Connecting our communities
For a number of years now, SANDAG has included in its regional plans a revival of the streetcar system connecting the neighborhoods surrounding Balboa Park. Over the years, the timeline has slipped several times, now projected for development in 2050. In the meantime, these neighborhoods continue to grow as people recognize that a 2+ hour commute from affordable housing in Riverside or Imperial counties or across the border to jobs in San Diego is taking a toll on their quality of life.
Updates to the San Diego General Plan known as “Blueprint SD” and the associated Community Plans have have moved to develop more housing and associated infrastructure in neighborhoods closer to major employment and entertainment centers. The recent alignment of the Uptown Community Plan to the updated general plan and associated mobility, parks, climate and other plan updates (PlanHillcrest) has recognized our core business districts as urbanizing areas. We are seeing significant increases in development of new housing better aligned to major employment centers, increasing the walk ability and likeability of our neighborhoods.
So what’s next?
We need to update our mobility options to accommodate both new and returning residents. Since the elimination of the former streetcar system in San Diego, we have designed almost exclusively for cars with some limited bus service. San Diego was once a city with a thriving streetcar system that allowed people to move around freely without worrying about parking personal vehicle or allocating a significant part of their income to care and maintenance of these vehicles.
Streetcars at University and Park, Hillcrest
We need to continue to rethink how we get around in our neighborhoods. As they continue to get more and more crowded, trips within our neighborhoods or between neighboring area don’t need to require the use of a personal car. With slowing traffic and limited and more expensive parking availability we need options that allow people to move around thee local communities without worrying about where to park and the increasing cost of owning and operating a personal vehicle. For short trips, walking is a great way to check in on local businesses, get some exercise and meet neighbors. for some, biking or micromobility extends this range and allows you to avoid traffic snarls, especially where safe bike lanes have been installed. Busses and ride hailing provide additional options for moving around and carrying more stuff.
Many cities in the US (Seattle, Portland, for example) and around the world are beginning to restore their old streetcar systems. San Diego has implemented light rail along some of the old streetcar lines (The Trolley), but what about the densely populated neighborhoods around Balboa Park? Uptown, Downtown, North and South Park. These areas are not ideally designed for the higher speeds and larger scale of light rail, but can use the smaller footprint, regular service and dedicated right of way that a streetcar system represents. And our rights of way will not support unlimited development of traffic lanes and parking, so we need more options for these shorter trips. We think that the time is right to take a closer look at the Streetcar system SANDAG has proposed.
Excerpt from 2025 Regional Plan
So why do we think acceleration of this project makes sense for the communities surrounding Balboa Park?
Streetcars are generally built at grade in existing road rights of way. Most of the proposed right of way follows streets originally designed for similar systems and still exist as wide thoroughfares that could accommodate this without resorting to eminent domain to gain new right of way.
Streetcars are designed for walk on walk off service making it convenient for short distance commuting and supporting many forms of assistive technology
Streetcars tend to be more widely accepted than bus service, potentially leading to increased ridership
The proposed streetcar system would provide a more convenient connection to the existing trolley service.
Connecting these neighborhoods and the park will relieve traffic and parking in and out of our parks allowing more recreational use of our limited park resources.
Connecting these residential neighborhoods to major employment renters and light rail allows more people to move back into areas closer to where they work , reducing commute times, reducing car expense, reducing climate space and improving productivity of the workforce.
Our neighborhoods are growing now. The movement of the target date from 2035 to 2050 is likely no thte last given the history of SANDAG funding, so the communities need to take ownership of ensuring that this happens and that it comes together on a schedule that better aligns to growth in our communities.
The introduction of more affordable housing units in new buildings along with the market rate housing that makes these units possible will allow people living in the existing legacy housing stock in the neighborhoods the opportunity to move up, freeing up more of the legacy housing for both new and returning residents. We need to encourage people to return from their remote housing and the long commutes associated with that.
So can we afford this?
There are a number of ways this type of project can be financed.
We can move forward with the next iteration of Prop G, generating sales or property tax revenue for transportation projects. Given the reluctance ein today’s economy to add to our tax burden, this seems a higher risk approach unlikely to succeed.
We could try an alternate approach available in California for supporting economic development and infrastructure projects such as this without raising taxes. Tax Increment Financing allows the formation of Enhanced Infrastructure Financing Districts (EIFD) take capture incremental property tax revenue (growth in revenue over a defined base value) for a specified period of time to repay bonds or other loans used to fund infrastructure projects. the improvements over time lead to improved property tax revenue following the dissolution of the EIFD.
This is not a specific proposal on how to fund the project, only a quick assessment to show that there are viable options beyond a tax increase that could be used to accelerate progress in providing a better transportation system for the neighborhoods surrounding Balboa Park.
Our next ste is to hold a series of community meetings to gather input and interest as well as volunteers to move this idea forward. Come and join with us to make Uptown a more Vibrant community!
