A 51-home project that’s proposed to go directly across the street from the entrance to San Dieguito High School Academy won city Planning Commission approval last week.
In a 3-0 vote, with Commissioners Chris Ryan and Susan Sherod absent, the project got the green light to move forward, provided it meets four new conditions. Those conditions are that:
- City staff the building density calculations the developers are using;
- Developers do more to screen the heating and air conditioning equipment on the buildings’ rooftops from public view;
- The designs include a variety of paint colors and wood stains, and that the proposed color choices are reviewed by city staff;
- A handicapped access point is added along the property’s Munevar Road side.
Provided it meets these additional conditions, the project will receive the design review and coastal development permits it needs to proceed. The Planning Commission’s decision is final; the project does not require a hearing before the City Council.
Commissioners had many questions about how the status of Santa Fe Road might impact the proposed housing project, saying they know roadway changes are being considered.
Last month, the City Council directed city staff to explore options for removing parts of a recently completed, $4 million overhaul of the section of Santa Fe Drive that includes the high school and the proposed housing site. A majority of the council have expressed interesting in taking out the new back-in parking, the stone-filled drainage ditches and the protected bike lanes that were recently added to the roadway, citing safety concerns.
City senior planner Christina Bustamante told the planning commissioners that the housing developers have agreed to a city condition that they be “flexible” about the roadway situation and make their project’s entryway fit with Santa Fe Drive, regardless of any changes.
One thing is certain: the housing developers will be providing a four-way, signalized intersection at the high school entrance, and a bus stop in the area will be relocated, city principal engineer Matt Widelski said.
The three planning commissioners were divided in their opinions about the houses’ proposed architecture. Commission Chair Steve Dalton, a self-described fan of modern architecture, said he liked the clean, boxy look of the proposed homes, saying it was “pleasant to see” something new in the area. But Commissioner Brent Whitteker found the proposed buildings “container-like” and said he wished the developers had done more to blend with other housing developments in the region.
Put forward by developer John Wunderling, the housing project is going on a 5.2-acre site, which currently contains a church and a preschool. Thirty-five of the 51 housing units will be single-family structures on small lots, but 16 homes will share walls.
Under state law, developers are allowed to put more homes on a given site than would normally be permitted, if they set aside some units for low-income people. In this case, the developer is agreeing to set aside five units for what are termed “very low-income” people, or those making less than 50 percent of the area’s average median income.
In exchange, the project will receive 10 waivers from city building standards, including ones regarding lot size and building set-back requirements. It’s also being allowed to build private street within the development and that street won’t be as wide as what would be required if it was a public street, Bustamante said.
