Representatives for and against the Soccer City proposal to redevelop the 166-acre Mission Valley Qualcomm stadium site squared off, while community planners were updated on a number of other issues at Midway Community Planning Group’s June meeting.
The Soccer City plan, created by La Jolla-based FS Investors, would include a joint soccer and college football stadium, a river park, housing and commercial space. The prime stadium real estate became available when the Chargers announced their move to Los Angeles.
Speaking in favor of Soccer City was Nick Stone of Goal San Diego. Speaking against was Joe LaCava, a consultant and longtime community planner who previously chaired the San Diego Community Planners Committee, an umbrella group representing the city’s 42 community advisory groups.
MCPG chair Cathy Kenton pointed out that, though redevelopment of Qualcomm is a regional issue not directly impacting the Pacific Highway-Midway corridor, it nonetheless is of great importance to local sports fans, so she invited both sides on the Soccer City proposal to present.
In a slide presentation, Stone characterized San Diego as an extremely strong prospective soccer market with broad appeal, no existing professional soccer team and a comparatively avid fan base with lots of growth potential.
“Soccer is the fastest-growing sport in America, and it’s a real opportunity,” said Stone of the Soccer City plan. “It’s (soccer’s) going to work really well here.”
Stone stressed there is a narrow window of time for San Diego to act to qualify as one of several sites being considered for major league soccer expansion, as cities for new expansion teams are slated to be chosen by year’s end.
Soccer City advocates garnered enough signatures to qualify their proposal for a special election this November. But the San Diego City Council opted against hosting that election. The mayor overrode the Council’s rejection of the November ballot measure, leaving money in the city’s budget and a slim possibility that such an election could still be held.
LaCava countered Stone’s arguments saying “ballot-box planning is a bad idea.” He added Qualcomm is a prime piece of real estate that ought to be properly vetted in terms of determining its highest and best public use.
“This initiative bypasses planning groups and stakeholders,” LaCava said speaking for other investors interested in the Qualcomm site. “We do not have any objection to the intensity of the development they’re proposing. But we’re concerned about the process – doing a complete environmental analysis with proper mitigation. Soccer City is fundamentally flawed because they (developers) want to pick and choose what they want to do. This is not about soccer … but about land we’ve already wasted a dozen years on with the Chargers.”
In other action:
• City staffer Vickie White said the ongoing Midway Community Plan update is moving full speed ahead into environmental assessment, adding time has almost run out to “change land-use or density” spelled out in the community’s revised blueprint for future development.
• In her chair’s report, Cathy Kenton noted the old vacant Midway postal facility has been resold, adding a local development group is proposing a new mixed-use project at 2701 Midway Drive. “I’m thrilled they’re (developers) not going to do another warehouse or truck terminal, because that would be the worst for the community,” she said.
