Agenda, first session — Del Mar City Council, March 3, 2025

Del Mar City Council Meeting Agenda
Del Mar Town Hall
1050 Camino del Mar, Del Mar, California
March 3, 2025 City Council Meeting

INFORMATION RECEIVED

AFTER THE COUNCIL AGENDA

WAS DISTRIBUTED
(“Red Dots”)

CITY COUNCIL AGENDA QUESTIONS
March 3, 2025
Item 5: Authorization to Submit 2024 Housing Element Annual Progress Report

1. What is the bottom line on housing units generated in 2024? In the current cycle? Response: In 2024, the City issued 20 building permits for net new housing units, all of which were Accessory Dwelling Units. For the 6th Cycle in total, the City has produced 109 net new housing units in the above moderate and moderate income categories. There are an additional 81 housing units that are still pending building permit issuance, which includes 23 ADUs and 58 units from the Watermark and 941 CDM projects. Once building permits are issued for these pending 81 units, the resulting 190 total units would exceed the 6th Cycle RHNA unit production target of 175 units.

2. Moderate Income units have been fulfilled, yes?
Response: To date, the City has reported that 65 moderate income units have been issued building permits in the 6th Cycle, where 31 were assigned to Del Mar through RHNA. The City has been reporting ADUs that are smaller in size into the moderate income category, as it is assumed that a smaller sized unit would be rented for a lesser rate. While HCD has not provided feedback on this, the City has reported this methodology for moderate income units on the last 3 years of housing annual progress reports.

3. Is there a window of opportunity to request from HCD that we use the Encinitas findings on ADU rental rates and be allowed to count 25% of ADUs going forward as Low or Lower Income units?
Response: It is staff’s understanding that the City of Encinitas collected survey data from ADU owners that allowed them to demonstrate the different affordability levels to HCD. By comparison, the City of Del Mar does not have any data to demonstrate that any ADUs or primary units in the City are being rented as lower income units. Public records in Del Mar have indicated that ADU owners in Del Mar are not renting out their ADUs, and there is no data for the City to rely on to show any are low income units.

Item 6: Resolution Establishing Date for Utility Undergrounding District 1A (Stratford Court South) Properties to be Ready to Receive Underground Utility Service

1. What were the unforeseen conditions on Melanie Way?
Response: After potholing on Melanie Way, the gas line was not located as expected based on the plans, requiring a change to the proposed joint trench alignment.

2. What will be the cost of the change order?
Response: Since the required change was identified before further excavation, no additional construction costs are anticipated for the change order. The adjustment only required a realignment, which requires time for SDG&E to process a “field change order,” which has now been completed. SDG&E would include any time to process the field change order as part of the actual costs to the City.

March 3, 2025 Items 5-8

3. Could we please hear an update on the 1A (Stratford South) construction progress including, for example, how has the project timing gone so far, how is the retaining wall facade working out, what have been the unforeseen conditions encountered, how has Teichert organized their construction teams, … ? [perhaps this is better done as a future separate update item?]
Response: Staff will present a summary update on the 1A (Stratford South) construction progress as part of the presentation to the City Council this evening.

4. What happens if property owners do not comply with the provisions of the resolution by the identified deadline?
Response: If property owners do not complete installation of the private service lateral by, pursuant to DMMC Sections 23.54.100 and 23.54.110 the City may either:
• Proceed with posting notice and ordering disconnection of the overhead utility services for lack of compliance with the DMMC; OR
• Install the underground service lateral at the property owner’s expense; OR • Erect an individual pole at the property owner’s expense, to maintain service to the property.

Item 7: Initial Consideration of an Appeal of Encroachment Permit (EP) 24-109; EP Appellant: Felix Wohlleben; Appellant’s Address: 328 8th St. (APN: 300-222-26-00); EP Applicant: Stephen Wolff; Applicant’s Address: 327 9th St. (APN: 300-222-04-02)

1. What are the penalties or fines to the neighbor with the hedge if they do not keep it trimmed to 20” north-south width and 6’ height?
Response: As a condition of the EP approval, a covenant is required that will run with the land and detail the maintenance obligation (hedge width and height) of the property owner. Failure to comply with any obligations of the EP/covenant would result in formal Notice of Violation from the City. Failure to act in timely compliance with the Code Enforcement action can result in administrative citation fines that start at $100 per day for non-compliance and can become as high as $1,000 per day.

2. Is 6’ height sufficient to maintain the scenic view of the neighboring home? Response: The appellant did not provide the City with any information or documentation of a northwesterly view from inside 328 8th Street. City development records (DRB-V-78-14) and the photograph of the north-facing elevation of the appellant’s home on page 23 of the agenda report indicate that the first floor (ground level) facing north at 328 8th Street is a garage, and above the garage is a second-story deck accessed via glass doors from what approved plans depict as a bedroom. Based on this information, there does not appear to be a protectable view from a “primary living area” as it is defined by with DMMC Chapter 23.08 (Design Review) or DMMC Chapter 23.51 (Trees, Scenic Views, and Sunlight). All photographs provided by the applicant appear to be taken from outside the home or from within the alley.

3. If this were a private fence application on the border of the parcel, would it need to go through DRB?
March 3, 2025 Items 5-8
Response: Fences are eligible for Administrative Design Review (ADR) and would only require Design Review Board (DRB) review if a written objection to the ADR application is submitted to the City during the public notice period.

