Daily Business Report-July 13, 2020
Brookfield Properties rendering, one of several proposals for redevelopment of Sports Arena area.
San Diego seeks input on developer
plans for Sport Arena site
City News Service via Times of San Diego
The city of San Diego revealed several developer plans for the San Diego Sports Arena Friday and announced it was beginning a virtual open house to gather input from the public on transforming the area into a more pedestrian and transit-friendly environment.
The interactive virtual open house, which will run through July 20, will feature redevelopment design concepts for the public to review.
Participants will be able to watch the welcome video describing the concept, view each design concept and provide feedback based on their priorities.
The proposals are available for virtual tours and public feedback through July 20 at https.://sportsarenainput.org
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New study on income and
happiness finds growing divide
More income means more happiness, now more than before, according to new study
By Lainie Fraser | SDSU
Money can’t buy happiness, the saying goes, but it seems to be more closely connected than before.
A new study at San Diego State University found a correlation between happiness and the top indicators of socioeconomic status —including income and education — has been growing steadily stronger.
Using data from the General Social Survey, one of the longest running surveys of adults in the United States, SDSU psychologist Jean Twenge and her Lynn University co-author A. Bell Cooper explored data on 44,198 U.S. adults from 1972 to 2016. The findings were published in the American Psychological Association journal Emotion.
The findings show that, on average, the more income someone makes, the happier they are. This differs from past studies finding that happiness leveled off after achieving a yearly income of about $75,000.
“I was surprised that income was so strongly related to happiness and that happiness didn’t plateau at higher levels of income,” said Twenge. “More money seems to equal more happiness, even after basic needs are met.”
Twenge’s research also discovered happiness is more strongly related to income now than it was in the 1970s and ‘80s. Twenge concludes money indeed can buy more happiness now than it did in the past.
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SD’s ClickUp raises $35 million
ClickUp, a maker of project collaboration software that recently moved its headquarters from the Bay Area to Downtown San Diego, has raised $35 million in a first round of venture capital funding. Founded in 2017, ClickUp plans to use the funds to grow operations, adding jobs mostly in engineering, marketing, sales and customer service, said Founder and Chief Executive Zeb Evans.
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San Diego to commission local artists
for ‘thought-provoking parks project
The city of San Diego is looking to commission 18 local artists to create thought-provoking, innovative projects for its parks. The program, Park Social, is a temporary art initiative that aims to create new exchanges and connections between the park and park goers.
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Cook Casa wins Connect All competition
San Diego startup Cook Casa took first place and won $7,500 in Connect All’s pitch competition at the Jacobs Center. The company is tapping into a pool of chefs and cooks who are unemployed due to restaurant shutdowns and connecting them to in-home dining bookings.
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SANDAG gets state OK for Del Mar
Bluffs stabilization project
The California Coastal Commission unanimously approved several modifications to phase four of the Del Mar Bluffs Stabilization project, finding them consistent with the policies of the California Coastal Management Program.
Modifications will include:
- An increase of three feet to the height of an existing retaining wall at the base of the bluffs near 12th Street.
- To install four additional soldier piles, or support columns, along the upper bluffs near 12th Street.
- To repair a small upper bluff failure near 7th Street.
Combined with previously planned improvements, the new work will further stabilize the Del Mar bluffs, which is a critical segment of the Los Angeles-San Luis Obispo-San Diego (LOSSAN) rail corridor, according to SANDAG officials.
After a series of bluff erosion episodes in 2019, California State Transportation Agency (CalSTA) Secretary David Kim established a coalition of stakeholders to address the short-term stabilization efforts, a long-term vision to move the tracks entirely off the bluffs, and ways to improve the capacity, speed, and safety of the San Diego coastal rail corridor.
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Research Vessel Roger Revelle
returns home to San Diego
The research vessel Roger Revelle returned to San Diego last week after being away for the past year undergoing a mid-life refit in dry dock in Portland, Ore.
The refit included addition of a new propulsion system, modernized safety systems, and a ballast water treatment system to prevent invasive marine species from being discharged in ballast water.
New diesel engines will cut the ship’s emissions by up to two-thirds. This work brings the ship up to date with advances in marine engineering, extending its service life by 15-20 years.
The ship will be at UC San Diego’s Nimitz Marine Facility in the San Diego neighborhood of Point Loma through September as technicians reinstall, test, and calibrate scientific instrumentation.
The first scientific expedition will be in October off Southern California, said Bruce Applegate, Scripps Oceanography associate director and head of ship operations.
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Strong Water Authority credit
saves $67.4 million for ratepayers
Strong credit ratings for the San Diego County Water Authority will save water ratepayers across the region $67.4 million on bond sales executed last Wednesday in New York — $27 million more than staff forecasted in May, according to the agency.
All three major rating agencies – S&P, Moody’s and Fitch – recently affirmed the Water Authority’s positive ratings and stable outlook, creating the opportunity for ratepayers to benefit from lower financing costs for critical water infrastructure.
The savings resulted from the Water Authority’s refinancing of $283.5 million in Series 2020A Bonds (Green Bonds) and $117.7 million in Series 2021A (Green Bonds) senior-lien water revenue refunding bonds. Technical factors in the market provided favorable conditions – including more demand for bonds than supply – that the Water Authority team moved quickly to capture.
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Arts District at Liberty Station and Schmidt
Design Group win top landscape awards
The Arts District at Liberty Station won the 2020 President’s Award from the San Diego chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects, while Schmidt Design Group was the winning landscape architecture firm.
In 2016, McMillan chose Schmidt Design Group to activate and improve the Arts District’s overall visitor experience. The improvements posed a unique challenge in creating a new public realm within the framework of a nationally historic site.
The scope of work included an “arrival plaza” and signature art installation at the main entrance, a streetscape promenade with dining decks to support the adjacent Liberty Public Market, and enhanced paving to allow for pedestrian flow between the outdoor gathering areas and the restaurants, markets, and shops.
Other improvements within the Arts District include an outdoor lounge area with a signature fire pit, custom furniture, shade structures and a flexible turf area where visitors are invited to gather, relax, dine, and shop.
The awards jury said, “The site now stands as a testament to the power of landscape architects to connect a community with its history through design. They rose to the occasion, creating a vibrant and engaging outdoor experience for the San Diego community.”
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San Diego Women’s Week Leadership Conference Goes Global
New virtual format with no boundaries features Daymond John, Lind Cureton, Ed Smart, Amk Trask
San Diego Women’s Week, celebrating 11 years of inspiring, empowering and connecting women is now virtual with leadership events for all ages and professions. Attendees enjoy virtual networking, keynote speakers, panel discussions, and more, all wrapped around creative solutions to everyday issues affecting leaders in the workplace and in their daily lives.
WHEN: Wednesday, Aug. 26 – Friday, Aug. 28, 2020
WHO: Keynotes for 2020 Leadership conference include:
- Daymond John from Shark Tank: Powershift, Transform Any Situation, Close Any Deal, and Achieve Any Outcome.
- Linda Cureton, Former CIO – NASA: Managing and Leading in a Tough Environment.
- Ed Smart, Father of Elizabeth Smart: Two Miracles, and Standing up for Yourself.
- Amy Trask, Former NFL Team Executive – Los Angeles Raiders: Leadership Vulnerabilities.
WHERE: Wednesday – Virtual Women and Wine 6-7:30 p.m.
Friday – Virtual Leadership Conference 8:30 a.m. – 6:30 p.m.
Click here for complete list of speakers and additional details.
