Acknowledging there have been “unintended impacts” from the city of San Diego’s density bonus program, the city announced it’s looking at reforming the program. NBC 7’s Omari Fleming reports.
San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria acknowledges there have been "unintended impacts" from the city's density bonus program.
Dave Nicolai says his backyard garden paradise on Adams Avenue in the College Area has been tainted by a seven-unit, two-story Accessory Dwelling Unit (ADU) that could house at least 16 people and has windows into his world.
“I feel like I can't breathe," Nicolai said of the possibility of people looking through the windows into his yard.
He's not alone in his disdain for the buildings that have sparked protests for years across the city.
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Earlier this month, people in Encanto rallied against a 43-unit building being developed on a single-family lot in their neighborhood. Maria Conrad continues to watch the development grow in front of her home.
“It's dangerous," Conrad said. "The area they're building these in is not created for this level of density."
Now, the city of San Diego announced it's looking at reforming its density bonus program. Changes could include:
- Limiting the scale of bonus homes so that they fit in better with the surrounding neighborhood
- Adding required parking unless the area is in the transit priority area, or an area within a half mile of a major transit stop
- Collecting opt-in fees from developers, which could help pay for street improvement amenities
“Who's going to opt-in?” Conrad said. “Better yet, demand if you want someone to build here, demand developer develop the infrastructure."
The reforms were the topic of conversation on Tuesday night at the Community Planners Committee meeting.
"They're mostly good. Do they go far enough? That’s something we’ll have to see at the end of the meeting," said Andrea Hetheru, the chair of the Chollas Valley Community Planning Group, who makes recommendations to city leaders about the needs of neighborhoods like Encanto.
“Taking care of fire hazard and evacuation issues. Taking care of parking and taking care of some way to have infrastructure to pay for increased density is a long way toward where we need to go," Hetheru said.
As the city considers changing the bonus ADU program, Nicolai says just get rid of it. He's hoping, but not holding his breath, that the proposed reforms lead to smarter neighborhood growth.
"We're screwed already," Nicolai said. "I hope it doesn't happen to anyone else."
The city is looking for input from the public about the changes before finalizing the proposal for the city council this summer.
