Roberts Calls For ‘San Diego Solution’ : Architect Enters 2nd District Council Race

Calling for a “San Diego solution” to local problems that will enhance the city’s quality of life and make it “an even better model for the rest of the country,” architect Ron Roberts announced his candidacy Monday in the San Diego City Council 2nd District race.

Roberts, who recently resigned as chairman of the city’s Planning Commission in order to devote more time to his race, became the third major candidate--and fifth overall--for the seat being vacated by Councilman Bill Cleator. He announced his campaign at a Mission Hills news conference staged near Dove Street Canyon, which served as a symbolic backdrop for his remarks.

Saying that the council’s major challenge is “not stopping growth, but managing it,” Roberts noted that he often was the Planning Commission’s lone vote against what he characterized as “insensitive development of canyons and hillsides.” The commission’s approval of a project proposed for Dove Street Canyon was later overturned by the council and led to tougher rules on canyon and hillside development.

Symbol of Victory

“This victory is a symbol of what can be done to preserve San Diego for ourselves and for the generations to follow,” Roberts said, flanked by his wife and three daughters. “We in San Diego . . . have perhaps the finest climate in the country, a very healthy economy and scenic wonders all around us. We have what most people want, and our challenge is not to lose it as we grow larger and older.

“Some two hours to the north is an example of what we cannot permit to happen in San Diego. I refuse to accept that San Diego must ultimately surrender to Los Angeles-style traffic and congestion. I believe there must be a San Diego solution to our problems.”

A Massachusetts native who has lived in San Diego since boyhood, the 44-year-old Roberts said that, if elected, his first major objective would be to curtail noise at Lindbergh Field by lengthening existing late-night curfews and establishing stricter requirements on engine-noise levels. The airport noise issue has long been a major controversy in the 2nd District, portions of which lie under the airport’s flight path.

Transit Needs

Roberts also called for expansion of the San Diego Trolley and highway improvements to meet the city’s transportation needs, and said that he favors exempting public safety programs from the Gann spending limit in order to increase the size of the city’s police force. In addition, Roberts said that increased water reclamation programs could help meet San Diego’s long-range water needs.

The two other major candidates in the 2nd District race are San Diego Unified School Board President Kay Davis and Byron Wear, a partner in a public relations and political consulting firm and former vice chairman of the San Diego County Republican Central Committee. Two long shots--financial consultant Ron Schneider and magician Loch David Crane--also are running in the 2nd District, which includes Ocean Beach, Mission Hills, Point Loma, Loma Portal, Old Town and parts of Hillcrest and University Heights.

The top two vote-getters in the district primary in September will face each other in the November citywide general election.