City Makes New Offer for Slough

The city of San Diego’s long-standing bid to acquire the Famosa Slough took a new twist Tuesday when the city made another offer to the developer who owns the 20-acre wetland near Ocean Beach. San Diego City Council members authorized the new bid during a pair of closed meetings Tuesday at City Hall.

The city’s most recent offer to developer Terry Sheldon was “less than the $4.6 million” that the city offered in late 1988, councilman Ron Roberts said Tuesday. Although Roberts declined to state the specific dollar value, he described it as being “closer to” a $3.5-million value indicated in a recent appraisal.

Roberts also said that, although the city still has $2.6 million earmarked for the wetland acquisition, some of the $2 million in state funding that had been promised by different agencies has fallen through.

Sheldon’s attorney, Robert Caplan, was not available Tuesday night to comment on the city’s most recent offer.

However, Roberts and environmentalists who have been involved in the decade-long effort to buy the slough on Tuesday expressed optimism that the latest deal will be accepted.