Daily Business Report — April 22, 2013

San Diego to Host World Stem Cell Summit

Sanford-Burnham will co-host the ninth annual World Stem Cell Summit December 4-6 in San Diego, together with the Scripps Research Institute, Genetics Policy Institute, Mayo Clinic and California Institute for Regenerative Medicine. The conference will feature more than 170 experts who will discuss the latest scientific discoveries, business models, translational issues, legal and regulatory solutions, and best practices. “Occasions like these help us advance our research on the basic biology of stem cells and spur the development of new, more personalized, medical applications for this science,” said Evan Snyder,  director of Sanford-Burnham’s Stem Cell and Regenerative Biology Program. The event is expected to attract more than 1,200 attendees from 40 nations, and 200 sponsors, media partners and endorsing organizations.  The event will be held at the Hilton Bayfront.
 To learn more, visit www.worldstemcellsummit.com.

Graham Downes, 55, Succumbs to Injuries

Prominent local architect Graham Downes died Sunday at the age of 55. He died from injuries sustained in an assault on Saturday. His company, Graham Downes Architecture, released a statement, a portion of which states: “Downes was revered for his tireless advocacy of world-class design and his work in revitalizing neglected urban areas. Many of his urban mixed-use projects have served as catalysts for neighborhood renaissance, such as Downtown San Diego, Barrio Logan and Banker’s Hill, where he lived. Undaunted by an extremely challenging economy, he created his architecture firm on a credit card in 1994 and grew it into one of San Diego’s most respected and sought after design firms, with projects that include Tower 23 Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel San Diego, Palomar Hotel, Hard Rock Hotel Nuevo Vallarta, Charlotte Russe, BASIC, Hivehaus, Charles David, Quicksilver, Suavage and Patagonia.”

NASSCO Rescinds Layoff Notices

General Dynamics NASSCO has quashed more than 650 layoff notices issued in February at its San Diego shipyard as sequestration budget cuts loomed. The pink slips to 375 employees and 290 subcontractors were pulled back after Congress last month gave the armed services more flexibility in their operations and maintenance budgets. It had been believed that sequestration’s automatic cuts would gut the Navy’s maintenance budget. “We received information from the Navy on repairs, contracts and maintenance that made us feel like we wouldn’t have to go through with the layoffs at this time,” NASSCO spokeswoman Sarah Strang told City News Service. San Diego political and business leaders have lobbied the Pentagon to keep its ship maintenance schedule intact. The shipbuilding and repair industry is a major component of the economy for the area’s waterfront.

Gallup CEO to Keynote EDC Annual Dinner

San Diego Regional Economic Development Corp.’s annual dinner on May 29 will feature a talk by Jim Clifton, CEO of Gallup and the author of “The Coming Jobs War, ” on the role that creating good jobs plays in the region’s economic well-being. Clifton created the Gallup World Poll, aimed at giving the world’s citizens a voice in key global issues. He also established The Gallup Path, a metric-based economic model that establishes the linkages among human nature in the workplace, customer engagement and business outcomes. The model is used in performance management systems in more than 500 companies worldwide. The EDC event will be at the Hilton San Diego Bayfront Downtown. Reception at 5 p.m. Dinner and program 6:15-8:30 p.m. Tickets $175.

CORRECTION:

A story in the April 16 Daily Business Report headlined, “Mayor Filner Signs Tourism Marketing Agreement,” incorrectly quoted City Attorney Jan Goldsmith in commenting about a new agreement between the mayor and San Diego’s Marketing District. Goldsmith was erroneously quoted as saying that he trusts TMD’s lawyers and is willing to sign off on the deal.

In asking for a correction, Goldsmith stated: “I said nothing about trusting the TMD lawyers or even a willingness to sign off. The comment about trust was made by a council member, not me. I said we would review it for legality and sign off unless we see a problem with legality.”

SD METRO regrets the error.