ESCONDIDO — The Sierra Club has once again sued San Diego County over the controversial Harmony Grove Village South housing development, challenging the Board of Supervisors’ recent approval of the project in a high fire-risk area with only one evacuation route.
The lawsuit, filed Friday in San Diego Superior Court, argues that the 111-acre project violates the California Environmental Quality Act and relies on an outdated environmental review that fails to comply with newer state and county standards for wildfire safety, greenhouse gas emissions and vehicle miles traveled.
The Board of Supervisors approved the 453-unit development last month following a years-long battle in both government hearings and the courts. The plan calls for 5,000 square feet of commercial and civic space, four acres of parks, two miles of multi-use trails, and roughly 35 acres of biological open space on land approximately one mile west of Escondido and south of San Marcos city limits.
The Sierra Club and residents of nearby Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove have long opposed the project, saying it would funnel more than 1,000 cars onto a single two-lane road during a wildfire evacuation.
“The Harmony Grove project is textbook sprawl development within a high fire-risk area,” said Dave Hogan, legal chair for the Sierra Club San Diego Chapter. “Surrounded by protected open space and without convenient access to services, the plan conflicts with the county’s own climate and growth policies and exposes surrounding communities to dangerous fire conditions.”
The county first approved the Harmony Grove Village South project in 2018, prompting a lawsuit by the Sierra Club that led a Superior Court judge to block the project two years later, citing concerns about wildfire evacuations. An appellate court later overturned the fire-safety ruling but upheld restrictions related to greenhouse gas emissions.
Developers subsequently revised the plan to address the emissions issue, but did not revisit the single-road evacuation plan that residents and environmentalists have called unsafe. The Board of Supervisors’ October hearing drew nearly 100 speakers, the majority of whom opposed the project, while county staff, union representatives, and developers argued that it would bring much-needed housing.
The Sierra Club’s new petition argues that, since the county issued a revised Environmental Impact Report, it must comply with regulations adopted since the original approval — including new statewide requirements for measuring vehicle miles traveled. The group also claims the county failed to obtain current approval from the Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District before sending the plan to the Planning Commission.
Attorney Isabella Coye, representing the Sierra Club, said the environmental review “fails to account for new state and county regulations” and relies on outdated methodologies.
County spokesperson Donna Durckel said the county does not comment on active litigation.
The project site, situated near the Del Dios Highlands Preserve and bordered by protected open space, remains one of the most contentious development proposals in unincorporated North County, reflecting San Diego County’s ongoing struggle to balance housing demands with wildfire safety and environmental protection.
The Coast News staff contributed to this report.
