Daily Business Report: Wednesday, Dec. 15, 2021
Astronaut inspires physics student’s love for science
By Tim Meehan | Cal State San Marcos
Sally Ride inspired a generation and beyond to pursue one’s dreams no matter the obstacles.
The first American woman and youngest American in space, Ride made her journey into history on June 18, 1983 as a crew member aboard the space shuttle Challenger STS-7.
About 25 years later, she inspired a fourth-grade girl from Escondido to pursue some science dreams of her own.
“I have always been interested in learning about physical science,” said Cal State San Marcos physics senior Daria Bonds. “I met Dr. Sally K. Ride at the San Diego Air and Space Museum when I was in fourth grade. Seeing her talk about being a physicist, an astronaut and steward of the environment was inspirational.”
That chance meeting, which came a few years before Ride died following a brief battle with pancreatic cancer, started Bonds on a science path that has led her to becoming CSUSM’s current Society of Physics Students (SPS) president.
A graduate of Escondido High School, Bonds chose CSUSM for two reasons: the welcoming physics department and the supportive cross country and track coaches.
TOP PHOTO: Physics student Daria Bonds is one of just two undergraduates working in the lab of Gerardo Dominguez this year. (Photo by Andrew Reed}
Put those masks back on
People wearing masks walk down a street in Laguna Beach on May 17, 2021. (AP Photo/Jae C. Hong)
CalMatters
California’s statewide mask mandate is back after a six-month hiatus.
Starting today, all residents will be required to wear face coverings indoors regardless of vaccination status, Dr. Mark Ghaly, the state’s health and human services secretary, announced Monday. Ghaly said the mandate — which is scheduled to last through Jan. 15 — will help California blunt the effects of the omicron variant while also tamping down an apparent COVID-19 surge that’s resulted in the statewide case rate rising 47 percent since Thanksgiving.
California is also tightening its rules for events with more than 1,000 attendees: Unvaccinated residents must now show a negative COVID test result from the past 24 or 48 hours, depending on the type of test, instead of 72 hours. And the state is also recommending that all travelers, regardless of vaccination status, take a COVID test within three to five days of arriving in California.
EDC study quantifies economic impact
of region’s transportation cluster
San Diego Regional EDC’s latest study, released in partnership with Booz Allen Hamilton, quantifies the economic impact of the region’s Transportation cluster and explores the proliferation of Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning (AI and ML) technologies propelling San Diego into a global trade hub.
Study findings include:
• The Transportation cluster supports more than 90,000 local jobs and contributes $11 billion to the regional economy each year. Despite the pandemic, employment in the cluster has increased 10 percent during the last five years.
• Every Transportation job generates one additional job in other industries in the region.
• One in three Transportation and related Manufacturing companies are either developing or adopting AI and ML technologies. This is measurably higher than the average engagement rate of 25 percent across all industries.
Border Report: A Tale of Two Tijuanas
By Sandra Dibble
Are two Tijuanas better than one? That’s a question one Baja California elected official is hoping the city’s voters will support. A proposal to split this sprawling city into two separate municipalities has been generating some fierce debate in recent days as it moves through the state congress.
The issue is dividing members of Mexican President Andrés Manuel López Obrador’s Morena party and putting a spotlight on neighborhoods in eastern Tijuana that struggle with high rates of crime, drug addiction and poverty and poor city services.
The state legislator who is championing the idea, Araceli Geraldo Núñez, argues residents of Tijuana’s eastern neighborhoods have been abandoned and suffer from inadequate trash pickup, street lighting, schools, hospitals, recreation centers and sports facilities.
Lufthansa to add nonstop flights between
Munich and San Diego starting March 30, 2022
Lufthansa German Airlines will add nonstop service between Munich, Bavaria, Germany via Munich Franz Josef Strauss International Airport (MUC) and San Diego International Airport beginning March 30, 2022. This service will be the first-ever nonstop service between Munich and San Diego.
Flights will initially operate three times a week on Wednesdays, Fridays, and Sundays and grow to five times weekly service in May 2022 when Lufthansa adds service on Tuesdays and Saturdays. The route will be served by one of Lufthansa’s newest aircraft, the 293-seat Airbus A350-900, known in the industry as one of the most modern and fuel-efficient long-haul aircraft in the world. Lufthansa previously offered nonstop flights to Frankfurt, Germany until service was suspended in March 2020 due to the coronavirus pandemic.
Marciano Perez Jr. named VP of student
services at San Diego City College
Marciano Perez Jr. has been named as the new vice president of Student Services at San Diego City College (SDCC). Perez is a higher education professional with over 25 years of progressive administrative and leadership experience with a track record of supporting students, providing access to education — all with a social justice and equity lens.
