ENCINITAS — The Encinitas City Council will review the legality of fire safety protocols and whether it can intervene in the development of the Clark Avenue Apartments project.
The council voted 4-1 last Wednesday to meet with city staff and attorneys in closed session on Sept. 2 to consider whether permits for the 199-unit complex could be paused. The project is planned on a 6.22-acre site on Union Street, east of Interstate 5.
Mayor Bruce Ehlers and Councilmembers Luke Shaffer, Jim O’Hara and Marco San Antonio voted in favor. Deputy Mayor Joy Lyndes opposed.
Neighbors raised concerns that the project posed a fire risk. City regulations require roads serving buildings taller than 30 feet to be at least 26 feet wide. Plans for the complex call for access roads measuring 19 to 21 feet.
Marco Gonzalez, an attorney representing the developer, argued in an open letter that revisiting the approval would “be entirely inappropriate and illegal” because the statute of limitations to challenge the project expired Oct. 22, 2022.
O’Hara, who placed the item on the agenda, countered that the argument depended on the project being classified “by-right.” By-right projects exist only when all objective standards are met, he said. “If discretion is required, a project is not ‘by-right.’” Because the road width requirement was not satisfied, O’Hara said the classification was in error and the California Environmental Quality Act deadline never began.
“The statute of limitations argument is a false premise,” O’Hara said. “It’s in the letter, but it’s a false premise. It’s a red herring.”
Ehlers said he also had questions about the project, but wanted the matter handled in closed session. “Since I’m under significant threat of litigation,” he said, “I’d like the issue discussed in a closed session with a lawyer present.”
“We just want to make sure that this project is safe and it’s legal,” O’Hara said. “Safe and legal, that’s all we’re asking.”
Lyndes said she supported hearing community concerns but felt the project had already been thoroughly vetted in September 2022. “We had a robust discussion about all these items” with staff, she said. While she did not believe the issue warranted council action, she added, “if there’s a need in this part of the community for us to look at [infrastructure improvements], I’d be willing and available to help look at it.”
In response to a question from Lyndes, Fire Chief Josh Gordon said his team does not have uniform road widths citywide. Fire trucks are 8.5 feet wide — nearly 10 feet including mirrors — which means, he said, “there are opportunities for us to look at how we can better the access that we have on certain streets.”
The council agreed to hold the closed session with outside counsel. It will also schedule a September discussion on whether to pause permits or require other changes from the developer.
2 comments
It is regrettable that this project got as far as it did under the previous administration. This is a typical example of a developer pushing for high density and intensity of use than the property and neighborhood can reasonably accommodate. Just as with the grossly oversized Goodson project, fire evacuation not only for project residents but for all surrounding residents is a genuine concern that should never be overridden by state mandates. These two oversized projects are examples of why we need to restore local control over zoning and land use. Our own citizens and City Council, not the state government, understand what is best for our community.
It ain’t over till it’s over, Marco.