SAN DIEGO | Boom Rundown, Vol. 2

[spoonman]

Originally Posted by SDfan

I found this from google images:

(its the first image on the upper left side corner)

http://www.google.com/search?q=broadston...letters%252Fjulyenews12.html%3B600%3B464

But from what I've read, this project went from 150ft to 79ft since the recession hit. So I'm not sure.

Here is some conjecture on another site as well...Looks like it may not be 14 floors, but instead be much shorter, with a larger footprint. 14 floors would have been really nice for that area.

http://www.sdlookup.com/Forums/Regionsan...28/postid/128401/view/topic/Default.aspx

[Puzzlecraft]

Yes, I saw both of those links too.... and it was the uncertainty which lead to my post. I go by there practically everyday. if I find out something more definitive, will post here unless someone else beats me to it.

[Puzzlecraft]

Found this in the San Diego Daily Transcript 1/29/13:

Alliance has also been doing demolition work in Bankers Hill for Broadstone Balboa, a 100-unit apartment. The project, located on Thorn Street between Fourth and Fifth avenues, is expected to take about 20 months to complete. Broadstone Balboa calls for the preservation of a 1,500-square-foot structure at 3235 Fourth Ave. and a 2,500-square-foot building at 3255 Fourth Ave. that have both been used as commercial offices.

The two buildings will temporarily be placed in a storage yard before being returned and incorporated into the project. Yanicelli said both buildings were constructed in 1927 -- the year Charles Lindbergh crossed the Atlantic. The restored buildings will house two apartment units in the larger 3255 Fourth structure and one in the 3235 Fourth Ave. building.

El Cajon-based John Hansen House Moving has been hired to move the two buildings. "The buildings we're preserving are going to be put back and restored to their original state," Yanicelli said. "The main things with this property are logistics issues."

The building at 403 Thorn St. is being demolished to make way for the development. While this 5,950-square-foot building was reportedly constructed in 1934 and rehabilitated in 1954, Yanicelli said it is not considered to be historic.

Alliance is is proposing to build studios, one- and two-bedroom floor plans ranging from 600 to 1,650 square feet at Broadstone Balboa. Amenities will include a swimming pool, spa, cabanas, valet, concierge services, storage, an exercise room, a community room with kitchen and other features.

The developer acquired the Bankers Hill site in March 2011 from a partnership controlled by La Jolla Pacific Development Group for $7.04 million.

The architectural team for Broadstone Balboa includes Carrier Johnson + Culture, and historic preservation specialists San Diego-based John Eisenhart of Union Architects and Tim Martin with Carlsbad-based Martin Architecture.

An earlier five-story proposal by the previous owner was rejected by the San Diego City Planning Commission in 2010 because it was expected to overwhelm the site. Yanicelli is confident a redesigned project will eliminate the concern.

If all goes as Yanicelli hopes, Broadstone Balboa could be completed within the next couple of years.

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Bit weird they are going to have to bring back those two houses they moved out.

[spoonman]

^It still is vague about the number of floors.

[Puzzlecraft]

With "just" 100 units - studio, 1BR and 2BR, and given the size of the property, I'm guessing 4 floors.

[Puzzlecraft]

Visited the Balboa Park's revamped Plaza de Panama for the first time this morning about an hour ago. Mostly deserted, "the big empty", but so much better without the crazy traffic circle around the fountain, had the feeling of freedom.

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[SDfan]

Painted asphalt is such a San Diego solution...

[Derek]

It looks like —. Better than the round-about, but still terrible.

[Northparkwizard]

Originally Posted by SDfan

Painted asphalt is such a San Diego solution...

Agreed, It's not a surprise the space is empty. There's nowhere to sit. There are no trees for shade. The only thing that you can do in that type of space is to walk through it and I don't think that reflects the initial intent of removing the parking and traffic circle. Until there are chairs, shade, and a cafe it's just going to be what it looks like. An empty sand colored parking lot.

[Bertrice]

what's the appeal for locals to go to BP? I've been once in ten years.

[Chapelo]

It's a nice place to go on weekends, see some exhibits at the museums and stroll around, but I try to avoid the place. I'm an SD native, and I can count the times I've been to the park on both hands. And I've lived ten minutes away since 1986.

