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Law Second lawsuit seeks to halt NTC redevelopment



Downtown Firm Expands to Occupy

Six Entire Floors

One week after an heir to a family that originally owned 135 acres of the Naval Training Center sued the city of San Diego to stop redevelopment plans on the former Point Loma base, opponents of the project filed a second lawsuit with the same plans.

John McNab, lead spokesman for Save Our NTC, Inc., filed the suit in San Diego Superior Court on Feb. 16, claiming the city illegally entered into a development contract with a McMillin-NTC, a Delaware division of National City-based Corky McMillin Cos.

Because McMillin-NTC is not required under Delaware law to disclose its partners, McNab said the agreement violates the City Charter. “The city did not identify the party they were contracting with in violation of City Charter 225 that requires transparency of ownership of the parties the city contracts with in order to avoid financial conflicts with council members and employees of the city,” McNab said in reference to the lawsuit.

McNab’s lawsuit also alleges there are legal hurdles facing the city that could cause denial of the plan by other agencies and could lead to problems funding the project. Therefore, he said, “It does not make sense to destroy the existing site when the fate of the proposed redevelopment plan is uncertain.”

The city responded by calling the current lawsuit frivolous.

Deputy City Attorney Rick Duvernay said the city has no doubt it is dealing with McMillin.

The current lawsuit comes on the heels of one filed Feb. 8 by Brian Fletcher, the great-grandson of Ed and Mary C.B. Fletcher.

Fletcher sued the city, claiming the land granted by his ancestors and five other families was intended for sole use by the U.S. Navy as a training facility. With the city’s plans for homes, hotels, retail and office space, Fletcher claims the city violated the original deed and ownership of his ancestor’s land should revert back to him.

Duvernay said Fletcher’s lawsuit has no merit and should not cause work to stop on the project.

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Expansion: Procopio, Cory, Hargreaves & Savitch LLP is extending its presence in the Union Bank of California building in Downtown. The firm is expanding onto the eighth floor of the building, meaning it will soon occupy six entire floors and parts of two others.

The firm’s administrative staff, including information services, word processing, central files, human resources and accounting departments, will move from the 19th floor to the eighth. Procopio will use the 19th floor to house additional attorneys.

“It’s been exciting to watch how Procopio has grown over the years,” said Victoria Sullivan, general manager of the building. “With Procopio’s expansion onto the eighth floor, the Union Bank of California is now 93 percent occupied.”

In the last two years, Procopio has added 24 attorneys, bringing the total to 69.

Roster Moves: The San Diego office of Baker & McKenzie recently added Jay M. Brown as senior counsel and Charles S. Berkman and Michael T. Cruz as associates in its intellectual property department. Solomon Ward Seidenwurm & Smith LLP has named Daniel E. Gardenswartz and Karl A. Sandoval as partners. Mark T. Mauerman joined the firm as of counsel in the corporate and business practice areas, and Albert R. Limberg was named an associate. Gordon & Rees LLP recently named Brian B. Frasch as head of the firm’s real property group in Southern California.

The deadline for the next Law Column is March 1. Send related items to dward@ sdbj.com.

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