The Journey

Philip Gildred Sr. was born in Rochester, New York. One of nine children, his family relocated to Argentina and Chile where the children were educated and where Phil Sr. began a successful textile business. Phil Sr. had a great love for South America and especially Chile (Philip Gildred Sr. and George Gildred have both held the post of Honorary Consul of the Republic of Chile in San Diego and George Gildred continues to hold the post to this day).

Philip Gildred Sr. began his return journey to the United States via steamship from Ecuador to San Francisco where he planned to establish business. While en route the ship stopped in San Diego. Once Philip saw the beautiful port and the Hotel del Coronado, he told the captain he was leaving the ship and the rest is history. He is quoted as saying “Although I had traveled for many years, I made my first trip to the West Coast of the United States in 1927 – and stayed. I was amazed at the beauty, and visualized the enormous possibilities for the City of San Diego.”

He had seen what Buenos Aires, Santiago, Lima and Guayaquil had to offer with their thriving, multi-cultural populations and important ports. With this knowledge, he was compelled to help shape the City of San Diego. He was a visionary with an incredible dream for our city.

The Beginning

Soon after Philip Gildred Sr.’s arrival to San Diego, he became the first resident in the beautiful El Cortez Hotel which had just completed construction in 1927 and offered a marvelous view of downtown San Diego. In 1928 Philip Sr. began working on a large building and leasing project covering the block bounded by A, B, Seventh and Eighth Avenues. In this year, Gildred Building Company was incorporated and operates to this day.

Fox Theatre/Symphony Towers

Gildred Building Company’s first project constructed to serve the San Diego community was unique for its time. It included a major department store, parking garage, and what was to become the third largest theater on the West Coast, part of the Fox Theatre circuit. Phil Gildred Sr. engaged Montgomery Ward stores and Fox to sign leases which made the project possible. It was a significant step forward for the city’s development and for the community to create a new theater and shopping venue in the heart of downtown San Diego. The gala opening of the theater in November 1929 proved to be an uplifting event for the entire community. Glamorous Hollywood stars with their show business entourages arrived by a special train. The lease guarantee signed by William Fox ensured longevity and stability for the grand new building, thanks to the strategic forward thinking of Phil Gildred Sr., as the nation was about to experience the Great Depression.

Today, the theater building is encapsulated inside of Symphony Towers and in the back hallways you can see the walls of the original buildings within the larger shell. The theater is now home to the San Diego Symphony. It still reflects the charm and elegance of a bygone era, while featuring some of today’s most talented musicians.

San Diego Civic and Cultural Contributions

In 1928 Phil Sr. became the Chairman of the Civic Committee of the Chamber of Commerce. The committee was composed of many respected San Diego visionaries who would find themselves shaping the future of San Diego with beautiful cultural and civic buildings. He also became a Planning Commissioner and a member of an association of six businessmen responsible for building and managing the downtown civic theater, convention hall and city offices (the Community Concourse). He was a key leader in the planning and development of Mission Bay, one of San Diego’s most prized assets.

Balboa Park & 1935/1936 Exposition

During the era of the opening of the Fox Theater, San Diego was considered the “Playground of America” and attendance at the 1915 World Exposition in Balboa Park had proved to be amazing. While San Diego’s population at the time was just 100,000, over 600,000 people attended the big event. That success was a significant motivator to host the World Exposition again.

Philip Gildred Sr. formed a group to encourage the City to restore the Park buildings and he was named the Managing Director of the California Pacific International Exposition 1935-36. Among countless world leaders, President Franklin Roosevelt visited the Exposition and Philip Gildred Sr., his wife Helen and son George were there to welcome him.

Following the Exposition, the restored park buildings and grounds became a wonderful center for entertainment in San Diego.

Sharp Hospital

By the 1950’s, San Diego badly needed another hospital, and the community was not quite sure how or where to begin. The San Diego Hospital Foundation was formed in collaboration with the San Diego Hospital Association. Phil Sr. was the chief fundraiser and driving force for this group. This association had expertise in building and managing hospitals. They conducted extensive research and determined that Kearny Mesa was the best location for the new hospital. This decision was particularly visionary because at that time little was happening north of Mission Valley. Indeed, the site was a cow pasture, serviced by a single black top road.

Phil Gildred Sr. then purchased the site and donated the 12.5 acres of land necessary to build the hospital. A multi-year campaign ensued to raise funds for the effort. In 1950, Thomas E. Sharp came forward and donated $500,000 for the cause to honor the memory of his only son Donald N. Sharp, a 22-year-old Air Force lieutenant who was killed in action during World War II. By 1953, ground was broken for the Donald N. Sharp Memorial Community Hospital, made possible by the generous donations of Thomas E. Sharp and the Gildred family.

Fox Building Evolution

By the early 1960’s, San Diego was growing and the Montgomery Ward department store had moved to Mission Valley, leaving an enormous vacancy in the Fox Building downtown.

