^i totally love the high speed rail concept and hope it gets built (hopefully soon!)

but the airport should still be built in Miramar!;)

I don't disagree. After all, does it make sense for an airport to be located immediatey adjacent to a one of a few natural harbors on the west coast and so near a downtown? - rhetorical. But, whether or not Lindbergh is moved, HSR is good for freeing up limited airport capacity.

According to the alignment plan for the high speed rail it will basically pass through miramar. Just another benefit to locating the new airport there.

But, no station is planned over there, yet. If HSR moves forward I am sure it will be before anything ever happens with Lindbergh. I'd think?

By the way, a measure is on the ballot for November 2008 to consider a bond measure to fund high speed rail.

http://i109.photobucket.com/albums/n...ail/HSR-SD.jpg

What is the R2-D2 mailbox?

Great job with the pictures guys!:lmao: I have a hard time telling them apart...

Because they could if they wanted to. Almost everybody can, except for America's finest city.

USPS did a promotional thing for the film's 20th anniversary, and they came up with an R2-D2 mailbox:)

gotcha

sad, but true.:(

i can picture it now. a 600 foot building with a bad haircut.

Mmm... about Chula Vista's potential height, they may not have restrictions with a local airport, but who's to say they do not have their own city ordinance resticting the height of buildings? Every other city does.

that could be true. who was it that posted the map/data before regarding this. it was almost a year or more ago.

it would kill me to see a 500 footer outside of downtown San Diego unless downtown had it first...then Chula Vista and National City can push it too;)

(although i doubt it would ever happen anyway...its just a thought)

interesting article from Metro Investment Report regarding the situation on airport and growth:

"...San Diego voters rejected a ballot measure that would set preliminary groundwork for a possible airport at Miramar Naval Air Station. The issue of where to site a larger airport in San Diego is more than three decades old. What is the significance of this latest vote, and what are the prospects?

This is really a larger debate about growth. San Diego is deeply divided about whether it wants to be a big city or a very large suburb. The airport is part of that debate. Many people here don’t want the growth that an airport produces, particularly in their backyard..."

http://www.metroinvestmentreport.com...68&format=html

well, those people that want a big suburb suck:)

they are a majority though, according to that vote

So is the floating airport basically dead??

And I agree San Diego County does have an identity crisis. When will people realize that a shitty small one runway airport will affect their future as well as their childrens. Do they want San Diego County to start losing jobs and not attracting new businesses?

Like an earlier poster said PORTLAND has direct flights to Europe and Asia. Come on now San Diego lets step this up and start thinking about a floating airport.

^Tijuana does too, but i dont support the floating airport, because of environmental and accesibility issues...Miramar (IMO) is the only viable site in SD county...screw the desert...im not going that far...

updates from a fellow forumer

Stumpy Legend
 

Why didn't they make the Legend Taller?? At only 24 floors it barely clears the scoreboard and lighting structure of Petco so only the top 6 floors have great southerly views. They should have made it a 38 to 42 floor tower. I really don't see it being that marketable with only a handfull of units getting a great view to the south.

Plus it doesn't give the people inside the ballpark a dramatic view of a highrise since it only sticks out a little bit above the lighting stand. BOSA pussed out on the Legend lets admit it :yuck:

This is what absolutely burns me up about this town. These are the people who keep San Diego mediocre...and it is the spineless, inept city government that lets them.

In a related matter, the State of California adopted legislation a few years ago, maybe 10, that each jurisdiction is required to plan to accomodate their fair share of statewide projected population gain; California grows by 400k to 750k each year.

What the legislation means is that the weight/pressure of the current population can no longer influence the creation of no growth or slow growth measures on a city wide basis. Each city is now responsible for where must those additional numbers be located and the type of housing to be planned. So, whether San Diego slow growth citizen's like it or not (like Donna Frye?), SD is to grow. As I understand it, because I am kinda a newbie to SD, is that city entities selected downtown as one of those areas where future populations should be located.

That is very interesting - I'm glad you posted it. I think that goes back to what I mentioned before. The "official" policy may be growth, but so many residents didn't get the memo, and consequently do everything they can to stifle growth. If the city had balls, it would stand up to the slow/no-growth types, but it doesn't, so we're are left in the mess we're in.

