The 2011 Orchids & Onions Awards Ceremony & Silent Auction was held on Thursday, October 27, 2011 at the Westfield Horton Plaza Event Space and historic Balboa Theater in downtown San Diego. The ceremony was personably (and articulately) emcee'd by linguist Grant Barrett, Co-host of NPR's "A Way With Words."

Terri Mitchell of Pr1ze provided the fresh, new branding that served as inspiration for the incredible party and ceremony set design by Bells & Whistles. Also complementing the pre-party was a stunning, otherworldy installation of Orbiting Gollypods by Jason Xavier Lane and Tend Living, and a VIP oasis we could live in by Hold It Contemporary Home, with art by Alexander Salazar Fine Art. 

Last but not least, let's face it. A party can be as pretty as you please, but if the food and drinks are lacking... well, let's just say Stone Brewing Company Catering was unbelievably awesome. They have also been very generous, long time supporters of Orchids  & Onions, and hosted the beer again this year. Simply said, we love and appreciate Stone! Click here for a complete list of sponsors, and links to their websites.

Now for the Awards... click on the link for photos and more information about each - and to let us know what you think (agree? disagree?) by leaving a comment.

Official 2011 Orchids

Official 2011 Onions

Extra special appreciation goes out to the Onion representatives (4 out of 5!) who took the time to join us at the 2011 O&O Awards Ceremony, and speak on behalf of their projects. It is hugely appreciated, and helps us  fine-tune the program, and keep the dialogue alive. We are most grateful for your participation and information.

Last night at the Orchid-winning Balboa Theater, we announced this year's Orchids & Onions. Take a look and let us know if you agree! Click on the image below to see the winner list, photos and jury comments on SignonSanDiego.com. Check back in a couple of days for the complete comments and photos right here.

click on image for more info and to purchase tickets
click here to have a look at (and pre-bid on) all the fabulous 2011 Silent Auction items

You may have seen Grant Barrett at the San Diego Architectural Foundation's last PechaKucha Night on July 20th, at which he enlightened and entertained us with his presentation entitled "Obscenity Truths." We were sold, and he wasn't even trying to sell us anything.   

We are thrilled to announce that Grant has agreed to share his way with words with us by serving as our emcee at the 2011 Orchids & Onions Awards Ceremony & Silent Auction on October 27 at Balboa Theater! Grant is a public radio host, a lexicographer specializing in slang and new words, a journalist, and an editor. He is co-host and co-producer of the nationwide language-related public radio show A Way with Words, which is independently produced and distributed by a nonprofit in San Diego. He's also an editor for Voice of San Diego, a nonprofit source for analysis and investigative journalism. He has worked as a lexicographer for Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, and Collins, and compiled and edited his own  "Official Dictionary of Unofficial English" (2006, McGraw-Hill) and the "Oxford Dictionary of American Political Slang" (2004, Oxford University Press). He's written on language for the New York Times, the Washington Post, the Malaysia Star, the academic journal American Speech, the professional journal Copyediting and other publications. He serves as an officer of the American Dialect Society, a venerable organization devoted to the study of English in North America.Though born and raised in Missouri, Grant has lived at length in New York City, Paris, and the U.S. Virgin Islands and now lives in sunny California with his wife - also a linguist/ lexicographer, and their son.

The Hillcrest Business Association (HBA) is one of San Diego’s oldest business associations and this year celebrates the its 90th anniversary. The HBA represents over 1,300 small businesses in San Diego’s premiere urban neighborhood.

The HBA has been the steward of the Hillcrest sign for the entire life of the sign.  We understand and appreciate the history of this sign and it’s iconography in the neighborhood.  We were surprised to be nominated for this award because we have gone to great efforts to ensure that our neighborhood sign maintains is historic character as well as having it continue to function into the decades ahead. 

Over the past ten years the Hillcrest Business Association has spent tens of thousands of dollars repairing the sign as various components failed.  We have replaced the neon lights and transformers multiple times over the years.  In the last year it became apparent that because the electrical components of the sign were exposed to the elements (due to design standards from the early eighties) it would continue to malfunction.  The HBA therefore decided, at considerable cost, to repair all the major components of the sign and protect them from the elements.  The HBA replaced the façade, the transformers, the support cables, the bulbs in the decorative posts and the neon lights.  The poles, the largest part of the sign, were not replaced. The cost of the project was over $47,000 and all the money was raised from community fundraising.  The money was raised by the business owners of Hillcrest in the same way it was raised 1940 and 1984. 

Although the HBA is not a historic preservation organization, it has worked to ensure that the original character of the Hillcrest sign remained true.  The design specifications for the façade and lighted letters were exactly the same as that of the 1984 sign.  Many neighbors suggested this time around that if we were to spend so much money we should replace the sign with a brand new modern design.  However, the HBA decided instead to use our existing design.  Within these specifications it is clear that the 2011 sign is not a “new sign” at all but rather the old sign with replaced components.  Similarly, the HBA sought to replace the neon lights with new LED neon, which have the same appearance as neon but is much more environmentally friendly.  This decision was made even though LED was more expensive than neon.  In fact when the HBA presented the proposed LED neon to the Hillcrest Town Council the LED even they couldn’t believe it wasn’t actual neon. 
  
We have received dozens of calls and comments from people who like the new sign and those who can see a difference in the LED lights say they are thrilled by the quality of the light.  We are happy that the sign has been upgraded with new components so that it is fully functional and yet still appears exactly as it has for the last many decades.  Historic preservation extends beyond the basics of simply arresting decay.  In order to preserve our monuments, buildings and signs we must make sure they continue to function in the manor for which they were designed.  Our upgrades to the Hillcrest sign have made it possible for people to enjoy the sign for decades to come.

Benjamin Nicholls
Hillcrest Business Association