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SAN DIEGO—As GlobeSt.com recently reported, a master plan for the multi-dimensional Downtown San Diego project Makers Quarter has been revealed by its development team L2HP, composed of Lankford & Associates, HP Investors and Hensel Phelps. GlobeSt.com spoke exclusively with Stacey Pennington, urban planner for the project, about what it all means and what the next steps will be for the project.

“It's so exciting that Makers Quarter is moving forward,” Pennington tells us. “Any time you have a larger mixed-use district, especially in an urban environment, there are going to be master plans everywhere, but what really matters is when you start digging into the ground and making progress.”

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Pennington says there are no major tenant announcements as of yet, but the project has the support of “a great mayor, and Bruce Katz of Brookings Institution is charged up about it. We can attract a whole new plethora of companies Downtown to expand and anchor themselves and have a space to thrive.”

A distinguishing feature of the development is that “the heart and soul of Makers Quarter is the arts and culture part of San Diego,” Pennington adds. “We have the opportunity to strengthen the integration of arts and culture as part of the framework for economic development.”

In the same vein, Makers Quarter elements FabLab, SILO and Moniker Warehouse have engaged 100 muralists for the development. “It's the beginning of what we hope to be along and powerful story for the whole region,” says Pennington. “A neighborhood centered on arts and culture as a driving force to innovation. It's very intentional, but to actually see it blossoming is so gratifying.”

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