City Council: Blue Sky Amphitheater Approved; Fire Chief Honored

The Poway City Council on Tuesday unanimously approved a revised plan to build a 150-seat amphitheater in the . The amphitheater will be used by park docents, city staff and guests for presentations about the wildlife and native vegetation within the reserve, Senior Planner Jim Lyon told the council.

The amphitheater was originally approved in 2002, but a nonprofit foundation formed to raise funds for the project dissolved after the 2007 Witch Creek Fire burned most of the reserve, according to a city staff report.

The Blue Sky Community Foundation was able to raise $110,740 for the amphitheater and an educational center, as well as a 75-space parking lot, before dissolving in 2010, Lyon said. The money was transferred to the city with the request that it be used to build the amphitheater.

The first phase of the project, which included construction of the parking lot and rough grading of the entire site, was completed in 2003 using county, state and federal grant funds, as well as money raised by the foundation, according to a staff report.

The original plans called for a 300-seat amphitheater built of tan concrete, but the revised plan moved the location slightly and reduced the size. It will be located near the northeast corner of Espola Road and the Green Valley Truck Trail.

The amphitheater will not have permanent lighting or a sound system, and most events will be held during the day, typically involving school or scout groups of 30-40 children, Lyon said.    

Evening presentations will be able to use temporary lights, and a one-speaker public-address system may be used for larger events. Any noise generated from the facility must comply with Poway’s noise ordinance.

A public notice was published in the Poway News Chieftan and notices were mailed to 25 property owners within 500 feet of the project site, but nobody elected to speak during public-comment time.

In other council business:

• A service award was presented to Kevin Kitch, division chief of emergency planning and training, for his 30 years of service to the Poway Fire Department.

• City staff reported that an updated FEMA flood insurance rate map erroneously included a new flood hazard area off Whitewater Road east of Garden Road Park, affecting 10 properties. Staff reported the error to FEMA officials, who acknowledged the mistake and will revise the map.