Item 8: Undergrounding Program Financing Update

1. If 1B (North Stratford) were excluded from the X1A loan, would the loan amount be $12 million for X1A only? (i.e., $17 million minus estimated cost of 1B) Response: On February 3, 2025, staff presented to Council that excluding UUD 1B from the financing would reduce the borrowing of $17M by $3 million for a total of $14 million for UUD X1A. This is covered again on p.4 of March 3, 2025, agenda report, and will be mentioned in the staff presentation. As a reminder, funding for the combined cost of X1A and 1B, includes financing and Measure Q funds on hand.

March 3, 2025 Items 5-8
1 Melinda Gould
From: Allan Cate <[email protected]>
Sent: Friday, February 28, 2025 12:54 PM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Cc: Laura Cate
Subject: Re: Item 6 - Utility Undergrounding District
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

On Mon, Jul 12, 2021 at 6:06 AM Allan Cate <[email protected]> wrote:

Dear City Council,
Please approve the undergrounding district. Under grounding will be a significant improvement to the appearance of Stratford Ct.

Sincerely,
Allan Cate
(property owner)
March 3, 2025 Item 06
1 Melinda Gould
From: Scott Garrett <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 11:24 AM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Subject: Red Dot: Item #II, appeal of EP 24-109
Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
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I'm writing in reference to the encroachment permit #24-109. I believe in maintaining open view corridors for the benefit of the entire community. Allowing encroachments that inhibit view corridors takes away from shared assets that this community values. I support the appeal by the home owners at 328 8th.

Regards,
Scott Garrett
343 9th Street
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March 3, 2025 Item 07
1 Melinda Gould
From: Claire Mcgreal <[email protected]>
Sent: Sunday, March 2, 2025 9:57 AM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Cc: Terry TG. Gaasterland; Tracy Martinez; Dan Quirk; John Spelich-private; Ashley Jones; Tom McGreal; Martin Boyd
Subject: Red Dot letter for Mar. 3 City Council Agenda, Item #8 Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
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Please delete personal email addresses from this.

City Clerk of Del Mar
City Council Agenda for March 3, 2025: Item # 8 Undergrounding Program financing Dear Mayor Gaasterland and Councilmembers,
As residents of the North Stratford Underground District (1B) we urge you to proceed with the financing necessary to ensure that undergrounding project will stay on schedule for completion in FY 2027. District 1B was prioritized for undergrounding because it consists of residents and businesses who reside in the very densely populated area where the poles sit in congested, narrow alleys. All the retail shops, restaurants and businesses on the west side on Camino Del Mar are served by utility poles in District 1B running along Del Mar Lane from 11th Street to 15th Street. Ensuring that this commercial and residential segment of the undergrounding remains on schedule will recognize the value and importance of our business community and the priority of completing undergrounding in this densely populated neighborhood.

We ask that you follow the recommendations of the Staff, the UPAC Committee and the Finance Committee and proceed with the financing to ensure that the project is properly funded and not delayed. This is a matter of utmost importance to the public safety of the village.

Attached hereto and incorporated by this reference, is a Petition signed by 45 businesses and residents of District 1B.

Sincerely,
Claire & Tom McGreal, 1135 Stratford
March 3, 2025 Item 08
2 PS: The front of our house faces west, and the poles in our view are being removed as a part of District 1A, so our concerns are only about public safety for our neighborhood.

Petition to Del Mar City Council for Including District 1B (North Stratford) in the financing package being sought for undergrounding District X1A (Crest Rd. environs).

We, the residents, property and/or business owners or managers, receive our electricity from poles in District 1B. We respectfully request that the Del Mar City Council resolve to fund the undergrounding of District 1B, and to include Dt. 1B in the financing being arranged for Dt. X1A, as recommended by the City’s Finance Committee and Underground Planning Advisory Committee (voted: 11-1).

Dt. 1B is densely populated, and heavily walked by business patrons, residents and beach goers, and is graced with many large trees. This is a matter of public safety: for example, a tree could drop a limb on a wire causing a fire in our congested alleys, where most of the poles are. Please include Dt. 1B along with X1A in the financing presently being arranged to finance the undergrounding.

William Davidson
Owner, Davidson Communities
1302 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Dawn Davidson
Owner, Dawn Davidson Design
1302 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
James M. Watkins, Property Owner
1442 Camino Del Mar
Stratford Square
Del Mar, CA
KC Vafiadis
Leasing Manager
1442 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Reza Ron Moshaghi
Marquis Jeweler
1448 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
March 3, 2025 Item 08
3 Stacey Raiheil
Durante’s
1438 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Julie Zozaya
Julie’s Beachwear
1440 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Carol & David Goodell
Frustrated Cowboy
1444 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Harry’s Coffee Shop
Business Owner
1454 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Kit Leeger
Leeger Architecture
1442 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Diane Gutierrez
Property Manager
1440 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Dustin Black
Dempsey Construction, Superintendent for
Hillstone Properties
1404 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Del Mar Seaside Grill
Owner, Reza Khaksari
1328 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
March 3, 2025 Item 08
4 Del Mar Seaside Grill
Owner, Marjan Khaksari
1328 Camino Del Mar
Del Mar, CA
Nuvida Properties, LLC
Richard Amen
1104 Camino Del Mar, Ste. 3
Del Mar, CA
Sara Commers Private Jeweler
Owner, Sara Commers
1130 Camino Del Mar #1D
Del Mar, CA
Elegant Tailor & Cleaners
Business Owner
1130 Camino Del Mar #1A
Del Mar, CA
Lisa Uhrhammer
1322 Stratfrod Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Mike Uhrhammer
1322 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Alice S. McNally
1332 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Thomas Middleton
1426 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Sarah “Sally” Middleton
1426 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Anne Panatton
155 15th St. #20
March 3, 2025 Item 08
5 Del Mar, CA
Ben Barth
1315 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Shlomit Barth
1315 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Tom Harrington
1345-1355 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Susan Harrington
1345-1355 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Tom Tullie
1333 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Becky Robbins
1335 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Rolande Fyfe
1339 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Edward Fyfe
1339 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Scott Linton
1310 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar CA
Pam Linton
1310 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
March 3, 2025 Item 08
6 John Shay
1405 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
M. A. Sherr
1354 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Ann Johnson
1465 Ocean Ave.

