Daily Business Report-Jan. 13, 2021
The 25-acre site in Otay Mesa is colored in red.
Developer buys 25-acre Otay Mesa property
to build 400,000-square-foot industrial park
Newport Beach-based Phelan Development has paid $11.5 million for a 25-acre parcel of land in Otay Mesa for the development of a six-building, 400,000-square-foot industrial park. The land is expected to receive full entitlements in the first quarter of 2021 with construction slated to start in the second quarter of 2021.
Buildings will range in size from 35,000 square feet to 135,000 square feet and will be available for lease or sale. The buildings offer state of the art features including ESFR sprinklers, 32-foot to 36-foot warehouse clearance, high dock door counts and energy efficient designs. Development is scheduled to be completed in the first quarter of 2021.
“Phelan Development Company is excited to enter the Otay Mesa market with this purchase,” said Mike DeArmey of Phelan Development. “Otay Mesa has become one of the most dynamic markets in San Diego County and we look forward to bringing Class A industrial product to the market for lease and sale.“
The site is located at the northwest corner of the SR-125 and SR 905 interchange on Otay Mesa Road.
JLL’s Andy Irwin, Joe Anderson, Ryan Spradling and Greg Lewis represented the seller, Sunwood in the transaction. They have also been retained to market the buildings for lease or sale.
Governor faces daunting challenge of vaccinating
1 million more Californians by this weekend
CalMatters
Gov. Gavin Newsom has a lot of political capital riding on his goal of vaccinating 1 million additional Californians by this weekend.
Apart from school reopenings, no issue looms larger for Newsom’s third year in office — and his ability to fend off a growing recall movement — than the rollout of the coronavirus vaccine, which has so far been plagued with logistical and technical problems. Only eight states have administered fewer doses per capita than California, which as of Sunday had administered only 27 percent of its nearly 3 million doses — a decline from the 35 percent rate the state notched last week.
To help pick up the pace, Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, Dodgers Stadium in Los Angeles, Petco Park in San Diego and Cal Expo in Sacramento are being converted into vaccination sites for frontline workers and, eventually, the general public. The state also recently loosened its vaccination guidelines to ensure that doses don’t go to waste if refused by high-priority groups. The guidelines — developed by numerous working groups — were intended to prevent well-connected Californians from accessing the vaccine before those in need.
Car vending machine proposal
goes to Escondido City Council on Sept. 23
Carvana Inc.’s proposal to build an eight-level “car vending machine” on a 1.8-acre lot in Escondido is tentatively scheduled to go before the Escondido City Council on Sept. 23.
If approved, this vending site will be the first of its kind in San Diego County and is anticipated to dispense its first car in late 2021 or early 2022.
The location is on Hale Avenue and Tulip Street at the site of a former meat packing plant.
San Diego brewer, marketer Megan Stone wins
craft beer group’s ‘Woman of the Year’ award
San Diegan Megan Stone was honored at the Craft Beer Marketing Awards as the first recipient of the “Woman of the Year” award in 2020. Industry peers selected her for the award based on her experience as a brewer, marketer, social media influencer, and “diversity, equity and inclusion” advocate.
“I put these efforts in because it’s things that I care about and I don’t necessarily sit there and think about how people think of me or how popular I am. It was just nice to know that people appreciated the work,” Stone said. “I think it’s nice to have a woman of the year category because it shines the light on the different people that make up this industry.”
Stone started in the craft brew industry as a server at Dogfish Head Brewing in Delaware and became fascinated with the process of brewing.
“That’s where my obsession with beer started. I just thought it was so interesting how unique beer can be,” said Stone. “As a seasonal server, my orientation was a brewery tour, and after the brewery tour I was just in complete awe and in love with everything and decided that I wanted to be a brewer, so I propelled myself into that world.”
Oceanside approves COVID-19 grant program
Oceanside plans to use money left over from an under-used loan program to create grants for small businesses affected by COVID-19. The City Council voted unanimously last week to make up to a total of $750,000 available in individual grants of $1,000 to $7,500 for struggling businesses. Money is available from a $1.2 million allocation that the council approved back in April using its general fund investment earnings to provide short-term loans of $2,500 $20,000 for businesses awaiting state or federal COVID-19 relief funding. The City received 32 applications for the loan program, of which only eight loans were successfully funded for a total of $140,000, explained Economic Development Manager Michelle Geller. The demand for loans has wavered as many business owners have become less optimistic they will be able to pay back the loans due to ongoing restrictions. Upcoming grants will be administered through the Oceanside Chamber of Commerce and nonprofit MainStreet Oceanside.
