Doug Manchester facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Doug Manchester
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Doug Manchester in 2019
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Douglas Frederick Manchester
June 3, 1942 Los Angeles, California, U.S.
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| Nationality | American |
| Education | San Diego State University (B.A.) |
| Occupation | Businessman |
| Political party | Republican |
Douglas Frederick Manchester, born on June 3, 1942, is an American businessman and a generous giver to charities. Many people call him "Papa Doug." He is known for building many tall hotels and office buildings in San Diego, California. These include famous places like the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina and the Manchester Grand Hyatt San Diego.
He also helped a lot with the creation of the San Diego Convention Center. Mr. Manchester built the luxurious Grand Del Mar Resort & Spa, which was later sold to Fairmont Hotels and Resorts. He still owns a small part of it. He has also built other important buildings like the Fairmont Austin hotel. He is currently working on a big project called the Manchester Pacific Gateway.
Mr. Manchester has always supported conservative ideas and the Republican Party. His support for a California law about marriage in 2008 caused some people to call for a boycott of his hotels. He was also an early supporter of Donald Trump's presidential campaign in 2016. He was later nominated to be the United States ambassador to the Bahamas, but this nomination was eventually withdrawn.
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Early Life and Education
Doug Manchester was born in Los Angeles, California. He grew up in Coronado, California, and the Pacific Beach area of San Diego. His father managed an apartment building there. He went to La Jolla High School and played football.
After high school, he attended San Diego State College, which is now a university. He was part of a fraternity called Sigma Chi. He also worked as a representative for an insurance company while studying. In 1965, he earned a degree in Business.
Building and Business Ventures
After finishing college, Doug Manchester started working in real estate. In 1970, he created his own company, the Manchester Financial Group. He became well-known for developing large and fancy projects.
In the 1980s, he built a 27-story office building called the Columbia Centre. This building is now known as 1 Columbia Place. He also built the Inter-Continental San Diego, which is now the Marriott Marquis San Diego Marina. In the 1990s, he built the Manchester Grand Hyatt Hotel in San Diego. He later sold both of these hotels. He also built The Fairmont Grand Del Mar, a luxury resort. This resort was sold in 2015.
Mr. Manchester also started two banks: the La Jolla Bank and Trust Company in 1973 and La Jolla Pacific Savings Bank in 1984. He built the very tall, 595-foot Fairmont Austin Hotel in Austin, Texas, which was finished in 2018. He is also building the Manchester Pacific Gateway on the waterfront in downtown San Diego.
His work has greatly helped to improve the downtown waterfront area of San Diego. He was very important in convincing the city to build the San Diego Convention Center. Mr. Manchester and his company also played a big part in turning Navy Field and San Diego's Gaslamp Quarter into popular places for tourists.
In 2011, Manchester bought The San Diego Union-Tribune newspaper. In 2012, he bought another newspaper, the North County Times, and combined it with the Union-Tribune. He also bought eight local weekly newspapers in the San Diego area in 2013. In 2015, he sold The San Diego Union-Tribune to Tribune Publishing Company.
As of 2017, Mr. Manchester was in charge of many different companies. These included Landmark Construction Company, Torrey Executive Centre, and The Grand Del Mar. He also owned parts of large companies like Brookfield Asset Management, Disney, Apple, and Wal-Mart. He has been involved in many types of businesses, including biotechnology and television production.
In 2018, it was reported that his Pacific Gateway project was about to begin. This is a huge project to redevelop the Navy Complex in downtown San Diego. It is described as the largest and most expensive project in downtown San Diego's history. It will cover eight blocks of oceanfront and include a new Navy headquarters, office towers, hotels, a museum, and a park.
During his time owning The San Diego Union-Tribune, some female employees felt uncomfortable with his management style.
Political Involvement
Doug Manchester is a strong supporter of conservative ideas. He gives money to Republican politicians at both local and national levels. When he bought the Union-Tribune newspaper, he said he wanted to use it to support conservative causes. The newspaper's editorial page then became very conservative.
In 2008, he gave money to support a state law that would ban same-sex marriage. He explained that his Catholic faith led him to believe that marriage should be between a man and a woman. This support led to some groups calling for people to boycott his hotels. However, in 2017, he said that he now regrets supporting that law and believes that same-sex marriage should be legal. He called his earlier opposition "a huge mistake."
From 2014 to 2020, Manchester supported politicians like Rep. Darrell Issa and San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer. He was an early supporter of Donald Trump's presidential campaign in 2016. He and his wife gave a lot of money to Trump's campaign. After Trump became president, Manchester said that a "true capitalist" was in the White House.
In 2017, President Trump nominated Manchester to become the United States ambassador to The Bahamas. Manchester owns a house there. If he had been confirmed, he would have given up control of his businesses. He appeared before the United States Senate Committee on Foreign Relations several times. However, his nomination was eventually withdrawn in November 2019. During questioning, he mistakenly called the Bahamas a U.S. protectorate instead of an independent country.
In late 2019, the Republican National Committee (RNC) stopped working with Manchester. This happened after emails suggested there might have been concerns about his nomination. In 2021, it was reported that a federal investigation was looking into his ambassador nomination.
Giving Back to the Community
Doug Manchester has given a lot of money to different organizations. He donated $5 million each to San Diego State University and Wake Forest University. He also made large donations to the University of San Diego and The Bishop's School. When he gave money to San Diego State, the university renamed one of its buildings Manchester Hall. This was the first time the university had named a building after a former student.
He supports the Child Abuse Prevention Foundation in San Diego County. He also gives money to schools like the Preuss School and the Monarch School. He supports the Polinsky Children's Center, the Southern California Boys and Girls Club, and Scripps Memorial Hospital. He also helped start the San Diego Crime Commission.
Mr. Manchester donated money to build the maternity wing at Scripps Memorial Hospital. He also helped build the football stadium at Cathedral Catholic High School. He is a founding leader of the Alexis de Tocqueville Society of United Way. He also gives money to St. Vincent de Paul and the National Conference of Christians and Jews.
He used to be a trustee for the University of San Diego and Wake Forest University. He also served on the board of trustees for the Sanford Burnham Prebys Medical Discovery Institute and the San Diego Symphony. In November 2022, Manchester donated $1 million to a charity event helping the Chadwick Center for Children and Families at Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego.
Personal Life
In January 1965, Doug Manchester married Elizabeth "Betsy" Manchester. They met while they were both students at San Diego State. They had five children and thirteen grandchildren. They lived a very wealthy lifestyle with multiple homes and private jets. They divorced in 2013.
In December 2013, he married Geniya Derzhavina, and they had three children. They divorced in December 2019. Manchester's daughter, Sally Manchester Ricchiuti, died unexpectedly in September 2020.
Recognition and Honors
Many buildings and facilities are named after Doug Manchester. These include places at Wake Forest University (Manchester Plaza, Manchester Hall) and the University of San Diego (Douglas F. Manchester Executive Conference Center, Manchester Family Child Development Center, Manchester Village Apartments). The Bishop's School has the Manchester Library & Learning Center. Manchester Stadium, the football field for Cathedral Catholic High School, is also named after him.
