Here are a few tidbits that didn’t make today’s story about the ongoing Otay Mesa community plan update:
- Three of the seven developers that comprise the Otay Mesa Planning Coalition have dropped out in the past two months: Centex Homes, D.R. Horton and Murphy Development. Those individual developers did not respond to calls seeking comment last week, but coalition lobbyist David Nielsen claims they have not changed their stance on the group’s proposals.
- We’ve posted the maps of the different zoning scenarios that the City Council will choose from as early November. Here is the current zone map.
The most significant change in Scenario 1 is the addition of residential and “urban village” zoning, which is added to the areas where coalition members are proposing housing projects. You can compare those zoning changes with the placement of coalition projects here. (You’ll see the plans call for the addition of more residential housing in new “urban” areas denoted by crimson, bright red or red-and-white stripes.)
Scenario 2 adds even more residential zones beyond the coalition-controlled areas.
Scenario 3 adds some housing opportunities, but limits residential zoning to the western area of the neighborhood. This proposal is the most similar to the current community plan.
- Otay Mesa’s community plan is the first of the city’s various neighborhood blueprint that was Mayor Jerry Sanders wants to update during his tenure, a goal he set forth in last month’s State of the City address.
- As noted by Bill Andersen, Sanders’ director of city planning and community investment, Otay Mesa’s plan is unique because it allows for substantial rezoning because of the amount of undeveloped land there. Updates to San Diego’s more urbanized areas — such as downtown, which was updated last spring, and Barrio Logan, which will undergo studies over the next year — tend to deal with changes in density levels than with zoning changes.
- Brown Field municipal airport will not be included in the land-use decision, Theresa Millete, a senior planner with the city, said. The air facility was excluded because of Federal Aviation Administration’s constraints on the airport’s use, she said.
- While the Otay Mesa Chamber of Commerce has been the most vocal critic of the coalition’s proposals, the San Diego Regional Chamber of Commerce has not taken a position.