The Morning Report
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The City Council this afternoon is scheduled to vote on rezoning a city block in the middle of the Grantville neighborhood from commercial/industrial to mixed-use. If the vote passes, a developer could proceed with a proposal to build condo units, office and retail space in a development called Centerpointe at Grantville. The 22.2-acre project was approved by the Planning Commission in January for a spot in the middle of the Grantville community, tucked between I-8 and I-15 near Mission Valley.
The city’s decision to designate Grantville a redevelopment area in 2005 has been contested by land and business owners in the neighborhood who claim the redevelopment plans of several major businesses in the area — which could include hundreds of residential units in a neighborhood currently home to far more businesses than homes — would aggravate the community’s already egregious traffic issues. The county has also challenged the redevelopment designation, alleging that the city wasn’t justified in making the call that would garner tax increment, or property taxes generated that would otherwise go to the county. In order to stamp the redevelopment tag on the community, the city had to show blight in Grantville, and the county and several business owners disagree with what the city considered blight — such as Dumpsters that are visible from the street. For more on that designation, read this story.
A recently formed community group called the Grantville Action Group — or GAG — opposes the Centerpointe project for traffic reasons. Jim Madaffer, the councilmember representing the district containing Grantville, is also rumored to oppose the project, in favor instead a more comprehensive redevelop the neighborhood. Another voice in the debate is Bob Castaneda, who has assumed the name “Community Leaders for a Better Grantville” and says the GAG does not unilaterally represent the community. Castaneda said he supports Madaffer and the redevelopment of the neighborhood. For more on the dust-up between these two groups, read this.
Check back for more on the council’s decision today.