A city-owned property on Quail Gardens Drive that’s most recently been proposed for a low-income housing project will be declared surplus, the Encinitas City Council decided Nov. 8.
The vote, which came after hours of public testimony and council member debate, was 3-2, with Mayor Tony Kranz and Councilman Bruce Ehlers opposed.
Declaring the land surplus will launch a 60-day period when area government agencies — city, county and state parks and recreation departments — are allowed to submit requests asking to lease or purchase 9.46-acre site for open space purposes only. If Encinitas receives any proposals during the 60-day time period, it would be required under state law to negotiate “in good faith” and attempt to reach an agreement with the interested party.
If none of the eligible government entities want the land for parks or other recreation purposes, then the city can pursue its latest proposal for the site — turning it into a 100-percent, low-income housing project. Council have said they envision 30 to 45 units, plus an ading park area, if the housing is open to people of all ages; or 60 units if it’s a senior-only complex.
Council Kellie Hinze and Joy Lyndes said the surplus property proposal has just been blessed by state housing officials and Encinitas ought to pursue this now before state officials change their minds, and before any new state legislation makes it harder to build the kind of lower-density housing project Encinitas wants to see on the site.
“Local control that we hold so dear, we’ve got it right now,” Hinze said.
Lyndes said she envisioned a project that sits “gently on the land” and said she was ing the surplus declaration because it met the state requirements.
“We’re not selling it, we’re not changing ownership, we’re not giving up control,” she told the audience, saying there’s been confusion in the community about the proposal.
Mayor Tony Kranz said there’s been confusion because the city hasn’t followed through with a recent promise it gave to Quail Gardens Drive area residents to host community meetings before making any decisions about what to do with the property. In late June, the council approved a contract with Kosmont Companies for real estate assessment work related to the property. A decision about whether to declare the property surplus was supposed to come after Kosmont’s work concluded and after community meetings were held — neither of which have happened, Kranz said.
He said that there was no reason to rush ahead with the surplus decision, noting that city staff have said there is no state legislation currently pending that would prevent Encinitas from declaring the land surplus at a later point.
Councilmember Allison Blackwell, whom Hinze at one point described as “wavering” on which way to vote, said she could the surplus proposal if the council also agreed to pursue community meetings as soon as possible. In response, Hinze said she would agree to add into her motion that the city host “robust, comprehensive” community workshop sessions to discuss housing construction options for the site, starting no later than mid-January.
Noting that he has repeatedly opposed turning the site into a housing project, Councilmember Bruce Ehlers said he would be once again voting no because of how many new housing projects are already going into the Quail Gardens area. Plans are in the works for nearly 1,100 units, he noted.
“This is the wrong place and the wrong density,” he said.
His comments were applauded by many Quail Gardens Drive area residents who urged the council to rethink the surplus proposal, and hold off at least until the impacts of the other housing projects are felt. While they urged a pause in the process, area housing advocates urged the council to press forward, saying the city is in desperate need of housing that lower-paid workers can afford.
The low-income housing proposal is the latest of many for the site, which is located at 634 Quail Gardens Drive between Channel Islands Drive and Alexandra Lane. Originally, the land was proposed to become a city park and that’s how the site currently described in the city’s General Plan, Kranz said. Other proposals over the years have included putting a city maintenance equipment yard on the land and building a library there.
