Daily Business Report-Nov. 21, 2019
Tribes say they will offer an initiative for November.
Bet on a gambling measure
on the state ballot in 2020
Dan Morain | CalMatters
California voters could be asked to decide whether to approve the first major gambling expansion since they legalized Nevada-style casinos on Indian reservations in 2000.
Tribes that own some of the state’s most successful casinos announced last week that they intend to offer an initiative for the November ballot that would authorize them to offer sports wagering, craps and roulette.
Sen. Bill Dodd, a Napa Democrat, and Assemblyman Adam Gray, a Merced Democrat, chair legislative committees that oversee gambling and have been working on a joint proposal to place a separate measure before voters in November 2020.
Dodd: “Frankly, other than horse racing, this is all about tribal interests … That’s their right to do. We need to look at all the different options. We need to look at it more broadly.”
Gray: “I certainly respect tribes’ interests, but my job is to put something forward that protects all California, all communities, that brings in tax revenue that can benefit all Californians.”
Tribes working with horse racing tracks—but not card rooms, tribes’ rival—offered an initiative that would allow people to legally bet on professional and college sports, so long as they place bets at tribes’ casinos or racetracks.
The initiative would permit craps and roulette at tribes’ casinos.
The initiative would set a 10 percent tax on sports wagering, potentially generating “tens of millions” annually. This year’s state budget exceeds $210 billion.
Besides a Dodd-Gray proposal, lawmakers who represent cities that depend on revenue from card rooms no doubt will have ideas, too.
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Lynn Neault named chancellor
of Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District
Lynn Neault, longtime vice chancellor of student services at the San Diego Community College District, is the governing board’s pick as the next chancellor of the Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District.
Neault replaces Cindy L. Miles, who is retiring at the end of the year after a record term of almost 11 years at the district’s helm. Governing Board President Linda Cartwright announced Neault’s selection at the board meeting on Tuesday. Neault starts her new job in January.
Neault has served 25 years at her current post with the San Diego Community College District, one of the largest in California. She began working there in 1983 as an administrative analyst in Institutional Research, and later served as director, associate director and coordinator of Student Services. From 2013-2014, she served as interim president of San Diego City College. She holds a bachelor’s degree in political science, a master’s in public administration, and a doctorate in education, all from San Diego State University.
Raised in an immigrant family, where she was the first to attend college, Neault credits her own lived experiences to her commitment to the mission of community colleges.
“I am committed to the mission of community colleges,” she said. “We give students hope for a better life. We see the potential in them, even when they don’t see it for themselves and we lift their spirits.”
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Founding principal of High Tech High
honored with 2019 WISE Prize for Education
The prestigious WISE Prize for Education has been presented to Larry Rosenstock, CEO and founding principal of High Tech High, a network of American public charter schools in San Diego.
Her Highness Sheikha Moza bint Nasser, chairperson of Qatar Foundation, presented the Prize to Rosenstock at the Opening Plenary of the 2019 WISE Global Summit in Doha, Qatar, before an audience of over 3,000 participants from more than 100 countries.
The WISE Prize for Education is the first distinction of its kind to acknowledge an individual for an outstanding contribution to education. In receiving it, Rosenstock is recognized for his lifelong dedication to rethinking K-12 learning and tackling inequality through education.
He has pioneered the concept of project-based education – the idea that students can and must learn crucial academic skills through hands-on projects that integrate multiple disciplines, engage their interest, and have an authentic purpose. His model also reimagines the role of teachers as “designers” who adapt their curricula and blend a variety of subjects based on the specific needs of each student.
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Fulcrum closes $1 million seed
round led by Greatscale Ventures
San Diego-based Fulcrum, an on-demand workforce platform, closed its $1 million seed round of funding on Monday, led by new technology fund Greatscale Venturesalong with several private co-investors. Fulcrum connects Fortune 1000 companies with top online gig and freelance talent providers while maintaining full compliance.
Until now, according to the company, Fortune 1000 companies seeking to hire skilled on-demand or freelance workers had no scalable, compliant way to access gig economy and other on-demand talent. While recent legislation, such as California’s AB5, makes it more difficult for companies to tap into the gig economy, Fulcrum was designed to work within the legislative frameworks of more than 80 countries through their fully compliant platform. Fulcrum co-founders Trevor Foster and Sean Ring created an end-to-end workforce platform that enables enterprise organizations to design, manage, and execute their most important work on demand. The platform is backed up by more than 15 million expert freelancers across numerous marketplaces that can all be accessed from a single point of entry.
