Why does NFABC oppose the Turquoise Tower?

• The project will be almost twice as high as any other building in PB.

• Turquoise Street, Foothill Blvd., and Beryl Street already are operating at 400% of capacity.

• With only 5 units for low-income housing, it does little to create affordable housing.

• The project raises safety issues regarding fire, water and sewer services.

• If the project is built, it will open the floodgates for more high-rises in beach communities along the California coast.

Wealth of planning experience
underlies housing efforts

There are many cities that, no doubt, would love to have the combined housing planning expertise of the Board of Directors of Neighbors for a Better California.

• NFABC chair Marcella Bothwell is currently the chair of the Pacific Beach Planning Group.

• Karl Rand is a past chair of the planning group.

• Brian Curry also is a past chair of the planning group and helped steer Pacific Beach through the tumultuous times of the great vacation rental debate in San Diego. He also chaired the effort to create the PB Community Surf Garden at the community’s rec center.

• John Terrell is a certified planner and retired planning director of a major Southern California city. He serves as NFABC’s Legislative Committee Chair and is a key member of the PB Planning Group.

• Scott Chipman has served on the planning group and Pacific Beach Town Council for years. He also is the national vice chairman of Americans Against Legalizing Marijuana (AALM).

• And Charlie Nieto is president of the Pacific Beach Town Council and a member of the PB Planning Group.

When they get to discussing the nuts and bolts of housing, it can take housing discussions to a new level.

But perhaps their biggest attribute - also shared by the board’s other three members - is a deep commitment to the community in which they live. That combination of housing expertise and community commitment is why it is not just lip service when they say their goals are finding a balanced approach to California’s housing problems.

They have approved numerous housing projects for Pacific Beach. They want to approve more because they recognize there is a critical need for more housing. But they want it done responsibility, with local input and respect for the wishes of residents. A 23-story tower plunked down in the middle of a coastal community long-protected by a 30-foot height limit is not responsible planning, they say.

Helping publicize NFABC efforts is Tom Coat. He won numerous San Diego Press Club awards for writing and design while at the San Diego Tribune. One of his most interesting days a journalist came when he was asked by the Tallahassee Democrat to design the front page of the newspaper on the day when mass murderer Ted Bundy killed four coeds at Florida State University. He created websites for the Rock ‘n’ Roll Marathon and JPMorgan Corporate Challenge, which became the largest corporate running series in the world.

Karen Ventimiglia is NFABC’s volunteer chair and is using her experience in organizing major events to help plan and stage events. And Jim Sinks, a local periodontist, serves as the Development Chair for NFABC.