Is there really a drought?
October 27th, 2009 Categories: Real Estate News
SAN DIEGO- I have written in blog about my feelings towards water and its importance to our future. I am in full support of the new desalination plant that will be built in Carlsbad and would 
have no problem allowing the city of San Diego to hook me up to the toilet to tap network that has been proposed for years.
Now I know this will not sit well with many and I understand and respect that. However if this you, you need to take action now as our county supervisors are keenly aware that housing provides a huge portion of the economic fuel the San Diego economy needs to keep going and they are willing to sacrifice a lot for the money. In order to increase revenues, we need more homes for more property tax dollars and more construction also brings additional revenue through permits, taxes and fees. Reminds me of the Guns N Roses lyric;
I used to do a little, but a little wouldn’t do it, So the little got more and more
I just keep tryin’ to get a little better, Said a little better than before- Axl Rose
This week the county planning commission voted to put dollars ahead of natural resources and potential nature related disasters(since most wildfires are caused by us, I won’t call them a natural disaster here).
In a 5-2 vote, the commission voted to recommend the rezoning of 2300+ acres of chaparral covered hillsides off the I-15 near Lawrence Welk’s resort. This zoning change does not allow an increased density change of a few percent, but a change in excess of 750%!!!
Yes with the collective wisdom of 5 commission members, they approved RECOMMENDING a zoning change to the county master plan that would allow the construction of up to 2700 homes from 345. The project would also include commercial areas and graciously parks and 
fire station. This recommendation will go to the county board of supervisors who will have deciding vote.
Water attorney Wes Peltzer spoke against Merriam Mountains at a recent planning commission meeting. He says California is in a crisis and can’t afford water for more homes.
"Which do you need more? Do you need more houses and another commercial development, or do you need water?" Peltzer said- CBS8.com
I spoke with Bob Fry, board member of the Deer Springs Fire district, and he informed me that the predicted water usage of the development upon completion would be 1.3 million gallons a day. Additionally, he was told in a separate meeting that they will not be recycling their waste water or using grey water as building a treatment facility and the additional infrastructure “does not pencil out”. Because of the rural nature of the area, the local treatment facility would not be able to treat the increase of wastewater, so the waste water would be piped to a facility in Carlsbad adding an additional 500,000 gallons of sewage flowing into the Pacific from the facilities outfall pipe.
On the topic of wildfire, a condition placed on the approval is for the developer to create an 
evacuation plan with the help of the local fire district. In my conversation with Mr. Fry we discussed what all of this meant to the fire district. The first thing one needs to understand in this will increase the number of residence in the fire district that takes care of these remote areas from 12,000 to approximately 20,000. When I hear about a evacuation all I can picture is the folks trying to get out of New Orleans. Having ridden extensively through this area on bike rides, many of these existing roads would be backed with 100 cars on them as they are single lane and wind and weave their way through the back country.
I know growth is inevitable, but this is far from managed growth and is actually contrary to the approved county master plan. As opposing commissioner Peder Norby said;
“Why have a General Plan if we approve projects like this?”- San Diego Union Tribune, October 24,2009
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