A proposal to redevelop the historic Newman Building, the former home of Claire de Lune cafe, into a seven-story mixed-use building with 92 apartments just steps from the North Park sign, is facing opposition.In March, days after the San Diego Planning Commission approved the project, a group called the Supporters Alliance for Environmental Responsibility, or SAFER, filed an appeal with the city, citing environmental concerns about the Newman Building redevelopment’s impact on North ParkAccording to state records, SAFER’s chief executive officer, Jon Preciado, also serves as business manager for the Southern California District Council of Laborers union.Preciado, through SAFER, has been accused by developers of using environmental challenges to pressure builders into signing labor agreements. In a 2019 legal letter to the City of Los Angeles, attorneys for a developer stated SAFER and its attorneys have “repeatedly challenged projects and instigated frivolous CEQA lawsuits to induce applicants to make labor concessions.”
The Appeal
In its March 31 appeal, SAFER alleges that developer Nathan Cadieux and his firm, Purpose — the team behind the Waldorf Building redevelopment a few blocks away, east of 30th Street and now home to Moniker General — did not conduct proper environmental review. If the council grants SAFER’s appeal, the developer would be required to return to the planning commission and address any environmental concerns. On June 30, the San Diego City Council will consider the claims of inadequate environmental review.If the appeal is denied, then Cadieux’s plans for the Newman Building — the former home of Claire de Lune and other North Park mainstays — would move forward, bringing a seven-story building with 92 housing units, ground-floor commercial space, and an underground parking garage to the core of North Park. The developer plans to retain the west and south-facing facades of the historic structure.Built in 1910 by North Park pioneers Jack Hartley and William Stevens, the building was envisioned as the commercial core of the then-growing North Park neighborhood.In 1921, Edward and Emma Newman bought the undeveloped lot next door, at the corner of University Avenue and Kansas Street, and hired designer William E. Gibbs to design a Spanish Eclectic-style commercial building, according to a 2024 historical resources report.During the following 100 years, the building changed ownership numerous times and welcomed tenants including the Independent Order of Odd Fellows (I.O.O.F.), a fraternal order loosely tied with the Masons, the Mudd Company, barbers, florists, record stores, and coffee shops. Claire de Lune, a longtime hangout and coffeeshop, closed in 2016 in the building after 19 years in business. In 2020, the North Park Building LLC acquired the building, boarded it up, and sold it to the current owners. In 2025, new owner Cadieux applied for a permit to redevelop the northeast corner of 30th and Kansas streets.
Rendering of Newman Building from Site Development PermitAttorneys for SAFER did not respond to calls and emails from Times of San Diego.The city council will discuss the appeal on June 30.
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