Daily Business Report-Oct. 24, 2017

Pala Casino Resort & Spa broke ground on a $170 million expansion and remodeling earlier this month. (Courtesy rendering)

 Economic Impact of Native American

Gaming Approaching $100 Billion

Gaming Today

An American Gaming Association (AGA) report says the economic impact of Native American casinos across the United States is approaching $100 billion.

The report titled, “The Economic Impact of Tribal Gaming: A First-Ever State-by-State Analysis,” was unveiled at an Oklahoma City gaming conference last week.

The report found that tribal gaming supports as many as 635,000 jobs generating over $33 billion in employee wages. Additionally, tribal casinos generate nearly $16 billion in taxes and direct payments to federal, state and local governments.

The National Indian Gaming Commission counts more than 485 Indian gaming operations in the United States with 565 Native American Tribes running 244 running gambling operations in 28 states.

San Diego County has 11 Native American gaming operations, the highest concentration in the nation:

• Sycuan Casino, El Cajon
• Viejas Casino, Alpine
• Barona Valley Ranch Casino, Lakeside
• Golden Acorn Casino, Campo
• La Posta Casino, Boulevard
• Harrah’s Resort Southern California, Valley Center
• Valley View Casino, Valley Center
• Casino Pauma, Pauma Valley
• Pala Casino, Pala
• Santa Ysabel Casino, Santa Isabel
• Hollywood Casino Jamul-San Diego, Jamul

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Bank of America Invests $200,000 in

National Conflict Resolution Center

Bank of America has announced National Conflict Resolution Center as its 2017 Neighborhood Builder, awarding it $200,000. The San Diego-based nonprofit is being recognized for its work in community issues, which in turn, contributes to economic and social progress in the San Diego area.

Through Neighborhood Builders, the bank provides nonprofits with a combination of leadership development (for the executive director and a developing leader in the organization), $200,000 in flexible funding, a network of peer organizations across the U.S. and the opportunity to access capital in order to expand their impact in the San Diego community.

“Nonprofits like National Conflict Resolution Center are instrumental to address critical community needs and strengthen the economic health of San Diego,” said Rick Bregman San Diego market president, Bank of America. “Neighborhood Builders is just one example of how we deploy capital in communities and build cross-sector partnerships in order to advance economic and social progress, as part of our approach to responsible growth. We certainly support the significance of their no-cost trainings to help communities work together.”

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San Diegan Elected to AFL-CIO Executive Council

George McCubbin III of San Diego, national vice president for the American Federation of Government Employees’ 12th District, has been elected to the AFL-CIO Executive Council.

Born and raised in San Diego to a Mexican-born mother and Arkansas-born father, McCubbin started his federal government career as a military policeman with the U.S. Army. His granddaughter currently serves in the Army and is the 4th generation of McCubbin’s to serve their country.

McCubbin worked for the U.S. Border Patrol for 27 years and served as National Border Patrol Council president. The12th District represents federal workers in California, Nevada, Arizona, and Hawaii.

McCubbin was elected during the AFL-CIO’s quadrennial convention on Sunday, Oct. 22. AFGE National President J. David Cox Sr. also was reelected to another four-year term on the council.

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Comhear Inc. Relocates Corporate

Headquarters to Northeast La Jolla

Audio technology company Comhear Inc. announced the relocation of its corporate headquarters to northeast La Jolla. The move enables the company to accommodate planned growth in personnel and further its business portfolio.

The office relocation to 4435 Eastgate Mall follows a series of major 2017 milestones for Comhear, including the expansion of its leadership team, as well as the completion of a $12 million capital raise and a successful Kickstarter campaign that reached more than 1,300 percent of the company’s funding goal, with three days left to go.

The crowdfunding campaign, launched on Sept. 12, allows participating consumers to be among the first to experience Comhear’s entry into the consumer market with YARRA 3DX, which it claims is the world’s first 3D-audio sound bar. YARRA 3DX provides listeners immersive 360-degree sound without the use of headphones or multiple speakers, delivering a first of-its-kind audio experience for home entertainment, gaming, virtual reality and music reproduction.

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Prince Albert II of Monaco to Attend

Oct. 26 ‘Conversation’ with Walter Munk

UC San Diego will welcome Prince Albert II of Monaco for a Centennial Conversation with science icon Walter Munk on Oct. 26 . The invitation-only event with Prince Albert and Munk, who celebrated his 100th birthday on Oct. 19, will be a dialogue on exploring the seas, the importance of oceanographic research, conservation, and climate change.

Often called the “Einstein of the Oceans,” Munk is a longtime geophysicist from Scripps Institution of Oceanography known for inventing the science of wave forecasting, which helped Allied troops plan amphibious invasions during World War II. While at Scripps Oceanography, Munk also pioneered tide prediction and many aspects of ocean acoustics, ocean circulation, tsunami predication, and deep-sea tides.

The Principality of Monaco and Prince Albert II have a long history of investment in oceanographic exploration, research, and preservation of the environment. The discussion will be moderated by Scripps Director Margaret Leinen.

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Cubic Offers Exercise Control Software

for Sweden’s Military Defense

ExecutiveBiz

Cubic’s global defense business provided its exercise control software platform during the three-week military exercise that kicked off on Sept. 11 in Sweden. Company personnel installed and helped operate the Cubic-built CATS Metrix exercise control software in two mobile trailers deployed in Stockholm and Malardalen regions as part of Exercise Aurora 2017 that concluded on Sept. 29, Cubic said Monday.

The Swedish land warfare center used CATS Metrix to track, control and assess brigade-level exercises as well as facilitate after action review activities.

“Cubic is proud to have supported Sweden’s largest training exercise with our exercise control software and personnel,” said Dave Buss, president of Cubic Global Defense. Buss, an inductee into Executive Mosaic’s Wash100 for 2017, noted the company is pleased to support the Swedish armed forces’ readiness efforts through its training system that works to assess tactics and goals in live exercises.

Aurora 17 is an annual exercise that seeks to build up the Swedish military’s defense capabilities. At least 19,000 Swedish military personnel and representatives from the U.S., France, Denmark, Finland, Estonia, Lithuania and Norway participated in the annual event.

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Personnel Announcements

Jeff MacGurn Joins Jerome’s Furniture

Jeff MacGurn has been named vice president of digital technology for Jerome’s Furniture, effective Oct. 29.

The entrepreneurial  executive possesses 18 years experience in web development, sales, marketing, delivery, customer support and management working with brands that include Apple, Microsoft, T-Mobile and Bank of America.

MacGurn comes to Jerome’s from Mirum, a global digital agency with 45 offices around the world, where he served as senior vice president of performance marketing. Before that, he was the senior vice president and global managing director for iProspect. MacGurn received his bachelor of arts degree from the University of California, San Diego.