By Lynne Miller
PREFACE: In 2023/24 a small article was posted in the OB Rag by the editordude, Frank. It alerted my neighbors that 4705 Pt.Loma Ave was moving forward with building plans. Without the OB RAG, the city would have built the project, unchallenged. The City was using the ministerial law embedded in Complete Communities, that does NOT require public notification.
Thanks to the Rag and its years of sleuthing, neighbors found out, fought the project and won. The only way to beat the City corruption which smells like the wetlands in Imperial Beach, is to unite, and take action. Since 2023 many organizations have started individual battles against the unhinged power of the City and State. In order to defeat the billionaire driven machine of builders and government collusion we must unite!
The title of this article is not intended to be just cute, it is based on a scientific reality about the Midway land.
Saturday, I attended a meeting held by SDUC (San Diego United Communities. Their website is sandiegounitiedcommunities.com.
This is one of several groups who are fighting for the Finest City. It is worth the fight, and it will take you, your friends, and their friends to unite in the common and urgent cause, Save San Diego.
The panel that assembled to educate and activate our communities was impressive. The leader of the workshop, Margaret Virrisimo, is one of the founders of SDUC. Its mission is “to come together to discuss San Diego policies.” It has a strong sense that only when communities unite can their collective voices be heard and can their actions demand change. I encourage every reader to get involved in their community group fighting city hall. Then the combined movement will force our voices to be heard IF we join together, spread the word, and take action.
Lori Saldaña, the former California State Assembly member who served from 2004 to 2010 (representing District 76) spoke at the meeting and explained why Midway Rising Project is literally sinking. It sits at or below water level, and will, like the Conventions Center require pumping to avoid flooding. The cost per year for the pumping the Conventional Center is $1.2 million. This process of Continuous Dewatering to avoid flooding requires sump pumps run 24/7 in order for incoming ground water to return to the bay. The land area of Midway Rising is more than double the area of the Convention Center.
Because the Midway Rising project sits on extremely shallow ground water, and because the sea level rise will push the water table closer to the surface, Midway will be sinking unless it has a 24/7 sump pump as the Convention Center. This kind of poor planning explains the financial and environmental problems the city creates. Lori mentioned a book titled California Against the Sea which explains the importance of good environmental planning.
Each speaker today deserves a personal mention because they presented complicated issues and made them understandable. The content and delivery of each speech was designed to educate and inspire action. Each speaker met their mark.
One of my favorites is Kenny Key, is a military veteran, and advocate associated with grassroots groups including Neighbors for Encanto. Kenny, your powerful speaking is an art form that deserves a special medal of honor. Kenny speaks frequently at local events, educating and inspiring people. He has filed a lawsuit against the City of San Diego involving an Encanto project city hall approved, and he is not alone in that action! It is voices like his that fuel the movement to take back our city.
Mark Powell, who is running for District 6 Council seat, had a list of solutions. He suggests 0-based budgeting which means the city cannot plan a project UNTIL it is funded and there is actual money in the budget. (That should kill the completion of Complete Communities.) He also mentions reduction of middle management and consolidating departments (to avoid digging up the same section of street 3 times for 3 different reasons).
Read on for specific details you may need as you join the battle against the City and Billionaire Builders.
Victoria La Brusa, chair of CPG – Committee of Planning Groups – talked about the planning groups across the city that have been neutered. Their voices are the voices of the people, and their power, through a series of reforms, has been dismantled. She and CPC are working to reinsert their voice into the decisions at City Hall.
Laurie Fischer, an architect and builder, discussed the environmental disasters connected to the large apartment-style buildings, and the safety issues that the city and builders ignore. Did you know that a single family home uses 200 trees in the framing of the home? Did you know that the large buildings being approved use 10,000 trees for their support? That wood will eventually get old and rot and be fodder for disastrous fires built on land and in areas where there is no infrastructure to accommodate disasters or evacuation?
