Daily Business Report: Friday, Feb. 4, 2022
Father Joe’s Villages hosts grand opening
of affordable housing project in East Village
After two years of development and construction in partnership with Chelsea Investment Corporation, donors, public officials and local dignitaries will join Father Joe’s Villages
to unveil its largest and newest affordable housing community, Saint Teresa of Calcutta Villa,
during a grand opening and ribbon-cutting ceremony on Feb. 10 at 11 a.m. The location is at One 14th St. San Diego 92101.
Saint Teresa of Calcutta Villa will have 80 units earmarked for veterans experiencing homelessness and will also serve families, senior citizens and individuals with disabilities. This new housing community was developed under the organization’s Turning the Key initiative,
a strategic initiative to create 2,000 affordable housing units.
The project is funded in whole or in part with HOME Investments Partnerships Grant (HOME) funds provided to the City of San Diego by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD) and administered by the San Diego Housing Commission.
TOP PHOTO: The Saint Teresa of Calcutta Villa. (Photo by Jim Brady)
San Diego paying $80 million to reinstate
city employee pensions ended by Prop. B
By Chris Jennewein | Times of San Diego
San Diego’s decade-long experiment with putting city employees under a 401(k) plan similar to private industry officially ended Wednesday with Mayor Todd Gloria reinstating traditional pensions.
Gloria signed an ordinance passed by the City Council on Monday that unwinds Proposition B and reinstates city employee pensions at a cost of $80 million.
Prop. B was passed by voters in 2012, but challenged by labor unions and ultimately invalidated by the California Public Employee Relations Board and confirmed by the courts.
Allegiant Air to add nonstop flights between
Austin and Sioux Falls from San Diego
Allegiant Air will add year-round nonstop service between Austin, Texas via Austin-Bergstrom International Airport and San Diego International Airport beginning April 20. The airline will also add seasonal nonstop service between Sioux Falls, S.D. via Sioux Falls Regional Airport (FSD) and San Diego from May 19 through Aug. 12.
Austin is a new destination for Allegiant Air and the only year-round service the carrier offers from San Diego. The service will operate two times weekly on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
Allegiant Air offered seasonal nonstop service between Sioux Falls and San Diego during the summer of 2020 and will now resume flights this summer. Flights will operate two times weekly on Thursdays and Sundays.
County Supervisor Nora Vargas appointed
to California Air Resources Board
County Supervisor Nora Vargas, 50, of Chula Vista, has been appointed to the California Air Resources Board by Gov. Gavin Newsom. Vargas has served as a supervisor on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors since 2021.
She was a board member of the California State Teachers’ Retirement System from 2015 to 2020, vice president of community engagement for Planned Parenthood of the Pacific Southwest from 2009 to 2019 and executive director of the Latino Issues Forum from 2007 to 2009.
Vargas is an advisory board member of Hispanas Organized for Political Equality and a board member of the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials.
The position requires Senate confirmation and the compensation is $100 per diem. Vargas is a Democrat.
Sarah Adams appointed executive director
of Women’s Empowerment International
Sarah Adams has been appointed executive director of Women’s Empowerment International (WE), a San Diego-based nonprofit that funds projects locally and internationally that provide women economic opportunities.
Adams, a San Diego local, was selected after a nationwide search. WE was run entirely by volunteer board and committee members until 2016 when it was able to bring on its first executive director.
Since then, the organization has grown to two staff positions and continues with a strong, passionate group of board members, committee members, and other committed volunteers.
An accomplished leader, Adams has more than 20 years’ experience in the nonprofit sector and has a proven track record in building strategic partnerships, organization capacity building, fundraising, volunteer engagement, and program development.
At her most recent position with Operation Homefront, she served as a senior regional director for field programs, overseeing development, programs, events, and operations in a five-state area. Adams received her Master’s Degree in Nonprofit Leadership and Management from the University of San Diego.
Robert Gleason, Wendy Greuel reappointed
to California Film Commission
The Senate Rules Committee, chaired by Senate President pro Tempore Toni G. Atkins (D-San Diego), reappointed Robert Gleason of San Diego and Wendy Greuel of Encino to the California Film Commission.
