At the time, the port expected to release the draft EIR in 2024, with construction on the high-tech driving range anticipated to start the following year.<\/p>\n
Instead, there was a protracted period of silence, which Nishihira attributed to the port\u2019s desire to be extra thorough in its analysis.<\/p>\n
In the interim, Topgolf was carved out by parent company Topgolf Callaway Brands and sold to a private equity firm, in part because of the substantial financial drag<\/a> associated with opening and operating venues. Leonard Green & Partners, L.P., purchased a 60% controlling stake in Topgolf in January, with Callaway retaining a 40%, non-operational stake. The deal valued the driving-range brand at $1.1 billion, or around one-third of its value when Callaway closed<\/a> on its purchase of Topgolf in 2021.<\/p>\n Leonard Green has not communicated with the port on this project, Tony Gordon, the port\u2019s vice president of real estate, said in a statement to the Union-Tribune. However, Topgolf is operating as an independent subsidiary of Leonard Green, and the development team is still committed to building the East Harbor Island facility, he said.<\/p>\n The brand, in an emailed statement, said that it plans to see the entitlement process through to a successful conclusion.<\/p>\n \u201cOur vision is to deliver a multi-level golf entertainment venue, featuring climate-controlled hitting-bays, a targeted outfield, full-service restaurant and bars, private event space, mini-golf, and ancillary games \u2014 open 363 days a year to golfers and non-golfers alike,\u201d Topgolf spokesperson Emily Heshley said.<\/p>\n The draft environmental report, prepared by consultant Harris & Associates, looked at 15 different areas and concluded that there would be significant and unavoidable impacts in two areas, greenhouse gas emissions and transportation, even after mitigation measures.<\/p>\n The largest contributing factor to both areas is the car trips to and from the Topgolf attraction.<\/p>\n The venue, taking over a nearly 10-acre site, includes a three-story, 67,030-square-foot building with 108 hitting bays. The building opens up to a 4.5-acre artificial turf outfield with 10 targets, and a polyester barrier netting system suspended on poles up to 170 feet in height. There\u2019s also a full-service restaurant and bar with 382 seats, a rooftop patio and a 2.5-acre parking lot with 289 spaces that will be available free of charge.<\/p>\n At a minimum, Topgolf must spend $61 million on the East Harbor Island facility and parking, per deal terms with the port.<\/p>\n Topgolf is anticipated to operate from 9 a.m. to 1 a.m. Sunday through Thursday, and 9 a.m. to 2 a.m. on Friday and Saturday.<\/p>\n The attraction is expected to generate, on average, 1,944 car trips per day. When combining trips to the new waterfront park, the project will generate 2,449 car trips per day and 893,885 trips per year.<\/p>\n The report calls for Topgolf to implement a transportation plan that includes bike parking and lockers for employees. The\u00a0measure is expected to reduce the vehicle miles traveled by employees by 487 miles per day, meaning transportation impacts will remain significant.<\/p>\n Different strokes, different folks<\/p>\n Most of the project\u2019s impacts were deemed insignificant or less than significant after mitigation.<\/p>\n In terms of aesthetics, the project will not adversely affect scenic vistas or resources. Nor will it degrade the overall visual character of the site, the report states. Only the anticipated glare from reflective materials used at the Topgolf facility and the light produced by 16 building-mounted light fixtures are considered significant impacts, although those can be mitigated, the report says.<\/p>\n Some of the conclusions are likely to be confounding to those who view the addition of sky-high netting, artificial turf, bright lights and supersized LED displays to the water\u2019s edge as view-obstructing blight.<\/p>\n \u201cMost people, when they arrive at the airport, they take Harbor Drive toward downtown, and they see the views over the water of downtown, of the Star of India, of the sailboats that are in the embankment right there, and that is the feel of San Diego,\u201d said San Diego Coastkeeper Senior Attorney Patrick McDonough. \u201cYou lose that when there\u2019s a giant, 9-acre Topgolf facility with 170-foot nets in between that exact viewpoint on people\u2019s first arrival to San Diego.\u201d<\/p>\n The water advocacy group has previously flagged concerns about impacts to wildlife and water quality. For instance, Topgolf\u2019s proximity to the water means that individual plastic fibers and toxic chemicals will be washed directly into the bay as soon as it rains, McDonough said.<\/p>\n \u201cWe shouldn\u2019t be laying a 4.5-acre plastic carpet right on the bayfront,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n But the nonprofit\u2019s real objection to the Topgolf facility is rooted in something bigger. The nonprofit sees the attraction as a wholly inappropriate, potentially unlawful use of the land.<\/p>\n The port holds the tidelands in trust on behalf of all Californians, meaning it must administer them according to the Public Trust Doctrine, as overseen by the California State Lands Commission. The doctrine holds that trust lands are to be used to connect the public to the water. Allowed uses are generally limited to those that are water dependent or related, and include commerce, fisheries, navigation, environmental preservation and recreation. Ancillary uses that promote trust uses, such as hotels and restaurants, are also permitted.<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m honestly not that interested in mitigation. We flat out do not think it is appropriate for this facility to be located on the bayfront on Harbor Island,\u201d McDonough said. \u201cThe core purpose of the Public Trust Doctrine is to protect the people\u2019s right to use California\u2019s waterways and tidelands for things that are associated with them, like navigation, fishing, boating, habitat protection and then the key phrase of other water-oriented activities. \u2026 A Topgolf driving range is very at odds with the public trust \u2026 and has nothing to do with water-oriented activities.\u201d<\/p>\n In the nonprofit\u2019s January 2024 letter to the port, McDonough stressed Coastkeeper\u2019s concern and wrote that the facility\u2019s 4.5-acre outfield excludes the public \u201cto serve only as a repository for golf balls.\u201d<\/p>\n The draft environmental impact report, however, deemed the project consistent with all applicable land-use plans.<\/p>\n \u201cThe project enhances public access and provides for a visitor-serving commercial use that extends and enhances the public\u2019s enjoyment of the waterfront,\u201d Nishihira, the port vice president, said. \u201cThis is consistent with the granting statutes that formed the port. \u2026 A use does not necessarily need to be coastal-related or water-dependent.\u201d<\/p>\n Sharon Cloward, who runs the San Diego Working Waterfront group that advocates for port tenants, views the Topgolf venue and public access improvements as a good-enough solution for a challenging site that demands immediate attention.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat\u2019s the opposite of that? You start building hotels that compete with the other hotels that are there? I don\u2019t think we need more hotels right now,\u201d she said, adding that no one other than Topgolf has expressed lasting interest in the area over the past decade.<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SUT-L-TOPGOLF-EHI-01.jpg\")
The figure, included in the draft environmental impact report, depicts the project area and identifies the location of the proposed Topgolf facility. (Port of San Diego)<\/p>\n![\"The](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SUT-L-EHI-TOPGOLF-DEIR-005.jpg\")
The car rental lots back up to Liberator Way on East Harbor Island, as pictured on July 14, 2026. (Kristian Carreon \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n![\"Liberator](\"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/SUT-L-EHI-TOPGOLF-DEIR-001.jpg\")
Liberator Way, as seen on July 14, 2026. (Kristian Carreon \/ The San Diego Union-Tribune)<\/p>\n