Politics

Embarcadero Compromise Proposed

By Alison St John / Reporter

Published April 6, 2010 at 3:00 AM PDT

This story was published more than 14 years ago.

The first phase of San Diego’s long debated North Embarcadero Visionary Plan does not include a Bayfront park, but California Coastal Commission staff hope that will come later.

The first phase of San Diego’s long debated North Embarcadero Visionary Plan does not include a bayfront park, but California Coastal Commission staff hope that will come later.

The San Diego Port Commission wants to break ground on a wide public promenade along the Embarcadero downtown, lined with Jacaranda trees. The Coastal Commission refused to give the go ahead, however, because a public park promised at the foot of Broadway was replaced with a truck turnaround for loading cruise ships.

Dianna Lilly of the Coastal Commission’s office in San Diego recommends the port be allowed to start upgrading the waterfront if it agrees to find another spot for a park on the bay.

Become a KPBS sponsor

"There was always supposed to be a signature park there at the foot of Broadway. Maybe it’s not going to be at the foot of Broadway anymore, but we think this way we can get the promenade that the port wants to move forward on right now, and the park that the public wants and deserves in a timely fashion," said Lilly.

Port staff say the three year time line to develop a park on the bay is too short.

Coastal Commissioners will consider the proposed compromise next week.

Tags

Alison St John

twitter

Alison St John currently serves as a general assignment reporter and occasionally co-hosts KPBS Midday Edition. She fell in love with KPBS Radio when she arrived in San Diego in 1985 and first heard NPR. She has been a voice on KPBS Radio since 1989, and has served as a news reporter for radio, TV and the web, as well as anchoring, hosting, producing and editing. Alison has reported on stories about North County and was based in the KPBS' North County Bureau. Alison covered the metro beat during the critical period of the San Diego City pension crisis, and the education beat while Alan Bersin was the controversial Superintendent of San Diego City School District. She covered health when the industry was converting to managed care and told welfare reform stories in the late 1990s when Clinton was “ending welfare as we know it.” She has covered land use issues extensively, looking at the challenges of meeting a growing population while preserving community character, and developing a better transportation system to meet environmental concerns. She has done many stories on the military in San Diego, and the series she edited on the challenges veterans face returning from active duty to civilian life won “Best of Show” from the San Diego Society of Professional Journalists. She occasionally hosts the KPBS Roundtable and KPBS Midday Edition. Alison has won awards from the San Diego Press Club, the Society of Professional Journalists, the Associated Press TV and Radio Association, and the California Golden Mike Awards. Alison was born in Tanzania, brought up in Scotland, and earned her degree in psychology and sociology from Durham University in England. Her postgraduate diploma is in student counseling. She worked in England, Nigeria, Switzerland, Belgium, India, and Japan before moving to the United States in 1981. She now lives in Oceanside and enjoys how her community is growing and changing.