Superior Court seeking applicants
for 2021-22 San Diego County Grand Jury
The San Diego Superior Court renewed its call Monday for county residents to apply to serve on the 2021/22 county grand jury.
The court system is seeking representation from across each of the county’s five supervisorial districts. A total of 56 people have applied so far, but there have only been five applicants from District 1 and nine applicants from District 3, according to a San Diego Superior Court statement. The application deadline is Jan. 29.
The 19-member body will work four days a week, about six hours per day, from July 1 through June 30, 2022, at the San Diego Central Courthouse in downtown San Diego.
Applicants must:
— be a U.S. citizen.
— be at least 18 years old.
— have sufficient knowledge of the English language.
— have lived in San Diego County for at least one year prior to selection.
— pass a criminal background check.
Members receive a small stipend per day, plus mileage, with downtown parking provided.
Applications can be downloaded from the San Diego Superior Court’s website at sdcourt.ca.gov or the Grand Jury’s website at sdcounty.ca.gov/grandjury.
Vidal Corporation signs five-year lease for
new industrial building in Majestic Sunroad Center
Vidal Corporation, a cross-border logistics company, has signed a five-year lease for a new 31,360-square foot industrial building in the Majestic Sunroad Center, 8175 Andrews Ave., in Otay Mesa.
Majestic Sunroad Center, a joint venture between Majestic Realty Co. and Sunroad Enterprises, includes three buildings ranging in size from 31,360-154,308 square feet each, and totaling 227,268 square feet. Construction was completed in late 2020.
Mark Lewkowitz, Chris Holder and Will Holder of Colliers International San Diego Region represented Vidal Corporation and the landlord, Majestic Realty Co.
Indian Energy LLC receives $5 million
grant from California Energy Commission
San Diego-based energy developer Indian Energy LLChas accepted a grant of more than $5 million from the California Energy Commission (CEC) to develop and demonstrate long-duration, non-lithium ion-based energy storage technologies.
The grant is part of the CEC’s Electric Program Investment Charge (EPIC) program, funding research that accelerates clean energy innovation.
This EPIC grant aims to demonstrate the value of energy storage technologies, which could meet a pressing need for energy storage across the state to help prevent and mitigate blackouts and brownouts driven by climate change and more frequent wildfires.
Indian Energy is a Native American-owned firm. Utilizing the grant funds, Indian Energy and construction management partner Webcorwill develop, integrate and commission several innovative Hybrid Modular Storage Systems as a long-duration energy storage technology demonstration and deployment research project.
Power Digital acquires Social Method
San Diego-based Power Digital announced its acquisition of Social Method, one of the fastest-growing data-driven digital media buying and creative companies in the country. Specializing in performance-based Facebook and Instagram media and creative services, with a focus on driving a high return on business outcomes and revenue growth, Social Method is well-respected both for its impressive client portfolio and talented team of digital marketers, according to Power Digital.
Social Method was launched in 2015 with the belief that ecommerce social advertising could be highly profitable for consumer brands. Over the last five years, Social Method has successfully proved that thesis to be true, growing to a team of over 60, across three cities including Washington D.C., New York City, and Tel Aviv (Israel).
Technology Center for Women’s Leadership
to host women in technology panel
The Forbes School of Business and Technology Center for Women’s Leadership will host a virtual panel on Friday at noon in San Diego. Panel speakers include Tamar Elkeles, chief human resources officer/head of HR at XCOM; Dr. Chitra Anand, technology executive and adviser and former chief communications officer at Microsoft Canada; Lizzie Bronte, technology delivery expert, Nationwide Insurance; and Dr. Karen Ivy, department chair, Department of Technology Studies, FSBT@ UAGC. The panel will be moderated by Dr. Maja Zelihic, department chair and professor in the Forbes School of Business & Technology, and advisory team member for the Center for Women’s Leadership.
Evofem Biosciences wins
BIG Innovation Award 2021
Evofem Biosciences Inc. in San Diego has been named a winner of Business Intelligence Group’s 2021 BIG Innovation Awards for outstanding innovation with first-in-class non-hormonal prescription contraceptive vaginal gel Phexxi. This annual business awards program recognizes organizations, products, and people that are bringing new ideas to life in innovative ways.
Organizations from across the globe submitted their recent innovations for consideration in the BIG Innovation Awards. Nominations were judged by a select group of business leaders and executives who volunteered their time and expertise to score submissions.
