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C Street Master Plan
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The purpose of the C Street Master Plan is to create an overall vision for the revitalization of the C Street corridor from India Street (One America Plaza) to Park Boulevard (new City College Station).
Initiated by the Centre City Development Corporation (CCDC), in cooperation with the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG) and the Metropolitan Transit System (MTS), the C Street Master Plan will define specific improvements for the corridor, including trolley, transit and infrastructure investments, streetscape enhancements, improved vehicular and pedestrian circulation, redevelopment opportunities, and public art.
The C Street Corridor connects important neighborhoods and land uses downtown. It provides circulation parallel to Broadway in the Core/Columbia and East Village neighborhoods, and hosts the downtown trolley.
The updated Centre City Community Plan places a high priority on improving C Street, making it a comfortable and pleasant route for vehicles, walkers and transit riders. C Street's future role will be much more than a transit corridor. Improvements to the trolley system and streetscape environment, along with economic revitalization, will make it a vibrant destination for downtown workers, residents and visitors.
Growing frustration about the conditions of the corridor prompted the formation of the C Street Task Force in August 2004. Under the leadership of the Downtown San Diego Partnership, the task force worked to address the problems of C Street, including the quality of life, public art, transportation and infrastructure issues. Ultimately, the task force determined that a comprehensive master plan and implementation strategy were needed.
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CCDC issued a Request for Qualifications for master planning services in June 2005. The selection committee included representatives from CCDC, SANDAG, MTS and the Downtown San Diego Partnership. The committee selected the internationally-acclaimed architecture and urban design firm of Skidmore, Owings and Merrill, LLP (SOM) in collaboration with four leading transportation planning and engineering firms: DMJM Harris, KTU+A, Katz Okitsu & Associates and Nasland Engineering. Other members of the SOM team include Davis Langdon, cost estimators, and Wade Communications, Inc., public participation consultant.
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The Scope of Services for the project includes development of a comprehensive master plan and the creation of 30 percent schematic design documents. The master plan will address architectural, landscape, engineering, transportation, transit and land use components of C Street. The master plan and 30 percent schematic design documents will:
- Define an overall vision for the C Street Corridor;
- Define site and infrastructure improvements;
- Define Light Rail Transit (LRT) station location and trolley track improvements;
- Define streetscape improvements, signage and lighting treatments;
- Define vehicular and pedestrian circulation;
- Develop a strategy for the integration of public art;
- Develop an implementation, costing and phasing strategy; and
- Identify private development opportunities.
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C Street is a major pedestrian
and public transportation corridor.
The existing trolley tracks
(shown here at 6th Ave.)
are in need of a major renovation.
Typical existing cross-section showing
sidewalk, station platform and tracks.
Existing buildings such as the California Theatre present opportunities for private development to activate C Street with
new ground-level uses.
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The development of a master plan and 30 percent schematic design comprise of 8 tasks. The following tasks have been completed:
Task 1 - Project Initiation and Data Collection
Task 2 - Base Preparation
Task 3 - Site Analysis and Future Needs Assessment
Task 4 - Vision and Framework
Task 5 - Plan Alternatives
Task 6 - Integration/Preferred Alternative Refinement/Schematic Design
A preferred plan for C Street has been developed and approved by the C Street Advisory Committee (CSAC). The Plan realigns the trackway and provides a continuous eastbound driving lane. Pending resolution of three low-floor trolley design and the Loop Study, Tasks #7 and #8 have been put on hold.
Remaining project tasks:
Task 7 - Implementation Strategy
Task 8 - Documentation and Approval
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November of 2006:
The CSAC endorsed the North Alignment Plan of the trolley tracks with a continuous eastbound driving lane. CSAC rejected the elimination of driving lanes, reduction of sidewalk and pedestrian crossing width to accommodate the three low-floor trolley.
December 2006:
MTS staff requests accommodation of Three Low-Floor Trolley for approval of the Master Plan.
March 2007:
Three Low-Floor Trolley Option #1 is endorsed by the MTS Executive Committee. With a required length of 275 feet, the plan leaves (2) driving lanes at 6th and 7th Avenues and a sidewalk below City code standards. At its March Board meeting MTS Staff expressed the long term objective to accommodate (4) low-floor trolleys, which would require 364 feet and multiple street closures/cul-de-sacs in the downtown. (See MTS Board Meeting (March 2007), under Documents)
April 2007:
The Office of the Mayor requests CCDC to study a 2-car Centre City Loop to see if there is a better long-term strategy for transit, pedestrians and automobile circulation. (See Mayor's Loop Letter, under Documents)
CCDC Real Estate Committee directs staff to evaluate the best strategy for the trolley and study the Centre City Loop.
