Daily Business Report: Monday, Oct. 4, 2021
Sharp HealthCare has begun construction
on the new Prebys Innovation & Education Center
Sharp HealthCare has started construction on the new Prebys Innovation & Education Center (PIEC), named in recognition of a $5 million challenge grant from The Conrad Prebys Foundation.
The capital project is comprised of a 70,000-square-foot, four-story addition to Sharp’s corporate headquarters made possible with building partners McCarthy and Hanna Gabriel Wells.
“Our new center will act as the hub for all Sharp innovation, furthering our vision to be the best place to work, practice medicine and receive care,” said Sharp President and CEO Chris Howard. “The PIEC is one of the most important projects in Sharp’s history and is certain to play an important role in bolstering our region’s reputation as a health care innovator and leader.”
The center will feature state-of-the-art spaces housing an auditorium and conference rooms; a Simulation Center to enhance caregiver knowledge and skills; a Technology Immersion Lab for open-access research and demonstrations; and community engagement facilities to serve San Diegans.
TOP PHOTO: Rendering of the new Prebys Innovation & Education Center.
San Diego’s changing business landscape: companies
struggle to keep up with resurgent growth
To identify evolving trends in local business needs and operations, ensuring their ability to grow and thrive in the region, the EDC us surveying more than 200 companies in the region’s key industries on a rolling basis throughout 2021 to monitor and report shifts in the priorities and strategies. The fourth wave of surveys shows life sciences companies struggling th retain talent, supply chain disruptions hurting business development, and remote work driving companies to scale down office space.
City of San Diego’s minimum wage
will increase to $15 on Jan. 1, 2022
Beginning Jan. 1, 2022, employees who perform at least two hours of work in one or more calendar weeks of the year within the geographic boundaries of the City of San Diego will receive a minimum wage increase from $14 to $15 an hour.
The change is in accordance with the city’s Earned Sick Leave and Minimum Wage Ordinance that was approved in 2016 and authored by Mayor Todd Gloria when he served on the City Council.
The ordinance is applicable to all industries and businesses and there are no exceptions. Tips and gratuities do not count toward payment of minimum wage.
What you should know about the end
of the eviction moratorium
By Maya Srikrishnan | Voice of San Diego
A key part of the state’s pandemic safety net has ended — its eviction moratorium.
An estimated 61,123 San Diego households are behind on their monthly payments, according to one recent analysis. The total rent debt in the county is about $229 million.
In California, there are 724,000 households with a total rent debt of $2.46 billion.
Since Friday, landlords can begin evicting tenants for nonpayment of rent. However, some protections remain: landlords must apply for rental assistance before they try to evict a tenant through the courts for failure to pay rent. To qualify for these protections, which are laid out in AB 832 and will stay in place through March 2022, tenants needed to pay at least 25 percent of their monthly rent by Sept. 30, 2o21. Tenants should also provide a declaration of COVID-19 financial distress.
County breaks ground on new Southeastern
Live Well Center in San Diego
The County of San Diego broke ground Friday on the new Southeastern Live Well Center. Located at the intersection of Market Street and Euclid Avenue, the 65,000-square-foot facility will serve as a one-stop shop for health and social services for residents.
Scheduled to be completed in the summer of 2023, the Southeastern Live Well Center will provide a full array of county and community services, including medical insurance coverage, food and nutrition assistance, family strengthening services, financial and employment assistance, public health, behavioral health, child support, restorative justice, services for older adults and people with disabilities, and military and veterans’ services.
WestJet resumes service between Calgary, Alberta
Canada and San Diego International Airport
WestJet has resumed service between Calgary, Alberta, Canada via Calgary Airport and San Diego International Airport. The year-round nonstop flights operate two times weekly on Fridays and Sundays and increases to three times weekly adding a Monday flight beginning Nov. 1. The resumption comes after WestJet suspended service in March 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.
Now that the Canadian government opened the border on Aug. 9, 2021, to fully vaccinated travelers, WestJet is the second airline to resume flights between Canada and San Diego.
Subject to limited exceptions, all travelers must use ArriveCAN (app or web portal) to submit their travel information.
Grand opening Oct. 6 of The Plaza
at Lantern Crest Senior Living
Lantern Crest Senior Living, San Diego’s luxury senior living community, will unveil its latest residences and amenities at a grand opening on Wednesday, Oct. 6 from 4 to 8 p.m. An RSVP is required to attend the event at Lantern Crest. The Plaza offers independent living apartments and grounds.
Located on 40 acres with panoramic views in the foothills of Santee, Lantern Crest’s self-contained community is the first in California with a pharmacy and a Sharp HealthCare clinic and physician. Additional amenities throughout the community include: credit union; indoor and outdoor swimming pools; fitness center; physical therapy ofice, four theaters; restaurant and 50s diner with bowling lanes; bar and tea room; library/computer lounge; dog parks.
Attendees can RSVP by calling (619) 258-8886.
Vividion Therapeutics acquired by Bayer for $2 billion
San Diego-based Vividion Therapeutics has been acquired by German drug-giant Bayer for $2 billion. The deal is Bayer’s first major investment in the region and gives Vividion the freedom to continue its search for new drugs against disease-causing proteins with virtually no change to its operations. Vividion is currently developing drugs against inflammatory bowel disease and multple cancers.
SYSTRAN launches SMB Academy
database to help businesses go global
SYSTRAN, a San Diego company, announced the launch of SMB Academy, a free, online resource providing small-medium businesses with the necessary tools needed to successfully expand overseas. According to the Office of the United States Trade Representative, over 95 percent of consumers are located outside of the United States. Expanding globally is no longer just an option for small-medium businesses, it’s an imperative strategy.
Businesses will learn valuable tips from the SMB curriculum, like how to create an international ready website, translating advertisements into other languages and picking the best translation platform for business. The material will be useful both for small businesses just getting started with international plans and companies already serving foreign customers.
Agena Bioscience acquired by Mesa
Laboratories for $300 million
San Diego-based Agena Bioscience Inc. has agreed to be acquired by Mesa Laboratories Inc. for a purchase price of $300 million. The all-cash transactio is funded by Mesa’s cash on-hand and proceeds from its credit facilities, according to the Sept. 14 announcement.
World Trade Center accepting applications
for sixth round of MetroConnect
World Trade Center San Diego is accepting applications for 15 SBA-designated small businesses to participate in year six of its flagship export assistance program, MetroConnect. Presented by JPMorgan Chase and Procopio, the program provides businesses with a $5,000 export assistance grant, access to SystranPRO machine translation software, the chance to win a $25,000 grand prize, and more.
PriceSmart announces sale of Aeropost
package forwarding and marketplace businesses
PriceSmart Inc. announced the sale of the legacy cross border casillero (package forwarding) and online marketplace businesses operated by its Aeropost subsidiary to Click to Collect Company Ltd., a company based in Nassau, Bahamas. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed.
PriceSmart acquired Aeropost in 2018 to leverage Aeropost’s technology, its management’s experience in developing software and systems for e-commerce and logistics, and its distribution and logistics systems to advance PriceSmart’s development of an omni-channel shopping experience for its members. PriceSmart will retain key Aeropost personnel and technology in the transaction, and Aeropost will continue to be a provider of cross border logistics and last mile delivery services for PriceSmart.
