The San Diego Venture Group will present the seventh annual Venture Summit on Sept. 16 featuring an address by former SEC Chairman Christopher Cox. The event will be staged at the Hilton Bayfront hotel in Downtown San Diego. Registration and networking will be from 11 a.m. to noon. The luncheon is at noon and the keynote address will be at 12:30 p.m.

Networking and panel presentations will follow until 4:15 p.m. The cost to attend is $35 for San Diego Venture Group members and $85 for nonmembers. To register, visit www.sdvg.org or call (858) 558-8750.

Two life science panels will be moderated by Mike Gaito of JPMorgan and featuring panelists from Medtronic, Lilly, 5AM Ventures, The Burnham Institute and Salk Institute. Technology panels will be moderated by Mark Stevens of Sequoia and Tom Baruch of CMEA and have as panelists from Google, Qualcomm Inc., Yahoo!, UCSD’s von Liebig Center, SDSU’s Tech Transfer Office and USC’s Institute for Innovation.

The San Diego chapter of the Public Relations Society of America will host a free, one-day workshop on Oct. 24 for San Diego-area nonprofit organizations to provide thousands of dollars worth of free public relations advice and guidance. Titled "Quality Time With PR Minds," the event will be held from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. at AMN Healthcare, 12400 High Bluff Drive, located in the Carmel Valley area of San Diego. "During these tough economic times, it is more imperative than ever to keep your nonprofit organization on the forefront of community members’ minds -- it can literally make the difference as to whether or not you get the funding you need to continue to keep your doors open over the next six to 12 months," says Anne Stephany, PRSA board member and the director of public relations for Loews Hotels. "Finding strategic ways to promote your services -- often for free -- is one way that those of us in the Public Relations Society of America can help." Last year, more than 20 public relations professionals offered consultation to 10 nonprofit organizations, including Alzheimer’s Association San Diego/Imperial Chapter, Fresh Start, Juvenile Court Book Club and San Diego Armed Services YMCA. This year, PRSA San Diego anticipates serving 10 to 15 nonprofit organizations also representing a variety of community services throughout San Diego County.

The San Diego chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects invites local and California design professionals to participate in its 2009 Design Awards Program recognizing professional excellence for outstanding works of landscape architecture and environmental planning that promote an enhanced quality of life in San Diego County and beyond. Submitted projects should advance, educate and promote the profession. Entries will be accepted until Oct. 12 for projects from any individual, firm, nonprofit organization, public agency, or academic institution. Entry forms are available online at www.asla-sandiego.org. For more information, call awards chairman Jon Wreschinsky at (619) 916-6956.

B>Alliant Techsystems (ATK), an aerospace and defense company, has signed a 10-year lease renewal and expansion totaling 114,000 square feet at Miramar Commerce Park, 7825 Trade St. in San Diego. ATK renewed its current space of 54,000 square feet and expanded its operations by an additional 61,000 square feet to develop a new state-of-the-art space facility. Colliers International vice presidents Jay Alexander, Ryan Grove and Arnie Friedman represented WCV Properties. The Miramar Commerce Park, which totals 360,320 square feet and consists of four buildings is now 100 percent leased. WCV Commercial Properties has overseen Miramar Commerce Park since June 2007. Colliers International, led by Phil Covington, managing director of the RENS Department, is the property management team of Miramar Commerce Park.

• Kevcon Inc. in Escondido won a $525,000 federal contract from the U.S. Veterans Affairs Department’s Network 22 Logistics Office, Long Beach, for the replacement of galvanized piping in Building 212 under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

• KJL-Letts Design Inc. in Spring Valley won a $1,140,171.36 federal contract from the U.S. Air Force Materiel Command, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., for lighting upgrades under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.

• L-3 Services Inc. in San Diego won a $80,773 federal contract from the Defense Logistics Agency’s Defense Supply Center, Richmond, Va., for radio frequency cable assemblies.

