Del Mar, fair board discuss proposed 61 units of affordable housing on fairgrounds property

After the Del Mar City Council voted to support a controversial housing ballot measure that might qualify for a future election, the board of directors at the Del Mar Fairgrounds wanted city officials to explain why discussions should continue on a proposed 61-unit affordable housing project on fairgrounds property.

The city needs that project to reach its state-mandated goal of 175 new housing units for the sixth-cycle Regional Housing Needs Allocation, which requires every community throughout the state to provide zoning for new housing from 2021 to 2029 based on factors such as population growth.

Fair board member Mark Arabo said during a July meeting that the city had taken “contradicting” stances: pushing for affordable housing at the fairgrounds while supporting the proposed ballot measure, which would allow local zoning to supersede state housing laws. Critics fear that increased local control would result in more stringent development processes that further exacerbate the housing crisis.

During the fair board’s Sept. 9 meeting, with city officials present, fair board members reiterated their ambivalence for whether they ultimately want affordable housing on fairgrounds property but also agreed that it’s important for both sides to work together on addressing the statewide housing crisis.

Arabo, however, said it was “early and presumptuous” for the city to include the fairgrounds plan in its state-certified housing element, which lays out where the city plans to accommodate its 175 new housing units.

So far, the city and fairgrounds have agreed only to a negotiating agreement that runs through April 2026, with no commitment on the fair board’s part. The agreement gives the nine fair board members unilateral ability to end any possibility of housing on the property.

“We’re just studying it. Five votes could cancel it or pause it at any time,” Arabo said.

He added that the two sides “agree on a lot more than we disagree with. I think everyone’s in alignment that this is an affordable housing crisis and we need to do everything we can to fix it.”

The fair board is also working on a master plan for the long-term future of the fairgrounds and haven’t decided if housing fits into it.

Del Mar City Manager Ashley Jones said the council’s support for the ballot measure was meant to support local control that could lead to more affordable housing, as opposed to current state law that limits how many affordable housing units can be required in a market rate project. Jones also describes some of the other sites where the city is trying to build affordable housing with the city’s 2 square miles.

“We’re trying to maximize these little, tiny postage stamp sites to try to get as many units as we can possibly squeeze on them,” Jones said. “We’re trying to leverage the property that we have, that we actually have site control over, to the greatest degree that we can.”

If the city and fair board fail to come to an agreement on the 61-unit project on fairgrounds property, the city’s housing element says that a north and south bluff property have to be upzoned to accommodate the housing. The north bluff property is also the proposed site of Seaside Ridge, a 259-unit project that has been rejected as incomplete multiple times by the city. The council will consider an appeal by the developer later this month.

During public comment, representatives from the offices of state Sen. Catherine Blakespear and Assemblymember Tasha Boerner spoke in favor of housing on the fairgrounds. The fair board voted to continue discussing the housing proposal at its next meeting.

“I have no doubt that we can find someplace that will not disturb our master plan,” said G. Joyce Rowland, the board’s second vice president, “and I have no doubt that Del Mar is highly motivated to make whatever needs to happen to make that land available to use.”