Plans for temporary Del Mar train station seem to be derailed

By Marlena Chavira-Medford

Staff Writer

Plans to build a temporary train platform just south of the fairgrounds have been put on hold, said Alex Wiggins, North County Transit District communications director.

“We are now shifting our efforts to building a platform in downtown San Diego,” Wiggins said.

NCTD was proposing to build a temporary train stop east of the Del Mar beach colony community between 21st and 24th streets to provide more direct access to the fairgrounds during the fair and horse races.

The project generated strong public outcry from residents who were concerned that the station would cause pollution and noise. Neighbors for a Transit Solution, a group of residents opposed to the project, generated a petition that about 400 people signed.

While the temporary train station has been taken off NCTD’s front burner, Wiggins stopped short of saying the plans have been abandoned.

“For us, we’re more interested in building a permanent station, wherever that may be in the Del Mar corridor,” he said.

The San Diego Association of Governments allocated $7 million to NCTD to research a permanent station and platform north of the river and west of the fairgrounds.

Jeff Weitzen, a representative of Neighbors for a Transit Solution, said the group was cautiously optimistic about the temporary train station being put on hold.

“We’re happy but we know the project isn’t necessarily dead,” he said. “The public opposition to this was so strong that it seems they heard the message — we just hope it stays that way.”