He begins his new role on Thursday, pending San Diego Community College District Board approval.
Prior to his new role, Perez served as the acting vice president of Student Services and as the dean of Student Affairs, which oversees scholarships, Associated Students Government, student clubs, and student conduct, both at SDCC.
Before arriving at City College in 2016, Perez worked at the University of California San Diego as the associate dean of Students and director of Residence Life; and at university of California Davis working in residential education.
Registration opens for online cannabis
certificate courses at University of San Diego
Registration is now open for the January 2022 cohort of the University of San Diego online cannabis certificate courses powered by Green Flower.
USD and Green Flower, a cannabis education platform, partner to produce credible cannabis certificates of completion awards for students. Green Flower’s content curriculum features trusted information and perspectives from industry-leading cannabis professionals, delivered in a format designed using best-in-class learning practices designed to set students up for success as they look to enter the rapidly-growing cannabis industry.
Each certificate consists of three eight-week courses. The certificate takes approximately six months in total to complete.
Register at https://greenflower.sandiego.edu/.
You’re invited to the Blue
Christmas/Longest Night Service
Pacific Beach United Methodist Church and La Jolla United Methodist Church invite everyone to attend its Blue Christmas/Longest Night Service at 7 p.m. Dec. 21 at Pacific Beach United Methodist Church located at 1561 Thomas Ave. in Pacific Beach. Are all welcome. Mask wearing is required when indoors .
November U.S. online grocery sales reach $8.6 billion
The U.S. online grocery market generated $8.6 billion in sales during November, which includes $7.0 billion from the pickup/delivery segments and $1.6 billion from ship-to-home, reported the Brick Meets Click/Mercatus Grocery Shopping Survey fielded Nov. 29-30, 2021.
The 6 percebt sales gain over last year’s $8.1 billion was driven in large part by an increase in the active shopper base.
During November, nearly 69 million U.S. households bought groceries online, whether a full basket of goods or just a few items, a 15 percent jump versus November 2020 according to the ongoing independent research initiative created and conducted by Brick Meets Click and sponsored by Mercatus.
City Council confirms appointment of attorney
to serve on Housing Commission board
The San Diego City Council unanimously confirmed Mayor Todd Gloria’s appointment of Melinda K. Vásquez, an attorney who practices in real estate, labor and family law, to the San Diego Housing Commission (SDHC) Board of Commissioners. A Rancho Peñasquitos resident, Ms. Vásquez has been an attorney since 2015.
Vásquez fills the seat previously held by Dion Akers, who left the SDHC Board when he became the regional government affairs manager in Gloria’s office.
As a volunteer, she chairs the San Diego Housing Coalition. The coalition consists of community voices, organizations, educators, experts, nonprofits, advocates and people directly affected by San Diego’s housing crisis. Her volunteer experience also includes serving on the Commission on the Status of Women and Girls for San Diego County.
County approves Carlsbad Airport Master Plan
The San Diego County Board of Supervisors has approved a Master Plan update for McClellan-Palomar Airport after a rescinded approval back in 2018.
This time around, the board went with a 200-foot extension of the single runway and kept the airport in its existing B-II category, though supervisors said the higher category could be considered in the future.
The airport’s alpha-numeric category designates the maximum landing speed and a wingspan of aircraft for which the facility is designed. The Master Plan is a document that guides airport development over the next 20 years.
The airport supports more than 2,590 jobs, $461 million in annual economic activity, and provides $72 million in annual tax revenue, according to the county.
Investment group sells Vista Terrace
Marketplace for $13.3 million
A 28,440-square-foot parcel of property recently sold for $13.3 million as the fifth and final parcel of the Vista Terrace Marketplace to be sold by the marketplace’s former owners, the Black Lion Investment Group.
The investment firm has been selling off sections of the development since 2019, according to a press release from the firm. Black Lion is credited with having made significant and needed renovations to the Terrace Marketplace since 2019, giving the site significant value as an asset to the new ownership.
WD-40 Company increases quarterly dividend
WD-40 Company announced that its board of directors declared a quarterly dividend of $0.78 per share reflecting an increase of more than 8 percent compared to the previous quarter’s dividend. The quarterly dividend is payable Jan. 31, 2022 to stockholders of record at the close of business on Jan. 14, 2022.
Headquartered in San Diego, WD-40 Company recorded net sales of $488.1 million in fiscal year 2021 and its products are currently available in more than 176 countries and territories worldwide
