Phil Bracamonte, president of 56-year-old Jimsair at Lindbergh Field, plans to respond by April 21 to the Airport Authority’s RFQ for building a new corporate aviation operation. The development will cost substantially more than the $17.5 million expansion he earlier proposed. With the airport possibly moving in 15 years, and the usual 35-40 years amortizement of such an investment, he’s somewhat puzzled about what to expect. “It seems to me the airport is a little premature going out with an RFQ,” he says. “We have to know up front what will happen. I don’t think that airport will give a 35-year lease if they plan on moving.”
***
American Airlines’ Robert L. Crandall, one of his industry’s most innovative and competitive leaders, discusses the state of air travel at a Business Leaders’ Breakfast on April 20 at the San Diego Aerospace Museum. Crandall will come prepared to offer opinions on what’s in store for San Diego-based air travelers and how the city’s choice of airport sites will affect its future. Seating is limited to 200 people. Tickets are $35 per plate or $325 for a table of 10. For reservations, contact Carolyn Garanian at (619) 234-8291, Ext 13.
***
As the Airport Authority nears its late May/early June deadline for a ballot proposition on the region’s future airport, pressure grows. Concerned the process is being gamed to favor a vote on the 23,000-acre Marine Corps Air Station Miramar, Assemblyman George Plescia has a spot bill pending that addresses the issue. “It could be used to help the airport authority if it needs a legislative fix or it could be used to rein in the airport authority if it gets out of control,” says Brandon Waters, chief of staff to Plescia, who represents the Miramar area and also is Assembly Republican leader.
***
   Voit Development expects to wrap up work in the fourth quarter on a conversion of the Hillside Professional Center at 2221 Camino del Rio South in Mission Valley into office condominiums that will range in size from 969 square feet to 10,000 square feet. ‘This project offers small businesses the chance to build equity in their own property without the expense or hassle of also owning land or having to supervise building maintenance,’ says Peter Quinn, Voit’s v.p. for development/acquisitions. Jon Boland and Ryan Bracker of Voit Commercial Brokerage are handling sales of individual units.
|
***
Levin Menzies & Associates, developer of the 320-unit, four-building Icon project across the street from Petco Park, is moving into Seattle. The Seattle Daily Journal of Commerce reports the firm intends to build in that city’s downtown a 23-story, 231-condo tower where prices will average $500,000 to $600,000. Levin Menzies also is working on a 34-story glass condo tower in Seattle.
***
Clauss Construction will implode the Hotel San Diego at Broadway and Union Street at 8:05 a.m. on April 15 to make way for the expansion of the Federal Court House. Surrounding streets will be closed and buses will be moved off Broadway.
***
Remember the wondrous feats alleged in those “a man goes into a bar with his dog” jokes? On the last Tuesday of each month some of those dog-in-the-bar stories might prove to be true. That day, the W San Diego, 421 West B St., Downtown, invites dogs to bring their owners to P.A.W. (Pets Are Welcome) doggie happy hour from 5 to 7 p.m. on the Magnet Patio. The menus, called “Two-Legger” and “Four-Legger,” features food items for both people and dogs. Last month’s gathering drew about 50 dogs and was a benefit fund-raiser for the Helen Woodward Animal Center. No dog fights so far, just a lot of barking and sniffing.
***
 Groundbreaking for the $50 million Liberty Station Marketplace at the former Naval Training Center turned out a digging crew of (left to right) Scott McMillin, vice-chairman of Corky McMillin Cos., Liberty Station’s master developer; Craig Clark, president of C.W. Clark, Marketplace developer; Mayor Sanders; Councilman Kevin Faulconer; and Tom Remensperger, business development manager for Legacy Building Services, Marketplace general contractor. Major tenants signed include Vons, Trader Joe’s and Postal Annex. The first stores should open by year’s end.
|
***
Simón Shams is organizing weekend caravans throughout April to tour the new Riviera de Rosarito condominiums on Rosarito Beach, meet with the developer and break for lunch at El Nido before heading back to San Diego. Caravans leave at 10:30 a.m. Saturdays from the Denny’s Restaurant at 2420 Coronado Ave., just off I-5 in South San Diego. Reservations should be made by noon Friday by calling (858) 336-8040 or (619) 944-5151, and leaving your name and number in your party. Most caravaners will drive their own vehicles, but limited space is available to ride with the organizers. Shams says brokers are welcome. Patrick Osio’s discussion of buying Baja real estate continues on Page 24.
