4. Location of Commercial and Residential Uses. Where commercial storefronts are required, residential uses shall be located above ground-floor commercial uses or behind a commercial building that fronts Poway Road.
The Property's front property line is located along the centerline of Poway Road and there is no development within 40 feet of the front property line. In addition, there is no minimum square footage requirement in the PRCSP. As such, the Project as currently proposed is consistent with the plain text of the PR CSP above.
The City has informed Intracorp that instead of measuring from the property line, as the PRCSP clearly requires, the City intends to measure from the Project's development boundary.
This interpretation has no basis in the plain text of the PRCSP or in any other objective City standard. Imposition of the standard is therefore directly at odds with the Housing Accountability Act (HAA), which limits agencies to applying only objective, written development standards. The HAA defines objective, written development standards as follows:
"For purposes of this subdivision, "objective, quantifiable, written development standards, conditions, and policies" means criteria that involve no personal or subjective judgment by a public official and are uniformly verifiable by reference to an external and uniform benchmark or criterion available and knowable by both the development applicant or proponent and the public official before submittal, including, but not limited to, any standard, ordinance, or policy described in paragraph ( 4) of subdivision ( o ). Nothing herein shall affect the obligation of the housing development project to comply with the minimum building standards approved by the California Building Standards Commission as provided in Part 2.5 ( commencing with Section 18901) of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code.
In the event that applicable objective, quantifiable, written development standards, conditions, and policies are mutually inconsistent, a development shall be deemed consistent with the criteria that permits the density and unit type closest to that of the proposed project." (Emphasis added.)
Under the HAA, "property line" must be interpreted to mean the property line, not the development boundary, and must facilitate the housing development project as proposed. (Gov.
Code§ 65589.5, subd. (f).)
To the extent the City is considering requiring a future dedication of the public right-of way (thereby moving the property line), it cannot do so. Intracorp submitted a preliminary application pursuant to SB 330, which vested the ordinances, policies, and standards in effect at the time the application was submitted, including the plain language of the PRCSP quoted above.
The City's relocation of the property line could not possibly have been known at the time the SB 330 preliminary application was submitted because it is contrary to the text of the PRCSP. As such, a future dedication to achieve the City's goal would be inconsistent with the HAA. 121 of 123
July 21, 2026, Item #14
Alan Fenstermacher
April 3, 2026
Based on the foregoing, there is no objective basis for the City to require the Project to expand its proposed commercial space. We thus dispute the City's interpretation and respectfully request that the City confirm in writing that the Project can proceed with the commercial space proposed in Intracorp's most recent plan set.
If the City fails to do so, Intracorp will submit an application for a project that incorporates affordable units under State Density Bonus Law and will utilize its mandatory concession to eliminate the alleged commercial space requirement altogether. A concession is defined under State Density Bonus Law as follows:
"For the purposes of this chapter, concession or incentive means any of the following:
(1) A reduction in site development standards or a modification of zoning code requirements or architectural design requirements that exceed the minimum building standards approved by the California Building Standards Commission as provided in Part 2.5 (commencing with Section 18901) of Division 13 of the Health and Safety Code, including, but not limited to, a reduction in setback and square footage requirements and in the ratio of vehicular parking spaces that would otherwise be required that results in identifiable and actual cost reductions, to provide for affordable housing costs, as defined in Section 50052.5 of the Health and Safety Code, or for rents for the targeted units to be set as specified in subdivision (c).
(2) Approval of mixed-use zoning in conjunction with the housing project if commercial, office, industrial, or other land uses will reduce the cost of the housing development and if the commercial, office, industrial, or other land uses are compatible with the housing project and the existing or planned development in the area where the proposed housing project will be located. (3) Other regulatory incentives or concessions proposed by the developer or the city, county, or city and county that result in identifiable and actual cost reductions to provide for affordable housing costs, as defined in Section 50052.5 of the Health and Safety Code, or for rents for the targeted units to be set as specified in subdivision (c)."
