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T he C oast News
Measure T: What happens next? By Aaron Burgin
ENCINITAS — A week after voters rejected Measure T, the city’s housing element update, questions still remain. Where does the city go from here regarding the housing element? Is it possible to create a housing element that passes muster with voters? Does the city council have to go back to voters for another attempt at passing a housing element, or should they take the issue up themselves? And are the threats of lawsuits real because of the city’s failure to pass a housing element? The Coast News tries its best to answer some of these questions.
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. What is the path forward? This still remains unclear. The City Council voted Wednesday night to form a subcommittee composed of Mayor-elect Catherine Blakespear and Councilman Tony Kranz that will meet publicly with members of
the community — including those who ran the No on T campaign — city staff and housing attorneys to efficiently move forward with a plan that passes muster with the community and state regulators. Blakespear, in her comments, said that the subcommittee’s goal shouldn’t be to go “back to the drawing board,” but for the city to come up with something that was “practical and quick,” possibly in months. The main opposition group to Measure T has said all along that it is committed to finding a housing plan that works for Encinitas residents, and the head of that group, Bruce Ehlers, reiterated that commitment on Wednesday. In order to proceed, however, Encinitas will likely need to fill the upcoming vacancy on the council left by Blakespear’s mayoral victory and — perhaps more importantly — fill the vacancy at planning director following the departure of
the city’s interim planning sue on behalf of several director and his second in groups if the City Council command. chose to put another housing element update before . What is the soonest voters rather than approve Encinitas could have it themselves. The Coast News talked a housing element update on the ballot? with Gonzalez earlier this Without calling for a week, and he said that the special election, the soon- election results confirm in est voters would get an- his mind that under the other chance at approving current system set forth by a housing element update Prop. A, voters will never would be 2018. approve a housing element If the city were to get update in Encinitas due to the update on the 2018 bal- the anti-growth sentiment lot and voters approved it among the electorate. and the state Department This, he said, would of Housing and Communi- mean that residents were ty Development certified using Prop. A to preempt it, it would narrowly make state housing law, which is the deadline for the cur- illegal. rent housing element cy“What we are seeing cle, which runs from Jan. 1, in Encinitas is typical of 2013 to Dec. 31, 2020. This, a wealthy, elitist coastal however, means that under city,” Gonzalez said. “They the current system provid- don’t want change, they ed by Proposition A, which don’t want housing and requires a public vote for they don’t want affordabilfuture housing element up- ity.” dates, voters would have to In addition to Gonprepare for the next hous- zalez, affordable housing ing element cycle update developer David C. Meyer as early as 2022. and the Building industry Association are also prime . Is Encinitas going to candidates to challenge the city’s stance on the be sued? That is certain- housing element. The City Council met ly a possibility, especially after Wednesday in closed session this week night’s council meeting, to discuss Meyer and the when attorney Marco Gon- BIA’s previous lawsuits zalez essentially told the against the city. A court could decide City Council that he would
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NOV. 18, 2016 to invalidate part of Prop. A that it deems preempts state law, such as it pertains to the housing element or density bonus projects.
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. Could the City Council approve a housing element without a public vote? This issue would be at the heart of Gonzalez’s lawsuit. In almost every city outside of Encinitas, city councils have legislative authority over all land-use decisions, including housing element updates. Prop. A, however, ensures the public has a vote on any decision that results in an intensification of use or major rezoning. But as previously stated, Gonzalez has argued that the council shouldn’t be bound by Prop. A if abiding by it pits the city against state law. This stance, however, would also likely wind up with the city facing legal action, this time from Prop. A supporters (many of whom were prominent Measure T opponents), who would argue that a council vote would circumvent the local measure. Anyway it stands, expect the housing element/ Prop. A debate to be determined in court.
Additional homes OK’d at Oceanside’s El Corazon Park By Promise Yee
OCEANSIDE — The City Council approved the development of 70 townhouses at El Corazon Park to the chagrin of residents present at Wednesday’s meeting. The OK changes the park’s Specific Plan to allow additional homes. The majority of speakers in support of Park Villa homes identified themselves as realtors, landscape architects and professors who live outside of Oceanside.
Those in support of the project said they saw merit in providing needed housing within a smart growth area, and putting residential development next to abundant retail. They claimed adding 38 more homes would not change the look, feel and environmental impact of the development. “People need to live and work close to that area,” Linda Gonzales, Oceanside resident and past city council candidate, said. “It’s a
good solution to funding what we want to do (to develop the park).” The townhouses are set to sell for about $600,000. Brian Rupp, senior vice president of development with Shopoff Realty Investors, said target buyers are young professionals, and empty nesters looking to downsize. He added new construction housing is lacking in Oceanside. “Businesses need new housing,” Rupp said. “The
only thing we’re asking is the addition of 38 units.” Most Oceanside residents who spoke were against the increased number of houses. Residents asked that development plans go back to the drawing board and extra homes be built elsewhere. Many said their dream is for a park that will become the city’s legacy. “The developer assured us he would comply with the (park) vision, let’s not com-
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promise the plan to one development,” Diane Nygaard, president of Friends of El Corazon, said. Councilwoman Esther Sanchez shared the backstory of residents’ 16-year fight to keep the land donated to the city to create a 465-acre park. The Specific Plan spells out how the park will be developed. It earmarks 44 acres for commercial space to finance park maintenance, and includes 300 total live-work dwellings. Housing was originally envisioned to be second story units above ground floor retail. Modifications were later made to allow housing and retail on the first floor. The approved development provides 3,000 square feet of commercial space housed in two buildings, and 70 attached townhouses including 22 live-work units on a 5-acre site at the park’s southwest entrance. It brings the total park housing count to 338 units, including 268 units planned for a second site at the east entrance of the park. The El Corazon Standing Committee and Planning Commission both denied development plans. Mayor Jim Wood said he approved the plan because the development is on private property within the park. Councilman Jack Feller said housing is needed for the expected population growth, and hailed it for being in a smart growth area and reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The council approved the development plan 3-2, with Sanchez and Deputy Mayor Chuck Lowery voting no.
Northbound vince vasquez
Recapping the 2016 election
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s an elections analyst, one of my personal axioms I like to share is that, every election cycle, we learn something new about voters, and their relationship with the voting process. That was certainly true in North County for this presidential general election. The final ballot count isn’t in yet, but in the 49th Congressional District, Democratic challenger Doug Applegate handily beat Congressman Darrell Issa in the North County portion of the District, 53 percent to 47 percent. Still, Issa is in a good position to win, albeit by a razor-thin margin, from a significant Republican voter registration advantage in south Orange County. In my city of Carlsbad, Democratic challenger Cori Schumacher is in a strong position to win a spot on the City Council race against Republican incumbent Lorraine Wood, who won in 2012. Only a few dozen votes separate the two as of the writing of this column, and late absentee voters and polling location voters historically skew more Democratic and progressive. Both Schumacher and Applegate were outspent by the incumbents, and both were first-time candidates, and yet both beat Republican incumbents in conservative-leaning North County. Some have pointed to Measure A, Donald Trump, and democratic turnout as key factors into making these re-election races toss-ups. I would point more to “voter churn” and community engagement as reasons why the incumbents lost on Election Day. While North County may have a reputation as an older, quieter, slower-paced community, the electorate has changed significantly since the last presidential election. Forty-one percent of Carlsbad voters only registered in the last four years — in the 49th Congressional District, 43 percent have registered since 2012. These new voters lean more Democratic and Independent than the voters that registered before them. Most don’t know who their elected representaTURN TO NORTHBOUND ON A16