Boutique winery ordinance rescinded due to lawsuit threat

The County of San Diego’s boutique winery ordinance was rescinded May 14 by an emergency ordinance approved by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

The ordinance which had been approved April 23 would have taken effect May 23 and would have allowed tasting rooms and on-premise wine sales by right for boutique wineries on agriculturally-zoned land accessed by public roads and with conditions for such wineries accessed by private roads.

On the afternoon of May 8 the county received a notice of an intent to sue for California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) violations from environmentalist...