SANDAG seeks gap funding as Audubon advances 6‑acre wetland reserve in Buena Vista Lagoon

SANDAG and the Buena Vista Audubon Society gave the Buena Vista Lagoon Joint Powers Committee a dual update Monday on plans to restore the lagoon and a separate wetlands‑reserve project, detailing current design progress, funding shortfalls and permitting steps.

Kim Smith, a senior planner with the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), said SANDAG has roughly $4 million in grant funding from the Wildlife Conservation Board and California Department of Fish and Wildlife (Prop 1) that has allowed the project to reach about 65% design but will not take the work to final engineering. “That 4,000,000 only gets us up to about 65% design,” Smith said, and added SANDAG estimates it needs “between 5 and 6,000,000 to get us to a shovel ready project.” She told the committee modeling and technical studies are underway, that 30% design wrapped in April, and that 65% design work is scheduled to begin in summer and conclude in December, with grants expiring in January 2026.

SANDAG has pursued additional state and federal funding. Smith said the project has a federal earmark of “a little over $1,000,000” submitted through Congressman Levin’s office and that SANDAG is preparing pre‑applications for remaining state funds from CDFW (Prop 50 and Prop 4). Construction for the full lagoon enhancement was described as a separate, much larger need; Smith estimated construction at “about 90 to a hundred million dollars.”

Committee members asked about coordination with Caltrans and the I‑5/78 corridor work. Smith said the lagoon restoration was originally part of the I‑5 North Coast Corridor program as a regional net‑benefit item but that SANDAG and Caltrans are discussing phasing and bridge work needed to tie the lagoon enhancement to future highway projects. She added the restoration could move forward independently if permits and funding are secured.

Natalie Shapiro, executive director of the Buena Vista Audubon Society, presented a separate, adjacent wetlands‑reserve restoration and resiliency project on the lagoon’s north shore. She said the project footprint is “just under 6 acres,” of which roughly 3.5 acres are owned by the Audubon society and a little more than 2 acres are state‑owned by the Department of Fish and Wildlife. The plan calls for grading and creating new wetland ‘fingers,’ freshwater marsh, bioswales and a relocated, ADA‑accessible trail with three entry points and a raised viewing area to reduce impacts to nearby homes.

Shapiro said the Audubon project received a certified CEQA document and the City of Oceanside local coastal program permit in January and that the project currently has “full funding all the way to shovel ready.” She described ongoing permit coordination with the City of Carlsbad, the Coastal Commission (a consolidated coastal development permit) and city staff on a sand‑replenishment permit and other resource‑agency clearances.

Committee members pressed staff on pedestrian safety and a crosswalk near the nature center. Oceanside staff (Jeremy Timberlake, coastal zone administrator) said the last update placed a proposed crosswalk at Eaton Street to avoid a low‑lying location that floods; that location, staff said, could reduce effectiveness because it is uphill from the trail terminus. Committee members and Audubon staff urged pursuing a crosswalk closer to the nature center and asked the city’s traffic division to assess more immediate, low‑cost traffic‑calming measures (painted speed markings, radar speed displays, or other options).

Both presenters emphasized coordination among cities, state agencies and regional partners. Smith said SANDAG would work with the committee to pursue grant opportunities and coordinate a follow‑up meeting to outline next steps. Shapiro said the Audubon project has Indigenous‑community engagement planned and will include culturally‑important plant species and a small gathering area for tribal activities.

Next steps described to the committee included: SANDAG pursuing gap funding and pre‑applications to CDFW programs, continuing hydrologic and habitat modeling to integrate the lagoon and reserve designs, Audubon advancing consolidated permits and design details for the reserve, and staff follow‑up with traffic engineering for a potential crosswalk and interim traffic‑calming measures.

The presentation and committee discussion made clear two distinct funding and permitting tracks: SANDAG’s larger lagoon enhancement, which still needs roughly $5–6 million to reach shovel‑ready design and far more for construction, and the Audubon wetlands reserve, which the society reported as having funding in place to reach shovel‑ready while it completes multi‑jurisdictional permits.