http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y289/bushman61988/realestate34.jpg
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http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y289/bushman61988/realestate31.jpg
Shapery Park Tower is a proposed 40 story condominium/hotel and residential tower in downtown San Diego containing 90 hotel/condominium suites, 30 one bedroom condominium suites, 42 two bedroom condominium suites, one penthouse condominium suite, a spa/health club, pool, 40th story restaurant, roof top bar served by a glass elevator, ancillary commercial space and 164 parking spaces located in the project parking garage.

The building is being developed by Sandor Shapery who previously developed San Diego’s premier mixed use high-rise hotel/office complex, the Emerald Shapery Center which can be recognized by its eight hexagon towers topped with green neon. Mr. Shapery designed the Emerald Shapery Center in conjunction with C.W. Kim Architects who is again joining with Mr. Shapery in the design of this iconic building. Mr. Shapery was also responsible for the design and development of the W Hotel in downtown San Diego.

Many internal building systems are being designed to minimize initial costs and reduce operating costs by utilizing the systems for multiple functions. Examples include utilizing the cooling tower fans to exhaust the parking garage; capturing the building air conditioning condensation water for use in the laundry, swimming pool, fire water storage system and irrigation. Additionally the projects water features are being designed to function as cooling towers for the air-conditioning system. Photovoltaic glass will be installed on the south side building balconies to reduce each tenant’s electrical requirements.

In addition to the many innovations, the building is being built pursuant to the highest standards set by the U.S. Green Building Council LEED certification program.

The Shapery Park Tower contains forty stories above grade and 4 stories below grade for a <B>total building height of 500 feet above the mean high tide line in the San Diego bay; the maximum building height allowed in downtown San Diego. The project rises 409 feet above the lowest grade on the site with the parcel containing 10,840.5 square feet</B>. The tower sits on the top of the parking pedestal which covers most of the site and contains the lobby, ancillary commercial uses and parking. The Tower will be constructed out of concrete and is designed in the shape of a three leaf clover with each peddle and accompanying core being identical allowing for all of the construction forming to be the same. The organic design of the Shapery Park Tower is symbolic of the environmental aspects of the project.

The project has 7 floors of parking. Three levels above grade and 4 levels below grade. When combined with the underground parking spaces there are a total of 164 parking spaces- 138 standard parking spaces and 26 substandard parking spaces.

The hotel lobby is two stories tall measured from the entrance on the corner of 11th and A Street.

HOTEL/ CONDOMINIUM AMENITIES

On the 6th level of the building pedestal above the parking is the back-of-the-house hotel operations system, including house keeping, laundry, security, storage and mechanical systems.

The tower is also served by one glass elevator and two passenger elevators.

The seventh floor, which is the top of the building’s pedestal, contains the swimming pool, pool deck, jacuzzi, health spa, hotel administrative offices, parking elevators, glass elevator, and tower elevators.

The eighth floor which is the first floor of the tower contains two ballroom/meeting rooms containing 1084 square feet each, an 810 square foot kitchen/pantry and a prefunction area containing 760 square feet along with two balconies containing 170 square feet.

The 9th through the 19th floors of the tower contain 9 units per floor for a total of 90 hotel condominium units ranging in size from 375 to 480 square feet most with balconies of 85 square feet each.

The 20th through the 24th floors of the tower contain 6 one bedroom condominium units per floor for a total of 30 one bedroom condominium units from 612 to 644 square feet, one and three quarter baths with full kitchens, and containing balconies of 85 square feet each.

The 25th through the 38th floor contain 3 two bedroom two and one half bath condominium units per floor for a total of 42 two bedroom two and one half bath condominiums ranging in size from 1284 to 1292 square feet each containing balconies which range in size from 176 to 255. Two of the three condominiums on each floor have keyed elevators opening directly into the unit’s living room.

The 39th floor contains the penthouse condominium containing a total of 4345 square feet of living space with three balconies containing 1782 square each.

The 40th story is a restaurant and lounge containing 3886 square feet of interior space and two outdoor balconies containing 2268 square feet.

Above the restaurant is the roof-top bar and observatory topped out with back lit canvas petals.

HORRIBLE!! I don't live in SD anymore but I sure hope the people and the Council get their act together and block this terrible architecture. Can't we get more creative than another phallic symbol. So boring and it in no way incorporates the surrounding community. SD architecture is so weak. I'll take the old Harbor Club Towers over these new things any day. This is the same architect that designed the Emerald Towers and that's the best they came up with? Really?

The photo at CCDC seems to be slightly different. The top seems to open more like a flower would (hence it's name?). Is this the redesign or just a different view giving off a different look at the CCDC site? I've seen the older photos Bushman posted but the CCDC picture looks different to me (if only slightly with the top). It does look straight out of Asia though. I could easily see this in China or elsewhere (maybe not Japan though).


Well it's always going to be a matter of taste with "different" looking projects here. I for one like Bosa's projects but am more than a bit sick of each one and others being same old, same old. It's fine as "fill-in" projects but we need something to shake-up the old-tired looking projects here. I give it a go if it looks like the current CCDC photo.

I'm also tired with the "penis" jokes around this tower. I saw some "smart" people in the media making these tired jokes about it like it was funny. Grow up. Does every high-rise with a rounded top look like a penis as well? Should all buildings be straight with flat tops? Yuck!:puke:

I think the tower looks like shit.

I don't like this, I hope they can come up with something more deserving for our city... :(

That hideous thing rather belongs in a place like Dubai or Doha

My first impression has been the same as your impressions, but it is starting to grow on me (no phallic pun intended), and I think it would end up being a loveable idiosyncrasy.

My thinking is that the reason it looks out of place in the below picture, is that it is surrounded by low buildings and surface parking. This neighborhood seems to be transitioning to higher density. I think that the same view, 10 or 20 years from now, will have a larger proportion of high and mid rise buildings, and that over time the area will blend in around this building. Even a wider angle of the same neighborhood today would show the SmartCorner development and possibly other newer higher density development) which would help it look more appropriate.

I’m not keen on the pedestal, though. The white arches with the little pointy things jutting outward strike me as the "future" as seen from the 1950’s, and seem dated. I think having something cantilevered out from the building above entrances, or even above much of the sidewalk (for shade), would be more comfortable.

Is there a change on the horizon for San Diego Airport (http://groups.myspace.com/sandiegoairport)?

Is there a change on the horizon for San Diego Airport (http://groups.myspace.com/sandiegoairport)?

read:
Does anyone know of any plans to move the airport?
I thought i heard something about that a couple of months ago, but now i'm not sure.

Well there is/was a committee that recommended to place a new one at MCAS Miramar, which got rejected in the ballots (actual proposition was to whether or not to PROPOSE to move it there, not actually move it).

In reality though, lindbergh field will still be there in 2020, god this city can't do shit.

Yeah I think the committee is over, its pretty much expansion.

Is there a change on the horizon for San Diego Airport (http://groups.myspace.com/sandiegoairport)?

I totally joined that group.

www.san.org
www.sanplan.com

So heres whats up, they have renderings of a giant parking structure for terminal 2 plus a 10 gate extension of the west half of terminal 2 which is like a mirror image of the existing half (but with solar panels on top so looks like theyre going green). So this plus some taxiway improvements is whats new regarding the expansion. Not a bad design since it fits in but I hate watching them spend money at lindbergh rather than spend it on a new airport but o well thats done with the demise of prop A. At least theres that flight to london now and I dont know what happened to that philippine airline flight to manila through vancouver so at least theyre trying to enhance international service.

Interesting.


I think Philippine Airlines is still interested in flying here, but I don't think they meet FAA safety standards or something as of right now, therefore they can't begin new flights to any US destination at the moment.

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Is it me or does this tower look like a giant penis???!!! it's an ugly design. Anyways, just wanted to post a picture I took a few days ago, I didn't know wherelse to put it so I decided to post it here.

View of Downtown from the I-805

http://img161.imageshack.us/img161/38/febrero2008017yj5.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

It actually is a giant penis.


Cool picture though.

You weren't driving where you?

You weren't driving where you?

:lol: ... Yes, I was. I know, shame on me! But I just couldn't resist to take a picture from that point, I really like how downtown looks from there.

I see that view from 805 almost everyday. It looks grander in person than in pics.

I think the tower looks like shit.

LOL I was going to say its puke inducing!

^kind of made me throw up in my mouth a little.

BOND MONEY FOR TEN FIFTY B

A proposed 229-unit, affordable housing high-rise has received a big funding boost with the award last month of $10 million in state bond money reserved for projects catering to lower-income households.

Ten Fifty B, which will be the tallest affordable-housing project in the county, will have monthly rents of $379 for a one-bedroom to $1,066 for a three-bedroom apartment.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080316/news_1h16porchm.html

- article by Lori Weisberg in today's Union Tribune

San Diego Rocks !!! Congratulations this city is amazing !! :omg:

thanks. Too bad this thread is dead. :(

U're welcome ... well it's time to take some pics around the city ..

It's not our fault that there is nothing to report. :(

Here some recent pics from our beautiful city.

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3236/sd6va7.jpg

The hilton is almost finish...

http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/2995/sd9is4.jpg


http://img408.imageshack.us/img408/3684/sd10dx8.jpg

http://img228.imageshack.us/img228/7812/sd12mq3.jpg

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http://img257.imageshack.us/img257/5734/sd8xd3.jpg

Got to love it!!!

WOW! that last pic looks awesome, looks so dense!!!:)

Nice pictures SDTJ!!! I liked the first and the last one. Just beautiful!

Yeah ! That's it ! San Diego is one of my favorite cities in America, that pictures were excelent

[QUOTE=sdtj;19299038]Here some recent pics from our beautiful city.

Great pics, SDTJ! Thats last one was very 3 dimensional.

It's not our fault that there is nothing to report. :(

Here's something:

Marriot has proposed what would be the largest hotel on the West Coast - just east of Petco. They upped their room count to 1929 from an earlier 1650. That's a bold thing to do in a slow market!

It's in this U-T article:

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080328/news_1n28hotel.html

A 1,929 rooms in 500-foot towers will mean two new tallest for San Diego (or maybe 3? i hope so)

That last pic of San Diego during night is absolutely breath taking!

Does anyone have any information on how freeway lids over I-5 would be funded, and whether anything is currently in progress? CCDC's downtown plan shows freeway lids covering I-5 in a few locations east of East Village (p. 20) and north of Cortez (p. 30). They strike me as being a very attractive way to buffer downtown from the freeway and make physical connections to other neighborhoods, but I wonder how likely they are, and in what time frame.

http://www.ccdc.com/resources/resource_files/SDCP_06_Neighborhoods_Districts.pdf

whats the crane west of the convention center in the center portion of it? Is that for the building going up there or something else?

I may have to revisit the airport issue. Due to limited space in the San Diego Metropolitan Area, we may never build a new airport and get stuck with our current international airport, which is small by my standards.

^^It's small by EVERYONE's standards!

Beautiful banner isn't it?

^^ of course! :)

http://img88.imageshack.us/img88/6177/bannerla9.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

Awesome!

Pretty banner! ^_^

Great city.

New renderings for the 7th & Market mixed-use project...
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y289/bushman61988/SitePlanItem51.jpg
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y289/bushman61988/SitePlanItem5.jpg
um...it brings height to the area...and um...I don't know. I guess I like it. It's definitely unique.

Nice building, how you said, it's definitely unique, something different.

Any news of SAN?

Love that design! I've yet to see anything like it.

I think it's important for any city to work on density first. A tall skyline with density like Dubai looks bad. But, a short, dense skyline like that of SF is more amazing than that of LA's from the angles in which it looks empty. If the SD can get amazing density because of the height limit, maybe one day local government people will realize SD's problem and finally move the airport. Then, the density will be there and older, shorter buildings will be demolished in order to make room for tall buildings and the process can start over. I actually prefer SD's downtown to LA's because it's becoming denser. However, the only, and I mean only, downfall of DT SD is its height. There is plenty to do in the area and it is easy to live an urban lifestyle with the beach, shopping, eating, and ball park all in close proximity, unlike LA.

I can just picture 7th & Market, Strata, and Cosmo adding to the view from Petco Park.

DP

Edit, nevermind.

The artistically designed pedestrian bridge at Park Boulevard and Harbor Drive moved one step forward:

By Jeanette Steele
STAFF WRITER

April 24, 2008

DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO – San Diego's downtown redevelopment board greenlighted a scaled-back version of an iconic pedestrian bridge over Harbor Drive yesterday – and it will still cost $26.8 million.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080424/news_1m24bridge.html

Wow this thread is dead, we need some action in here. By the way who went to the Red Bull Air Race??? well, i was there and i took some pics..

A sunny day to enjoy the Air Race.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3166/2463484100_67afee2f35.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2078/2463484440_5f35802660.jpg?v=0

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2007/2462650987_0e51a7229a_b.jpg

And a video by me
NG-FguULcCI

Sorry for the quality, but it was taken with my iPhone.

