PROJECT DESCRIPTION

In 2013, DBRDS, in collaboration with Howard Blackson III and McCullough Landscape Architecture, was selected as the winner of the San Diego Chapter of the American Institute of Architects' Centennial Gateway design competition, an ideas initiative that challenged designers to rethink the fractured relationship between Downtown San Diego, Balboa Park, and the historic Balboa Stadium precinct ahead of the 2015 Panama-California Exposition Centennial.

The winning concept, Reclaim Balboa 2015, proposed a bold civic vision centered on restoring the historic urban connections that once defined San Diego's cultural heart. Rather than viewing Interstate 5 as a permanent barrier, the project imagined it as an opportunity for reconnection through a new landscaped civic bridge linking the Plaza de Panama directly to Balboa Stadium and the communities beyond.

At the center of the proposal was the revitalization of the long-neglected Balboa Stadium as a modern multi-purpose venue capable of hosting professional soccer, community sports, concerts, and civic events while preserving public access to track and field facilities. The stadium would become both a destination and a gateway — reconnecting Balboa Park to Downtown, East Village, and the international relationship between San Diego and Tijuana.

The vision extended beyond the stadium itself, proposing new transit connections, pedestrian networks, bicycle infrastructure, and the adaptive reuse of underutilized parking areas to create a more accessible and connected Balboa Park experience. Inspired by the civic ambition of San Diego's early visionaries, the project asked a simple but powerful question: "What would George Marston do?"

More than a master plan, Reclaim Balboa 2015 was a call to reclaim San Diego's civic imagination — demonstrating how infrastructure, public space, culture, and sport could work together to reconnect the city to its history while creating a bold vision for its future.

DETAILS                                                                               

Address: Balboa Park, San Diego

Site Area: N/A

Status: 2013 AIA Balboa Centennial Gateway Competition Winner