Alonzo Awards honor groups working in hard times

The Downtown San Diego Partnership's annual Alonzo Awards had an upbeat outlook Wednesday night, even if a banner proclaimed they were honoring those who were succeeding in "the new normal."

Awards were given to organizations that are trying to grow, like the San Diego Convention Center, which is planning an expansion; the San Diego Public Library Foundation, which is building a new library downtown; and the Affirmed Housing Group for its ecologically friendly Ten Fifty B Street building.

Awards also were given to Partnership members who work to help the growing homeless population.

"It was a challenging year," acknowledged San Diego City Councilmember Kevin Faulconer, who represents downtown. "Ladies and gentlemen, when it comes to downtown San Diego, the best is yet to come."

A star of the evening was Assemblyman Nathan Fletcher (R-San Diego), who won the Alonzo Award of Excellence for helping to stop a cap on funding for redevelopment groups like the Centre City Development Corp. Fletcher's name has been mentioned in the media as a potential mayoral candidate in the next election, something several speakers referenced and Fletcher himself joked about in his acceptance speech. He echoed the sense of optimism in the face of bad economic times.

"It's a difficult time right now," he said. "(But) I think now is the time when you want to be in office. When the problems are their greatest, when the need is at its most."

Developer Malin Burnham took advantage of an audience full of politicians and real estate moguls to plug one very specific project. Addressing San Diego Mayor Jerry Sanders directly, he said, "One project downtown that hasn't been talked about tonight that we need to get started on tomorrow, very early, is the new City Hall."

Sanders has been trying to get a new City Hall built for several years and seemed close to getting it on the ballot this year, but then turned his attention to an attempted half-cent sales tax increase. The new City Hall has stalled, in part due to funding concerns, but the Partnership is a supporter of construction going forward, and Burnham's declaration was met with applause.

Other winners Wednesday night included: Robin Munro for her work with the homeless; James Dawe of the law firm Seltzer Caplan McMahon Vitek; the San Diego Symphony; St. Vincent De Paul Village; Sheri Snead, the Partnership's director of business development; Channel 4 San Diego; the law firm Procopio Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP; and the San Diego Chargers for the team's 50th Anniversary Block Party.