It wasn't all about the Red Bull Air Race, i went there because i wanted to take pics of San Diego too :D,
Enjoy!
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3101/2462652547_050b0dc67e_b.jpg

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Grand Hyatt (left) and Hotel Mariott
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2365/2463488490_9f779498a4_b.jpg

Convention Center
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2008/2462653993_ae6947b62a_b.jpg

Yeah, finally some pics of the new Hilton..
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2081/2462654161_518c7deeab_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2140/2462654397_1e66193676_b.jpg

i really like its facade.
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2416/2463483222_87f01770cd_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2344/2462648371_04d1bf35eb_b.jpg

A taxicab
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2087/2463482822_65d7ea3593_b.jpg

We miss the shuttle and we had to walk to the parking lot :bash:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3035/2463489250_c8cdb6076b_b.jpg

Gaslamp Quarter trolley station
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2031/2463489450_04751e75ef_b.jpg

Gaslamp Quarter
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2129/2463489890_02be93298b_b.jpg

I forgot the name of this hotel, is it the OMNI hotel?
http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2400/2463490080_8709cc958c_b.jpg

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3135/2463482582_3dd64a3229_b.jpg

Damn i wanted to go to the race. btw... did they charge anything?

Hi, all.

Yes, that was the Omni Hotel next to Petco Park in your shot. The nearly finished building you liked (the facade) was the new San Diego Hilton Bayfront. It will be in a nice location and will open up the access to the bay farther south than it currently is for walkers. That was a nice shot you took of the beginning of the Gaslamp district on 5th Avenue.

They did charge for the Red Bull Air Races, but you could see them for free from most places near the bay. We watched them from our roof. Those pilots are awesome, most at the end of their race did a "little something" extra, some of which took our breath away, before they left. Spirals, loops and dives. The Red Bull Helicopter which swooped in after some of the planes to see if they had clipped a pilon or maybe just for safety, did a show of it's own while waiting for the final scoring. Wow! Did you know that helicopters can fiy loops...even go upside down? Caused a few dropped jaws in our crowd, anyway.

So are we all just waiting for the next groundbreaking? The Sapphire Tower just topped off in the Columbia District at Kettner and B. The Aria has tenants moving in at Ninth and Ash. Vantage Pointe (which is huge) between Ninth and Tenth, A and B just reached the 13th floor. Plans are to finish it by early 2009, but we all know how that goes. Groundreaking will soon start at Ten Fifty B, 226 units of affordable rental units located on B between Tenth and Eleventh. First they have to tear down the Jack-In-The-Box. It will open again as a tenant in the building, by the way.

Can't wait until things pick up a little more. But for now, quite a few commercial tenants are moving in around the ballpark. By the way, great burgers at the East Village Tavern and Bowl on Market.:cheers:

Bud

Yes, this thread is really dead! Thank you for sharing your pictures Alex! I love Downtown San Diego! well, except for the Homeless haha. But again, what downtown doesn't? :)

Wow the first post since i posted this thread last Saturday.

Damn i wanted to go to the race. btw... did they charge anything?Yeah, just $15 bucks at the Embarcadero South Island.

Wow the first post since i posted this thread last Saturday.

Yeah, just $15 bucks at the Embarcadero South Island.

that was cheap, i should of gone btw anyways i guess next year... i might go to the padres game on saturday. Maybe, if i go ill bring some pics

San Diego hotel construction blast caused by gas leakBy ALLISON HOFFMAN05/20/08 11:07:48

Leaking natural gas caused an explosion that injured 14 construction workers and damaged four floors of an unfinished 30-story hotel, authorities said Tuesday.

The blast at the bayside Hilton Monday afternoon was an apparent accident, caused by a gas leak in a fifth-floor utility room, said San Diego Fire-Rescue spokesman Maurice Luque. Investigators had not determined what ignited the gas.

"We're not sure what it was, but it could have been electrical or the flames from the boilers," Luque said.
Three workers who suffered second- and third-degree burns, one over 35 percent of his body, were in medically induced comas at UCSD Medical Center. A fourth was stable and in good condition, said hospital spokeswoman Kimberly Edwards. Six other workers were released Monday night.

One worker remained in fair condition at Scripps Mercy Hospital and three others treated there were released, said hospital spokeswoman Kristin Reinhardt.

Doctors said injured workers described a bright light and brief, intense heat consistent with a gas explosion.

Investigators from the state Division of Occupational Safety and Health were questioning workers to determine what happened in the moments before the blast, which filleted the sides of large metal boilers and sent glass and facade material showering onto a hotel driveway below.

Witnesses said they heard a loud blast and saw a puff of smoke blow out the side of the hotel. The explosion damaged floors four through seven of the building, Mayor Jerry Sanders said.

The 30-story Hilton San Diego Bayfront hotel was scheduled to open in December, according to Hilton's Web site. It will have 1,190 rooms and more than 165,000 square feet of meeting space.

Hilton Hotels Corp. has not taken possession of the hotel from the builder, Hensel Phelps Construction Co., said Karima Zaki, the hotel's vice president for new development. She said it was too early to know whether the hotel will open on schedule.

Hensel Phelps officials declined to comment on questions sent by e-mail.


http://media.fresnobee.com/smedia/2008/05/19/20/257Hotel_Blast.sff.embedded.prod_affiliate.8.jpg

http://media.fresnobee.com/smedia/2008/05/19/20/50Hotel_Blast.sff.embedded.prod_affiliate.8.jpg

More pics.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3160/2506228605_08f222e64d_b.jpg

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2405/2506141113_f448987904_o.jpg

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http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2020/2507732152_c7f81ed5f4_b.jpg

it doesnt look like there was too much structural damage... does anyone know? any updates on the Hilton??

They are still working on the damaged area but the upper part has been complete, at least from what i can observe whenever i look at the Hilton.
I just came across this fantastic night panorama of the bayfront:)

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3087/2554829299_7695167812_b.jpg

Wow, amazing pic, did u take it??

Nope.
I'm waiting to get my Casio Exilim 10 MP Camera with Youtube mode from Radio Shack.

An amazing shot!!

Today is the fireworks in The Big Bay , Somebody bring pics because i will not go to the fireworks ... :ohno:

I love San Diego, esp the Gaslamp and Embocadero.

The only downside, for me, with San Diego is a lack of suitable public transport options.

Trolley works pretty good. Plus the city is so spread out.

The trolley's functional, but public transit could definetly be a lot better. I really like the monorail idea that was floating around a while back. Too bad the city doesn't have the mindset to persure such an undertaking.

Although, with gas at a crazy high, maybe now someone will make more of an effort to improve the situation, like this group promoting alternate solutions for San Diego public transportation (http://groups.myspace.com/sdmonorail)

Does anyone know what is going on at the northeast corner of 16th and Broadway? It's fenced off, and it looks like a basement/foundation is being dug.

The trolley's functional, but public transit could definetly be a lot better. I really like the monorail idea that was floating around a while back. Too bad the city doesn't have the mindset to persure such an undertaking.

Although, with gas at a crazy high, maybe now someone will make more of an effort to improve the situation, like this group promoting alternate solutions for San Diego public transportation (http://groups.myspace.com/sdmonorail)


I just worry about the cost of such a large project for the city.

Me in San Diego...last week :)

http://i197.photobucket.com/albums/aa61/Occit/Yo_SDBay.jpg

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http://img440.imageshack.us/img440/9118/sandiegosony048kk1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

http://img239.imageshack.us/img239/3815/p8050006kn1.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

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http://img522.imageshack.us/img522/4172/p8070118ew3.jpg (http://imageshack.us)

:) i've fallen in love with SD

Everyone falls in love with San Diego. Those are some great shots!

I love San Diego too! Time to put some life into this thread. . .

Here are the 2 designs proposed for a new city hall. According to studies, it would save money in the long run to build and house city gov't personnel as opposed to leasing the current buildings.

The Gerding Proposal
http://photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/albums/cityhalldesigns/SDC_02Street_008_iR2.jpg

http://photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/albums/cityhalldesigns/SDC_02Street_008_iR2.jpg

http://photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/albums/cityhalldesigns/SDC_03BStreet_DL3_edited_3_AH.jpg

Which design do you like?

The Hines Proposal
http://photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/albums/cityhalldesigns/Rendering_Plaza_View_toward_Tower_7_16_08.jpg

http://photos.signonsandiego.com/gallery1.5/albums/cityhalldesigns/Rendering_C_Street_7_15_08.jpg

'Green' developer has lower-cost proposal to rebuild City Hall

By Jeanette Steele
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO – The numbers are in: Gerding Edlen, the cutting-edge “green” developer from Oregon, has the lower-cost proposal to rebuild San Diego's City Hall.
Downtown redevelopment officials have done an initial financial analysis of proposals by the two Civic Center contenders, after the drawings and concepts were unveiled last month.

Gerding's best-case scenario will cost the city $628 million over 50 years. The only scenario offered by its competition, Hines Corp., carries a price tag of at least $784 million over the same stretch.

Analysts say either of those proposals would save the city money compared to maintaining its current old buildings and leasing private offices, which will cost San Diego taxpayers more than $1 billion over 50 years.

Hines' spokesman said boiling it down to competing numbers doesn't tell the whole story.

“These proposals are very complex and very difficult to compare,” said Paul Twardowski, a Hines vice president. “As time goes on those details will become clear, and we are confident about how our project will show.”

Portland-based Gerding is competing against Texas-based Hines, the company that built Petco Park, for the job of overhauling the four-block downtown civic center.

The Centre City Development Corp. is shepherding the two proposals through the process, which will culminate with the City Council making a decision this fall about whether to go forward and with which developer. Mayor Jerry Sanders has said it won't happen unless taxpayers stand to save money.

CCDC has hired outside consultant Jones Lang LaSalle to evaluate the financial projections in the two plans.

Both developers unveiled their proposals three weeks ago, minus the cost details. On looks alone, they are starkly different concepts.

Hines went conservative, proposing a 19-story office building and a four-story glass-enclosed City Hall which would house the City Council chamber and mayor's office.

Going for iconic, Gerding's plan calls for a 500-foot sail-like building with wind turbines at the top and about 2 million square feet of private development on the surrounding blocks. The council chamber would be in a separate ground-floor building enclosed in glass.

Under both proposals, the city could lease its new buildings from the developer for 30 years.

The big difference between the two, according to the consultant's analysis, is Gerding would pay the city $66 million starting in 2012 to buy 2.75 acres of the city's 6-acre block for private offices, shops and housing. The payment could be higher if the city opts to rent that land to Gerding on a longterm lease.

In addition, Gerding plans to construct a larger city office building than the city initially needs. That gives the city a place to grow, according to the analyst.

Hines' proposal provides the city officials the space they require now, but the city would need to rent more office space if the workforce expands, upping its operations costs.

Gerding's plan also would offer the city nearly $500,000 in yearly sales tax at completion. The city would get little sales tax revenue from the Hines concept, as that company only proposed 12,000 square feet of shops.

Gerding spokesman Tom Cody said the difference is how densely his firm is proposing to fill the site.

“We are using an acre and a half to build the same thing Hines is using 4 acres to do,” he said.
Hines has questioned whether there's a market for a big private development there.

But downtown officials said there's a failsafe if Gerding's plans for shops and private offices fall apart. The city would still own the unused land to develop as it chooses or to sell for a profit.They also said looks and numbers are not the only thing. In addition, when making a recommendation CCDC will evaluate criteria such as urban design, energy efficiency, how the deals are structured, how each plan handles the location of Fire Station 1 and how much it might spark future downtown development.

I vote for the Gerding design.

I like the Gerding Proposal. It proposes some public open space, something I think downtown San Diego can use more of. So aside from the building, I think the design of the site has a lot of potential. For the record I don't really know how much open space Hines was proposing, relative to Gerding.

For the sake of making an efficient building, the Gerding proposal even considers the position of the sun during different times of year.

I assume you read it, but yesterday's UT reported that Hines withdrew its proposal.

I'm not from San Diego, but my vote would have been for Gerding.

Hey,

Well, its taken a while but I've finally moved to SD. Took a detour to holland for a few years, but I've finally settled in Eastlake.

The Gerding has to win right? Its an iconic building that san Diego has been yearning for! would make a great addition!

Just been trying to find some news on the ballpark District proposal by JMI realty. Does anyone have any news on this or are they stuck battling opposition?

Same goes for the NBC? What's happening with that? With both these projects, don't you think downtown would look amazing? or is that just my opinion?

I like the Gerding. BTW, great pictures Occit. I was at that Marriott...on the waterfront in the South Tower last year at around this time. San Diego is a great city. Your airport needs work, and definitely does not belong in the middle of the city like it is now.

Little Italy is great. :D

The gerding design is by far the best.

Hey,

Well, its taken a while but I've finally moved to SD. Took a detour to holland for a few years, but I've finally settled in Eastlake.

The Gerding has to win right? Its an iconic building that san Diego has been yearning for! would make a great addition!

Just been trying to find some news on the ballpark District proposal by JMI realty. Does anyone have any news on this or are they stuck battling opposition?

Same goes for the NBC? What's happening with that? With both these projects, don't you think downtown would look amazing? or is that just my opinion?

Gerding's design won by default since the less than spectacular Hines proposal pulled out of the contest. It's now all up to the voters to approve of financing. (whenever that'll be)

As for the JMI project, all it's going to be is a gigantic 2 tower (500ft each) Marriott hotel. It will be the largest hotel on the West Coast. The design has been criticized for its blandness and lack of excitement at street level.

Navy Broadway Complex is still on hold. Construction has been pushed back as far as I know. The developer (Manchester) has also been criticized for its unimaginative architecture.

As for the JMI project, all it's going to be is a gigantic 2 tower (500ft each) Marriott hotel. It will be the largest hotel on the West Coast. The design has been criticized for its blandness and lack of excitement at street level.

