Daily Business Report: Monday, Jan. 23, 2023
Rincon Band of Luiseño Indians withdraws
from California tribal gaming compact
A 500-member tribe in northern San Diego County has become the first in California to opt out of state oversight of its gambling operations in favor of federal supervision.
The move by the Rincon Band of LuiseñoIndians ends nearly two decades of legal wrangling rooted in the way California assesses regulatory costs.
It could also herald the beginning of the end of the state’s hold on some tribal gaming operations, which last year paid nearly $67 million into a state fund to regulate tribal gaming. That money funds staff at the California Gambling Control Commission, Bureau of Gambling Control, Office of the Attorney General and Office of Problem Gambling.
Rincon Chairman Bo Mazzetti said the transfer of regulatory duties is less about the funding dispute and more about moving toward increased tribal sovereignty for Rincon and other tribes throughout the state.
Southwestern College students join with Novo Brazil
in Imperial Beach to create special craft beer
Times of San Diego
Students from Southwestern College’s Fermentation Science Program have collaborated with NOVO Brazil Brewing Company, the first time the students’ work has been featured at a professional brewery.
Tzunúm, an Australian Pale Ale, is available on draft only at the brewery’s Imperial Beach location after making its debut earlier this month.
The South Bay college’s program started in Spring 2018 with a lecture class, with the first brewing lab held a year later using a small, five-gallon system.
Tzunúm, Mayan for hummingbird, was named by the students for its lightness and summer-y features. It has a light golden color, steady white head, and a 5.5 percent alcohol by volume (ABV). The beer is slightly hazy, and features a citrus and fresh lime zest from the single hop, Wakatu.
State COVID testing sites begin to close
CalMatters
California is preparing to close dozens of state-run COVID-19 testing and treatment sites ahead of the planned end of the state of emergency in February. Sites that are operating under 50 percent capacity are scheduled to close before the end of January. Forty-four OptumServe sites will be shuttered, and 48 mobile “mini-buses” will begin closing in two weeks, according to the California Department of Public Health. OptumServe, a health care operations company, runs 123 testing and treatment sites along with four vaccination clinics through state contracts.
The health care giant has at least four contracts, under its former name Logistics Health, with the state totalling $1.05 billion to provide testing and vaccination services though it has been
crtiticized in the past for its bumpy rollout. Another branch of the company signed an additional $47 million contract to design a data management system for COVID-19 test results.
Cox refurbishes Innovation Lab at Oaks branch
Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego
The Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater San Diego celebrated its refurbished technology-filled Cox Innovation Lab at its William J. Oakes branch (2930 Marcy Ave.) on Jan. 18, made possible by a $20,000 grant from the James M. Cox Foundation. The Cox Innovation Lab refurbishment was welcomed with a digital safety presentation for 4th -8th graders at the club, sponsored by Cox Communications. The Cox Innovation Lab provides new and innovative technology and support to help bridge the digital divide for San Diego youth. It gives the youth visiting the Boys & Girls Club the ability to explore STEM (science, technology, engineering and math) while providing those without a computer or internet access a way to get connected and manage through distance learning. It includes new computers, a smart board for virtual instruction, educational STEM games, Wifi and internet services provided by Cox. To help ensure the youth not only have access to tech.
New Mandeville Art Gallery director
takes UC San Diego into the next era
With renovations complete, the UC San Diego Mandeville Art Gallery will open its doors to the community under the guidance and direction of a new, dynamic leader: Ceci Moss, who joins the university poised to take arts education and outreach to new heights, building on the gallery’s expansive, 57-year history.
As Gallery Director and Chief Curator, Moss brings nearly 20 years of experience organizing solo, group, touring and online exhibitions, as well as public programs, performances and screenings, in museums, galleries and artist-run spaces.
She is the founder and director of Gas, a mobile, autonomous, experimental and networked platform for contemporary art located in a truck gallery and online that was named “one of LA’s most interesting” galleries.
Prior to UC San Diego, she was assistant curator of visual arts at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, senior editor at the art and technology nonprofit Rhizome, and special projects coordinator at the New Museum of Contemporary Art in New York City.