***
Judges have been named for the Ernst & Young Entrepreneur Of The Year awards to be given June 14 at the Hilton La Jolla Torrey Pines. They are: Bob Beyster, founder, SAIC and Beyster Institute at UCSD’s Rady School; Malin Burnham, chair, the Burnham Cos, (San Diego Metropolitan cover December 2003); Martha Dennis, co-founder, PCSI and WaveWare (Metropolitan covers November 1998, June 2004); Anne Evans, chair, Evans Hotels; Peter Farrell, chair and CEO, ResMed; Rep. Darrell Issa; Irwin Jacobs, chair, Qualcomm, (Metropolitan covers February 1997, September 2002); Jessie Knight, president and CEO, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce; Gail K. Naughton, dean, SDSU College of Business (Metropolitan cover August 2002); Ivor Royston, managing member, Forward Ventures; Ralph Rubio, chair and CEO, Rubio’s Restaurants; Drew Senyei, managing director, Enterprise Partners; Bob Sullivan, dean of UCSD’s Rady School; Stuart Tanz, chair, CEO and president, Pan Pacific Retail Properties; Ted Waitt, founder, Gateway (Metropolitan cover August 1998); and Julie Meier Wright, president and CEO, Regional Economic Development Corp. (Metropolitan cover March 2004). For more information, contact Irene Veca at (858) 535-7383.
***
The Kaiser Permanente Volunteer Department is seeking to expand its membership. A commitment of four hours per week is requested. Opportunities available include assisting and servicing patients/visitors at the information desks, gift shop and wheelchair valet program. Call (619) 528-5191 for information.
***
Recipients of the 2006 Father of the Year awards, given by the San Diego Father’s Day Council, will be honored May 25 at the Manchester Hyatt. They are Father Joe Carroll of Father Joe’s Villages; Dan Mulvihill of Pacific Southwest Realty Services; Douglas Wilson of Douglas Wilson Cos.; San Diego City Council President Scott Peters; and Gerry Wilson of Wilson Creek Winery. The five are being honored for demonstrating the ability to balance their lives, says Paul Tyrell, Father’s Day Council chair. For information on the event, call (619) 234-9897, Ext. 7418.
***
The Beyster Institute at UC San Diego joins with the National Center for Employee Ownership in Minneapolis this month to present the year’s biggest employee ownership event. More than 700 attendees — ranging from small business owners to leaders of large employee-owned corporations, from tax attorneys to business management academic researchers — will share on April 26-28 ideas and discuss emerging issues in the equity sharing strategy.
***
 Michael C. Bachmann
|
Navy Rear Adm. Michael C. Bachmann has assumed command of the Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command, replacing Rear Adm. William Rodriguez, Spawar’s chief engineer who had served as acting commander since November. As Spawar commander, Bachmann serves as the FORCEnet chief engineer and is responsible for developing the architecture and standards for the Navy’s vision of networkcentric warfare. He also is the chief engineer for the Navy’s command, control, communications, computer and intelligence systems. Bachmann was the vice commander of the Naval Air Systems Command prior to his Spawar assignment.
***
Connect has launched the Venture Roundtable, an effort to showcase promising early stage technologies being developed by local technology and life science companies and research institutions. Online applications are accepted through April 21 from individuals and organizations wanting to present their high-tech innovations to the first program on June 8. To apply, visit connect.org.
