San Diego State University has secured its board’s approval of a deal to purchase the city of San Diego’s Mission Valley stadium site, clearing an important hurdle in a yearslong quest to take over the site for a satellite campus.

Wednesday, the 25-member California State University Board of Trustees approved the university’s Mission Valley development plan, certified the associated environmental analysis and allocated an initial $350 million for the project. It also granted the chancellor of the CSU system, who oversees all 23 universities, the authority to execute a deal with the city of San Diego.

The action comes on the heels of a productive City Council meeting where local leaders closed nearly a dozen gaps in a draft sale contract for the land. The agreement is, however, at least a few weeks away from being finalized, with the city and the institution still needing to come to an accord on several specifics in the lengthy contract.

In November 2018, voters passed Measure G (also known as the SDSU West initiative), directing the city to sell a portion of its SDCCU Stadium property to SDSU. The transaction, which has been characterized by the city as its largest land sale in recent history, is in the final stages. The school has proposed to pay an estimated $87.7 million for the land, build and maintain a city-owned river park, and construct the city’s long-desired Fenton Parkway Bridge.


Tuesday, the CSU’s campus planning committee convened in Long Beach, where they reviewed and ultimately signed off on all elements of the San Diego State plan ahead of the full board’s vote. SDSU President Adela de la Torre and San Diego Mayor Kevin Faulconer addressed the committee, remarking on the potential long-term impacts of the project.

“We are within grasp of a modern multi-use stadium, a world-class river park for all San Diegans to enjoy, and a world-class education and research hub to ensure the SDSU legacy lives on for generations to come,” Faulconer said.

The only push back came from Austin Gent, who is director of the Promise Posterity Organization. In his public testimony, Gent asked the committee to reject the university’s environmental impact report in its current state. He said the report contained an “inadequate analysis” of the development’s impacts on endangered and threatened species that live near the San Diego River.

Wednesday, the board of trustees passed unanimously the requested financing and plan approval actions without additional discussion.


The approvals allow the university to buy the city’s property — and later start construction — so long as terms aren’t materially altered.

The school is aiming to wrap up the deal quickly so that it can construct a new 35,000-person capacity stadium in time for the 2022 college football season. A desired March 27 transaction close date, however, now appears out of reach.

Beyond the stadium, the just-approved campus plan calls for 4,600 residential units (with 10 percent subsidized units), 80 acres of parks and open space, 1.6 million square feet of office and research space, 400 hotel rooms, 95,000 square feet of campus retail and 13,192 parking spaces. The project is anticipated to be completed in 2037 at a total cost of $3 billion, although the public institution’s initial priorities include the stadium and a $54 million river park.

The $350 million allocation is the first of two financial asks from the CSU. It includes $87.7 million to purchase the city’s land, $169 million for initial site development, $40 million for traffic improvements and $53.3 million for contingency costs.


Most of the money is coming from the sale of CSU-backed bonds, which are expected to be issued in July, according to statements made Tuesday by CSU Vice Chancellor Robert Eaton. SDSU plans to eventually lease parts of the Mission Valley site to repay the debt, but will need to use non-operating funds in the interim to cover initial interest costs.

In addition, the public agency will return to its board later this year to get sign off on its stadium design and secure $300 million in funding for construction.