History - Process & Schedule
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History
The County of San Diego's General Plan Update is a multi-year project which began in August 1998, then referred to as General Plan 2020, to update the San Diego County General Plan. The current general plan for the unincorporated County has not been comprehensively updated since 1979 and has been the subject of substantial modification over the years. During this period, considerable growth and change has taken place, leading to the incorporation of a number of cities and to annexation of lands on the periphery of the unincorporated area. Over the development of the plan, County staff has met with community groups and residents numerous times in various planning efforts, for more information on these efforts visit Project Milestones.
Today, the unincorporated area of the County is comprised of 84% of the total land area of San Diego County and is estimated to support 16% of the entire County's population of approximately 2.8 million inhabitants. According to the San Diego Association of Governments (SANDAG), the population of the entire County is estimated to grow to approximately 3.6 million by the year 2020 and the existing population of the unincorporated area (442,919) is projected to grow to approximately 627,142.
The County of San Diego's General Plan Update will form a framework into which the unincorporated communities will grow, shaping the future of San Diego County. The end product will be a document that protects the environment, accommodates population growth, and links that growth to the provision of required facilities and services.
The County of San Diego has selected the consulting firm PBS&J to work with the General Plan Update team.
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Process & Schedule
The General Plan Update will establish future growth and development patterns for the unincorporated areas of the county. When compared to the existing General Plan, this update will focus population growth in the western areas of the County where infrastructure and services are available. The General Plan Update will replace the existing General Plan, including all regional elements and all community or subregional plans. Other components of the General Plan Update includes adjustments to community planning area boundaries, replacing residential lot size requirements with a density-based approach, and identifying items that must be changed within a reasonable timeframe following plan adoption to maintain consistency between the General Plan and County ordinances or policies. Agricultural Preserves will be modified to reflect lands under Williamson Act contracts.
The General Plan Update is guided by three regional advisory committees: the Steering Committee, Interest Group and City Planning Directors.
The Steering Committee and Interest Group guide and assist in the preparation of the General Plan Update by making policy recommendations to staff, the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. In this way, the communities and interested parties, through frequent work sessions, have been involved in the planning process from the identification of desired goals, policies, and standards through the preparation of a draft future population distribution alternative and land use map for the unincorporated area of the County.
In addition to the Steering Committee and Interest Group Committee, the Planning Directors from each of the 18 cities have met regularly on issues relating to proposed goals, policies, and standards. Their views have been reported to the Steering Committee and Interest Group Committee and have lead to modifications to these goals, policies, and standards. Preliminary goals and policies have been reviewed by the Planning Commission and endorsed by the Board of Supervisors.
The evaluation of regional alternatives represents an important threshold in the planning process. Once a preferred regional alternative has been selected as a context for the general plan, critical elements such as land use, circulation, open space, conservation, public facilities, housing, safety, and noise will be prepared. Concurrently, local community plans will be prepared in the context of the selected regional plan. An environmental impact report analyzing the effect of the plan will be developed and ultimately, the draft general plan will be presented at public hearings. After modifications arising from the public review process, the San Diego County's General Plan Update will be finalized by the County Board of Supervisors and become the guiding instrument for future development in the unincorporated areas of the County.
The current Project Schedule has the General Plan Update going to the Board of Supervisors for adoption in Fall 2010.
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