***
Elite Staffing Services Inc. and Elite Recruiting Services Inc. will host a mini-job fair luncheon April 12 at 11:30 a.m. at the Elite office, 4445 Eastgate Mall. The buffet luncheon will be an opportunity for initial introductions, resume exchanges and interviews with officials from 15 client companies. Lisa De Benedittis, president of Elite, will host this event with facilitator Angela Hedricks. The candidates will be primarily from the life science, biotechnology, pharmaceutical and medical device arena at the management level in chemistry, human resources, quality control, marketing, investor relations, corporate communications, business development, device engineering, research and development and accounting/finance. The client companies will each have three to 10 positions. “These mini-job fairs have been successful in the past,” says De Benedittis. For more information, call De Benedittis at (858) 455-8300.
***
|
***
Job seekers will want to attend “A Bridge to a Brighter Future,” the Urban League’s 17th annual Career Fair/Expo, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Golden Hall, 202 C Street, Downtown. The April 27 event brings together hundreds of volunteers and corporate partners to address employment needs in the San Diego area. More than 120 employers will attract between 6,000 and 8,000 potential employees to fill executive, management, professional, technical, administrative, clerical, trade and apprenticeship openings in the county. For more information, go to ulsdcjobs.net.
***
Turner Construction and CCDC are teaming to offer a 14-course, seven-week 2006 Construction Management Training Program. Disadvantaged Business Enterprise construction firms are invited to attend the free program, set for May 4 to June 29. The city of San Diego and the Greater San Diego Business Development Council also are partners. The program will kick off with a May 4 ceremony at 5 p.m. at CCDC’s Downtown Information Center featuring Mayor Sanders as the keynote speaker and presentations from City Council representatives. “CCDC is committed to creating a level playing field in Downtown’s redevelopment,” says CCDC President Nancy Graham. “This is an innovative program that gives disadvantaged firms an outlet to grow their businesses.”
***
Escondido’s Downtown Business Association is bringing its Cruisin’ Grand Classic Car Cruise back for a sixth season beginning April 7. The Friday spectacles will feature more than 400 American-made hot rods, customs, vintage and classic cars and trucks parading down Grand Avenue downtown between 5 and 9 p.m. through Sept. 29. Awards are presented at 8 p.m. for event-era cars. For details, call (760) 745-8877.
***
 San Diego Rotary Club 33’s annual Camp Enterprise teaches local high-school juniors how private enterprise works, something their formal education mostly neglects. This year’s effort was chaired by Chris Cramer, Karl Strauss Brewing Co., and vice-chaired by Bonnie Schwartz of Schwartz Design Group. Rotarians who joined the Julian camp this year were Peter Duncan of Pyle Sims Duncan & Stevenson; Chuck Pretto, The Kobey Corp.; Patrick Rogondino, Pearl River Packaging; Brian Lange, Perim Consulting; Joe Outlaw, PenTrust Financial Services; Linda Moore, Linda Moore Fine Arts/Gallery; Robert Carroll, Robert Anthony Carroll Architect; Larry Clapper, Clapper & Vik; Patrick Goddard, NetHere Inc.; Jane Signaigo-Cox, San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp.; Jean Young, Young & Co.; John Driscoll, Driscoll Yacht & Ship Brokerage; and Bill VanDeWeghe of Klinedinst, Fliehman & McKillop. Also participating were Jerry Doran, Capitol Benefits; Wes Wilmers, Music & Movies by Mastercraft; Mario Bourdon, La Jolla Institute for Molecular Medicine; Mike Caruso, Booz Allen & Hamilton; Rudy Brewster, U.S. District Court; Paul Hartley III, Prudential Realty; Steve Mueller, DG Energy Solutions; Roy Lange, BKM Office Works; Don Wilke, Financial Strategies Group; Linda Stirling, RBD Dain Rauscher; Craig Blower, Reuben H. Fleet Science Museum; Dan Murphy, Barney & Barney; Margaret Eddy, Creative Capital Management; Peter Bowie, U.S. Bankruptcy Court; Michael Brunker, Jackie Robinson Family YMCA; John Hawkins, Cloud 9 Shuttle; Nancy Scott, Nancy Scott & Associates; Gerald Worrall, Store Level Merchandisers Inc.; Thomas Vecchione, M.D.; and management consultant Richard Davis, Raymond McKewon, George Harris, Michelle Candland, Bink Cook, Douglas Arbon, Debe Berger and Wayne Goodermote. Says Chairman Cramer, “We took a record number of local high school juniors — 99 — to Julian where they learned firsthand from local business leaders the keys to running a successful business: It takes hard work; it takes teamwork; it requires building trust and applying solid ethics; and finally successful businesses create opportunities for individual, as well as community, benefits. They enable people to give back to their communities.” Other than that and fueling two-thirds of the American economy, private enterprise doesn’t do much.
