Voice & Viewpoint Newswire
SAN DIEGO, Calif.: Construction of a new hotel and public park on the Lane Field site kicked off with a groundbreaking event held Thursday, May 8, 2014.
The event, which included a shovel ceremony, took place at the Lane Field site, which overlooks the waterfront at the corner of West Broadway and North Harbor Drive in San Diego.
Speakers at the event included San Diego City Council President Todd Gloria, Port of San Diego Chairman Bob Nelson, John Portman IV of Portman Holdings, Rob Lankford of Lankford & Associates, and Tye Turman of Marriott International.
The Lane Field North Hotel Project consists of a dual-branded hotel that will be developed on Lane Field, the former home of the Pacific Coast League Padres. The development will include a 253-room SpringHill Suites by Marriott and a 147-room Residence Inn by Marriott. There will also be approximately 27,000 square feet of retail space and parking for more than 400 vehicles. It is a $130 million project.
“The Lane Field project will be another boost to our region’s economy, creating jobs and revenue,” said Mayor Kevin Faulconer. “It will also provide additional public amenities and tie in nicely with the new waterfront promenade and improvements opening soon as part of the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan.”
“Lane Field has been a significant site in San Diego’s history, and the planned development will ensure its positive significance for the future of the Downtown neighborhood and the North Embarcadero,” said San Diego City Council President Todd Gloria, who also serves as Chair of the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan Joint Powers Authority.
“Today is the beginning of a new life for Lane Field. This former ballpark site lives in the memories of many San Diegans. It will again be a focal point for our waterfront. Anchored by the worldwide Marriott branding, this project will help link downtown San Diego and the Bay,” said Port of San Diego Chairman Bob Nelson. “This development incorporates about two acres of public space including a new waterfront park for San Diegans to enjoy.”
Lankford Phelps Portman Lane Field, a real estate joint venture comprised of Portman Holdings, Lankford & Associates and Hensel Phelps, is developing the project, along with AIG Global Real Estate Investment Corporation as a limited partner.
In addition to the hotel, the developers are building a 1.6-acre park that will be located at the northeast corner of the intersection of West Broadway and North Harbor Drive, stretching north to a property owned by the Navy at 1120 Pacific Highway. The park will tie in with the history of Lane Field, where a ballpark once stood. The Pacific Coast League Padres played there from 1936 to 1957.
The park is designed to be an urban space that complements the San Diego Bay waterfront and that reflects the history and characteristics of the area.
The park, along with other public areas associated with the hotel development, will add approximately two acres of public open space to the waterfront and create synergy with public space in the North Embarcadero Visionary Plan Phase 1 and the County Administration Center Waterfront Park.
“Together these projects will make the North Embarcadero the phenomenal ‘front porch’ that it always should have been and now will be forever,” Nelson said.
Hensel Phelps, the project contractor, anticipates that the two hotels in the Lane Field North Hotel project will be open in early 2016. The park is also anticipated to be finished around that same time.