Elimination of driving lanes and reduction of sidewalk and pedestrian crossing width to accommodate the proposed three low-floor trolley station is not supported by the Downtown Partnership Urban Design Committee, Council of Design Professionals, Little Italy Residents Association, Gaslamp Quarter Association, and Walk San Diego. (See Letters to C Street)
August 2007:
The Centre City Loop Study and Peer Review starts.
CCDC commissions SANDAG to perform a Ridership Survey: Origins and Destinations Analysis
September 2007:
City Traffic Engineering and Development Services Department staff completes a Preliminary Review of the proposed three low-floor trolley station at 6th Avenue, and rejects required variances for drive lanes, sidewalk and pedestrian crossing widths, as well as easements.
October 2007:
C Street Master Plan status is presented to the Land Use and Housing Committee (LUH).
Council Members Toni Atkins and Jim Madaffer support accommodation of the three low-floor trolley but asked CCDC to present the Loop Study to the Committee in the New Year.
Ridership Survey completed:
- Ridership in the downtown has been flat for 10 years.
- Transfers to buses and other trolleys are the primary reason for downtown destinations at the majority of the stations. Work destinations represent the majority of trips only at Civic and 5th Avenue stations.
- 41 percent of northbound travelers on the Blueline are travel through C Street and Park Blvd.
- 50 percent of southbound travelers on the Blueline are travel through C Street and Park Blvd.
November 2007:
C Street Master Plan presented to the CCDC Real Estate Committee (REC). The Committee directed staff to:
- Develop a position paper
- Justify the ridership numbers in the FEIR/Community Plan update
- Develop a agency responsibility and cost matrix
- Review other downtowns with transit malls
The Loop Study and traffic analysis is complete
A total of six Scenarios are evaluated, resulting in two recommendations:
Scenario C: Trolley shuttle between One America and 12th/Imperial
Scenario F: 2-Low-Floor Car Downtown Blue Trolley Line
(See Loop Scenarios under Maps and Graphics)
Both scenarios would allow for (longer) three and four trolleys to travel along the Bayside with 2-car or shorter trolleys operating along Park and C Street. The study concluded that both options are feasible to meet today's demand with some flexibility in the future, handle the transfer loads and can be operated very efficiently. Each scenario brings increased operational costs and Scenario C would require facility improvements at the 12th and Imperial Station. Both scenarios have constrained ability to meet the ridership projections of the 2030 FEIR Community Plan full build-out. Scenario C can be expanded with more frequent shuttle service to partly serve the demand. More frequent service may also be possible with Scenario F, but further evaluation is needed. A final Design and Operational Plan would be required to refine each of these scenarios.
December 2007:
Loop Peer Review developed six scenarios and recommended the following options for evaluation:
Scenarios 1-4: 2-Car Downtown Operating System
Longer trolleys would operate along the Bayside. A 2-Trolley Downtown Blue and Orange would operate on Park and C streets. (See Attachment DEA Scenario 1-4 under Maps and Graphics)
Scenario 6: Downtown Bus Shuttle Concept.
Longer three and four Blue-line trolleys would operate along the Bayside. Blue and Orange lines would terminate at City College. A bus shuttle would operate on Broadway and C Street, connecting Sante Fe Station with City College Station. The trolley tracks would be eliminated from C Street. (See Attachment DEA Scenario 6 under Maps and Graphics)
January 2008 and Next Steps:
- Meeting planned between the City, SANDAG, MTS, and CCDC to discuss how to move the project forward.
- Loop Options to be presented to the public and stakeholders.
- CSAC, CCDC, and LUH meetings planned for February or March.
- CSAC meeting pending.
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Community involvement is an integral part of the process to revitalize the C Street corridor. This public participation process aims to achieve widespread citizen input to shape the master plan process.
In addition to gaining citizen input at each major stage of the master plan process, CCDC has formed three ad-hoc advisory committee comprised of technical experts and representative stakeholders:
All advisory committee meetings are open to the public. Future meetings will be noticed via email and will posted in the public meetings section below.
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To be included on the project distribution list for meetings and project updates, please send your contact information to cstreet@ccdc.com or call Sachin Kalbag at (619) 235-2200.
Public Workshop #1 (Vision and Framework) – April 20, 2006
Public Workshop #2 (Plan Alternatives) - June 22, 2006
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C Street Advisory Committee (Approved)
Documents
Maps and Graphics
In Discussion
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To be included on the project distribution list for meetings and project updates, please send your contact information to cstreet@ccdc.com or call Sachin Kalbag at (619) 235-2200.
We welcome your comments. Please forward any comments on the project to the email address above. Be sure to include any specific issues you would like to see addressed in the C Street Master Plan and share your vision of what C Street should become in the future.
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