Moss’s writing has appeared in numerous national arts publications, and she is the author of “Expanded Internet Art: Twenty-First Century Artistic Practice and the Informational Milieu.”
SDG&E, GM to integrate electric vehicles to power grid
SAN DIEGO — San Diego Gas & Electric and General Motors have partnered to assess the viability of incorporating power stored in the batteries of electric vehicles into the power grid, reducing blackouts when the power system is under stress. This same technology can be used to power a single household shoould a neighborhood blackout occur. While still in early stages of the agreement, this deal could strengthen the power grid and create nationwide economic opportunities.
San Diego’s Enlaza secures $61 million seed round
SAN DIEGO — La Jolla-based startup Enlaza Therapeutics recently secured a $61 million seed round financed by Avalon Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and others. The funds serve to advance the startup’s trademarked War-Lock platform and build a pipeline of covalent biologics — increasing the efficacy of biologic therapeutics by binding them to drug targets. Read more
Viasat helps Delta serve up
free-inflight Wi-Fi starting Feb. 1
CARLSBAD — At the recent giant consumer electronics show in Las Vegas, Delta Airlines said it would begin offering free in-flight Wi-Fi to rewards-member passengers on most domestic mainline aircraft starting next month. That news may have traveled under the radar in San Diego amid the deluge of announcements at CES. But it involved a local company — Carlsbad-based Viasat, the satellite Internet provider that supplies in-flight Wi-Fi connectivity for a growing portion of Delta’s domestic fleet.
Proposed Little Italy office project
would be the neighborhood’s biggest
Real estate investment trust Kilroy Realty is seeking approval of a nine-story, 137-foot tall building with ground-floor retail at 2045 Pacific Highway in Little Italy. Kilroy purchased the property, which is west of the trolley tracks and kitty-corner from the developer’s marquee office project at 2100 Kettner, for $42 million in the summer of 2021. The project site is bounded by West Hawthorn Street to the north, West Grape Street to the south, Pacific Highway to the west and California Street to the east.
Regen BioPharma files patent application
SAN DIEGO –Regen BioPharma Inc. a biotechnology company, announced the filing of a provisional patent application covering the use of survivin-engineered dendritic cells and exosomes for stimulation of anti-cancer immunity. The intellectual property provides additional means of stimulating specific elements of the immune system to selectively seek and destroy cancer cells without harming healthy tissue.
ESET webinar provides new guidance
to protect against zero-day threats
SAN DIEGO – ESET, a global leader in digital security, announced its upcoming webinar “A False Sense of Security? Reevaluating Zero-Day Threats,” taking place Jan. 26, 2023 at 10 a.m. Presented by ESET’s Chief Security Evangelist Tony Anscombe, the webinar will provide insights into zero-day vulnerabilities, including tactics used by bad actors, and a fresh look at best practices for businesses, cybersecurity defenders and IT administrators.
MG Properties acquires 312-unit apartments in Las Vegas
SAN DIEGO — MG Properties, a private San Diego-based real estate investor, owner, and operator, is further expanding its presence in the Las Vegas metro with the acquisition of Tribeca North Apartment Homes. This is the first acquisition of 2023 for MG Properties after acquiring 18 properties in 2022 totaling nearly $2 billion. In addition to this new acquisition, MG Properties operates over 2,000 units in the greater Las Vegas area and is well-positioned to leverage management efficiencies and benefit from economies of scale.
Sesame Place San Diego to make big splash in 2023
Sesame Place San Diego, the only theme park on the West Coast based entirely on the award-winning show “Sesame Street,” will be adding two all-new attractions in 2023. The Count’s Splash Castle is an all-new, multi-level water-play attraction and Sunny Day Café is an all-new, all-day character dining location where guests can enjoy a variety of meals and one-of-a-kind experience with their favorite furry friends. Guests can also enjoy whirling rides, splashy water slides, exciting shows, parades, the interactive Sesame Street Neighborhood, and visits with everyone’s favorite furry friends.
