Steve Francis: Stop The Regents Road Bridge Project
NEWS RELEASE Contact: Kristen Kouk
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Phone: (858) 320-7507
April 22, 2008 Email: Kk@SteveforMayor.com
Put The Interest Of Our Environment Ahead Of Special Interests
San Diego, CA – Today, Steve Francis, candidate for mayor of San Diego, made the following statement regarding the proposed Regents Road Bridge project in Rose Canyon Park:
“For too long in San Diego, we’ve had it backwards: the developers have dictated what is done to the environment rather than the environment dictating the nature of development. Today, as we celebrate Earth Day, we need look no further than the proposed Regents Road bridge project in Rose Canyon Park to see an example of this failed approach. This is not a solution to traffic congestion, it is part of a bigger problem. So today I am calling on the city to stop this project and go back to the drawing board so that the legitimate needs of the community are addressed in a way that does not harm our valued parks and open spaces.
“The answer to our traffic problems isn’t always to build more and bigger roads, that’s the old way of thinking. That’s a short-term solution to a long-term problem. The sustainable answer is reducing the number of cars that drive them, that’s the way of the future. We need a bold, new vision that takes the best ideas from both political parties and best practices from cities around the world. We need clean and efficient mass transit like they have in other cities from San Francisco to Brisbane, Australia. We need a new senior advisor for the environment in the mayor’s office. When I am mayor, we will put the interests of our environment and our communities ahead of the special interests, and we will finally have the change we need.”
Francis’ opposition to the project won immediate praise from local environmental and community leaders. Debby Knight, founder and president of Friends of Rose Canyon, commented, “Steve Francis has taken a bold stand to protect Rose Canyon Park, a regional natural treasure. This kind of bold thinking is the kind of change we need in San Diego.”
###
ID# 1301984