On Sept. 13, San Diego City Council voted 7-1 to enter into an exclusive negotiating agreement with Midway Rising to redevelop the 48-acre sports arena site providing 4,000 new affordable homes, a brand new arena, and retail and park space.

Councilmember Vivian Moreno was absent. District 7 Councilmember Raul Campillo was the sole dissenting vote. He questioned a lack of a childcare focus for the redevelopment as proposed, as well as the feasibility of the project as envisioned by the Midway Rising development team of Zephyr Partners, Chelsea Investment Corp., and Legends Global.

“We are selecting one team to begin negotiations,” cautioned District 1 Councilmember Joe LaCava, who chairs the council’s Land Use and Housing Committee. “This is not a pretty package wrapped up with a nice bow on it. We are not voting on a real estate transaction. We are not committing public dollars. The City’s due diligence will continue until a development agreement is brought forward for council approval.”

After the Sept. 13 council hearing, District 2 Councilmember Dr. Jennifer Campbell, whose district includes Midway, said: “Today, the City Council adopted a resolution declaring the selection of the Midway Rising team as the successful respondent for the Midway redevelopment effort. It’s been a long-awaited project that will create a new and beautiful neighborhood. It is a critical step on a very long path.”

Added Campbell: “I support the redevelopment of the Midway site because it will positively impact District 2 residents and all of San Diego. The neighborhood has been blighted and under-resourced for decades. It’s time to build a new neighborhood with affordable housing, jobs, parks, and a new sports and entertainment venue. To ensure transparency, I have asked Midway Rising to provide a traffic mitigation study and to provide quarterly noticed public hearings to give updates and to listen to residents as the project begins to move forward.”

Staff advised on Sept. 13 that, though the City has prioritized the greatest number of affordable units to be built on the site, that is not their “only consideration but rather a guideline providing flexibility.” Counsel added the City would have “no legal violations for not selecting Midway Rising,” but would have to “provide a written explanation for why it went with a different selection.”

A year ago, the City Council voted unanimously to declare the sports arena site surplus land as required under Assembly Bill 1486. That law promotes affordable housing development on unused or underutilized public land throughout the state to respond to the existing affordable housing crisis.

Dike Anyiwo, chair of the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Planning Group, told the council on Sept. 13 that Midway planners voted unanimously in favor of redeveloping the site noting: “It took us 11 years to update our community plan. We supported Measure E (eliminating the 30-foot Midway height limit) and, unfortunately, we have to do this again, which I find regrettable.”

A lawsuit filed Aug. 31 by a group named Save Our Access has challenged the previous lifting of the 30-foot height limit in Midway, claiming the City failed to comply with updating an environmental impact report before the measure could be voted on. The suit responds to a second measure placed on this year’s Nov. 8 ballot, which asks for a re-vote on lifting the existing Midway 30-feet height limit.

At the end of May, the City Council narrowed a field of five candidates down to three to redevelop the former Sports Arena site, to be anchored by affordable housing, in Midway. Eliminated from the competition were Neighborhood Next, and Discover Midway, leaving Midway Rising, HomeTownSD, and Midway Village+.

City staff evaluated all five proposals on several criteria, with top priority given to the total amount of affordable housing they proposed, as well as their experience with building sports arenas.

During lengthy public testimony on Sept. 13, local residents spoke for and against Midway Rising being granted exclusive negotiating rights for sports arena redevelopment.

Eric Judson, CEO of JMI Sports, which helped redevelop Petco Park and SDSU’s Snapdragon Stadium, and who is a member of one of the competing teams for sports arena redevelopment that the City did not pick for exclusive negotiating rights, was critical of the process that went into choosing Midway Rising. “Why are we not asking tough questions regarding the arena proposals?” he asked. “A new 16,000-seat arena with parking and 4,000 new residential units does not fit on this site. This is putting 20 pounds of stuff in a 10-pound bag that will crush the Midway District and the surrounding communities.”

