Active Transportation & Infrastructure Committee Meeting, Oct 23, 2025
Active Transportation and Infrastructure Committee Meeting - October 23, 2025
The Active Transportation and Infrastructure Committee convened on October 23, 2025, to address routine consent items, listen to non-agenda public testimony, and deliberate on the City of San Diego's proposed response to a San Diego Grand Jury report regarding the Development Impact Fee (DIF) program. The meeting also included a recognition for retiring police officer Nick Cassiola.
Consent Calendar
- Unanimous Approval: The committee unanimously approved the consent agenda (4 items: 30-0 vote, Committee Member Foster absent), comprising:
- Approval of committee minutes from September 18, 2025.
- Extension of construction contracts for Belpoa Park Pipeline Phase Three (Burtech Pipeline Inc.) and pump station reliability projects (Steve Rados Inc., Lee and Roe Inc.).
- Award of a consultant agreement with Kleinfelder Inc. for the Cielo and Woodman Pump Station Project.
- Reimbursement agreement with SANDAG for the Imperial Avenue Bikeway Pavement Repair Project.
- Time extension of a construction contract with Otis Elevator Company for the Civic Center Plaza Elevator Emergency Modernization Project.
- Public Comments on Consent Calendar:
- Arya Grossman (Circulate San Diego): Expressed strong support for Item 5 (Imperial Avenue Bikeway), noting the project has been in planning since 2021 and urging the city to expedite the partnership with SANDAG to begin construction.
- Blair Beekman: Expressed support for the committee minutes approval and urged the committee to ensure consistency in impact fees.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Non-Agenda Comments:
- Becky Rapp: Expressed full opposition to the proposal for digital billboards, citing proven traffic safety dangers, the risk to Vision Zero goals, and equity concerns regarding flooding lower-income neighborhoods with advertisements for alcohol, marijuana, and tobacco.
- Blair Beekman: Expressed concern regarding holdups in park projects in the Otay Mesa area attributed to technology/data collection issues. Called for patience and suggested exploring alternative data collection companies (e.g., non-Flock solutions) to reduce Over-Policing of Response to Parks (AOPRs) and address rising federal militarization.
- Judy Strang: Stated that 23% of teens nationally did not drive during their senior year, with ethnic minorities showing 35-40% non-driving rates compared to 14% of Anglo teens. Expressed concern that non-driving youth lack information on drug-free, alcohol-free, and distraction-free driving, urging the committee to rely on the Attorney General and San Diego PD for safety education.
- Item 7 (Grand Jury Response) Public Comments:
- Arya Grossman (Circulate San Diego): Expressed support for the City's proposed response to the Grand Jury report. Urged the committee to maintain the square footage basis for calculating development fees rather than reverting to other methods.
- Blair Beekman: Declined to take a specific position on the technical nuances due to a lack of full understanding but expressed interest in the future of impact fees and the public discussion surrounding them.
Discussion Items
- Item 7: Proposed Response to Grand Jury Report ("Never Been Challenged"):
- IBE Presentation (Aaron Noel & Amy Lee): Presented the joint Mayor and Council response to the Grand Jury's findings and recommendations regarding the Development Impact Fee (DIF) program. The presentation detailed the City's stance on nine findings (four agreed, one partially disagreed, four disagreed) and thirteen recommendations.
- Position on Findings: The City agreed that it has been chronically late publishing annual reports since FY 2015 (Finding 2) and that community plans are outdated (Finding 4). The City partially disagreed with Finding 1, asserting substantive compliance despite missing statutory deadlines. The City disagreed with findings suggesting non-compliance with reporting requirements (Finding 3), illegal use of funds for Build Better San Diego (Finding 6), the improper use of DIF funds for program costs (Finding 8), and the failure to take corrective action (Finding 9).
- Position on Recommendations: The City stated implementation of five recommendations (including publishing the FY24 report, implementing internal controls, and providing staff training). Two recommendations (independent audit and public notification) were marked as 'will be implemented in the future.' Six recommendations were marked as 'not warranted,' including freezing expenditures, amending Council Policy to prioritize DIF funds, and returning funds to specific accounts, citing existing citywide transitions and legal permissibility.
- Committee Deliberation:
- Vice Chair Lee: Expressed support for the motion, acknowledging the complexity of managing 50+ community-specific funds and commending the transition to a citywide "Build Better San Diego" program as a necessary step for efficiency and equity.
