Anchor ads are not supported on this page.

4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs

Sanders Pushes Car-Free Zone in Balboa Park

Mayor Jerry Sanders has thrown his support behind the proposal to redevelop Balboa Park’s Plaza de Panama into a car-free zone. In an open letter issued last week, he lamented the current condition of the park, writing that “Every year, Balboa Park’s backlog of deferred maintenance grows longer. Plans for needed improvements gather dust for lack of funding.”

The plan to re-route cars away from the plaza, says Sanders, “is the most exciting thing to happen in Balboa Park in my lifetime. It will transform the Balboa Park visitor experience.”

Backed by Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs, the major component of the proposal is to create a bypass bridge to loop around the plaza, stopping traffic on El Prado as it crosses over SR 163 and diverting it to the right toward a paid parking garage near the organ pavilion. The garage will feature “a green rooftop park of lawns and gardens,” and will be financed through a bond to be repaid with the parking fees generated.

Jacobs and others on the Plaza de Panama Committee have committed to raising $25 million, which will largely fund the remainder of the project. The group is in a hurry to begin development, as it’s hoped the project will be complete by 2015 for a yearlong centennial celebration of the 1915 Panama-California Exposition.

On July 17, the committee goes to the city council to discuss a memorandum of understanding. While not an explicit project approval, if issued the memorandum would express the council’s support for the project.

Rendering of the proposed bridge

Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all

Previous article

March is typically windy, Sage scents in the foothills

Butterflies may cross the county

Mayor Jerry Sanders has thrown his support behind the proposal to redevelop Balboa Park’s Plaza de Panama into a car-free zone. In an open letter issued last week, he lamented the current condition of the park, writing that “Every year, Balboa Park’s backlog of deferred maintenance grows longer. Plans for needed improvements gather dust for lack of funding.”

The plan to re-route cars away from the plaza, says Sanders, “is the most exciting thing to happen in Balboa Park in my lifetime. It will transform the Balboa Park visitor experience.”

Backed by Qualcomm founder Irwin Jacobs, the major component of the proposal is to create a bypass bridge to loop around the plaza, stopping traffic on El Prado as it crosses over SR 163 and diverting it to the right toward a paid parking garage near the organ pavilion. The garage will feature “a green rooftop park of lawns and gardens,” and will be financed through a bond to be repaid with the parking fees generated.

Jacobs and others on the Plaza de Panama Committee have committed to raising $25 million, which will largely fund the remainder of the project. The group is in a hurry to begin development, as it’s hoped the project will be complete by 2015 for a yearlong centennial celebration of the 1915 Panama-California Exposition.

On July 17, the committee goes to the city council to discuss a memorandum of understanding. While not an explicit project approval, if issued the memorandum would express the council’s support for the project.

Rendering of the proposed bridge

Sponsored
Here's something you might be interested in.
Submit a free classified
or view all
Previous article

Balboa Park Bypass Bridge Battle Continues

Next Article

Gordon Kovtun is an engineer, not a gay porn star

Plaza de Panama project construction manager Gordon Kovtun cyberbullied
Ask a Hipster — Advice you didn't know you needed Big Screen — Movie commentary Blurt — Music's inside track Booze News — San Diego spirits Classical Music — Immortal beauty Classifieds — Free and easy Cover Stories — Front-page features Drinks All Around — Bartenders' drink recipes Excerpts — Literary and spiritual excerpts Feast! — Food & drink reviews Feature Stories — Local news & stories Fishing Report — What’s getting hooked from ship and shore From the Archives — Spotlight on the past Golden Dreams — Talk of the town The Gonzo Report — Making the musical scene, or at least reporting from it Letters — Our inbox Movies@Home — Local movie buffs share favorites Movie Reviews — Our critics' picks and pans Musician Interviews — Up close with local artists Neighborhood News from Stringers — Hyperlocal news News Ticker — News & politics Obermeyer — San Diego politics illustrated Outdoors — Weekly changes in flora and fauna Overheard in San Diego — Eavesdropping illustrated Poetry — The old and the new Reader Travel — Travel section built by travelers Reading — The hunt for intellectuals Roam-O-Rama — SoCal's best hiking/biking trails San Diego Beer — Inside San Diego suds SD on the QT — Almost factual news Sheep and Goats — Places of worship Special Issues — The best of Street Style — San Diego streets have style Surf Diego — Real stories from those braving the waves Theater — On stage in San Diego this week Tin Fork — Silver spoon alternative Under the Radar — Matt Potter's undercover work Unforgettable — Long-ago San Diego Unreal Estate — San Diego's priciest pads Your Week — Daily event picks
4S Ranch Allied Gardens Alpine Baja Balboa Park Bankers Hill Barrio Logan Bay Ho Bay Park Black Mountain Ranch Blossom Valley Bonita Bonsall Borrego Springs Boulevard Campo Cardiff-by-the-Sea Carlsbad Carmel Mountain Carmel Valley Chollas View Chula Vista City College City Heights Clairemont College Area Coronado CSU San Marcos Cuyamaca College Del Cerro Del Mar Descanso Downtown San Diego Eastlake East Village El Cajon Emerald Hills Encanto Encinitas Escondido Fallbrook Fletcher Hills Golden Hill Grant Hill Grantville Grossmont College Guatay Harbor Island Hillcrest Imperial Beach Imperial Valley Jacumba Jamacha-Lomita Jamul Julian Kearny Mesa Kensington La Jolla Lakeside La Mesa Lemon Grove Leucadia Liberty Station Lincoln Acres Lincoln Park Linda Vista Little Italy Logan Heights Mesa College Midway District MiraCosta College Miramar Miramar College Mira Mesa Mission Beach Mission Hills Mission Valley Mountain View Mount Hope Mount Laguna National City Nestor Normal Heights North Park Oak Park Ocean Beach Oceanside Old Town Otay Mesa Pacific Beach Pala Palomar College Palomar Mountain Paradise Hills Pauma Valley Pine Valley Point Loma Point Loma Nazarene Potrero Poway Rainbow Ramona Rancho Bernardo Rancho Penasquitos Rancho San Diego Rancho Santa Fe Rolando San Carlos San Marcos San Onofre Santa Ysabel Santee San Ysidro Scripps Ranch SDSU Serra Mesa Shelltown Shelter Island Sherman Heights Skyline Solana Beach Sorrento Valley Southcrest South Park Southwestern College Spring Valley Stockton Talmadge Temecula Tierrasanta Tijuana UCSD University City University Heights USD Valencia Park Valley Center Vista Warner Springs
Close

Anchor ads are not supported on this page.