Why Is Actor Mario Lopez Promoting a Stadium Next to an Historic Barrio in San Diego?

In San Diego, a battle is taking place between residents of historic Barrio Logan and proponents of an NFL stadium which threatens it. Actor Mario Lopez has been hired to sell the stadium proposal.

2 minute read

November 6, 2016, 1:00 PM PST

By wadams92101


Mario Lopez

Krista Kennell / Shutterstock

Barrio Logan "is one of San Diego’s most historically significant and culturally important neighborhoods. . . [I]t has national prominence for its role in the Chicano / Mexican-American civil rights movement."  Like many ethnic working class urban neighborhoods across the country in the second half of the twentieth century, it was bisected by a freeway and bridge construction in which thousands of residents were displaced. It was also rezoned for industrial uses, which impacted the health of its residents.

Barrio Logan residents would not accept these assaults as defeat. Residents and their allies fought off one assault after another, with acts of civil disobedience and occupations to stand-off authorities.  Most famously, the neighborhood stopped bulldozers preparing a site for construction of a highway patrol station underneath the Coronado Bridge ramps and created one of most unique and artistically beautiful urban parks in the country.  Chicano Park is adorned with murals on the bridge pylons which illustrate Mexican and Native American history, and the Chicano experience in the U.S.  Started as an outlaw park, it is now designated a National Register Historic Site.   

A threat of another assault on Barrio Logan has arrived at its doorstep.  If approved, it’s likely to be the final crushing blow to the neighborhood.  A National Football League stadium combined with a convention facility, without parking, may be placed at the edge of Barrio Logan.  The “Convadium” is being placed on the ballot as “Measure C” in order to avoid community and environmental review in favor of a city-wide election based on the populist message of “keep the Chargers in San Diego.”  The stadium will undoubtedly place huge pressures on the neighborhood to accommodate traffic and parking.  This will likely translate into demolition of existing residences and businesses for surface parking, widened freeways, roads, bridges, and ramps.  The neighborhood, already burdened with the city’s highest asthma and respiratory illness rates due to air pollution from the adjacent I-5 freeway, Coronado bridge, and shipyard industries, will now be expected to accommodate traffic for football games, conventions, concerts, and other events attended by as many as attended by 70,000 thousand people.

The Spanos family, owners of the NFL Chargers and proponents of the stadium, are aware of the sensitivity of the stadium location in the City's Latino community. Among other things, they have hired San Diego-raised celebrity Mario Lopez to promote the stadium ballot initiative in television advertisements.

On the other hand, HBO's Bill Simmons and famous San Diego skateboarder Tony Hawk filmed a segment ridiculing  the Spanos / Chargers stadium proposal. 

For more details about Barrio Logan's significance to the Chicano civil rights movement and the stadium proposal, please visit the source article. 

Saturday, October 29, 2016 in UrbDeZine

portrait of professional woman

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching. Mary G., Urban Planner

I love the variety of courses, many practical, and all richly illustrated. They have inspired many ideas that I've applied in practice, and in my own teaching.

Mary G., Urban Planner

Cover CM Credits, Earn Certificates, Push Your Career Forward

Aerial view of town of Wailuku in Maui, Hawaii with mountains in background against cloudy sunset sky.

Maui's Vacation Rental Debate Turns Ugly

Verbal attacks, misinformation campaigns and fistfights plague a high-stakes debate to convert thousands of vacation rentals into long-term housing.

July 1, 2025 - Honolulu Civil Beat

Logo for Planetizen Federal Action Tracker with black and white image of U.S. Capitol with water ripple overlay.

Planetizen Federal Action Tracker

A weekly monitor of how Trump’s orders and actions are impacting planners and planning in America.

July 2, 2025 - Diana Ionescu

White and purple sign for Slow Street in San Francisco, California with people crossing crosswalk.

San Francisco Suspends Traffic Calming Amidst Record Deaths

Citing “a challenging fiscal landscape,” the city will cease the program on the heels of 42 traffic deaths, including 24 pedestrians.

July 1, 2025 - KQED

Google street view image of strip mall in suburban Duncanville, Texas.

Adaptive Reuse Will Create Housing in a Suburban Texas Strip Mall

A developer is reimagining a strip mall property as a mixed-use complex with housing and retail.

July 6 - Parking Reform Network

Blue tarps covering tents set up by unhoused people along chain link fence on concrete sidewalk.

Study: Anti-Homelessness Laws Don’t Work

Research shows that punitive measures that criminalized unhoused people don’t help reduce homelessness.

July 6 - Next City

Aerial tram moving along cable in hilly area in Medellin, Colombia.

In U.S., Urban Gondolas Face Uphill Battle

Cities in Latin America and Europe have embraced aerial transitways — AKA gondolas — as sustainable, convenient urban transport, especially in tricky geographies. American cities have yet to catch up.

July 6 - InTransition Magazine