2020 VOTE - North Park Planning Group

BikeSD Endorses Rise North Park Candidates for North Park Planning Group

We support these candidates for the Community Planning Groups (CPGs) in North Park and Uptown (Hillcrest, Mission Hills, and Bankers Hill) because CPGs have a powerful influence on many aspects of the built environment of our communities. In the past we have had bikeway projects die because CPG board members were resistant to approving these kinds of projects. In order to make our streets safer, we need to elect board members who will support Complete Streets and other projects that increase mobility options. Here are the candidates that will help make our communities better for pedestrians and families riding bicycles.

BikeSD has endorsed all the candidates running as collectively as "Rise North Park" running for election on March 17, 2020 for North Park Planning Group.  The Rise North Park Candidates are running on the values of transit choice and creating housing of all types, while supporting the growing economy in North Park. To be eligible to vote in the upcoming election North Park residents must have signed in to one North Park Planning Group Meeting in the past twelve months. The last meeting before the vote is this Tuesday, February 18, 2020.  If you support increased mobility options in North Park like 30th Street or the SANDAG Projects then come out to Waypoint Public this Tuesday at 6:30 and meet the Rise North Park Candidates before signing into the NPPG meeting next door.  Don't worry it only takes 10 minutes!

RISE NORTH PARK CANDIDATES:

Ginger Partyka

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I’ve been a homeowner and resident of North Park since 2015.  I’m a strong proponent and user of local businesses and hope to support a community framework in which those businesses can continue to thrive.  I’m a passionate advocate of reducing traffic, improving community interactions, and increasing affordable housing through increasing housing and transportation choice.  I love the atmosphere of our dense and vibrant community and want to support planning that furthers increased face-to-face interactions between North Park’s members.  I’m very excited about the opportunity to serve the North Park residents on the planning committee.

Beau Benko

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My name is Beau Benko and I’m running for the North Park Planning Committee because I want to support and represent North Park. There’s a lot I love already in North Park, from the community and the people to the businesses, and the spots to view a great sunset. But I believe North Park still has incredible potential for growth. I believe in more housing for more neighbors and I believe we need to work toward a world with no pedestrian deaths. I believe we can support more local businesses and that everyone benefits when multiple modes of transit are supported.

 

Rebecca Lieberman

I am running to be on the North Park Planning Committee because I want to become a more involved member of my vibrant North Park community. I live with my partner, Ben, and our sheepadoodle puppy, Woody, in the southwest corner of the neighborhood. We moved to San Diego when Ben received orders to the USS San Diego, stationed out of the 32nd Street Navy Base. Ben and I chose to live in North Park for many reasons: we love its historic homes, diversity of restaurants, and plethora of breweries. However, the key reason we chose North Park is because we could both bike to work and walk to dinner.

As a city planner by trade, I seek to live in and create vibrant and livable urban spaces. In my current role as a policy advisor at the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce, I understand the importance of small businesses, affordable homes, and an array of transportation options to our regional economy. I believe North Park is one of the most unique neighborhoods in San Diego because of its strong local economy, walkable streets, and proximity to Balboa Park and I hope to use my seat on the planning committee to lift up and support the parts of the neighborhood that I love.

Jessica Ripper

I am running to be on the North Park Planning Committee I moved to San Diego six years ago, already passionate about building communities that are great places for diverse people to live, work, play, and learn. Since then, I’ve transitioned from a 15-year career working with nonprofits and philanthropy to a new role consulting on housing and community development. These experiences help me to explore ideas from multiple perspectives to help bring about solutions that meet current community needs while maintaining the flexibility to adapt to a changing environment. I’m also thrilled that my family will finally be moving into our home in the heart of North Park this summer.

Marissa Tucker

As an avid pedestrian, I’ve come to appreciate North Park’s craftsman’s, garden apartments, even its infamous Huffman 6-packs, and the new stark modern marvels: They all tell the story of a North Park that is always evolving. As we move toward the future we look to North Park’s past for guidance: it’s willingness to change in order to ensure that North Park remains a strong working and middle class neighborhood where families of all income levels can thrive.

As San Diego faces a housing crisis, we know that we need to ensure we’re building affordable housing for those just starting families and those who wish to retire in our amenities rich neighborhood. But we also face a climate crisis. As we transition away from fossil fuels, we need to ensure we create safe infrastructure to allow people to choose active transit options such as walking, biking, scooting, and busing. As the YIMBY Democratic San Diego club president and Rise North Park founder, I’m not satisfied with just voting, I’m committed to leading on these values.

