National City council members unanimously voted to approve an alternative option for the city’s portion of San Diego County’s regional Bayshore Bikeway project.
At Tuesday’s City Council meeting, city engineer Stephen Manganiello provided council members several options, asking for direction on the project.
The first option was to continue a class 1 facility along Tidelands Avenue to west 32nd Street, while option 1b was to implement class 2 bike lanes and look at interim alignments and alternatives, such as auxiliary bike routes, including using Marina Way.
A class 1 bike path is defined as a facility strictly for nonmotorized vehicles, such as bicycles and walkers.
The final option included terminating the bike path at Bay Marina Drive and completing a class 1 connection as part of the city’s Marina Vision Plan.
City staff recommended a compromise with option 1b, which Manganiello said would be cost-effective, have minimal impacts to parking and allow time for planning of the ultimate Tidelands Avenue alignment and development of the Marina District.
“The idea is that this would be an interim solution to allow the city of National City, the port tenants and SANDAG to look at a new road and ultimately build a class 1 facility … if Tidelands never gets realigned.”
David Nagy, who lives in Bonita, spoke on behalf of the working waterfront group.
“Placing a bike path along Tidelands would be in conflict with the future growth,” he said. “…It cuts through maritime property on a busy industrial street and offers no aesthetic amenities to the user.”
Nagy said an alternative alignment for the bike path on Marina Way is more compatible with recreational uses by the community.
Frank Cerrito, the general manger for Pasha Automotive Services in National City, also supported the alternative route on Bay Marina Drive.
“By splitting the operation in two parts it limits continuous expansion plans,” he said. “Tidelands is very strategic for Pasha and serves as a strategic point of transition. The creation of a bike path on tidelands could limit the amount of commerce and revenue for National City.”
