The Element Review Advisory Committee (ERAC) is currently re-drafting the housing element of the draft general plan update (DGPU). Back on March 7, City Council made the wise decision to toss the proposed housing element draft that targeted most of the growth along El Camino Real and Encinitas Blvd. The ERAC and future public outreaches will be the vehicles used to define the new draft housing element.
The ERAC has met three times so far and already some controversies are starting to surface. This committee of 22 members is comprised of different advocates and a representative for each of the five Encinitas communities. There is a majority of real estate professionals in the mix and they are starting to get more engaged and take charge of the discussions.
The major questions this committee needs to answer are the “where” and the “how” growth will take place. The why is pretty clear: The state, through the department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) mandates that each city develops a housing element that includes its fare share of affordable housing. According to city staff this number cannot be challenged, which is a shame since much of the housing need is tied to population forecast. Much has been said about the exaggerated population forecast the state and SANDAG are using to justify the housing growth. In fact, the State Department of Finance will release in May a downward revision to the population forecast.
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At the second meeting, each member from the committee was asked to put 10 dots on a blank map of Encinitas. Each dot was to represent a suitable location where to plan for 1,287 of affordable housing units. This exercise, driven by Peter Norby, the ERAC facilitator, was not well received by the committee and the public. No background information on current zoning, or available lands was provided to the members. No data was given about traffic studies, or available infrastructure. A pretty rough start! The exercise was categorized as a draft, but no discussion followed on how it will be revised. Basically, the “where” is still in limbo. One thing is sure, tough: most residents will not want an increase of affordable housing in their neighborhoods.
At the last meeting the committee discussed the idea of the “how”, more precisely how can we make it attractive for developers, and make sure that it will pencil in for them. There was not much discussion on what the residents and local businesses are aspiring to. The discussion became fairly technical and the real estate professionals were seemingly at ease in the discussions. Some suggested that we should consider 30 units per acre as a minimum to accommodate the requirements of the state. Higher density and height limits should be consider for some areas. One suggested that there should be as little restrictions on the developers as possible. Here is what it would mean: Denser, higher residential units, with limited parking, small setbacks and increase coverage per lot, expedited permitting process, and lower threshold of construction quality.
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There was also some consensus on increasing the number of accessory units (granny flats) to be built on existing property. A presentation was made from Peder Norby about the general plan of Santa Cruz, and their aggressive development of accessory units. No one presented any potential drawbacks of granny flats, such as parking, increased traffic, and the fact that many residents to not have the adequate lot size to even consider adding granny flats.
In a nutshell, throw a bone at the developers and they will come to Encinitas to build a denser urban environment. One thing is for sure: growth will be spread out through Encinitas and it is safe to assume that the community you live in will be affected. Now that Encinitas is approaching full built-out status, higher density and height seems to be the only way forward. Future generations will have the growth machine of the State, SANDAG, and the Encinitas Planning Department staff to thank for it.
Editor's Note: The opinions expressed here are those of the author, and do not necessarily reflect the views or positions of Patch. If you are interested in becoming a blogger for Patch, you can send an email to editor Marlena Medford at marlena.medford@patch.com.
