Tom York On Business: SDG&E Seeks Federal Funds For Wildfire Hardening In Tribal Areas

By Tom York, Times of San Diego

April 12, 2023

Hometown public energy utility San Diego Gas & Electric says it has applied to the U.S. Department of Energy for as much as $100 million in innovation partnership funds.

The utility said the funds from the application, if approved, would be used to offset the costs of wildfire hardening efforts on Native American tribal lands within its service area. The utility said the funds would be matched with another $100 million from the company.

“These funds would help us continue to work with Tribes to provide safe and resilient energy in the face of a changing climate,” said Caroline Winn, SDG&E CEO. “If approved, this grant would not only help advance wildfire safety initiatives planned on tribal lands which have experienced wildfires and power shutoffs in the past but play a key role in in our strategy to reduce energy costs.”

The company also said the funding would boost the company’s efforts to strengthen its existing infrastructure by hardening 70 miles of electric grid.

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New York private equity investor Main Street Capital says it recently completed an investment in San Diego’s Infinity X1 LLC, a supplier of portable lighting products. Main Street says it invested $22 million “in a combination of first-lien, senior secured term debt and a direct minority equity investment,” according to a news release

Five-year-old Infinity sells its products to consumers through major retailers and online. According to the web site, “Infinity X1 was created with the goal of transforming lighting from one-time use with limited function to more advanced, unlimited power products for everyday use.”

Main Street says it usually invests in lower middle market companies with revenues between $10 million and $150 million. The amount invested locally was not revealed in a news release.

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Privately held San Diego real estate investor MG Properties says it has made the National Multifamily Housing Council‘s 2023 NMHC 50, an annual ranking of the country’s largest apartment owners, managers, developers, builders, and syndicators in the country.

The Hosing Council notes that MG has steadily “expanded its market focus during 30 years of growth while performing through four major downturns, including nearly $4.5 billion of multifamily acquisitions since the pandemic shutdowns — totaling almost 12,000 units across 42 properties.”

“MG is pleased to be one of the top 50 multifamily owners in the U.S.” said Founder and CEO Mark Gleiberman. “Our continued growth reflects the effectiveness of our long-term investment mindset, and we look forward to further growth in the coming years.”

This year marks the 34th edition of the NMHC Top 50 lists. Apartment owners, managers, and syndicators are ranked based on their portfolio holdings as of Jan. 1. The 21-year-old company boasts a portfolio of 27,000-plus rental homes in the West.

For added information, visit mgproperties.com.

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San Diego real estate investment trust Realty Income Corp. says it has priced public offerings of $400 million of 4.70% in senior unsecured notes due Dec. 15, 2028, and $600 million of 4.90% senior unsecured notes due July 15, 2033. The public offering price for the 2028 Notes was 98.949% of the principal amount for an effective semi-annual yield to maturity of 4.912% and the price for the 2033 Notes was 98.020% of the principal amount for an effective semi-annual yield to maturity of 5.148%. Combined, the notes have a weighted average tenor of approximately 8 years and a weighted average semi-annual yield to maturity of just over 5%.

Proceeds from the offers will be used for general corporate purposes.

The offering is expected to close April 14.

Meanwhile, the REIT on April 11 declared the 634th consecutive common stock monthly dividend. The dividend amount of $0.2550 per share, representing an annualized amount of $3.060 per share, is payable on May 15, 23 to stockholders of record as of May 1.

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The California Association of Realtors has issued a new report on the recent deterioration of affordability for minority homebuyers in 2022 as prices soared to record highs and interest rates jumped to the highest levels in more than a decade. San Diego alas is high up on the list of counties where the gap has widened considerably.

Of the major regions for which CAR tracks affordability by ethnicity, the affordability gap between Black and the overall population was the widest in Contra Costa, Kern and Santa Clara counties, with each registering a gap of -14%. In comparison, San Diego had an -11% gap.

For Hispanics, the affordability gap was the biggest in Santa Clara at -12%, Contra Costa at -11% and San Diego at -9%.

With an affordability index touching 7%, the CRA found that San Diego was among the three least affordable counties statewide for Black households, while Fresno and Riverside were the most affordable counties at 31% for that group.

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A recent newsletter published by Florida news media think tank The Poynter Institute reports that businessman Paul Huntsman, who rescued the ailing Salt Lake Tribune, has started a print newspaper, The Coronado News. The weekly, launched in late January, is delivered free to 9,500 residents and businesses. Huntsman said he was inspired to start a newspaper in Coronado after buying a house there last spring. Huntsman is the president and CEO of the Utah-based Huntsman Family Investments.

According to the newsletter, his family has a long history in the city — his father, billionaire industrialist Jon M. Huntsman Sr., was stationed there while in the Navy — and the younger Huntsman vacationed there with his family as a child. “As a resident, you begin to see things a little differently,” Huntsman said. “(and) you look at the newspapers a little differently. The newspaper has two local competitors, the 111-year-old weekly Coronado Eagle & Journal and the online Coronado Times.

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And this small business item of note…Taylor Fields, CEO and founder of Nostalgia Coffee Roasters, has landed on Inc. magazine’s 2023 List of Female Founders. Her Torrey Hills-based coffee business is also a finalist for the Good Food Awards, she says. Fields is one of five San Diego businesses that made the 2023 list.

Fields, a former CPA turned entrepreneur, opened Nostalgia in 2018 as a mobile cafe with a self-constructed trailer. In 2020, when the Covid-19 pandemic limited her ability to visit locations, she pivoted to roasting, creating award-winning coffee blends sold online and distributed through Fortune 100 companies as well as served at the Torrey Hills shop.

Last year was a breakout year for the company, as it won gold at Golden Bean, the largest roasting competition in North America and earned the No. 15 Coffee of the Year Award from Coffee Review.

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San Diego International Airport is now using renewable diesel fuel, which can reduce pollution 75% compared to regular petroleum diesel. According to a news release from the airport, fuel is now used in all diesel-powered airside vehicles and equipment, such as baggage tugs, belt loaders and fire trucks. This represents about 30% of the diesel equipment deployed at the airfield.

The airport “is thrilled to begin using renewable diesel to reduce the airport’s carbon footprint, improve local air quality, and help meet our sustainability goals,” said top airport official Kimberly Becker.

Renewable diesel, made from vegetable oil, animal fats, and agricultural waste, is chemically identical to regular diesel. It requires no modifications for use in diesel engines, according to the news release.

The airport consumed just over 200,000 gallons of diesel last year for its fleet. The first truck load was delivered by Supreme Oil, the airport’s current contract fuel delivery provider. A spokeswoman for the airport said there’s no discernable price difference between petroleum and renewable diesel.

Tom York is a Carlsbad-based independent journalist who specializes in writing about business and the economy. If you have news tips you’d like to share, send them to tom.york@gmail.com.

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