Queried Judson: “Why aren’t we evaluating the arena proposals based on the best fit for the community, environmental impacts, and the financial feasibility of the arena plans? Please dig deeper. Do more due diligence. Housing is critical. But the wrong arena solution could be an epic failure for San Diego.”

The Peninsula Beacon spoke with the Midway Rising team about the project.

PB: What exactly did the City Council, and Midway Rising agree to on Sept. 13? It’s not a contract but exclusive negotiations, correct? What exactly does that mean?

MR: On Tuesday, Sept. 13, San Diego City Council formally selected Midway Rising to pursue the redevelopment of the San Diego Sports Arena site. The first step will be to enter into an Exclusive Negotiation Agreement (ENA) for two years to work toward a long-term lease of the site. If a long-term lease agreement is not reached, the City maintains the flexibility to enter negotiations with an alternate Sports Arena redevelopment team or to assess other options.

PB: Tell us about the overall concept for this multi-use project. How will the housing, sports and entertainment, and retail components all fit together?

MR: Midway Rising is proud to offer a vision for the Sports Arena that is bold and prioritizes the delivery of much-needed affordable homes for San Diegans and is consistent with the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan. Our site plan offers the most in every single category – 4,250 housing units (2,000 affordable units, 30-80% AMI), 250 middle-income units (80-120% AMI), 2,000 market-rate units), a modern 16,000-seat Sports Arena, 20-plus acres of parks and open space, a 200-key hotel and a mixed-use entertainment, arts and cultural district referred to as The Zocolo. Our proposal is a balanced approach that will create an inclusive, healthy and economically vibrant community for all of San Diego.

PB: What about park space? How much will be provided? Where will it be? How will it be maintained?

MR: Our proposal includes 20-plus acres of new public parks, including a 2.9-acre central paseo greenway, a series of community parks and two elevated rooftop parks with gardens and ocean-facing views. Parks and green open space will be located throughout the entirety of the site’s 48.5 acres. Short-term and long-term park space maintenance will be discussed during upcoming negotiations with our City partners.

PB: Do you plan on improving infrastructure adjacent to the property? If so, how will you accomplish that?

MR: Using the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan as a guiding blueprint, Midway Rising will work with the City of San Diego to assess the Sports Arena site’s existing infrastructure in order to prioritize short-term and long-term infrastructure needs. These will be addressed incrementally during the phased build-out of the project. Additionally, our team will commission a regional transportation study to map out improved transit and connectivity solutions in the surrounding area. We intend to share those study results with our City and regional transportation planning agency partners, such as Caltrans, SANDAG, and MTS, so we can mutually discuss and explore solutions.

PB: Will there be enough parking? Will there be an above- or below-ground parking structure connected with this project? How will parking for residents be facilitated there?

MR: Based on our experience with other successful venues in destination locations, we believe 2,775 parking spaces is the right amount for this project. These spaces will be available for visitors in two above-ground parking structures; it’s important to note, there will be no below-ground parking anywhere onsite. In addition to these parking spaces dedicated to the project, residential housing will be parked separately in accordance with City requirements.

PB: Local residents are concerned about the potential issues with traffic and crowding with all this new housing – how will that be addressed? Will there be a shuttle or bike lanes to the trolley at Old Town?

MR: Our plans propose building a new mobility hub on the south side of the site, adjacent to Sports Arena Boulevard, to accommodate multimodal forms of transportation and ride-sharing apps, such as Uber and Lyft, along with other regional transit connections that will be developed. As mentioned, our team will commission a regional transportation study to map out these ideas and connections. We intend to share those study results with our City and regional transportation planning agency partners, such as Caltrans, SANDAG and MTS, so we can mutually discuss and explore solutions.

PB: What’s the real percentage of affordable housing units and, really, how affordable will they actually be? How is “affordable” being defined for the purpose of this project?