On the bright side, I am glad that the city had the foresight to do what they could to encourage downtown residential growth. Like I said before though, now they need to follow up by doing what they can to encourage corporate expansion (spelled: n e w a i r p o r t). People need places to work. ;)

City Probably would not let Bosa go higher
 

I think bosa only did 24 floors on the legend because that is all he was allowed to do. If you look at all the buildings going up touching the ballpark they are of a relatively similar height. Even the portion of the omni right across the street is stepped down. So I think that means there was a height limit on the buildings right next to the park. Maybe they were afraid of shadows on the stadium. Further evidence of a height limit is the fact that the next block down from the legend all has proposals and buildings that are much higher, the new mixed use complex, cosmo square, and the mark.

holy cow...the game was intense!! i had great seats too...section 131:tup:

anyways, i have to disagree, i think The Legend and Diamond View and Omni, Park Terrace, ICON etc...all look great with the surroundings...and im hoping Cosmo Square, Library Tower and the new main library (fingers crossed on all three...) can tie everything together into a beautiful community

So I have been thinking the past couple days how I dislike the chain-link fences on the I-5 overpasses downtown, particularly on the ones going north to Bankers Hill. And Park Blvd too. Are they on Park? I am assuming they are.

Caltrans began intalling them statewide a bit over 10 years ago after an incident or two involving people/kids throwing things off them and hurting motorists below. I think there were some deaths involved.

Anyway, they are unsightly and I offer-up that they could be replaced rather easily by some nice iron wrought fencing, or something. Maybe some nice vintage street lights too. Wouldn't that look sweet? It's not like the parking decks are going to happen any time soon, are they?

If done, it could add much to the romantic alure of downtown. After-all, over 100,000 cars pass under the bridges each weekday. Maybe more? People would remember them and eventually want to get off and visit downtown... not that more visitors are need... I am just saying. over SR 163 is an example. A poor example, but one nevertheless.

The Laurel Street bridge in Balboa Park is an example, although bad one.

^how about lids that cover the freeways;)

FYI: There was definately a cap on the heights of the buildings immediately surrounding the ballpark. I remember there was much debate about this before and during construction of the park. The developers wanted to go both fat and tall to capitalize off the location. The "public" stupidly wanted short buildings, but the developers argued that the buildings would be fat as a result, causing more issues than if they were tall. In the end the buildings ended up about as wide as the developers originally wanted, but a bit shorter.

the buildings dont seem that wide to me...

^that's the idea, they aren't as wide as they could have been :cheers:

gotcha:cheers:

i didnt read it right the first time...

If that restriction is true, I know it does not include the temporary traingular lot bounded by Park, 12th, & Imperial. Nor the lot to the south of Imperial between Petco and the trolley. That area is 500 feet.

^i thought the port restricted height down there...?

do you guys think the city of SD will incorporate 4S Ranch? im just curious as to what you guys think...

The land BMFarley is talking about isn't restricted as I understand it. That is where "Ballpark Village" was/is supposed to go. The project was to include aprox. (3) 500'-ish buildings, so I don't see how it could have any sort of meaningful cap.

Holy shit, US Open on Torrey Pines and the Del Mar Fair overlap by three days...

http://www.signonsandiego.com/news/n...1n8delmar.html

I-5 will be the world's largest parking lot for those 3 days...

Lindberg is the busiest single runway in the nation. And probably ranks up there in the world rankings. Why? Because we are operating at capacity. This means that we could afford to have another runway. Unfortunately, we don't have the space. It IS time to move the airport. Once the airports growth is no longer stunted, I think we will see some really positive changes in the way the airport operates and the business it brings to the city. Really, it's a positive thing no matter how you look at it. I'm not understanding why people dont get it!! :shrug:

I second this motion.

I agree about Miramar, I just don't think the military will ever give it up. San Diego as we all know has no flat land left, which doesn't give us many other options. Does anyone think Montgomery may be workable? I don't think they'd have to tear down too many properties to make it work. Maybe they could run the 163 freeway under the runway, tear down that In-N-Out shopping center and a few other businesses for a paralell or cross runway.

The military would probably give it up if someone paid for a replacement elsewhere. I'll suggest Ramona. Maybe switch with Brown Field? Unfortunately the November vote cut-of the airport authority's ability to even discuss such options!

^Yeah, it looks like the plan now is to make SDIA workable "for the next 15-20 years" according to what I've read.

Off topic, but does anyone know what the deal is with the two Marriott properties in the Gaslamp?

I hope they don't. One of the reason our infrastructure is so stretched is the services are stretched all the way up to Black Mountain Ranch, RB, Otay, Etc...

