Daily Business Report-Dec. 7, 2020
Rendering of the Pepper Canyon Amphitheater, which will open in spring 2022. ( credit: Safdie Rabines Architects)
Pepper Canyon Amphitheater project breaks ground
as part of new entrance to UC San Diego campus
UC San Diego celebrated the groundbreaking of the Pepper Canyon Amphitheater project this fall, reaching a new milestone in the university’s plan to become a top-of-mind cultural destination. Located in the heart of the Pepper Canyon neighborhood, the open-air amphitheater with seating for 2,850 patrons will open in the spring of 2022, benefitting students, faculty, staff and the wider community.
The amphitheater is the final piece of a wide range of significant improvements to the area, including landscaping of open spaces, east façade enhancements for three existing Visual Arts Buildings, a Stuart Collection art installation and the construction of Rupertus Walk, which will connect the university to a stop on the UC San Diego Blue Line Trolley extension. Adjacent to the trolley is the Design and Innovation Building, which will open in the spring of 2021 as a showcase for UC San Diego’s creativity and entrepreneurship.
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NASSCO wins $128 million Navy
contract for USS Comstock modernization
GovCon Wire
A General Dynamics subsidiary, San Diego-based NASSCO, will maintain, modernize and repair the USS Comstock dock landing ship under a potential two-year, $128.2 million contract from the U.S. Navy.
NASSCO will perform selected restricted availability efforts in support of the Whidbey Island-class vessel in fiscal year 2021 under the firm-fixed-price contract, the Department of Defense said.
The contract has a base value of $100 million and comes with options that, if exercised, will bring the award to its potential value.
The Navy obligated $92.7 million from fiscal year 2021 other procurement funds; $189,800 from working capital funds; and $7.2 million from fiscal 2021 operation and maintenance funds.
DoD expects NASSCO to wrap up work by November 2022.
Naval Sea Systems Command received two bids for the competitively solicited contract.
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Encinitas Mayor Catherine Blakespear
elected SANDAG chair, will serve for two years
SANDAG’s board of directors has elected Encinitas Mayor Catherine Blakespear to chair the regional transportation planning agency, effective Jan. 1, 2021. Currently vice chair of the agency, Blakespear will serve for two years. The election for the position of vice chair will be conducted at a future meeting.
Blakespear takes the helm at a pivotal time for SANDAG and the region. The Regional Plan will be determined at the end of 2021, and the new extension of the UC San Diego Blue Line Trolley will open about the same time. In 2022, the agency will begin implementing the Regional Plan and will work with regional, state, and federal leaders and advocates on funding challenges.
Blakespear succeeds Poway Mayor Steve Vaus, who has served as SANDAG chair since December 2018. Mayor Vaus’ last meeting as chair will be later this month.
Blakespear has served as vice chair since 2018, working with Vaus on a number of issues, including the Regional Planning Committee, the Regional Housing Needs Assessment Subcommittee, and the Airport Connectivity Subcommittee.
Blakespear has been a member of the SANDAG board since January 2017 after being elected Encinitas mayor in November 2016. She was re-elected to a third term last month. In addition to serving on the SANDAG Board, Blakespear is a board member of the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, the Encina Wastewater Authority, the San Elijo Joint Powers Authority, and the San Dieguito Water District. Blakespear is a fourth-generation resident of Encinitas and an attorney.
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Temecula clothing firm removes goddess Kali
‘Booty Shorts’ within a day of Hindu protest
Temecula-headquartered firm Liquid Dreams removed Kali Booty Shorts, Ganesha Leggings and Ganesha Yoga Shorts carrying images of Hindu deities Lord Ganesha and goddess Kali, after upset Hindus protested calling these “highly inappropriate.”
These three products were not found on the company website when searched.
Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, who spearheaded the protest, in a statement in Nevada, thanked Liquid Dreams for understanding the concerns of Hindu community, which thought that placing images of Lord Ganesha and goddess Kali on such products was insensitive. They were, however, still waiting for a formal apology from the company and its CEO, Zed added.
Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, suggested that companies like Liquid Dreams should send their senior executives for training in religious and cultural sensitivity so that they had an understanding of the feelings of customers and communities when introducing new products or launching advertising campaigns.
Rajan Zed had said that Lord Ganesha and goddess Kali were highly revered in Hinduism and were meant to be worshipped in temples or home shrines and not to adorn one’s legs, thighs, groin, genitals and pelvis.
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Salk’s Uri Manor to receive over $690,000 from
Chan Zuckerberg to advance biological imaging
Salk Institute Staff Scientist Uri Manor, director of the Waitt Advanced Biophotonics Core Facility, will receive $690,116 over three years from the Chan Zuckerberg Initiative (CZI) as one of 22 CZI imaging scientists, to develop new open-source imaging tools and data sets while expanding his educational outreach.
