The Port of San Diego Board of Commissioners voted unanimously Tuesday to go ahead with a $1.2 billion plan to redevelop the Seaport Village tourist attraction in San Diego.
The proposal was one of six submitted to the port for the project, and had undergone considerable staff scrutiny over the past several months.
The plan, called "Seaport San Diego," calls for three hotels encompassing more than 1,000 rooms, a 151,000-square foot aquarium, 480-foot-tall observation tower, about 165,000 square feet of shopping space and 141,000 square feet of restaurants.
It was submitted by 1HWY1, a coalition of companies with backgrounds in development, project management and building aquariums.
The 1HWY1 plan also includes a specialty cinema and charter school focused on marine studies and music. The port's legal counsel has questioned whether those uses are appropriate for public lands, and called for further study.
Of the hotels in the proposal, one would be a full-service facility, a second would be in the "affordable luxury" category and the third would offer elements similar to hostels.
The plan is projected to bring the port $22 million in annual rent once the project is built out in around 10 years, far above the current take of $2.6 million a year, according to staff.
