San Diego Downtown & Uptown News NEWS 3 May 2021 Town hall calls for more density along El Cajon Blvd sdnews.com
By Kendra Sitton
A third Boulevard Business Improvement Association town hall was held on Thursday, April 8 to discuss improvements to the central hub on El Cajon Boulevard between the I-805 and I-15. Over 70 people attended the Zoom meeting which connected business owners and residents to discuss how to apply the BLVD 20/20 plan to the area. “[This is to] start a discussion about how we create the kind of boulevard that both are neighbors Buses are the main public transit along the boulevard. to the north, Normal Heights, and to the south, City Heights, Before the community gave people so I’m really glad that we’re deserve,” said Tootie Thomas, feedback on plans, many experts here to talk about something posthe executive director of the spoke about the importance of the itive,” Whitburn said. Boulevard Business Improvement project and how it will improve Community members were able Association (BIA). San Diego as a whole. to fill out a survey during the Zoom She noted that curcall in response to quesrently there is not tions as well as answer much of interest on in the chat. Whether that section of the the dedicated bus and road other than the bike lane should become medians. a permanent fixture of the boulevard received The entirety of the resounding support for El Cajon Boulevard represented by the the pilot program. BIA accounts for four A nd r e w M a l i c k , CEO of Malick Infill miles and 1,000 busiDevelopment, said El nesses. Focusing on A photo of the boulevard in the 1970s. (Photos courtesy El Cajon Boiulevard Is an a central hub allows Cajon Boulevard BIA) example of progress the organization to add meaningful improvements to Land-use expert Mary Lydon from a suburban, car-oriented to a targeted area. The BLVD 20/20 said that 20% of the City of San a transit-oriented urban city. plan envisions a transit-oriented Diego population resides in a “A renaissance of main streets community on the boulevard that five-mile radius around El Cajon is happening and it’s good for the could be a model for other neigh- Boulevard. She noted that hubs community,” Malick said. borhoods and cities. are mixed-income, transit-orientThe first town hall in 2018 fo- ed and mixed-use areas. “The tools discovered here can cused on adding housing at all income levels. The second in 2019 be used within other communities on mobility resulted in a success- in San Diego,” Lydon said. City Council members Stephen ful pilot program for a bus rapid transit (BRT) lane. This town hall Whitburn and Sean Elo-Rivera sought feedback and resources on both represent portions of the encouraging infill development, boulevard and spoke at the event. including through accessory “This has been an awful year dwelling units (ADUs). for so many small businesses and
An overhead view of the boulevard sign Unlike other areas in which new housing and business developments are met with intractable backlash, El Cajon Boulevard Is largely supportive of adding density. Increasing housing stock should allow for the area to remain mixed-income and add new low-income housing opportunities which can soften the effects of gentrification. Brian Schoenfisch with the City of San Diego told participants about a new housing affordability toolkit added to the city website which should make finding housing programs and incentives easier for the general public. He mentioned that there are many programs that push for added density but much of the general public do not know about them. The quick guide to the development bonuses, programs and process
streamlining can be found at bit. ly/3ti2yeD.oi Thomas said the BIA is also offering to help anyone who wants to add an ADU or granny flat with navigating the system. Residents can contact their office for assistance. In the chat, many people were supportive of the added density and transit being proposed. A common question was whether any of the new tech businesses coming to San Diego could be incentivized to come to El Cajon Boulevard. To watch the town hall in its entirety, fill out a survey on the future of the boulevard, or to learn more about the central hub, please visit theboulevard. org/centraltownhall. —Kendra Sitton can be reached at kendra@sdnews.com.