Do you have a rendering?

Here's the JMI Marriott aka "Ballpark Village"

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n71/farleybrandon/SD%20Bldg%20Pics/Marriot072308.jpg

And this is Navy Broadway Complex which are the 6 towers of varying height on the right side. Another big project called Lane Field are the 2 shorter towers on the left.


Images are courtesy of BMFarley and SDurban who post frequently on SSP.com

http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y120/Jaygergon/downtown%20development%203/lane1.jpg

Does anyone know what is going on at the northeast corner of 16th and Broadway? It's fenced off, and it looks like a basement/foundation is being dug.

I have also seen a whole lot cleared in that area (16th & Broadway) but I can't figured out which project it is.

It can be either:
1050 B
http://www.ccdc.com/images/propertyImages/Ten%20Fifty%20B_Web.jpg

or Gateway
http://www.ccdc.com/images/propertyImages/16&G-CCDC.jpg

Here's the JMI Marriott aka "Ballpark Village"

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n71/farleybrandon/SD%20Bldg%20Pics/Marriot072308.jpg

This project was cancelled today.

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/20080829-1612-bn29marriot.html

I don't live in San Diego (visited a few times) and so i son't understand the socio-economic climate there, but i understand there were a lot of people against this project and are happy it was scrapped. If Albuquerque lost a project like this, I'd be devastated.

ABQist: I see this land as being a place where development will occur at some point, and therefore the public can be discerning about the development that goes there - though some of the comments that followed the newspaper article in ablask's post were probably motivated by nimbyism.

I'm hopefull that, starting with clean slate, we can avoid development with any CCDC conflict of interest.

ABQist: I see this land as being a place where development will occur at some point, and therefore the public can be discerning about the development that goes there - though some of the comments that followed the newspaper article in ablask's post were probably motivated by nimbyism.

I'm hopefull that, starting with clean slate, we can avoid development with any CCDC conflict of interest.

Yes, I understand that this is not a huge loss for SD as they have a very nice skyline with plenty of towers. You could even see something better built on that site. Here in ABQ we have a 500' tower on the drawing board which would be the crown jewel of our skyline. If it falls through I might just move to SD! :)

I'm not worried about the Marriott being cancelled. The project looked like crap anyways.

The site (next to Petco Park) is too good of a location to not be developed. Something better can be planned for that area like mixed-use. . .offices, hotel, residences, and commercial.

Finally we hear some news about the CHST

San Diego Hosts High-Speed Train Meeting
Officials Praise Plans to Bring High-Speed Trains to San Diego with Local Collaboration; Planners Discuss Transportation to the Airport

Last update: 1:45 p.m. EDT Sept. 3, 2008
SAN DIEGO, Sep 03, 2008 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- San Diego-area officials today told the California High-Speed Rail Authority they expect a broad range of environmental and economic benefits if voters approve Proposition 1A, the plan on the November ballot to build a high-speed train system linking major California cities from San Diego to San Francisco and Sacramento.
"The presence of the California High-Speed Rail Authority here in San Diego marks the start of an era -- an era of improved mobility throughout the state and an era that ensures San Diego has a place at the table when it comes time to disperse Proposition 1A funds to build the high-speed rail system," said Gary Gallegos, executive director of the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG).
High-Speed Rail Authority Board Member Lynn Schenk, a long-time advocate for high-speed rail and the region, highlighted the importance of bringing high-speed train service to San Diego.
Schenk noted that Governor Schwarzenegger's signing of AB 3034 into law last week was important to assure that San Diego would receive critical Proposition 1A funding. "We've taken the first step," she said, praising the Authority board for working side by side with local transportation planners.
"The San Diego-Los Angeles corridor has been the second-busiest passenger rail corridor in the US for a long time," said Schenk. "We have stalled on building another airport and our freeways going north are a river of red brake lights.
"In other countries with high-speed trains, there is clean economic development and jobs wherever there are stations. Because of all that, I have devoted the past 25 years to bringing high-speed rail to San Diego and the state. I am enormously proud of having the bill I authored in Congress signed into law creating the first five high-speed train planning corridors -- including San Diego through the Central Valley to the Bay area.
"High-speed rail is key to improving our mobility, our air quality and our quality of life in general. I welcome the support of SANDAG and the Regional Airport Authority. It will take all of us working together to make high-speed rail a reality in San Diego and California."
Gallegos said a newly signed memorandum of understanding with the High-Speed Rail Authority to start planning and engineering work on the LA-San Diego corridor "is extremely important because it also demonstrates that designing and building the system will benefit from significant local involvement and collaboration."
Judge Quentin Kopp, chairman of the High-Speed Rail Authority Board, commended Gallegos and SANDAG for pushing the MOU through. "It will expedite the environmental and engineering work necessary to make this corridor ready for construction," Kopp said.
San Diego officials briefed the board on local transportation priorities such as an inter-modal transit center at San Diego's international airport, Lindbergh Field. Charlene Zettel, director of the San Diego County Regional Airport Authority, noted that airport congestion represents a problem all across California, and San Diego is no exception.
According to Zettel, "High-speed rail is yet another tool for helping ensure economic strength in the region by increasing mobility. We have unique challenges with Lindbergh Field that make it even more critical that we work for alternative travel modes that provide convenient, high quality transportation for the community."
Board Chairman Kopp said that with Proposition 1A, voters will have the opportunity to approve important fiscal protections and cost controls. He noted that this November, "San Diegans will be able to vote on a high-speed train system grounded in public-private financing and guided by fiscal accountability with the guarantee of no new taxes to fund the system.
"Once completed, we will see improvements to our air quality, reductions in greenhouse gas emissions, congestion relief on our highways, and greater mobility," stated Kopp.
The California High-Speed Rail Authority is responsible for building and operating the high-speed train system if voters approve the bond measure. The Authority also is responsible for coordinating integration of conventional intercity train and bus networks into the 800-mile high-speed train system, which will operate at speeds up to 220 mph. The system is forecast to carry over 100 million passengers per year by 2030 with an expected trip time from San Diego to Los Angeles in about an hour and 18 minutes.

SOURCE: California High-Speed Rail Authority
http://www.marketwatch.com/news/story/san-diego-hosts-high-speed-train/story.aspx?guid={1112BB2A-5BDD-42FD-B7F6-5B8A59C38C3F}&dist=hppr

On a bike ride today, I saw what looks like a walkway being built on the bay side of the Bayside Hilton. It looks like it would be an extension of the walkways that extend from Spanish Landing to the Convention Center.

Is it part of the code for bayside development and redevelopment to provide such walkways?

^^I don't think it's part of any code but more of a goal to accomplish by the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan.

Convention center has plan for expansion
New wing would be along existing building
By Jeanette Steele
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080923/images/convn220.gif
The San Diego Convention Center is taking the first step toward a major expansion that would enable it to keep big-ticket conventions such as Comic-Con.
Today, convention center officials will announce the plans and answer the first question: Where? The answer: Alongside the existing building, closer to the bay.

The officials say buying a one-year option on 16 acres of Port of San Diego land gives them time to figure out another major question: How will they pay for an expansion?

The convention center's board plans to increase the facility's size by up to 300,000 square feet of exhibit space by 2014.

Ultimately, the board would like to double the current 525,000 square feet, but it's uncertain if there's enough room on the land that they would use.

Officials said yesterday that a new wing would likely allow them to keep Comic-Con International, the homegrown annual convention that draws about 125,000 people to downtown and has become a national pop-culture juggernaut.

They say it will save more than a dozen other less glitzy but lucrative conventions, including the BIO International Convention and the American Institute of Architects.

“This is just good business. So we are overjoyed to be able to expand our contribution to the community,” said Cheryl Kendrick, chairwoman of the nonprofit corporate board that runs the convention center for the city.

The behemoth on the bay now delivers $31.9 million a year to San Diego's civic coffers via hotel and sales taxes, and it estimates its annual economic impact at $1.8 billion.

Convention center officials have long said they are operating at full capacity. Shortly after the first expansion in 2001, they started talking about the need for more room.

Other cities – Phoenix and Anaheim, for example – are increasing their convention space in a leapfrogging phenomenon that has gone on for decades. San Diego, now home to the 10th-largest meeting center, needs to keep pace, officials said.

“We're protecting the third-largest industry that we have,” said Carol Wallace, convention center chief executive.

On Friday, the board is scheduled to vote to obtain a one-year option on port land next to the convention center. The price would be $1 million, plus an additional $13.5 million after a year if the board decides to move forward.

Two developers had long planned to build a 250-room boutique hotel called The Spinnaker on part of the property and hold a lease through 2024. Instead, the convention center and a hotel of undetermined size would take over.
Convention officials will take a year to work out the details: how to finance an expansion, what it will look like and how it will fit. Funding would probably come from borrowing against convention center revenues, Wallace said, but they are far from a complete proposal.

“We have purchased a year to figure this out,” Kendrick said.

Adding another wrinkle, another major convention space is brewing in Chula Vista, just south along the bayfront. Gaylord Entertainment has proposed a resort hotel of 1,500 to 2,000 rooms with 400,000 square feet of meeting space. The Chula Vista project, on the table since 2005, isn't expected to receive permits until the end of next year.

San Diego convention officials said they don't view Gaylord's proposal as competition because of its smaller size.

Another potential player departed last month. Marriott was seeking permits for a 1,900-room hotel with 215,000 square feet of convention space next to Petco Park. But Marriott dropped the plan, citing the tight credit market.

Convention officials say the downtown facility with its trademark white sail roof has performed well for the city, but will become obsolete if it doesn't expand.

Capacity has run above 60 percent, viewed as full capacity, since 2003. Last year, the center attracted 996,226 visitors who paid for more than 729,696 nights in hotel rooms.

The port paid cash for the initial convention center, completed in 1989 as part of a downtown revitalization program.

The 2001 expansion was financed by bonds that are being paid off by the city and the port. The port's share is $4.5 million; the city's is $9.2 million. The city also gives the convention center an annual stipend of $4.3 million to keep up the building.

Mayor Jerry Sanders is supportive of the growth plan, his press secretary said yesterday.

“The convention center is one of the best investments the taxpayers of San Diego have ever made,” said spokesman Darren Pudgil.

10-4. Thank you Mongozx.

I'm in favor of the concept of a new convention center. I think it is important that any proposal maintains a promenade/walkway along the bay, which is accessible to the public.

This article is about 2 weeks old:

Cable car line proposed to link San Diego Bay and Balboa Park

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080914/images/home-cablecar280.gif

By Roger Showley
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
September 14, 2008
People in San Diego have been talking about linking San Diego Bay and Balboa Park for a century, but it's taken a group of University of Oklahoma landscape architecture students to come up with a new twist on an old goal.
Working for a month with students at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design in San Diego, four Oklahoma graduate students proposed building a 3.7-mile cable car line from the Embarcadero up Laurel Street to the entrance to the park.

“I think San Diego is such an outdoor, friendly city that it would attract a lot of people to it as a main link to all the destinations,” said Adrian Cook, one of the visiting students.

Another student, Emily Hicks, said the project would include a park at the Solar Turbines plant, the location for a previous hotel-based redevelopment proposal, and a pedestrian bridge over Harbor Drive.

The students' professor, Tom Schurch, a landscape architect who used to live in San Diego, called the cable car idea a “poetic solution” to linking San Diego's two prime attractions, the bay and park.

John Nolen, a landscape architect who crafted the city's first master plan in 1908, proposed a link along Date Street. The 1938 County Administration Center at the foot of Cedar Street was the start of an aborted mall that would have connected the bay and park.
The students, who spent most of July in San Diego, staying at the Armed Forces YMCA building downtown, also proposed turning about 50 acres of Mission Valley's Riverwalk golf course into an “agro-cultural park,” where visitors could see the benefits of urban farm production. Cook said the plan included enough space for an executive-style golf course.

The students did not analyze the financial feasibility of either project, but Schurch said that wasn't the point.

“One of the things we tried to get people to understand is from (Daniel) Burnham – 'Make no little plans,'

^^

Now that sounds interesting... :)

nice !! it will look just like San Francisco, even better.

We will be heading down to Diego County this winter (we are from Indiana) and we'd like to see Legoland. Does anyone have any suggestions on a good place to stay near Legoland along with a phone number to make a reservation and which bus can we take from the hotel to Legoland? We tried using internet travel sites but it does get confusing. Thanks for your help.

^^
Try these sites..

http://www.legolandtravel.com/295_hotel-list_m10_r329800.html

http://www.san-diego-attractions.10-best.info/legoland.html

http://www.innsofamerica.com/specials.php

Hope it helps..

Great! Thank you.

Thanks Vrysxy:) It´s really good to hear about the HST again...

This article is about 2 weeks old:

Cable car line proposed to link San Diego Bay and Balboa Park

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20080914/images/home-cablecar280.gif

By Roger Showley
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
September 14, 2008
People in San Diego have been talking about linking San Diego Bay and Balboa Park for a century, but it's taken a group of University of Oklahoma landscape architecture students to come up with a new twist on an old goal.
Working for a month with students at the NewSchool of Architecture and Design in San Diego, four Oklahoma graduate students proposed building a 3.7-mile cable car line from the Embarcadero up Laurel Street to the entrance to the park.

“I think San Diego is such an outdoor, friendly city that it would attract a lot of people to it as a main link to all the destinations,” said Adrian Cook, one of the visiting students.

