mercado proposals

citybeat has the roundup on the mercado developer presentations recently given in barrio logan. while neither has been approved, the difference in cost of the two projects is surprising - 119 million vs. 55 million. total retail square footage is about the same, but the former has nearly 300 residential units, compared to the latter's 72; underground parking is the big cost boost for the more spendy proposal.

while i'm inclined toward supporting the larger project, i like that the less expensive option includes a true mercado, with a "series of stalls for startup businesses". either way, given the track record of development in this area, it would be fantastic if anything gets built.