** UPDATE 7/7/2016

Thank you to everyone who participated in last night's Uptown meeting! 

Please contact Todd Gloria's office and make sure your voice is heard! 

Tel: 619-236-6633

ToddGloria@sandiego.gov

**UPDATE 7/3/16

Uptown has allotted three minutes for community members to voice their concerns. We ask those who don't wish to speak to yield their time to those who are going to speak on behalf of the community. 

more information on the traffic studies can be found towards the bottom of the page on the link here. Please do a search for India Street and/or Middletown

https://www.sandiego.gov/planning/community/profiles/uptown

**UPDATE 7/1/16

The Uptown Planners will hold a meeting on July 5, 2016 at the Joyce Beers Center at 6PM to discuss this matter. Please join us in voicing our concern with various City officials. 

The San Diego Airport Authority (AA) and the City of San Diego (City) with the opening of the new Rental Car Center (RCC) created an ingress and egress from the RCC which has severely impacted the traffic flow and safety of drivers, pedestrians and most importantly, residents and businesses in the Middletown area. The signs currently posted direct RCC customers to use India Street when arriving or leaving the new center. Middletown residents and businesses on India Street have continued to express their safety concerns to the City, AA, Uptown Planners and the Five Points Businesses. Such expressions have received little to no response from the AA and City Council District Three representatives. The purpose of this petition is to let the City and AA know that the residents and businesses in the Middletown area will not allow our safety to be undermined by their inability to find a logical solution to having airport customers exit to I-5 North using India Street and and have our property values decrease as a result of increased traffic and speeding. 

The RCC ingress affects India Street from the I-5 North off-ramp (at Laurel Street) to Sassafras Street; down to Pacific Highway. The RCC egress also severely impacts India Street from Sassafras Street to I-5 North on-ramp (Washington Street). This has caused a significant increase in traffic and speed along India Street. In addition, it has resulted in hazardous incidents, including the following:

1.          Significantly increased speeds along India Street exiting the 5 North;

2.          Significant increase in traffic and drivers crossing multiple lanes unfamiliar with where they are going;

3.          Inability for pedestrians to use the pedestrian bridge at Palm Street due to the inability to safely cross the street;

4.          Danger to sidewalk pedestrians due to the increased speed of drivers.

5.          Increased dangers to residents and business owners and customers when turning from India onto Redwood, Sassafras and Spruce Streets

6.          Unfamiliar drivers are caught on the train/trolley tracks on Sassafras Street in both directions;

7.          Unfamiliar drivers stop in the intersection of Sassafras and Kettner not knowing which direction they are to go;

8.          Increased danger for residents living on India Street trying to exit their driveways.  Residents and businesses ask the City of San Diego and the Airport Authority to take immediate action to mitigate the aforementioned points to avoid a loss of life and improve safety for the residents of Middletown. While some action has been taken by City Engineers to mitigate the traffic concerns (e.g. V-calm sign, additional speed signs and repainted merge lanes), such actions were limited in time with the addition of RCC signs placed by the City, AA and any other city entities involved. Additionally, we recognize that the City has conducted multiple speed studies along this corridor however, such studies do not accurately reflect what we as residents and businesses observe and witness on the ground.

Accordingly, we recommend the following: Utilization of Pacific Highway and Washington Street for Rental Car exit instead of Sassafras and India as Washington Street and Pacific Highway are larger streets which can better accommodate traffic and improve safety. This will improve the business in the Five Points corridor as well.  Stop sign on India at Redwood to reduce speeding in residential area (or other alternate solution to reduce speeds)  Hawthorne to be used as the RCC exit from I-5 North instead of India Street. Rental Cars should exit the RCC and proceed onto Pacific Highway North and directed to Washington Street to the I-5 North. Additional signage to alert drivers of speed limit and pedestrian friendly zones on India Street.  Affirmation from the City that parking lanes on India Street will not be removed to accommodate a fourth lane based on an analysis conducted and printed in the Final Environmental Impact Report by the AA.

While we have received an email confirmation, this is not an official notice from the City.  As the San Diego International Airport continues to grow, the AA and City are responsible for finding new means of moving airport traffic away from residential areas. This could mean building a new bridge linking the airport with I-5 North or the utilization of Pacific Highway and Washington Street. Having airport traffic use a residential corridor is unsustainable and severely endangers the lives of those that live in this unique corridor of South Mission Hills.