At a Sept. 10 special meeting, the Midway-Pacific Highway Community Planning Group tightened language on Navy-owned property in their community plan update before final City Council review of the long-term project Sept. 17.
“We called this meeting to discuss changes being made to the plan update, some of which we have seen, and some of which we haven’t,” said group chair Cathy Kenton, noting Navy-related items in the plan update “are such open-ended statements.”
Added Kenton, “We’re not saying we don’t support the military presence… but with blank statements in the plan, the Navy could design and build a germ warfare plant on their property.”
Navy officials reassured community planners they wanted to be good neighbors, pointing out they have no current plans for major changes on existing properties they own, including property leased from Naval Base Point Loma by Space and Naval Warfare Systems Command (SPAWAR) at 4301 Pacific Hwy.
Kenton noted the planning group wants to ensure no overly broad statements are in the updated Midway Community Plan that might be construed as giving “tacit approval” to future Navy projects without further plan group review. 
Looking ahead, Kenton said, “We’ve made a lot of changes to this [community] plan, even in just the last 18 months. This plan doesn’t look anything like it did two years ago.”
Between Old Town and Point Loma, the Midway/Pacific Highway Corridor is comprised of two areas: the central Midway urbanized commercial core with numerous shopping centers, institutional facilities and warehousing; and the narrow, linear-shaped Pacific Highway Corridor between I-5 and Lindbergh Field, that contains some of the City’s oldest industrial areas. 
The corridor also has considerable military-owned property with limited residential. Development projects in the Midway Community Plan, however, are expected to add as many as 11,000 residential units during the next 20 years. 
In March, Midway-Pacific Highway planners voted 11-0 to support its 11-year-long community plan update, which includes conditional approval of environmental and traffic studies. 
Kenton pushed for the plan update motion to include language calling for “creative and thoughtful transportation systems on both a regional and local level.” She also asked for policy language to include “flexibility for implementation and innovation in technology.” 
Midway-Pacific Highway is park-deficient. Long-term plans call for new rapid bus routes. 
The future of the central, 44-acre city-owned Valley View Casino Center site, which may or may not be redeveloped, remains a huge question park. 
City planner Tait Galloway said Midway’s Community Plan Update is the only item on the City Council’s Monday, Sept. 17 agenda. The Council meeting begin at 2 p.m. at City Council Chambers, 202 C St. downtown.