MR: Our proposal includes 2,000 affordable units targeted for extremely low- and low-income San Diego families at 30-80% Area Median Income (AMI), as prioritized by the state’s Surplus Land Act. Affordable units will be made available to working families, seniors, those with disabilities, veterans and unsheltered individuals. Here’s a breakdown of bedroom unit types for the 2,000 affordable units included in our proposal: 1-bedroom units (49%), 2-bedroom units (27%), 3-bedroom units (24%).

PB: Tell us about the permitting needed for this project and the timeline involved?

MR: Negotiations between Midway Rising and the City of San Diego will occur during the following two years and will conclude with a long-term lease. During this negotiation period, we will work with City staff to acquire all necessary building, construction and site development permits while a CEQA Environmental Impact Report (EIR) is prepared, with an anticipated construction groundbreaking in 2025.

PB: Best case, when is the earliest construction could begin? Realistically, how long will it take to build this project? Have you set a target date for completion? How will the project be phased? 

MR: Our plans outline five separate construction phases over a projected 10-year build-out, with an anticipated groundbreaking in 2025. These details are subject to change once site due diligence is performed. Starting in the very first phase of construction, our schedule is to deliver 300 to 500 units of affordable housing every two years. Additionally, we will begin immediately constructing the modern, 16,000-seat arena while the existing Sports Arena remains open and operational. This will allow for continued sports and entertainment events and resulting revenues for the City during the initial phase of construction.

PB: Will the existing leaseholders, like Kobeys Swap Meet, be allowed to continue to operate while construction is going on? Will the construction area be fenced off?

MR: No decisions have been made at this time. We look forward to discussing these details in upcoming City-led negotiations.

PB: Tell us about your plans for the sports arena. The existing one will be razed and a new one built, correct? Where will the new arena be located?

MR: In the first phase of construction, we will build a modern, 16,000-seat Sports Arena on the eastern portion of the site, during which time the existing Sports Arena will remain open and operational. This will allow for continued sports and entertainment events and resulting revenues for the City during the initial phase of construction.

PB: How important is removing the 30-foot height limit to this project? It is on the November ballot again but there are no guarantees it will pass again. If it doesn’t pass, and the 30-foot height limit is not removed, how will that impact the project?

MR: Midway Rising is committed to supporting the passage of Measure C to exclude the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Plan area from the City’s existing 30 feet coastal height limit. We will work closely with our City partners, business leaders and community members to advocate for the robust economic benefits that will result from Measure C’s passage. If Measure C is not approved by voters, we will work with the City of San Diego to reevaluate our proposal and vision for the Sports Arena.

PB: What kind of public input, or outreach, are you folks going to do to involve the local community in this whole process?

MR: During the Sept. 13 City Council hearing, in partnership with City staff, our team committed to providing quarterly informational updates to the San Diego City Council and the City’s Land Use and Housing Committee related to the ongoing negotiation process to share progress made to-date, completion of milestones, anticipated next steps, and any additional input. Our team also will engage in quarterly meetings with the wider San Diego public to solicit their input and feedback on our proposal and vision for the Sports Arena site. This input is vital and hearing firsthand ideas, challenges, and opportunities from Midway and Point Loma residents along with other San Diegans will equip us with important insight to help fine-tune details in project negotiations.

PECHANGA ARENA

The indoor arena was built in 1966 in the Midway District at 3500 Sports Arena Blvd. The arena seats 12,000 for indoor football, 12,920 for ice hockey, indoor soccer, and lacrosse, 5,450 for amphitheater concerts and stage shows, 8,900–14,800 for arena concerts, 13,000 for ice shows and the circus, and 16,100 for boxing and mixed martial arts. The arena is currently home to the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League, the San Diego Gulls of the American Hockey League, and the San Diego Strike Force of the Indoor Football League.

PROPOSED PLAN

Midway Rising is proposing 4,250 new homes – 2,000 affordable, 250 middle-income, and 2,000 market rate, with a 450,000-square-foot arena with a capacity for 14,500-16,500 people; a 200-room hotel, and 250,000 square feet of retail with more than 11 acres of park and open space along with a 9.4-acre public plaza.