• ViaSat Inc. in Carlsbad won a $31,185 federal contract from the U.S. Air Force Materiel Command, Eglin Air Force Base, Fla., for the KG-250 Encryption Solution.

FLO TV Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Qualcomm Inc., has appointed digital media veteran Alice Kim to the newly formed position of senior v.p. of strategy and corporate development. Kim most recently was senior v.p. of digital distribution at MTV Networks. She began a career in investment banking with Dean Witter Reynolds and then venture capital with CIBC Capital Partners and Dolphin Equity before moving into the start-up world. Kim was vice president of business development at the mobile marketing start-up Enpocket Inc. She also served as v.p. of corporate development at PreCache Inc.

Two lectures by nationally recognized landscape architects known for their environmentally sustainable designs will give separate lectures Oct. 1 and Nov. 5 in programs sponsored by the San Diego chapter of the American Society of Landscape Architects. Both events will be at 6 p.m. at the Neurosciences Institute, 10640 John Jay Hopkins Drive, San Diego. Speaking Oct. 1 will be Mia Lehrer, founding principal of Mia Lehrer + Associates in Los Angeles. Lehrer is recognized for her progressive landscape designs, work with natural landmarks as parks, lakes, and rivers and her advocacy for sustainable and people-friendly public spaces. The Nov. 5 speaker will be Mark Rios, founding principal of the Rios Clementi Hale Studio. Under his design leadership, the firm has developed an reputation for its collaborative and multi-disciplinary approach across an range of design disciplines. Each lecture is followed by a question and answer period. Registration ranges from $10 for students to $14 for nonmembers.

Veterans who have suffered major injuries during the last six years are eligible to learn how to surf, kayak, sail and enjoy other sports at the second annual National Veterans Summer Sports Clinic Sept. 20-25 to be held at the U.S. Olympic Training Center in Chula Vista. Participation is open to military veterans who are eligible for VA medical care and who have orthopedic amputations, traumatic brain injuries, burn injuries, psychological trauma, certain neurological conditions, visual impairment, spinal cord injuries and other injuries incurred in the last six years. The clinic is aimed at introducing recently-injured veterans to adaptive sports and renewing their self confidence through sporting activities. For more information, visit www.summersportsclinic.va.gov, or contact Richard Olague, public affairs coordinator at (202) 461-7541.

The secrets of how to bake organic cupcakes will be taught by Michelle Ciccarelli Lerach, chef and owner of Cups, a catering business in La Jolla, at a one-day class Sept. 27 from 1:30 to 4 p.m. at the new Ronald McDonald House, 2929 Children’s Way in San Diego. Lerach will create for different cupcakes, including the Ronald McDonald House Love Cup, a lemon-vanilla bean cup with lemon curd center, topped with lemonade Swiss meringue frosting and fresh strawberries. For every Love Cup sold, half of the proceeds will be donated to Ronald McDonald House.

For a hands-on cupcake baking experience, participants can purchase a ticket for $125 to get into the kitchen and bake with Lerach and learn how to make batters, frostings, fillings and toppings. Held in the six-island kitchen at Ronald McDonald House, bakers will crack the eggs, mix the sugar, scoop the flour, pop them in the oven and then decorate.

For $85, attendees get to sit in the audience and view all the processes and techniques the Cups chef uses to make cupcakes. Audience members will also be given the opportunity to decorate and frost their own cupcakes at several decorating islands and take their creations home. All participants will receive a favors bag filled with their own cupcake creations, Cups goodies, and coupons to use at Cups’ La Jolla location. To register for the baking class, call (858) 467-4750, Ext. 2445 or visit www.rmhcsd.org.

The offices of San Diego Metropolitan magazine and the North Park News are in Cabrillo Plaza, 3990 Old Town Ave., Suite A-201, in Old Town. To reach editorial, call (619) 906-4104. For advertising, dial (619) 906-4105. The fax is (619) 906-4106. Send editorial material via e-mail to manny@sandiegometro.com. For advertising, send to cyndi@sandiegometro.com.