UC San Diego will soon have an extension campus in the heart of downtown. University officials and city leaders gathered Wednesday in the East Village to break ground on the major development at Park Boulevard and Market Street.
A four-story, 66,000-square-foot facility managed by UC San Diego Extension will offer academic and cultural programs for middle and high school students, and provide the community with entrepreneurship and business resources. Attached to the education hub will be a 34-story residential tower by Holland Partner Group, providing 426 housing units — 85 of which will be reserved for very low-income residents.
UC San Diego Chancellor Pradeep Khosla said expanding the reach of the university will help to reduce underserved communities and serve as a catalyst for the innovation economy.
“As a public university we knew that we had to take some responsibility for educating the young men and women, the boys and girls, the families in this great city,” Khosla said. “This urban location embodies the university’s commitment to break new ground in providing educational access.”
The development will be located next to the blue trolley line, which will eventually run from San Ysidro to the university’s main campus in La Jolla.
Mayor Kevin L. Faulconer called the development a “game changer,” saying it would create a vibrant community asset.
“There’s no better place for UC San Diego to spread its wings than downtown – one of the city’s most creative places for entrepreneurs and innovators,” Faulconer said.
The project will also include retail spaces, an outdoor amphitheater and public open space, which will host a variety of arts and culture events. Also on site will be the Remmen House, a historic property currently under restoration that will serve as a restaurant.
The block-long lot was previously the site of the temporary Quartyard park, designed by architecture students and funded through crowdsourcing and private investments. The park included a coffee shop, restaurant, beer garden and a dog park. Prior to the park it was a vacant lot.
