In 2016, the Friends of the San Dieguito River Valley filed a lawsuit against the City of San Diego and Surf Cup Sports LLC for failure to require an environmental review before awarding a 28-year contract to Surf Cup Sports for the use of the former Polo Fields. This lengthy process recently ended up in the Appellate Court ruling that a CEQA (California Environmental Quality Act) Environmental Review for the lease of the former Polo Fields to Surf Cup was, and is, not required.
The silver lining in that cloud is that the court’s 32-page ruling, which was extremely well written and historically comprehensive, clarified some critical points that will guide the Friends, and others, in continuing to oppose the intensified use of the soccer fields.
Most importantly, the appellate ruling makes it absolutely clear that 25 days of events, NOT 25 events that last multiple days, are allowed at the soccer fields.
Going forward, the Friends will endeavor to hold accountable relevant departments within the City of San Diego that oversee the activities of Surf Cup. Our monitoring will help keep members of the JPA Board, including newly-elected District 1 City Council Member Joe LaCava and District 3 County Supervisor Terra Lawson-Remer, as well as San Diego City officials Mayor Todd Gloria and City Attorney Mara Elliot, informed of ongoing impacts and lease violations resulting from Surf Cup activities.