“The Future of Balboa Park: A Community Conversation”
When: Saturday, March 28, 9:30 a.m. to 11:00 a.m.
Where: Mission Valley Library Community Room
“The Future of Balboa Park: A Community Conversation” will invite members of the San Diego public, who are the real stakeholders of the Park, to begin exploring new strategies for effective park stewardship and responsible park management.
The town hall, organized by the San Diego Community Coalition and Neighbors for a Better San Diego, will be facilitated by two foremost Balboa Park advocates, landscape architect/urban planner Vicki Estrada and former City Architect Michael Stepner.
With increased public interest in San Diego’s “Crown Jewel,” Estrada and Stepner will lead this public discussion of critical issues, including:
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- How do we ensure that the park has the resources it needs to provide the services and benefits San Diegans deserve from this regional asset?
- How can we unify Park stakeholders to work together toward common goals?
- Are San Diegans interested in establishing an independent, public-private partnership (similar to New York’s Central Park Conservancy) to manage Balboa Park?
- Are San Diegans ready to give their full support to such an endeavor?
Estrada and Stepner have been among Balboa Park’s most effective proponents. Estrada, president and founder of Estrada Land Planning, wrote the 1989 Balboa Park Master Plan, which she expanded with the Central Mesa Precise Plan in 1992.
Stepner, the first City Architect in San Diego’s history, led urban planning initiatives for 27 years, including the City’s General Plan, downtown redevelopment, and a revitalized Gaslamp Quarter.
“I have been working on the plan for Balboa Park since 1980,” said Estrada. “The Master Plan and Central Mesa Precise Plan included 12 years of preparation, community input and approvals. There is so much in the plans that has not been implemented that is still valid. We need to have a community discussion about what is still valid and what needs to be reevaluated. This forum could be an excellent starting point.”
“Balboa Park enriches the lives of locals and visitors in countless ways,” said Stepner.
“It is a hub for museums, theaters and other cultural resources. It is the neighborhood park for adjacent communities. And it is the setting for activities that serve the broad cross-section of who we are as a community.
“But it has become clear that we must confront problems with the Park’s financing and governance,” Stepner continued. “Those issues must be resolved before the Park can provide everything we expect from and love about it. And the greater San Diego community must play a part in that.”
A summary of forum “action items” will be published the week after the event, and follow-up events will be planned this spring.
I very much want to participate but I’ve already committed to going to the No Kings 3 demonstration at Waterfront Park from 11 am. Parking will be a challenge so we’ll need to take the trolley much of the way there which won’t leave enough time to do the Balboa Park meeting then get to Waterfront Park.
Please create helpful summary for those of us who can’t make it and provide a means for additional input online. Thanks. I know the two of you will conduct a fruitful gathering of community thought on this topic.
Thanks, Judy. Anyone who can’t make it could share ideas (to kate@katecallen.com) about the future of Balboa Park and how it should be governed. It will help if comments are kept brief. We’ll try to read emailed comments during the Town Hall.
Buyer beware of the tax initiative for a billion dollars in bonds being floated by labor unions to spend in upgrades tied to property taxes.