The two groups rallying to redevelop the land surrounding SDCCU Stadium in Mission Valley are squaring off over their initiatives.
Both groups propose building housing, commercial space, a sports stadium and a river park on the property.
SDSU West hopes to turn part of the land into an ancillary campus.
FS Investors wants to leverage the development to lure a Major League Soccer team to San Diego.
The groups argue there are differences in their proposals and the promise to build a long-awaited river park is just one of them.
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“The park is a great example of it. SoccerCity controls and funds the park construction for $40 million and the ongoing maintenance for the next 99 years. The SDSU West initiative that these developers put forward actually intentionally excludes the parkland from what they purchase, leaving it as a city property, requiring, therefore, the city to build the park for them and take over the maintenance cost for the next 99 years,” said Nick Stone of FS Investors.
SoccerCity backers say their project does not need taxpayer dollars and they argue that is not the case for SDSU West. They also point out differences in planned spending on traffic mitigation and the amount of student housing.
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Friends of SDSU officials disagree. In a statement, they said:
"The supposed comparison of initiatives by SoccerCity misrepresents the initiatives and is completely inaccurate. SDSU West is the only initiative that balances the needs of the City of San Diego, our region, taxpayers and San Diego State University. SDSU West guarantees a permanent and public River Park, appropriate traffic mitigations per the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), and a stadium that can accommodate SDSU football, professional soccer and NFL. Most importantly, San Diego State University has publicly stated the University will not rely on taxpayer or tuition dollars for the construction of its SDSU Mission Valley plan. While SoccerCity was developed behind closed doors, the public and transparent process required by the SDSU West initiative will ensure San Diegans are protected and SDSU’s needs are met.”
— Friends of SDSU
If both measures win voter approval, the initiative with the most votes would prevail.