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City Council to move ahead with
ADA-compliant ramp at Dog Beach
By Dave Schwab, sdnews.com
Community planners failed to thwart city of San Diego plans to build a new estimated $1.1 million, ADA-compliant ramp at Dog Beach in Ocean Beach. The City Council voted unanimously Nov. 19 to deny an appeal brought by Ocean Beach Planning Group, which voted overwhelmingly in August against the city’s proposed replacement ramp.
The City Council hearing stemmed from controversy surrounding a lawsuit recently settled out of court for $50,000 to a wheelchair-bound plaintiff, Scott Schutza. Schutza contended disability discrimination, alleging violation of federal and state anti-discrimination statutes. He claimed the city had failed, and refused, to ensure the accessibility of public facilities at OB Dog Beach, including the River Trail.
At issue was whether the city was obligated or not by the lawsuit settlement to construct a new ADA-compliant ramp at Dog Beach.
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JDRF honors San Diegan Paul Vaden
with the 2019 Erwin Lurie Award
Paul Vaden, a retired boxer and president of the San Diego chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (JDRF), has been awarded the Erwin Lurie Award for his noteworthy contributions as a volunteer leader in the organization.
Under Vaden’s leadership, the San Diego chapter saw one of its best financial years in FY2019, raising over $3 million and exceeding the budgeted goal by 20 percent.
As a retired professional boxer and World Boxing Champion, Paul “The Ultimate” Vaden uses his celebrity status to forge new partnerships, gain personal meetings with
Congress and raise hundreds of thousands of dollars for T1D research.
Named after the late Erwin Lurie, who helped found JDRF in 1970 with his wife Carol and others, the Erwin Lurie Award is annually presented to chapter volunteers whose commitment to the volunteer/staff partnership has significantly advanced the mission and strategic priorities of JDRF over the past year.
“Paul has been a part of our lives since the time when our son was first diagnosed with T1D. He wanted to help and has taken our cause to heart in such a big way. We are forever grateful for his support and love having him in our corner,” said Steve and Lisa Altman, longtime supporters of JDRF in San Diego.
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Katherine Schwarzenegger to keynote
2020 Leadership Conference in San Diego
Katherine Schwarzenegger, author and eldest child of actor and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, will keynote the 2020 Leadership Conference during San Diego Women’s Week March 16-20, 2020 sponsored by the North San Diego Business Chamber.
San Diego Women’s Week, celebrating 11 years of inspiring, empowering and connecting women with a week of leadership events for everyone of all ages and professions. Attendees enjoy networking, keynote speakers, panel discussions, and more, all wrapped around creative solutions to every day issues affecting leaders in the workplace and in their daily lives.
Other keynote speakers during the event:
- Tina Hay, Napkins Economics.
- Rose Schindler, Auschwitz survivor: The Powerful Impact of Your Voice.
- Romi Neustadt: You Can Have it All, Just Not at the Same Time.
- Christine Van Loo: Rise Above Your Limited Beliefs.
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Del Mar Plaza Specific Plan officially ratified
An amendment to the 30-year-old Del Mar Specific Plan was officially ratified by the Del Mar City Council, meaning significant upgrades to Del Mar Plaza can begin, according to center owner Patty Brutten.
“We have always felt supported by the Del Mar community and are dedicated to enhancing Del Mar Plaza with exciting tenants and allowing residents to utilize it as a community space,” said Brutten. In its first move, she said, Del Mar Plaza will be welcoming Monarch Ocean Pub as a new tenant, and residents can look forward to seeing design updates and new tenant openings in spring 2020.
The new amendment lifts previous restrictions on total restaurant square footage and usage of public spaces, as well as makes adjustments to temporary event permitting, and signage. Now, Del Mar Plaza has more flexibility regarding tenant occupancy and how its spaces can be used—ultimately elevating and modernizing the popular downtown area. Specifically, the amendments are applicable to the main plaza at 1555 Camino Del Mar, the commercial property at 1435 Camino Del Mar and the residential units at 1516 and 1524 Luneta Drive.
