City Council Unanimously Approves Community Plan, Variance Language Intact

The San Diego City Council voted 9-0-0 today to approve the new Ocean Beach Community Plan, showing their unanimous support for the product of over a decade of community collaboration. The Council overruled the Planning Commission’s recommendation to soften the Community Plan’s language on variances, instead supporting the language recommended by the OB Planning Board, City staff, numerous community organizations, and thousands of concerned citizens.

The OB Planning Board extends its deepest appreciation to all the dedicated volunteers who worked in support of the Community Plan update for over a decade, from its inception through today’s approval. Community involvement has strengthened the Plan and played a crucial role in its success from the beginning.

The Community Plan still must be certified by the California Coastal Commission, which could occur as early as Fall 2014. City staff have already revised the Plan to reflect suggestions from Coastal Commission staff, and a handful of minor issues remain that both staffs expect to resolve in the coming months. When negotiations are complete, the City Council may approve focused revisions to the Community Plan, but those revisions will not affect today’s overall approval.

For more information, please see our Community Plan page.

Come Support the OB Community Plan at City Council: Jul 29 2pm

The Ocean Beach Community Plan will go before the City Council tomorrow – Tuesday, June 29, at 2pm. Please come out to show your support for OB!

The draft Community Plan represents more than a decade of work by community members and City staff, and will be the first update of OB’s community plan in nearly 40 years. While there is broad consensus for the Plan, the City Council does have an important issue to consider: whether to follow the Planning Commission’s recommendation to change the language on variances, or to retain the original language that the community and City staff agreed upon.

Meeting Location:

City Administration Building
12th Floor
202 C Street
San Diego, CA 92101
(map/directions)

For more information, please see our Community Plan page.
 

Community Plan Hearing Postponed; Tentatively Set for July 29

On Monday, June 30, the City Council voted to postpone its hearing of the Ocean Beach Community Plan.

The postponement was in reaction to late comments received from California Coastal Commission staff, who recommended many small changes to the Plan. Ultimately these revisions should help to ensure that the Plan receives quicker certification from the Coastal Commission in the future. However, the late timing of the comments means that City Planning staff need more time to evaluate the recommended changes and revise the Plan prior to the City Council hearing.

The City Council has tentatively rescheduled the OB Community Plan hearing for Tuesday, July 29. However, this is dependent upon the completion of revisions. If issues arise with any Coastal Commission comments that cause further delay, the City Council may need to postpone the hearing again.

Continue to monitor this email list for further updates. For more information, including the Coastal Commission’s recommended revisions, please visit oceanbeachplanning.org/resources/communityplan.