Another student, Emily Hicks, said the project would include a park at the Solar Turbines plant, the location for a previous hotel-based redevelopment proposal, and a pedestrian bridge over Harbor Drive.

The students' professor, Tom Schurch, a landscape architect who used to live in San Diego, called the cable car idea a “poetic solution” to linking San Diego's two prime attractions, the bay and park.

John Nolen, a landscape architect who crafted the city's first master plan in 1908, proposed a link along Date Street. The 1938 County Administration Center at the foot of Cedar Street was the start of an aborted mall that would have connected the bay and park.
The students, who spent most of July in San Diego, staying at the Armed Forces YMCA building downtown, also proposed turning about 50 acres of Mission Valley's Riverwalk golf course into an “agro-cultural park,” where visitors could see the benefits of urban farm production. Cook said the plan included enough space for an executive-style golf course.

The students did not analyze the financial feasibility of either project, but Schurch said that wasn't the point.

“One of the things we tried to get people to understand is from (Daniel) Burnham – 'Make no little plans,'

O that would be awesome. Then maybe it could go down the prado and intersect with another line they could run down park blvd that connected the zoo and petco park. Maybe that is a bit much but it could be cool. On park blvd they could share the trolley tracks and just put cables underneath. Could work but I like how the prado is mostly a pedestrian promenade so I guess not.

It is a nice project! Right now, how the tourist travel from the bay to Balboa Park? Only charters? I dont really know about buses in SD, only from the border to Downtown on trolley.

It is a nice project! Right now, how the tourist travel from the bay to Balboa Park? Only charters? I dont really know about buses in SD, only from the border to Downtown on trolley.

They can just take a city bus. Which bus to take depends on which side of the park you want to get off at. The 7 takes you to the eastern side of the park, whereas another bus takes you to the western side.

It would be a little silly to take charters to Balboa from Downtown, seeing as how close it is. Plus indiviual tourists wouldn't take a charter anyway.

I was actually surprised to see the cable car idea... then I saw that it was a group of graduate students who where proposing the concept.

So it will never be built.


---it's good to be back---

PS--

When did this place become a mini-facebook?!

I just saw I have a profile page with a friends section and everything...

...sorry, its been a while.

^^This is SSC's attempt to steal business away from Myspace and Facebook. I think they can pull it off :)

:cucumber:Footbridge to Petco Park under construction:banana:

By Jeanette Steele
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER

Construction crews are boring the first holes for a landmark $26.8 million downtown San Diego footbridge, in part so that Padres fans can cross safely to their cars from nearby Petco Park.
At a groundbreaking ceremony Thursday, Mayor Jerry Sanders lauded the start of the sometimes-controversial Harbor Drive project while defending its cost and importance. The project's price has ballooned from an estimated $12.8 million in 2005 at a time of tight city budgets and new revenue shortfalls.

The southwest side of the bridge connects to a 2,000-spot parking garage and a Hilton hotel that will open in December.

But the northeast side will now lead only to an empty parking lot instead of the luxury Marriott hotel once envisioned – though property owner JMI Realty, Padres owner John Moores' development company, is looking for a new hotelier after Marriott dropped out.

Sanders said the city's $11.1 million contribution was worthwhile because San Diego needed a bridge if it wanted to reopen the Park Boulevard pedestrian crossing that was closed for the ballpark. Also, the money is coming from downtown redevelopment taxes, which can't be used elsewhere in San Diego.

“The project had to move forward,” Sanders said after the ceremony. “And the fact that the community wanted an iconic structure, and we worked with them, I think it makes it a good use of money.”
Here's how the funding breaks down:

$11.1 million from the city's downtown redevelopment district

$6 million from a grant tied to a 2006 transportation state bond

$4.9 million from Moores' company

$2.8 million from the Federal Highway Administration

$2 million from a state transportation program

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/metro/images/081023bridge123.jpg

Wow, finally :banana:

great news

I was wondering when that was going to start up.

Liking the design, definetly. I think its worth 26 million.

See below article for news about a change from condo proposal to hotel proposal in Hillcrest.

Do any of you know any history of this development? Would this new proprosal's condo predecessor have stood out over the rest of Hillcrest?

http://www.signonsandiego.com/uniontrib/20081115/news_1cz15hotel.html

--------------------------------------------------------
New development plans get a warmer reception

By Jennifer Vigil
STAFF WRITER

November 15, 2008

HILLCREST – Downtown won't be the only place to find a fashionable hotel, if a Hillcrest development that once inspired great protest continues to take shape.

The $48 million project replaces a 12-story condominium complex, known by its address, 301 University, that drew fire from neighbors two years ago.

They have started demo work at Broadway, between 8th and 9th Avenues.

When looking at the full skyline a few pages back a lot of the new buildings remind me of the newer buildings remind me of some of the newer ones coming up in Melbourne right now.

Great city.

another bus takes you to the western side.


That would be the 30

So I've read that they're now considering putting a school (high school apparently) into the new main library project in order to get enough funds to not lose a state grant and to finally get the project going. Thoughts? Anybody know anything else about this?

I've been hearing about building a new main library for years and always wonder whether it'll ever happen. I personally don't think it ever will. A shame really, because other major cities seem to have wonderful and large main libraries that really make it a pleasure to go there, whereas San Diego has what it has, a relic from the 50's.

Just look at what Denver, San Francisco, and Los Angeles have.

The below article says construction could start as soon as September, 2009. I pasted the first paragraph of the article below.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/jan/09/1m9lane002036-57-acre-project-lane-field-okd/?uniontrib


5.7-acre project at Lane Field OK'd

By Ronald Powell (Contact) Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. January 9, 2009

DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO — Developers of a major waterfront hotel project at Lane Field, home of the old Pacific Coast League Padres, got state approval yesterday to put their $400 million development in play.

----

And here is Hostel International's perspective on the same:

New HI-San Diego Hostel Approved!

HI-San Diego is on its way to becoming part of Port Tidelands!

Greetings Hostel Supporters!

We are pleased to announce that at yesterdays hearing, the California Coastal Commission approved the Lane Field Development Project, which includes a building a 400-bed hostel on Port Tidelands in the City of San Diego.

The Commissioners had a positive response to the proposal, recognizing the important contributions of hostelling to the community of San Diego.

Thank you to everyone who has expressed support for this project - we appreciate you helping our Council grow!

Best Regards,

Sue Schaffner
Executive Director
Hostelling International USA, San Diego Council




5.7-acre project at Lane Field OK'd

----

hey guys I am a new member and I just wanted to say whats up. I live in Encanto, which is a neighborhood in the city of San Diego so hi everyone. I look forward to see my city change with all the cool projects downtown and so on.:banana:

What's the rush in developing Lane Field ? They should take their time, like with the airport and the library. ;)

Just visited downtown for the first time and it is by far the best city I've ever been to.
The Gaslamp was perfectly diverse and had an incredible atmosphere 24 hours long.
And Balboa Park was amazing...one of the best weekends of my life.

The federal government, state gov., counties and cities in Cali. are beyond broke and laying off and cutting services, having their bond ratings go to junk, pension funds collapsing in S.D. and people on this board are wishing for their new Library? Are you serious?

Umm, keep in mind that this is a pro-urban/skyscraper/development website and if we had our way we'd get the airport moved to Miramar and build 800-900 footers on every parking lot in downtown. The library would be icing on the cake.

Keep your panty hose on, Nancy.

[QUOTE=mongozx;32362606]Umm, keep in mind that this is a pro-urban/skyscraper/development website and if we had our way we'd get the airport moved to Miramar and build 800-900 footers on every parking lot in downtown. The library would be icing on the cake.

Actually, I own two condo units in downtown. How many do you have? I am more interested in quality of life, low taxes and reasonable government spending than dreaming unrealistic fantasies paid for with other peoples money.

Why do you own 2 condo units? Can't unload them?

Look, it doesn't make sense for you to take your politically charged tantrums here. Take it back to signonsandiego.com.

posted by a forumer @ SSP:
CCDC approved design review of a new downtown 19-floor tower; Ariel Suites in Little Italy. The site is located on the southwest corner of Kettner & Beech. It will be right in front of the whales mural on the side of a bank. Here's a screen capture.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n71/farleybrandon/SD%20Bldg%20Pics/ArielSuites1.jpg

They really need to raise San Diego's Height limit, San Diego's Skyscrapers are short compared to LA's and San Frans... D:

http://www.10news.com/news/18787657/detail.html#-

Chargers, Padres To Be Downtown Neighbors?
SAN DIEGO -- The idea of having two stadiums in one area has been done before in places like Pittsburgh and Baltimore.
Now, it could possibly happen in San Diego.
Plans are being discussed for a football stadium between Petco Park and 16th Street in San Diego's East Village, 10News reported.
Although the San Diego Chargers are interested in building a stadium in the area, there are no immediate plans.
However, the mere idea is more enticing than ever before.
The Chargers are still looking for a new stadium to call home, and the East Village has drawn the team's attention.
"There is a lot more talk about it around town than before, probably because land values have gone down," said Chargers' Special Counsel Mark Fabiani.
The team would also piggyback off the infrastructure already in place for Petco Park.
"You wouldn't have to build any roads, freeways, trolley stops, parking; it's all there," said Fabiani.
Fabiani told 10News the location and amenities could cut construction costs by roughly $300 million, but the team would still need to find 30 acres in this crowded area.
"It's going to be hard to find 30 acres that you can afford and that you can acquire without displacing people," said Fabiani.
Some nearby building are already empty, like an old Wonder Bread building built in 1884. But it could be the next Western Metal Supply building, only this time for a football stadium.
"We hear talk about it. People have given us ideas about it. We've looked at them. But at this time I think it's premature to say that's a realistic option," said Fabiani.
Seven years is a long time when you look at any project.
Fabiani told a group of developers and business people in La Jolla Tuesday that the Chargers are still focused on two sites in Chula Vista, including the bayfront power plant.
But Fabiani did admit the East Village was interesting.
"It's certainly something we have on our radar, no doubt about it," said Fabiani.

A lot of empty lots in that area. Many proposed East Village condo projects scrapped. The infrastructure that already supports Petco Park is there. The only thing that Nimbys can bitch about is displacing some people and businesses. A possibility?

Not enough space to build it in East Village. You'd have to demolish a lot of businesses and residentials to make room for parking.

A lot of empty lots in that area. Many proposed East Village condo projects scrapped. The infrastructure that already supports Petco Park is there. The only thing that Nimbys can bitch about is displacing some people and businesses. A possibility?

For the moment. But it would take a long time for such a stadium project to be approved, so, the boom/bust pendulum of the San Diego real estate market might have already swung back, and forth, and back, by then.

I have a personal preference for a new stadium, but at National City, Chula Vista, (etc) or at the current Qualcomm Stadium site. My preference would be to keep downtown for uses that occur more often than 10+ times/year.

The Marriot Hotel:
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3003/2549791001_61634bc99e_b.jpg

Hi, Got to agree with MPOL, SD is a great city. We stayed at the Courtyard Marriott last year. The waterfront is beautiful, although plenty of scope for real improvement. Surprised at the number of homeless folk though, especially round the Gas lamp quarter. Enjoyed the Russian sub, and the weather is tremendous! Kids loved the zoo, and noticed the better part of the city was out towards that part of the city, but overall a really striking part of the world. Thanks.

Does anyone know what are they building next to Market Trolley Station??? There's a big whole right next to an apartment building, they're been digging for months.

No idea, but can anyone get a pic of strata up on here? I mean under construction.

They really need to raise San Diego's Height limit, San Diego's Skyscrapers are short compared to LA's and San Frans... D:

I do agree that the height limit should not be so low, but the low height limit has led to a very dense downtown, unlike LA. No CA city will ever compete with SF because it has height and density. LA has only height, SD has only density.

I do agree that the height limit should not be so low, but the low height limit has led to a very dense downtown, unlike LA. No CA city will ever compete with SF because it has height and density. LA has only height, SD has only density.

San Diego doesn't really have that much density. Really if you looked at an aerial shot of downtown San Diego you'll know for sure it's not that dense.


Here's a example now.


http://farm1.static.flickr.com/13/90803165_51d9002b1f.jpg


http://www.westcoastroads.com/california/images999/aerial_san_diego_01.jpg

The first pic is so old, i dont know about the second one because i can see the new Hilton Hotel.

San Diego has the potential to be dense. It won't have height anytime soon, but we should really focus on density. LA is denser then San Diego just as much as its taller.

And gahh!

We lost the Disney cruise port to LA!

Seriously, thats a blow to my SD-ego.

The first pic is so old, i dont know about the second one because i can see the new Hilton Hotel.

Don't mean to burst your bubble, but the first Pic of mine is current day as well.:ohno::bash:

Does anyone know what are they building next to Market Trolley Station??? There's a big whole right next to an apartment building, they're been digging for months.

Thomas Jefferson School of Law. In the past month or so they discovered a whale fossil, and before that they discovered a wooly mammoth. It may sound like too much to happen on one project, but I'm not kidding.

OMG so the mammoth that they found like two weeks ago, it was found there? Wow, i didnt know, do u know where i can see the render?

Oh nevermind, i just found it.
http://www.lajollacapitalpartners.com/img/recent_transactions/TJSL-Downtown.jpg

No idea, but can anyone get a pic of strata up on here? I mean under construction.

