E&CP Receives Top Honors

All Orchids, No Onions

A pair of CIP projects received special local awards! The Tecolote Shores South Playground and Balboa Park Botanical Building projects received Orchid Awards in the Landscape Architecture and Historic Preservation categories, respectively. The San Diego Architectural Foundation’s “Orchids & Onions” program’s Orchid Awards highlight elements of the built environment — such as buildings and parks — that make the San Diego region a better place to live. A jury of design professionals and artists selects the recipients of the Orchid Awards, which recognize the top projects. The jury also selects the “Onions,” which are determined to be the duds, but none of E&CP’s projects were among the Onions!

Botanical Building Continues to Shine

The Orchid wasn’t the only honor for the Botanical Building project. The iconic renovation was also recently recognized at the national level as one of only three finalists for the 2025 Structural Engineering Excellence Awards in the Forensic/Retrofit/Rehabilitation Category. Locally, it was among the American Public Works Association (APWA) San Diego County Chapter’s top projects of the year. This recognition celebrates outstanding public works projects across the region and the project is now a contender for the APWA National Project of the Year Award. Finally, the Botanical Building project also received the Unique Special Project Award at the Associated General Contractors (AGC) Build San Diego Awards Ceremony, competing against approximately 10 other projects.

City Named Public Owner of the Year

These amazing projects aren’t the only ones to be recognized. We are proud to share that E&CP was chosen to receive the “2025 Public Owner of the Year” Award by the San Diego Chapter of the AGC.

This prestigious award recognizes outstanding professionalism in procurement and project administration, reflecting the strong partnerships E&CP has built across the industry and our continued dedication to delivering well-planned, high-quality public infrastructure for our communities.

The achievement is a testament to the hard work, professionalism and shared commitment of the entire department. Whether managing complex capital projects or planning for future infrastructure needs, every employee played a role in earning this award. Thank you for your continued dedication to serving the residents of San Diego and working to build an environment that strengthens neighborhoods and enhances quality of life. Congratulations — this award belongs to you!

National Service Dog Month

September was National Service Dog Month in the City of San Diego! The City Council issued a proclamation to educate the community about the benefits of service dogs and the laws that protect their handlers, such as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). Our ADA Compliance and Accessibility team continues to work toward making our city inclusive for all residents and their trained service dogs!

Experience a Disability Day

Did you know that over one in four adults in the United States lives with a disability? Last November, the City’s Accessibility Advisory Board — with support from our ADA Compliance and Accessibility team — hosted “Experience a Disability Day,” where participants navigated their daily tasks without the ability to hear, see or walk.

The event was designed to give participants the opportunity to experience and better understand the challenges people with disabilities face in their everyday lives. Event participants could select a disability — partial or full blindness, various levels of hearing loss or a mobility impairment — and were encouraged to go about their average day while using a mobility device, including walking sticks, translation apps and wheelchairs. Each participant was also matched with a mobility coordinator, who provided real-world experience and tips, instructing participants how to successfully manage their selected impairment.

Mayor Todd Gloria and other City employees gained hands-on experience through this event, which fostered empathy and helped participants better understand accessibility. The information learned from this event can help able-bodied City employees to prioritize decisions that promote universal design, accessibility and equity throughout City infrastructure.

The City’s ADA Compliance and Accessibility team was established in 1991, and its mission is to ensure that services, programs and activities operated by the City are readily accessible and usable by people with disabilities in accordance with the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Accessibility Advisory Board is comprised of nine volunteer San Diego residents whose mission is to inspire and promote effective solutions to achieve universal accessibility for all.

Road Resurfacing

We wrapped up another successful year of asphalt overlay! Whether it was our staff preparing for and overseeing the work or our contractors in the field ensuring all our roads are smooth and ready for use, we appreciate everyone’s hard work. It takes a lot of coordination and effort to manage our vast road network and we couldn’t do it without the assistance of hundreds of talented individuals!

Check out a few of the locations resurfaced toward the end of 2025.

• La Jolla
• College Area
• Paradise Hills
• Via de la Valle
• Rolando Village

Park Progress

Coral Gate Neighborhood Park and Jerabek Park

We celebrated the completion of two major park projects in November: Coral Gate Neighborhood Park in San Ysidro and Jerabek Park in Scripps Ranch.