(I missed some names, sorry.) Team Turquoise from Pacific Beach spoke and pointed out ‘who’ is at top of the Tower. Would you believe that the Turquoise Tower has 22 LLCs connected to ownership? Carmel Partners seems to be the tip of the top LLC, and has ownership of many projects in San Diego. Fighting a hidden enemy is tricky, is that called Guerilla Warfare?
Finally, speakers seem to agree that we all work to defeat the new state Bill SB 958. WHY? It will remove Environmental Regulations (CEQA) and is designed to allow high rises. If it passes, and knowing our state choices, it will, areas like Midway Sinking will climb UP as well as spread out. San Diego, including coastal San Diego, will look like downtown Waikiki and Miami. Slam Dunk, the Finest City is gone, replaced not affordable housing but by expensive high rise structures that block the sun and fun that was San Diego.
If the reader is unfamiliar with the Ocean Beach Freeway, check it out now before the massive building at Midway Rising; 8 East is a bottleneck for miles beginning around 1:30. Please imagine all the tall buildings in Miami that block views of the ocean evacuating in a fire disaster, or tsunami (Midway Rising is in the tsunami zone). They call OB and PL a Peninsula for a reason, it is. Does anyone reading this think the City of San Diego or the State of California will plan an effective infrastructure for any future disaster? (If you say yes, I have this charming plot of land in the swamps of Florida priced to sell.)
Take Action Now. Remember what Dr Seuss said in Horton Hears a Who, “ Their voices were heard! They had made themselves clear! They’ve proved they are persons!
Let’s REALLY “Get it Done, San Diego!
As previous OB-rag reports have mentioned, the midway area is a pile of river and SD bay sediment wherein the San Diego River ran to and fro wildly until a dike was built. Until foundations are excavated, the City and the builders involved will never actually know what the construction costs will actually be. As the river’s former COURSES, now camouflaged by stuff, will consist of various kinds of soil and rocks of all sizes. All the City and those builders see in “vacant land”, not the three-dimensional contents of its true volume.
Yes I agree and that they didn’t know about the sewer pipe running through the site is the first of many issues in that area. But that’s not to say it can’t be addressed. The question is at what cost? Currently that are looks like a giant parking lot, adding to the urban heat island effect.
I attended the Sports Arena Propaganda event. Thanks Eric Law, Susan Gates, & Lori Saldaña, and many others, for speaking. Environmental issues, traffic issues, and the impact of NAVWAR development have been so understated it makes the phrase ‘Gloria has failed’ look like a 200 page thesis. Senator Weber Pierson didn’t impress and has not done enough due diligence. And if I’m recalling the slideshow presentation correctly, traffic concerns were downgraded to ‘Insignificant’.
AGREED…The Midway Rising developers comments on traffic were dismissive and only regarding the new stadium traffic during events (misleading) not all the other traffic this would create.. (half truth is half a lie) they just want to profit at any cost… thus leaving out what people really are asking and want answers for.. How will this development affect my daily life in a negative way??
Americans have a love affair with our cars that’s just who we are.. NOT PUBLIC TRANSIT RIDERS..
these developers haven’t found a law they won’t amend so they can break it okay..I was taught that The truth stands on its own. The developers have already hired many land lawyers at $1,200. Per hour.. to fight us residents who oppose this irresponsible greed..and public land grab..
my call to action is to meet their land lawyer strategy with a challenge by matching it with 1,200 self thinking residents (per lawyer) who are against this irresponsible attempt to allow builders to PROFIT AND RUIN all 49 acres. This land belongs to ALL SAN DIEGO RESIDENTS.. we can’t let them STEAL OUR public land by amending then breaking current laws that are protecting us all from their greed okay.. all under the guise of affordable housing which they can’t define either…(subsidized housing doesn’t mean affordable housing okay)
The developers demand we need housing and offer us NO CHOICES.. what??
we must unite and we just have to stop them so they do not just do whatever they want without proper testing and studies to satisfy the logical self thinking people who elected them..and future generations ..
the city council is going to vote soon to approve this greedy plan..It’s not safe or responsible to build here..
