Daily Business Report-April 12, 2019
Rendering of The Link, to be built at 707 17th St. in East Village. (Courtesy of Carrier Johnson + Culture)
Affirmed Housing to break ground today
on development serving San Diego’s homeless
Affirmed Housing and its development partners will break ground this morning on The LINK, a housing project designated primarily for people who have experienced homelessness. The development site is at 707 17th St. in East Village.
Located on an 11,318-square-foot site, The LINK will provide 72 permanent supportive housing units to people who have experienced homelessness, and 14 affordable studios for households earning 50 percent or less of the area median income (86 total resident units). Each apartment will be approximately 250-300 square feet, with a living space, kitchen, and bath.
The five-story, 50,000-square-foot project will feature a glass-encased lobby, a community room, supportive services by Father Joe’s Villages, laundry facilities, and large terraces.
Last year alone, The LINK investment partner, Bank of America, financed a record $4.7 billion in loans, tax credit equity investments and other real estate development solutions nationwide for new affordable housing.
“Lifting people out of poverty and onto the path to economic stability is one of the most important things we can do as a bank, so we are particularly proud to finance over $48 million for The LINK,” said Rick Bregman, San Diego market president for Bank of America.
The LINK was designed by Carrier Johnson + Culture.
_________________
Spectrum Corporate Plaza sold for $39.8 million
Seattle-based investment advisory firm Washington Capital Management has acquired Spectrum Corporate Plaza in Kearny Mesa for $39.8 million, on behalf of a client. Neither the buyer nor the seller was identified.
Located at 9242 and 9246 Lightwave Ave., the 129,146-square-foot office campus was 95 percent leased at the time of sale. The property consists of two free-standing buildings with major tenants including Epsilon Systems, Henkels and McCoy, the State of California and San Diego Workforce Partnership. The plaza sits on a 6.41-acre lot and features 514 parking spaces.
CBRE was the investment adviser for the transaction.
_________________
General Atomics’ Gray Eagle model
featured in new Army museum
A one-fifth-scale model of the MQ-1C Gray Eagle Unmanned Aircraft System (UAS) hangs from the ceiling of the new National Museum of the United States Army, currently under construction just outside Washington, D.C. The model was donated by Gray Eagle developer General Atomics Aeronautical Systems Inc. and follows the $50,000 cash donation the company pledged to the museum in 2018. The museum is being readied for its official public opening in 2020.
The Gray Eagle model will be featured in the Museum’s Experiential Learning Center’s “Observe and Report” interactive learning station to highlight Army achievements in communications and reconnaissance. It will provide students with activities that stress the importance of secure, accurate and advanced intelligence gathering for soldiers as part of a simulated natural disaster assistance mission called Operation: Safe Passage.
_________________
Applications now open for CONNECT’s
Most Innovative New Product Awards
Applications are now being accepted for the 2019 Most Innovative New Product (MIP) Awards, a CONNECT signature event held annually each fall honoring San Diego’s stars of innovation along with groundbreaking new products launched within the past year.
Applications will be accepted in a wide variety of categories related to technology and life sciences, including but not limited to, aerospace, cleantech, life science diagnostics, life science research tools, medical devices, mobile apps, and more.
Eligible companies must meet the following requirements:
• Product must have been first introduced after Jan. 1, 2017
• Product must have never been selected as an MIP finalist
• Product must have generated sales revenue. Except for free Mobile Apps and Life Science Products-Clinical Stage
• If selected as a finalist, a representative must attend and present at the Distinguished Judges’ Panel in the fall
• If selected as a finalist, a representative must attend the Awards Dinner on Dec. 5, 2019
Applications are due by July 22 at midnight, and application submission details can be found at www.connect.org/events. Winners will be announced at the awards ceremony Dec. 5 at the Hyatt Regency La Jolla at Aventine.
For more information, visit connect.org/events.
_________________
National Small Business Week
hosts 2nd annual Virtual Conference
As part of National Small Business Week (NSBW), the Small Business Administration and SCORE will cohost the second annual NSBW Virtual Conference May 7-8. The conference will include educationl webinars presented by NSBW co-sponsors, virtual exhibit booths, and a networking room where business owners have an opportunity to connect with a mentor. The virtual exhibit hall and networking areas will be open from 8 a.m. to 2:30 p.m. PT. The webinar registration is currently open, and each virtual session will be available on demand thereafter. The event is free of charge, but registration is required.
_________________
USD team takes first place in
2019 ARGUS University Challenge
A team of USD School of Business students was awarded first place in the 2019 ARGUS University Challenge, the seventh time the Master of Science in Real Estate (MSRE) students have taken the top prize. The team has placed second in the other three years the competition has been held.