(Gov. Code§ 65915(k).)
Utilizing a concession to waive the commercial requirement in the PRCSP is consistent with the plain text of Government Code Section 65915(k) and guidance from the California Department of Housing and Community Development ("HCD"). (See, e.g., HCD Technical Assistance Letter to City of Larkspur (May 12, 2022) [supporting a concession to avoid ground floor commercial requirements appearing in both General Plan and zoning regulations]; HCD Letter of Technical Assistance to City of Santa Ana (April 27, 2023) [supporting a concession 122 of 123
July 21, 2026, Item #14
Alan Fenstermacher
April 3, 2026
where a project, although not zoned "mixed use," would otherwise have required ground-floor commercial]; HCD Technical Assistance Letter to City of San Jose (May 20, 2022) [removal of mixed-use requirements as illustration of potential concession].) In addition to utilizing a concession to deviate from the alleged PRCSP commercial requirement, the Project would be entitled to unlimited waivers of development standards under State Density Bonus Law, meaning the Project could unilaterally modify an unlimited number of applicable City development standards (i.e., height, setbacks, and open space). Finally, State Density Bonus Law has reduced parking standards compared to the City's Code, with no guest parking spaces required. Intracorp would prefer to proceed with the Project as currently proposed but in the event a State Density Bonus Law project is necessary, Intracorp intends to utilize all available State Density Bonus Law benefits.
If the City wishes to have any commercial space as part of the Project, we urge the City to confirm agreement with Intracorp's interpretation of the PRCSP commercial requirement.
We would like to remind the City that there are significant penalties and fines for violations of the HAA. (Gov. Code§ 65589.S(k)(l)(B)(i), (k)(l)(C), and (l).) In addition to attorneys' fees, court-imposed fines for failing to comply with a court order begin at $10,000 per housing unit and could be much higher. If a court finds bad faith, there is a minimum mandatory fine of $50,000 per housing unit. Bad faith includes an action that is frivolous or otherwise entirely without merit. We believe the City's interpretation easily meets that legal standard.
We appreciate the City's prompt attention to this matter and look forward to receiving written confirmation that the Project may proceed as proposed. 123 of 123
Sincerely,
Cox, Castle & Nicholson LLP
'?'tl,Jk),ff (!/u,-
Morgan L. Gallagher
Partner
July 21, 2026, Item #15
DATE:
TO:
FROM:
CONTACT:
SUBJECT:
Summary:
AG EN DA REPORT City of Poway
July 21, 2026
Honorable Mayor and Members of the City Council
Craig Schmollinger, Director of Finance @..
Craig Schmollinger, Director of Finance
(858) 668-4411 or [email protected]
CITY COUNCIL
Resolution Renewing the Fire Protection Special Tax to be Collected on the Property Tax Roll for Fiscal Year 2026-27
Consideration of a Resolution renewing the Fire Protection Special Tax to be collected on the property tax roll for Fiscal Year (FY) 2026-27.
Recommended Action:
It is recommended the City Council take public input, close the public hearing, and adopt the Resolution renewing the Fire Protection Special Tax to be collected on the property tax roll for FY 2026-
27. Discussion:
Annually, the City collects various taxes, fees, charges, and assessments on the property tax roll by following the San Diego County Auditor and Controller's procedures established for such collections.
The composition of the taxes, fees, charges, and assessments varies slightly from year to year as the time span for the assessments expires or new areas and charges are added. The taxes, fees, charges, and assessments include: Fire Protection Special Tax; Weed Abatement; Lighting and Landscape Maintenance District Assessments; and Nuisance Abatement.
To collect these items on the property tax roll, it is necessary to adopt a Resolution setting the charges and to authorize staff to transmit the information to the San Diego County Clerk of the Board of Supervisors, and Auditor and Controller.
The following narrative explains the Fire Protection Special Tax to be collected via the San Diego County property tax roll. A parcel-specific listing of the amounts to be collected is on file in the City Clerk's Office.
