INTEGRATED PORT PLANNING

In Southern California, the Port of San Diego oversees water and land development on a coastline with a rich history and heritage. The port grew rapidly during the heyday of the commercial fishing industry, and over time has evolved with the changing economy.

Once called the ‘Tuna Capital of the World,’ the port is now a maritime hub for bulk, breakbulk and automobile cargo – as well as a leading cruise destination and a sportfishing mecca.

The port’s 34 miles of coastal water and land spans the waterfront areas of five cities. This property has been developed gradually, site by site, since the early 20th Century. Today, the port’s infrastructure represents billions of dollars of public and private investment – from marine terminals to hotels and marinas, along with public parks, boat launches and fishing piers.

However, port management face the modern-day challenge of balancing the redevelopment of aging facilities and infrastructure in a new economy with the preservation and improvement of public access and natural resources by optimising a diverse portfolio of uses and benefits.

To address this dilemma, in 2013 the Port of San Diego made the decision to plan holistically – committing to a multi-year, iterative process informed by public input at every stage. The port’s integrated planning initiative is now in its eighth year and has been extremely successful, with the process followed instructively by other ports.

PORT OF SAN DIEGO’S UNIQUE ROLE

The port oversees a waterfront that is public land, held in trust for the people of California. Under California’s Port Act, the Port of San Diego is entrusted with developing this water and land for public benefit. Benefits to the public include the economic impact created by waterfront employers, and the port’s stewardship of water and land for fishing, boating, public recreation, coastal access and healthy ecosystems.

As public trust assets, this coastal water and land can be leased for long-term development but cannot be sold outright. Under a contract termed a ‘ground lease,’ a business agrees to lease a specific area of land or water from the port. The business may invest in structures or other improvements, but at the end of the lease term, those investments revert back to the port.

The term of the lease varies depending on the level of investment needed for a business to be financially viable, and the lease term is capped at a maximum of 66-years – with this length of term generally for a large project such as a shipyard or hotel. The Port of San Diego oversees nearly 800 business agreements for commercial and industrial business on the water and land it manages.

INCENTIVISING REDEVELOPMENT

Aging tenant improvements and public infrastructure may need to be redesigned to meet evolving needs. It takes regular investment to keep the port’s public and private facilities in good repair. The port has used its lease extension process to incentivise high-quality redevelopment and continuous reinvestment by tenants in their leaseholds before facilities and infrastructure reach the end of their useful lifespans.

In addition, the port has leveraged its lease extension process to require tenants to invest in public infrastructure both on and off of their leaseholds. While the lease extension policy has resulted in high quality development over the years, such redevelopment has taken place on a case-by-case and site-by-site basis. Consequently, the Port of San Diego realised that it could be missing opportunities to leverage redevelopment as part of a port-wide strategy.

AN OUT-OF-DATE MASTER PLAN

The Port of San Diego has a master plan to guide future development of land and water within its jurisdiction, but the document dates back to 1981 and is out-of-date in many ways. As a result, many proposed projects are required to seek an amendment to the Port Master Plan for a specific site. This adds time to the planning process – and the delay brings uncertainty, risk and expense.

Project-driven planning does not always facilitate port-wide priorities such as supporting cargo and cruise business lines, and the development of new parks and other public amenities. While there was broad agreement on the need for a more integrated approach to planning, the idea of planning for the whole port represented a major challenge. That changed in 2013, when the Board of Port Commissioners launched an initiative to update the Port of San Diego Master Plan from 1981.

‘ONE BAY, RICH DIVERSITY’

The Port Master Plan is essentially the water and land use law for the Port of San Diego. It serves as the primary tool for balancing environmental, economic and community interests along the San Diego Bay waterfront – and its impact spans generations.

Looking at the bay as a whole, the port sought to plan ahead for new development, public access and preservation of natural resources, rather than sitting back and waiting for proposals for individual sites.

Instead of focusing this planning process on the land, the port started with its most valued asset – San Diego Bay itself. Planners considered the port’s waterside resources first, and then moved inland to the land uses.

This simple pivot allowed the port to prioritise water-dependent uses and was a paradigm shift in conducting long-range planning. The Port of San Diego held hundreds of meetings and forums with the goal of reaching consensus on key values.

The process began with engagement with other governmental agencies, non-profits, businesses and advocacy groups. Using the principle ‘One Bay, Rich Diversity,’ the goal was not homogeneity but rather a dynamic waterfront that recognises the diversity, character and culture of each unique area. Port staff worked with leading consultants to develop a vision, guiding principles and a framework report.

At the same time, the port modernised technical elements of the 1981 plan, such as updating old paper-based maps to Global Positioning Systems (GPS)-based maps.

A CLEARER VISION AND SMART POLICIES

With direction from the Board, the port developed a new set of policies designed to promote waterfront access, park space, recreation, environmental protection, future development, environmental justice, cargo and cruise business and other priorities.

A first draft of the revised Port Master Plan was released in 2019, drawing more than 4000 pages of comments – demonstrating the great public interest in this process. A second draft was subsequently released in 2020 and addressed areas of community concern, such as view corridors and the preservation of open space. The revised draft garnered a largely positive reception and community activists praised the addition of thoughtful policies that would not have been possible without integrated planning.

The Port Master Plan Update includes several visionary proposals that arose from the integrated planning approach. One key proposal would create a dedicated truck route or ‘haul road’ serving the port’s marine cargo terminals. Currently, the two existing marine cargo facilities create industrial truck traffic through urban areas, which has spurred community complaints about noise, traffic and diesel fumes from the trucks.

The proposal will combine a separated truck route for cargo haulers with timed signal, pedestrian and bicycle amenities. The innovative solution will remove a source of conflict for the port with local residential neighbourhoods while supporting efficient cargo transport through an enhanced multi-modal corridor.

Another key proposal will provide great public benefits to the port, its neighbours and visitors, while enhancing the port’s cruise business. The Port Master Plan Update sets a vision for adding a new waterfront destination park and public pier in the cruise terminal area, known as the Embarcadero – a popular gathering and tourism area often called San Diego’s ‘front porch’.

Water mobility improvements are embedded throughout the plan, with the addition of ‘water-based transfer points’ for water taxi, ferry or recreational boaters. Public access is a priority and the plan identifies additional areas for recreational open space and launching areas for paddle boards and kayaks. The plan also adds short-term public docking slips and increases moorings in the port’s popular low-cost anchorages.

RECOGNISED AS A MODEL PROCESS

The Port of San Diego’s Integrated Planning initiative has been recognised as innovative, forward-thinking and inclusive, winning notable awards from professional planning, environmental, public affairs and architectural organisations. In the past two years there have been honours from the American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA) and the California Association of Public Information Officials (CAPIO).

A final version of the plan is currently undergoing an environmental review process. Required under California state law, the process typically takes about one year to assess any significant impacts of the master plan on environmental resources.

The Port of San Diego looks forward to the completion of the planning process, which will culminate in a final plan that promises to benefit the region for generations to come.

Ann Moore is 2020 Port Chair of the Port of San Diego, California and is recognised as a U.S. leader in land-use planning, having been named by the American Planning Association as a National Planning Advocate. Moore is a practicing land-use attorney with the firm Norton, Moore & Adams.