Victory in National City!
Council adopts Westside Specific Plan
Change has come to Old Town National City.
In a historic victory for the health of children, families and the environment, the City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved the Westside Specific Plan. Once implemented, the plan will reduce toxic air pollution, increase affordable housing, and restore the health of the community.
Speakers ranging from EHC members to teachers, students, business owners, physicians, environmentalists and elected officials spoke in favor of the plan. Even as the meeting edged towards 11 p.m., people continued to share their stories of suffering and the need for dramatic change in this challenged neighborhood.
"This (plan) will bring about the end of a dark, 50-year era and the beginning of a brighter, healthier future for the Old Town neighborhood," said Jose Medina, a 40-year Old Town resident and EHC Boardmember. "The promise that the Westside Specific Plan offers is a promise of a new beginning that's long overdue."
EHC leaders were instrumental in the creation of the Westside Plan and ensuring that the adopted guidelines meet the needs of the community. During the past five years, more than 500 residents and stakeholders participated in the Westside planning process.
For decades, the Westside or "Old Town" has suffered from unjust land use and haphazard planning. The community is a textbook example of how industries and residents don't mix. The plan lays out guidelines for development over the next 10 to 15 years. As implementation proceeds, both the City's planners and developers will look to this plan for direction in making any proposals for future development.
Industries in and around Old Town emit 23,000 pounds of air toxics each year, some of which are linked to diseases like asthma, cancer, and reproductive illness. About 70 percent of the reported toxics come from auto body shops. More than 20 auto body shops operate near homes and schools in the 100-acre neighborhood of Old Town. The neighborhood is also home to a diesel fuel bus station, which combines with traffic from Interstate 5 to create a high-level source of air pollution from motor vehicle emissions.
The plan will improve the environmental health conditions of the neighborhood by reducing collocation of houses and businesses that use, store or generate hazardous materials. In addition, the plan will allow mixed uses that increase local activity and create a neighborhood where people can walk for goods, services, recreation and public transit. Implementation of the City's Amortization ordinance will, over time, lead to the relocation of existing polluting industrial businesses outside of Old Town and away from homes and schools.
In an effort to enhance, improve and protect the natural environment of Paradise Creek, which flows through the community, the Specific Plan will limit polluting industrial and residential uses immediately adjacent to the creek and enhance this natural resource through the creation of a public park and walking trails. The plan also calls for street and sidewalk improvements that, along with increased park space, will further improve walkability and community activity, one of many combined efforts to reduce the high rates of obesity and diabetes among Old Town residents.
EHC looks forward to being part of the plan's implementation as National City continues its transformation into a safer, healthier, thriving community for all.
In the News
City adopts renewal plan for Westside
Union-Tribune Editorial:
Ending a toxic mix
A healthier Old Town National City
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