Daily Business Report-Oct. 3, 2019
Illustration courtesy of General Atomics.
General Atomics awarded Army contract
supporting hypersonic vehicle prototypes
General Atomics Electromagnetic Systems has been awarded a contract by the U.S. Army’s Rapid Capabilities and Critical Technologies Office to further the development of the Common Hypersonic Glide Body and Flight Test Vehicle in support of the Army Long Range Hypersonic Weapon and the Navy’s Intermediate Range Conventional Prompt Strike Program. The contract award follows work performed by General Atomics under a previous contract with the U.S. Army Space and Missile Defense Command for the Advanced Hypersonic Weapon – Technology Demonstration program.
General Atomics will provide manufacturing, production, engineering and technical support to integrate, test, and evaluate Common Hypersonic Glide Body and Flight Test Vehicles through system and subsystem-level ground and flight test activities. Deliverables include the manufacture of components, test and integration of vehicle flight components and assemblies, flight test planning and execution, and simulation, validation and verification support.
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Sentre acquires San Marcos Village
Shopping Center for $19.25 million
San Diego-based commercial real estate investment firm SENTRE announces the $19.25 million acquisition of San Marcos Village, a 96,606-square-foot shopping center at the intersection of Highway 78 and Rancho Santa Fe Road in San Marcos.
The multi-tenant shopping location is anchored by San Marcos’ only Grocery Outlet Bargain Market and is home to additional tenants including dd’s Discounts, 99 Cents Only, Boost Mobile, Auto Zone and Western Dental.
SENTRE will renovate the property over the course of three years. Plans include aesthetic property and storefront enhancements, improved path of travel into the center via landscaping and signage, re-paving the parking lot, and an overall rebrand of the property to improve customer experience.
CBRE represented Sentre and the seller.
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Council formally OKs electricity authority,
appoints Monica Montgomery director
Times of San Diego
The San Diego City Council voted Tuesday to ratify a proposal to provide electricity to residents in five cities via a joint-powers authority and appointed Councilwoman Monica Mongomery as director of the Joint Powers Authority (JPA) board.
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Poll finds majority of Californians believe
they were right to legalize marijuana sales
By Dan Morain | CALmatters
By a 68 percent-30 percent margin, California voters believe they were right to legalize the commercial sale of marijuana, a UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll shows. Voters approved the legalization initiative, Proposition 64 of 2016, 57 percent-43 percent.
The poll shows wide support across income and educational levels. People between 18 and 29 support legalization by 71 percent, and 74 percent of people in their 30s support it.
Some exceptions:
- People born in another country are split, 49 percent for legalization and 48 percent against.
- 63.8 percent of voters in homes where Spanish is the dominant language oppose legalization.
- 54 percent of evangelicals oppose it.
- 65 percent of people who describe themselves as very conservative oppose legalization.
Meanwhile: The California Department of Public Health reported another Californian being hospitalized after vaping, bringing the total to 102 since June. Almost all individuals report vaping cannabis, though the cause remains unknown.
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Robin Layton appointed to governor’s
Early Education Policy Council
Robin Layton, president and CEO of Educational Enrichment Systems (EES), has been appointed to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Early Education Policy Council.
Appointed by the state Sen. Rules Committee chaired by Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins, Layton will join 27 providers, parents, and other stakeholders to advise the Legislature, governor, and superintendent of public instruction on statewide early learning and care policy.
Layton was one of four appointments from the Senate Rules committee. “Research consistently shows that children who have access to high-quality preschool are more successful in all areas of life. Not only are children better prepared for school, they are more socially and emotionally developed than their peers who have not had the opportunity to attend preschool. I have seen firsthand the difference early educational programs make in the lives of young children,” said Layton.
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Katie Sawyer named
Nonprofit Visionary for 2019
Katie Sawyer, executive director of the San Diego Women’s Foundation (SDWF), was named the 2019 Nonprofit Visionary at San Diego Magazine’s Celebrating Women Awards.
The Nonprofit Visionary honor is awarded to an outstanding woman in recognition of her impactful service and special contributions to the community, civic or charitable organizations. Sawyer has dedicated her career to helping nonprofits build a stronger community; she has a vision for a better future for all in our community.
Under Sawyer’s leadership, San Diego Women’s Foundation is growing in impact and membership, and members continue to tackle big issues each year. Recently, more than $243,000 in grants was awarded to combat human trafficking, the largest amount in the organization’s 19-year history. The current grants cycle will benefit refugees, asylees and asylum seekers in San Diego County; the grants will be awarded next June at the foundation’s 20th annual grants celebration.
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The Chairmen’s RoundTable
elects new board of directors
The Chairmen’s RoundTable (CRT), a San Diego nonprofit organization that provides pro-bono mentoring to CEOs of private businesses in the Greater San Diego area, has elected a new board of directors.
Paul Thiel will serve his second term as CRT chairman. Dennis Dillon and Cory Grant will remain on the board for another term and are joined by seven newly appointed directors: Ginny Beneke, Malcolm Bund, Frank Creede, David Grooms, Robert Hill, Sherri Neasham, and Rob Weinberg.
