Stone Brewing's 220 Layoffs and Baseball's Biggest Sale: Two Economic Stories, One City
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Stone Brewing, among the most recognized names in San Diego's craft beer identity, has filed a WARN notice covering 220 total positions. The first wave of layoffs hits October 19, 2026. A WARN notice is a legal requirement compelling employers to provide at least 60 days' notice before mass layoffs, meaning the October date reflects a formal, committed timeline — not a preliminary announcement. Stone has not yet released a public explanation for the cuts.
The scale is significant for the sector. San Diego County's unadjusted unemployment rate held at 4.7 percent in July, with the seasonally adjusted rate at 4.3 percent, suggesting the broader labor market is not in crisis. But the layoffs tracked through the summer reveal uneven pressure: ServiceNow cut 133 San Diego positions concentrated at senior and director levels; Stone's 220 cuts fall in hospitality and manufacturing. The pressures are sector-specific rather than economy-wide.
Against that backdrop, the Padres ownership sale offered a starkly different economic headline. The $3.9 billion transfer from the Seidler family to José E. Feliciano and Kwanza Jones received unanimous ratification from MLB owners, with a press conference held Monday, August 24. The sale is the largest ownership transfer in Major League Baseball history by price. The franchise enters new ownership holding the third NL wild-card spot, having won 11 of their last 14 games.
Downtown development threads continue to run in the background: a Cresleigh Homes plan for a 37-story residential tower and a Live Nation redevelopment of the 102-year-old Wonder Bread building have no new formal approvals to report, but both projects are tied to the same Midway-adjacent momentum — and the same unresolved height-limit question — that dominated City Hall on Monday.