Doug Manchester

Douglas Frederick "Doug" Manchester (born in Los Angeles, California, June 3, 1942) is chairman of Manchester Financial Group and past chairman and publisher of U-T San Diego (The San Diego Union-Tribune).^[1][2] Manchester, who prefers to be called "Papa Doug",^[3] has built some of the tallest hotels and office buildings in San Diego, including the San Diego Marriott Marquis & Marina and the Manchester Grand Hyatt, and is credited as a driving force behind the development of the San Diego Convention Center.^[3] Manchester also built the triple 5-star Grand Del Mar Resort & Spa, which sold to Fairmont Hotels & Resorts in 2015, and he maintains a minority ownership.^[4] In addition, Manchester built the Torrey Executive Centre, Manchester Financial Building, Whitetail Lodge and Golf Club, and is currently building the Fairmont Austin hotel in Austin, Texas.^[5]

Early life and education

Born in Los Angeles, California, Manchester grew up in Coronado, California and the Pacific Beach neighborhood of San Diego. He attended La Jolla High School where he played football. A graduate from San Diego State University, he is a former trustee of the University of San Diego and Wake Forest University; founder of the San Diego chapter of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society; member of the Directors Cabinet at San Diego State University; and currently serves as a member of The Sanford-Burnham-Prebys Medical Discovery Institute Board of Trustees.^[3]

Business activities

After graduating from college, Manchester went into real estate, eventually becoming known for developing large, upscale projects. In the 1980s, Manchester built a 27-story office tower called the Columbia Centre, now known as the First National Bank Center, and the San Diego Marriott Marquis & Marina.^[6][7] In the 1990s, he constructed the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel San Diego.^[8] He subsequently sold both hotels to Host Hotels & Resorts.^[9] He also built The Fairmont Grand Del Mar luxury resort.^[10] The resort received designations including AAA Five Diamond ratings and a Five-Star rating from Forbes Travel Guide.^[11] The resort was sold to Fairmont Hotels & Resorts and investor Richard Blum in 2015.^[12]

In addition, he founded two banks, the La Jolla Bank and Trust Company (1973) and La Jolla Pacific Savings Bank (1984).^[13] Manchester is currently building a 595-foot-tall, 1,066 room Fairmont Austin hotel, in Austin, Texas and the Manchester Pacific Gateway, one of the largest private developments, located on the waterfront in downtown San Diego.^[5][14]

His activities have helped to revitalize the San Diego downtown waterfront.^[14] Manchester was a major influence in persuading the city of San Diego to build the San Diego Convention Center.^[5] Manchester and his company, Manchester Financial Group, also played a major role in transforming Navy Field and San Diego’s Gaslamp Quarter into tourist destinations.^[15]

In 2011, Manchester bought The San Diego Union-Tribune from Platinum Equity.^[16] In 2012, he bought the North County Times and merged it and its subsidiary, The Californian, into the Union-Tribune.^[17] In November 2013, he bought eight local weeklies in the San Diego region, which continue to be published as separate papers.^[18] In 2015, Manchester sold The San Diego Union-Tribune to the Tribune Publishing Company.^[19]

Political activities

Manchester is "an outspoken supporter of conservative causes".^[20] He donates to Republican candidates at both the local and national level, and once described Donald Rumsfeld as his hero.^[21] On buying the Union-Tribune he stated his intention of using the newspaper to promote conservative causes, and the paper's editorial page took on a strongly conservative tone,^[22] including the use of front-page wraparound sections to promote development projects and political candidates.^[23][24] The New York Times noted that Manchester seems to be using the paper as a "brochure for his special interests", citing San Diego as "a situation where moneyed interests buy papers and use them to prosecute a political and commercial agenda."^[25]

In 2008 he donated $125,000 to support signature gathering for a state constitutional amendment banning same-sex marriage.^[26] When the amendment qualified for the ballot as California Proposition 8 he also donated to the campaign in favor of it. Manchester explained his position by saying, "While I respect everyone’s choice of partner, my Catholic faith and longtime affiliation with the Catholic Church leads me to believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman."^[26] His prominent support for the initiative, which was approved by voters in November 2008 but was ultimately ruled unconstitutional, led to calls by gay-rights groups for a boycott of Manchester's hotels.^[27]

Manchester was an early supporter of Donald Trump's presidential campaign, donating $50,000 to a Trump-aligned Super PAC in 2015.^[28]

Philanthropy

Manchester has been a prominent philanthropist in San Diego.

• He donated $5 million each to San Diego State University and Wake Forest University^[29] Additional multimillion-dollar donations have gone to the University of San Diego and The Bishop's School. When he contributed to San Diego State, the university changed the name of its Centennial Hall to Manchester Hall. It was the first time the university had changed a building name to honor an alumnus.^[30]
• He sponsors the Child Abuse Prevention Foundation in San Diego County and contributes money to the Preuss School, Monarch School, Polinsky Children's Center, Southern California Boys and Girls Club, Scripps Memorial Hospital and San Diego Diocesan Ministries.^[29][31][32] He also co-founded the San Diego Crime Commission and San Diego Port Tenants Association.^[30]
• Manchester donated funds to build the maternity wing at Scripps Memorial Hospital and helped build the Cathedral Catholic High School football stadium. He is the founding chair of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society of United Way and gives money to St. Vincent de Paul, the National Conference of Christians and Jews and Billy Graham Crusade.^[31]
• He is a former trustee of the University of San Diego and of Wake Forest University. He is currently on the board of trustees of the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute^[33] and is a board member for the San Diego Symphony.

Personal life

In January 1965 he married Elizabeth "Betsy" Manchester, whom he met when both were students at San Diego State; they have six children and thirteen grandchildren. They divorced in 2013. His divorce proceedings have been called "ironic" because of his expressed support for "traditional marriage" and his Catholic faith.^[34][35] He and Geniya Derzhavina were married in December 2013.^[36]

Recognition

• May 31, 2012 (Manchester's 70th birthday) was declared to be "Papa Doug Manchester Day" in San Diego County by the county Board of Supervisors.^[37]
• In November 2013 the Nice Guys, a local philanthropic organization, named him "Nice Guy of the Year".^[29]
• Multiple buildings and facilities are named for him at Wake Forest University (Manchester Plaza, Manchester Hall),^[38] the University of San Diego (Douglas F. Manchester Executive Conference Center, Manchester Family Child Development Center, Manchester Village Apartments),^[39][40] and The Bishop's School (Manchester Library & Learning Center).^[41] Manchester Stadium, home field for Cathedral Catholic High School, is also named for him.^[42]

References