Let's see if this works. This would be my first post of a picture:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/embora/3406383006/

[QUOTE=embora;34538536]Let's see if this works. This would be my first post of a picture:

Can someone tell me how to insert photos from a flicker account? I downloaded some photos from a walk around town this past weekend, and I wanted to post them as updates, but after choosing "insert image" on Skyscraper City, and pressing "submit reply," it gives the red X in a box, as you see in my previous post.

Don't mean to burst your bubble, but the first Pic of mine is current day as well.:ohno::bash:
Actually, it looks like the first picture you posted is several years old as there are multiple recently built towers that are not shown (the mark, alta, vantage pointe, electra, bayside, sapphire tower, etc.)

great aerial shots though.

[QUOTE=embora;34538536]Let's see if this works. This would be my first post of a picture:

Can someone tell me how to insert photos from a flicker account? I downloaded some photos from a walk around town this past weekend, and I wanted to post them as updates, but after choosing "insert image" on Skyscraper City, and pressing "submit reply," it gives the red X in a box, as you see in my previous post.

You are most likely putting the wrong address in the "insert address" box.
Make sure the address of the image starts with "http" and ends with a ".jpg" or ".gif"


Just keep trying til it works:)

[QUOTE=embora;34538536]Let's see if this works. This would be my first post of a picture:

Can someone tell me how to insert photos from a flicker account? I downloaded some photos from a walk around town this past weekend, and I wanted to post them as updates, but after choosing "insert image" on Skyscraper City, and pressing "submit reply," it gives the red X in a box, as you see in my previous post.

Just copy the link with the ending ".jpg" then use this code link here

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3196/3406383006_91edec4bd4_b.jpg

Very nice! I haven't been downtown in a while, this is a very nice project. Thank you -Corey-.

Just copy the link with the ending ".jpg" then use this code link here


Okay, now I got it. Thank you, Corey. Here are two more of Strata:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3580/3405567185_71b885ba0b.jpg
As seen from 9th & G.


http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3655/3406376746_9b77b6b2a2.jpg
From 11th & Market.

The one in Corey's post below is from 10th and G.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3663/3405588479_bf5f165afa_m.jpg
"Vantage Pointe" from 13th & Broadway.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3418/3405586899_6bd12887c4_m.jpg
"Vantage Pointe" from 12th & C.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3558/3405583029_2235fbb177_m.jpg
"1050 B" from 9th & B.

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3618/3405579053_e494896b30_m.jpg
Not quite sure what this is. Does anyone know? Otherwise, I'm guessing its a City College expansion. From 17th & Broadway.

Thanx for the pics. :okay:

The 17th and Brd. project is probably the city college expansion. And Im surprised the 10th and B project is moving forward...

Hello,
I love San Diego but I think it can easily have a 200m+ tower, why do the tallest ones stop at 150m? Is it because downtown is close to the airport, so planes won't crash into any of them? I'm just very curious. A "spaceneedle" -like tower would be really awesome there. The SD skyline seen from TJ is incredible, just hoping someday SD has a 200M+ tall tower.

Hello,
I love San Diego but I think it can easily have a 200m+ tower, why do the tallest ones stop at 150m? Is it because downtown is close to the airport, so planes won't crash into any of them? I'm just very curious. A "spaceneedle" -like tower would be really awesome there. The SD skyline seen from TJ is incredible, just hoping someday SD has a 200M+ tall tower.
yep.

IF that was the case Las Vegas wouldnt have any tower.. hmm

The reason why we don't have any buildings 500ft+ is beause of the airports emergency land procedures. Las Vegas gets away with it (sort of) because they're airport has other alternatives for emergency landings. We will have a stunted skyline as long as lindberg is operating...or if some powerhouse developer tries to get a variance (very unlikely since the big developers in town now are content with the hight limits now).

Anywho, has anyone hard of any projects around the county? High-rises, malls, etc?

Ha that question comes up so often it should be part of the thread title.

Vegas is on flat land. You have buildings on one side and nothing on the other. In San Diego you have buildings on one side and hills on the other. Can't control how tall the hills are but you can control the buildings.

San Jose is in the same boat, except since the planes are literally flying OVER downtown, the limit is closer to 100m ;;

San Jose is in the same boat, except since the planes are literally flying OVER downtown, the limit is closer to 100m ;;

Haha, right I've been there. And I believe that airport is more built out than San Diego from the dot com boom.

This is an interesting image that appears in today's "Smokestacks & Geraniums" column in the SDUT. The sidebar gives some updates for these and other public projects in San Diego. Here's the url for the column, in case you're interested.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/apr/26/1h26smokes232353-what-about-our-space/?uniontrib

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3653/3477489226_1e375c6852.jpg?v=0

Interesting. I don't know how I feel about having a massive governmental district downtown, but hey, at least we know it will only keep growing....

As for the article, so true.

Wow finally, because those buildings are ugly.

Interesting. I don't know how I feel about having a massive governmental district downtown, but hey, at least we know it will only keep growing....

Indeed. Having a massive district like that also makes for a dead spot at night, where there is no inherent activity. While I think it's convenient to have it all in one place, it sure would be nice to get some of that land back on the taxroll.

I've been following the City Hall proposal, and there would be private sector tenants, in the two blocks that are labeled "2," in the graphic in my previous post.

Wow finally, because those buildings are ugly.

I agree wholeheartedly. I hope I'm not being too naive to think that anything that will pass muster with the City/CCDC today would be much better in every facet, than what is currently there. Does anyone know what the new federal building would look like?

I hope they satisfy my own pet interest in the area of the county and state buildings, and remove a skywalks or two, to open up the views corridors, and also to bring people onto the streets.

I actually don't have too much of an with skywalks as long as their isn't to many of them. They can really suck the life out of the street, but then again that area is dead anyways so I guess it really doesn't matter a whole lot.

I know a while back there was some talk of potentially building a new Chargers stadium downtown but I was wondering what the chances would be of putting in a multi-use arena downtown in east village in the area just east of Petco which currently is made up of empty lots and what looks to be older warehouses, etc. After watching the the Clavaliers game last nite and seeing the aerial shots of Cleveland's Quicken Loans Arena directly next to the Indian's stadium it seemed like it might be a good idea for San Diego to try as well. As mentioned before, all of the infrastructure is currently in place with transportation (freeways and trolleys), parking and hotels/bars/restaurants galore nearby. Also, an arena seems to be a lot more financially feasible and beneficial than a football stadium as it has the potential to get 40+ games of basketball a year (compared with 8ish for the NFL) along with additional uses for exhibition matches in hockey (heard the Phoenix Coyotes filed for bankruptcy and are looking for a new home...), arena football, the NCAA basketball tournament, etc along with helping to take the burden off of the expansion needs of the convention center. In addition, a basketball arena takes up much less space than a full sized football stadium and the size constraints would appear to fit in perfectly in that area from the aerial images I have seen. Obviously for it to be financially beneficial you would first need to lure away an NBA team (a huge step by any measure) but I don't understand why a market as large as San Diego wouldn't be able to entice a franchise like the struggling Grizzlies or even the Clippers to come back down to SD and become a beloved team rather than forever living in the shadow of and being viewed as the ugly little sister of the Lakers. I know people will also say that San Diego has had NBA teams before and have not been able to retain them but I think SD is a much different place these days and is more than capable of supporting a team. Also I think having an arena next to Petco would do a lot to liven up both the East Village and Downtown as a whole...

Not sure if this is even the right form to bring this up but watching last nite's Cleveland game and then tonite's Laker game and seeing all the fans walking the street and the Staples Center lighting up downtown LA I thought how cool it could be for SD...

Here is the best shot I could find of Progressive Field (Indian's stadium) in the bottom of the picture just below and to the left of Quicken Loans Arena (Cavaliers). Looks like something similar could be done in SD...

http://www.aboveallohio.com/images/stock/big/jacobs_field_progressive_field_cleveland_aerial.jpg


and here are some nice pictures of Staple's Center all lit up for a boxing match (another potential use for a future SD arena)...
http://myboxingfans.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/12/staples-center-700.jpg
http://www.geocities.com/los_angeles_coast/Staples_Center_Los_Angeles_aerial.jpg
http://everythinglosangeles.org/wp-content/uploads/2008/04/staples-center1.jpg


I can see it now...PetSmart Pavillion adjacent to Petco Park : )

I really dont understand the economics behind supporting and NBA franchise, but I know that San Diego is the largest metro without one. A downtown arena would be nice actually, but who would support it?

I think San Diego is big enough to support a successful franchise, but I wonder if that would be the case if their performance suffers.

My theory is that San Diego is actually smaller than its 1.2 million, when it comes to measuring viable sports fans. Its population total includes a lot of military, who come and go too quickly to become very loyal to local teams, and other transplants (like you're truly) who come with their own pre-existing loyalties. So local professional sports are more a diversion than a religion - or you go to root for your favorite team when they play the San Diego team. So in other words, if my theory holds salt, it is less than than the full population that would embrace San Diego sports teams.

Of course, full disclosure, I'm becoming a fan of the Padres in spite of their poor outlook. :)

^That makes so much sense.

Does anyone know of any mall developments going on in the region? I know the old drive in theater in Oceanside is set to become a massive 900k sqft mall. I saw renderings of it somewhere, if I can find them again I'll post.

I know they just finished a renovation of Plaza Bonita in the south county. Im sorry if I got the name wrong, I normally dont venture south of the 94. But how did that all turn out?

I work at the outlets in Carlsbad, and I know they're putting in a smaller mall across the street that will have an H&M and PF Changs.

In my humble opinion they need to tear down Plaza Camino Real in Carlsbad. That mall scares people away and has barley basic shopping.

Any other mall news?

Nope, not that i know. Id love to see another mall at downtown.

I think San Diego is big enough to support a successful franchise, but I wonder if that would be the case if their performance suffers.

My theory is that San Diego is actually smaller than its 1.2 million, when it comes to measuring viable sports fans. Its population total includes a lot of military, who come and go too quickly to become very loyal to local teams, and other transplants (like you're truly) who come with their own pre-existing loyalties. So local professional sports are more a diversion than a religion - or you go to root for your favorite team when they play the San Diego team. So in other words, if my theory holds salt, it is less than than the full population that would embrace San Diego sports teams.

Of course, full disclosure, I'm becoming a fan of the Padres in spite of their poor outlook. :)

I'm sure San Diego could easily support a team. Even transplants will eventually root for their local team, even if it's only when their home team isn't playing.

Has anyone seen the bridge that is u/c right next to the new Hilton?? Is that the new pedestrian bridge?

Yes it is. Here's a pic by kpexpress from SSP:
http://i301.photobucket.com/albums/nn60/kpexpress42/DSC05392.jpg

Yes it is. Here's a pic by kpexpress from SSP:

Hey, that's a nice vantagepoint on this pic! That's a new curvy bridge with an existing curvy bridge in the background.

CCDC moves forward on City Hall

San Diego is one step closer to a new City Hall, after the city's downtown redevelopment agency on Wednesday endorsed the idea of sitting down at the negotiating table with a developer.

“All we are really saying is this is worth pursuing,” said Centre City Development Corp. Chairman Fred Maas.

His board voted unanimously in favor of moving forward with a plan to demolish San Diego's 1964 City Hall and Civic Center complex and replace it with a sail-shaped skyscraper billed as one of the “greenest” buildings on the West Coast.

The most recent financial analysis shows that payments on the new construction would cost $179 million to $231 million over the first 10 years. Maintaining the current City Hall and continuing to pay leases on additional needed offices would cost $216 million.

Over 15 years, the potential savings from a new City Hall are more certain. San Diego's payments on the construction would total $338 million to $399 million, compared to $416 million for keeping current accommodations.

But the city isn't being asked to sign a sales slip yet. The next step would be agreeing to negotiate deal points with Portland-based Gerding Edlen, the developer up for the job.

CCDC's vote Wednesday is not binding. The City Council will have final say over whether to start negotiations or walk away from a nearly two-year process. The issue goes to the council's rules committee June 10.

A point of contention in recent days has been whether the city will agree to pay the developer's costs if the deal falls apart.

CCDC Vice President Jeff Graham said yesterday, “From CCDC's perspective, that was a non-starter.”

Gerding Edlen estimates it has spent between $2 million and $3 million on its proposal so far.

Gerding spokesman Tom Cody said that he only proposed that the city pay his firm's costs during the negotiation period, which could go from six months to a year. He said he couldn't imagine those costs would be more than $1 million. CCDC has already spent nearly $1.7 million on consultants and other fees over the past year or more of studying the concept.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/may/20/bn20civic132053/?metro&zIndex=102626

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/05/20/civic-center_t350.jpg?1640fae913a1dac1b26c7eb88806b9f9b0341305

http://www.signonsandiego.com/teaserimages/090520civic-center310.jpg

Wow that's even better than the current City Hall.

What does your current city hall look like?

What does your current city hall look like?
Like the one in Los Angeles, but shorter.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3239/2367290383_f9da979dfd.jpg?v=0

Like the one in Los Angeles, but shorter.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3239/2367290383_f9da979dfd.jpg?v=0

I hope they don't tear that one down, looks like it has a lot of character and history to it.

