Daily Business Report: Monday, May 22, 2023
‘God only knows how many workers
have suffered and died’:
Employees urge Cal/OSHA to set indoor heat rules
By Nicole Foy | CalMatters
Dozens of warehouse workers, delivery drivers, restaurant employees and advocates traveled to San Diego Thursday to urge the California Occupational Safety and Health Agency to take swift action implementing an indoor heat standard.
The California Legislature first directed Cal/OSHA to take up the issue of adding indoor heat regulations to protect workers in 2016. An indoor heat standard would mirror state regulations that protect outdoor workers, including requiring employers to provide breaks, water and other safety measures when temperatures rise to a certain level.
Temperatures already are ramping up around the state; the year’s first record-breaking heat wave is expected to hit this month. But workers warned that desert climates, particularly in the Inland Empire and other parts of Southern California, can bring high temperatures year-round.
The warehouse and logistic industry has grown in the Inland Empire, especially since the pandemic. Some workers complained about heat in warehouses and trucks.
Photo: A warehouse worker sorts packages at an Amazon fulfillment center on Nov. 11, 2010. (Photo by Ross D. Franklin, AP Photo, via CalMatters)
Attorneys Marsha Bipin Amin and Alejandro Morales
appointed to San Diego County Superior Court bench
Attorneys Marsha Bipin Amin and Alejandro Morales of San Diego have been appointed to serve as judges on the San Diego County Superior Court by Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Amin has served as a managing attorney at the Fourth District Court of Appeal since 2018 and was a senior Appellate Court attorney there from 2011 to 2018. She was an associate at Procopio from 2006 to 2010 and served as a law clerk at the U.S. District Court, Southern District of California from 2005 to 2006.
Amin earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Diego School of Law and a Master of Social Work degree from the University of Southern California. She fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Laura Halgren. Amin is a Democrat.
Morales has served as a deputy alternate public defender at the Office of the San Diego County Alternate Public Defender since 2014. He earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of San Diego School of Law. Morales fills the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge James Simmons. Morales is a Democrat.
Miramar Auto Center in San Diego acquired
by CES Remington LLC for $9.9 million
Miramar Auto Center, a multi-tenant automotive property at 6690-6696 Miramar Road in San Diego, has been acquired for $9.9 million by CES Remington LLC. The center encompasses two separate parcels totaling over 2 acres of land on a corner lot, which includes over 34,015 square feet of industrial and automotive space.
The seller was Four-Sher Investments Inc., represented by Colliers. CES Remington was represented by Brandon Keith, with Voit.
San Diego County wineries break sales record
San Diego County wineries realized about $49.1 million in gross sales last year, an 11 percent increase over 2021 and an all-time high, according to the San Diego County Vintners Association. The number of active and planned wineries in the county rose to 166 in 2022.
Newer and expanding wineries led industry job growth with an estimated 709.5 jobs in 2022, a 6 percent annual increase, while yields from last year’s harvest dropped slightly. Wineries also report moving past COVID-19 with 45 percent indicating business has returned to normal levels. Still, inflation and prices are a concern, and some wineries have adjusted by operating with fewer employees. Wildfire insurance coverage is a major issue for local vineyard owners with 54 percent stating insurance rates have increased.
American Marketing Association San Diego
announces winners of 2023 Sandie Awards
The American Marketing Association San Diego chapter announced the 2023 Sandie Awards (“Sandies”) winners at a gala held at Town and Country Resort. The Sandies recognize the best marketing campaigns and projects created in 2022 by or for an agency, consultancy, corporation, educational institution, nonprofit or college student in San Diego County.
“The quality and creativity of the Sandie Awards entries blew us away. This awards program demonstrates the incredible marketing talent we have here in San Diego County,” said Summer Haines, co-founder of Compass Digital, who was the awards event chair.
For a list of the award winners, click here
Noerena Limón appointed to California
Housing and Finance Agency Board of Directors
Noerena Limón of La Mesa has been appointed to the California Housing and Finance Agency Board of Directors by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Limón has been principal at Mariposa Strategies since 2022 and a Fellow at the Terner Center for Housing Innovation at the University of California, Berkeley since 2021.
She was executive vice president of public policy and industry relations at the National Association of Hispanic Real Estate Professionals from 2018 to 2022 and a policy analyst in the Office of Mortgage Markets at the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau from 2012 to 2018.
She served in several positions at the White House from 2009 to 2010, including roles in the Office of Political Affairs and the Office of Presidential Personnel.
The position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Trauth is a Democrat.
Patricia Trauth reappointed to Landscape
Architects Technical Committee
Patricia Trauth of Encinitas has been reappointed to the Landscape Architects Technical Committee by Gov. Gavin Newsom. she has served on the committee since 2015.
Trauth has been Principal at Rick Engineering since 2016.
She was principal landscape architect at AECOM from 2008 to 2016.
She was vice president for Project Design Consultants from 2005 to 2008 and director of planning and landscape architecture at Robbins Jorgensen Christopher Architects from 1999 to 2005.
Trauth was a Landscape Architect at KTU+A from 1993 to 1999.
The position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Trauth is a Democrat.
Mary Beth Garber reappointed to the Private
Security Disciplinary Review Committee
Mary Beth Garber, of Carlsbad, has been reappointed to the Private Security Disciplinary Review Committee, South, where she has served since 2018.
Garber has been an Audiobook Narrator since 2018.
She was Executive Vice President of Marketing Strategy at Katz Media Group from 2011 to 2017.
She was President of the Southern California Broadcasters Association from 1998 to 2011.
Garber earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and French from Pitzer College.
