DATE:
June 25, 2026
15
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT
Title
DESIGNATING WATERFRONT PARK AS THE PERMANENT HOME FOR THE SAN DIEGO REGIONAL FIREFIGHTER MEMORIAL AND WAIVE BOARD POLICY A-72 (DISTRICTS: ALL)
Body
OVERVIEW
In October 2022, the Board of Supervisors took the first step toward honoring San Diego's fallen firefighters by initiating the process to establish the San Diego Regional Firefighter Memorial. That action created the San Diego Regional Firefighter Memorial Working Group, directed County staff to evaluate suitable locations, and seeded the effort with initial planning and design funds. Today, the Board takes the next step: formally designating Waterfront Park at the County Administration Center as the permanent home of the San Diego Regional Firefighter Memorial.
San Diego's firefighters serve their communities at profound personal risk. The names of thirty fallen San Diego firefighters are currently engraved on the California Firefighters Memorial Wall in Sacramento - each name representing a family tragedy and a community that owes an enduring debt of gratitude. Yet despite this legacy of sacrifice, there is no single, permanent place anywhere in San Diego County dedicated to honoring fallen firefighters from across all departments and agencies in the region. The San Diego Regional Firefighter Memorial will create that place.
Waterfront Park is the right home for this memorial. The County's civic campus is already recognized as a place for honoring fallen heroes. The Law Enforcement Memorial at Waterfront Park has long served as a place where the community can come together to remember the officers lost in the line of duty and stand alongside their families. San Diego's firefighting community deserves a similar home for reflection, grieving, and healing.
The San Diego Regional Firefighter Memorial will be anchored by a Wall of Heroes honoring fallen firefighters from across the county, designed to complement the existing Law Enforce...
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