CHULA VISTA, Calif. -- Problems with organized labor aren’t the only harsh reality facing Chula Vista’s dream of revitalizing its bay front.

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Images: Developer Offers Peek At Giant Waterfront Development
Images: Before and 'After' Photos

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The $1.3 billion resort hotel, convention center and retail mall project proposed by Nashville-based Gaylord Entertainment also faces serious environmental challenges. More than 300 objections to the draft environmental impact report have been filed. The project needs approvals not only from Chula Vista and San Diego Port District but the State Lands Commission and California Coastal Commission as well.

"We care a lot about what the project looks like and the environmental impacts,” Chula Vista City Manager David Garcia told NBC 7/39. "And we’re very concerned about that."

Citizens and community groups such as the Environmental Health Coalition (EHC) have pointed out the many sensitive wetland habitats surrounding the project site near Chula Vista’s marina, raising issues of pollution, storm-water runoff, traffic and "sustainable energy" concerns.

Environmentalists want Gaylord to build the project to so-called green standards, with solar panels and other features.

"We think there are opportunities for these developers to mitigate their impact in a variety of ways," EHC executive director Diane Takvorian told NBC 7/39. "If they do that to the satisfaction of the local community, they’ll have support at the Coastal Commission. If they don’t, they won't, and the Coastal Commission, I think, may be loath to approve the project."

According to Takvorian, the project site is the last major developable piece of property in California’s coastal zone.

"We think it's ridiculous to give it away," she said, "and the city of Chula Vista appears to be willing to do that -- appears to be willing to dance with the first guy who asks."

For their part, Chula Vista officials said several developers have asked the city to "dance" during the past decade but that the Gaylord project is by far the most substantial and best-suited to the site.

Despite the environmental hurdles, Garcia said he is encouraged by Gaylord's continuing discussions with the city and Port officials, especially in the absence of a "project labor agreement" with local construction unions.

The San Diego County Building & Construction Trades Council last week broke off talks after rejecting a preferential hiring offer that was subject to conditions the unions said undercut their contractors and local workers.

Can Gaylord pull off the venture without a project labor agreement?

"That apparently is a risk they're willing to take at this stage," Garcia told NBC 7/39. "I'm still confident they'll be able to work these issues out as they get further along in the project."

Organized labor, Garcia believes, "is going to be part of this project one way or the other. The only question is: What role is it going to play?"

Previous Stories:

• August 8, 2007: Unions Excluded From Talks On Waterfront Project
• August 2, 2007: Future Of Waterfront Resort Grows Murkier
• July 31, 2007: Developer Revives Talks On Chula Vista Convention Center
• July 3, 2007: South Bay Resort Plans Washed Up?
• March 16, 2007: Developer Offers Peek At Giant Waterfront Development
• July 21, 2006: Report: Giant Waterfront Project Gets Green Light