Sunset Cliffs Natural Park – Soon to Be Looking Like a Park
By Lois Lane
A Report of the Sunset Cliffs Advisory Council Meeting – Monday, May 4, 2015
In 2007 a kick-off meeting was held at the OB Rec Center to plan the future of Sunset Cliffs Natural Park. Dudek & Associates took public input for the Sunset Cliffs Park Drainage Study they were initiating.
Now, eight years later, something is about happen. Not drainage and erosion, but making the park look like a park, with an ADA-compatible walkway, signage, and more native plants.
Since the 2007 beginnings, a lot of extensive and expensive studies, plans, and drawings have set the stage for the recently awarded construction contract – Hillside Improvement Project Phase I, a $273,000 beginning of a new era.
Or almost.
Del Mar Environmental and Construction Services Inc. (from Chula Vista) were awarded the contract, and the pre-construction meeting with the city is scheduled.
Construction might begin June 15. The first action under the contract is to hire a biologist to check for nesting birds. Bird nests are protected from March through September, so it is possible that actual work will be delayed if nesting birds are found. Presumably only a biologist knows if the birds are actually nesting or just passing through.
Conrad Wear, reporting at the meeting for Council Member Lori Zapf, provided encouragement for added a Park Ranger to the City of San Diego budget, which currently contains only improvements and maintenance. Members will attend to the Budget hearings to support the additional personnel.
A quick look at the 2016 budget shows prior years of funding for the Hillside Improvement Project of $1,295,594 (including this year’s construction), with no 2016 allocations. Anticipated future funding equals a grand total of $4,195,594.
The Drainage Improvements Project shows prior fiscal years costs of $456,000. Proposed for 2016 is $1,000,000 with an anticipated total of $2,456,000. This year’s million dollars is allocated to design and environmental assessment.
No money identified for Park Rangers yet.
When all is said and done, a path with accoutrements will be completed by 2016.
Will Sunset Cliffs Park become Skate Park South? Skate Parks are very popular in the Capitol Improvement Budget, but Ocean Beach already has one. Meanwhile, there’s all that erosion planning ahead.
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To clarify, the SCNP Trails Project will complete phase I in FY 2016 and allocate an additional $1.1 Million for FY 2016 from Regional Park Funds. A remaining source for the balance $1.8 Million is not identified but is expected to come from grants. The entire project will not be complete in 2016.