That parking lot is owned by Bosa. They are making a lot more money as a parking lot than they would as a building right now.

+/- 200 parking spots @ $20 per day = $4000 per day X 24 working days per month = $96,000 per month.

12 months @ $96,000 per month = $1,152,000 per year.

At an 8 CAP, it would be worth $14.4 million.

Bassam is gone.

I agree. I hear people quote it all of the time. I want to see it is black and white.

If that was really the case, why hasn't any new tower even approached that height yet? No one is pushing past 420'. They could squeeze a few more floors in, especially along the water.

Nobody is building a 500' tower in the South Bay anytime soon. They can't even get the current midrises financed.

Developer of condos may ask city for loan




By Tanya Sierra
UNION-TRIBUNE STAFF WRITER
April 6, 2007

NATIONAL CITY – The Australian development company that promised two years ago to build a 21-story luxury condominium project in National City is now considering asking city officials to lend the firm up to $2 million.

Executives of Constellation Property Group won't discuss why they need a loan, but city officials said the company's financial partner – Phoenix Realty Group – wants to pull its money out of the project. Representatives at Phoenix Realty acknowledged they are partners with Constellation but would not discuss whether they are withdrawing from the project because they are still negotiating.
Securing financial backing has become a challenge in San Diego County since the housing market softened, Constellation's development director, Wayne Hann, said last month.

Officials are counting on the Constellation project – a four-story development named Centro and the high-rise Revolution/Lumina – to jump-start redevelopment in a city struggling with poverty, crime and a run-down business corridor. Revolution was one of the first high-rise condo proposals in National City and is among four planned for National City Boulevard.

City officials should view the Constellation loan as an investment, said Brad Raulston, the city's redevelopment director.

“It's tied to construction and it's a short-term loan,” Raulston said. “They're not asking for a subsidy. This is a good risk or investment for us to take.”

The loan would be no more than $2 million, would come from the city's redevelopment budget, and would be used to help Constellation buy out Phoenix Realty's stake in the deal, Raulston said.

The redevelopment agency budget, about $28 million a year, is separate from the city's general fund. Its revenue is mostly from the property tax increment and grants. Redevelopment money can be used on projects that revitalize the community within the redevelopment zone and also on administrative costs associated with the projects.

Constellation is still working out financial details and has not formally requested a loan from National City. However, city officials have met in closed session to discuss it. Mayor Ron Morrison expects Constellation to make the request within the next month.

Morrison said he believes the project is worth a loan.

“They have really stuck with it,” Morrison said. “Some (developers) come in and everything is a demand and if they don't get what they want, they pack up and leave. They have been very above board on all of this.”

Constellation arrived in San Diego about three years ago but didn't approach National City until a year later.

The company has built about 10,000 condominiums in Australia. It is developing two residential projects in San Diego, one in Texas and one in Arizona. It recently pulled out of a project in Las Vegas.

The National City development includes three phases. The first is the Centro building, followed by two Revolution/Lumina buildings. One of the Revolution/Lumina buildings will be a high-rise that would include 150 condominiums and 130 hotel rooms. The other will house mostly commercial and retail space, meeting areas, a spa and a fitness center.

“We see National City as a great submarket,” Hann said last month.

Constellation targets urban, undiscovered areas where local government is eager to redevelop, said Eugene Marchese, the company's managing director.

The company's Web site describes the Centro project as “upbeat, urbane, unfettered – at the heart of a burgeoning community close to all amenities.”

Hann said last month that the company is hoping to cater to buyers from Mexico who want to be close to the border. This week, though, he said the group is not marketing to anyone until it gets all funding in place.

In 2005, Constellation launched a marketing campaign to promote the National City project.

The company opened a sales office on National City Boulevard and hosted a launch party for the project at downtown San Diego's Hotel Solamar that featured Australian food, live music and models of the National City project.

The company placed ads in magazines and on billboards and began taking reservations through its Web site.

After Constellation resolves its financial situation, it expects to break ground this year.

“Our goal is to announce the commencement of a construction date for the Centro project over the next two months,” Hann said.

Electra is 480' and 43 floors

or Brown Field, my dad works out at Donovan and once the 905's conversion into an interstate is complete it will only take about 15 minutes (traffic pending) to get there from downtown...the drive actually isnt too bad at all...but instead of the runway running east-west like it does, it would probablly need to be reconfigured to north-south due to the mountainous terrain...just my 2 cents;)

the only problem with that is the Tijuana airport...

good point with the switching thing:tup: