Originally Posted by spoonman (Post 6681788)

There was an opinion piece in VOSD today where someone was bitching about lack of parking for a mixed use project in La Jolla (oh, the humanity). Someone in the comments section gave a fantastic response/rant which seemed to hit the issue spot-on. Just thought I'd share...

http://voiceofsandiego.org/2014/08/0...-of-residents/
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Matthews
1 day ago

Get out of your car and walk. Hop on a bicycle and peddle. Take an uber lift. Welcome to the 21st century, where urban development in the form of mixed-use projects are taking over car dominated cities across the country. We have a long way to go, but these developments -and the many more to come- are going to transform San Diego for the better, whether stalwart community planning groups like it or not.

You argue that these commercial spaces are planned in order to reduce the need for residents to commute to more distance places for retail, etc. Well, when you place housing on top of commercial space, locating them closer to surrounding neighborhoods - you get just that! More people will walk, bike, carpool to these locations, because they are so close, while they are less likely to drive - because who needs to drive when the hardware store or market is right downstairs or down the street? And this is all localized retail - not destination. Very few people are going to commute across town to Turquoise Street for a convince store, dry cleaner, or nail salon when there are numerable closer options nearby.

And using "community character" (whatever that means) to defend a particular planning restriction/regulation/red tape is not a justifiable argument in the face of our region's growing housing affordability and availability crisis. Particular neighborhoods (*cough La Jolla cough OB cough Clairemont cough Uptown*) want to weasel their way out of contributing to the only viable solutions we have (developing mulit-family, mulit-use, transit oriented development by increasing density and promoting urbanization), but it's only going to cost them in the long run as housing prices become asphyxiating and development stagnates, which would not only effect young families and professionals (the future) but a network of industries tied to real estate, construction, and more related services (big chunks of the local economy). And all because "I can't drive down the street to go to 7-11 because it'll take me 15 minutes to find parking around the block!" The travesty! The inhumanity!

Just because a planning guide was good for 1960 doesn't mean it's good 50+ years later. Time to evolve. Time to start addressing problems. Time to stop clinging on to old regulations that make no sense today. Embrace change and the future.

And thank you for sharing! Your opinion is an important part of community discussion and civic debate about our city's future

Originally Posted by SDfan (Post 6681307)

I'm not happy about the bus yard either, but it's definitely not stopping development in the area (there is a 40+ story tower going up a few blocks away, if you hadn't noticed). The transients aren't there because of the buses. The site should be redeveloped for mixed-use, high-density purposes. Not a once-in-a-while stadium.

Originally Posted by aerogt3 (Post 6683275)

....guess want - people WANT to live near a football stadium....."

Originally Posted by SDCAL (Post 6683835)

I 100% believe that a football stadium in the EV will kill the neighborhood, and I for one would sell my condo and move if it ever came to be.

Originally Posted by SDCAL (Post 6683835)

I don't. And neither does anyone I have talked to. Traffic, noise, hauling drunk people back and forth. I'd rather live in an urban neighborhood with walkable streets and businesses and venues geared towards residents as opposed to businesses and venues geared towards people who only come downtown during games.

As someone who lives in EV, I can tell you that after baseball games are over and people have scattered, maybe gone to a restaurant or two then left downtown, it really sucks the vitality out of the area and leaves a sort of lifeless depressing vibe to the neighborhood.

Anyone who has been around somewhere when a huge event happens and then it ends, all the commotion leaves, and you're left with this depressing energy knows what I mean. It's hard to put into words, but it's definitely not a pleasant feeling if you call that neighborhood home.

I really want EV to transform into a place that has things going 24-7 all year, a steady stream of residents and visitors contributing to a cool, thriving, energy filled neighborhood that's not dependant on a few large events scattered throughout the year. EV is better than being a place that just hosts big sports events and parties and then has the energy sucked out of it afterwards.

The key should be bringing jobs to the area, tech jobs and the like, so people can live AND work in the area, not just flood in to watch football games then flood out of it.

I 100% believe that a football stadium in the EV will kill the neighborhood, and I for one would sell my condo and move if it ever came to be.