Gloria has already sold us out to the developers who are donating to him as mayor on this and more…he has failed the people of San Diego and should be recalled for his behaviors.. after all he said this was his baby and he was going to fight.. now we know just who he meant when he said it.. he is fighting the people who elected him and the ones who don’t agree with him..He behaves like a KING..
He has awful leadership and is a total failure..
We should have a 49 acre park and recreation area built on this PUBLIC LAND and that would make us all happy and SAVE OUR BEACH ACCESS at the same time..also SAVE OUR SUNSETS……..
This all started during the pandemic when we were locked out of even being involved or exercising our rights to object to their plans.. and they have kept up their illegal behavior and they have taken it this far.. and this is how we got here now.. okay
the CA Supreme Court already said NO it doesn’t approve of this plan so the DEVELOPERS AND THE CITY of San Diego’s answer WAS to create SB958 as a solution.. NOT TO FOLLOW THE LAW.. what??
that explains their need for so many land lawyers.. they already know they’re going to need them to fight the law that’s on the books thats there to protect all us residents from their greed.. This will NEGATIVELY AFFECT US ALL.. where we eat, live and breathe..
UNITE AND FIGHT..
We can win this one if we all stay focused and get committed to stop them..the truth can reveal itself and people just need to be able to see it.. thats what’s they’re afraid of now….
There is a top down process in our State, in many states, and often at the Federal level. The elected folks too often move into their office and decide they know what is best for the ‘proletariat’, the people. This process is what we see in California. THAT SB 958 MORPHS from year to year. This year SB 958 focuses on streamlining housing and urban redevelopment under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA):
* Building Height Provisions: Clarifies that, under specified conditions, environmental impacts associated solely with increased building height are not considered significant environmental impacts under CEQA.
* Midway Rising Specific Plan Provides targeted CEQA streamlining/exemption provisions for the redevelopment of the 49-acre Sports Arena site in San Diego into a mixed-use district containing housing (including high-volume affordable units), open space, and an entertainment venue.
One of our major tasks is to whatever we can to defeat the passing of this new version of SB 958. WHY? Imagine a wall of towering buildings, just under the delineation of ‘tower’. Imagine all those new people with cars parked (where?), leaving for work in the morning and joining the already gridlocked OB freeway (East). Now imagine a tsunami evacuation, and you know that there will be no infrastructure built on the PENINSULA that will support evacuation. We have to stop this bill from passing, and that is related to stopping the Turquoise Tower. Once one tower is approved watch how quickly the out of state Builders trip over their own scaffolding to be the first to complete a monolith.
Yes — Take Action Now! SB 958 needs to be defeated. Contact your state assembly member and urge them to vote NO. And barrage the lovely Senator Weber Pierson and Mayor Gloria with all the problems and disasters of the Midway Rising (Sinking) project.
San Diego United Communities is working hard to get our voices heard. Get on their email list, go to their events. Be aware of the issues in Ocean Beach and support your own community groups.
Be informed! Read the OB RAG! Show up! Let’s Take Action to keep San Diego OUR beautiful city!!
Some of us who are native OBceans can remember the early days when doors were unlocked, dinner was at dusk, and the beach was our playground. My friends and I walked to the beach barefoot, got a candy bar at Paras shop, and laid our towels in the Ocean Beach sand. We surfed using our bodies, boards or surf mats. The salt air stuck to our tanned skin and we hung out with groups of teenagers. Day after Day, summer after summer, what a LIFE. So now, today, we want our children and grandchildren to have what is left of this small beach community. Some of us know that our sun is about to set and we want to do everything we can to insist that Ocean Beach is a place where generations can enjoy the, sand, ocean, and OB life!
Wow. I’m 80 and grew up in OB in late 50s and early 60s. If you remember Paras, you are probably of my vintage. I remember the canyon BEFORE Nimtiz was built. First class of 7th Graders into Collier and PLHS class of 64.