Learn from our mistakes... the old San Jose city hall was an amazing looking Victorian mansion, and they razed the poor bastard.

http://i40.photobucket.com/albums/e215/artemismaximus/san-jose-old-city-hall.jpg

here's the one in L.A.


http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Los_Angeles_City_Hall_(color)_edit1.jpg

Like the one in Los Angeles, but shorter.
http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3239/2367290383_f9da979dfd.jpg?v=0

That is not the San Diego City Hall! That's actually the County Administration Center. City Hall is some non-descript 70's style building in the Core area. I don't even know how it looks like. . .and I'm a downtown San Diego enthusiast!:lol:

Are u sure?? HAha omg, that's the first pic i saw when i searched on Google. Anyway, is it the building right next to civic Center trolley station?? Because is saw once the mayor coming out of that building haha. If it is, then our City Hall is even uglier than the one i posted.. :S

Here's the current City Hall:


http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3013/2718657869_14d33831c7.jpg

Isn't it beautiful?

For comparison, here's the proposed new City Hall:

http://www.djc.com/blogs/BuildingGreen/wp-content/uploads/2008/08/080723bldggerding280.jpg

Beautiful? :puke:

Here is the original city hall I guess. Then they moved to the county building which once housed BOTH city and county and then the city moved to the retarded community concourse.

http://www.dkimages.com/discover/DKIMAGES/Discover/previews/832/20181994.JPG

This is the old superior courthouse or something. I think it would have been awesome if it was still standing.

http://www.sandiegohistory.org/journal/2001-1/images/page81.jpg

So there was character but they killed it. I really like the new design. Sure it lacks that historic quality of LA or SF's city halls but the county center covers that. This new building is sleek.

Beautiful? :puke:

I was only kidding. :)


So there was character but they killed it. I really like the new design. Sure it lacks that historic quality of LA or SF's city halls but the county center covers that. This new building is sleek.

I would really like to see the new City Hall get built. Aside from including the green building, the project would reestablish B Street in the middle, as well as 2nd street, north of B.

In the next few months, we may hear if it has enough political support. Over the long run it'll save some money, because maintaining the status quo will not be cheap. I believe it's a matter of justifying the initial investment during a recession.

My gut tells me it'll be approved the City Council. Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?

Here's an article from the UT regarding a proposal for replacement of Qualcomm stadium:

Despite critics, developer shows plans for stadium
By Matthew T. Hall, Union-Tribune Staff Writer
2:00 a.m. May 29, 2009

Developer Perry Dealy's proposal to replace Qualcomm Stadium calls for a 70,000-seat stadium and high-rises for businesses and residences. (Courtesy Jenni Mikusky / Carrier Johnson) - Online: See the Chargers' letter to Perry Dealy at uniontrib.com/more/documents
Local developer Perry Dealy unveiled his proposal to replace Qualcomm Stadium in Mission Valley yesterday, a day after the San Diego Chargers called his plans unrealistic in a fax sent directly to him.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/may/29/1m29stadium232457-despite-critics-developer-shows-/?metro&zIndex=107389

Here's an article from the UT regarding a proposal for replacement of Qualcomm stadium:


And the accompanying photo:

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/05/29/stadium_t350.jpg

Is that a new business center??? Where is it located?

Is that a new business center??? Where is it located?

It's at the site of the current Q. Take a look at the lower right corner of that picture. I don't know for sure, but I think that is the current Trolley line, seen from the southwest, and the rest is the same site rearranged to fit more on the same site.

Convention Center design includes more space and pedestrian bridge
Architects working on a new San Diego Convention Center wing say it wouldn't just be for tourists but would offer something for locals, such as a rooftop restaurant and a pedestrian bridge with easier access to San Diego Bay.

The city's nonprofit Convention Center agency today will unveil the preliminary layout of a hoped-for expansion that would bring the entire building to 1.2 million square feet.

Drawings depict nearly 400,000 additional square feet, of which 225,000 would be prime exhibit space — which convention officials say they need to keep competing for large, lucrative shows.

The expansion is not as big as initially desired because of land constraints at the only site deemed workable.

But it would keep San Diego in the top 13 American convention cities, according to one estimate, though many others are also eyeing expansions.

And it would be big enough to continue housing the mega-show Comic-Con if the San Diego-born comic book convention wants to stay, Convention Center President Carol Wallace said.

Mayor Jerry Sanders appointed a task force to determine whether the city should expand the center, which currently measures 814,000 square feet, including 615,000 square feet of exhibit space. The task force, which has issued no opinion, will see a presentation on the preliminary architectural plans at a public meeting from 6 to 8 p.m. today at the Convention Center.

A spokesman for Tucker Sadler, the architecture firm that designed the 2001 expansion and was hired for initial work on what would be the center's third phase, said a main concern was opening better access to the bay and enlivening the bayfront walkway, known as the embarcadero.

“We want to make sure that people walk the entire embarcadero, that there is something there for them to experience,” said Gregory Mueller, president of Tucker Sadler.

The new wing would sit in front of the existing building, on the bay side. It would rise 40 feet above the southern wing but stand about as tall as the structure's signature “sails,” officials said.

The design team discarded another site — across Harbor Drive on parking lots now used by Petco Park, including Tailgate Park — because a previously unknown finger of the Rose Canyon earthquake fault was discovered there.

One eye-catching element of the bayfront design would be a 57-foot-high pedestrian bridge stretching from Fourth Avenue, across the Convention Center, to the water. Currently, walkers must summit a mountain of steps or take a slow-moving elevator to get from the Harbor Drive side to the bay side of the long building.

The city's Centre City Development Corp. is overseeing construction of a publicly financed, $26.8 million pedestrian bridge just down Harbor Drive at Park Boulevard. Views of that structure, meant to be iconic, would not be blocked because it will be lower, at 25 feet above the street, convention officials said.

One new aspect would be an improved pedestrian promenade along the bayfront, where navigation now is not straightforward. The new building would extend out toward the water, taking up what is currently a parking lot, but leave a 35-foot-wide walkway and a 25-foot-wide buffer area where cafe tables and chairs could spill out.

Another element of the design, which remains preliminary, would be a rooftop eatery open to the public. As yet, the publicly financed convention hall offers no shopping and no restaurants meant to serve residents.

Officials said they won't have a price tag until mid-month.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stori...&zIndex=109407

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/06/02/convention_t630.jpg?722e46dd685710b424f1719a69e3d2802eb9f1a6

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/06/02/convention1_t630.jpg?722e46dd685710b424f1719a69e3d2802eb9f1a6

Wow that would look really nice :D

The walkway to 4th Avenue catches my eye. I'm interested for more news on that to be available.

Also, the roof is pictured in green. I wonder what that's all about.

That last photo is stunning. I think that green could actually be organic material. Some of the more "green" buildings like the new Arts & Sciences museum in SF use this to substantially reduce air conditioning costs: http://www.calacademy.org/academy/building/the_living_roof/.

The 17th and Brd. project is probably the city college expansion. And Im surprised the 10th and B project is moving forward...

CCDC's site confirms that it is for the City College. It also states that the development will include an 11 story parking structure, which is apparently not shown in this rendering. Here's a rendering from CCDC's website, which is looking southeast from the corner of 17th and C Street:

http://www.ccdc.com/images/propertyImages/Career%20Tech%20Center%20-%20City%20College.jpg

Though there are no renderings, CCDC's website also shows proposals for the site on the west side of 17th Street (where the German car mechanic building was demolished a few months ago), and for a site on the block bound by 16th, 15th, B, and C.

Here are some pictures of Strata which I took today. By the looks of it, it has reached its full height.

Strata from the south:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2421/3670201008_e7fe5355ce.jpg?v=0


Strata from the northeast:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2453/3670198064_2fb5637ecc.jpg?v=0


Strata from the north:

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2430/3669388063_6b424b28a6.jpg?v=0



Strata from the southeast:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3540/3670186256_41b3332a8d.jpg?v=0

Here's one of 1050 B, from C Street:

http://farm4.static.flickr.com/3365/3670188976_0a89cca397.jpg?v=0

Nice to see development still taking place. I have to say, Strata looks great on Market. Im curious to see how 10th and B turns out, it could be a really nice filler building for that area.

Anybody have the rendering for 10th and B?

I forgot that this thread existed! :D

Anybody have the rendering for 10th and B?

I forgot that this thread existed! :D



http://www.ccdc.com/images/propertyImages/Ten%20Fifty%20B_Web.jpg

An excerpt from an article in Today's SDUT:

Qualcomm Stadium site in SDSU's sights
Research facilities, housing considered in parking lot

By Craig Gustafson

The proposal, which is preliminary but quickly gaining support, would not affect the stadium where the Chargers and Aztecs play football. It does, however, call for displacing some of the 18,000 parking spaces to make way for student and faculty housing, research facilities and a riverfront park.

http://www3.signonsandiego.com/stories/2009/aug/01/1n1qualcomm22273-sdsu-might-expand-campus-stadium-/?education&zIndex=142239

I'm going to start my junior year at SDSU this fall, and actually took the trolley yesterday to the campus. The Qualcomm stop on the way there was so depressing. Its just odd looking at such a massive piece of land being used for nothing. I was talking to my major advisor and she was telling me that they were planning on remodeling some of the older buildings on campus, but since the budget crisis those plans were dead. So I'm a bit confused as to how they could buy/lease land and build what is essentially a satallite campus while they can't even afford to remodel there older structures.

Not that I'm against the idea, I just don't know how they would pay for it. Unless my tuition goes up...again!

A new building will go up! I really like the idea that it is mixing so many uses.


"Following delay, 719 Ash Street project slated to begin construction this year"
By REBECCA GO, The Daily Transcript

The construction project slated for the south side of Ash Street in the Cortez neighborhood of downtown takes the notion of "mixed-use" seriously.
The 18-story, 325,000-square-foot building will include two hotels with 6,000 square feet of space for meetings and events, 10,000 square feet of restaurant space, three commercial lease spaces totaling 8,500 square feet, two penthouse suite condos, and four additional stories of underground parking.

http://www.sddt.com/Search/article.cfm?SourceCode=20090827craa

That high-rise is alright, but I'll cheer when I see shovels in the ground...

Woot, woot! Third time our city's been banner! (To my knowledge)

Yeah!

EVERYONE VOTE TO BUILD NEW CITY HALL!!! I THINK IT'LL BE ON THE BALLOT NEXT YEAR HAHA!

I'd have to say Embassy 1414.
http://www.ccdc.com/images/propertyImages/EMBASSY.jpg

this reminds me of Shamu lol =] i like it a lot

Embassy 1414 was a beautiful project. Too bad its probably going to stay on paper.

It would be nice to see this project happen:









Negotiations for Building New City Hall to Move Forward

Last Update: 10/12 6:20 pm

Print Story | Share this Story

Artist's rendering of proposed new San Diego City Hall from Gerding Edlen
Related Links
Details about the new City Hall proposal
SAN DIEGO - The City Council agreed on Monday to enter into exclusive negotiations with a Portland-based developer to possibly construct a new San Diego City Hall complex.

The City Council voted 5-3 to authorize the so-called exclusive negotiating agreement with Gerding Edlen and to allocate up to $705,000 for costs associated with the talks.

Casting the dissenting votes were council members Donna Frye, Sherri Lightner and Carl DeMaio.

The contract between the developer and city is intended to lead to a concrete estimate of how much the proposed project will cost and to finalize the design.

Gerding Edlen has proposed replacing San Diego's aging, 1960s-era City Hall building with a 33-story, 964,000-square-foot glass and steel tower with an adjacent first-floor building that would house the council chamber. Preliminary cost estimates for the project are $440 million.



Frye said she voted against entering into the negotiation agreement with the developer primarily because language was not included that would commit the project to a public vote.

"I need a commitment that we are actually going to give the public a vote because we are using public money," Frye told her colleagues.

The lack of a guarantee that voters will get to weigh in on the project also drew DeMaio's ire.

"If this is such a great project, why do we fear a public vote?" he asked.

DeMaio also said that instead of rebuilding City Hall, San Diego should look to renegotiating its existing leases at more favorable rates as office occupancy levels decline amid the weak economy.

Mayor Jerry Sanders has pledged that ultimately voters will decide if San Diego gets a new City Hall. City staff said the project could be on the ballot in November 2010.

At the start of the hearing, Sanders said San Diego will "walk away from this project" if negotiations with the developer do not show that a new City Hall will save the city money.

"We'll not go down this road if it doesn't pencil out for the taxpayer," Sanders said.

According to a study by Jones Laing LaSalle, redeveloping City Hall would save the city $37 million in the first 10 years, with much greater savings down the road.

San Diego's existing City Administration Building is deteriorating, has inadequate fire suppression systems, lacks necessary seismic retrofitting and contains asbestos.

Updating City Hall alone would cost about $40 million and only expand the building's useful life another 10 years.



Project proponents also argue that millions of dollars would be saved by redeveloping the City Hall complex rather than continuing to lease office space at locations around San Diego.

"Consolidating city offices in a single efficient building is potentially much less expensive than leasing office space from landlords and extending the life of our current buildings through costly repairs and upgrades," Sanders said.

Council President Ben Hueso went so far as to call City Hall a "blight" on downtown.

About two dozen speakers testified during Monday's City Council hearing, and most were in favor of the project.

Lee Burdick, a lawyer and former candidate for San Diego city attorney, said public safety concerns surrounding City Hall were cause enough to replace it.

"We cannot overlook those liabilities without our own peril," Burdick told the City Council.

Donna Jones, with the Downtown San Diego Partnership, described City Hall as "unquestionably inadequate."

"As someone on Facebook noted, our civic center is a reflection of the caliber of our city, and the one we are in is an embarrassment," she said.