The position does not require Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Garber is a Republican.
David Ellenstein and Bill Kerlin take
leadership positions at Laguna Playhouse
North Coast Repertory Theatre’s Artistic Director David Ellenstein, and Managing Director Bill Kerlin, have been named Laguna Playhouse’s new artistic and managing directors respectively. They will continue their positions at North Coast Repertory Theatre.
Born into a theatrical family, David Ellenstein has worked in theaters across the country.
He is the former artistic director of Los Angeles Repertory Company and Arizona Jewish Theatre. A veteran of over 300 theatrical productions, he has worked at theaters across the country for nearly five decades, including Coconut Grove Playhouse, Paper Mill Playhouse, Alabama, Great Lakes, and California Shakespeare Festivals, Portland Stage, 59E59, The Meadowbrook Theatre, Colony Theatre, and Laguna Playhouse.
Bill Kerlin brings over 30 years of finance, marketing, and sales experience to the Laguna Playhouse, including 12 years as managing director for North Coast Repertory Theatre and sixteen seasons as the director of administration at the legendary Coconut Grove Playhouse, in Miami. During the time that he served at Coconut Grove, it was the largest professional not-for-profit producing theatre in the State of Florida.
Curebound announces grant applications opening
SAN DIEGO — Curebound, a San Diego-based philanthropic organization that raises and invests strategic funding in translational cancer research projects, has announced the 2023 grant applications for all Curebound Grants are now open. To be eligible to receive funding for a 2023 Discovery Grant, Targeted Grant or Cure Prize, applicants must submit a letter of intent between May 1 and May 30 using the official form available on the Curebound website here.
Jamul Indian Village honored
for its successful casino refinance
JAMUL — The Jamul Indian Village of California was awarded the Business Impact Deal of the Year Award from the Native American Finance Officers Association for its success in refinancing debt related to the construction of the casino owned and operated by the Jamul Indian Village Development Corporation (JIVDC). The transaction reduced the JIVDC’s interest by over $30 million annually by allocating a portion of its high interest rate debt to a holding company until the entire debt could be converted to a conventional, low interest loan.
General Atoms to build drone for Taiwan
SAN DIEGO — San Diego-based defense giant General Atomics has received $217.6 million from the Department of Defense for the construction of four MQ-9B SkyGuardian drones. The drones will aid Taiway in monitoring possible invasion by China, and protecting commercial trade and traffic in the Taiwan Strait.
National University awards 35 scholarships
SAN DIEGO — Veteran-founded National University has gfiven 35 new $5,000 military spouse scholarships for use towards associate, bachelor’s and master’s programs. A recent member of the Department of Defense’s Military Spounse Employment Partnership, the scholarships are the latest in NU’s ongling workforce and educational efforts helping employers recruit, hire, promote and retain military spouses.
Boundless Bio snags $100 million in third VC round
SAN DIEGO San Diego life sciences startup Boundless Bio has pulled in $100 million in a third round of venture capital funding. The company will use these dollars to continue initial clinical trials for small molecule therapies that target genetic material associated with certain cancers.
San Diego startup wins $25,000 for its foldable mats
SAN DIEGO — A San Diego startup that makes portable mats to help people access uneven terrain outdoors won the top prize of $25,000 at the MetroConnect export accelerator program. Company co-founder and CEO Kelly Twichel said early adopters of Access Trax
were adaptive surfers who used the mats to hit the waves with more ease. She added that the use of the company’s lightweight, transportable mats extends beyond the beach to other surfaces like grass, gravel and snow.
Ventoux Biosciences targets Dupuytren’s disease
ENCINITAS — Local pharma startup Ventoux Biosciences has officially launched its efforts to deliver life-changing therapies for patients with Dupuytren’s disease, a common, progressive, debilitating fibrotic contracture that limits hand mobility. Famous sufferers include celebrity athlete John Elway, actress Chelsea Handler, comedian Bill Murray and Sen. Mitt Romney. The disease – also known as palmar fibromatosis – is believed to be genetic and affects about 5 percent of the population, with a greater prevalence in people of European descent and men over 50 years old.
CureScience Institute announces Summer
Scholar Bioinformatics training program
SAN DIEGO — CureScience Institute, a San Diego-based nonprofit, announced that Professor Igor Tsigelny and Professor Valentina Kouznetsova, both of UC San Diego, will again offer an educational program in bioinformatics for undergraduate and high-school students interested in STEM careers. The Summer Scholars Program invites students with a strong interest in science to spend eight weeks at the CureScience Institute. The application deadline is May 26. Apply online at www.curescience.org.
North Island Credit Union presents
innovation award to High Tech High
SAN DIEGO — North Island Credit Union recently presented the organization’s prestigious 2023 Innovation in Education Impact Award to High Tech High School for its Students Offshore: Urban Oyster student scientist climate change study program. In recognition of the award, North Island Credit Union provided High Tech High School with $10,000 to expand its innovative student scientist project that studies and monitors oysters and sea water to measure and document climate change. The grant will be used to expand the research program by increasing the frequency and quality of testing.
Petco demonstrates progress in supporting pet health
SAN DIEGO —Petco Health and Wellness Company Inc. unveiled its third annual environmental, social and governance report detailing the company’s progress in its commitment to continue setting the standard in responsible pet care, helping people thrive and preserving the health of the planet. Since its inaugural ESG report, published in 2021, the success of Petco’s strategy has been evidenced by financial performance and new pet parents joining the health and wellness company. In 2022, Petco increased its net revenue by 3.9 percent to $6 billion — in addition to an 18 percent increase the previous year — and added around 1 million active customers to its base.
