June 2, 2022
For this Memorial Day weekend, we borrowed this handy list of services you may want to attend from the UT. Remember to get some fresh air this weekend too, and we’ll catch ya next week.
Business Updates
The San Diego Brewers’ Guild has announced its inaugural SD Beer Weekend on June 10-12. More info here.
Shout out to Republic Services! Recognized today as one of 3BL Media’s top 100 companies for their commitment to sustainability.
Healthcare facilities continue to get major boosts: Sharp HealthCare joins other hospitals in significant build efforts. This time, Sharp will be investing $2 billion to expand facilities.
Scripps Health is partnering with local nonprofit, Miracle Babies, to launch the My Brain & My Baby program, which will expand access to therapists for mothers experiencing high-risk pregnancies within 72 hours of a mental health diagnosis.
Legislative Updates
Federal:
Booster doses for children 5-11 may be available soon. Last week, the CDC recommended children 5-11 receive a booster 5 months after their initial vaccination.
2022, the year of angry parents. The latest? In their testimony this week, FDA leadership explained a series of oversights, missteps and odd mistakes that led to the baby shortage formula of today. One such mistake, the initial whistleblower letter that was sent to the FDA about the deadly strains of bacteria at the Abbott plant, got stuck in some weird mail system glitch and while it was mailed in October, didn’t hit a desk until February. Cool.
However, as early as next month (that’s still not really timely for anyone feeding a small person every three hours), two million cans of formula will be on US shelves after being flown in from the UK.
The Bureau of Labor Statistics is out with its Monthly Labor Review. Some good news: as of December 2021, some industries had regained and even surpassed their workforce pre-pandemic. Why they publish a report about December 2021 in May of 2022 is above our pay grade, though.
Not 100% certain, but we’re guessing Senator Mitt Romney and Senator Elizabeth Warren don’t really agree on a lot. However, they were joined by seven other Senators sending a letter to President Biden to “substantially maintain” the tariffs on Chinese imports that were enacted by President Trump, arguing that rolling back those tariffs would not reduce inflation.
It has been a hard week, on top of a hard pandemic for many. If you need a little *light*, check out a nice story about how Architect of the Capitol workers saved nine baby ducklings from a sewer in DC.
International:
Most of us can only dream of going to space… For Katya Echazarreta going to space is now a reality. Born in Guadalajara, Mexico, Echazarreta will be the first Mexican-born woman to ever travel beyond earth. The San Diego City College Alumni, will be traveling to space on Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin Rocket ship as a citizen-science astronaut after being selected out of 7,000 applicants by Space For Humanity — an organization focused on making space more inclusive.
Craft beer aficionados… We’ve got an event you may like. The Chamber partnered with the Tijuana International Beer Festival where the best craft beers from Baja and San Diego will be hosted in a two-day event filled with cool music, yummy food and the classiest beers from the region. This event will take place June 11 and 12 and will require tickets for entry. Click here for more information.
The University of San Diego’s Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice is receiving applications for their Kroc Border Fellows Program. Applicants from academia, civil society, and the public and private sectors are encouraged to apply to this 10-month program where Fellows receive an $850/month fellowship and a grant of up to $5,000 to further their work. Register here for an info session on May 27 at 5:30 PM and submit a letter of interest by June 13.
President Biden launched the Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF) with a dozen initial partners who represent countries that together account for 40% of world GDP. This framework will enable the U.S. to expand its economic leadership in the Indo-Pacific region and serve as a platform that will allow the U.S. and its allies to work more closely on issues including supply chains, digital trade, clean energy and anti corruption efforts.
Last Week, Berlin hosted the third Technical Committee for Political Affairs as part of the Mexico-Germany “Alliance for the Future” Binational Commission. Leaders commemorated the 70th anniversary of the reestablishment of diplomatic relations between both countries and reiterated their commitment to addressing issues including regional stabilization, renewable energies, and biodiversity.
Mexico’s Foreign Affairs Secretary Marcelo Ebrard met with foreign ambassadors, councils and academics to discuss migration in the 21st century. Secretary Ebrard highlighted the compatibility of labor markets of Mexico and Latin America with those of the US and Canada, stating that labor cooperation is crucial to accelerate North American economic growth. US Ambassador, Ken Salazar also mentioned that the US, Canada and Mexico are collaborating to develop a framework to address causes of migration.
The Chamber hosted its quarterly International Business Affairs Forum this week with guest speakers from the Department of State and Department of Commerce, who shared an overview of resources, events, and initiatives that help SMEs engage in international trade. Couldn’t make it? Check it out here.
Registration is now open for South County Economic Development Council’s Inaugural Binational Forum next week. This event will gather civic, business and community leaders on Wednesday June 1st at the Southwestern College Performing Arts Center.
Save the Date! The San Diego Diplomacy Council will be hosting its Partner Appreciation Night on July 1st. More information on this event that will celebrate associated member, donors and partners is available here.
