Update (April 21): We have had such great response to this forum that we need to move to a larger venue. The forum will now be held at the Joan B. Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice at USD on the first floor. The forum will NOT be at Liberty Station.
Parking Information:
There is no charge for parking. You will be directed to the Lower West Lot. Shuttle service runs from the Lower West Lot with a stop conveniently located at the Front Plaza of the Institute for Peace and Justice. On street parking is available throughout the campus, as is a large, central parking facility a few blocks from the IPJ. Please allow extra time for parking.
Directions to the University of San Diego and a campus map can be found here.
Again, vital forum facts:
- Where: Kroc Institute for Peace and Justice, USD
- When: Thursday, April 23, 6 p.m. (allow time for parking)
Several months ago, after the November election, we held one of the best — and most well-attended — post-election panel discussions I’ve seen. I know, I’m getting good at patting myself and our team on the back. But in all seriousness, it was a great event.
At the forum, I promised that we would be soon holding a similar discussion about the state of the economy.
It may depend on what you’re definition of the word “soon” is but we’re delivering on that promise. We have finally put together what I think is going to be a fantastic panel.
Here are the confirmed speakers:
- Rich Toscano, who I’ve been championing a lot because of his always-on-the-money analysis of local economic and housing issues.
- Jim Klinge, a real estate broker who has turned into quite a celebrated pundit on the national stage.
- Ryan Ratcliff, an economist at USD and a regular contributor to the UCLA Anderson Forecasts local county analyses.
- Our writer Kelly Bennett, who has become an impressive authority on the housing market and the local jobs scene. Kelly and her colleague Will Carless have been deeply immersed in a major project but she’s still managed to keep tabs on the market.
- And me, I’ll be the moderator. I’m getting better at moderating these things. I like to let speakers get their points out but protect at the same time from the death of panel discussions: long, unfocused droning. We’ve also learned that having more than four speakers and one moderator can also cripple a good panel discussion.
All of the panelists have one thing in common: They have a deserved reputation for telling it like it is and using data and experience to expertly illustrate what’s happening. We believe that if we constantly lay out the bare facts of the economic situation, people can make the best decisions possible. And when they do that, they are able to do things like start businesses and help the rest of the community really build the kind of infrastructure needed to pull us out of this malaise.
This, in a nutshell, is the mission of voiceofsandiego.org. And we hope to do more of this type of educational forum.
The event is free to attend and based on the standing-room only attendance at the last event, we’ve booked a bigger location. But please send an email to camille.gustafson@voiceofsandiego.org to get on the list so that we can keep track of how many might attend (just in case we need to prepare).
We’re using a big room in the US Karate Building in Liberty Station (Bldg #176). The address is 2590 Truxton Road and the event will be in Studio 106.
Update: I apparently forgot a crucial detail: The discussion will begin at 6 p.m. on April 23.
We’re also looking for a sponsor or two (or a dozen) for the event, so if your business or organization wants to be a leader in the discussion on this vital local topic, contact Bart Hoffman at bart.hoffman@voiceofsandiego.org. You can also donate here.
Again, I hope to see you there. Let us know you’re coming so we can be prepared.