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Upcoming Amendments to San Diego's Historic District Policy
September/October 2018
By A. Hayes
 Amendments to the Procedure on Establishing Historic Districts for the City of San Diego was discussed at the Historical Resources Board (HRB) Policy Subcommittee meeting in August. Highlights of the revision propose to increase noticing to property owners, change the decision maker for district appeals to the Planning Commission, and add a fourth appeals finding for a de novo (or new) hearing. Read the strikeout.
Headed to the full HRB in October, the increased noticing is a clear benefit, but there are grave concerns that the de novo appeal finding—"the information provided to the board did not support findings for the designation"—weakens the existing ordinance and opens it up to the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Since a majority of the amendments require a change to the Land Development Code, this will ultimately require approval from City Council, possibly in early 2019.
Please email Kelley Stanco (kstanco@sandiego.gov), staff to HRB, to voice your support for the current historic district ordinance and concern over the introduction of a de novo finding in this revision. Thank you.
Photo by A. Hayes
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