1 of4
July 21, 2026, Item #15
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
-Poway
voters
approved
the
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
on
June
17,
1997,
which
was
codified
as
Poway
Municipal
Code
Chapter
3.20 via
Ordinance
No.
476.
As
a special
tax,
the
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
can
only
be
used
to
support
fire
protection
services,
including
but
not
limited
to
the
acquisition
of
equipment
and
the payment
of
personnel
costs.
Each
property
served
with
fire
protection
services
is
assigned
point
values
to
meet
fire
protection
requirements
as
a
fair
and
reasonable
method
of
apportioning
the
special
tax
according
to
the
use
of
the
parcel
(not
the
property
value).
As
an
example,
residential
properties
are
assigned
10 points
for
each
dwelling
unit
on
each
parcel,
commercial,
industrial
and
institutional
parcels
are
assigned
20 points
per
1,000
gallon
per
minute
required
for
fire
water
flow
purposes,
irrigated
farmland
assigned
4 points
per
acre,
and
vacant
parcels
assigned
2 points
per
parcel.
The
fire
flow
requirements
are
based
on
the
Fire
Suppression
Rating
Schedule
of
the
Insurance
Service
Office
(ISO).
To
calculate
the
tax
for
each
property
for
FY
2026-27,
the
Fire
Department
assigned
212,198
points
to
15,127
parcels.
The
tax
rate
of
$3.12
per
point
is
unchanged
from
FY
2025-26
. The
estimated
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
to
be
collected
for
FY
2026-27
is
$658,473.
For
property
tax
roll
purposes,
a
not-to-exceed
amount
of
$700,000
is
authorized
by
the
Resolution
(Attachment
A).
The
higher
amount
is
used
in
the
Resolution
to
ensure
that
if
further
additions
to
the
property
tax
roll
are
made,
the
authorized
amount
will
not
be
exceeded.
The
amount
per
parcel
is
rounded
to
the
nearest
even
whole
cent.
Parcels
that
are
not
listed
on
the
property
tax
roll
will
be
billed
directly
by
the
City.
Environmental
Review:
This
action
is
not
subject
to
review
under
the
California
Environmental
Quality
Act
(CEQA).
Fiscal
Impact:
The
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
helps
support
fire
protection
services
provided
by
the
Fire
Department.
The
Fire
Department's
total
operating
budget
for
FY
2026-27
is
$18,773,307
while
the
estimated
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
to
be
collected
is
$658,473
or
3.5%
of
the
total
budget.
For
property
tax
roll
purposes,
a
not-to-exceed
amount
of
$700,000
has
previously
been
authorized
by
the
Resolution.
While
the
revenue
can
be
used
to
offset
all
fire
protection
services,
this
revenue
is
specifically
being
used
toward
offsetting
Fire
Suppression
division
operating
costs
of
$15,969,027
for
FY
2026-27.
Expenses
exceed
the
revenues
to
be
collected
through
the
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
because
the
voter
approved
tax
rate
adopted
in
1997
did
not include
an
inflater.
The
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
revenue
estimate
for
FY
1997-98
was
$535,000
which
helped
support
a
FY
1997-98
Fire
Department
budget
of
$3,193,860,
or
16. 75%
of
the
total
budget.
In
order
for
taxes,
fees,
and
assessments
to
be
collected
on
the
property
tax
roll
for
FY
2026-27,
it
is
necessary
for
the
City
Council
to
adopt
a
Resolution
authorizing
this
action.
Public
Notification:
A
Notice
of
Public
Hearing
was
published
in
the
San
Diego
Union
Tribune
on
Tuesday,
July
14,
2026.
This
notice
is
a
requirement
for
the
continuation
of
the
Fire
Protection
Special
Tax
at
the
same
level
as
current
into
FY
2026-27.
2 of4
July 21, 2026, Item #15
Attachments: A.
