Daily Business Report: Wednesday, April 19, 2023
San Diego moves forward on Civic Center redevelopment
City will solicit bids for sale or lease of five downtown, city-owned blocks
By Jack Rogers | GlobeSt.com
San Diego is moving forward on what may be the biggest economic development prize in the city this year, a competition for five downtown, city-owned blocks.
Last week, the City Council’s Land Use and Housing Committee voted 3-1 to clear the way for the city to solicit bids for the sale or lease the property under California’s Surplus Land Act.
The committee’s action, if approved by the full council on April 24, also will allow San Diego to undertake a second process to build a new City Hall on a sixth, adjacent block to the site that is being put on the market, according to a report in the San Diego Union-Tribune.
The Land Use and Housing Committee resolution also allocates $2 million to pay for consultants who will conduct due diligence and evaluate bids for the city-owned land.
Mayor Todd Gloria has championed the project, known as the Civic Center Revitalization, which envisions replacing the six-block, 8-acre City Hall complex with new facilities for city worker as well residential units reserved for low-income families.
“This is really an exciting opportunity to take an area that many have viewed as having serviced its useful purpose already, and to create a Civic Center for San Diego that will be a point of pride for our entire city,” Councilmember Stephen Whitburn told the newspaper.
To facilitate the redevelopment, the city will declare the five blocks of downtown property as surplus land that is no longer required for municipal use and is therefore subject to the state’s Surplus Land Act, which is a form of eminent domain.
Top photo: San Diego Civic Center Plaza. (Photo by Kelsey Kaline, 2019, via The Cultural Landscape Foundation)
California Restaurant Foundation offering
$5,000 grants to help San Diego businesses
San Diego County restaurants that need to update kitchen appliances or refresh their websites can apply for a $5,000 grant from the California Restaurant Foundation. Applications for the foundation’s Restaurants Care Resilience Fund opened on Saturday and are due May 7, which is aSunday.
For the third year in a row, California utility companies — San Diego Gas & Electric, Southern California Gas and Pacific Gas & Electric — have partnered with the food industry trade group to give money to help restaurants recover from the pandemic and strengthen their business infrastructure. The 2023 fund totals $2.1 million with SoCalGas contributing $1 million, the PG&E Foundation giving $900,000 and SDG&E donating $200,000.
To apply, visit the California Restaurant Foundation’s website at restaurantscare.org/resilience.
Victor Shih appointed as new director
of UC San Diego’s 21st Century China Center
By Christine Clark | UC San Diego
Victor C. Shih has been appointed as the new director of the 21st Century China Center at the University of California San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy, effective July 1, 2023.
Shih, the Ho Miu Lam Chair in China and Pacific Relations at the School of Global Policy and Strategy, is a highly regarded scholar with expertise in a broad range of subjects related to China.
As director, Shih will oversee the 21st Century China Center, one of the top research centers on China, as it continues to produce academic research and inform policy discussions on China and U.S.-China relations.
The center’s mission is to develop and disseminate impactful, evidence-based research about China and to enhance U.S.-China mutual understanding by advancing scholarly collaboration, convening policy discussions and actively communicating with policymakers and the general public.
Fifth Annual Women in Leadership
event celebrates and inspires trailblazers
An Olympic Gold Medalist, a MacArthur Fellow and the first woman to serve as director of the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory will share insights with an expected crowd of 1,000 people when UC San Diego presents Women in Leadership May 25 at 6:30 p.m. in the Price Center East Ballroom. Hosted by Sally Ride Science at UC San Diego and moderated by journalist Lynn Sherr, the event is free and open to the general public with pre-registration.
Speakers are:
• Erin Jackson, speedskating Olympic gold medalist and STEM advocate
• Laurie Leshin, geochemist, space scientist and director of NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory
• Natalia Molina, professor of American studies and ethnicity at USC, award-winning author
La Jolla Concours d’Elegance returns April 21
Returning to the shores of La Jolla, the La Jolla Concours d’Elegance celebrates its 17thyear of automotive excellence Friday April 21, Saturday April 22, and Sunday April 23. Earning a reputation as one of the finest internationally renowned classic automobile showcases in the US, the La Jolla Concours continues to attract discerning car enthusiasts from around the globe for a weekend of prestigious events. Online registration is now open for participants to submit their automobile for consideration to contend across thirteen categories for prestigious titles and automotive infamy in 2023. In 2023, the LJCDE Committee is pleased to announce that the infamous Friday Evening VIP Party returns to The Lawn at Ellen Browning Scripps Park.
Amanda Lee named assistant city manager in La Mesa
Amanda Lee has been chosen for the assistant city manager position for the City of La Mesa.
Lee comes to La Mesa after 10 years at the City of Vista, where she was in a similar position for the past two years. Lee provided direct supervision over homelessness and housing, communications, code enforcement, climate action plan implementation, grants and governmental relations, and administrative support staff.
Lee has been serving as the acting city manager at Vista for the past six months where she was responsible for leading the city’s department directors and management team.
In her role in Vista, Lee was also responsible for the development of Vista’s Operating and Capital Improvement Project (CIP) budgets, among other tasks.
