City Heights Community Development Corporation (City Heights CDC), a nonprofit based in the City Heights neighborhood of San Diego, was awarded two California Climate Investments grants in 2021 and 2024 by the Sustainable Transportation Equity Project (STEP) to support a transportation equity and affordable housing task force and the implementation of a suite of active transportation projects. The project, which leverages both a planning grant and implementation grant, has supported the creation of a community advisory board and Development without Displacement report as well as the implementation of locally specific and resident-led transportation solutions. The project’s pedestrian safety enhancements, lighting improvements, urban greening initiatives, and bikeway supportive infrastructure will build safe and comfortable connections between affordable housing, active transportation infrastructure, transit, and community amenities.

City Heights CDC Transportation & Planning Team (from left to right): Rosa Olascoaga, Manny Rodriguez, Denisse Lopez, Jesse Ramirez, and Maria Cortez.

Can you share with us your name and what role you’ve had in the development and implementation of this project?

Jesse Ramirez, Director of Urban Planning at City Heights Community Development Corporation, an organization founded in the 1980s by community members opposing the expansion of the SR-15 freeway in our community.

Tell us about City Heights. What makes the community special? What are some of its greatest needs?

City Heights is very rich in diversity. We have over 40 languages and dialects spoken in our community, folks from all over the world. But we have a lot of challenges, too. We have the SR-15, the 805 freeway, the SR-94, and two of the busiest streets in the San Diego Region. We lack amenities like protected bike lanes and proper sidewalks. As a result of freeways, busy streets, and a history of disinvestment, we see our community members, unfortunately, being too often hit by cars.

We would love to hear more about the project. What will it do? What does it seek to accomplish?

The vision for the SR-15 Sustainable Redevelopment Project started with our Transportation Equity and Affordable Housing (TEAH) Task Force, a multi-generational community group we started with our STEP Planning grant in 2021. At the time, we were in the design process for CUATRO at City Heights, an affordable housing project City Heights CDC is co-developing with Wakeland Housing and Development. As the community was identifying the amenities folks wanted, we started having conversations about how the project didn’t have any parking. Parking is already an issue in City Heights, so we knew this would be a problem, not just for the residents in those units, but for the community as a whole.

The nearby Boulevard Transit Plaza and the City Heights Transit Plaza provide great service, but there’re a lot of barriers that prevent folks from walking to them. We also knew that SANDAG was constructing some bikeways. So, the TEAH Task Force thought why not propose connecting them and making it easier for folks to walk, bike, and take transit? That would alleviate some of the issues as this housing development comes to life. Throughout the project, the TEAH Task Force will continue shaping components of the project so they’re more likely to use them when they're constructed.

What impact do you hope to see in your community as a result of this project and have you started to see impacts from it already?

We want the community to shape new ways to walk, take transit, and use modes of transportation that don’t require driving. I think folks are already looking at the streets and thinking about what we would need to make it easier for us to use other modes of getting around.

What has been challenging in carrying out the project, and what have you learned from those challenges that could be useful for others to know?

There’s a lot of learning to do about how to make these partnerships between Community-Based Organizations (CBOs) and local government work. It took a lot of effort to get the City (of San Diego) to support this project. Now that the funding is there, it's a totally different relationship. They're like, how can we support the project? What can we do to speed things up? It empowers grassroots community-based organizations to be in a different position when speaking to local government.

What are some elements of the project you think others should consider incorporating into their projects?

Rolling up your sleeves and having these conversations about projects with the folks that live those streets, is an element that I feel all planning projects, capital improvement projects, placemaking projects, have to incorporate.

Do have some advice you can leave with us that might help others applying for funds? What have you learned from the application process that would be useful for others to know?

Be ok with not having all the answers. And leverage your network, because there’re other organizations that are willing to share best practices or potential pitfalls.