Daily Business Report-Oct. 16, 2018
Workers restoring the concrete on the Salk Institute’s iconic walls. (Credit: Salk Institute)
Salk awarded $200,000 to aid in
preservation of its iconic concrete facades
As part of its Keeping It Modern initiative, the Getty Foundation has awarded the Salk Institute a $200,000 grant to support the conservation of Salk’s celebrated concrete facades. The grant project will take place over the next five years. The announcement is part of more than $1.7 million in architectural conservation grants announced by the foundation in 2018 for 11 significant 20th century buildings.
The Salk Institute has been described as one of the single most significant architectural sites in the United States and has garnered accolades for its design and preservation. Salk’s original buildings, designed by preeminent American architect Louis Kahn in collaboration with founder Jonas Salk in the early 1960s, were declared a historical landmark in 1991. However, wear and tear on the historic buildings needed conservation.
In particular, the Institute identified a need to address the existing degradation and reduce the rate of future deterioration of the buildings’ concrete, which functions as a major visual element of the buildings, inseparable from Salk’s character and spatial qualities.
_____________________
The Oberlin office building
sold to Irving firm for $20.4 million
Bixby Land Company, a Newport Beach-based investor, has sold The Oberlin, a 62,424-quare-foot creative office building located at 5889, 5893 and 5897 Oberlin Drive in San Diego.
The building was sold to Irvine-based Crown Realty & Development for $20.4 million.
Bixby Land Company purchased the building in September 2014 and completed an extensive redesign of the project to create a contemporary work environment to support today’s innovative companies. The redesign included outdoor gathering and work spaces, a fitness area and updated interior and exterior finishes.
At the time of the sale, the project was 66 percent leased to Verimatrix, Bravo Sports and Digital Addix.
Jones Lang LaSalle represented both the buyer, Crown Realty and Bixby Land Company in the transaction.
Sen. Kamala Harris at the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing for the confirmation of Brett Kavanaugh to the U.S. Supreme Court, Tuesday, Sept. 4, 2018.
_____________________
A Californian on the 2020 Presidential ticket?
Here’s what state insiders say
By Elizabeth Castillo | CALmatters
The latest conventional wisdom among state political insiders: There’s a good chance a Californian will be on the presidential ticket in 2020, and that Californian is likely to be Democratic U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris.
Among participants in a new Target Book Insider Track survey, 55 percent say it is somewhat or very likely that a Californian makes the 2020 ticket, either for president or vice president. The survey—our attempt to put some real data behind the anecdotal estimations of conventional wisdom—is based on 34 respondents who are Target Book subscribers, an assortment of politicos, lobbyists and consultants.
When asked whom they had in mind, the overwhelming favorite was Harris, with Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti a distant second.
Garcetti has already made several stops to South Carolina, an important state in the primaries behind Iowa and New Hampshire.
But Harris is set to visit the state this week, according to The PostCourier. The rookie senator has also made stops in Ohio over the weekend and was greeted by fellow Democrats as a rock star. Although she has been consistently saying she’s focused on the midterms as she campaigns for Democratic candidates across the country, she also went further than before in acknowledging her interest in 2020.
“I’m thinking about ’18 and what we need to do around these races, and then I’ll seriously take a look at things after that. But right now I’m focused on this,” she told reporters.
_____________________
Certain firms driving healthy demand
for San Diego industrial properties
Logistics firms, online retailers, defense contractors and biotech firms are driving healthy demand for San Diego industrial properties, according to the Marcus & Millichap Industrial Research Market Report. Vacancy remains on a downward trajectory, reaching well below 5 percent as net absorption has outpaced supply growth every year since 2010.
Builders are responding rapidly to the tightening marketplace, with supply growth in 2018 tripling to nearly 3 million square feet, the highest annual pace since 2007, the report said. While the new space carries a considerable portion of pre-leased floor plates, speculative activity is beginning to emerge as a factor, with unleased space reaching 1.1 million square feet this year. As a result, vacancy will soften as deliveries intensify through year end, largely due to timing around the lease-up of the speculative projects.
The report said rent growth will remain robust through this process, underpinned by the rising impact of new Class A properties that should lease at prices above the market average.
_____________________
Report: Reducing lawsuits can
help boost California economy
A new study on the costs of excessive tort lawsuits in California shows overall economic losses totaling $11.6 billion in annual direct costs, according to Citizens Against Lawsuit Abuse (CALA).
