How did this happen? neighbors ask, knowing I chaired 5 of 6 years on the Peninsula Community Planning Board (PCPB). Prior to my involvement, planners, financiers, architects and developers rammed through projects such as NTC [former Naval Training Center, now Liberty Station] with unnoticed and dangerous changes to reviewed and approved plans.
Construction/remodels that were lacking height, parking and traffic mitigation ” basic code requirements ” went through under the radar, resulting in many out of character, inconsistent with surrounding bulk or scale and representing violations of our community plan. More will soon be obvious, approved by the City Council over our advisory votes.
Inadequate infrastructure and planning in our second-oldest community of San Diego made representing this community and implementing its community plan a challenge. Our long-established, quiet residential zones, open spaces, parks, views and your property values are now under attack. Please, do not allow the best parts of our community, cherished by both long-established families and newcomers alike, to disappear.
Engaging local volunteers [PCPB board members] elected 3 to 7 years ago, we attempted to or did require additional mitigation to:
“¢ Over-redevelopment such as The Rock Church (a 3,500-member application versus over 10,000 members according to its Web site);
“¢ Insisted [Corky] McMillin [Cos.] contribute $450,000 from a proposed channel-front fountain toward community pools at NTC and keep public ownership of Bldg. 623 and the officer’s quarters;
“¢ Accomplished sensible restrictions on companion units (or rentals in single-family residence zones);
“¢ Worked on condo-conversion minimum requirements with the City Attorney’s Office (requirements which the City Council denied) and to make it increasingly difficult for project applicants to fit higher densities into our community than zoning allowed, because higher density creates more infrastructure need.
We succeeded with many proposals:
“¢ Kept free public parking on Shelter Island (although North Harbor Drive is now at risk);
“¢ Kept public view corridors on Del Monte Street and Nichols Street through well-thought-out and publicly-vetted appeals to the city.
Neighborhood safety, traffic and health concerns being a priority, we attained many improvements, including:
“¢ Keeping of city-owned lands (when real estate assets wanted to sell what we showed was theirs) to reduce our large local park deficiency;
“¢ Traffic and parking modifications.
But there future Peninsula challenges:
“¢ Airport expansion: There is no mention of Peninsula/Ocean Beach during the latest SANDAG (San Diego Association of Governments) meeting;
“¢ NTC buildout ” including the proposed 650-suite resort, waterpark & entertainment hub hotel (Nickelodeon); additional Shelter Island and Harbor Island hotels; continuing redevelopment along Rosecrans Street from Lytton Street to Talbot Street east to the bay ” all pushing for higher density with little regard to our existing community’s missing and diminishing amenities per Municipal Code. Always attempting to do what was right for our community in respecting owners and neighbors “¦ few board members had conflicting interests.
Often, we required project applicants to consult directly with neighbors to work out acceptable compromises so both parties were satisfied.
Not so with the current board majority ” only 2 of 10 are not affiliated with the real estate or development industries. If you ignore this next PCPB election on March 20, it will permit special-interest representatives to secure higher density without required height restrictions, parking and traffic mitigation or public facilities/funding, even the installation of constant microwave antenna towers next to your own bedroom window.
Your vote for five candidates in this election will count.
Our future as a community is on the line as our Peninsula community plan starts its update soon because it is now 20 years out of date. Please take a few minutes out of Thursday, March 20 to vote wisely for individuals who care.
The planning board is not a Chamber of Commerce or a business marketing group. We live here. You do, too. Shouldn’t you know who you’re voting for?
” Cynthia Conger is former chair of the Peninsula Community Planning Board.