Dear Friends of UC,
We are dropping in with some midsummer updates on the status of the UC Community Plan, our efforts to advocate for our community, as well as the latest on SB 10 in San Diego’s Housing Action Package 2.0.
July 11th UCPG Meeting Recap
At the July 11th monthly University City Planning Group (UCPG) meeting, the UCPG heard a presentation from the University Community Plan Update Subcommittee recommending changes to the UC Plan Update document. The Subcommittee’s recommendations largely incorporated the May 4, 2023, written comments submitted by Help Save UC. After hearing the presentation, the Planning Group adopted the Subcommittee’s recommendations, with a vote of 10 in favor, 4 opposed, and 2 abstaining.
Passcode: +b7b.Y2K
What’s next? The City of San Diego Planning Department will take all of the comments it has received and issue two Land Use Scenarios to be considered in the Environmental Impact Report (EIR) evaluating this University Community Plan Update. It is not clear when these documents will be available for review, but we expect this to occur by the end of the summer.
Our Conversations with City Staff
On July 13, members of Help Save UC met with staff from Councilmember Kent Lee’s office via Zoom to discuss our proposed changes to the Community Plan Update. Help Save UC urged that Councilmember Lee support our changes.
Since submitting our comments on the Plan Update May 4th, members of Help Save UC have also had Zoom meetings with District 1 Councilmember Joe LaCava and representatives from his office and with representatives from Mayor Todd Gloria’s office, asking them all to reach out to the Planning Department to support our recommended changes to the Plan Update. We remain hopeful that all of these efforts will find some measure of success in the final outcome.
Planning Commission Meeting August 3rd: HAP 2.0 and SB 10
The City of San Diego Planning Commission will meet August 3rd for a second discussion and vote on the Housing Action Package 2.0 (HAP 2.0), including the proposed implementation of Senate Bill 10 (SB 10). SB 10 is a piece of state legislation that would allow developers to build up to 10 units on single family lots in areas considered close to transit.
At their last meeting on this topic on June 1, several Commissioners expressed concern about SB 10, including the broad area to which it would be applied, the inability to modify the program after implementation (the legislation prohibits future changes by a future council), and the lack of a plan for infrastructure. They postponed voting on HAP 2.0 until August 3rd. It is not clear if or how the Planning Commissioners' concerns will be addressed. We encourage the community to continue to provide input on this issue to the Planning Commission and to our elected representatives.
Please see this link for more information on the HAP 2.0.
The August 3rd meeting agenda, including the schedule, instructions on how to provide comments, and the live video link, will be provided at the above link on July 27.
Upcoming Citywide Rally
On Saturday, July 29 from 11:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m., members of many communities across San Diego will hold a joint citywide rally, San Diegans for Responsible Growth, along Friars Road at Ulric Street (the northeast corner of Fashion Valley Shopping Center). The focus of their rally will be to protest SB 10 as well as the city’s Complete Communities Housing Solutions and its high-density housing initiatives. More information about the rally can be found at their website: www.sandiegansforresponsiblegrowth.org