A 2nd Loss for San Diego

When San Diego lost out to Austin, Tex., in the competition for the Microelectronics and Computer Technology Corp. (MCC) in May, 1983, Lt. Gov. Leo McCarthy called it “a serious loss, which cannot be repeated without damaging our pre-eminence in the high-tech field.”

If McCarthy was correct, then San Diego’s--and California’s--image as a high-tech leader suffered a severe blow last week when the Software Productivity Consortium chose Fairfax County, Va., as the home of its new center for research for military computer systems.

UC San Diego’s selection in February as the site of one of four national supercomputers should make the city more inviting for future large computer enterprises, but it apparently wasn’t enough to compete with the Virginia site’s proximity to the Pentagon and the intelligence community.

One concern of ours is whether local and state officials rely too heavily on San Diego County’s weather and life style in pitching the area. Few would dispute that this is as attractive a place to live as any. But how much does that weigh in a decision of the magnitude of locating a $100-million enterprise?

We suspect that a visiting businessman leaves here thinking more about housing costs than sunshine.

Although local officials tried to put the best face on this recent disappointment--”in both cases we were No. 2, and I think that’s a tribute to the community,” said a Chamber of Commerce official--this second failure to land a big high-tech consortium indicates the need for at least a reevaluation of the area’s approach to these competitions.