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>> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: WEDGED BETWEEN THE FREEWAY AND THE WATER AND BISECTED BY THE CORONADO
BRIDGE, THE IDENTITY OF BARRIO LOGAN IS VERY MIXED.
IT'S A NEIGHBORHOOD BUILT IN THE SERVICE OF THE SHIP YARD.
SOME OF ITS FIRST RESIDENTS CAME TO WORK IN THOSE YARDS.
BUT FOR YEARS LIVING HERE HAS MEANT BREATHING IN THE TOXIC FUMES OF INDUSTRY.
COMMUNITY ACTIVIST GEORGE ET GOMEZ SHOWS ME AROUND.
>> >>: THIS USED TO BE A HEAVY INDUSTRIAL MASTER PLATING.
IT TOOK US 10 YEARS TO GET THEM SHUT DOWN. THEY USED TO RELEASE HEXACHROMIA INTO THE
AIR, AND THEIR EXHAUST PIPE WAS GOING INTO THE FAMILY HOMES.
>> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: GOMEZ SAYS IT HAS GOTTEN A LOT BETTER, BUT THERE ARE STILL PROBLEMS.
JUST DRIVE DOWN ANY STREET, SHE SAYS, AND RIGHT NEXT TO HOMES AND SCHOOLS ARE BUSINESSES
THAT MAKE A LOT OF NOISE AND STORE A LOT OF CHEMICALS.
>> >>: HERE YOU HAVE THE ENGINES. BACK HERE YOU HAVE THE PETROLEUM.
THESE ARE HEAVY CHEMICALS THAT ARE RIGHT IN FRONT OF AFFORDABLE HOUSING IN HOUSING PROJECTS.
NOT THE BEST THING TO HAVE BESIDE IT RIGHT IN FRONT OF THEM. TO ME IT'S JUST LIKE I DON'T
WANT IT EVER TO HAPPEN BUT IT'S AN ACCIDENT WAITING TO HAPPEN.
AND THAT'S WHAT THEY WANT TO PROTECT. >> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: WHEN GOMEZ SAYS THEY,
SHE'S REFERRING TO THE SHIP BUILDING INDUSTRY. CHRIS WAHL REPRESENTS SHIP BUILDERS AND OTHER
INDUSTRIAL INTERESTS. >> >>: EVERYBODY WANTS TO HAVE A BETTER SEPARATION
OF USES. WE'RE ALL ON THE SAME PAGE WITH THAT, BUT
IT CAN'T BE AT THE EXPENSE OF THE SHIP YARDS AND THEIR FUTURE.
>> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: THE RUB FOR WAHL COMES DOWN TO WHAT AMOUNTS FOR JUST A FEW SQUARE
BLOCKS, WHAT BOTH SIDES REFER TO AS A BUFFER OR TRANSITION ZONE, AN AREA MEANT TO SEPARATE
INDUSTRY FOR RESIDENTS. WALL SAYS THAT LAND SHOULD BE ZONED FOR COMMERCIAL
INDUSTRIES THAT SERVE THE SHIP YARD. >> >>: IT'S HARD THAT IT'S COME DOWN TO THREE
MILLION DOLLARS AND TWO BLOCKS, I THINK IT'S A PRINCIPLE ISSUE.
I THINK THE FACT OF THE MATTER THE SHIP TIME MARITIME INDUSTRY BELIEVES THE CITY WOULD
RATHER HAVE HOMES THAN A SHIP BUILDING THERE. >> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: WAHL SAYS THE NEW ZONING
WOULD ALLOW 500 NEW HOMES, A PLAN THAT WOULD EFFECTIVELY END THE SHIP BUILDING INDUSTRY
IN SAN DIEGO. TERRY PENCE IS THE PRESIDENTS OF THE PORT
OF SAN DIEGO SHIP REPAIR ASSOCIATION. HE SAYS NEW DEVELOPMENT COULD GENTRIFY THE
NEIGHBORHOOD AND PRICE OUT LOW INCOME RESIDENTS. HE ALSO WORRIES HOUSES BUILT TOO CLOSE TO
THE YARDS WOULD FORCE THEM TO CLOSE. >> >>: WHEN YOU LOOK OUT YOUR WINDOW AND ALL
YOU SEE ARE CRANES, YOU'RE NOT GOING TO BE A HAPPY CAMPER.
THAT'S NOT WHAT YOU PAID FOR. IF I COULD MOVE YOU BACK A LITTLE BIT, WHEN
YOU OPEN THE BLINDS, YOU'LL SEE THE BEAUTIFUL BLUE SKY OF SAN DIEGO, AND OTHER RESIDENTIAL
UNITS, AND LIFE WILL BE GOOD. >> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: OPPONENTS SAY THAT IDEALIC
PICTURE IS A BIT OF A RED HEIRING. THE MARITIME IS PROPOSING WOULDN'T CREATE
A BUFFER BETWEEN HOMES AND BUSINESSES, IT WOULD JUST BE MORE OF THE SAME.
HOMES NEXT TO CHEMICALS AND LOUD MACHINERY. ALVAREZ SAYS IF THERE IS A CONCERN THAT HOUSING
WILL SPRING UP, LET'S GET RID OF THAT PART OF THE PLAN.
HE'S CRAFT AD COMPROMISE WHICH WOULD HAVE NO HOUSING, OR INDUSTRY, IN THE BUFFER ZONE.
>> >>: WE WANT TO NOT ENCROACH ON INDUSTRY BECAUSE THOSE JOBS ARE GOOD JOBS AND WE WANT
TO KEEP THEM. WE ALSO DON'T WANT TO PUT INDUSTRIAL USES
NEXT TO SOMEBODY WHO LIVES IN BARRIO LOGAN OR WILL IN THE FUTURE WHEN DEVELOPMENT CONTINUES.
>> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: HE WORRIES A LOT OF MISINFORMATION IS BEING SPREAD.
LIKE PEOPLE BEING TOLD IF THE PLAN PASSES THEY'LL LOSE THEIR HOMES.
>> >>: SCARE TACTICS ARE BEING USED AS A WELL FINANCED CAMPAIGN FULL OF LIES, UNFORTUNATELY.
>> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: IN BARRIO LOGAN MARIA MOYA IS TRYING TO GET THE WORD OUT ABOUT THE
PLAN. SHE SAYS A LOT OF DIFFERENT INFORMATION IS
BEING PASSED AROUND AND RESIDENTS ARE SCARE RESIDENTS ARE SCARED.
>> >>: THE COMMUNITY IS HEARING THEY'RE TELLING THE SHIP YARD WORKERS IF THE IT PASSES, NASSCO
IS GOING TO CLOSE. THAT'S AN ABSOLUTE LIE.
WE'RE NOT GOING AFTER NO INDUSTRIAL USES. WE WANT A PROTECTION ZONE TO PROTECT US AND
TO PROTECT THE RESIDENTS. IN NO WAYS ARE WE THAT STUPID, TO SAY WE WANT
TO CLOSE THE SHIP YARDS. WE KNOW THAT THAT'S AN ECONOMIC MY HUSBAND
WORKED THERE FOR 35 YEARS. >> >>SANDHYA DIRKS: THAT'S THE THING.
THE SHIP YARDS ARE AN INTEGRAL PART OF THE COMMUNITY.
THEY ARE TIED TOGETHER THROUGH. THE TWO SIDES ARE GOING TO HAVE TO FIND A
BUFFER THEY CAN BOTH AGREE ON. SANDHYA DIRKS, KPBS NEWS.