Cortica closes $75 million in new funding round
and acquires Springtide Child Development
SAN DIEGO — Cortica, the leading physician-led autism services company that treats the whole child and helps children with developmental differences thrive, has closed a $75 million financing and acquired Springtide Child Development. The funding round was led by Deerfield Management and Optum Ventures. In the acquisition of Springtide, a premier integrated data-driven autism provider in the Northeast, Springtide’s investors have rolled their equity entirely into Cortica. Cortica has also acquired the Melmed Center, a developmental pediatrics clinical and research group based in Arizona.
Cirkled In partners with American Student Assistance
SAN DIEGO —Cirkled In, a leading student professional profile and youth recruitment platform has partnered with American Student Assistance, a national nonprofit organization committed to helping students navigate their post-secondary pathways. The partnership will bring together two mission-aligned companies to collaborate on the common goal of modernizing post-secondary education and career planning and making it more effective, efficient, and equitable. The partnership will serve a larger Gen-Z youth population with a modern, engaging, and 21st-century offering.
Mitchell teams with Axalta to launch training
program for commercial truck repairers
SAN DIEGO — Mitchell, an Enlyte company and technology and information provider for the Property & Casualty claims and Collision Repair industries, announced it is collaborating with Axalta Coating Systems, a leading global coatings company, to introduce a new training program, “Truck Fleet Damage Analysis and Estimating.” It gives repairers instruction on how to streamline the appraisal process for collision-damaged medium- and heavy-duty trucks.
The USDA awards Native Microbials a
$1.4 million grant for climate-smart agriculture
SAN DIEGO — Native Microbials, a biotechnology company at the forefront of animal health and nutrition, was recently awarded a $1.4 million grant from the USDA’s Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS) Conservation Innovation Grants program. The grant will support Native Microbials’ project, “Fighting Methane with MIGHT (Microbiome Insights into Greenhouse gases using High-throughput Technologies).” The announcement was made by Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack.
Mosaic launches Metric Builder —
a new advancement within its platform
SAN DIEGO — Mosaic, maker of the world’s first strategic finance platform, announced the launch of a new advancement within its platform, Metric Builder. Metric Builder enables finance teams to build and customize metrics that capture the nuances that make their businesses unique. Metric builder allows users to apply customized logic to any financial or operational dataset, to build custom metrics that power critical financial decisions. Finance teams that use Metric Builder can quickly and easily build the custom metrics that matter to them.
Planet Based Foods announces
development agreement with DoehlerGroup
SAN DIEGO — Planet Based Foods Global Inc. has entered into a non-exclusive development agreement with renowned global producer DoehlerGroup to work towards a formal production agreement. Doehler has agreed to provide the company with various goods and services. In addition to its headquarters in Germany, Doehler has production facilities and offices in over 40 countries, including the United States, Brazil, China, and India. The company has a global workforce of over 8,500 and serves customers in more than 130 countries.
Sony launches new upgrades for
its professional Airspeak S1 drone
SAN DIEGO — Sony Electronics Inc. announced new upgrades for its Airpeak S1 drone, aimed at enhancing the precision, performance, and reliability of the drone for a wide range of applications. The new upgrades include an RTK Kit, a new advanced and lightweight gimbal, and an enhanced battery, providing industrial users with the tools necessary to capture high-quality aerial footage and data. These developments promise to take the capabilities of the S1 to new heights, by offering a significant boost to efficiency, productivity and overall functionality.
Jack in the Box introduces Pineapple Express Shake
SAN DIEGO — Jack in the Box Inc. announced the return of fan-favorite menu item, Pineapple Express Shake, and introduced a new family of Pineapple Express products ahead of one of the munchiest holidays of the year. The brand is celebrating by deploying Jack’s Edible Assortment food trucks in the Los Angeles, San Diego and San Francisco areas and has partnered with Weedmaps to show you your closest location. Fans can also purchase $2 limited edition Pineapple Express Air Fresheners at all Jack in the Box locations while supplies last, with all proceeds going to the Jack Foundation.
Mitek adds new defense for banks
to combat rising check fraud
SAN DIEGO — Mitek announced that check liveness is available for all customers of its flagship Check Fraud Defender through real-time mobile API. Check liveness is the ability to determine if a check is authentic and not a picture of a picture of a check. Check Fraud Defender detects forgeries and fraudulent activity otherwise missed by traditional fraud detection methods, and now Mitek’s proprietary check liveness technology adds an additional layer of defense. The rate of check fraud nearly doubled in 2022, according to the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network, continuing a dramatic rise in recent years.
Cubic awarded Weapons Effects
Simulation contract extension SAN DIEGO — Cubic Defence UK, operating as part of Cubic Mission and Performance Solutions, was awarded a contract extension to continue to support training for the British Army. The contract entails supporting and repairing the Area Weapons Effects Simulator (AWES) system at Salisbury Plain Training Area (SPTA) in the United Kingdom and for select overseas deployment as required.AWES and its integrated Tactical Engagement Simulation system simulates large-scale force-on-force combat exercises, including the effects of direct fire, artillery, mortar fire, mines and air-delivered munitions, as well as nuclear, biological and chemical w
