50 People to Watch in 2007

(page 4 of 5)

Josh Knoefler
Going green is the latest trend in architecture and design circles, and Knoefler is a rising star. Hes the man behind the engineering and construction of Green Village in National City, an 8- acre sustainable community with renewable energy sources, high-tech cooling and a cutting-edge water-recycling system for irrigation. The first project of its kind in the country, its sure to be a model for other ecofriendly developments, particularly if Knoefler snags a Green Building/LEED certification from the U.S. Green Building Council.

Scott Lewis
The voiceofsandiego.org co-executive editor is also the sites webmaster. He started a politics-oriented section that attracts some high-powered names as guest bloggers. He also authors a popular on-line opinion column called SLOP (Scott Lewis on Politics). A former reporter for the San Diego Daily Transcript, Lewis is a leading part of a new voice in town aimed at digging into and reporting local news of import. In the most recent Press Club awards, Lewis beat out the traditional dailies to take first place for newspaper column.

Jennifer Luce
The Harvard-trained architects firm, Luce et Studio, has been cleaning house at industry awards ceremonies for its innovative designs. Its largescale projects for Nissan Design America in La Jolla and Detroit, and residential and retail designs for clients such as Karen Krasnes Extraordinary Desserts, have established Luce and company on the design vanguard. The firms projects have been featured in exhibitions nationally and internationally, and Luce has received 12 design awards from the American Institute of Architects.

Monique Marvez
The Monique and the Man morning radio program (Jack 100.7 FM) burst onto the airwaves last year and continues to keep bubbling. Marvez had been in stand-up comedy for 15 years. The big break came when Sam Kinison discovered her in Miami. Marvez style has been labeled as Hispanic Bette Midler, but shes also sort of a potty-mouthed Oprah Winfrey. She continues to do stand-up gigs in San Diego and elsewhere. Shes also writing a comedy pilot for NBC/Universal Studios.

Namara Mercer
You won't find a more hospitable representative of San Diegos hospitality industry than Mercer. It's in her DNA. Named executive director of the San Diego County Hotel-Motel Association in 2005, she succeeded her mother, Rose Marie Starns, who reigned for two decades. The industry is strong, but City Halls continuing raid on hotel taxesoriginally earmarked to promote tourismhas caused a split. With one group of hoteliers pushing a self-imposed 2 percent surcharge for independent promotion, and another group opposed, Mercers challenge is to heal the division in hospitality.

Schuyler McFerran
When McFerran won the Roxy Womens World Longboard Championship in France last July, winning every one of the eight heats she contested, the surfing world went wild. Vive Le San Diego! screamed the headline in Surfline. It was, after all, the worlds first-ever womens longboard championship sanctioned by the Association of Surfing Professionals, and her win garnered international acclaimand watchful eyes eager to see whats next. Not surprisingly, the 19-year-old from Encinitas has racked up an enviable list of sponsors, including Billabong and Vans.

Bridget Naso
Naso has been part-time anchoring and reporting on Good Morning San Diego (KUSI-TV) since 2000. But as anchor Susan Lennon steps aside to be a full-time mom, Naso will take over full-time at the desk, alongside co-anchor Dan Plante. Naso is a graduate of California State University, Fresno, and began her TV career in Bakersfield. Annually, she hosts a pair of telethons on independent channel KUSIthe Jerry Lewis Muscular Dystrophy extravaganza and the pledge drive for the Helen Woodward Animal Center.

Jim Nelson
The new executive director of the San Diego based AVID program has a lofty goal for 2007: Expand our program by 20 percent while maintaining the integrity of this program so it is still true to its principles established 26 years ago. AVID targets students in the academic middle, grades 5 through 12, who need a little extra help in preparing for college. It began at Clairemont High and now is in 2,700 schools in 39 states and 15 countries. Even so, Nelson says, There are so many opportunities for growth in this country.

Craig Nichols
He joined the team at local sports-oriented Cox Channel 4 San Diego in 2005 as director of TV operations. Less than half a year later, Dan Novak - who helped launch Channel 4 in 1997 - took a job with Qualcomm. Nichols quickly found himself the new vice president and general manager. He says he is actively looking to add new programming to the channel, which broadcasts more than 140 Padres games a year. And Nichols and crew will initiate a new station headquarters this yearright inside the Diamond Tower at Petco Park.

David Peckinpaugh
It's been 15 years since anyone but Reint Reinders was president and CEO of the San Diego Convention & Visitors Bureau. Peckinpaugh took the reins last year as top tourism executive and heads a ConVis thats had its funding cut by 37 percent to $8.8 million and more than a few political dustups. Most recently, he served as chief marketing officer and executive vice president of sales and marketing for Conferon Global Services, and spent time before that as vice president of sales and catering for MGM Grand Hotel & Casino in Las Vegas.

Do you like what you read? Subscribe to San Diego Magazine »