Daily Business Report-Nov. 6, 2018
BASIC Agency’s workstation bar at Block D in Downtown’s Makers Quarter. (Credit: Gilliland Construction Management)
Large office space completed for first tenant
at Block D in Downtown Makers Quarter
Gilliland Construction Management has completed the construction of 10,364 square feet of office space for BASIC Agency, the first tenant at Block D in downtown San Diego’s Makers Quarter. The think tank and Internet-marketing consulting firm now occupies Block D’s entire fifth floor.
Block D is the first building completed within Makers Quarter, an area bounded by Broadway and G Street, 14th and 17th streets, that is master planned to include 979,448 square feet of office space, 140,158 square feet of retail space and 808 housing units.
The Makers Quarter development team includes Lankford & Associates, HP Investors and Hensel Phelps.
Block D is designed by BNIM to meet the requirements of a LEED Platinum + Net Zero certification. The BASIC Agency space incorporates various audio-visual components, including large flat screen televisions, Sonos SoundBar speakers, Apple Mini and Google-Meet meeting interfaces in all conference and huddle rooms.
“Makers Quarter is part of the greater I.D.E.A. District, which was conceived as a work-play hub for innovation, design, education and the arts, and BASIC Agency’s space at Block D is a showcase for this vision,” said Chip Stockmeyer, project manager at Gilliland Construction Management.
Other project team members included Burger Construction’s Kevin Butts and Peter Cusworth; BNIM’s Daniel Brown and Jeff Marsch; and Paul Brewer Designs.
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Expect long delay in voting results
Today’s General Election results are expected to take longer than usual to come in. Here’s why.
• San Diego County voters will get a two-card ballot with contests listed both on the front and back. Voters will need more time to fill them out and the Registrar of Voters will need more time to process them.
• More mail ballots than ever before were issued by the Registrar’s office, over 1.2 million, and many voters do not turn them in until Election Day.
• A record high number of registered voters: San Diego County has more than 1.7 million registered voters.
• More polling places will be open: 1,542, up from 1,444 in the June 5 Primary Election.
In short, there are two cards for every ballot, more candidates, more measures, more voters, more polling places, more mail ballots and more ballot cards in general.
An aerial view of Seaport San Diego’s proposed observation tower on the left, water cut in the center and village block to the right. (Courtesy/Seaport San Diego)
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Big changes to Seaport Village plan
San Diego Union-Tribune
San Diegans would be forgiven, perhaps even applauded, for avoiding Seaport Village. Aside from the view, the 38 year-old waterfront property’s best pitch to consumers involves chain restaurants and trinket shops, seemingly only securing the approbation of cruise ship patrons and out-of-towners.
However, a grandiose plan to turn the prime real estate into a world-class destination lauded by locals and foreigners alike is currently underway. Called Seaport San Diego, the $1.6 billion project, backed in part by San Diego’s famed Jacobs family, was selected by the Port of San Diego in November 2016 to redevelop 70 acres — 39 land acres and 31 water acres — and is still in the beginning stages.
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Cubic partners with Army to aid
hurricane recovery efforts in Florida
Cubic Mission Solutions has deployed its GATR satellite communication (SATCOM) and networking systems as well as personnel to support Florida hurricane disaster recovery efforts. Partnering with the United States Army’s Transportable Tactical Command Communications project office, Cubic’s GATR SATCOM and networking systems have been set up in several locations throughout Panama City, Lynn Haven and Youngstown, Florida to provide communications, networking and high-bandwidth connectivity as a no cost service to local municipalities.
Due to high demand for the Inflatable Satellite Antenna (ISA) capability, the Army granted permission to deploy four of its GATR ISAs to help restore connectivity lost during Hurricane Michael.
Seven Cubic employees, based in Huntsville, Ala. traveled to Panama City to assist in recovery efforts. Upon the Cubic team’s arrival, the need for more antennas led to the partnership with the Army. This partnership enabled the deployment of multiple 1.2-meter and 2.4-meter GATR systems to restore communications for local government and first responder personnel throughout the Florida Panhandle.
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$6 million renovation completed
for Tower 591 in Mission Valley
The Casey Brown Company has completed the $6 million renovation of Tower 591 (formerly Valley Corporate Center), a 12-story, 183,000-square-foot Class A office tower located at 591 Camino de la Reina in Mission Valley.
Re-imagined by LPA, Tower 591 features a new entrance, modern exterior, outdoor lounge seating areas, modern hospitality lobby, contemporary cafe, light and bright common corridors, updated fitness center, new common area finishes including restrooms and elevators, and new landscaping.
Leading the leasing efforts for Tower 591 are Richard Gonor, Tony Russell and Brandt Riedman of JLL. Tower 591 can accommodate a variety of requirements ranging from approximately 1,000 to 12,000 square feet of contiguous space. Signage is also available.
Tower 591 features floor-to-ceiling glass, waffle concrete lids allowing for open concept space, a fitness center complete with lockers and showers, a conference room, and eatery.
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College acceptance rates dropped
nearly 40 percent since 2006
Do you think you could get into your college if you had to apply today? The answer is quite possibly no.
A new study from BusinessStudent.com found that admission rates from the top 51 colleges in America have dropped nearly 40 percent since 2006.
