MUSEUM TOWER TEMPORARILY CLOSED FOR RETROFIT

The California Tower at the San Diego Museum of Man will temporarily close to the public when the city of San Diego commences a seismic retrofit of the historic structure.

Beginning in January 2019, the California Tower at the San Diego Museum of Man will shut its doors to the public due to the building modifications, which are funded by the city and the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA).

The project construction is expected to last seven to 10 months and aims to upgrade the Tower’s seismic capabilities to the latest seismic building codes — a move which would fortify it
against potential earthquake damage.

“As stewards of the California Tower, we are pleased to partner with the City of San Diego on this seismic retrofit project,” Micah Parzen, CEO of San Diego Museum of Man, said in a press release. “We look forward to welcoming many more visitors to the California Tower in the years to come as a result of this important project.”

Regular exhibits at the museum including “Cannibals: Myth & Reality” and “PostSecret” will remain open to the community during the retrofit for regular hours of operation. Discounted tickets will be offered during construction.

Visita CaliforniaTower.org for more information and updates.

OLD TOWN CPU APPROVED

On Monday, Oct. 29 the San Diego City Council approved the 11th Old Town Community Plan Update (CPU) to frame land use and urban design policies for the next 20–30 years of community development.

“As we rebuild our city for the future, we want to make sure that historic neighborhoods like Old Town retain their community character while also allowing for future growth that meets our housing needs and protects our environment,” Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer said in a press release. “This updated plan is a big step in the right direction and I want to thank the many community leaders and residents for working collaboratively to get this across the finish line.”

The plan totals approximately 180 pages divided into several areas such as historic preservation, land use, mobility, urban design, economic prosperity, public safety, recreation, conservation and noise.

Old Town stakeholders and city staff developed the plan to meet the goals of the city’s Climate Action Plan (CAP).

Some of the changes proposed include highlighting Old Town as a residential community, improving pedestrian and bicycle connections to community destinations, and looking for additional visitor parking.

“Old Town is unique to San Diego, serving as both a major historical destination and a residential community,” District 3 Councilmember Chris Ward said in a press release. “I’m pleased that the updates included in this community plan will add much-needed density to our housing stock and strengthen walking and biking connections between this community, the adjacent Midway community, and San Diego River Park.”

To see the complete CPU, visit bit.ly/OTCommunityPlan.