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A Place People Love |
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Ugly to some, but beautiful to many; site of debauchery and liberty; endangered species; wind, dirt and sand. Horses, dogs and people frolic. I’m waxing poetic about Fiesta Island: that man-made pile’ o dirt in Mission Bay Park with a name to party with that’s been a refuge for lots of things with no place else to go. Prior to 1958, when the first Mission Bay Park Master Plan was adopted, the area was marsh, wetlands and a runoff zone from the San Diego River. It had also become a runoff zone for local industry. Cudahy Creek was named for the slaughter house upstream. Urban runoff may be a problem today, but suffice it to say that some conditions have vastly improved. Pollution was only one of the factors that led to the development of our beloved regional water sports playground, with its miles of new, sandy beaches. Planning for tourism and economic development, the park was always conceived for a mix of water-oriented commercial and public uses. Later, when the Coastal Act was passed in 1972, conservation and natural habitat was added as a priority. Dumping ground The dirt and sand from dredging to create a water basin had to go somewhere. It piled up and became Fiesta Island. An access road was put in and from the beginning it was a place where things were sent that no one else wanted near them. And it worked. It was after all, just a pile of dirt. With all those other beaches close-by, Fiesta Island became home to mix of funky orphan uses. Sewage sludge processing. Over-the-Line. Sand, kelp and trash management. In 1972, there was a movement to ban people with dogs from all City beaches. Impacting thousands of San Diegans, a compromise was reached: “Dog Beach” in Ocean Beach was created, and along with Fiesta Island they became the only two places where people could still bring their dogs and run along the shoreline. Fiesta Island also remains the only place in the city where people can ride their horses, or park their RVs along the shore. Over the years, others have discovered it charms. The sludge beds are gone - leaving behind funding to “improve” the place. Fishing, cycling, beach-parking, boating, off-leash dog users, horse trailers, RVers and endangered species now share the island in a happy mix. Just about everyone says that the reason they go to Fiesta Island, and not to other “developed” areas of Mission Bay Park, is that Fiesta Island is unique as an “urban refuge.” It’s a place where they can “get away” to relax from the noise and high-density living along the coast. Fittingly enough, the Mission Bay Master Plan includes this statement: “As an open landscape, Fiesta Island should be the place where city residents and visitors alike find the ultimate refuge from urban congestion, noise and visual clutter.” But it also says a lot of other things about increasing turf and roads and, in essence, developing this part of Mission Bay Park to be a lot more like the rest of Mission Bay Park. To which current users, as you would expect, have reacted with a certain, well, fear and loathing. The Growth Issue When SeaWorld wanted to expand into 16.5 acres of public parkland in 2002, the Coastal Commission approved their new Master Plan with specific conditions and added the following to the Mission Bay Park Master Plan (MBPMP): “Because of projected regional growth, the City recognizes the need to improve the major undeveloped public areas of Mission Bay Park as the first priority under this plan. Open parkland and public recreational uses serve the broader public, including regional visitors. The City recognizes that public recreational improvements have not kept pace with intensification of commercial leaseholds. Therefore, planned expansion of commercial development and/or leaseholds within Mission Bay Park will not proceed until significant portions of the planned regional parkland and public access and circulation improvements identified in the Mission Bay Park Master Plan Update are completed within South Shores and Fiesta Island.” But rather than simply start building the components of the existing MBPMP (last updated in 1992), the city decided to pursue a mini-plan update for Fiesta Island using a portion of the Sludge Bed Mitigation Funds (about $3.4 million was left when the sludge beds were moved out of the Park). South Shores wasn’t included due to the controversy over the closed landfill there. In August 2006, at the Mission Valley library, the public gathered for the first public meeting to give input on how Fiesta Island should be developed in response to the Coastal Commission edicts. By September 2007, a Plan alternative called “4g” was set to be heard by the Mission Bay Park Committee at the Mission Bay Hilton. Out of touch About a week before, I found a message on my desk from Mary Truman, asking if I could help a new group with certain problems they were having with the city and the Fiesta Island plan update. I didn’t know Mary, but after serving for five years on the City’s Planning Commission, I’d gotten used to getting phone calls from strangers asking for help with the city. So I dusted off my copy of the Mission Bay Park Master Plan and called her back. Mary is a member of new group that had formed in response to the plan update: FIDO (Fiesta Island Dog Owners). I didn’t have a dog, but when someone asks me for help in Mission Bay Park, I almost always say “yes,” since I live in Pacific Beach and it’s my closest park. I had also gone walking on Fiesta Island with a neighbor and her dog, so at least I had been there. I knew that, when the sludge operations had moved, the folks with their off-leash dogs had received permission from the city to use the remaining fenced acreage. If your dog runs off, it’s a heck of a lot easier - and safer - to track ‘em down in 95 acres of fenced area than the 485 acres of the entire island. Over