Fallbrook Fair Plan group opposes upzone of I-15/SR76 area

San Diego County’s Department of Planning and Land Use (DPLU) has decided that Fallbrook should be a poster child for “smart growth,” complete with a transit node and urban-style development in a rural setting. If that sounds confusing, even oxymoronic, welcome to the 2020 update of the County General Plan.

The County General Plan is a document designed to direct the future growth of the unincorporated area. Contrary to some public statements, there is no state mandate to update the General Plan every 20 years. There is a requirement to review and revise the plan as often as they deem “necessary or appropriate” (Section 65103, of Calif. Govt. Code).

Over the years it has become apparent that the county’s current General Plan contains many inconsistencies, some of which left the county vulnerable to lawsuits. Although a number of these inconsistencies have been corrected — and all of them could have been corrected without a General Plan update — the county chose to undertake an extensive, expensive countywide 2020 General Plan Update.

As part of that update, the DPLU has determined that the northeast corner of the intersection of Interstate 15 and State Route 76 (I-15/SR76 intersection) should be the site of high-density development, and a transit node, because of the intersection of two highways. The densities being suggested by DPLU for the update are consistent with proposed development plans for that property, which call for about 2,500 homes plus about 160 acres of commercial/industrial zoning.

This represents a dramatic upzone from the current General Plan, which allows for approximately 600 homes with no commercial/industrial zoning. If some of the land were to be used for commercial/industrial purposes, then the number of homes would decrease accordingly. A group of concerned citizens has formed Fallbrook Fair Plan to support the densities of the current General Plan.

In designating the new zoning for the I-15/SR76 area, DPLU consulted with a Steering Committee composed of the leaders of local community planning groups and sponsor groups, and an Interest Group composed of representatives from the building industry, real estate and other business groups, agricultural, and environmental groups. Certain circumstances regarding the I-15/SR76 site that are contrary to the smart growth concept were ignored:

(1) The area is remote from the Fallbrook town center and other than I-15, has very limited infrastructure — water, sewer, roads — in place. It would represent the type of “leapfrog” development that is anathema to smart growth planning, and would set a precedent for intense future development of both the I-15 corridor, and the San Luis Rey Valley.

(2) SR76 is already packed and other traffic-inducing projects such as a quarry and a landfill are planned. There has been legitimate concern over the prospect of 500 to 1,000 trucks per day to and from the quarry, and 1,000 to 2,000 trucks per day to and from the landfill. However, this additional traffic would be a mere drop in the bucket compared to the environmental impact of traffic generated by the proposed development — in excess of 25 THOUSAND trips per day!

(3) The area has been identified as a significant wildlife corridor by the planners of the Multiple Species Conservation Program.

While some folks in town feel that having high-density housing with industrial and commercial development on the east side of I-15 would be okay, Fallbrook Fair Plan supporters consider such upzoning out of place and detrimental to our rural community and way of life.

Time is short — the Fallbrook Community Planning Group and the Board of Supervisors will likely vote on whether to move forward on this upzone within a month. The local Planning Group will have a special meeting on this issue on May 2, and the Board of Supervisors will consider it at either their May 11 or May 18 meeting.

We urge you to attend a public informational meeting sponsored by Fallbrook Fair Plan on April 21, 7 p.m., at Potter Junior High School’s Bowers Auditorium.

FALLBROOK FAIR PLAN

Chris and Lisa Hasvold

Bob and Susan Lucy

Sam and Ann Logan

Claude and Rhonda Reinke

Wallace and Karen Tucker

Jim and Minamaree Tudor