Here are a few key findings from the study:
• In 2006, the average admissions rate was 35.9 percent and in 2018 it has plummeted to 22.6 percent. This is a remarkable 37 percent decrease in admission rates.
• 48 of the 51 schools looked at are harder to get into today.
• Only two schools were easier to get into today: William and Mary and Syracuse.
• Top 10 Sharpest Declines: 1) University of Chicago, 2) Northwestern, 3) Duke, 4) Georgia Tech, 5) Johns Hopkins, 6) Tulane, 7) Stanford, 8) Rice, 9) UC Berkley, 10) Vanderbilt.
Click here to view the full study
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Tethering antibodies presents new approach to prevent influenza
As co-leaders of an international collaboration, scientists at Scripps Research have discovered that tethering four antibodies together may be an effective strategy for neutralizing all types of influenza virus known to infect humans. The research, published this week in Science, suggests this strategy could lead to influenza prevention tools with the strength and potency to last throughout the flu season, even as the virus mutates rapidly.
“We don’t have a vaccine yet that protects against all of the two main types of influenza (A and B). The key to this study is the engineering of a multidomain antibody that is cross-neutralizing to influenza A and B,” says Ian Wilson, professor of structural biology at Scripps Research, and chair of the Department of Integrative Structural and Computational Biology.
Tethering together antibodies is not a new concept, but this is the first time four antibodies have been tethered together and tried against influenza.
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Commercial Real Estate Women San Diego
announces 2019 board of directors
CREW (Commercial Real Estate Women) San Diego, a membership organization dedicated to promoting, educating and supporting professionals in the field of commercial real estate, has announced its 2019 board of directors:
Lauren Slatinsky is president.
Other officers and directors are:
Ariel Bedell, The Loftin Firm, president-elect; Jeana Renger, Ferguson Pape Baldwin Architects, secretary; Ana Tsang, JLL, treasurer: Lisa Bittner, Good & Roberts, officer-at-large-membership; Melissa Hayden, Lockrul Construction, director of sponsorship; Jennifer Litwak, Housing on Merit, foundation delegate; Stefanie Collins, Cushman & Wakefield, director of special events; Mandy Serrano, SCST Engineering, director of marketing communications; Lisa Chappell, Mission Federal Credit Union, network delegate; Jennifer Litwak, Housing on Merit, foundation delegate; Bree Wong, SWS Engineering Inc., immediate past president; Rebecca Bodemann, Xpedient Communications, director of education + programs.
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USD’s Master’s in Finance
program ranked in top 100 globally
The University of San Diego Master of Science in Finance began four years ago but now is ranked in the top 100 globally for the second year in a row, according to QS World University Rankings. The master’s program ranked ninth in the world in 2018 for value for the money and also received high marks for alumni outcomes and diversity. It ranked 65th overall out of 323 programs from around the world considered for the ranking.
The program at the USD School of Business can be completed in 10 months and is STEM-designated, meaning that international graduates may be eligible to work for up to three years in the United States after completing the program. It also prepares graduates to take the first two levels of the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) examination.
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Port invites public to learn proposed
revisions to Embarcadero plan
The Port of San Diego invites the public to attend the regularly-scheduled meeting of the Board of Port Commissioners today to learn about the latest revisions proposed as part of the planned redevelopment of the Central Embarcadero. 1HWY1, the selected developer, has refined its Seaport San Diego project and will be presenting the proposed changes to the board for preliminary feedback before it submits its project description to the Port at the end of the year.
The meeting begins at 1 p.m. in the Port of San Diego Administration Building, 3165 Pacific Highway, San Diego, 92101.
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ResMed to acquire MatrixCare
San Diego-based ResMed has signed a definitive agreement to acquire privately held MatrixCare for $750 million. MatrixCare a leader in U.S. long-term post-acute care software, serving more than 15,000 providers across skilled nursing, life plan communities, senior living and private duty. On completion of the transaction, MatrixCare will continue to operate as a standalone business within ResMed’s SaaS portfolio, with targeted commercial, technical and operating links to ResMed and Brightree. There will be no immediate changes to management, locations or business processes. MatrixCare CEO John Damgaard will continue in his current role.
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Judge strikes down controversial
land sale measure
U.S. District Judge William Shubb has ruled California’s Senate Bill 50 unconstitutional because, it “trespasses on the federal government’s ability to convey land to whomever it wants,” the Sacramento Bee reported.
Gov. Jerry Brown signed the bill in October, which gave the State Land Commission first right of refusal on the sale of California’s federal lands to private developers, loggers, oil drillers and other private interests.
Shubb ruled that “the law discriminated against land purchasers who deal with the United States,” Reuters reported.
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Personnel Announcements
Anna Diaz joins Dowling & Yahnke Wealth Advisors
Anna Diaz has joined Dowling & Yahnke Wealth Advisors as a lead advisor. She began her career in the private banking and wealth management industry in 1997.
Prior to joining Dowling & Yahnke, she was a senior vice president and Private Client Advisor at a national private wealth advisory institution for 16 years.
Anna holds the designation of Certified Financial Planner and a Certificate in Investment Strategies and Portfolio Management from Wharton. She completed her undergraduate work in financial services at San Diego State University.
The native-born San Diegan is a competitive salsa dancer. “Being around live salsa music and perfecting the dance feeds my soul in ways only a few things do. And it’s great cardio,” says Diaz.