San Diego city leaders are proposing more than 140 changes to how land is used in the city.
Among them are changes to housing development rules, Old Town sidewalks and more. The 142 proposals are part of an annual update to city land rules.
“We’re doing a better job of encouraging some apartment buildings,” land-use attorney Will Moore said. “We still lag behind in the creation of housing, where you can buy a house, raise your kids, appreciate gain the value of that appreciation over time. The American Dream and some of those new regulations help encourage that.”
Of the proposed changes, 106 are citywide and 36 are downtown-specific amendments.
Item No. 11, titled “Old Town San Diego Planned District – Sidewalk Cafes,” on the citywide amendments reads: “this amendment to the Old Town San Diego Planned District regulations would allow sidewalk cafes, streetaries, and active sidewalks within commercial zones, consistent with citywide regulations.”
“We’d like to see more of this, where it’s activated, where people are on the sidewalk, where people are having a good time on the sidewalk, where they could see each other because that really helps the whole vibe,” Moore said. “Whether it’s tourists on vacation, San Diegans looking to come here, school groups walking through, as we all did when we were in school, and so that improves the neighborhood.”
The annual process aims to make necessary modifications to the city’s rules.
“The City Planning Department monitors and continually updates the code to simplify and streamline the permitting processes, assure compliance with state and federal regulations, eliminate unnecessary barriers, redundancies and contradictions, and align the code with the City’s climate, equity, and housing goals,” the City Planning Department wrote on its website.
The city of San Diego is allowing the public to submit a code amendment request on its website until Sept. 15.