The San Diego City Council recently voted 6-3 in favor of a 420,000-square foot commercial development to be constructed on an 11-acre area in Torrey Highlands. Named “The Preserve,” the complex will include a café, fitness center, and a five-story parking structure with 1,088 spots.
While in the approval process, the City Council changed the plan’s title from “commercial limited” to “employment center,” which led to the approval of a planned development permit as well as a site development permit for the project.
However, the project itself has caused conflicting viewpoints. Supporters of the project are advocating in favor of the project due to the 2,000 jobs it will potentially create. Moreover, the location is critical not only because it would add jobs to the northern area of San Diego, but because of its placement in a heavy residential area.
Opposition to the project has formed from the area’s zoning situation. The current zoning has prepared the land for potential storage units or a church. Furthermore, there is also a concern about the carbon footprint of commercial development. Democratic Councilmembers Barbara Bry, Georgette Gomez, and Monica Montgomery all voted against the project due to carbon emissions concerns. Their opposition is largely unsubstantiated and neglects the job growth and community development that will result.
Councilman Mark Kersey noted the lack of public support for the existing zoning. “My concern is that something’s going to go here, and the uses that we’re going to see with the current zoning I don’t think the community would support. A small church, fine, but a megachurch, I don’t think so. Storage units, certainly not,” Kersey explained.
Furthermore, Protect Our Preserves commented how Cisterra, the project’s developer, de-committed from an agreement with Protect Our Preserves which would have given Cisterra land along Morena Boulevard in exchange for the Torrey Highlands, which is in close proximity to Del Mar Mesa Preserve. However, Cisterra responded by explaining the memorandum both parties agreed to for the land exchange.
The commercial development will be pivotal in the continued economic growth of San Diego, which is why it’s so concerning that three City Council Democrats would oppose the plan. The jobs created will primarily go to working-class San Diegans who are struggling with the high cost of living that has resulted from many of the policies forwarded by the same Democrats resisting this plan. If Democrats really want to show their support for hard-working San Diegans, supporting the development project would’ve been a great first step.