Robert Gleason is the president and chief executive officer of Evans Hotels. He also served as a lecturer at San Diego State University from 2005 to 2009. He is currently chair of World Trade Center San Diego, chair of the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority Arts Advisory Committee, secretary of the San Diego Lodging Association, and serves on the California Travel and Tourism Commission.
Wendy Greuel is a consultant for the Discovery Cube Foundation in Los Angeles. She is also an Executive in Residence and Strategic Advisor for California State University Northridge, Nazarian College. Previously, she served as a member of the Los Angeles City Council from 2002 to 2009.
Finalists named for president of San Diego
College of Continuing Education
The search for the next president of the San Diego College of Continuing Education has been narrowed to three candidates with strong backgrounds in serving diverse and low-income student populations. The finalists include: Michelle Fischthal, vice president of instructional services, San Diego College of Continuing Education, San Diego Community College District; Marsha Gable, vice president of student services, Grossmont College, Grossmont-Cuyamaca Community College District; and Tina King, assistant superintendent/vice president of student affairs, Southwestern Community College District.
Fischthal previously served as dean of institutional effectiveness for the San Diego College of Continuing Education.
Gable previously served as interim president of Grossmont College and prior to that at San Diego Miramar College.
King previously served as interim dean of student services and instruction and director of institutional research and planning for North Orange Continuing Education in Anaheim.
Illumina partners with centers across
France to assess cancer therapy options
Illumina Inc. announced an agreement with the Jean Perrin Center at the Clermont-Ferrand University Hospital in France to assess the clinical value of comprehensive genomic profiling (CGP) in cancer therapy options in patients with late-stage disease compared to use of current standard of care, including small panel tests.
Evidence from the CELIA (comprehensive genomic profiling impact) research study will be used to support a precision medicine approach for patients with late-stage cancer within the French health care system.
The Jean Perrin Center, with participation from the Toulouse Oncopole and the Bordeaux University Hospital Center, will analyze biopsy samples from patients with advanced colorectal, breast, melanoma or lung cancer using CGP enabled by Illumina’s TruSight Oncology 500 assay.
SBA announces new funding to expand
centers for women entrepreneurs
SBA Administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman announced the availability of $1.5 million for 10 new grant opportunities to establish Minority Serving Institutions aspiring to host a Women’s Business Center to provide local business services for women entrepreneurs.
“Our efforts to help establish more Women’s Business Centers at Minority Serving Institutions across America will not only deliver on the Biden-Harris administration’s priority to invest in equity but also will help more women entrepreneurs—one of the most energetic, innovative and fastest-growing segments of our small business economy—drive America’s strong recovery and Build a Better America,” said Guzman.
Maria Ines Rosas named marketing rep
for Rancho Los Remedios in Mexico
Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices California Properties has appointed Maria Ines Rosas in the La Mesa/El Cajon office as the exclusive U.S. marketing representative for Rancho Los Remedios, a wine-oriented, gated community near San Miguel De Allende, Guanajuato, Mexico.
Rancho Los Remedios is comprised of 89 residential lots that range from 13,000 to 55,000 square feet, priced between $125,000 and $645,000. New homes are offered from $1 million to $1.5 million.
Situated in a beautiful setting in the heart of central Mexico, Rancho is a wine lover’s paradise. An average 60 percent of each residential lot is dedicated to growing grapes or avocados, with the rest dedicated for a home, making the vineyard an integral part of the Rancho lifestyle.
Platform Science raises $115 million
Series C led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2
San Diego-based Platform Science announced $115 million in Series C funding. The round was led by SoftBank Vision Fund 2 and included participation from Chimera, as well as existing investors 8VC, Daimler, Prologis, NextPlay, and Four More Capital. The new capital will be used to expand the reach of the company’s innovative transportation solutions and make it easier for fleets to develop, deploy, and manage mobile devices and applications on commercial vehicles.
“There is an urgent demand for new and innovative ways to increase visibility and efficiencies in the supply chain and improve driver experience, and this investment from our new and existing partners is going to power us to fill that need,” said Jack Kennedy, co-founder and CEO of Platform Science. “Our platform breaks down the barriers that have historically created friction in the supply chain and provides developers with a connected channel to distribute their innovative solutions at scale.”