|
***
UCSD will hold the largest hip-hop dance competition on the West Coast on April 9. It is the seventh year that two student organizations, the Multi-Asian Student Association and Second-to-None dance team, will host the competition at UCSD’s RIMAC Arena. Teams from all over California will compete for more than $2,000 in cash and prizes. Tickets are $13 at the UCSD box office and $15 at the door. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. and the show starts at 6 p.m. For more information visit fusionhiphop.com.
***
Time Warner Cable and the Women’s Entertainment network will screen “Women on Death Row” on April 12 as the third film in the four-part Spring Film Series presented by the San Diego Women Film Foundation. The program will raise $2,500 for the foundation and $2,000 for the YWCA’s Becky’s House. The screening at the Downtown Library (820 E St.) starts at 6 p.m. with a reception including food from Chipotle and beer from Karl Strauss. Tickets are $10 at the door or can be purchased online at sdwff.org.
***
|
***
A celebration of the establishment of a chair in the Archaeology of Ancient Israel and Neighboring Lands is set for April 30, 9 a.m. to 5:30 p.m., at UCSD’s Institute of the Americas. Titled “Biblical Archaeology and the Future,” the event will feature nine noted scholars in archaeology and biblical studies. Since it is a Sunday, parking is free. More information is at anthro.ucsd.edu/~tlevy. The Norma Kershaw Endowed Chair was established by Norma and Reuben Kershaw. Norma met UCSD professor Thomas Levy some 20 years ago while excavating at a site in Israel. Levy is the first Archaeology of Ancient Israel chair.
***
|
A walk across the Coronado Bay Bridge May 21 will benefit Navy Quality of Life programs and will be the only 2006 opportunity to cross the bridge on foot. The 20th anniversary Original Bay Bridge Run/Walk begins at 8 a.m. at Harbor Drive and Fifth Avenue in the Gaslamp Quarter and ends four miles later at Tidelands Park. Participants receive a $12 ticket to the May 29 Padres game at Petco Park. The entry fee is $32 before May 1; $12 for children 12 and under. Register on-line at mwrtoday.com.
***
Heroes will be honored May 5 by Senior Community Centers at a fund-raising luncheon at the Manchester Grand Hyatt from 11:30 a.m. to 1:30 p.m. Chairing this ninth annual event are Tanya Cleaves, Bank of America, and Kathy Parker, North Island Credit Union. The luncheon recognizes residents and/or organizations that improve life for the city’s seniors who live in poverty. Honorary chair is Joe Benoit of Union Bank of California. Recognized will be KPMG and Scripps Assist, volunteer hero awards; John Rainsford, community hero award; Councilwoman Donna Frye, advocacy hero award; and Potiker ambassadors from Potiker Family Senior Residence, senior hero award. Individual tickets are $150; a corporate table sponsorship for 10 is $1,500; and a VIP table sponsorship is $2,500. For additional information, call Donna Pippins, (619) 235-8572, Ext. 308, or go to servingseniors.org.
