The modified proposal for SDMC §143.1002 concerning Ocean Beach is a key and controversial part of City Planning's "Preservation and Progress Package A."
This modification is an amendment to the Complete Communities Housing Solutions (CCHS) regulations and is designed to counteract a previous ruling that protected Ocean Beach from high-density development.
The original Complete Communities regulations prohibited the use of the density bonus incentives in a designated historical district.
The proposed changes seek to add a specific exception that targets the Ocean Beach area:
Ocean Beach residents in opposition to a proposed high-density project in OB were successful in 2024 with an appeal brought before the Planning Commission .
The proposed Amendment to SDMC §143.1002 proposed by City Planning would change the Municipal Code and targets Ocean Beach and Mission Hills.
Subject: Preservation and Progress Package A.
Report to the Planning Commission, dated 10/30/2025. This is a 112 page PDF document: https://www.sandiego.gov/sites/default/files/2025-10/item-1-pc-25-051-preservation-and-progress-package-a_0.pdf
These modifications would be detrimental to Ocean Beach:
The Planning Commission voted to recommend approval of Package A in November 2025, and Package A is scheduled to proceed for review to the Land Use and Housing Committee and City Council soon after.
OB was previously designated by the City of San Diego as a Historical District.
In the 1960s there was a Jonie Mitchell song called Big Yellow Taxi, which had a line that went like this, “You don’t know what you’ve got until it’s gone, they paved Paradise and put up a parking lot.” I hope we, as a community, and you who are supposed to represent us, champion the essence of OB.
Everyone I know wants something new and beautiful on the corner at Point Loma Ave. and Ebers. Those of us who live within 500 to 1000 feet certainly want that. However, the options we have had in the past included alcohol sales and onsite consumption in a family neighborhood, first the VFW and then a Sports Bar.
Now, the new Complete Communities Housing Solution program devised by the City and the Mayor, for the first time, is attempting to put a 20 unit structure inside of the OB Emerging Cottage District. A structure that requires no parking spaces and provides 3.5 spots for parking for 20+ tenants. A project that has waivers for common grounds and landscaping, and if measured honestly, is above the 30 foot coastal zone limits.
We cannot ignore the need for landscaping. Trees and pollinating plants for bees and birds cannot be left out. The earth cannot live and support us if we don’t support her. Instead of increasing cement structures we should be demanding more planting that will improve soil and air quality which is part of the solution to climate change.
We would support an 8 unit structure that has a well planned, environmentally strong common ground and landscaping.
We do not support paving over this Paradise that we know as Ocean Beach.
Just like protesters since the dawn of time, now is our chance to have our voice heard.
Just like so many before us, there is the chance to win and the chance for peace. A chance to keep OB a small beach town and a part of California history. But wait a minute -- that was already granted to us. Status as a Historical District was already given to us by the City of San Diego and granted in the OB Community Plan.
Wouldn't it be nice to keep the palm trees that are already tall and established at 4705 Point Loma Ave., instead of bulldozing them down? Does every resident and business in the area deserve to now fight for parking? Then there is the drainage and sewage that are already a mess. The list goes on.
In San Diego so much is being overturned, built, remodeled, redesigned, re-schemed. I can barely keep up with it all. There is a time to maintain parts of our past, to preserve history. And that time is now. To maintain what exists and to nurture it. Especially with a beach one block a way and the entire stretch of Sunset Cliffs two blocks away. CEQA has been ignored. Why and how is this happening?
-- Anonymous
What are we going to do about the desperate conditions in San Diego? This City seems to get worse and worse.
We are surrounded by politicians, business men and women, developers, and construction companies whose business agendas do not align with the wishes of many whose homes, families, and lives are HERE.
The existence of 1 little bus stop that is the stop for 1 bus only, the 923, that doesn't even run on the weekends has turned all municipal code for development upside down. 1 little bus has now turned the whole neighborhood upside by making the property at the corner of Ebers and Point Loma Ave. eligible to be a Complete Community. 1 little bus has thrown out the need to uphold CEQA. As the future for our fragile coast line, threatened oceans, and suffering global environment paint a picture of a dismal future in the midst of climate change, CEQA has been thrown out the window with total disregard. These Complete Communities are exempt from CEQA and exempt from environmental studies that every other person in San Diego has to navigate for his or her home and property. And I do ride the bus, for those who may wonder what I could possibly have to say about buses. Sometimes I ride the 923 that starts on Point Loma Ave. and goes down town. Along the way I see the other bus stops that service 5 buses total. I wonder how 1 little bus can over turn so much existing municipal code.
The list goes on and on of the many significant issues associated with high density development in what has been a quaint and comfortable community for decades. And not just quaint and comfortable. A piece of history. Officially designated by the City of San Diego as historical. A slice of history with black and white photos from the early 1900s that capture moments before San Diego was barely a city. Photos showing a small little beach town not so different from how OB is today. It is a classic California beach town that can not be manufactured artificially and must be preserved as a slice of history that would disappear if not maintained. It is a special place where the flower child can still be a flower child and the millionaire can own a million dollar home.
Every last little cottage in 92107 should be considered historical. Every building, every street lamp, every tree, every church, every cafe, every restaurant, every business of service, and every street. Every grain of sand on the beach is part of the fabric of this beach town which is so special for so many reasons, and which so many forces in opposition are threatening to annihilate.
-- Anonymous
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