Resolution
Assistant
City
Manager
3 of4
Reviewed
By:
Alan
Fenstermacher
City
Attorney
A&L) Chris
Hazeltine
City
Manager
July 21, 2026, Item #15
RESOLUTION NO. 26-
A RESOLUTION OF THE CITY COUNCIL OF THE CITY OF
POWAY, CALIFORNIA, RENEWING THE FIRE PROTECTION
SPECIAL TAX TO BE COLLECTED ON THE PROPERTY TAX
ROLLS FOR FISCAL YEAR 2026-27
WHEREAS, the residents of Poway approved a Fire Protection Special Tax in 1997; WHEREAS, the City Council of the City of Poway desires to have the Fire Protection Special Tax collected on the property tax roll;
WHEREAS, pursuant to Poway Municipal Code 3.20.070 the City Clerk fixed the public hearing date as July 21, 2026 to adopt the Fire Protection Special Tax; and WHEREAS, following duly given notice, the City Council of the City of Poway did hold such public hearing, receiving, considering, and evaluating public comments.
NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED by the City Council of the City of Poway as follows:
SECTION 1: The not-to-exceed amount of $700,000 shall be collected on the property tax roll in the form of a Fire Protection Special Tax of $3.12 per point as authorized by Ordinance No. 476 of the City of Poway
SECTION 2: The City Clerk is instructed to forward a certified copy of this Resolution to the Clerk of the Board of Supervisors and the Auditor and Controller of the County of San Diego.
PASSED, APPROVED AND ADOPTED at a Regular Meeting of the City Council of the City of Poway, California on the 21st day of July, 2026 by the following vote, to wit:
AYES:
NOES:
ABSTAINED:
ABSENT:
DISQUALIFIED:
Steve Vaus, Mayor
ATTEST:
Carrie Gallagher, CMC, City Clerk
4of4 ATTACHMENT A
1 of 2
July 21, 2026, Item #16
DATE:
TO:
FROM:
SUBJECT:
Summary:
M EMQRAN DLJ M CityofPoway
July 13, 2026
Members of the City Council
Steve Vaus, Mayor; Anita Edmondson, Councilmember
Stand-Alone Commercial Data Centers in Poway
Poway has always taken a thoughtful approach to land use, balancing economic opportunity with the need to protect our quality of life, preserve our community character, and make responsible long term planning decisions. As stand-alone commercial data centers for Al continue expanding across the country, we believe now is the appropriate time to make it clear that these facilities are not an appropriate fit for Poway. Accordingly, we request the City Council direct staff to prepare an ordinance prohibiting the development and operation of stand-alone commercial data centers within the City of Poway.
These facilities place extraordinary demands on public infrastructure while providing relatively little benefit to the surrounding community. A single Al data center can consume as much electricity as tens of thousands of homes, placing significant demands on the electrical grid. Many also require substantial quantities of water for cooling, often hundreds of thousands of gallons per day, which is difficult to justify in Southern California, where water will always be one of our most precious resources.
There are also important quality-of-life considerations. Al Data centers operate around the clock and rely on large cooling systems that produce a constant low-frequency hum. Many facilities also maintain extensive backup diesel generators that must be tested regularly and operated during power outages, creating additional concerns related to noise and air quality.
Finally, this is a matter of sound land use policy. Poway has a limited supply of commercial and industrial land, and those properties should be reserved for uses that strengthen our local economy, serve our residents, and make responsible use of our infrastructure. Stand-alone commercial data centers do not generate high paying jobs and therefore do not align with that vision to create a vibrant economically sustainable Poway Business Park. Taking action now provides certainty for property owners, residents, and businesses while reinforcing the values that have made Poway one of California's safest and most desirable communities.
Recommended Action:
We recommend that the City Council direct the City Manager and City Attorney to return as soon as possible with a draft ordinance amending the Poway Municipal Code to prohibit the development and operation of stand-alone commercial data centers within the City of Poway. 2 of 2
July 21, 2026, Item #16
Reviewed/Approved By
Assistant City Manager
Reviewed By:
Alan Fenstermacher
City Attorney
Approved By:
Chris Hazeltine
City Manager