Daniel Molitor

As an avid pedestrian, I’ve come to appreciate North Park’s I chose to make North Park my home after growing up in Indiana and spending five years in the Bay Area. I fell in love with North Park’s lively yet relaxed character and its wonderful vibes. As a progressive neighborhood, we should be leading the fight against climate change: We have to fight sprawl and long commutes, and that means building more homes near where the jobs are and where people want to be. We also need to make it easier to develop car-free habits of getting around. That means taking the opportunity when planning infrastructure and development to prioritize buses and protect people whether they’re walking, biking, scooting or skating. My vision of North Park preserves its vibes and essence while beautifying our built environment, cleaning the air, and improving the safety of our public spaces.


Map of the 2018 Downtown Mobility Plan

The Downtown Mobility Plan hits the ground but much work remains

The first stripes of the Downtown Mobility Plan are laid on J Street, December 2018

Map of the 2018 Downtown Mobility Plan
The Downtown Mobility Plan (DMP) has broken ground in San Diego as of December 19, 2018! Paint crews began striping thermoplastic lanes along J Street and the entire DMP Phase 1 should be complete “in a few months time,” according to Mayor Faulconer. This day has been a long time coming after years of planning, delays and cost overruns, but we’d like to offer our thanks to Mayor Faulconer for pushing this project forward over the last couple of months. We note that in 2016 the mayor pledged to complete all cycletracks during his 2nd term.

The Downtown Mobility Plan’s first phase will create Class VI bike tracks on:

  • Beech Street from Pacific Highway to Sixth Avenue
  • Sixth Avenue from Beech Street to Harbor Drive
  • J Street from 1st Avenue to Park Boulevard

These tracks are two-way cycle tracks (special bike lanes that provide a right-of-way for cyclists and scooter riders within the roadway). Parked cars, flex posts, and or grade variations will separate the tracks from vehicular traffic. When all three phases are fully built-out, the Downtown Mobility Plan will provide 9.3 miles of these two-way cycle tracks around downtown San Diego, connecting points like the Convention Center with Balboa Park.

photo of DMP press conference Dec 21, 2018

R-L: CM Chris Ward, Mayor Faulconer, SDCBC's Andy Harkan, BikeSD's Nicole Burgess, and Randy Torres-Van Vleck at the press conference announcing the start of the Downtown Mobility Plan bikeway. - Dec 21, 2018

 

BikeSD was there at the start of discussions for the Downtown Mobility Plan, we were there in April of this year when the mayor’s office wanted to change the design and delay this project an additional 5 years, and we were there for today’s press conference as well. We applaud the mayor for getting this often-delayed project out of the City’s Streets Division and onto city streets.

While Phase 1 is a great start, Phases 2 and 3 represent the greater share of the Downtown Mobility Plan bikeways and will likely not unfold as quickly or easily as Phase 1. Natalia Torres, Associate Civil Engineer for the City’s Streets Division, explained that the later Downtown phases may not be managed by the City’s Streets Division but instead may be handled by the Department of Public Works (DPW). For those not familiar with the city’s bifurcated engineering divisions, this could be bad news for cyclists and scooter users because DPW is often slower to roll out infrastructure. DPW staff typically handle physical infrastructure like drains, underground wiring, and things like Americans with Disability Compliance elements. DPW often takes longer because they deal less often with things like bikeway design and surface configuration. And given that later phases of the Plan involved difficult pedestrian and bike connections to the notoriously bad Pacific Coast Highway, this challenge will be significant for DPW staff to handle.

BikeSD and other mobility advocates will need to continue to press the city to move forward on the DMP, especially to push the city to use the Streets Division to implement Phase 2 and 3 of the plan so that it doesn’t get slowed down. And we expect continued opposition from groups like the Little Italy Association, which has a history of opposing bike lanes in their district.

Even though today was a day to celebrate a small victory for biking, scooting, and walking safety, there’s a long road ahead to complete the full vision of the Downtown Mobility Plan. The news media will move on from this story. Elected officials may change or depart. Engineering staff may move on to other projects. But BikeSD will be there, making sure that the Downtown Mobility Plan continues to get attention and move towards full completion.

 

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