Del Cerro Action Council gets answers

Speeding drivers and the undergrounding of overhead utility lines were among the top concerns of the 38 Del Cerro residents who responded to the Del Cerro Action Council’s recent eight-question survey. Residents desire more dining choices and some people want an off-leash dog park, according to the "Concerns and Opportunities for Del Cerro" survey results discussed at the April 25 council meeting.

The meeting opened with a report by community liaison officer Holland Tafoya of the San Diego Police Department's Eastern Division. She said there were four vehicle burglaries in Del Cerro during the previous two weeks; a briefcase was stolen from one vehicle and a makeup bag from another.

Some residents talked about speeding drivers, especially near a shopping center on Del Cerro Boulevard between College and Madra avenues. "It scares me the way people fly around the corner," a woman said. Tafoya said she would pass along the concerns because a traffic community-relations grant allows overtime for traffic units.

Survey participants also named those intersections, according to results presented by action-council president Jay Wilson. When asked about the five "worst" streets that needed slurry sealing or resurfacing, the Del Cerro Boulevard/Madra intersection was named 12 times; the Del Cerro Boulevard/College intersection netted 10 responses; Airoso Avenue received 7 “worst” ratings. Airoso parallels Interstate 8 west between Del Cerro and Lake Murray boulevards. Wilson termed the street "like an E ticket ride" and said it wasn't on the city's resurfacing list.

The survey asked people to name the top three issues that the city and action-council should address. For the city, undergrounding and street repair were each named eight times; speeding was selected six times, and crime and beautification were each cited five times.

Beautification topped the list for the action council, with eight responses for activities such as cleaning up medians and weeds. Mark Rawlins brought up another concern: Curbs need painting, he said. "They're supposed to be red; they're pink." Also on the list for the council were speeding (five responses), a dog park and crime (four for each), and brush maintenance (two).

Residents were also asked the three most important citywide issues for District 7 city councilman Scott Sherman to address. Pensions and crime were each cited three times. The following issues were each named once: fix the city budget, undergrounding, rundown homes, street repairs, traffic flow, and libraries.

The survey asked what type of store or service residents wanted if space were available. A restaurant was named 16 times, followed by: 5 endorsements for a coffee shop, 4 for a drug store, 3 each for Starbucks and a bakery, and 2 for a yogurt shop.

Del Cerro is Spanish for "of the hill." Atop the hill is the city-owned Pasatiempo open space. The view there includes utility lines. Undergrounding advocates include Sue Braun, a former San Diego Unified School District board member. Braun said in an interview that while campaigning "wires were right at my eye level" as she looked out the windows of some homes.