Editorial : Park Needs Strong Start

A strip of green stretching across North County from the foothills of Julian to the ocean at Del Mar, where people can enjoy a respite from urban sprawl, is a bold vision that could help keep San Diego County special for future generations.

It’s the kind of vision that perhaps the early leaders of San Diego had when they set aside the 1,400 acres that is now Balboa Park.

But the dream for the 43-mile-long San Dieguito River Valley regional park is much larger, and land that was plentiful in 1868 is now scarce and expensive.

As Times staff writers Anthony Perry and Tom Gorman recently reported, acquiring the land for this park could take years and more than $100 million, plus many compromises and trade-offs. It will test the wills of more than one generation of elected officials. Look at Mission Trails Regional Park. It has been in the works 18 years and is still not quite complete.

But the proposed San Dieguito River Valley park doesn’t have that much time. If it is to be a park, the time to act is growing short. The western end of the valley is rapidly being developed with expensive homes and golf courses, and more are in the planning stages.

And with each development or preliminary approval, the price of the land goes up. Land prices have already doubled in the five years the park proposal has been under discussion.

But, although the park has been talked about for five years, only in about the last year--with the formation of a committee of elected officials and a citizens’ advisory group--have discussions become formal.

The talking and planning are far from over. In fact, there is no master plan for the park yet and no agency has been designated to lead the project. The question of establishing a joint-powers agreement among the cities and the county won’t even been considered until later this month.

But, thanks to $10 million from Proposition 70, the state parks bond issue approved by voters in June, park planning is about to get very serious.

The county Board of Supervisors will soon be deciding what parcels to buy with the $10 million, which is specifically earmarked for the San Dieguito park.

The money won’t go far, not when land in the valley can cost $65,000 an acre. But these first purchases are particularly important, because they can help build momentum for the park. And making the decisions expeditiously might help San Diego compete for additional Proposition 70 funds.

The planners of the Santa Monica Mountains Recreation Area, a similar park endeavor in the Los Angeles area, have a suggestion that we would urge the board to consider as it sorts through competing wish lists: Buy “keystone” parcels, those essential to the park’s success and those that establish the park’s identity. This seems crucial to building public support for the park, and that in turn is critical to build financial support.

The Santa Monica folks, who have been working on their park for 10 years, also suggest that having a specific agency with sole responsibility and authority for creating the park is important for building support. Thus far in San Diego, the leadership has been provided by community activists and a few elected officials. But this is unlikely to be sufficient for such a huge project, which will always be competing for funds with other programs.

If the San Dieguito River Valley park is to be realized, it will need someone with vision and influence and energy to lead the way. It will also need active, vocal public support from throughout the county.