***
To help low back pain sufferers get back on course — the golf course, that is — Dr. Michael Jaffe, director of the Low Back Pain Clinic at Kaiser Permanente in San Diego, has written “Play Golf Forever: Treating Low Back Pain and Improving Your Golf Game through Fitness.” The book costs $18 and is available online at playgolfforever.com, through Amazon.com and at local booksellers.
***
 The Otay River Bridge is emerging on the 10-mile route of San Diego County’s first toll road, the $635 million South Bay Expressway (SR125). The four-lane, three-fourths-mile-long bridge will be up to 180 feet high when finished early next year. Built in 644 precast segments on 11 sets of dual columns, it is one of only two segmental bridges in California; the other is the San Francisco-Oakland East Bay Skyway, also under construction. SR125, owned and operated by California Transportation Ventures Inc., will extend from SR905 at the border to SR54 in Spring Valley.
|
***
Cerca Series artist James Drake will discuss City of Tells, his latest project, at TNT (Thursday Night Thing) April 6 at the Downtown Museum of Contemporary Art, 1001 Kettner Blvd. The artist, with Assistant Curator Lucia Sanromen, will answer audience questions on everything from his use of art historical references, to the confrontation between nature and culture throughout his work. For this exhibition, Drake presents a drawing 12 feet high by 32 feet long, inspired by Raphael’s painting in the Vatican, “School of Athens.” Admission to TNT is free, but a $3 donation is welcome. TNT is the first Thursday of each month at 7 p.m.
***
Eveoke Dance Theatre reprises a 10th anniversary production of “Soul of a Young Girl: Dances of Anne Frank” in its new Downtown home, the Tenth Avenue Theatre May 13 through June 4. The choreography by Eveoke artistic director Gina Angelique established Eveoke’s reputation 10 years ago, transforming diary to dance to evoke an authentic portrayal of the doomed lives in the secret attic. The theater is at 930 10th Ave. just south of Broadway. Performances are at 8 p.m. Thursday through Saturday and 2 p.m. Sunday. Tickets are $20-$25. For more, call (619) 238-1153 or visit eveoke.org.
***
No need to dig out the old fondue set to indulge a craving for dipping anymore. The Melting Pot, the nationwide franchise in fondue, opens for the first time in San Diego County April 5 in The Aventine, 8980 University Center Lane. With its fondue a four-course affair for the entire evening, the restaurant is open for dinner only, seven days a week. The Melting Pot also features salads, cheese, chocolate and a full bar. It is owned by Lane Scelzi, Dirk Astle, Bret Burkinshaw and Frankie Becker. While it can accommodate 180 diners, reservations are strongly recommended at (858) 638-1700.
***
Fans headed to Petco Park from North County have two transportation options this season: the Coaster train on weekdays and the Breeze Express bus on weekends. The Coaster special late-night return train from Downtown will operate every Monday through Thursday for Padres home games, departing at 10:15 p.m. if the game ends at or before 9:30 p.m. If the game ends later than 9:30 p.m., the train will depart 45 minutes after the last out, but no later than 11:30 p.m. For Friday night games, fans can catch the regularly scheduled Friday late night trains that depart Santa Fe Depot at 9:45 p.m. and 12:05 a.m. Coaster fares are $4.75 to $5.25 each way, depending on how far north one goes. The bus is $5 each way, $1 for kids 12 and under.
***
 Proceeding to a June completion are two pedestrian bridges spanning Olympic Parkway in Otay Ranch. The west one, the longest of the two at 540 feet, provides access to Otay Ranch High School. The 414-foot-long other bridge is at East Palomar Drive. The bridges, at a total cost of $5 million, are being developed by The Otay Ranch Co. with the city of Chula Vista and Sweetwater Union High School District. Project participants include Herzon Contracting, Simon Wong Engineering and the landscape architect, Tributary 17.
|
No comments on record for this story.
This is a public form for the free exchange of comments. Foul language, threats and anything overtly mean or nasty will be removed.