Voice of San Diego just published an op-ed piece including the opinions of a number of community members (including me) as to what ought to be done with the Qualcomm Stadium site in the wake of the Charger’s departure. Here was my contribution:
The cornerstone of my preferred use would be a San Diego State West campus that would include a 30-35,000 seat stadium for Aztecs football and Major League Soccer and other uses (like the facility included in the proposal unveiled today). I would, however, like to see the plan focused on SDSU a bit more and on private retail and housing projects a bit less. We have no shortage of the latter in Mission Valley and a definite shortage of ingress and egress to the area. At least if it’s college housing, the trolley can help alleviate the pressure. Also, this is an opportunity for SDSU to add a marquee program (such as a law school). This might require SDSU to become more of a partner in the development, but it is an opportunity the university may not get again. I do not see today’s “plan” as a final set of documents but, on the contrary, as a starting point. As such, it is a step in the right direction.
