plans ranging from 1,500 to 1,820 square feet in California Craftsman, Coastal Tuscan and Spanish styles. The homes will have open living areas, spacious master bedrooms with walk-in closets, generous secondary bedrooms, optional fourth bedrooms and balconies off the master bedroom in some units.
The project is Cornerstone Communities’ sixth joint venture with Presidio.
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SANDAG’s Half-Cent Sales Tax
For Transportation Added to Ballot
By City News Service
A proposal by the San Diego Association of Governments to raise the sales tax by a half-cent to fund transportation projects will be the first local measure on a bloated November ballot, elections officials said Tuesday.
The tax would fund $18 billion in transit, highway, bicycle, pedestrian and environmental projects, including a new trolley line in south San Diego County.
The SANDAG plan will be known as Measure A, and a proposal to build a residential development in the Lilac Hills section of Valley Center will be Measure B, county Registrar of Voters Michael Vu told City News Service.
The term “Measure” is being used instead of “Proposition” so that voters can differentiate between local and state ballot questions. The loaded general election ballot includes 17 state propositions, two county measures and a dozen in the city of San Diego.
Personnel Announcements
Lisa Garcia Joins Champions for Health
Champions for Health, a local nonprofit formerly known as the San Diego County Medical Society, has named Lisa Garcia as grants and communications manager. Garcia will be involved in grant writing preparation and submittals, donor recruitment, support and management and communications and marketing functions.
She has more than 25 years of experience in the nonprofit arena. Garcia previously operated her own consulting firm called Lisa Garcia Grant Consulting, a full-service grant writing company for nonprofit organizations, and also served as a grant writer for the Barona Band of Mission Indians, operators of the Barona Resort & Casino, a gaming resort, casino and golf course in Lakeside. She has been a professional grant writer since 1999.
Throughout her career, Garcia has worked with nonprofits involved in health, arts and culture, children and youth and social services. She has successfully secured hundreds of thousands of dollars in grants from such funders as the Parker Foundation, Weingart Foundation, California Wellness Foundation, Kresge Foundation and County of San Diego.
Matthew Fishman Joins Regents Bank
Regents Bank has hired Matthew Fishman, who will serve as assistant vice president and treasury management sales officer.
Fishman will work with clients at Regents Bank offices throughout San Diego County and in Vancouver, Wash. His responsibilities include identifying how the bank’s treasury management services can address specific client needs and delivering a full range of products.
Most recently, Fishman worked at City National Bank as an assistant vice president. He earned a bachelor’s degree in economics with a minor in business administration from University of Arizona. He is working toward certification as a Certified Treasury Professional.