State:
On Monday, Governor Newsom called on urban water suppliers to improve conservation efforts. California is far behind the voluntary 15% water reduction target, and Governor Newsom warned agencies that mandatory water restrictions may be imposed if conservation levels don’t improve soon.
April’s jobs report shows California’s unemployment rate has dropped to 4.6 percent and created 41,400 new jobs. The state has recovered more than 91 percent of jobs lost during the height of the pandemic, and continues to outpace the nation in job growth rate.
Tomorrow is the state’s legislative deadline for bills to clear out of their house of origin…so stay tuned for next week’s newsletter on which ones made it through!
Local:
We’re calling this one BVA.4 – ICYMI there’s a new variant going around that is… troubling.
The latest chapter of the never-ending Sports Arena saga was written on Monday when San Diego City Council voted to move forward with just three of the proposed bids to redevelop 488.5 acres of city-owned land in the heart of the Midway District. Attention now shifts to the June 8 Rules Committee meeting to see if the city is going to take another crack at removing the 30-ft height limit in the area (spoiler alert).
Math. Ricardo Basurto-Dávila has been hired as the County of San Diego’s Chief Evaluation Officer for the new Office of Evaluation, Performance, and Analytics.
San Diego Unified is warning parents that if COVID cases continue to rise, the return of mask requirements is likely. As parents receive (daily?) routine exposure notices for students, the district is returning to thresholds predetermined.
Heads up, renters! This week in the city of San Diego, new protections moved in to prevent tenants from being moved out at no fault of their own.
The San Diego City Council approved new regulations for shared scooters and bikes. A couple of the new regulations include requirements to park scooters off the sidewalk in designated areas and reducing the time operators must respond to complaints from three to one hour. And please, we are begging you, stop riding them two people to one scooter. Dumb and dangerous.
The County Board of Supervisors approved a resolution to publicly support Governor Gavin Newsom’s CARE Court plan. (Also, so did we this morning at the board meeting).
City of San Diego’s Development Services Department Updates:
- The Cannabis Business Division and Office of Race and Equity will be hosting in-person and virtual listening sessions to receive input on the formation of an equity program now through June 16. Learn more here.
- A reminder that beach area construction is limited during the summer, which is considered the period between Memorial Day through Labor Day. Plan accordingly!
Upcoming County Public Input Opportunities Reminders:
- Budget szn continues: County of San Diego department virtual budget meetings for each supervisorial district will continue through June 8.
- The County of San Diego is in the process of developing a broadband plan for the unincorporated area. To provide feedback, interested stakeholders should take their broadband survey or attend future community workshops. The Chamber is involved in business group stakeholder discussions – if you have any questions, please contact Angeli Calinog.
- The next Regional Decarbonization Framework public meetings will take place on June 28 and July 26.
- The County’s revised Transportation Study Guide (TSG) for vehicle miles traveled (VMT) will be available for public review from May 12 to June 13. The Chamber has been involved in business group stakeholder discussions through the VMT implementation process. If you have any questions, please contact Angeli Calinog.
- The County will soon host a series of workshops on the proposed strategies and measures of their Climate Action Plan update. First up on June 1st is their solid waste workshop. To learn more and to find the dates of future meetings, click here.
Upcoming Hearings
- The SANDAG Board of Directors will meet on May 27.
- The San Diego City Council will be on legislative recess from May 30 – June 7.
- The County will hold a Business Sector Telebriefing on June 8.
Capital Opportunities & Resources
- Applications are open for micro-enterprise home kitchen operations (MEHKOs) in the County of San Diego.
- The California Dream Fund has micro grants up to $10k available for entrepreneurs and small business creation.
- The County of San Diego has $2,500 grants for microbusinesses (five employees or less) operating within the County.
- The CARES Act Revolving Loan Fund provides assistance for eligible expenses to businesses in the City of San Diego and City of Chula VIsta impacted by the pandemic.
- The California Rebuilding Fund is offering small businesses with fewer than 50 full-time equivalent employees loans up to $100,000. Learn more and apply here.
- The County’s Small Business Stimulus Grant Program is accepting additional applications. Eligible businesses must have fewer than 100 full-time employees and are following sectors (restaurant, gym fitness center, yoga studio, movie theater, museum, zoo, or aquarium) that were impacted by moving from the Red to Purple Tier OR part of the event industry. Learn more and apply here.
- City of San Diego Temporary Outdoor Business Operations Permit – Businesses (restaurants, retail stores, gyms, hair salons, nail salons) can now expand into the public right-of-way, parking lots, and public spaces. Information on how to apply for a Temporary Outdoor Business Operations Permit can be found here.
- Businesses can reach out to their nearest Small Business Development Center (SBDC), which has developed the Small Business Survival Resources Guide to help business owners navigate through the chaos COVID-19 is having on our communities. SBDC can help with applying for relief, guiding you through available resources, and assisting with cash flow concerns, supply-chain interruptions, workforce capacity, insurance coverage, and more–all at no cost.