By Jennifer van Grove / San Diego Union-Tribune / April 24, 2024
San Diego International Sports Arena, the imposing concrete venue in the Midway District and the longtime home of the San Diego Gulls, is worthy of special recognition ahead of its expected demolition. On Thursday, San Diego’s Historical Resources Board voted unanimously, with Chair Tim Hutter recused, to designate the 58-year-old sports arena as a historic resource.
The action, which does not prohibit demolition, officially recognizes the arena in three areas: it’s role in remaking the Midway District into a commercial hub after World War II, its association with a local sports legend and its New Formalism architectural style. The property will be added to the local register of designated historical resources.
The Historical Resources Board, a volunteer board with members appointed by the mayor, has authority over historical resources within the city. The body considered the venue’s historic value as one step in a broader analysis of the potential environmental impacts associated with the Midway Rising Specific Plan, as required by California’s Environmental Quality Act.
“The designation does not preclude redevelopment of the site or demolition of the sports arena; it simply triggers a process to evaluate whether or not any feasible alternatives exist that could reduce impacts to the historic resource,” a city spokesperson said. “The (Historical Resources Board) will review the project as part of that review process and provide a recommendation to the decision maker.”
Under the state law, future demolition of the existing arena, as is planned, would constitute a substantial adverse change with the loss of a historical resource.
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The arena itself is something of a monument to the city’s 20-year effort to eradicate the first of two racially integrated neighborhoods in the northern part of San Diego.
https://voiceofsandiego.org/2024/04/22/what-the-historical-significance-review-of-the-sports-arena-misses/
Historic distinction is well deserved as the San Diego Sports Arena is indeed a historic venue. The number of live albums recorded in different eras in the San Diego Sports Arena make for an impressive list that include Cream, the Scorpions, and almost 55 years ago to the day Jimmy Hendrix. Which you can listen to in it’s entirety on the Internet Archive the way Aaron Schwartz intended:
https://archive.org/details/jimi-hendrix-international-sports-arena-san-diego-california-may-24-1969/1-Intro.mp3
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