Coral Gate Neighborhood Park was originally built in the early 2000s and hadn't been upgraded since, until now. Thanks to a $5 million investment, including $1.2 million in Community Development Block Grant funds from the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, the park received new play equipment, landscaping, and ADA-accessible amenities.

As for Jerabek Park, the project cost nearly $8 million to provide the first significant improvements to the area in nearly 30 years. These upgrades modernized the park with new children’s play areas, fitness equipment, comfort station/concession stand and more.

These two parks needed major improvements and we are excited to bring a final product to both these communities!

Beyer Park

Take a look at Phase 1 of the Beyer Park project in San Ysidro. Construction crews have built the skate park, installed parts of the playground and poured concrete for the accessible walkways and ramps. When work is complete, this 8-acre amenity will also feature a dog park and public art. It is expected to be completed this summer.

Mira Mesa Community Park

Check out these major improvements at Mira Mesa Community Park. This $55 million project is highlighted by a new aquatic complex and all-wheel plaza, but also includes new children’s play areas, multi-use sports courts, renovations to the existing recreation center, and public art. The project is moving along on schedule and is expected to be completed later this year.

Marcy Neighborhood Park

Final touches are underway at Marcy Neighborhood Park in University City. The new playground equipment is being installed and the landscaping is almost complete. The park is expected to reopen to the public this spring.

Fiscal Year 2026 Contracts

We just passed the halfway point of fiscal year 2026 and plenty of our CIP projects are still expected to be awarded. From July 2025 through June 2026, we aim to award 95 CIP projects valued at $466 million. If you or your business is looking to contract with us and help build San Diego, check out our contracting opportunities on the City's Purchasing and Contracting webpage.

Donation Drive for Orphans in Mexico

Members of our Construction Management & Field Engineering and Construction Engineering Support divisions recently held a donation drive to benefit hundreds of orphans. Corazón de Vida is a nonprofit organization in Mexico dedicated to supporting several orphanages that provide homes to more than 500 children. Members of our team collected roughly $1,300 in cash donations and several carts of essential baby items and other critical supplies to donate to the nonprofit. Staff then delivered the donations directly to one of the orphanages in Valle de Guadalupe. A big thank you to our team for their generous donations; the support makes a meaningful difference in the lives of these children!

Public Speaking Boot Camp

E&CP successfully introduced its inaugural Public Speaking Boot Camp in the fall. This two-day training program taught staff how to communicate with the public more clearly and confidently. The course brought together employees from across the department for hands-on instruction in presentation design, plain-language communication and effective delivery. The session concluded with each participant giving a live presentation to the group, applying the skills they developed throughout the program.

By enhancing staff communication skills, E&CP is reinforcing its commitment to transparency and public engagement — key components in delivering infrastructure that serves all San Diegans. Graduates of the boot camp are now better prepared to present at community meetings, respond to stakeholder questions and explain complex capital improvement projects in ways that are accessible and meaningful to the residents and business owners we serve.

Our E&CP team is composed of more than 700 employees across nine divisions, all working together to deliver the best infrastructure for San Diego. Each person is critical to our success, but over the last year, a few have gone above and beyond and earned the title of our department's Employees of the Year for fiscal year 2025. Among the department award winners, one was named Citywide Employee of the Year for the Operational Support Branch. These awards are a testament to our staff’s hard work, teamwork and leadership, and we thank them for their dedication to the City!

• Citywide Employee of the Year
• John Udan, Infrastructure Project Delivery Division
• Department Employees of the Year
• Samuel Garcia, Business Operations and Employee Services Division
• Michael Rafael, Construction Engineering Support Division
• Eliel Mateo, Construction Management and Field Engineering Division
• Yazmin Lozano, Facilities and Parks Project Delivery Division
• Rimon Zaky, Project Management Office
• Daniel Martinez, Program and Project Development Division
• Scott Sanfilippo, Stormwater and Transportation Project Delivery Division
• Mirna Alkhoury, Utilities Project Delivery Division

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