CARLSBAD — Chad Hoare, a tenant renting a five-bedroom home in Carlsbad, thought an email he received last September from his property management company advising him that his family of seven had 30 days to clear their belongings from their garage was a mistake.
While not specified in the email, Hoare’s landlord, Oceanside-based property management company Long Term Properties, later confirmed the email was no gaffe and disclosed its intention of converting the garage of the home on Madrilena Way into an accessory dwelling unit, or ADU.
After learning of the company’s plans, 41-year-old Hoare hired a lawyer.
After nine months of exchange between Hoare’s lawyer and the company, eviction notices, lease proposals and rejections, the Hoare family of seven will reluctantly say goodbye to their home, where they have lived for more than seven years, at the end of July.
“It’s gone on a long time,” Hoare said. “It’s a lot of uncertainty. It’s very emotional.”
After Hoare suggested that his rent remain at $5390.19, which the company noted was “under the market rent rate for comparable properties in the area,” Long Term Properties rejected an inquiry to sign a lease for another year in March.
“We had no intention of moving anytime soon,” Hoare said. “So this is all reactionary, out of necessity. We’re moving because we’re being forced out of this house.”
Long Term Properties did not return multiple requests for comment.
The Hoares’ experience has led neighbors to send letters, make phone calls, attend council meetings and speak with elected officials to raise concerns about adding an ADU to a neighborhood of single-family homes.
Fischbach debate
While some are concerned the dwelling will increase neighborhood traffic, limit street parking and block drivers’ views, others said they are worried about the possibility of the residence becoming a sober living home.
Rancho Santa Fe’s David Fischbach, co-owner of Long Term Properties, owns dozens of short-term vacation rentals and residences in Oceanside, Encinitas and Carlsbad, some of which operate as sober living homes with Sober Living Today, LLC.
Fischbach, a retired anesthesiologist and owner of Beachfront Only Vacation Rentals in Oceanside, has fueled outcry from neighbors over his building ADUs and multifamily units in single-family neighborhoods.
And some of his projects over the years have not been within the letter of the law.
In 2016, Beachfront was cited for having more units than permitted on its properties on Oak and Pine avenues in Carlsbad. The city had approved five single-family homes with granny flats, but Beachfront added illegal rental units by converting wet bars into kitchens and interior doors into exits, violating granny flat regulations, according to the San Diego Union-Tribune.
Many residents have also accused Fischbach’s single-family homes of being multifamily units, or “disguised apartment buildings,” and have signed petitions over the years opposing his company’s plans to continue building in neighborhoods across North County.
An alliance of residents even formed a group called “Every Neighbor United in Fighting Fischbach.”
Despite the pushback, other residents argue Fischbach’s vacation rentals attract tourists, contributing to the city’s economy.
Sully Sullivan, an Oceanside resident and director of the California Short-Term Rental Alliance, has credited Fischbach for sparking a “renaissance” in Oceanside after turning around many dilapidated, troubled properties into desirable vacation rentals.
“It’s disappointing to see certain groups unfairly villainize our guests and operators,” Sullivan said. “Oceanside has undergone a remarkable transformation over the past decade thanks to initiatives like those led by David Fischbach. It’s important to recognize that (short-term rentals) have paved the way for Oceanside’s desirability as a visitor destination.”
In response to more than half a dozen articles citing residents’ concerns, Fischbach said he has the legal right to add units to single-family homes, and residents’ concerns largely stem from them not being “used to it.”
“We’re a management company, and they’ve been kind of on the forefront of what became state law to increase affordable housing, and I think anytime you’re on the forefront, people are not used to it,” Fischbach said. “It’s just state law.”
Fischbach said he was “not as familiar” with the home at 7798 Madrilena Way. Evergreen Hebron LP, an entity Fischbach uses to purchase properties in North County, owns the property.
While Fischbach referenced a “state law to increase affordable housing,” he stated he was not referring to Senate Bill 9 or the California HOME Act, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law in September 2021 to address California’s housing crisis.
Under SB 9 and subsequent amendments, homeowners can split their lots and build up to four units on a single-family parcel.
A judge in Los Angeles County ruled SB 9 unconstitutional last month, deeming the bill not reasonably related to producing affordable housing.
Local resistance
Kristina Ray, the city’s director of communications and engagement, said the city does not currently have a stance on the latest court ruling but noted the council opposed the legislation throughout the 2021 session, including sending a veto request to Newsom.
The Coast News obtained an email from Amanda Gardstrom, a resident of the Carlsbad neighborhood, on May 20 that described Fischbach’s history of dividing lots and “turning them into mini Airbnb hotels.”
In her email, Gardstrom encouraged neighbors to write to Carlsbad City Council members and attend meetings to advocate for “stronger legislation and more safety.”
Gardstrom’s email states she talked with a representative at Long Term Properties, who said the company intended to rent the property to a couple and a family. If they rent to someone who wants to turn the property into a sober living home, that is not in the company’s control.
“That is simply not true and David Fischbach does directly benefit from the ridiculous $$ you can profit from in situations as these,” Gardstrom’s email states.
Gardstrom told The Coast News she is conflicted about a sober living home in her neighborhood because she supports addicts in recovery but worries about her two daughters riding their bikes around the neighborhood with the possibility of a relapsed or intoxicated person driving in the neighborhood.
She said her email contained information for neighbors and was not meant to alarm anyone since she does not know if Long Term Properties intends to turn the home into a sober living facility.
“I come from a long line of addicts and alcoholics and support the Road to Recovery process. However, we have all worked very hard to create a great sense of community here where our children all feel safe riding bikes, playing freely and exploring our neighborhood safely,” Gardstrom’s email reads. “A Sober House will dramatically change the level of safety and comfort of our children.”
Ray said city officials cannot prohibit a home from becoming a sober living facility because Carlsbad Municipal Code Section 21.10.020 permits “supportive housing” in R-1 or single-family residential zones.
But the city is monitoring “recent and pending” court decisions to determine “opportunities” to implement “additional enforcement.”
“The city is limited generally in what it can legally do to address many of the concerns raised by the community,” Ray said via email.
A leasing sign outside the home does not specify that the property will be rented to a sober living company.
Liz Kenny, a resident of the neighborhood since 2020 and a realtor, said a sober living home could change the values of homes in the neighborhood and worries the construction of an ADU could create a domino effect in the neighborhood with other residents adding ADUs to their homes.
“It just makes me super sad because this is a really special neighborhood. It’s kind of one of the old school neighborhoods in that this is happening,” Kenny said. “And if one person does it, someone else could do it.”
Robert Beck, a resident of the Carlsbad neighborhood for more than 30 years, posted on NextDoor after construction of the ADU began, asking neighbors to email and call Carlsbad city council members to advocate at the state level for the reconsideration of California legislation allowing homeowners to split the lots of single-family homes.
Beck’s post includes pictures of cars parked along the streets of Madrilena Way, some along Anillo Way, which he alleged have blocked drivers’ views of turning left from Madrilena Way onto Anillo. The post amassed 15,000 views and over 250 comments within its first 48 hours on NextDoor.
“Our neighborhood was not built to accommodate everybody parking on the street,” Beck said.
Beck said there are 21 cars between the six houses around the cul-de-sac off Madrilena Way. Five of these are parked inside garages. When he purchased his home, there weren’t cars parked along the street, and all the homes were single-family, Beck said.
“It was a nice neighborhood; they were single family homes so we bought here,” Beck said. “And now to change that in the middle of everything doesn’t seem right to me.”
