San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria announced Monday a priority redevelopment plan for Midway Rising, a 48-acre sports arena facility owned by the city.
The announcement came as no surprise, given that Midway Rising ranked first among five candidates when city officials last updated the city council about the project this spring. Authorities acknowledge that the development team provided the lowest income affordable housing. State law requires the city to take precedence when redeveloping public lands.
“Following a highly transparent process in accordance with state regulations, Midway Rising will be my vision to create thousands of affordable middle-income families, high-paying local jobs, and a new world-class arena and entertainment district. I am confident that we will realize our vision,” Gloria said. statement“This project represents the energy of a big city, and we look forward to accomplishing this for the Midway community and our city.”
Midway Rising will build 4,250 apartments, 2,000 of which will be rent-restricted for low-income families. The remaining 2,000 units will be billed at market price, while the remaining 2,000 will be affordable to middle-income households.
The plan also includes a new arena that can accommodate up to 16,500 people, a 200-room hotel, 250,000 square feet of retail space, and 20 acres of parkland and open space.
Gloria plans to submit the proposal to the Congressional Land Use and Housing Committee on Sept. 8, followed by a parliamentary-wide vote on Sept. 13.
Even if the council approves Midway Rising, city officials will have to negotiate the details with the Encinitas-based development team led by Zephyr. Also on the team are Chelsea Investment Corporation, an affordable housing developer, and the Legends, who built his SoFi stadium in Los Angeles, home of the Rams and Chargers.
Key details yet to be determined include the income the city will earn from the project and how affordable housing will be financed. Some city council members have expressed a desire for the development team to cover the cost of building affordable housing, but that would require the city to give up any income generated from the property’s land lease. There is a possibility.
State officials last year forced the city to scrap an earlier redevelopment plan chosen by former mayor Kevin Faulconer after the city failed to comply with the Surplus Land Act. That law, which was updated in 2019, requires local governments to provide surplus land to affordable housing developers first. Priority should be given, but cities can reject those projects if they can’t provide a fair market value for the land.
Hanging above the redevelopment plan is a 30-foot height limit for new buildings outside downtown and on the west side of Interstate 5. None of the suggestions are viable under the height limit.
San Diegan voted to waive the Midway district height limit in 2020, but the move has been embroiled in lawsuits. An amendment to the exemption from the height limit, as Bill C, he plans to put on the ballot in November.
