Port Master Plan Update
The Port of San Diego advances to Phase 4 of 5 of its Port Master Plan Update (PMPU), another major milestone since launching the Integrated Planning effort in 2013, a multifaceted and comprehensive approach for managing and planning for the future of the Port and San Diego Bay in a balanced way.
During a Board Workshop held Monday, December 7, the Board of Port Commissioners considered public and stakeholder feedback received on the recently released Revised Draft PMPU and provided direction to staff on additional changes to make to the draft based on that feedback. Next, staff will complete the Draft Program Environmental Impact Report (PEIR).
“An incredible amount of work has taken place over the past eight years to get us here. As a result, we are another step closer to having a document that has the forward-thinking policies we need to manage San Diego Bay per our mission AND represents the community’s vision for San Diego Bay and the surrounding waterfront,” said Chair Ann Moore, Port of San Diego Board of Port Commissioners. “Our objective is, and has always been, to create a thoughtful and balanced approach to future water and land uses for generations to come. You can’t do that without taking a comprehensive look at the bay as a whole and collaborating with the public, stakeholders and our partners – and that’s exactly what we’ve been doing since we began this odyssey.”
This five-phase planning process will culminate with an updated Port Master Plan:
- Vision Statement and Guiding Principles (Completed in 2014) – This initial phase included a high-level assessment of Port-wide assets and extensive public engagement resulting in a foundational Vision Statement and Guiding Principles for the entire Integrated Planning framework.
- Framework Report (Completed in 2015) – In this phase, the Vision Process was further refined through consideration of a core set of comprehensive ideas, memorialized in a Framework Report, that is informing the development of the Draft PMPU document. (Phase 1 and 2 make up the Integrated Planning Vision)
- Port Master Plan Update Discussion Draft and Revised Draft (Completed December 2020) – This phase involved direction from the Board for drafting of the “Draft PMPU” document, to be used as the project description in the Draft PEIR and which will ultimately be comprised of goals, policies and maps.
- Baywide Elements and Planning District Goals (Completed in 2017)
- Policy Concepts and Water and Land Use Maps (Completed in 2019)
- Additional Policy Discussion Topics (Completed in 2019)
- Public review of PMPU Discussion Draft (Completed in 2019)
- Public review of Revised Draft PMPU (Completed December 2020)
- Environmental review pursuant to California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) (Current Phase) – In this phase, staff will conduct the requisite “CEQA Environmental Review.” Preliminary environmental review work began during the third phase. In mid-2021, the Port anticipates circulating the Draft Program Environmental Impact Report for public review. It will include analysis of impacts such as, but not limited to, traffic, climate change, air quality, noise, and natural resources.
- California Coastal Commission Certification (Anticipated for 2021/2022) – If the Board certifies the PEIR and adopts the PMPU, it will be processed for “California Coastal Commission Certification,” with approvals during public meetings thereafter, including the Board’s approval of the PMPU as certified by the Coastal Commission and lastly, the Coastal Commission’s approval of the final PMPU after the Board’s approval of the PMPU as certified by the Coastal Commission.
More than 400 comments were received on the Revised Draft, which was released for public review and feedback in October. It considered and reflected extensive and valuable community input received on the Discussion Draft released in April 2019.
The PMPU is essentially the Port’s water and land use law and has something for everyone who enjoys San Diego Bay. The intention of an updated Port Master Plan – often referred to as “the future of the Port” – is to serve as the primary tool for balancing environmental, economic and community interests along the San Diego Bay waterfront for the next 30 years. Goals include protecting opportunities for public access and parks on the waterfront for all Californians and visitors and providing clear direction on how and where future development may occur.
In a general way, the Port Master Plan determines where port activities take place, where public access, including recreational amenities and view corridors are to be located, where commercial uses like hotels, restaurants and visitor-serving retail may be built, and helps to protect and restore the natural environment. The Port is updating its Port Master Plan to reflect changes in the needs and priorities of Californians and the region’s growth since the current plan was initially certified in 1981 – nearly 40 years ago.
Specifically, the PMPU includes and addresses allowable water and land uses and activities, future development, and management of water and land within the Port’s jurisdiction on and around San Diego Bay by providing a mix of goals, policies and standards supported by written narratives, figures and tables.
For more information about the PMPU process and/or to sign up to receive updates, go to portofsandiego.org/pmpu.
Chula Vista Harbor Park Coastal Development Permit
“Harbor Park is really where we envision visitors and Chula Vista residents spending a lot of their time on the Chula Vista Bayfront,” said Chair Ann Moore, Chula Vista’s representative on the Board of Port Commissioners.
