Union-Tribune biz reporter Showley retires after 44 years

San Diego Union-Tribune business reporter Roger Showley retired this past week after 44 years.

Showley covered commercial real estate, downtown, historic preservation, design, architecture, San Diego history, development trends, growth and development. Phillip Molnar is succeeding me on the growth and development beat

Showley writes, “Two all-time favorite interviews: A joint interview with developer Ernest W. Hahn and legendary futurist R. Buckminster Fuller at a Las Vegas convention, and Chargers owner Alex Spanos in a day-long tag-along in his Stockton hometown with staff photographer Howard Lipin recording every step.

“Unlike other cities, San Diego has never stopped growing. Some would say for the worse, others for the better.

“I left the city when I graduated from UC San Diego in 1970 because job prospects were scarce. When I returned we were in a recession and I was one of the last to be hired. Now, I’m leaving as the longest-serving U-T employee among the current crop of dedicated journalists and support staff.

“I’ve written more than 10,000 articles and when I’ve backgrounded a current story, I’ve often come across one I wrote that I don’t remember putting together.

“But some stories do resonate in my memory and resulted from some innocent, off-the-cuff question during an interview. Sometimes those queries have changed history.”

Read more here.