CZI, founded by Dr. Priscilla Chan and Facebook cofounder Mark Zuckerberg, aims to bring together world-class engineering, grant-making, impact investing, and policy and advocacy work. Previously, CZI has supported Salk research ranging from understanding neurodegeneration to better understanding cell types in the brain.
With the CZI funding, Manor will create imaging tools such as probes and image-processing and analysis software for biologists, including software that relies on AI technology, to make previously invisible cellular dynamics visible. For example, he plans to develop a deep-learning AI model that can predict dynamic information, such as the movement of structures inside the cell, from a detailed, high-resolution electron microscope image.
Manor is an advocate for the public sharing of scientific data and for increasing open access to microscopy education. Towards these ends, he will build online sources for biological imaging educational resources. This will include everything from tutorials on microscopy techniques to live-streamed trainings where trainees can ask questions.
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Biocom California joins legal challenge
fed final rule for drug pricing
Biocom California, the association representing the California life science industry, joined the Biotechnology Innovation Organization (BIO) and the California Life Sciences Association (CLSA) in filing a challenge against the Department of Health and Human Services’ recent Most-Favored Nation Interim Final Rule (IFR).
“The Most Favored Nation Interim Rule would impose arbitrary foreign price controls on drugs and biologics that are administered in physicians’ offices and treat our sickest patients,” said Joe Panetta, president and CEO of Biocom California. “Price controls have been shown to reduce both innovation and patients’ access to medicines in the countries where they are implemented. The MFN rule fails to estimate the impact that its implementation will have on patients and providers.
“The U.S. produces two thirds of the world’s new medicines and leads the world in biomedical innovation, with California out in front. This reckless policy would destabilize our country’s stellar innovation ecosystem, which relies on a predictable and steady regulatory environment. Small companies, among others, would be disproportionally affected.
‘Our complaint challenges HHS’ authority to make sweeping, mandatory and almost immediate changes to statutory Medicare rules through administrative actions and without prior opportunity for comments from stakeholders.”
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Public invited to free virtual Girl Scout program
commemorating the 19th Amendment centennial
Judge M. Margaret McKown, a member of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit and a national expert on the Nineteenth Amendment, will explore the fight for the right to vote during a virtual event hosted by Girl Scouts San Diego. Girl Scouts and community members are welcome to register for the free program, scheduled for Tuesday, Dec. 8, 5-6 p.m.
McKeown will discuss the legacy of the 100-year-old amendment with Girl Scouts San Diego CEO Carol Dedrich. In 1998, McKeown was appointed to the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, a 1.4 million-square-mile jurisdiction that spans Montana to Guam.
McKeown chairs the American Bar Association (ABA) Commission on the 19th Amendment. Her article, “My Mother Made Me Do It: A Short History of the Nineteenth Amendment,” appeared in the spring edition of the ABA’s Litigation magazine. She also co-authored a downloadable cookbook called “The Nineteenth Amendment Centennial Cookbook: 100 Recipes for 100 Years.” The free publication includes artwork, quotes, archival images, and recipes from Supreme Court justices and others in the legal field.
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Wednesday workshop to highlight bid
opportunities for Chula Vista Bayfront Project
RIDA Chula Vista LLC, together with Mortenson/McCarthy Joint Venture and HKS Inc., will hold a virtual workshop on Wednesday, Dec. 9, at 1:30 p.m to present information on future bid opportunities for the resort hotel and convention center and associated infrastructure as part of the Chula Vista Bayfront Project.
The virtual workshop will outline opportunities across the sub-contractor community.
The Gaylord Pacific Resort and Convention Center, to be built by RIDA in partnership with the Port of San Diego and the City of Chula Vista, will be the centerpiece of and catalyst project for future development within the Chula Vista Bayfront. It will include up to 1,600 hotel rooms; a convention center with four ballrooms; three levels of meeting space and two outdoor meeting and event lawns; public promenades and public amenities; and associated retail and resort-level amenities such as a pool with a lazy river, a spa, and more.
Click here for information about registering for the virtual workshop.
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GoSite raises $40 million
to help small businesses go online
San Diego startup GoSite has raised $40 million in a Series B round to expand its all-in-one platform that helps small businesses transition online. The funds will help GoSite expand its product offerings to help more businesses adapt during COVID-19 and support the hiring of new talent.
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InSite Property Group acquires
A Storage Place in Spring Valley
InSite Property Group, the self-storage acquisition, development, and management company, has acquired the off-market A Storage Place facility in Spring Valley. Now rebranded as a SecureSpace Self Storage, the 92,000-square-foot facility is located at 11902 Campo Road. Positioned at Jamacha Junction, where the CA-94 and the CA-54 intersect, over 60,000 vehicles per day pass in front of the store. All access to the climate-controlled and drive-up units are from ground level.