Daily Business Report: Monday, Feb. 13, 2023
Pink dye experiment to reveal
mysteries of coastal ocean dynamics
By Brittany Hook
An experiment at a San Diego beach is turning the seawater pink, temporarily, in the name of science. This winter, researchers at UC San Diego’s Scripps Institution of Oceanography and the University of Washington are leading a pink-hued dye experiment, titled Plumes in Nearshore Conditions, or PiNC, to study how small freshwater outflows interact with the surfzone.
Funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), the project is focused on the estuary and surrounding coastline at Los Peñasquitos Lagoon, located within Torrey Pines State Beach and Natural Reserve. The first of three dye releases began on Jan. 20, with the remaining releases taking place in early February 2023.
Rivers and estuaries play an important role in delivering freshwater and materials such as sediments and contaminants to the coastal ocean, but little is known about how these plumes of more buoyant, fresher water interact with the denser, saltier and often colder nearshore ocean environment, particularly as the plumes encounter breaking waves.
By releasing an environmentally safe pink dye in the mouth of the estuary, the PiNC research team can track the processes that take place when small-scale plumes of freshwater meet the surfzone.
Top Photo: Pink waves at Torrey Pines State Beach during the first dye release for the PiNC experiment, Jan. 20, 2023. (Photo: Erik Jepsen/UC San Diego)
San Diego drivers, your car insurance is
about to get more expensive. Here’s why
Auto insurance premiums are projected to rise considerably in San Diego in 2023, and they could grow more than in almost every other large metro area in the U.S., according to a new study of auto insurance premiums by Bankrate.com.
Even as inflation has calmed in recent months, San Diego drivers should expect to pay on average around 15 percent more for car insurance in 2023 over what they paid last year, bringing their annual premiums to $2,270, according to Bankrate’s research.
Home sales in San Diego County slip again in January
Resale home transactions saw another drop in January, and although that’s not uncommon for the first month of the year, it’s been a trend for the past six months. The Greater San Diego Association of Realtors compiles data on the current home sale market through the San Diego Multiple Listing Service.
Single-family home sales fell 19 percent last month compared to December, and attached properties (condominiums and townhomes) were down nearly 13 percent. Looking at the year-over-year change, sales of all properties are 38 percent lower than January 2022. However, inventory of homes for sale is improved from a year ago by nearly 21 percent.
The median price of single-family homes ticked down by 2 percent from December to January, settling at $849,000; that number is down by 3-and-a-half percent from a year ago. The median price of attached properties actually edged up by 1 percent last month, to $590,000.
Most expensive single-family
property sale in January
The most expensive single-family property sold in January in San Diego County was a 5-and-a-half-acre equestrian compound in the Rancho Santa Fe covenant, according to the Greater San Diego Association of Realtors. With a grand 6 bedroom, 7 bath, 5,300-square-foot single-level home, the estate has a five-stall barn, two wells, lush pastures, and lake views. Originally built in 2011, the property sold on Jan. 4 for $12 million.
Water Authority helps low-income
customers with water-saving toilets
The San Diego County Water Authority has secured $3 million in grant funds to install water-efficient toilets and smart irrigation controllers in underrepresented communities across the region, bolstering the agency’s long-running efforts to enhance water affordability.
The Water Authority will use the money to install 7,300 high-efficiency toilets and smart irrigation controllers covering about 4,000 locations, saving more than 6,000 acre-feet of water and helping enhance water efficiency and affordability for vulnerable customers. The funds are from the California Department of Water Resources’ Urban Community Drought Relief Grant program, designed to advance Gov. Gavin Newsom’s strategy to adapt California’s water supply for a hotter and drier future.
Guild Mortgage acquires Legacy Mortgage
Guild Mortgage has increased its Southwest presence with the acquisition of Legacy Mortgage, an independent New Mexico-based lender. Legacy Mortgage was founded in Albuquerque, New Mexico in 2002. Jack Thompson joined Legacy in 2006 as co-owner and CEO/ president and grew the company to be a leading presence in New Mexico. Thompson purchased the company in 2006. Legacy will become part of Guild’s Southwest region. Terms of the acquisition were not disclosed.
David L. Dick joins Crosbie Gliner firm in of counsel role
Crosbie Gliner Schiffman Southard & Swanson LLP, a San Diego- ased commercial real estate firm, has named David L. Dick as of counsel to the firm. Dick, a seasoned and highly regarded commercial real estate transactional attorney, joins the firm’s complex transactions group. For the past 10 years, Dick has practiced at Lexterra PLC in San Diego – focusing on high profile commercial real estate and business transactions throughout San Diego and California.