the years, this fenced area has turned into the major recreation area for folks who walk, run, bike or exercise with their dogs off-leash. When I arrived at the Hilton for the Mission Bay Park Committee hearing on the Fiesta Island Alternative 4g, it was chaos. They only had a room for about 50 people, while 300 were clambering to get in. While Park & Rec Director Stacey LoMedico worked with the hotel to expand the room, it was obvious that the city’s staff and consultants were out-of-touch. Why the ruckus? Alternative 4g proposes to run a road right through the middle of the fenced off-leash dog recreation area. This road is not shown on the plan as bisecting the area. However, the consultants claim that it’s the only configuration that works to get access to a proposed swimming beach that would cost millions to build. Why add this controversy along with multiple millions to the plan? I was told by the city consultants that “The Coastal Commission will never side with off-leash dog uses over a beach.” A call to the Coastal Commission staff was interesting. Their view: “With miles of underutilized beaches in Mission Bay Park, they shouldn’t assume that the Commission would evict existing users.” This is especially the case when these users have no place else to go for shoreline access for their chosen recreational activities with their dogs. So who cares about the beach? It turns out that the outrigger clubs in Mission Bay Park are looking for a new location for a storage shed and launching location. They turned out in force to the MBPC hearing. Obviously, they deserve a place for their operations. But why have a showdown with other uses, when, as has been pointed out, there are literally miles of underutilized beaches in Mission Bay Park? As of this writing, this mystery continues. The outriggers stated in a meeting in October 2006 that South Shores, with existing parking, launching area and beach, would be a suitable location. But the Mission Bay Park Committee voted 8-5 to move Alternative 4g forward. In the meantime, Councilmember Donna Frye is wrapping up the landfill situation so the planning can now include South Shores. Dog Whispering With more than 700,000 dogs in San Diego County, FIDO has grown to 1,500 members and collected more than 3,500 letters exhorting Mayor Sanders to save the only area big enough in the county that allows people to exercise with their dogs. Their list of zip codes shows users from all areas of the city and county, including tourists. The famed Dog Whisperer, Cesar Milan used this area to help rehabilitate a dog suffering from post-traumatic stress syndrome, stating that it was the only place in Southern California where he could take him. On any weekend you can find hundreds of cars parked near the fence. It’s the only location on Fiesta Island where there are users all 365 days of the year. This is because it’s the only place of sufficient size where people can get the exercise they need, along with their dogs. Dr. Laura Schultz, a vet who practices in Clairemont wrote poignantly to the Mayor about the importance of this area: “When I first moved to San Diego I would take my dogs to a small dog park close to my neighborhood. I realized that I was just sitting around watching them play. I decided to walk with them on a leash around the neighborhood for my own exercise. Even though my dogs are well trained, it was not the most beneficial experience to have two large dogs falling all over me as I walked and attempted to run. Then I discovered Fiesta Island. It is the only place I can get a quality exercise along with my dogs. Because of this, my dogs and I lead a healthier lifestyle. Purina did a study which showed there is a 1.8 year difference in lifespan between an overweight (not even obese) dog and a healthy dog. This study also demonstrated lifetime obesity is a risk factor for cancer in animals. If a lean body mass is maintained by an animal throughout their life, cancer has been found to be delayed and mean survival time after diagnosis has been longer. This entire philosophy is adaptive to people as well. A large open area allows for adequate exercise to maintaining a healthy life for animals and people. “I see the consequences of animal behavior and how it relates to humans on a daily basis. Fiesta Island is one of the reasons I can come home to well behaved dogs. When I am not able to get them out in the morning, they are prone to be more excitable and potentially destructive during the day. The most common reason for euthanasia and surrendering an animal to a shelter is behavior problems. A simple solution is to exercise the animals. Many people in San Diego do not have an adequate yard for their animal to play. Parks become a necessary component to keeping our animals, as well as ourselves, happy. Large spaces allow the socialization of dog to dog interactions and are less threatening so all animals can enjoy the space from the very shy dog to the more dominant dog. Appropriate play allows animals and their owners a better quality of life.” FIDO managed to get a meeting with the Mayor and Park & Rec staff, but nothing happened. Meetings with Council members Frye and Faulconer (Mission Bay Park is split between their two districts) give FIDO hope. When the consultants came back for more money for their existing “maximum fixed fee contract,” the City Council continued the item and asked that Park & Rec formally respond to the issues raised by FIDO. Sadly, their response was non-responsive and belligerent. If you’d like to help, visit www.fidosd.org or send email to: info@fidosd.org. If you don’t have email, write to them at: P.O. Box 9827, San Diego CA 92169 and please include your phone number so their volunteers can call you. They need help writing the Mayor and the Council, and also volunteering to do tabling at events. All the plan update information can be found at: www.fiestaislandgdp.com. Visit the FIDO booth at EarthFair 2008. |