Hud Collins testified that San Diego shouldn't be looking to replace City Hall when it faces a predicted $179 million budget deficit in the coming fiscal year.

"We have no money in this city," he said.

Gerding Edlen was selected in 2008 by the Centre City Development Corp., downtown San Diego's redevelopment arm, as the project's developer after a review of about a half-dozen proposals.

http://www.sandiego6.com/media/lib/38/5/2/0/520827ec-afaa-4abd-8ecf-28479a116194/Story.jpg

http://www.sandiego6.com/media/news/1/f/5/1f557c79-b578-4f30-accd-1e7f344cd50f/Original.jpg

http://www.sandiego6.com/media/news/b/c/1/bc17b9d2-91b2-4c4b-bfdc-8e6020b17004/Original.jpg


http://www.archpaper.com/uploads/image/SDCityHall.jpg

Here's some news on our (possible) future high speed rail line:






Lindbergh station is on track within new high-speed rail plan
by ADRIANE TILLMAN

San Diego residents will have the chance to weigh in on the three proposed routes for the California High-Speed Rail line that is expected to run from Los Angeles to San Diego by 2019.

The state is planning to construct a high-speed train that will ultimately run from San Francisco and Sacramento to San Diego and perhaps include a stop at Lindbergh Field.

The railroad line is being planned in eight segments by the California High-Speed Rail Authority with input from regional planning groups.

Three meetings will be held, on Oct. 13, 14 and 15, for the public to comment on the three proposed routes that will stop in University City and then continue Downtown. The meetings will feature various information booths — rather than a lecture presentation — to discuss environmental issues, stations, the process and so on.

“It’s an opportunity for everyone to look at the alternatives, say whether they are the correct alternatives; to indicate where there are flaws [with the proposed routes] or to say whether they think something else should be looked at,” said Mike Zdon, project manager for the Southern California segment of the High-Speed Rail Line, and a consultant with the engineering group HNTB.

The public will have 60 days to submit comments on the proposed routes, either at the meetings (a court reporter will be present) or in writing, until Nov. 21.

One of the plans includes a route from a proposed UTC tunnel. The train will surface either at the corner of Rose Canyon or, as an alternative, travel along I-5 to either Lindbergh Field or another Downtown stop.

Building a station at Qualcomm Stadium has been ruled out by the High-Speed Rail Authority.

The California High-Speed Rail Authority will likely choose one route to study in-depth for the state environmental impact report (EIR) and the federal environmental impact statement (EIS).

Zdon said he expects the EIR/EIS process to take four years, followed by preliminary design work beginning in 2013 and completion of the track by 2019.

“This is the most optimistic scenario,” Zdon said.

Each of the eight sections that make up the California High-Speed Rail Line is being constructed as a complete corridor within itself — meaning that it can operate even if some of the other sections are never completed.

Zdon estimated that the Anaheim to Los Angeles connection will be finished first, followed by the San Jose to San Francisco line and then the Merced to Bakersfield track.

In 2008, voters approved Prop. 1a to allow the state to issue $9.95 billion in bonds for the line. The federal government has also allocated $8 billion for high-speed rail, and Zdon estimates that a third of those funds will go to California. Congress is also updating the transportation bill, and Zdon said that an estimated $1.5 billion is expected to go toward high-speed rail.

From Los Angeles, trains will travel east to the Ontario Airport, cut through San Bernardino and Riverside counties and head into San Diego County along I-15 to the first station in the county, Escondido.

From Escondido, the train will head to Mira Mesa Boulevard.

Zdon said the engineering for the proposed tunnel under UTC has not yet been studied.

“We have to check soils. There are earthquake faults. There could be a whole series of reasons that this doesn’t work, but in the scoping process we have to make the decision about whether we check this out or not, and that’s what’s happening,” Zdon said.

Here’s a schedule of the scoping meetings:

• Wednesday, Oct. 14, 3-7 p.m.

Ramada Inn, 1403 Rosecrans St.

• Thursday, Oct. 15, 3-7 p.m.

Escondido, California Center for the Arts, 340 N. Escondido Blvd.

The City Hall project is probably at the top of my list, next to the convention center expansion. I just love the design and whole green thing helps. I wish they would focus on the those two projects and dump the library for now. The whole schoobrary concept is nice, but I'd rather wait until we have the cash to get it done right.

Then again, now is the time to build with construction costs way down. Maybe they could get the library built for the less than the anticipated $185 million?

The City Hall project is probably at the top of my list, next to the convention center expansion. I just love the design and whole green thing helps. I wish they would focus on the those two projects and dump the library for now. The whole schoobrary concept is nice, but I'd rather wait until we have the cash to get it done right.

Then again, now is the time to build with construction costs way down. Maybe they could get the library built for the less than the anticipated $185 million?






It seems the order for the cities next "big" projects are the downtown main library followed by the convention center expansion followed by the new civic center complex. I hope all three get done over time. For a change I actually think the designs on all 3 projects are worthy and will be great additions to the city. The new library could be somewhat of a icon for the city.


The new library is at the head of the class for a reason over the other two projects right now. To keep it's funding it must follow this timeline:


10. What is the timeline for building the new Central Library?

The current project timeline calls for:
City Council vote to approve release of the project to bid in fall of 2009.
Bids returned and statement of viability of project with City Council vote to approve moving forward with the project in May 2010.
Construction contract awarded in July 2010.
Construction begins in August 2010.
Library grand opening in July 2013.




It's up to the city to keep this project on track and theirs to lose. I really hope to see it break ground on time otherwise it's probably gone forever...


http://www.sandiego.gov/public-library/graphics/newmain3a.jpg

On the topic of the new main library here's todays news as to where it's currently at:





Bidding Process Continues For Downtown Library

POSTED: 11:07 am PDT October 14, 2009
UPDATED: 6:19 pm PDT October 14, 2009


SAN DIEGO -- A San Diego City Council committee gave staff the green light Wednesday to continue the bidding process for the downtown library so the project can qualify for a $20 million state grant.

Link: 10News Poll


At a meeting of the Committee on Rules, Open Government and Intergovernmental Relations, city officials requested $500,000 to finish bidding and said they plan to bring contract amendments to the full City Council in two weeks.


The project -- a dream of civic leaders for two decades -- is to replace the aging Main Library on E Street with a site at Park Boulevard and J Street adjacent to Petco Park. Two floors would be leased by the San Diego Unified School District for a charter school.

A deadline for the State Library Bond Act of 2000 was extended to August 2010, as long as the City Council approves the release of bids by Nov. 15 of this year.

City Council President Ben Hueso said a large portion of money raised for the library has come from charitable donations, and it "would be a shame" for all those dollars to be put up, only to lose bond funding.

"For all the people making an effort to make the library (project work), I'm very grateful," Hueso said.

Councilwoman Donna Frye told city staff that she wants to see solar power included in the plans, along with hiring preferences for local construction workers.

The money requested by staff is available in a redevelopment fund.

Project plans also need approval by the city's redevelopment agency and the Centre City Development Corp.




http://www.library.ca.gov/lba2000/images/funded/San%20Diego%20Main%20Perspective%20Best.jpg

San Diego is the banner today!!!

http://img97.imageshack.us/img97/2158/sdxs.jpg

:carrot::carrot::carrot::carrot::carrot:

Woot!


Although we always get depicted by the bay shot. There are much better angles of the city other then the one from Coronado.

^^

This is a good angle, we should start summiting new ones.

I just made this one..


http://img70.imageshack.us/img70/2724/sd111.jpg

^^

This is a good angle, we should start summiting new ones.

I just made this one..


http://img70.imageshack.us/img70/2724/sd111.jpg

I love it!


But there has to be other angles of our city other then from the bay. I mean, we don't want to be a photogenic one-trick pony.

The city has some other great views from different sides if only people would use them more. These are older shots from a few years ago but they prove the point. I look forward to more current shots like these. Love the Ballpark POV photos...

http://forum.skyscraperpage.com/showthread.php?t=124597

One time I was just driving around the hills of Linda Vista just above Fashion Valley, and stumbled upon a cool view where the downtown buildings peeked over Mission Hills. I thought that was cool, a side I've never seen before. Also the approach on the 94 is a cool rare view. Walking over one of the bridges on Mission Bay also shows downtown from the northwest which is also rare. Most photos are taken at varying distances from a pie wedge from 5 near the airport counter clockwise to the 5 at Coronado bridge, with the exception of views from the Cabrillo bridge over the 163. Theres a lot more out there.

Another "older" project continues to move forward. This is set to be completed by october 2012 but I'm still a little sad it is still cut down to 16 stories from it's original 22 since with building costs down now it could have been returned to it's original planned height. Still it's better than what it is currently...a empty lot. Should be a nice addition to the city.







More Downtown Construction
By Steve Horvath | Published Thursday, Oct. 15, 2009



More than two years after Congress approved funding for a new federal courthouse in downtown San Diego, the contract for the $295.7 million project was awarded to Hensel Phelps Construction of Irvine.

On October 1, the first day of the 2010 fiscal year, Senator Barbara Boxer and U.S. Representative Susan Davis announced the award of the project.

In a press release, Senator Boxer stated, “This funding could not come at a more critical time, as it will create much-needed jobs and help boost San Diego’s economy. And the new courthouse will be a more secure facility that will help federal judges in San Diego keep pace with one of the nation’s heaviest caseloads.”

At a ceremonial ribbon-cutting ceremony in August of 2006, chief district judge Irma E. Gonzalez credited Rep. Davis and Mayor Jerry Sanders with convincing members of Congress that the courthouse was needed.

The 16-story, 467,000-square-foot courthouse will be built on Broadway between Union and State Streets, at the site of the former San Diego Hotel, which was demolished in 2006. According to government officials and the construction company, about 2000 new jobs will be created by this project.







http://www.casd.uscourts.gov/uploads/images/courthouse/SD_Cth_New.jpg

Nice! I was hoping for a better courthouse!

Cool. It's one step closer to being real:



San Diego to seek bids for new main library
By Craig Gustafson
Union-Tribune Staff Writer
3:09 p.m. October 27, 2009
Previously

Vote moves downtown library closer (June 2009)
Backers of new main library face deadline to keep grant (Nov. 2008)
New chapter for library: less receptive City Council? (June 2008)
Building main library will require more donors (Dec. 2007)

WHAT'S NEXT
July 2010: Council to consider awarding construction contract
January 2013: Building to be completed
July 2013: Library to open



DOWNTOWN SAN DIEGO — The city of San Diego will be seeking developer bids to construct a new main library in downtown with the hope that the costs won't be higher than a four-year-old estimate of $185 million.
The City Council voted 6-2 this afternoon to pay the project's original architects and construction consultants an additional $500,000 to begin the bidding process. Those bids are expected to come back in April and, at that point, the council will decide whether to break ground.
Council members Carl DeMaio and Sherri Lightner voted against the payment, saying the city should use the money saved by killing the library project to shore up other budget priorities. The city faces a $179 million deficit for next year and is facing cuts to nearly every department, including police and fire.
The nine-story project at Park Boulevard and J Street would be a domed civic centerpiece to replace the cramped 1954 version on E Street.
The new library in the East Village would be twice the size of the existing facility. The sixth and seventh floors would be used for a charter school serving about 400 students.
To fund the project, the library is relying on $80 million in city redevelopment funds, $20 million from the San Diego Unified School District and a $20 million state grant. The state grant is contingent on the city seeking bids on the project by Nov. 15.
The rest of the project would be covered by private donors who say they have raised $27.5 million so far.
Craig Gustafson: (619) 293-1399;
Related Terms: Downtown San Diego, East Village, SD Unified School District





http://i4.photobucket.com/albums/y120/Jaygergon/downtown%20development/library2.bmp

Well thats... interesting.

I wonder if the estimate to construct it would be below $185 million. That would be a real possibility given contruction costs right now.

Build it. Build them all. the library, the courthouse, city hall.

Just like babies, people don't know what's good for them. So you gotta cram it down their thoats. Force feeding. It's the only way you'll get things done around here.

True indeed.

I just wonder if they are force feeding the right projects...

Another government hi-rise in the planning stages? BUILD IT!

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/10/29/courthouse_map.jpg

Land deal would result in high-rise courthouse
County offering state a city block
By Jeff McDonald
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
2:00 a.m. October 29, 2009

County officials want to give California an entire city block so the state can build a 17-story Superior Court complex that would consolidate services in a new downtown San Diego high-rise.

The building would include 71 courtrooms — a project judges and court administrators say is badly needed. If county Board of Supervisors approves the deal next week, the $660 million development could open in 2015.

“We're really excited about this,” said Kenneth So, presiding judge of the San Diego County Superior Court. “We have a very substandard facility.”

The old county courthouse opened in 1961. When lights need to be changed in his courtroom, So said, men in hazardous-materials suits rope off the area because ceilings are contaminated with asbestos.

His remarks were made during a meeting with The San Diego Union-Tribune editorial board, attended by other officials as well. The board regularly invites newsmakers to discuss current events.

Historic budget shortfalls earlier this year forced state courts to close one day per month to trim expenses. Even so, San Diego County courts executive Michael Roddy said a new courthouse is needed.

“The real key is to look beyond the short-term economic problems,” Roddy said. “We can't wait another 50 years to build a courthouse.”

A planned tunnel between the central jail and the new courthouse would improve the transporting of inmates, Roddy said. Inmates now are shackled and moved through corridors, often in view of jurors and victims.

