San Diego City Council approves New Century Center redevelopment, secures open‑space dedication and mitigation revenue share

San Diego City Council voted unanimously on Nov. 18, 1997, to approve the New Century Center master plan and a 15‑year development agreement with General Dynamics Properties, advancing the redevelopment of the former General Dynamics site in Kearny Mesa.

City staff recommended the council certify Environmental Impact Report LDR No. 960165, adopt required findings and a statement of overriding considerations, adopt amendments to the general plan and the Kearny Mesa community plan, approve the development agreement, and adopt related discretionary actions including rezones, a vesting tentative map and planned development permits. Mike Westlake, project director in the Development Services Department, summarized those recommendations and the requested council actions.

The agreement redesignates the western roughly 85 acres along State Route 163 from industrial/business park to general commercial (approximately 1,400,000 square feet planned for retail and entertainment) while the eastern roughly 159 acres retains industrial/business park zoning and is planned for a campus‑style mix of office, research and light manufacturing totaling about 3,000,000 square feet, city staff said. Staff estimated the project could generate roughly 12,000 on‑site jobs during build‑out and about $4,000,000 in annual tax revenue for the city, figures presented during the staff report.

The council heard presentations from the redevelopment team and community groups. Steve Imer, representing the development team, described the project as the product of more than 50 community meetings and said the proposal enjoys broad local support. Gordon Carrier, the project architect, highlighted Market Square as the envisioned public heart of the development. Glenn Best, chair of the Kearny Mesa Community Planning Group, told the council the planning group endorsed the project following two years of review and emphasized his concern that traffic effects be fully mitigated.

The development agreement includes a set of "extraordinary public benefits," as staff described them. Among the benefits: $500,000 toward a Kearny Mesa Enhancement Fund and a $250,000 contribution tied to I‑15 auxiliary‑lane work that is contingent on whether that lane is otherwise funded; if the auxiliary‑lane money is not needed for that purpose the funds may be split between the enhancement fund and the Serra Mesa Library. The agreement also provides for the dedication of a smaller parcel (described in the staff presentation as approximately 248 acres) to the city and for the permanent conservation of a larger Sycamore Canyon holding linked to mitigation credits.

On the conservation and mitigation question, staff told the council the project owner would retain ownership of the larger mitigation site (Site J) during any interim period and could sell mitigation credits to third parties; in that event a negotiated share of proceeds would come to the city. During the council meeting staff moved to amend the conservation agreement to increase the city's share of potential mitigation‑credit proceeds to 50 percent of any revenue that might be realized from Site J. Staff said 40 percent of the city's share (i.e., 40 percent of that 50 percent) would go to the Mission Trails Regional Park Foundation and 10 percent to the Kearny Mesa Enhancement Fund.

Not all speakers supported immediate approval. Attorney Michael Conger asked the council to continue the matter to allow him to bring clients who are litigating claims against General Dynamics; he said he represents former employees and raised concerns that the company has a history of broken promises. Council members and staff responded that the development agreement and the city's permit process create contractual and permitting mechanisms the city can use if the developer fails to meet obligations.

A council member moved to accept the manager's recommendation with the changes discussed at the hearing, an errata sheet with minor condition modifications was entered into the record, and the council called the roll. The motion passed unanimously. The council vote advanced certification of the EIR, adoption of the New Century Center master plan and associated entitlements, and approval of the development and conservation agreements as amended.

The meeting record shows the council then recessed and took up other agenda items, including a continued discussion of municipal zoning code amendments.

Notes on figures and record: staff presented several related acreage figures in the verbal record — staff referenced preservation of approximately 1,400 acres in Sycamore Canyon in one exchange and later described Site J as about 1,100 acres plus a 248‑acre parcel to be dedicated to the city; the transcript does not reconcile those numbers on the record. The transcript also used variant spellings for the Serra Mesa Library; this article uses the standard current spelling, Serra Mesa Library, for clarity.