The $43 billion public works bond package voters approved Nov. 7 should go a long way toward fixing the state? ailing infrastructure ?but it? only a start.

That was the take of Richard Reinhard, managing director of urban development and infrastructure finance at the Urban Land Institute in Washington, D.C.

He was one of the panelists at the Real Estate Trends 2007 Conference at the University of San Diego? Jenny Craig Pavilion.

Held on Election Day ?Nov. 7 ?the heavily attended annual confab of real estate, banking and building professionals was presented by USD? Burnham-Moores Center for Real Estate and ULI San Diego/Tijuana.

?f the bond referendums pass, don? think everything will be wonderful,?said Reinhard. ?t? just catching up. There is still much more to do.?p>Noting that ?reat infrastructure creates great cities,?Reinhard said that a key would be creating the public/private partnerships that have become popular in other countries.

?t will be a huge trend,?he said.

Kim Kilkenny, executive vice president of the San Diego-based Otay Ranch Co., observed that the state? deteriorating infrastructure has been in the making for decades.

?he need to solve the infrastructure problem is critical,?he said.

He manages entitlements for the Otay Ranch master-planned community ?the last one likely to be built in the land-strapped county, said Kilkenny.

While builders have figured out how to make their projects work in suburban enclaves, now they will have to hone their skills in an urban, infill landscape, he said.

?e?l have to rethink how we do it,?said Kilkenny in an interview following the conference. ?t will be interesting to see in the next decade how to figure that one out.?p>Boom Or Bust

While infrastructure emerged as the central theme of the conference, much was said about how well San Diego is weathering the ebbs and flows of the volatile real estate market.

The consensus: The boom has ended ?at least for now ?and prices are softening, but with some out-of-the-box thinking, strong leadership and public/private partnering, the future will be good.