Del Mar, CA
Nico Samaras
220 11th St.

Del Mar, CA
Mia Aguillon
220 11th St.

Del Mar, CA
Glenn Sage
1355 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Amy Flynn
1428 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Ryan Flynn
1428 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
Suren Dutia
234-238 11th St.

Del Mar, CA
Jas Grewal
234-238 11th St.

Del Mar, CA
Claire McGreal
1135 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
March 3, 2025 Item 08
7 Tom McGreal
1135 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA
March 3, 2025 Item 08
March 3, 2025 Item 08
1 Melinda Gould
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 9:00 AM
To: City Clerk Mail Box; Ashley Jones
Cc: Terry Gaasterland; Dan Quirk; Tracy Martinez; John Spelich Subject: Item 9 of 3/3/25 Agenda
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Mayor Gaasterland and Distinguished members of the City Council:

I write to request that the City Council not send the letter to the 22nd DAA, ( the “FG”)without substantial modification and that it take the time to study the implications of the letter and consider public comment beyond this meeting and proposed modifications. These are my main but not exclusive objections to the letter:

1. The letter foreseeably may be used by the FG to argue that they have veto power over the City’s supporting the yellow route recently introduced by the SANDAG staff on Feb. 7. Some history: I believe that (though I had opposed it) item 10 on the Guiding Principles was adopted by the City in good faith to show solidarity with the FG continued vitality. But it did not define what exactly was meant by protecting the enumerated “needs” of the FG as opposed to their wish list or their best case scenario, and one has to interpret the term reasonably. The FG may want not to contribute at all to the realignment burden but it may in fact not impinge on a legitimate “need.” In addition, the Guiding Principles are a guide, not a contract. The FG made no promises to us and we have made no promises to them. The FG has consistently demanded an events platform and accommodation of that platform is one of the main reasons the tracks are being designed to stay near the coast. The FG benefits greatly from the realignment. One might reasonably conclude that since the FG stands to benefit from the realignment, that it would contribute by accommodating some portion of the realignment. It was SANDAG, not the City, that designed Route A in the NOP calling for undergrounding of the events platform and routing a tunnel under a portion of the FG.

The other alternatives (B and C) required massive eminent domain and the destruction of our main business street, and an overwhelming majority of Del Mar residents opposed B and C. In the Solana Beach meeting, the SANDAG staff promised to pause all construction when the FG had its events, to greatly lessen the economic impact of construction. Thus I think it was an open question whether support of option A or for that matter route 14 by any member of the City Council was unreasonable or against a “need” as opposed to a “want” by the FG. But here’s my point: Forget Route A, now that we know that the FG’s position was that they had veto power over the City’s support for a route, we are on notice that they may very well take that position against the yellow route or any variation of the yellow route that citizens are working hard on gaining acceptance. The yellow route variations may ask that the FG contribute to accommodating some portion of the rail realignment. After the 2/28/25 meeting of SANDAG, the yellow route may be all we have to work with. The draft letter to the FG panders to the FG and the FG will interpret it to mean that the FG has veto power over the City’s support for any version of yellow route that the FG’s unilaterally decides is not responsive to its “needs.” The FG aim is route B or C, don’t forget that. That’s why it opposed pausing the bridge. I strongly disagree with the FG’s interpretation of guiding principle 10, but now that we know the FG’s interpretation, we can’t affirm that misinterpretation. Rather, our letter should say that the obligation between the FG and the City is bilateral with respect to the realignment, and that principle 10 is not intended to restrict the City or FG from acting in their own interest with respect to the realignment and we stand ready to support a route acceptable to both entities.

March 3, 2025 Item 09
2 2. Second, I think you should rethink linkage of the housing element with realignment. I think the City should retain the option of contending that as a state agency, the FG’s position linking housing (whose need it helps cause) with restricting the city’s position on the rail alignment is illegal. Yes, I know housing is important and the FG might take housing off the table, but the City Council simply cannot give up the freedom to take a position in support of the yellow route, which is what it would be doing with this letter.

Avoiding eminent domain through the realignment is more important than losing FG support for housing (which to date has been as graspable as sand).

3. Third, as a Responsible Agency, the City will be making some discretionary approvals. The term “discretionary” obviously implies that the City will be allowed to make choices and take positions. I disagree that the City must relegate its residents’ interests beneath those of the FG as part of its responsibility as responsible agency. This needs much more thought and study. It does not belong in a letter to the FG. It will be used against us.