- Councilmember Von Wilpert (Vod Wilpert): Expressed support for the motion, emphasizing the need for faster project implementation and holding developers accountable. Noted the frustration of unexpended fees and the importance of the new nexus study to secure future infrastructure funding.
- Councilmember Foster: Absent.
- IBE Presentation (Aaron Noel & Amy Lee): Presented the joint Mayor and Council response to the Grand Jury's findings and recommendations regarding the Development Impact Fee (DIF) program. The presentation detailed the City's stance on nine findings (four agreed, one partially disagreed, four disagreed) and thirteen recommendations.
Key Outcomes
- Motion Passed: The committee unanimously (30-0) approved the proposed joint Mayor and Council response to the Grand Jury report (Item 7) and authorized the Committee President to forward the response to the full City Council.
- Next Steps: The committee will adjourn to the next regularly scheduled meeting on Thursday, November 20, 2025, at 1:00 PM.
- Recognition: Formal thanks and a certificate were presented to Nick Cassiola for his retirement from the San Diego Police Department's executive protection detail.
Meeting Transcript
Well, good afternoon, everybody. Welcome to the Active Transportation and Infrastructure Committee meeting of October 23rd, 2025. Our committee liaison, Sarah Jordan, will provide information and instruction for the public to participate in today's meeting. Sarah, please proceed. Thank you, Chair Whitburn. While members of the public are able to attend the meetings in person, this meeting is being televised and live streamed on the city's website. And council administration will continue to make arrangements for the public to comment using the Zoom webinar platform. Members of the public who wish to provide testimony via a call-in or internet-based service option must enter the virtual speaking queue within five minutes after conclusion of in-person public testimony or before the virtual speaking queue is exhausted, whichever occurs first. This will allow for better meeting management between the two platforms and ensure the committee is able to manage and conduct city business. We appreciate the public's cooperation. Chair. Notices were posted in accordance with the Brown Act 72 hours in advance in a public location, allowing any member of the public, should they wish to participate, uh, to make comments. And just to take a note to thank uh City Clerk Harris of Jackson, Mississippi for all of her help and her whole office's help coordinating this. Uh, thank you very much. Thank you, Councilmember Von Bulpert. Sarah, please call the roll. Vice Chair, Council President Pro Tem Lee. Here. Councilmember Committee Member Foster. Committee member von Wilbert. Present. Chair Whitburn? Here. And also attending today's meeting is City Attorney Representative Dana Fairchild, Mayor Representative Randy Wilde, and IBA Representative Donnie Noen. And if you are in person, please complete a speaker slip located at the entrance of chambers and place it in the speaker slip box at the table at the front of the room. Please do so in a timely manner to ensure proper meeting management. Members of the public can join the webinar by computer, tablet, or smartphone by accessing the link which is listed online in the preamble language of the agenda on the city's webpage. To join the Zoom webinar by telephone, please dial 1669-2545252 and when prompted. Thank you, Chair Whitburn per Rule 2.7, non-agenda public comment as an opportunity for members of the public to comment on items that are not on the agenda but are within the subject matter jurisdiction of this committee. And each speaker will have two minutes. And as a reminder, if you're watching on City TV or the live stream and online, please dial 1669-2545252 inputting webinar ID 160685-1166 pound. We've not received any speaker slips here in chambers. So I will start the five-minute timer for all those in the virtual queue to indicate if they wish to provide non-agenda public comment. Each speaker will have two minutes, beginning with Becky Rapp. Please unmute and begin. Good afternoon. My name is Becky Rapp, and I'm here to speak about the traffic safety concerns surrounding the proposal to allow uh digital billboards in our city. San Diego has long recognized the dangers of roadside distractions, and that's why we don't currently allow digital billboards. These bright, flashing, constantly changing displays are proven to draw drivers' attention away from the road, increasing crash crash risk, particularly at intersections and along high speed corridors. Allowing them now would undermine years of progress towards vision zero and safer streets for everyone. Digital billboards don't just impact drivers. That's the opposite of what this committee works for. Safer, more walkable, and bikeable communities. There's also an equity concern. Many traditional billboards are already concentrated in lower income neighborhoods. And adding digital displays would compound those impacts, flooding the same areas with bright lights and ads for alcohol, marijuana, and tobacco products. San Diego's original approach was smart. Limit billboards to protect safety and preserve community character. That wisdom still holds true today. So I urge this committee to oppose any idea of digital billboard expansion and to keep our roadways safe, our drivers focused, and our neighborhoods protected.
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