San Diego’s comprehensive plan to solve the city’s housing crisis in a more holistic way continued its march forward Wednesday despite mixed reviews from City Council members and some harsh criticism from neighborhood leaders.
The plan, called “complete communities,” is expected to encourage housing projects with better transportation connections, infrastructure, parks and other amenities. It also aims to boost social equity and make neighborhoods more vibrant.
Critics say city officials are rushing approval of the plan without adequate public input. They also oppose many of its elements, including its potential effects on affordable housing, parks funding and density in neighborhoods.
The city is hosting an online forum about the plan from 6 to 8 p.m. Thursday. Registration, which is required, is available at https://register.gotowebinar.com/register/7808526379942142476
Details about the plan are available at https://www.completecommunitiessd.org
The proposal passed another milestone Wednesday when the Council’s Public Safety and Livable Neighborhoods Committee voted to forward the parks portion of it to the full council for approval.
But because of concerns raised by city residents and members of the committee, the proposal was forwarded without a recommendation that the full council approve it.
Last month, the council’s Land Use and Housing Committee made a similar move. That committee voted 3-1 to forward the “housing solutions” and “mobility choices” elements of the proposal to full council, also without a recommendation.
A fourth element of the plan, called “infrastructure now,” won’t be voted on separately by any committees because it is integrated into the first three elements of complete communities.
No dates have been set for the full council to consider the other three elements of complete communities.
The Community Planners Committee, an umbrella organization of the city’s more than 50 neighborhood planning groups, has harshly criticized multiple elements of the plan.
“The community planners felt that the housing and parks proposals were poorly crafted and would be harmful to residents in all communities,” chairman Wally Wulfeck said in a news release.
On parks, the committee listed several complaints, including lack of emphasis on parks for sports leagues and other organized users, and a new point system to determine which areas of the city need more parks.
“The plan proposes a new scoring system for parks that rewards ‘amenities’ inside parks, such as food service, and devalues actual park acreage,” Wulfeck said. “The new plan would lead to worsening park shortages.”
Committee members also said the plan would allow downtown-type housing density in some neighborhoods, with no limits on building heights and no parking requirements.
While the committee represents neighborhoods across the city, it has sometimes been criticized for not including the voices of young people and renters because most committee members are middle-aged, longtime homeowners.
Complete communities has also been criticized by city council members, not for its lofty goals but for the proposed policies it would create in pursuit of those goals.
Councilman Mark Kersey voted against forwarding part of the proposal to the full council because of concerns about how it would change city fees that housing developers pay.
Councilman Chris Ward has raised concerns that some subsidized housing in the proposal would be open to people making 20 percent more than the area’s median income, suggesting it should be geared for people with lower incomes.
On Wednesday, Councilwoman Barbara Bry offered more general criticisms of how the city is handling the proposal.
“I’m very concerned that this process is being rushed,” Bry said. “It is frustrating to hear that things have been added very quickly and members of the public weren’t able to review these changes.”
A city spokeswoman said Wednesday afternoon that complete communities has been a multi-year planning effort that has included public surveys and workshops.
She also stressed its focus on equity.
“The complete communities initiatives address the inequities seen in historically underserved neighborhoods known as ‘communities of concern,’” said the spokeswoman, Tara Grimes.
Money from developments in wealthier areas with adequate parks would be diverted to lower-income areas where there is a shortage of parks.
Planning director Mike Hansen said complete communities represents a fundamental and much-needed change for San Diego.
“The way that we currently plan has contributed to inequitable investments in our neighborhoods,” Hansen said. “This program begins to prioritize our resources where the needs are greatest, while putting us on a path to achieving our climate goals.”
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San Diego's 'complete communities' plan moving forward despite criticism, opposition - The San Diego Union-Tribune
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