4. Fourth, the discussion about individual CC member conflict in this letter is highly inappropriate. The conflict issue is a City matter, not a FG matter. Don’t invite their nose into it. The study of this issue and the ways to address the need of residents to be heard through their city council are a work in progress and many citizens hope the city is pursuing a favorable district attorney opinion or other means of allowing the City Council to affirmatively engage the City’s interests. The SANDAG meeting on 2/28 was an example of what happens when you silence the city’s representatives. The self-indictment language of the letter to pander to the FG is highly inappropriate and the self-indictment position taken is gratuitous and may even be legally incorrect .

5. Fifth, I disagree with the statements made with respect to Mayor Gaasterland. How was she supposed to know that the FG would take a “no contribution to the realignment” position in the NOP dialogue and why did she have an obligation to bow to that? The FG distorted the guiding principles into unilateral veto power. Was she supposed to bow to that interpretation? I think the City’s position on when Council members can speak and when they can’t needs clarification. For the time being, some sort of public censure so as to pander to the FG is highly inappropriate.

Please do not vote to accept the letter in its current state. Please allow time for further comment. Public groups working day and night on the yellow route were taken by surprise by the draft letter and need more time to dialogue with the CC about it.

Thank you.

Shirli Weiss
551 Stratford Ct.

Del Mar, CA.

Shirli Fabbri Weiss
Retired Partner
M +1 858 449 4850
[email protected]
DLA Piper LLP (US)
March 3, 2025 Item 09
1 Melinda Gould
From: Camilla Rang <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 11:03 AM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Subject: Item 9, City Council Agenda 03.03.25
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

Dear City Council,
I read your suggested letter to the Fairground. Please don't send that letter. Do not lock yourself into the same situation as we were with Route A. Del Mar has to put Del Mar first, just as the Fairground will put the Fairground first. We should not kowtow to them and their threats of pulling back negotiations of Affordable housing on "their" land and instead sacrifice homes of Del Martians. It is your duty to protect Del Mar first. Sure, we can compromise, but you as the City Council of Del Mar, has to be able to speak up for Del Mar and what rerouting line is best for us.

The Fairground will surely have loud opinions about a modified yellow line, and so should we be able to have. It's a two way street. With this letter, you are locking us into a one way street, the Fairground's. Please don't.

This will go on for years. The Fairground will postpone and postpone, "pause" negotiations as soon as things with the rerouting don't go their way and put all the burden on Del Mar and we won't even be able to raise our concerns. Meanwhile, we will still have no Affordable Housing. It's embarrassing.

We have our own land to up-zone. By all means, continue negotiate with the Fairground IF THEY ARE WILLING on equal level, but we have to move on with our lives. The Fairground divorced us and we have to accept it. It was pure extortion and we should not be part of such an ugly game.

Up-zone our own land. Don't put all our eggs in the wrong basket. The Fairground basket leaks like a sieve. They'll rip a new hole as soon as we open our mouths about the yellow line. They rather have 50 homes in Del Mar demolished than taking on any kind of rerouting onto their "land" even if it's an empty dirt parking lot.

Step away from that skewed negotiation. If they cannot differ between the two very important and very different items but instead use one to extort another, we should not be in business with them.

Sincerely,
Camilla Rang
Del Mar
March 3, 2025 Item 09
1 Melinda Gould
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 11:15 AM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Cc: Terry TG. Gaasterland; [email protected]; John Spelich-private; [email protected]
Subject: Agenda Item 9 - Update Regarding Recent Actions Taken by the Fairgrounds Board Related to Fairgrounds Housing and Reaffirmation of the Del Mar Guiding Principles for the LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project
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Agenda Item 9 - Update Regarding Recent Actions Taken by the Fairgrounds Board Related to Fairgrounds Housing and Reairmation of the Del Mar Guiding Principles for the LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project Mayor Gaasterland and City Councilmembers Martinez, Spelich and Quirk:

The Del Mar City Council needs to be able to advocate for a LOSSAN re-alignment that avoids trains under homes, eminent domain and destruction of the San Dieguito Lagoon. SANDAG states that “an idea with an alignment north of the San Dieguito Bridge to I-5 Knoll alignment was mentioned, and sta will explore this design concept during the environmental process.” SANDAG CEO Mario Orso verbally committed to studying this idea at the SANDAG Board meeting on February 28th and the SANDAG Board voted to approve studying this northern alignment (which I call the Northern Yellow Line.) Mr. Orso also sent me an email on February 26th airming his interest in “some of the ideas, like yours, that came out in the public meeting and that we would like to take to further evaluation.”
Any design of an alignment “north of the San Dieguito Bridge” requires a re-evaluation of the Fairgrounds’ proposed alignment for the new San Dieguito Bridge. Their bridge concept was designed BEFORE a rail alignment was selected and their preferred bridge location would prevent other alignments from being considered. This is a mistake. Regional planning needs to be completed before the San Dieguito Bridge is re-built.