Come to think of it, I'm overdue for a visit.

[atlantaguy]

Wow! I was just there at the first of the month, and it was nothing like this. They still had the valet parking going on. It looks like —...not that I liked the setup before, though.

Btw, it was my visit in over 10 years and I was blown away with all the changes, especially Downtown.

[tyleraf]

The Balboa Park improvements look decent. I recall reading some where that there are plans to later put down pavers and bistro tables in the plaza. It's unfortunate that Jacobs plan doesn't seem to be happening, but at least this is progress.

[eburress]

Originally Posted by Bertrice

what's the appeal for locals to go to BP? I've been once in ten years.

There is potentially a lot of appeal for locals to go to Balboa Park. For example, if you have kids, you might take them to the museums there or the zoo, and if you're interested in theater, you might go to Balboa Park for plays at the Old Globe. El Prado is a good place for brunches, so there's that on Mother's Day, Father's Day, and/or Easter. And for me specifically, several of the sports leagues I participate in practice in Balboa Park, so one way or another, even though I live up north, I'm in Balboa Park all the freakin' time!

[northbay]

That "plaza" is screaming to be broken up into more intimate spaces with seating/eating areas and vegetation. A step in the right direction though, and definitely better without cars!

[aerogt3]

Originally Posted by SDfan

Painted asphalt is such a San Diego solution...

It was put up in a week for $300k, what do you expect? It can be re-done in a proper way with landscaping later on.

IMO the car access is such a small part of the plaza it could be left alone.

[SDfan]

Originally Posted by aerogt3

It was put up in a week for $300k, what do you expect? It can be re-done in a proper way with landscaping later on.

IMO the car access is such a small part of the plaza it could be left alone.

Honestly, I didn't expect much. San Diego is a place where the most sensible ideas go to die.

Car free plaza? How about semi-car free asphalt?
City of Villages? How about radical NIMBYism and underfunded planning departments?
21st century infrastructure? How about another freeway lane, ten more terminals at our already congested single runway airport, and maybe (just maybe) another trolley line extension that's been in the planning stages for 30 years?

I study San Diego urban development history, and let me tell you what to expect: not much. San Diego will forever linger in the shadows of its potential because of the short-sighted, small-minded, mid-western transplants who call this cul-de-sac home.

So please, spare me the excuses, because this plaza "remodel" is another classic example of how little this city thinks of itself.

[Puzzlecraft]

SDfan.... add to your list the Embarcadero! I'm mean just how many years has this travesty been just sitting here with the sprawling parking lots and just one overpriced overcrowded restaurant on the bay side? This area is just begging to be developed into a really beautiful, pedestrian friendly space.

[aerogt3]

People on this forum are so unrealistic. Big shiny new towers, brand new airports, and massive transit projects (without ridership to pay for it) COST A LOT OF MONEY. Money SD does not have. It is a small city with a metro population of 3M, and you guys are bitching that it doesn't have things that even cities like SF and LA still lack.


SDfan, people in SD drive cars to work and prefer an added lane for 500M to bring their commute from 25 minutes to 18 minutes as opposed to spending billions on a system that will get them to work in 45. Aside from a handful on forums, no one actually wants to give up an hour or more of their day to make the switch to transit to work. I ride my bike to work, but I can cross a population area of 1.5 million people in 15 minutes by bike..... No system built in SD could ever take me from downtown to eastern Poway in 25 the minutes it took me to drive. Hence, extra lanes. No one wants to waste their day making 3 10-20 minute bus rides with 5-10 minutes for each connection. Outside a few point to point link between the densest living/working centers, there is no conceivable or affordable system that could be even REMOTELY competitive with cars or motorbikes.

The plaza is a PRACTICAL solution. It's cheap, quick, and accomplishes PART of the objective. If everything were done your way, it would cost $10M, and be done in 4 years. This was done in a week.

Puzzlecraft.... Embarcadero..... sure there is a lot of potential and the site is a POS right now. But where is the MONEY??? If buildings are put up, who is going to occupy them and pay the rents? Who will buy the condos?

[Urbanize_It]

[QUOTE=...If buildings are put up, who is going to occupy them and pay the rents? Who will buy the condos?[/QUOTE]

The people who are denied new highway lanes and decide to live closer to work.