Pacific Beach, Mission Beach: Redo model for the county?

This rendering shows one idea for a pedestrian crossing over Interstate 5 from a trolley station into Pacific Beach. AIA/SDAT

This rendering shows one idea for a pedestrian crossing over Interstate 5 from a trolley station into Pacific Beach. / AIA/SDAT

Local architects moved forward Friday with big thoughts about Pacific Beach and Mission Beach as a possible model for all San Diego neighborhoods.

The American Institute of Architects' local urban design committee mulled over ideas as simple as artistic crosswalks and roundabout intersections and as a ambitious as a major transit-oriented, mixed-use development around the coming trolley station at Interstate 5 and Balboa Avenue.

"This is an opportunity that has popped up immediately," said Dan Stewart, the committee chairman. "It would be nice if we take advantage of this."

Ideas included holding a spring workshop and fall symposium on innovative planning ideas, such as:

A roundabout is one idea for slowing traffic at busy intersections. Such an idea is being considered at the Grand/Garnet split off Interstate 5. / AIA/SDAT

The discussion grew out of a community workshop session last summer and a followup in December from a $10,000 sustainable design assessment team, sent by the national AIA, based in Washington, D.C., to look over the gritty details of living, working and visiting the beach areas.

The team in its analysis, to be followed up in the next few weeks by a formal set of recommendations, noticed that the two beach communities are too dependent on cars, spew too many green house gases into the air and need to think about an environmentally-oriented future.

Danielle Buttacavoli, who chairs the AIA's local Committee on the Environment, said the biggest threat -- sea level rise over the next generation -- does not yet figure into beach residents' and business owners' immediate priorities.

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Pacific Beach, Mission Beach: Redo model for the county?