March 3, 2025 Item 09
2 The 10th guiding principle related to the realignment project states, “With regard to study of a potential Fairgrounds rail alignment, SANDAG must respect and protect the operational, economic, environmental and planning needs of the 22nd DAA and of the proposed Del Mar housing program on the Fairgrounds.” If this 10th guiding principle is interpreted by the Fairgrounds or SANDAG or the Del Mar City Council as preventing the Del Mar City Council from advocating for the Northern Yellow Line then this interpretation does not serve the residents of Del Mar. Currently, the Northern Yellow Line is the ONLY route being studied by SANDAG that protects Del Mar from long-term negative impacts.

Please clearly communicate to the Fairgrounds in your letter that the 10th guiding principle does not prevent the City Council from advocating for a route that would be the best route for the entire region which includes Del Mar, San Diego and Solana Beach as well as the Fairgrounds.

Respectfully,
Amy Cheshire
March 3, 2025 Item 09
1 Melinda Gould
From: K Lare <[email protected]>
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 12:41 PM
To: City Clerk Mail Box
Cc: Terry TG. Gaasterland; Tracy Martinez; Dan Quirk; John Spelich-private; Ashley Jones Subject: Red dot for tonights meeting Item #9
Attachments: draft of letter to fairgrounds word 3-3-25 kl edits.pdf CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

Honorable Mayor and City Council Members,
A few quick thoughts on your letter for today's meeting.

It is critical to get the negotiations on housing going again with the fair board. I don't have to say how important it is for all council members to walk the fine line between advocating for the city and residents and to working hard to build bridges with the city of Solana Beach and the fairgrounds on train routes for the eventual relocation of the tracks. I don't envy you all your roles you play for the city and thank you all for your hard work.

On your letter all that has been done on housing is great because they are benefitting from some of the work paid for by Del Mar (through grants, etc.) but I do think the letter needs a little more work before it is sent. Here are a few suggestions and an edited version attached.
 add in a sentence to strengthen the city's position on being "required" by voters to advocate on behalf of the residents of this city.
 remove the part where you discuss the conflicts for city council I don't think any of that matters to the fair board.  be clear to the fair board that the guiding principals are just that - they guide the discussions and hopefully the outcome but they are not a contract. I was not sure the best place in the letter for that comment but trust you will find a good place.

Most importantly I feel is you want to be sure you let them know that you can and must advocate for the city! Every option will have an impact on all involved. To what extent is yet to be determined.

Please see edits attached.

Karen Lare
161 Sea Cliff Way Del Mar
March 3, 2025 Item 09
State of California, 22nd DAA Board of Directors
c/o Carlene Moore, Chief Executive Officer SENT VIA EMAIL 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd.

Del Mar, CA 92014-2216
[email protected]
RE: Importance of Fairground Housing Initiative for the City of Del Mar and the 22nd District Agricultural Association (DAA)
Dear 22nd DAA Board of Directors & CEO Moore:

As you know, on February 11, 2025, the 22nd DAA (District) Board voted to temporarily pause (30 day) discussions with the City of Del Mar regarding the development of affordable housing on District property. The stated rationale was based on comments by an individual City Councilmember, who is currently serving as Mayor, regarding the LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project (Realignment Project). The Board asserted that the comments made publicly were in violation of the City of Del Mar’s (City) adopted Guiding Principles for the Realignment Project (Enclosure A) as well as a related Joint Resolution that was adopted between Del Mar, Solana Beach, and the District in September 2024 (Enclosure B).

This letter is intended to provide context and details regarding the importance of the Fairgrounds Affordable Housing Program (Project) to the City of Del Mar (City), region, and State, as well as address and clarify the Board cited comments by Mayor Terry Gaasterland.

The City is grateful to the District Board and staff for their efforts in coordination with the City to facilitate planning efforts for the future development of affordable housing at the Fairgrounds. The Governor has declared a State housing crisis, making this project a State, City and regional priority. This is evidenced by the strong show of support for this project by State Senator Catherine Blakespear, State Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), and the City of Solana Beach.

March 3, 2025 Item 09
The Fairgrounds is identified as a regional mobility hub and employment center in the SANDAG Regional Plan. SANDAG, as the regional planning agency, supports the Fairgrounds housing plan as a means to further fair housing, reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), and create lower income housing choices for the region
Background
All local jurisdictions in the State of California are required to adopt a Housing Element as part of their General Plan and process updates to it with each housing cycle. The current 6th Cycle Housing Element, for the planning years 2021-2029, identifies the target number of housing units at specified income levels and required program actions to facilitate development.

As part of the 6th Cycle Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) methodology, SANDAG used State Employment Development Department (EDD) jobs data to determine the number of units to be assigned to each local jurisdiction. Use of this data, and the high number of reported part-time/seasonal jobs related to activities at the Fairgrounds, resulted in a disproportionate number of housing units being assigned to Del Mar as part of the 6th Cycle Housing Element Process. Over half of the jobs reported for Del Mar were attributable to seasonal and short-term jobs at the Fairgrounds, with the majority of those being related to part-time/seasonal events and activities including those that were only a one-time or one-day event. Even a 3-day job was counted equally to a year-round job.

As such, the City was assigned 175 housing units during the 6th Cycle, which includes 31 above moderate-income units, 31 moderate-income units, 76 low-income units,19 very-low-income units, and 18 extremely-low-income, as part of the RHNA process determined by the State Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) and SANDAG. Achieving this number of housing units in a primarily built out, small coastal community is no small feat.