“I am so grateful to these CRT members who are committing to serve on our board for 2019-2020,” said Thiel. “They provide the leadership and direction to our organization that we need to continue to deliver executive mentorship to San Diego businesses as a way of giving back and strengthening our local economy. Serving on the board requires a dedication of time and energy above what they already do as part of our all-volunteer organization and it is truly appreciated.”
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Martin Amen named VP, general manager
of Cubic’s Nuvotronics subsidiary
Martin Amen, vice president of strategy and business development at Cubic’s Nuvotronics subsidiary, has been appointed VP and general manager of the same business.
He will oversee Nuvotronics’ profit-and-loss functions, internal performance, business and growth strategy and customer-stakeholder relations.
Amen previously worked at Northrop Grumman as senior director of secure network operations and as director of satellite and network systems. Earlier in his career, he spent two years at American Systems as a project engineer and served as program and capture manager at Logicon for another two years.
“Marty’s leadership experience in high performing [profit and loss] organizations as well as his expertise in business development, program execution and customer relations will enable us to further grow our Nuvotronics business and ensure we continue to meet our commitments to our customers,” said Mike Twyman, president of Cubic’s mission solutions business.
Nuvotronics, which Cubic acquired in March, develops microfabricated radio frequency technology.
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Conference on landscape architecture set for
Nov. 15-18 at San Diego Convention Center
The largest annual gathering of landscape architects and allied professionals in the world is coming to San Diego’s Convention Center Nov. 15–18.
The conference will feature:
- Over 300 speakers and experts, discussing a variety of subjects including climate change and resilience
- Field sessions to nearby landscape-architecture projects.
- An EXPO with all the latest in digital technology, urban design, outdoor environments and more
- Free general closing session devoted to the challenges of climate change and viable steps toward a clean-energy future, with internationally recognized keynote speakers
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Sycuan Square market and gas station
opens to public in rural El Cajon
Sycuan Square, a gas station and convenience store in rural El Cajon, is now open to the public, Sycuan Tribal Development Corporation reported. The project includes a 5,500 square-foot convenience store and 1,600 square-foot gas station.
The new 16-nozzle gas station has the lowest gas prices in all of East County and dispenses three grades of unleaded and diesel fuel. Additionally, it is currently the only available gas station for the neighboring communities of Dehesa, Crest, and Harbison Canyon, according to Sycuan officials.
“The revenue generated through this operation will go to programs that will benefit both the on and off-reservation communities, tribal education and cultural departments and philanthropic contributions, just to name a few,” said Joshua Muse, chairman of the Sycuan Tribal Development Corporation Board
The Sycuan Market is the first phase of three phases for the Sycuan Square property. Future phases include plans to relocate the current Sycuan Medical and Dental Center to Sycuan Square and build additional mixed-use and retail space, including a car wash.
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Western Dental acquires
San Diego Dental Specialty Center
Western Dental & Orthodontics announced the acquisition of San Diego Dental Specialty Center (SDDSC), a local leader in multi-specialty family dental care. Terms were not disclosed. The transaction brings the total number of Western Dental offices in California to 231. This is the 9th office in San Diego County. Western Dental now supports a total of 322 offices in five states, including California, Texas, Arizona, Nevada and Alabama.
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Academy of Our Lady of Peace earns
College Board AP Diversity Award
Academy of Our Lady of Peace (OLP), the oldest all-girls’ high school in San Diego, has earned the College Board AP Computer Science Female Diversity Award. The recognition honors OLP for attaining female student representation in AP Computer Science Principles and AP Computer Science A for 2018. Among the more than 18,000 secondary schools worldwide that offer the AP courses, OLP was one of only 685 (less than 4 percent of schools) that have achieved this result.
At OLP, an unprecedented 41 percent of the all-girls’ graduating class plan to pursue a STEM major in college, compared with the national co-educational average of 16 percent. In a class of 183 students, 74 percent of the Class of 2019 received at least one merit-based scholarship. This amounts to more than $24 million in merit-based college scholarships.
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Marine Corps Air Station Miramar
receives water efficiency award
The San Diego County Water Authority presented its 2019 Water Innovation & Efficiency Award to Marine Corps Air Station Miramar for significantly reducing its overall potable water use through a successful water conservation program and new infrastructure for distributing reclaimed water.
MCAS Miramar embarked on a water conservation program about a decade ago, and through a $6 million investment, MCAS Miramar decreased its potable water use by more than 40 percent since 2007. In 2015, the commanding officer formed a water conservation board tasked with reducing the base’s overall potable water use. The base now has a total of more than five miles of reclaimed water distribution systems, an increase of 47 percent from two years ago. This reclaimed water infrastructure as well as other water efficiency projects has allowed the base to save more than 100 million gallons of potable water each year.
Reclaimed water at the base is now being used for irrigation, construction-related activities, dual-plumbed buildings, street sweeping and soon for evaporative cooling. In addition, MCAS Miramar converted all aircraft and vehicle wash racks to isolated recirculated water systems, conserving 75 percent of the water used to wash essential equipment.
