DEL MAR — City officials, including Mayor Tracy Martinez, Deputy Mayor John Spelich and Planning Commissioner Mark Rittenbaum, attended the 22nd District Agricultural Association’s monthly board meeting Tuesday morning and urged the board to reconsider its recent cancellation of an agreement to explore building affordable housing on fairgrounds property.
At its August meeting, the fair board voted to end an exclusive negotiating pact with the city about building up to 61 below-market-rate units.
The agreement took effect in April 2024 after the City Council ratified it. The 22nd DAA board had endorsed it a month earlier.
Martinez largely reiterated the points she had made in an Aug. 21 letter to the fair board: She believed the 22nd DAA’s vote was based on bad information and faulty premises regarding the project’s feasibility.
While Martinez and Spelich spoke in diplomatic but forceful terms, Rittenbaum — who said he was speaking as a private individual despite being a commission member — called the decision shameful. Rittenbaum added that the vote displayed “a complete lack of social and moral responsibility.”
Another member of the public participated remotely and also urged the fair board to revisit the issue.
Because the comments were made during open communication and the issue was not on the agenda, the fair board could not discuss it or take action.
Del Mar Golf Center
During the meeting, the board also heard from Matt Clay, general manager of the Del Mar Golf Center, which leases land on the fairgrounds for its driving range, miniature golf courses and golf shop.
Clay reported that the center continues to invest in the facility.
“We’re an entertainment property, and we need to continue to raise our amenities.”
He said the 2017 installation of a TopTracer video golf ball tracking system has allowed the center to attract nongolfers. A recent upgrade placed the system in a permanent structure, replacing the earlier temporary shelters.
One recent operational change was the departure of The Golf Mart, which closed the shop it had subleased from the center for 30 years just over a year ago and moved operations a few miles away to a new retail location. Clay said replacing The Golf Mart with a similar store would not have made sense, so a smaller boutique shop now occupies part of that space. The rest was devoted to an indoor training facility with simulator bays and video equipment.
While summer traffic was down, which Clay attributed to the recent heat wave, he said the center still paid $900,000 in revenue sharing to the 22nd DAA. He anticipates that figure may reach $1 million this year.
Thoroughbred Club
Josh Rubinstein, president of the Del Mar Thoroughbred Club, also gave the fair board a report on the recently completed summer meet. He reported that the meet averaged 8.6 horses per race, wagering was up on most platforms over the previous year, and food and beverage sales also increased.
Horse Park
During open communication, Carla Hayes, co-founder of the Friends of Del Mar Horse Park, gave an informal update on the Horse Park. She said a screwworm outbreak in Mexico is waning and a ban on bringing cattle and horses into the United States has been partially lifted.
She said this should lead to increased participation in barrel racing and dressage competitions at the Horse Park over the next year.
“We lost one-third of our jumpers the last two years” due to the ban on border crossings by horses, she told the board.
Finance report
The Finance Committee reported that the 22nd DAA received an unexpected, unbudgeted $1.65 million payment in June from the San Diego Association of Governments covering several real estate transactions, including a double-track easement for the rail line and the pending fairgrounds rail platform.
Litigation
The board met in closed session to hear updates on four active lawsuits involving the 22nd DAA and two potential lawsuits. After the closed session, the board reconvened and said no reportable actions had been taken.