This RHNA allocation represented an exponentially higher number of lower income units (113 lower income units in 6th Cycle compared to 22 lower income units in 5th Cycle) than in past Housing Element cycles due in large part to the number of reported jobs at the Fairgrounds. While March 3, 2025 Item 09
the City and Fairgrounds are not to blame for the methodology used by HCD and SANDAG to assign housing units, there is a direct correlation between the City’s mandated housing units and the Fairgrounds. As such, we need to work together to do our part to address the statewide housing crisis and meet state mandates to produce housing.

Efforts & Progress on Housing Production Beyond the Fairgrounds The City’s work to achieve affordable housing at the Fairgrounds is just one example of the many Housing Element programs the City has or will implement to produce housing units in Del Mar.

The City has issued a building permit or certificate of occupancy for 109 net-new units between June 30, 2020, and December 31, 2024, and will continue to produce new units towards the 6th Cycle. These new units have all been within the moderate and above moderate-income categories and primarily are new Accessory Dwelling Units (ADUs). The development of lower income housing has been a significant challenge. For reference, lower income households earn no more than 80% of the County Area Median Income (AMI). Eligibility for lower income housing is correlated to household income level, AMI, household size, and affordable rent.

In addition to the Fairgrounds Housing effort, the Housing Element sets forth a variety of strategies to produce at least the required 113 lower income units. The City has continued its good faith efforts to develop incentive programs, invest local resources, pursue grant funding, seek partnerships, and pursue capital projects to build lower income housing.

The challenges experienced by the City in production of lower income units are shared with other jurisdictions statewide and relate to factors that are beyond the City’s control. This includes market conditions; high costs of land, construction, materials, and labor; and limited resources that collectively are an impediment to the production of lower income housing units.

During the 6th Cycle, the City has approved two projects with a combined total of 58 units including 12 lower income units. However, the City is unable to formally count these units towards its RHNA March 3, 2025 Item 09
allocation until the project developers proceed with issuance of building permits. Developers have explained market conditions as described above are why cities and counties are seeing minimal development interest for construction of lower income housing.

Exclusive Negotiating Rights Agreement – City/District
The City and District entered into an Exclusive Negotiations Rights Agreement (ENRA) that took effect on April 15, 2024. In conjunction with the District’s master site planning process, the purpose of the ENRA is to identify a mutually agreeable location for the development of affordable housing on District property; complete site due diligence; determine the scope/components of development; make a preliminary determination of feasibility; and determine the terms/conditions for a mutually acceptable long-term ground lease for the development of affordable housing.

To date, District and City staff have worked together to identify the studies needed, prepare task orders, and solicit consulting services using the City’s Housing Acceleration Program (HAP) grant funds as described below.

Mutually Beneficial Development Due Diligence Activities With support from the District, the City was able to secure $1.6 million in Housing Acceleration Program (HAP) grant funds (Cycles 1 & 2) from SANDAG and HCD to be used for activities related to the development of affordable housing at the Fairgrounds through March 2026. As detailed below, much of the site and development due diligence activities that has been or will be done will benefit the District beyond just the consideration to develop affordable housing. These studies can also help inform and complement the master and strategic planning work that is currently underway by the District for other envisioned land uses and development on District property.

Pre-Development Studies Completed: Cycle 1 HAP grant funds supported preparation of Phase I housing studies and hiring of an affordable housing consultant in 2022, to help the City meet its objective to facilitate development of lower income housing in Del Mar. The feasibility studies were completed in 2023, and included a zoning assessment, development of architectural design concepts, economic analysis, and several potential financial proformas, to explore the March 3, 2025 Item 09
feasibility of future development of affordable housing at the Fairgrounds as well as two small, City-owned vacant sites. Based on input provided by District staff, the studies focused on Fairground’s property at Jimmy Durante Boulevard and Via de la Valle, and a southeastern location on the Fairgrounds by the fire station on Jimmy Durante Boulevard.

The studies demonstrate that potential development of at least 61 lower income units on the Fairgrounds is a realistic and feasible strategy to pursue. The studies also showed that the prospective housing studied would be eligible for tax credit financing and that the Fairgrounds location is the most viable opportunity to build affordable units in the City of Del Mar.

Sea Level Rise Adaptation Needed for Development: In June 2024, the City completed a preliminary design concept (10% design) for a living levee (vegetated berm) and public trail design on both riverbanks along the San Dieguito River within the City of Del Mar. This study assessed flood vulnerability on both sides of the river, including the Fairgrounds, and identified a design to minimize flood risk consistent with the State’s 2024 Sea Level Rise Adaptation guidelines.

Compliance with the State’s flood adaptation standards will be necessary for any future development on the Fairgrounds.

Pre-Development Studies In-Process: Draft task orders for additional feasibility studies totaling over $500,000 have been prepared and are ready to be executed. This includes: 1) Vulnerability Assessment with hydraulic modeling and sea level rise vulnerability analysis to understand flood conditions and identify site opportunities and constraints across Fairgrounds property; 2) CEQA Opportunities and Constraints Analysis; 3) Housing Site Feasibility Analysis; 4) Transportation Due Diligence Analysis; and 5) Water/Sewer Capacity Analysis. This work will be entirely paid for by the City using HAP grant funds, and will provide mutual benefit to the City and District.

LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project
The City greatly values its partnerships with the Fairgrounds, City of Solana Beach, City of San Diego, and other important community groups and stakeholders. Together, significant concerns have been expressed regarding some or all of the alternative rail alignments proposed to date by March 3, 2025 Item 09
SANDAG as part of their Realignment Project. To help underscore the concerns raised by our partners and the Del Mar community, the City adopted Guiding Principles specific to the Realignment Project and entered into a Joint Resolution with the Fairgrounds and Solana Beach.

The City stands behind these actions, and took steps on March 3, 2025, to reaffirm the City’s Guiding Principles, which includes the following principle specific to the Fairgrounds:

With regard to study of a potential Fairgrounds rail alignment, SANDAG must respect and protect the operational, economic, environmental and planning needs of the 22nd DAA and of the proposed Del Mar housing program on the Fairgrounds, and as a key stakeholder, the 22nd DAA must be proactively engaged by SANDAG throughout the process.

Also of importance, as officials of the City elected by the voters, individual Councilmembers have a right and responsibility to advocate for the best interest of the community. This is also a part of the guiding principles in the joint agreement and city leaders can and must continue to advocate in the best interest of the residents while also respecting the fairgrounds needs as stated above. This is routinely done
by the District Board and staff and the City of Solana Beach elected officials and their staff as well.

What
is of the utmost importance in doing so is making clear whether you are speaking in your official capacity on behalf of your organization or whether you are sharing your personal thoughts and opinions as a member of the public.

In instances where the Mayor or any Councilmember may have made comments that were inconsistent with the City’s official position, they were not speaking on behalf of the City. Moving forward, the Council will endeavor to ensure it is clear when they are speaking on behalf of themselves as members of the public and not on behalf of the City.

The City remains committed to working with the Fairgrounds, the cities of Solana Beach and San Diego, and SANDAG to find rail realignment options that work for everyone and minimize or March 3, 2025 Item 09
eliminate negative impacts to the greatest extent possible.

Del Mar as a Responsible Agency
At the District Board meeting on February 11, 2025, the District once again asked the City to take a position of opposition to rail realignment alternatives that would negatively impact the Fairgrounds. However, as a Responsible Agency under CEQA for this project, the City will be required to consider approval of an amendment to the City’s Local Coastal Program (LCP; local Coastal Commission certified implementation of the California Coastal Act), issuance of Coastal Development Permits in accordance with Del Mar’s LCP, and a range of other approvals that no other stakeholder for this project has direct jurisdiction over. For the City to select or influence a particular route before the Draft Environmental Impact Report is released could unduly prejudice the City’s role as a Responsible Agency and could compromise the City’s ability to bring forward future challenges to protect the City's interest.

In considering the City’s role as a Responsible Agency, and to protect the City’s interests, Del Mar’s representative to the SANDAG Board, Mayor Terry Gaasterland, abstained from participating in agenda Item 9 related to the Realignment Project at the SANDAG Board of Director’s meeting on February 28, 2025. A copy of the statement read by the Mayor at the SANDAG Board meeting is included for reference as Enclosure C.

Additionally, as was previously explained based on what is known at this time regarding the proposed locations of the alternative alignments, it appears all four Del Mar City Councilmembers may have a conflict of interest based on the proximity of their residence to one or more of the proposed alignments. This is unique to Del Mar, primarily due to the small size of the City, 2.2 square miles, in that no other stakeholder agency has the four proposed alignments traversing its jurisdiction and residences.

Following the issuance of the DEIR for the Realignment Project, the Council will work with the City Attorney’s office to facilitate a process whereby a majority of Councilmembers may participate March 3, 2025 Item 09
in future required actions and determining positions to be taken by the City related to the Realignment Project.

In closing, the City of Del Mar respectfully requests that you direct District staff to re-engage with the City and move forward with the task orders that are ready for execution to begin the next phase of critical work to be completed under the ENRA.

Sincerely,
Terry Gaasterland, Mayor Tracy Martinez, Deputy Mayo
March 3, 2025 Item 09
1 Melinda Gould
From: [email protected]
Sent: Monday, March 3, 2025 1:15 PM
To: Terry Gaasterland; Tracy Martinez; Dan Quirk; John Spelich Cc: City Clerk Mail Box
Subject: draft of letter to fairgrounds word 3-3-25 kl edits: red dot Attachments: draft of letter to fairgrounds word 3-3-25 kl edits.docx Follow Up Flag: Follow up
Flag Status: Flagged
CAUTION: This email originated from outside of the organization. Do not click links or open attachments unless you recognize the sender and know the content is safe.

Apologies for the tardy additional submission. Attached are my thoughts (borrowing also from other residents) on editing the draft letter.

Respectfully submitted,
Shirli Weiss
March 3, 2025 Item 09
State of California, 22nd DAA Board of Directors
c/o Carlene Moore, Chief Executive Officer SENT VIA EMAIL 2260 Jimmy Durante Blvd.

As you know, on February 11, 2025, the 22nd DAA (District) Board voted to temporarily pause (30 day) discussions with the City of Del Mar regarding the development of affordable housing on District property. The stated rationale was based on comments by an individual City Councilmember, who is currently serving as Mayor, regarding the LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project (Realignment Project). The Board contends contends asserted that the comments made publicly were in
violation of the City of Del Mar’s (City) adopted Guiding Principles for the Realignment Project (Enclosure A) as well as a related Joint Resolution that was adopted between Del Mar, Solana Beach, and the District in September 2024 (Enclosure B).

