Port District Looking at Long-Ignored City : Imperial Beach, Poor South Bay Relation, May Get Development Funds

Like the ignored scion of a wealth family, Imperial Beach has waited patiently while the patriarchs of the San Diego Unified Port District have lavished dollars and attention on their more glamorous offspring in San Diego and Coronado.

But now, as the Port District increasingly looks more closely at the South Bay, it appears Imperial Beach’s time is near.

The first definite step in that direction occurred Tuesday when the Board of Port Commissioners indicated its willingness to study what must be done in order to open the shallow southern end of the bay and Imperial Beach to water-based recreational activities and possibly small-scale commercial ventures.

As it stands today, the Imperial Beach bay side shoreline consists largely of ponds used by a salt producer and acres of marshes used by thousands of birds, including several identified as endangered species.

But Imperial Beach officials, led by their representative on the Board of Port Commissioners, Milford Portwood, feel now is the time to study and identify both the potential for public access and waterfront development as well as the environmental obstacles to such development.

Portwood said Tuesday there is a growing demand for recreational access to the bay in Imperial Beach. Although any study will have to include participation by environmentalists, Portwood said the aim is to come up with a “negotiated settlement” that would allow more recreational and commercial activities.

Joining Portwood in pushing for the study was Chula Vista Mayor Greg Cox. “There are a lot of resources down there (South Bay) . . . both environmental and recreational,” he said. “This is an opportunity for Imperial Beach to be a full participant.”

Although the port commissioners--who represent San Diego, Coronado, National City, Chula Vista and Imperial Beach--said they were in favor of such a study, they said they want information on the full scope and cost of such an analysis before the project receives formal approval.

It was clear from the comments of several commissioners that they also believe the South Bay’s time has come.

“There’s no question in my mind that in the next 50 years . . . (more specifically) in the next 15 to 20 years, we’ll see efforts to develop the South Bay,” said commission chairman Ray Burk of Coronado. “Action is needed to clearly define the capabilities of developing the South Bay.”

The study would be the latest in several proposals and already built projects that have begun to proliferate in the South Bay the last few years.

For example, the Port District and the Coastal Conservancy are in the midst of a major environmental analysis of the South Bay to identify the types and number of creatures that live there; use of the Chula Vista marina is running ahead of projections; the cities of San Diego and Chula Vista are exploring the feasibility of a regional park along the Otay River Valley; there is a possibility that the Otay River flood plain may be channelized, thereby providing land for development; the Port District is looking into the building of a $30-million Shelter Island-like peninsula in Chula Vista and a group is actively promoting the construction of a second entrance into the bay that would make places like Imperial Beach more attractive to boaters wanting access to the ocean.

Don Nay, the Port District’s executive director, said that, although there are environmental constraints and engineering problems in the way of any development in Imperial Beach, it might be feasible to use an existing shallow channel from the ocean to the open waters of the bay as an access waterway for boats. It is also possible that a small marina and facilities for sports fishing and boat rentals could be created in Imperial Beach, he said.