The CALA report, titled the Economic Benefits of Tort Reform, estimates that unwarranted tort litigation inflicts additional losses of $18.5 billion in output (gross product) each year combined with the loss of 197,776 jobs when dynamic effects are considered. All major industry groups are negatively impacted, with the greatest losses endured by retail, business services, and health service industries.
The study was conducted by The Perryman Group, a Waco, Texas-based economic and financial analysis firm. They calculated the actual and potential economic benefits for California by using cost benchmarks based on tort reform changes made in recent years by the state of Ohio.
_____________________
Carol Vassiliadis gift of $1.5 million
supports work of USD Humanities Center
For the second time in two years, San Diego resident Carol Vassiliadis has gifted the University of San Diego’s College of Arts and Sciences to continue the work of its Humanities Center.
The $1.5 million gifts establish a directorship at the center. USD philosophy professor Brian Clack, the center’s inaugural director, has been chosen by Noelle Norton, dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, as the directorship’s inaugural recipient.
In addition to this year’s contribution, Vassiliadis donated $500,000 in 2016 to open the Humanities Center.
“I am a great believer in a classical approach.” Vassiliadis says. “The humanities are the core of every fine university and round out the student experience, putting everything they’ve learned into perspective.”
_____________________
City Attorney’s Office awarded
special drug DUI prosecution grant
D rivers arrested for being under the influence of drugs in the city of San Diego can expect to face highly trained, specialized prosecutors, funded by a $255,850 grant from the California Office of Traffic Safety, City Attorney Mara Elliott announced Monday. The grant to the City Attorney’s Office will continue to fund a team that works drug DUI cases from arrest through conviction and sentencing.
Funding from this Drug DUI Prosecution Grant will aid the City Attorney’s Office in handling cases throughout each step of the criminal process, prosecuting both drug-impaired and drug/alcohol-impaired driving cases. Prosecution team members will work with the state’s Traffic Safety Resource Prosecutor Program to expand knowledge and resources in the emerging problem of drug-impaired driving
_____________________
Grossmont Healthcare District grants
go to food distribution nonprofits
The Grossmont Healthcare District has awarded grants totaling $85,500 to three food distribution nonprofits — Meals on Wheels, Jewish Family Service of San Diego and the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank.
A $27,500 grant went to Meals on Wheels to help purchase a transit van for the daily delivery of meal services. The new van will be used to transport volunteers who will deliver year-round meals to more than 384 homebound, low-income seniors, ages 60 and older, living in the East County.
A $40,000 grant went to Jewish Family Service of San Diego to support its food assistance program. It will help cover expenses for the JFS Foodmobile program that delivers nutritious meals to homebound seniors and adults with disabilities who live in the district.
An $18,000 grant went to the Jacobs & Cushman San Diego Food Bank to fund distribution of fresh fruits and vegetables at Heaven’s Windows, a food distribution site in Spring Valley. The grant will provide food to about 210 families per month.
_____________________
BLT Enterprises finishes industrial building
BLT Enterprises, a commercial real estate investment company, has completed ground-up construction of a 63,800-square-foot industrial building in Kearny Mesa for $12 million. The new development features an all concrete and steel structure, 30-ft. minimum clear heights, ESFR fire suppression system, and a fully enclosed concrete truck yard.
The new industrial building is located at 9269 Lightwave Ave. in Kearny Mesa, directly across from the YMCA.
_____________________
Personnel Announcements
Justin Tichy named chief stores officer for Petco
Petco has appointed sales leader and retail veteran Justin Tichy as chief stores officer. As CSO, Tichy will oversee all operations and execution for Petco’s 1,500+ retail locations across the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Tichy brings to Petco more than 25 years of experience leading high-energy, results-oriented teams and driving transformative growth at large, industry-leading retail organizations, including Best Buy, Target and Wal-Mart. Most recently, he served as president of sales at Confie, one of the largest privately held insurance brokers in the nation.
Tichy holds a bachelor’s degree in business management from Pennsylvania State University and a master’s degree in organizational management from the University of Phoenix. He is be based at the company’s National Support Center.
“I’m excited and honored to join a company with a strong retail brand and a long history of leadership in such a fun and rewarding category,” said Tichy. “Petco’s passionate and knowledgeable store partners are a fundamental part of the company’s ability to stay competitive in today’s evolving retail landscape.”
