Protect Epicentre from Future Commercial & Residential Dev Letter template

Epicentre's future vs development.

Please ask a few of your friends to send letters as well.

Copy and paste the email addresses below into your TO section:

 

Mayor Todd Gloria <mayortoddgloria@sandiego.gov>
Paola Avila <PAvila@sandiego.gov>, Sean Elo-Rivera <SeanEloRivera@sandiego.gov>,  Lydia Van Note  <LVanNote@sandiego.gov>, Kent Lee <KentLee@sandiego.gov>, Sara Kamiab <SKamiab@sandiego.gov>, Joe LaCava <JoeLaCava@sandiego.gov>,  Vickie Joes <vcjoes@sandiego.gov>, Jennifer Campbell <jennifercampbell@sandiego.gov>, Venus Molina <vmmolina@sandiego.gov>, Stephen Whitburn <StephenWhitburn@sandiego.gov>, Jacob O’Neill <JacobO@sandiego.gov>, CouncilDistrict4@sandiego.govMarni von Wilpert <MarnivonWilpert@sandiego.gov>, Jamie Fox <jfox@sandiego.gov>, Raul Campillo <RaulCampillo@sandiego.gov>, Michael Simonsen <MSimonsen@sandiego.gov>, Vivian Moreno <vivianmoreno@sandiego.gov>, Travis Knowles <knowlest@sandiego.gov>, HortonD@sandiego.gov, THarrison@sandiego.govBEwilliams@sandiego.gov

 

Please send an email to our city officials by Monday, July 1, 2024 before 8am.

Copy and Paste the following letter:

Subject Line: PROTECT THE FUTURE OF MIRA MESA – INPUT ON PROPOSED LEASE AGREEMENT FOR EPICENTRE

Dear City officials ________,

I understand that the City of San Diego is proposing to lease the Mira Mesa Epicentre to the County of San Diego for 40-50 years at a rate of $1 per month. I request that the lease agreement be presented to the community for input before final approval by the City Council. We have many unanswered questions about this proposed lease, including:

1.    Why is this agreement in the best interest of the community and city? What is the term of the lease?

2.    Why has the Epicentre been boarded up and closed for over 8 years by the city?

3.    Considering the Epicentre has previously failed as a teen center, is there a plan for success with benchmarks? Is there an escape clause?

4.    Since the Epicentre is not designated park land and is commercially zoned, are there assurances that the County will not develop the Epicentre for commercial or housing purposes?

5.    Considering the Epicentre is almost 50 years old and will require environmental remediation, will there be an environmental impact report, or will the City request an exemption from CEQA requirements? For public safety, will it be free of asbestos, mold, or other hazardous elements?

We urge you to safeguard the Mira Mesa Epicentre from future residential or commercial encroachment and ensure it does not pose public health and safety issues by taking the following actions:

1.    Designate as Dedicated Park Land: Officially designate the Epicentre as dedicated park land before the lease is approved. Currently, the Epicentre is not on dedicated park land, while everything around it is. Without this designation, the Epicentre could be developed for commercial or residential purposes. See attached map.

2.    Environmental Impact Report: For public health and safety, there should be an Environmental Impact Report on the Epicentre before the lease is approved.

As parents, we owe it to our children, grandchildren, and our future generations to ensure the Epicentre is safe and protected. The Epicentre should become a place for park and recreation activities for all ages, focusing on our rich cultural diversity. Additionally, with an ever-increasing population in our community, we need as much park space as possible in our Mira Mesa Community Park and to safeguard it from future commercial and residential development.

We need your help! Thank you for your kind consideration.

Sincerely,

(Your First & Last Name)

(Your Physical Address)

(Your Phone Number)

History

MIRA MESA COMMUNITY FUND (400182)

Established with Proceeds from the Westview Development agreement and a settlement with Shapell Industries.

A total of $2,001,412 was deposited in this fund (400182) and was to be used for public improvements in Mira Mesa as identified by the community.

The interest earned was as of 6/30/16 was $530,593, bringing the total to $2,532,005.

MIRA MESA TEEN CENTER FUND (400183)

December 2, 1997 the City Council established the Mira Mesa Teen Center Fund (400183) by transferring $500,000 from the Mira Community Fund.

The interest generated from this fund could be used, if necessary, to cover operational shortfalls for the San Diego Regional Teen Center in Mira Mesa.

On April 14th 2016, the City Council approved the closure of the Teen Center and transferred the remaining funds, $511, 187, back to the Mira Mesa Community Fund (400182)

Mira Mesa Community Fund 2023

Since 2016, our community was not advised about this fund and it went out of public site. We started asking questions about the fund as it has a history tied to the Epicentre and was intended in part to support Arts and Culture in Mira Mesa

On 8/24/2023, we found out that the Mira Mesa Community Fund had a balance of $1,014,108.30.

Out of that balance $1,000,000 was appropriated/earmarked to Project L160021 – Mira Mesa Pool & Skate Plaza Phase 2.

This left a balance of $14,108.30 in our fund for other projects.

 

On December 20th, 2023, we found out from the Director of Parks and Rec, Andy Field, that he had appropriated the $1 million dollars to fill the funding gap for Phase II and that he would give the money back to the fund.

Unfortunately, since these funds were appropriated by a resolution at the Active Transportation & Infrastructure Committee meeting on April 13th, 2023, (chaired at the time by our City Councilmember Kent Lee), the City Council will need to vote to restore the funds.