High-speed rail workshops held as uncertainty looms
 

The California High-Speed Rail Authority has been holding dozens of workshops along the proposed corridor of the Los Angeles-to-San Diego train and four are scheduled for San Diego County this week.

While engineers and planners have been laying out the possible routes the train might travel and answering questions from residents, these sessions — and one more on June 30 — could be the last appreciable work for at least a year on this section of the railway.

The budget before the Legislature has eliminated all funding for the Los Angeles-to-San Diego section for next year....

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...rtainty-looms/

New airline prepares for takeoff from Carlsbad field (SD Union Tribune)
 

This looks like an interesting business model. The carrier is going to use Embraer 170 aircraft, with a 3-class configuration, so it's not a huge amount of seats they need to fill up. Northern SD Co., certainly has a lot of very affluent residents who might use Palomar rather than Lindbergh. I looked on Mapquest and it is also 38 mi from the southern OC towns to Palomar vs 21 miles to Santa Ana/John Wayne (SNA), a longer trip certainly, but perhaps competitive if this carrier offers inexpensive flights or there is free parking at the airport. Additionally, Palomar is by far the closest commercial airport from the fast-growing Riverside Co boom-towns or Murrieta and Temecula. In addition to the SD Co. O&D traffic, there are 230K+ residents in southern OC and western Riverside County for whom Palomar would be a competitive airport.

New airline prepares for takeoff from Carlsbad field

By Robert J. Hawkins
June 12, 2011
San Diego Union-Tribune


"San Diego County could soon become home base to the first commercial airline since the iconic Pacific Southwest Airlines disappeared into the folds of USAir in the 1980’s.

http://media.signonsandiego.com/img/...95d379f58af1c4
Ted Vallas, the 90-year-old founder of California Pacific Airlines, stands before his first counter at Palomar Airport in Carlsbad. The airline is currently seeking certification from the Federal Aviation Administration and hopes to be in the air in early 2012. — Charlie Neuman / U-T

In fact, California Pacific Airlines already exists on paper and in the physical presence of a check-in counter at the McClellan-Palomar Airport in Carlsbad. A management team and operations plans are assembled and a small fleet of Embraer 170 aircraft is waiting in the wings.

All that is needed for the airline to begin service to the first half-dozen cities on its itinerary is Federal Aviation Administration certification. And that, says the 90-year-old founder of the airline, Ted Vallas, is close enough to begin planning for an early 2012 launch..."

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...arlsbad-field/

Wouldn't be surprised if we end up getting the shaft in the end...

A few months old but worth a read. . .
The resurgence of San Diego's Little Italy

SAN DIEGO (CNNMoney) -- Walk down Little Italy's main drag and you see coffee-sipping window shoppers brush past old Italian men relaxing in the spotless piazza. New businesses keep popping up, the restaurants are packed and condo construction is in full swing here in downtown San Diego.

From the outside, it's easy to forget this is cash-strapped California, where Gov. Jerry Brown has slashed billions of dollars in public services since taking office. Or San Diego, a city whose mayor is looking for ways to close a $56 million budget gap by the end of June.

Little Italy has been picking up the slack where the city falls short for more than a decade.

http://i2.cdn.turner.com/money/2011/..._italy.top.jpg
http://money.cnn.com/2011/04/11/real...taly/index.htm

What is the latest on the status of the New Chargers Stadium? I don't want the Chargers to move to LA, BTW.

Here you go Westsider: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...dium-proposals

Then there is this guy with the union tribune that does a stadium search "week in review" article that are fairly informative: http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/2...eek-in-review/

I think it is looking pretty realistic that some team besides the Chargers will move to LA if a stadium is ever built in downtown LA or "Grand Crossing"/Diamond Bar. The Jaguars were a mistake from the beginning. That franchise should have gone to San Antonio and if Hurricane Katrina hadn't happened I am almost positive the Saints would have been playing in Los Angeles by now.

I do believe that there will be a vote on it in Nov. 2012 that will decide the fate of the Chargers.

It might be a horrible proposal but there will be one.

If Dean Spanos wanted to move he would have done so years ago.

I don't think they can afford to risk a vote on this issue Hugo. You and I both know that it will not pass. Unless it is just simply a vote to increase tourist taxes on hotels and rental cars like Phoenix/Glendale AZ have done and possibly other cities.

Can anyone explain to me why the County of San Diego never gets involved in the stadium issue, why not increase some kind of countywide tax? I don't understand why it is only the City of SD that is in discussions or mentioned in the media and never the County. :shrug:

x2 on the vote. They can't put that on the ballot. It'll fail miserably.

I'm not as pessimistic as you guys (we voted for the Padres and this city loves the Chargers so much more, plus a good playoff run this season can help) but yeah I know a ballot vote is risky.

But that's what they've been talking, having a ballot measure ready by the end of the year to be ready for Nov. '12. I wish the city had the balls just to do the deal by themselves, too much democracy is a bad thing.

Since next year has a presidential primary, why not schedule it then? That way the vote would be right after football season ends. I hate being on the fence every off-season as we wait for whether or not the Spanos family decides to keep the team here. As you noted, Hugo, obviously they'd like to stay. Leaving the Q would not have been difficult over the last few years.

Awesome...

http://www.sandiego6.com/news/local/...AA8gUOemA.cspx

^ We're screwed. But if L.A. gets the Chargers back we should at least get the Clippers as a consolation prize. :haha:

very meh.....

Damn. I wanted something like Union Square in SF.

Do you really see anything like that ever happening in San Diego? :P

Sigh....... :(

Well, its better then what we have now...

Can someone post a picture of the department store that is being demolished for the park?