As part of the transformation of the Chula Vista waterfront on San Diego Bay, the Port of San Diego Board of Port Commissioners has approved a Coastal Development Permit (CDP) for the future Harbor Park. Planned for the central portion of the Chula Vista waterfront as an expansion and improvement of the current Bayside Park, Harbor Park will provide signature amenities and recreational opportunities.
“With a bigger and better beach, sunset terraces, added recreational offerings, and more, Harbor Park is really where we envision visitors and Chula Vista residents spending a lot of their time on the Chula Vista Bayfront,” said Chair Ann Moore, Chula Vista’s representative on the Board of Port Commissioners. “Harbor Park, along with the future Sweetwater Park and other public amenities, will give us the enhanced shoreline recreation and active commercial harbor we’ve been wanting in the South Bay.”
To be developed in phases, the first phase will focus on the northwest shoreline improvements including:
- Enlarged and improved beach
- Waterside terraced headlands surrounding the beach that offer seating, relaxing, and sunset views
- Pocket marsh with salt marsh plantings
- Portion of the waterfront promenade
- Streetscape event plaza near the H Street roundabout
- A boat launch at the north end for personal watercraft such as kayaks and paddleboards
- North and south meadows with paths and picnic tables
- Formal, multi-use lawns and large public gathering areas at the north and south ends
- North promontory providing dramatic views across the bay to the west to downtown San Diego and the Coronado Bridge to the north. It will include a small, single-story modular support building with restrooms, outdoor showers, drinking fountains, and park equipment rentals
- Pedestrian and bicycle improvements
- Parking and vehicular circulation improvements (including a connector path to Sweetwater Park and a temporary access drive off H Street to connect to the portion of the existing Bayside Park that will remain in Phase 1A)
- Landscaping/planting improvements
- Park lighting, furnishings, and signage
- Public art
- Improvements to address sea level rise
Harbor Park, along with the previously-approved Sweetwater Park, will account for more than half of the new park space planned for the Chula Vista waterfront. The parks design teams are KTU+A and Petersen Studio who were selected for their extensive urban park and waterfront design expertise – with an emphasis on local landscape architecture and natural resource management experience. The Port, along with the City of Chula Vista, in partnership with the design teams, conducted a three-part public outreach process through which the community members shared their vision for these important park spaces, helping to shape the future of the Chula Vista waterfront.
Anticipated financing for the Gaylord Pacific Resort and Convention Center will include funding to complete the design for and construct the first phase of Harbor Park. Construction for the first phase is tentatively scheduled to begin in early 2023 and completion is anticipated in early 2024. The goal is to complete the first phase and open Harbor Park before or at the same time as the opening of the Gaylord Pacific Resort and Convention Center, which is currently anticipated to open in mid-2024.
The first phase for Harbor Park has a preliminary budget of $19.5 million. The remaining improvements have an estimated budget of $28.0 million for a total estimated budget of $47.5 million. Currently, a timeline and funding for completion of improvements beyond the first phase have not been identified.
The Chula Vista Bayfront Project, a partnership between the Port of San Diego and the City of Chula Vista, envisions a vibrant, innovative destination in the San Diego region – a unique and welcoming place for people to live, work and play. When the project is complete, the public will enjoy more than 200 acres of parks, a shoreline promenade, walking trails, RV camping, shopping, dining and more. While providing long-awaited, enhanced shoreline recreation and an active commercial harbor in the South Bay, the Chula Vista Bayfront project will also establish ecological buffers to protect wildlife habitat, species and other coastal resources.
The Board approved a CDP for Sweetwater Park in April 2020. Planned for the northern portion of the Chula Vista Bayfront near E Street and Bay Boulevard, Sweetwater Park is envisioned as a meadow-type open space that would showcase the unique natural assets of San Diego Bay, encouraging passive recreation to complement the adjacent Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge. Proposed features include:
- Meadows and specialty gardens
- Mounded grasslands
- Nature playground
- Picnic area
- Various pedestrian and bicycle paths – some with paved and others with softer surfaces
- Sand dunes
- Multiple overlooks for bayfront viewing
- Native plant species
These features are in addition to the $5.63 million for the Sweetwater Bicycle Path and Pedestrian Promenade, which will wind through Sweetwater Park. The pathway, which is primarily funded via a $4.8 million Urban Greening Grant from the California Natural Resources Agency, went through a separate design process and construction started in fall 2019. Sweetwater Path is anticipated to open to the public in late December. Construction on the rest of the park is scheduled to begin around the same time as Harbor Park in early 2023, with completion anticipated in early 2024. Sweetwater Park is required to be completed prior to a Certificate of Occupancy is issued for Gaylord Pacific.
