OCEANSIDE — The City Council plans to hold a public workshop to gather input on updating the city’s general plan, a guiding document that dictates how Oceanside will develop over the coming decades.
Following the council’s direction on Aug. 7, staff will determine a suitable time and date for the workshop after they finish responding to more than 200 pages of comments submitted by at least 63 individuals during the recent public review period for the second phase of the general plan update and its draft environmental impact report.
City Manager Jonathan Borrego said the earliest the staff could be ready for the workshop is sometime in November. However, if changes are made to the environmental impact report, the workshop would have to wait until at least January, as the document would need to be recirculated for public review.
“We’re going to be busy for the next couple of months responding to the extensive amount of comments we’ve received so far,” Borrego said.
The workshop was requested by Mayor Esther Sanchez and Councilmember Eric Joyce, who both emphasized the importance of bringing together the entire council and the public to discuss and potentially adjust the update before the City Council makes its final decision.
“We as a council have not met once to talk about this together,” Sanchez said.
Planning Department staff have been working on the general plan update for the last four years, along with creating a smart and sustainable corridors plan and developing a community plan for South Morro Hills. Throughout this time, staff has held various community workshops, open houses, and surveys to inform the public and gather feedback on Oceanside’s future needs.
Staff describes the general plan as the city’s “constitution.”
“It is a set of policies and programs that serve as the blueprint for physical development,” states the city’s General Plan Update website, onwardoceanside.com. “Its purpose is to establish a long-range vision for the community and to plan for important community issues, such as new growth, housing needs, public services, and environmental protection.”
The general plan reflects the broader values and goals of the community, providing a vision of the city’s future and a roadmap to achieve it. According to staff, all cities are required by law to have a general plan.
Councilmember Peter Weiss also supported the need for a workshop.
“Something this significant deserves more than just 20 minutes of discussion,” Weiss said. “We do need to have a workshop, but not until all of the staff’s work is completed so that we have a comprehensive assessment should we make changes.”
Several residents also spoke in favor of a workshop, particularly to discuss changes they would like to see in the city’s smart and sustainable corridors plan, especially regarding the eastern end of Vista Way.
The plan focuses on how the city can promote sustainable growth along Mission Avenue, Oceanside Boulevard, and Vista Way, with an emphasis on bicycle, pedestrian and transit-friendly options. The plan also aims to increase mixed-use developments, decrease greenhouse gas emissions through transit, attract more commercial and industrial businesses, and preserve the city’s open space by reducing urban sprawl — all while supporting the general plan update.
Louie Centanni, who recently purchased a home in the area, expressed concern that including his neighborhood in the planning area would harm rather than help residents.
Centanni added that the plan “has a lot of promise but a few oversights as well.”