Over his career, Dick has represented some of the region’s highest-profile commercial and residential developers and technology companies in matters such as land and commercial property acquisition, development planning and government entitlements, equity, debt and structured financing, leasing, disposition, risk management and dispute resolution.
He also previously served as a partner and general counsel at The Allen Group as well as a partner at several notable San Diego law firms, including Hogan Guiney Dick LLP and Gray Cary Ware & Freidenrich (now DLA Piper).
American Marketing Association San Diego
announces new Sandie Awards call for entries
The American Marketing Association San Diego capter has announced its new annual marketing awards program – the Sandie Awards – recognizing the best marketing campaigns and projects created by or for an agency, consultancy, corporation, educational institution, nonprofit or college student in San Diego County. Entries for work completed in 2022 are being accepted here through March 31.
The Sandie Awards or “Sandies” will recognize work across 17 marketing categories ranging from branding and integrated campaigns to social media and video. See the full award categories list here.
An awards gala on May 11 at the newly renovated Town and Country Resort will host hundreds of marketing leaders and professionals as the award winners are revealed live.
Viasat to launch its first terabit-class Internet satellite
CARLSBAD — Carlsbad telecom giant Viasat is set to launch its first terabit-class Internet satellite this April. Once all three satellites in the Viasat-3 constellation are in orbit, the company’s total bandwidth capacity could grow by 600 percent. The satellites will be strategically launched over time to cover the Americas, Europe, the Middle East, Africa, and eventually the Asian Pacific.
Feeding San Diego receives $100,000 grant from
the Cigna Foundation for its School Pantry Program
SAN DIEGO — Feeding San Diego, the county’s leading hunger-relief and food rescue organization, has received a $100,000 grant from the Cigna Foundation’s Healthier Kids For Our Future grant program, a five-year, $25 million global initiative focused on improving the health and well-being of children. The money will go to support the School Pantry Program, which provides free, nutritious food to children, youth and their families ast their schools.
ESET’s Ryan Grant named a 2023 CRN Channel Chief
SAN DIEGO – ESET, a global leader in digital security, announced that CRN, a brand of The Channel Company, has recognized Ryan Grant, vice president of sales for North America, on its 2023 Channel Chiefs list. Every year, this list honors the IT channel executives who work tirelessly to advance the channel agenda and deliver successful channel partner programs and strategies. Ryan Grant joined ESET North America to help transform its channel business to ensure partners have what they need to capture new opportunities and protect against an increasingly complex cybersecurity landscape.
Halozyme appoints Barbara Duncan to its board of directors
SAN DIEGO — Halozyme Therapeutics Inc. announced the appointment of Barbara Duncan to its board of directors. Duncan brings more than 25 years of experience as a financial executive with significant leadership roles in the biopharmaceutical industry. Duncan most recently served as the chief financial officer of Intercept Pharmaceuticals Inc., a biopharmaceutical company, from 2009 to 2016. Prior to Intercept, Duncan held senior leadership roles at DOV Pharmaceutical, Inc., a biotechnology company, including chief financial officer and chief executive officer.
Roshambo Eyewear launches affordable
baby prescription frames — Bendees
SAN DIEGO — Roshambo Eyewear, a family-owned business providing high quality, Italian made sunglasses and prescription eyewear for the whole family, has launched a new frame style called Bendees, featuring interchangeable temple attachments and built-in head straps for babies and toddlers. It was developed to improve upon the Miraflex brand of flexible baby prescription glasses. Miraflex was purchased by Essilor Luxottica Group and the warehouse was closed, effectively ending availability of Miraflex frames. Bendees flexible prescription glasses are the best alternative to Miraflex on the market, at an even more affordable price for families.
Fabric8Labs secures $50 million in VC to triple staff
SAN DIEGO — Metal 3D printing startup Fabric8Labs has snagged $50 million in a second round of venture capital funding. The funds will be used to pilot a new manufacturing facility in San Diego where it hopes to nearly triple its workforce. The company’s proprietary Electrochemical Additive Manufacturing economically prints complex metal parts including semiconductor heat sinks and radio frequency antenna parts without the use of powders.
Nautilus sets down roots in San Diego
SAN DIEGO — Seattle-based Nautilus Biotechnology has announced its expansion into the San Diego region with a new facility in University Town Center. The company is developing a complex, next-gen proteomics analysis system that is capable of single-molecule data output. Tapping into the region’s skilled talent pool, Nautilus is currently hiring 20 to 30 staff with plans for more in the future.
ResMed hits record $1 billion in sales
For the first time in its history, San Diego medical device leader ResMed hit $1.03 billion in sales. With the industry-wide difficulty of sourcing wireless chips for medical devices beginning to ease, ResMed is now able to increase the production of its CPAP machines, masks, and ventilators that use these wireless chips to send data from its breathing devices to an internet cloud.
