Downtown San Diego Marina District…

…to be the home of a wonderful redevelopment project at the site of the Old Police Headquarters historical building located adjacent to Seaport Village  and next to the future home of Ruocco Park. 

Terramar Retail Centers, the operator of Seaport Village, is up against a November deadline to come up with financing to redevelop this historical sight.  The redeveloped site is to include restaurants, entertainment venues, shops and a market place similar to that of Pikes Market in Seattle, Washington was also envisioned for the location.

Historic Police Headquarters Project

The Old Police Headquarters structure was origninally opened in 1939 and reflects the Spanish Colonial revival style.  It contains a large open courtyard space which will be surrounded by the restaurants, shops and entertainment.  The developer also preserved 8 of the original jail cells which will be available for pubic viewing as part of the historic project.  The property has been sitting vacant for the past 20 or so years and it’s time for it to come back to life.

There’s a new sensation coming to town!

Part of the difficulty in getting the project moving forward has been attracting tenants in such a difficult financial climate.  The Market component does not have an anchor store yet, but something like a Trader Joes could be phenominal for downtown in terms of driving traffic so the smaller shops and restaurants would benefit from residual foot traffic.

The sensational, Pizzeria Mozza, which has been a huge hit in Los Angeles is one of the key restaurants that has signed a lease with the operator.  If Nancy Silverton, Mario Batali and Joe Bastianich, the inspring minds of Pizzeria Mozza have similar success in San Diego as they do in LA, Newport and Singapore, then Pizzeria Mozza will be a home run with locals and tourists. 

The location in itself should be a huge draw for consumers as it sits adjacent to Hyatt Grand Manchester hotel and Park Place condos.  It will be great for downtown residents to watch this new project unfold.  The developer hopes the Old Police Headquarters project will be open to the public as early as late 2012.

Do you have any ideas for the market component?  Trader Joes isn’t unique like a Pikes Market, but it has proved to be a viable store and it definitely is niche in comparisson to Ralph’s and Albertsons.  What do you think would be ideal for this tenant space?