Planning Commission recommends tiered equine regulations

The County’s Planning Commission recommended a tiered ordinance as part of the update of the county’s equine regulations.

The Planning Commission’s 7-0 vote May 20 sends the recommendation to the San Diego County Board of Supervisors who are expected to hold a hearing June 29. The Planning Commission merely recommended the tiered ordinance from among the four options developed by County Department of Planning and Land Use (DPLU) staff; the actual ordinance will be developed after the Board of Supervisors provides direction regarding potential content of the tiered ordinance.

“I’m glad to see this is going in the right direction,” said Bonsall resident David Puchta, who is the president of the San Diego County Horsemen’s Association. “It’s long overdue.”

A 5-0 Board of Supervisors vote March 2 directed the county’s chief administrative officer to work with the county’s equestrian community and any other interested parties to investigate options which would protect and promote equine operations throughout unincorporated San Diego County. The options included the potential development of a tiered ordinance, similar to what the county has adopted for wineries, and the chief administrative officer was directed to report back to the Board of Supervisors within 120 days.

Carl Stiehl led the effort on behalf of the DPLU, organizing four stakeholders meetings and contacting community planning and sponsor groups. Stiehl and Claudia Loeber led a DPLU review of state law and of activities undertaken by other jurisdictions.

Stiehl noted that the county’s equine regulations consist of horsekeeping, which allows for private use on properly-zoned parcels, and commercial stables. Commercial stables include boarding and breeding operations, which do not involve visitors from the general public, as well as public stables which provide riding lessons, training, trail rides, equestrian events, and other activities which attract members of the public. The equine regulations were developed more than 30 years ago as part of the county’s

Zoning Ordinance.

The update will focus on commercial stables and is not likely to change horsekeeping zoning. Issues which will be considered include traffic, noise, flies and other vectors, storm water, dust and grading concerns, size of the operation and parcel, and proximity to neighbors.

DPLU staff developed four options. Option A would allow horse stables with ministerial rather than discretionary permits. Option B is the tiered ordinance which based on the property size and number of horses would require a ministerial permit for some activities, an administrative permit (which involves notification to neighboring properties and public review but does not require a hearing unless one is requested by any party) for larger activities, and a Minor Use Permit or Major Use Permit for the largest operations. Option C would require discretionary permits for all commercial stables but would change some use permit requirements to the administrative permit process. Option D would maintain the current regulations with no changes.

Option A or Option B would require a Programmatic Environmental Impact Report (EIR). A funding source for that EIR would be identified before the ordinance and the corresponding EIR are developed, and the Planning Commission hearing on the actual ordinance would not take place until the EIR has been circulated for public review.

The equestrian stakeholders didn’t object to Option A but realized that Option B was the most reasonable measure and accepted the tiered ordinance concept.

“A tiered ordinance would strike a balance,” Stiehl said. “It addresses direction to the board and stakeholder concerns.”

San Diego County Equestrian Federation president Michell Kimball noted that any ministerial or discretionary permit would require compliance with best management practices (BMP) for the various impacts. “It is important to have an established set of BMPs,” she said.

Commissioner Michael Beck noted that the tiered ordinance would likely lead to better BMP compliance. “I think there’s a real potential upside to this whole thing,” he said.

Oliver Smith, the chair of the Valley Center Community Planning Group, noted his planning group’s support of relaxing the ordinance but disliked the concept of a permit whose conditions require asphalt paving. “Livestock and horse shelters should not be considered the same as human dwelling facilities,” he said.

“Equestrian businesses should be considered agricultural businesses, not commercial,” Smith said. “The ordinance needs a practical and simplified means for horse organizations and clubs.”

Smith added that implementing reasonable and efficient management practices would protect neighboring properties.

“We are in an area that is rural and agricultural, and horses are part of our culture and our heritage,” Morton said.

The daughter of Planning Commissioner Peder Norby owns a horse and boards it at a friend’s house in Twin Oaks Valley. “I think I just found out that my daughter is operating illegally,” Norby said.

Norby agrees that a small commercial operation usually defrays expenses rather than makes the entirety of horsekeeping profitable for a property owner. “We can keep this type of use in San Diego County,” he said.

“Our direction was to preserve the existing equestrian uses,” said DPLU planner Joe Farace.

Farace noted that a ministerial permit is not truly by right but rather is granted upon completion of conditions on a checklist. “There are mechanisms in place right now,” he said.

Best management practices are in many ordinances, so a checklist would consolidate those for the appropriate type of user. “I think the goal of this ministerial checklist is to place these BMPs into one document,” Farace said. “The regulations are actually there; they exist.”

Puchta noted that DPLU’s code enforcement division would correct any violations.

“I just congratulate the community, the horse community, for working together in such a productive fashion,” Norby said.

“It’s good to see them all coming together to correct this issue,” Puchta said.

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