The City is grateful to the District Board and staff for their efforts in coordination with the City to facilitate planning efforts for the future development of affordable housing at the Fairgrounds. The Governor has declared a State housing crisis, making this project a State, City and regional priority. This is evidenced by the strong show of support for this project by State Senator Catherine March 3, 2025 Item 09
Blakespear, State Assemblymember Tasha Boerner, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), and the City of Solana Beach.

The Fairgrounds is identified as a regional mobility hub and employment center in the SANDAG Regional Plan. SANDAG, as the regional planning agency, supports the Fairgrounds housing plan as a means to further fair housing, reduce Vehicle Miles Traveled (VMT), and create lower income housing choices for the region
Background
All local jurisdictions in the State of California are required to adopt a Housing Element as part of their General Plan and process updates to it with each housing cycle. The current 6th Cycle Housing Element, for the planning years 2021-2029, identifies the target number of housing units at specified income levels and required program actions to facilitate development.

This RHNA allocation represented an exponentially higher number of lower income units (113 March 3, 2025 Item 09
lower income units in 6th Cycle compared to 22 lower income units in 5th Cycle) than in past Housing Element cycles due in large part to the number of reported jobs at the Fairgrounds. While the City and Fairgrounds are not to blame for the methodology used by HCD and SANDAG to assign housing units, there is a direct correlation between the City’s mandated housing units and the Fairgrounds’ bu. As such, we need to work together to do our part to address the statewide housing crisis and meet state mandates to produce housing.

March 3, 2025 Item 09
During the 6th Cycle, the City has approved two projects with a combined total of 58 units including 12 lower income units. However, the City is unable to formally count these units towards its RHNA allocation until the project developers proceed with issuance of building permits. Developers have explained market conditions as described above are why cities and counties are seeing minimal development interest for construction of lower income housing.

Pre-Development Studies Completed: Cycle 1 HAP grant funds supported preparation of Phase I housing studies and hiring of an affordable housing consultant in 2022, to help the City meet its objective to facilitate development of lower income housing in Del Mar. The feasibility March 3, 2025 Item 09
studies were completed in 2023, and included a zoning assessment, development of architectural design concepts, economic analysis, and several potential financial proformas, to explore the feasibility of future development of affordable housing at the Fairgrounds as well as two small, City-owned vacant sites. Based on input provided by District staff, the studies focused on Fairground’s property at Jimmy Durante Boulevard and Via de la Valle, and a southeastern location on the Fairgrounds by the fire station on Jimmy Durante Boulevard.

Compliance with the State’s flood adaptation standards will be necessary for any future development on the Fairgrounds.

LOSSAN Rail Realignment Project
The City greatly values its partnerships with the Fairgrounds, City of Solana Beach, City of San March 3, 2025 Item 09
Diego, and other important community groups and stakeholders. Together, significant concerns have been expressed regarding some or all of the alternative rail alignments proposed to date by SANDAG as part of their Realignment Project. To help underscore the concerns raised by our partners and the Del Mar community, the City adopted Guiding Principles specific to the Realignment Project and entered into a Joint Resolution with the Fairgrounds and Solana Beach.

The City stands behind these actions, and took steps on March 3, 2025, to reaffirm the City’s Guiding Principles, which includes the following principle specific to the Fairgrounds:

The City Council has a right and responsibility to advocate for the best interests of its community.

Accordingly, nothing in the above guiding principle was or is intended to restrict the City or Also of importance, as officials of the City elected by the voters, individual Councilmembers from advocating have
a right and responsibility to advocate for the in best interest of the community. Specifically, this principle is not intended to give the Fairgrounds veto power over the choice of alignments including variations of SANDAG’s recommended study loption of the “yellow route” . This The freedom to advocate is also a part of the guiding principles in the joint agreement and city leaders can and must continue to advocate in the best interest of the residents while also respecting the fairgrounds needs as stated above. As the District Board knows well, This is routinely done by the District Board and staff and the City of Solana Beach elected officials and their staff routinely engages in advocacy, including advocacy of routes that severely adversely impact Del Mar. as well.

In instances where the Mayor or any Councilmember may have made comments that were March 3, 2025 Item 09
inconsistent with the City’s official position, reflected above, they were not speaking on behalf of the City. Moving
forward, the Council will endeavor to ensure it is clear when they are speaking on behalf of themselves as members of the public and not on behalf of the City.

The City remains committed to working with the Fairgrounds, the cities of Solana Beach and San Diego, and SANDAG to find rail realignment options that work for everyone and minimize or eliminate negative impacts to the greatest extent possible.

Additionally, as was previously explained based on what is known at this time regarding the proposed locations of the alternative alignments, it appears all four Del Mar City Councilmembers March 3, 2025 Item 09
may have a conflict of interest based on the proximity of their residence to one or more of the proposed alignments. This is unique to Del Mar, primarily due to the small size of the City, 2.2 square miles, in that no other stakeholder agency has the four proposed alignments traversing its jurisdiction and residences.

Following the issuance of the DEIR for the Realignment Project, the Council will work with the City Attorney’s office to facilitate a process whereby a majority of Councilmembers may participate in future required actions and determining positions to be taken by the City related to the Realignment Project.

Sincerely,
Terry Gaasterland, Mayor Tracy Martinez, Deputy Mayo
March 3, 2025 Item 09

Del Mar City CouncilMarch 3, 2025

Del Mar City Council
March 3, 2025