Penny J. Duane joined City National Bank as v.p. and manager of its Downtown banking office, which is slated to move from its 750 B Street location to the Koll Center later this month. From 2001 until last year, the 20-year banking veteran was branch manager and lead manager of U.S. Bank’s San Diego district.

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Robert Burke

CB Richard Ellis named Robert Burke to lead the company’s investment properties activities in the Western U.S. A senior managing director, Burke formerly led CBRE’s national private client group. The Del Mar resident is based in San Diego.

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Wells Fargo appointed John Sotoodeh president of community banking for the Southern California region and promoted Sarah Yang to v.p. and senior specialist for its San Diego business banking division.

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Baker & McKenzie elected Noel C. Gillespie as partner and added Roger C. Kuan as an associate. Gillespie is part of the firm’s intellectual property practice, focusing on patent prosecution, patent litigation, licensing and other IP matters. Kuan will assist Gillespie in patent prosecution.

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Linda Wright was promoted to v.p. of sales for Barratt American’s Inland Empire division. She joined the company in 1984.

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NTDSTICHLER Architecture hired Stephen Stokes as senior healthcare designer at the firm’s San Diego headquarters. He has 14 years of design experience.

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Paige Martin

Paige Martin was named senior landscape designer for Black Mountain Ranch, the developer of Del Sur, a new 2,500-home community in San Diego. She joins BMR after four years with VITA Planning & Landscape Architecture in San Rafael.

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BasePoint Analytics appointed Tim Grace CEO. Grace, who co-founded the company in 2004 with Steve Platt, will continue as president while former CEO Platt serves as chairman.

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Brian F. Issell

Scripps Health named Dr. Brian F. Issell v.p. of clinical research. An academic oncologist and clinical researcher, Issell leads a new department overseeing clinical research across the Scripps system. Previously, he was director of clinical trials at the University of Hawaii’s Cancer Research Center.

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Sandra McCullough was named v.p. of patient care systems at Sharp HealthCare. McCullough began her career at Sharp in 1981 as a registered nurse, later becoming an information systems analyst. In 1990, she left Sharp for SAIC. McCullough later returned to Sharp as director of customer support for Sharp Rees-Stealy and became director of clinical systems in 1997.

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Ramona National Bank added David Veit as a business banking associate. Veit, previously with Landmark National Bank, has three years of commercial banking experience.

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GEICO named Greg Kalinsky regional v.p. for its California and West Coast operations. Kalinsky previously served as v.p. for the company’s national underwriting practices. He succeeds Nancy Pierce.

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Anthony Eppert joined Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton’s Del Mar Heights office in its corporate practice group. He was previously with Morrison & Foerster.

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Holocom Networks added Scott D. Benjamin as senior v.p. of operations and general counsel. He previously served as v.p. and general counsel with Bridge Medical.

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Sexton Communications named Jennifer Perkins v.p., a newly created position. Perkins’ 15 years of experience spans several states and industries, covering politics, government and non-profit sectors.

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Susan Day was appointed president of Combined Health Agencies (CHAD), an affiliate of United Way of San Diego County.

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Laura Nieusma

Roel Construction Co. promoted Steve Gray from chief estimator to v.p. of San Diego operations. He joined Roel in 1995. Also, Laura Nieusma, a senior estimator at Roel, was named the American Society of Professional Estimators “Estimator of the Year.” She joined Roel in 2003, bringing 25 years of estimating experience.

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Jean M. Hitchcock, v.p. of marketing and communications for Scripps Health, was elected to the board of the Society for Healthcare Strategy and Market Development.

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Gary Phillips was awarded Grossmont College’s 2006-07 Distinguished Faculty medallion. He has been the school’s English department chair since 1999.

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Jim Wolleson was named sales manager for Brecht MINI. He has been with Brecht for 15 years, starting out as a lot attendant.

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Ethertronics appointed Rick Segil marketing v.p. Previously, Segil was marketing v.p. for Path1 Networks.

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IDEA Health & Fitness Association hired Warren “Buzz” Truitt as v.p. of business development, a newly created position. He has more than a dozen years of experience at health and fitness industries.

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The McRae Agency named Beth Downing account manager. Prior to joining McRae, Downing was a public relations associate at the La Jolla Playhouse.

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The San Diego Better Business Bureau added Lauren Hill as v.p. of sales and marketing. She previously served as director of sponsorships and special events with the San Diego International Sports Council.

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Kurt Ullman was named v.p. of franchise development at Concerto Networks Inc. He brings more than 15 years of experience in franchising, sales and marketing to the position.

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Poway-based Benchmark Landscape Inc. added Tammy Cardenas as maintenance sales representative, Kyrstie Rhea as account manager, Veronica Cruz as field supervisor and Kimberly Samson as project coordinator. Both Cardenas and Cruz will be based at the company’s San Marcos office, while Rhea and Samson are at the Poway headquarters.

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McCarthy Building Companies Inc. named Russell Hamilton director of business development for its San Diego office. A 15-year veteran of the construction industry, Hamilton most recently served 10 years at DPR Construction Inc.

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Cal State San Marcos Extended Studies has reorganized and named Al Kern as associate dean and Suzanne Lingold as assistant dean. Kern joined Cal State San Marcos in 2003 as director of biotechnology programs. Lingold joined Extended Studies in March 2002.

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Garden Fresh Restaurant Corp., parent company of Souplantation and Sweet Tomatoes, promoted Richard Thomson, Susan Hoffman and Steve Durler. All were appointed v.p. of their respective divisions: Thomson, v.p. of management information systems; Hoffman, v.p. of food procurement; and Durler, v.p. of construction.

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SkillStorm Government Integrated Solutions appointed Poorvesh Sheth corporate controller. He most recently served as controller of L-3 Communications’ advanced products and design division.