The 2019 USD ARGUS team included MSRE candidates: Alexander Dow, Johannes Hummel, Shane Isdaner, Tyler Jenkins and Theodore Kavich. The team was led by faculty adviser Charles Tu, professor of commercial real estate.
“The ARGUS University Challenge was a great opportunity to utilize our MSRE education and tackle a real-world investment scenario that entailed market analysis, financial underwriting and professional writing skills,” said the team in a statement.
“We were thrilled to apply our coursework and enjoyed the process of working closely with our fellow cohort to create a winning product. We are humbled by the first-place recognition and are proud to have represented USD well.”
Each year the Algus Group offers the competition, where teams of aspiring real estate professionals from universities all over the world participate.
Each team is challenged to present a paper with the best investment analysis and conclusion for a fictitious real estate opportunity. The 2019 University Challenge began on Feb. 8 and the case was titled “The Marvelous Return Home.”
_________________
Second group of innovators begin
accelerator program at airport lab
The second group of innovators has begun the 16-week accelerator program to “field test” and develop their concepts in a real-world airport environment at San Diego International Airport. The program is hosted in the Airport Innovation Lab, located within the decommissioned Commuter Terminal.
The five entrants and their wide-ranging concepts are:
• AirporTour – testing interactive airport guides with audio tours
• Ciari Guitar, Inc. – offering a guitar kiosk featuring the world’s first and only foldable, travel guitar where travelers can play and/or listen to music while relaxing
• HOHM Inc. – providing high-tech sleep pods for travelers to rest in for 30-minute to four-hour periods in otherwise underutilized space
• InnoTech Systems LLC – using autonomous robot guides to provide navigation through the airport and other travel assistance
• Nuvve Corporation – pioneering vehicle-to-grid applications at airports with excess electric vehicle (battery-stored) energy sold back to the grid or buildings during peak demand times.
The unique Lab was launched to reduce barriers for innovators to break into the aviation industry. Its goals are to develop concepts that can enhance the passenger experience, improve operational efficiency, increase revenues and/or decrease costs. The 3,500-square-foot space offers a functional mini-terminal area with ticket counters and a bag claim carousel, all without passenger or security concerns to work around.
_________________
Personnel Announcements
Chia H. Chu named NAI Mexico’s
senior manager for Asia/Pacific projects
Tijuana-based NAI Mexico has welcomed Chia H. Chu “Al Chu” as its new senior manager for Asia/Pacific projects.
Chu joined NAI Mexico to supervise Asia / Pacific projects with a focus on Chinese investments. He started his career in Brazil where he managed retail and investments projects. In Tijuana, Chu created and operated maquiladora operations such as “Fabrica de Nogal”, acting as the CEO.
In addition to NAI Mexico, Chu acts as president of the Northeast General Business Association representing the three Northeast provinces of China (Liaoning, Jilin, and Heilongjiang), coordinating investments in the Mexican market and Latin America.
Chu is also president of the Asia Pacific Commission at Baja California Aerospace Cluster. He arranged the agreement between the Brazil Aerospace Cluster and the Baja Aerospace cluster signed in Paris, France during the 2015 Air Show.
Chu is also the representative for Baja California with the People’s Government of Jilin Providence, China for which he develops the commercial and cultural relations with Mexico.
“We are very pleased to welcome Mr. Chu,” said Gary Swedback, CEO of NAI Mexico. “He will be a great addition to our growing team and will help us take another step towards our worldwide expansion.”
_________________
Destiny Snelling joins Cavignac & Associates
Destiny Snelling has joined Cavignac & Associates as an account manager within the company’s Commercial Department.
With 11 years of past experience in the insurance industry, Snelling now serves as the primary contact at the agency for her assigned clients, responsible for identifying their exposure to loss, advising them on appropriate coverages, and negotiating coverage terms and pricing. She works with loss control and claims departments, along with carriers, to resolve any complex risk control or claims issues.
Snelling previously served as an account manager for commercial construction clients at Lockton Insurance Brokers LLC, in La Jolla, where she was employed for three-and-a-half years. There she serviced her designated book of business, handled marketing, researched industry trends and government regulations, generated materials for presentations, and oversaw audits, endorsement requests and policy checking.
For eight years prior to that, she was employed by BB&TJohn Burnham Insurance Services (BB&T), where she last served in the role of senior account representative within the agency’s transportation unit. While there, she provided insurance support and served as the main contact for Taxicab and the Limousine & Paratransit Association during the launch of Uber. Her dedication and excellence in service earned her the “Employee of the Month” award at the firm. She also sat on BB&T’s board of directors for the company’s March of Dimes Charity.