Originally Posted by Northparkwizard (Post 6683983)

As someone who worked in EV during the late 90's (13th and G) and lived in Golden Hill it's funny to see that with all the redevelopment that has happened in that span of time that there was more going on in the neighborhood back then, then there is now. I.E. coffee, shops, businesses, magazines, design firms, publications, art gallery's, recording studios, clothing companies, watering holes, etc... All the condo's have done it "wall off" areas more and create just as many "dead zones" as any stadium would do. I don't see much life there anymore besides before, during, and after a Padres game. It's sort of hilarious to me that it's now mostly yuppies living behind security gates and underground garages. A stadium would at least bring a bunch of more high paying jobs(100's of millions of dollars in jobs) to the neighborhood which I think is more important than condos for the future of EV.

Originally Posted by aerogt3 (Post 6683275)

And if there were a stadium in place of the bus yard, there would be MORE 40 story towers because - guess want - people WANT to live near a football stadium but don't want to live near a bus yard.

The question isn't "should be we build a stadium or should we build some towers." Because the answer would clearly be towers. The question is "do we build a stadium, or do we keep empty lots and a bus yard."

Originally Posted by Leo the Dog (Post 6684734)

Disagree 100%.

Football stadiums aren't built in neighborhoods to begin with. I've never met one person who moves to an area because of a nice football stadium. Even in Boston (an urbanist's dream) residents of the Fenway neighborhood constantly fought successfully against the city/Sox for a new Fenway Park. On the proposed site were old dilapidated buildings. Now there are high rise condos and major in-fill.

The empty lots will be developed without the football stadium. Not sure how you can say there will be more towers with less available land.

Originally Posted by Northparkwizard (Post 6683983)

As someone who worked in EV during the late 90's (13th and G) and lived in Golden Hill it's funny to see that with all the redevelopment that has happened in that span of time that there was more going on in the neighborhood back then, then there is now. I.E. coffee, shops, businesses, magazines, design firms, publications, art gallery's, recording studios, clothing companies, watering holes, etc... All the condo's have done it "wall off" areas more and create just as many "dead zones" as any stadium would do. I don't see much life there anymore besides before, during, and after a Padres game. It's sort of hilarious to me that it's now mostly yuppies living behind security gates and underground garages. A stadium would at least bring a bunch of more high paying jobs(100's of millions of dollars in jobs) to the neighborhood which I think is more important than condos for the future of EV.

Originally Posted by spoonman (Post 6684827)

^ Wow! This is huge. Thought this would never happen. I hope this project makes that area more walkable. Right now those few blocks are almost suburban the way that everything is spread out.

Originally Posted by SDfan (Post 6684466)

As someone who lives in Golden Hill and frequents the East Village often it's funny to see how wrong you are. Just because these communities have grown and businesses have changed doesn't mean they're worse. Counterpoint, You Are Here and numerous smaller projects and redevelopments have done wonders for the Golden Hill community, adding yoga studios, bars, salon's, wellness centers, offices for insurers, architects, art dealers, and many other small businesses along with the all too important added benefit of more housing options in an urban environment that desperately needs it.

Building a stadium won't do any of that.

And by "100's of millions of dollars in jobs," you must mean the collective salaries of the players and team owners right? Or the wealthy who would own skybox tickets and not give two shiza's about the urban environment around them? Or maybe you mean the collective salaries of the hundreds of seasonal minimum and low-wage service jobs (poor teens who couldn't get gigs at SeaWorld...)? Yeah, great argument there.

There is more life and energy around those mixed-use complexes than would be in a closed, mammoth of a stadium complex.

I don't understand what the huge fascination with the stadium being downtown is? There seems to be an assumption that downtown land is limitless, and that a another massive, seasonally used sports complex will be the only stimulate the rest of the East Village needs for it to build out.

Uh, what's the Idea District again? Makers Quarter? City College expansion? Ballpark Village? East Village Green? The millions of square feet planned, approved, or under construction as we cry over maybe losing the succubus that is the NFL? I guess it's all nothing because apparently only a new home for the Chargers (the people's team!*for an average of $81 a seat* What a deal for a palace we paid for!) is the only savior for the EV.

Build it in Mission Valley. Build it in Chula Vista. Build it in Oceanside. Build it in Temec-u-fu*king-la. But don't build it in the last place we need it: downtown.