The San Diego City Council voted last month to initiate amendments to the current review process for large hotel projects downtown. If enacted, hotel projects of 100 rooms or more in the Centre City, Marina and Gaslamp Quarter districts will be subject to an additional layer of review — and the City Council will have the final say on whether hotel projects are developed. Currently, the Centre City Development Corporation (CCDC), a nonprofit redevelopment agency created by the city, reviews and approves hotel projects downtown. Under the present setup, the City Council is only responsible for projects that fall under certain guidelines. A change to the current review process would ultimately transfer the power of approval from the CCDC to the City Council. Council President Ben Hueso and Councilwoman Donna Frye initiated the proposal in June 2009 to make the City Council more responsive and accountable to the public — particularly to low-wage service industry workers. By transferring the review process from the CCDC to the City Council, project labor agreements may mandate that hotel workers be union members, increasing their wages and benefits. “It has been shown that hotels in downtown provide average incomes below the $35,000 level, at which persons are unable to find housing which is affordable to them,” said Theresa Quiroz, co-chair of San Diego Affordable Housing, in a letter to the City Council. Cynthia Lopez, a hotel worker in downtown San Diego, said, “for too long we have been left out of important decisions made by the CCDC that impact our lives. Today, we are proud to stand up to developers and corporations who want to keep things the same.” A joint coalition, including CCDC, Downtown San Diego Partnership, San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce and San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation came together during a press conference on Sept. 13 to oppose the proposed changes out of fear that it will have dire consequences on San Diego’s economy. Gary London, president of the London Group — a realty advisory firm — was recently hired by the joint coalition to study the economic impacts of the city’s proposed review change, and presented his findings during the Sept. 13 press conference. His analysis was also provided to the City Council prior to the council’s vote last month. In his analysis, London detailed the potential fiscal and economic impacts of the proposed ordinance, and concluded that the development and operation of a 300-room hotel would not be feasible using union labor, thus compromising the development of 12 hotels currently proposed in downtown San Diego. “These hotel rooms won’t be developed,” London said. “If these hotel rooms won’t be developed, it places the third phase of the Convention Center in jeopardy.” London also emphasized the importance the Converntion Center’s expansion holds for the city’s revenue-generating events such as Comic-Con. Although Comic-Con organizers have agreed to continue holding the convention in San Diego after their contract expires in two years, they have been concerned by the lack of hotel space and moderately-priced hotel rooms to accommodate the more than 140,000 attendees. “This is a job-killer, pure and simple,” said District 2 City Councilman Kevin Faulconer, who represents the downtown area. “My biggest concern is that the council placing conditions on projects will drive hotel developers from San Diego and into other cities.” Faulconer voted against the initiative on Sept. 14. Although the first step toward shifting approval for hotel projects to the City Council is under way, the debate is not over yet. The ordinance will likely return to the City Council for review in December.