Gildred Sr’s. sons George and Phil made the decision to remodel the portion of the building that was Montgomery Ward department store into an office building for use by multiple tenants. One of the first tenants, Merchant’s Credit (the Equifax of the day) took the entire basement space of 10,000 square feet. While some potential businesses might have seen the space underground as undesirable it was perfect for Merchant’s needs. This large client made possible the huge undertaking of remodeling the space from retail to offices. The 3rd and 4th floors were leased to Pacific Telephone (later Pac Bell) beating some stiff competition from other property management companies working very hard to secure them as a tenant in other downtown buildings. During the extensive remodeling, Fox Theatre remained operational. The project was very successful, as many businesses came forward to lease office space including banks, travel agents, insurance agents and stock brokers.

While the remodel project was doing well, the motion picture business all over the country was not. Walt Disney pledged to show all of the Disney movies exclusively in the downtown Fox. The theater business thrived for a period of time, then Fox West Coast ceased sending top rated movies to San Diego and it was rumored they wished to vacate.

Though cinema was declining downtown, live theater became a hot showbiz item. The Gildred Companies made the decision to cancel the lease with National Theaters, who had succeeded Fox and convert to live theater. While controversial, this decision turned everything around and the theater became a huge success again, but not without a lot of work from the family. At this point in time, Phil Gildred Sr.’s sons George and Phil Jr. and their entire young families were working in this endeavor. The stars in that day required a high level of care and attention and there were many late evening calls to George and Phil Jr. to get involved so the show could go on. The theater boasted very popular shows of the day including The Wiz, Annie and Hello Dolly with Carol Channing. Between the office building thriving and live theater packing the house, the building was successful.

The Gildred Companies Today

In 1981, with George and Phil Jr. at the helm, the Gildred Companies sold the Fox Building and the San Diego Symphony took over the theater space. Helen Copley made a significant gift and the building was renamed Copley Symphony Hall.

Proceeds from the sale of the Fox Building were used to purchase multi-tenant industrial properties across Southern California, a key strategy that enabled the growth and long term stability of the Gildred Companies.

Today, the Gildred Companies own and manage a portfolio of commercial and industrial real estate holdings in Southern California and continue its legacy of envisioning and helping to create a bright stable future while staying true to the core values of honesty, integrity, philanthropy and civic duty.

Mr. San Diego

In 1974 Phil Gildred Sr. was bestowed with the honor of being named Mr. San Diego, an award reserved for “those who have contributed outstanding community betterment to the San Diego region in a variety of ways, through his/her efforts over a long period of time.”

This is an honor that George Gildred also received in 2003 (the only father/son to be so awarded). Both George and Phil Jr. carry on their father’s legacy of civic and philanthropic activities in San Diego.

Second Generation

George Gildred

George has provided leadership and guidance at the Gildred Companies for over fifty years. Active in real estate investment in the area for many decades, George is committed to his community. He was recognized as one of San Diego’s distinguished leaders when he received the Mr. San Diego Award, an award which his father, Philip Gildred Sr. received in 1974 for service to the community.

George is past Chairman and President of San Diego Zoo Global and he led the first Zoo delegation to China in 1979. He has also provided leadership in the community as the Co-Chairman of the Citizens Committee to build the San Diego Stadium (formerly Qualcomm Stadium) and is a Past President of the Rotary Club of San Diego. He serves as Honorary Consul of the Republic of Chile in San Diego. Following graduation from Stanford University, George served as an officer in the United States Navy from 1956 to 1960.

He served as Chair of the San Diego Convention and Visitors Bureau, Hubbs Sea World Research Institute, the University of California San Diego Development Council and the Committee to build the University of California San Diego Cancer Center.

Phil Gildred

Phil Gildred is the Gildred Companies’ most tenured employee providing leadership to the company since 1961. The Gildred Companies has a legacy of developing commercial real estate throughout the San Diego community, and one of giving back in the process. Phil shares his father’s vision of making a difference and has always been involved in San Diego business and philanthropy.

He is the Founding President of both the Sharp Hospital Foundation and the University Club Atop Symphony Towers. Phil is the past President of the Board of several San Diego organizations including the San Diego Chapter of Building Owners and Managers Association, Chairman of the Pacific (Southwest Regional Conference), the Executives Association of San Diego, Board of Directors Francis W. Parker School and the San Diego Automotive Museum.

He has a long list of philanthropic and civic organizations on whose boards he has served including the American Red Cross and the YMCA Camp Committee. He is a long term Board Member of the San Diego Historical Society and served as its Vice President.

First Generation

Philip Gildred Sr.

Philip Gildred Sr. arrived in San Diego in 1927, and immediately began working on a large building and leasing project bounded by A, B, Seventh and Eighth Avenues. Gildred Building Company was incorporated, and marked the beginning of what we know as The Gildred Companies, today.

Through his vision, Philip Gildred Sr. was instrumental in shaping the business and civic culture of San Diego. His first project was Fox Theatre and was unique for its time. It included a major department store; parking garage and what became the third largest theater on the West Coast, part of the Fox Theatre circuit.Today the theater is Copley Symphony Hall, home to the San Diego Symphony.

He continued his civic contributions by becoming the Chairman of the Civic Committee of the Chamber of Commerce, focused on shaping the future of San Diego with beautiful cultural and civic buildings. He was instrumental in the planning and development of Mission Bay, he was a driving force in the 1935/1936 Word Exposition in Balboa Park and went on to donate 50 acres upon which Sharp Memorial Hospital was built. His legacy of development and progress was carried on by the second generation, his sons, George Gildred and Philip Gildred Jr.