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Should San Diego City Council members find that a 1990 study of the Navy Broadway Complex’s impact on the environment is outdated, City Attorney Mike Aguirre said they could call for an entirely new review of the site, which could add significant time and costs to the project.
In a memo sent to council members, who will decide next Tuesday whether the environmental document still holds up, Aguirre said the lawmakers could decide to order a new or supplemental study of the hotel-and-office multiplex’s impacts on its downtown surroundings. Such a move could delay construction of the project, which is slated to break ground in mid-2007, by several months.
In addition to that opinion, Aguirre offers some hints about his take on the 1990 study, echoing the concerns activists have made for months about the residual impact of residential buildings that have sprouted up in the Marina District since the 1990 study; the security implications of housing military headquarters in a dense urban area; the new development’s tug at the needs of public services such as police and fire; and the proximity of nearby earthquake faults to the proposed development.
The city’s Development Services Department determined in October that the environmental study sufficed, and the downtown planning board affirmed that decision a week later.