The newer Hall of Justice, just west of the old courthouse, would be unaffected.

The site for the new courthouse is known as the Stahlman Block — bounded by Union, West B, State and West C streets. The county has been buying parcels there since supervisors realized they eventually would need more space. The block was appraised last year at about $36 million, Supervisor Greg Cox said.

The high-rise would be built using a portion of the $5 billion in state bond money approved for new courthouses. The money would be repaid through parking and court fee increases.

The San Diego project is considered critical by state officials, and the county is getting a larger share of the state bond money than usual as a result.

“This is a win-win-win,” Cox said. “Usually San Diego County gets the short end of the stick.”

In exchange for giving the state the Stahlman Block, the county would regain ownership of two nearby buildings that supervisors gave to the state last year as part of a mandate to turn over control of county courthouses to California.

The state would also get to use 18,000 square feet of space at the South Bay Regional Center in Chula Vista for four new courtrooms, under the agreement.

The agreement with the state comes just over a year after the county transferred title to its court-only facilities to comply with a 2002 law that required counties to shift ownership of courthouses to the state. Shared-use buildings like the Hall of Justice were not part of the land swap.

Cox said that, short of the land-swap deal, the state probably would have built in Kearny Mesa, where land is cheaper. If that had happened, the county would have been forced to pay millions of extra dollars a year to shuttle detainees from jail to court.

Under the deal, the state would retain the old courthouse property, except the portion north of West B Street.

The two facilities that would return to county ownership are the Madge Bradley Building on Fourth Avenue and the Family Court Building on Sixth Avenue. The state would keep using them until the new courthouse is opened.

Union-Tribune

Foggy days.
http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/11/02/fog_r535x317.jpg?69c6464cadbfb433ae1d817d6edfd5002d4acfe2
courtesy of the U-T

^^ Pretty pic. Now thats the kind of banner shot we need.

Awesome pic.

nice pic :cheers:

:cucumber:
Chargers, S.D. discussing downtown stadium
15-acre site near Petco Park eyed for $1 billion project

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/11/09/chargersmap_t600.jpg?42b0fb247f69dabe2ae440581a34634cbc5420f3

SAN DIEGO — After years of watching other cities tease the Chargers with talk of a new stadium, San Diego has become the team's leading suitor again by dangling the possibility of professional football near Petco Park. Mayor Jerry Sanders discussed the downtown idea in a private meeting with team President Dean Spanos two weeks ago. That prompted Escondido to stop wooing the team while San Diego revisits the stadium issue for the first time since 2006 when the Chargers rejected rebuilding at the Qualcomm Stadium site and began exploring options elsewhere in the county.

The focus on downtown has fueled optimism among community leaders and created anxiety among property owners who might be displaced by a $1 billion stadium project.

The roughly 15 acres being eyed for a stadium includes city-owned Tailgate Park close to Petco Park, the privately owned Wonder Bread building and the bus yard for the San Diego Transit Corp., owned by the San Diego Metropolitan Transit System.

Sanders has long said he would oppose using public funds toward construction of a new stadium, but mayoral spokesman Darren Pudgil said yesterday that the Mayor's Office is looking at all of the ways cities have helped with stadium construction. Pudgil said two options could be infrastructure financing and borrowing money against future redevelopment revenues downtown.

Everyone from team officials to potentially affected property owners say the project's financing is its main hurdle.

"Somehow, somebody still has to come up with the money to build this big, expensive stadium," said Bob Sinclair, who owns the Wonder Bread building. "I don't know how they're going to get over that delta for the cost."

Sanders and Spanos met for about an hour on Oct. 27 at the La Jolla Beach & Tennis Club. It was their first meeting since Jan. 7, although city and team officials have talked since then. Sanders called Spanos in July and early October, and Sanders' aides met with a team representative in April, May and mid-October. Future meetings will explore the city's role in the project.

In an interview last week, Sanders said contacts are more frequent now because the political landscape has changed since April 2006 when he said San Diego lacks the time and money to focus on a new Chargers stadium.

In particular, Sanders said, the city has a less combative city attorney since Jan Goldsmith replaced Michael Aguirre and the team has stopped exploring sites in Chula Vista, National City and Oceanside.

"I don't want to say the Chargers were not important because they were, but I think that after four years, we certainly have to give them a signal on what we intend to do or how we want to do it or what we can do," Sanders said. "And then start working together to see if we can achieve a solution."

Sanders and Spanos have met privately three other times, once in January 2006, about six weeks after the mayor took office, and twice in October 2006.

Building a football stadium downtown has been kicked around San Diego before. In 2003, the year before Petco Park opened, then-Mayor Dick Murphy's citizens task force on Chargers issues examined a downtown stadium site while studying a replacement or upgrade of Qualcomm Stadium.

At the time, the task force noted that building on the large bus storage facility in East Village was an option but would require a relocation of the fleet and likely an environmental cleanup. On the plus side, it found, the area has 57,000 parking spaces within 1.5 miles.

Property owners in the area are mixed on the idea of a downtown stadium. Sinclair, whose Wonder Bread building on 14th Street dates to 1898 and is about 20 percent leased, said the location makes sense for a stadium because it is accessible, has ample parking, is made up of only a handful of parcels and probably isn't too contaminated from the buses.

While some people believe the team may eventually give in to the temptation of a new stadium proposed for the Los Angeles-area City of Industry, Sinclair expects the team to stay local.

"If they're reasonable enough, they could make a deal with everybody on our little block," he said.

Yet Eddie Zaitona, the longtime owner of Logan Market & Liquor on 16th Street, which could be in the stadium's footprint, doesn't want to leave.

City officials have not ruled out using their eminent domain powers for the stadium, Pudgil said yesterday. For now, the city and team are agreeing to a series of regular meetings to study the stadium concept.

Escondido Mayor Lori Holt Pfeiler said she will stand by in case talks break down in San Diego, but she isn't hoping for that outcome.

"The way I see it, we're all engaged in trying to make sure the Chargers stay in San Diego," she said. "I think (the downtown San Diego location) is a beautiful site."

Chargers special counsel Mark Fabiani, the point person on the team's stadium search, has long said a downtown stadium makes financial sense because infrastructure improvements to accommodate a stadium of up to $1 billion elsewhere could cost $200 million, but they are a fraction of that downtown.

Both Fabiani and Sanders said they want to know quickly if the site is economically feasible for the team. A site of that size would be among the National Football League's smallest stadium footprints.

One of the first matters of business will be conducting a financial analysis to figure out how a project might be financed and to what extent the city might be involved. One possibility is some of the money for the project could come from selling or developing the city-owned 166-acre Qualcomm Stadium site, which the team would leave vacant.

Fabiani attended the Oct. 27 meeting between Sanders and Spanos with Kris Michell, Sanders' chief of staff, and Fred Maas, board chairman of the Centre City Development Corp., the city's downtown redevelopment arm.

The potential site is located entirely in the city's downtown redevelopment area, which may present financing opportunities because redevelopment law allows property tax dollars to be pumped back into an area in large sums. But it could mean competition with other projects for a limited pool of money.

Richard Rider, a longtime taxpayer advocate who ran for mayor in 2005 against Sanders, said the Chargers shouldn't count on any handout, including redevelopment bonds.

"I don't think the taxpayers are going to want to subsidize a new football stadium when we have a perfectly good football stadium more centrally located in Mission Valley," he said.

But Ben Haddad, board chairman at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, is excited that Sanders and Spanos are again in regular contact.

"If folks can agree at the highest levels on a particular course of action, then I want to be in there right behind them as a business leader trying to get that done," Haddad said.

Library researchers Anne Magill and Merrie Monteagudo contributed to this report.

Matthew Hall: (619) 542-4599; matthew.hall@uniontrib.com

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ymlY0VNY2dI

^^ Well that's... eh.

A billion dollars on a single runway airport that can't be expanded to support increased air traffic, will continue to be a safety risk due to it's close location to a major city, no new parking spaces for the increased size and no trolley connection added to assist with the increased traffic. :bash:


People voted against a stupid and unrealistic selection for a new airport, not against the idea of a new airport site. It's a mistake for the city to go down this road with the airport. They should have kept looking.

Nothing can stop it now but man are they headed into a world of problems with that airport as the city continues to outgrow it at such a fast rate. Most of it's problems are unfixable too.

I can just see the city placing the blame on voters in the future for not wanting to move the airport when in reality they just didn't like the dumb selections and the city didn't try hard enough. :ohno:

They're putting a band-aid on a severed arm... :no:

I agree, as much as I love how it takes 15 minutes to get to the airport from UCSD, I gotta say it's not a location that can serve long term growth for the airport.

Plus think of all that beach zone, and all the real estate they could develop there: soon they will find a reason to move the airport somewhere in Chula Vista or some place like that.

No parking? what were they thinking, instead of expanding the airport, they should move the airpot to another location. At least we're not going to pay with our taxes.

The latest on the Chargers hunt for a new stadium. Looks like the focus is clearly set on downtown (for now at least)...





Chargers 'focused' on downtown stadium site
By JEN LEBRON KUHNEY, The Daily Transcript
Thursday, December 10, 2009

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


The San Diego Chargers are changing their tune about using public money to finance a new stadium in downtown San Diego.
“We’re going to have to find an extraordinarily creative way to get this done,” said Mark Fabiani, the Chargers' point man on stadium issues.
Fabiani and Chargers chief operating officer Jim Steeg spoke to a group of about 45 people at a San Diego North Chamber of Commerce gathering on Thursday at Sony's Rancho Bernardo headquarters.
The NFL team has been in the hunt to privately finance a stadium within the county for seven years, but team spokesman Fabiani said Thursday the team was going to need “a different financial model” than what the team has talked about for past sites.
A site in Escondido was promising, but the costs of adding infrastructure and ancillary development -- like condos and retail space -- made it less attractive than the downtown San Diego site.
The plan for former sites of interest was to have ancillary development help finance the stadium.
That model would not work for the downtown site due to the small amount of space the Chargers would be able to acquire, Fabiani said.
Since ancillary development would not be built and traffic improvements would not be necessary, it would bring overall construction costs down between $700 million and $800 million.
Additionally, the size of the proposed stadium has brought down estimates for the project, which has been discussed as costing up to $1.1 billion.
Fabiani said the Chargers would be able to pay $200 million and, in the past, has said the NFL would pay as much as $100 million as well.
The 15-acre area the Chargers and the city of San Diego are looking at would be considered small by NFL standards.
“We hope it’ll be just as nice as Dallas, but smaller,” Fabiani said. “But we don’t want to build the Taj Mahal of stadiums.”
Plans for the stadium tentatively call for 64,000 seats for regular games, but could be expanded to hold 72,000 people for Super Bowls.
But Fabiani said the team is working with Populous, an architectural firm that has worked on NFL stadiums like New England’s Gillette Stadium, Pittsburgh’s Heinz Field and Arizona’s University of Phoenix stadium.
Additionally, the team is working closely with Turner Construction Co. to do its “due diligence” on the site.
Aside from the financial hurdles the team must endure, Fabiani said the team needs to gain public support before going on with the project.
In an interview after the meeting, Fabiani said the Chargers would try to put a stadium proposal on a ballot before putting hundreds of millions of dollars into the project potentially.
This is not the first time the Chargers have tried to get a stadium built.
After plans for a new stadium with ancillary development at Qualcomm Stadium's current 166-acre Mission Valley site got canned, the Chargers started looking at other cities in the county.
Sites in Oceanside and Chula Vista had been nixed due to an array of issues including infrastructure and location problems.

Did anyone feel the sonic boom? it happened around 4pm today.

Foggy days.
http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/photos/2009/11/02/fog_r535x317.jpg?69c6464cadbfb433ae1d817d6edfd5002d4acfe2
courtesy of the U-T

Hi its a beautifu skyline jejej well Merry Christmas and Happy New Year 2010 for all San Diego

Happy New Year!

I've been past Strata recently, and it looks like they've got a leasing office open, albeit behind a fence.

The building is perfect for that location, a nice mid sized structure with a different face.

I thought the Chargers were moving to LA

Think marketing could use some of these?

Click this link, once page loads, place cursor over image, click and drag.

http://www.rcproproductions.com/pics_panos/pano_315_logo_web.jpg (www.vortexaerial.com/flash_360/3601.html)

^^Even though that was just a promo for a company, that still is pretty cool.

An article from September 2009 states that SDMTS will buy new trolley vehicles for, and renovate station platforms on the blue line. The new trolleys would be low floor vehicles, like those on the green line, but would be 9' shorter, presumably to better fit inbetween downtown intersections.

http://www.sdmts.com/MTS/NRBlue-Orange.asp

They already ordered 59 vehicles to replace the entire blue and orange line vehicles.

Now if only they could get the mid coast line going, then we'd be going somewhere.

New market project in store for Vons

by David Harvey
SDUN Reporter

Supermarket chain Vons submitted a proposal to the city on Jan. 14 for the construction of a store at its existing location on the corner of Washington and Dove streets in Hillcrest.

http://www.sandiegouptownnews.com/

That Von's is a dump, this would be a nice face lift.

I had not idea how much it needed a facelift until I happend to pass it yesterday. I think the new store will be a good addition to the neighborhood. Maybe Albertsen's accross the street will follow with a building also situated right up against Washington Ave.

That Von's is a dump, this would be a nice face lift.