EMPOWER SAN DIEGO

Port approves landmark settlement agreement for Chula Vista Bayfront Master Plan

The San Diego Board of Port Commissioners on May 4 approved a settlement agreement between the Bayfront Coalition and the Port District that ensures significant community benefits, wildlife protection, and green energy practices are part of any development plan for the Chula Vista Bayfront.  EMPOWER San Diego has endorsed this settlement and will be speaking at a public hearing at the Chula Vista City Council on Tuesday May 18^th.

"The settlement agreement allows development to move forward without sacrificing the health of the South Bay. It will protect the environment and promote regional energy sustainability and recreational opportunities for this region," said Laura Hunter of the Environmental Health Coalition.

The Sweetwater Park Compromise Plan supported in the agreement will protect the environment and increase public access to open spaces. Most importantly, it will protect 100 acres of the Sweetwater District from high-rise development, removing all residential development from the lands adjacent to the Sweetwater Marsh and South San Diego Bay Refuges -a top priority for the community and environmental groups.

"The Sweetwater Marsh National Wildlife Refuge is one if the last safe points of refuge for endangered bird species in our region. This plan will ensure the protection of their fragile habitat while allowing more appropriate, less invasive development that is good for people and the environment," said Jim Peugh of the San Diego Audubon Society.

The plan reduces proposed residential units from a one-time high of 3,400 condos to 1,500. It also ensures that additional funding be made available for community benefits for Western Chula Vista, including additional funding for protection of natural resources, sustainability, affordable housing and education and culture projects. Two public participation committees - one for natural resources and one for design and culture - will ensure that these community and environmental benefits occur.

"This plan is economically feasible and contains significant commitments to use green and energy efficient technology," said Chula Vista resident Lynda Gilgun. "This agreement calls for sustainable development that moves us forward technologically and environmentally."

The Bayfront agreement is the result of a multi-year effort by the Bayfront Coalition to ensure that all commitments related to the Bayfront development were enforceable and funded. Bayfront Coalition organizations and members of the Environmental Health Coalition Community Action Team who live in Chula Vista negotiated the agreement.

Bayfront Coalition member organizations are: Environmental Health Coalition; San Diego Audubon Society; San Diego Coastkeeper; Coastal Environmental Rights Foundation; Surfrider Foundation, San Diego Chapter; Southwest Wetlands Interpretive Association; and, EMPOWER San Diego.