Background

The 2022/2023 San Diego County Grand Jury (Grand Jury) reported in May 2023 that only 1 of 19 cities in the SANDAG region have met their Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) targets in the 5th Cycle (2013-2021). The City of Encinitas is one of the cities that has not met its RHNA target. The Grand Jury recognizes that the biggest constraint to housing construction is available land and funding. The Grand Jury researched this issue by examining how other areas of the State and the Country have addressed these constraints. The Report findings included the following recommendations for cities:

• 23-02: Consider working with school districts and community college districts within their jurisdiction to identify developable land for housing owned by the districts within their boundaries
• 23-03: Consider working with local religious institutions within their jurisdiction to identify land developable for housing, particularly affordable housing 

 View Full Report Here

Affordable Housing Roundtable 

On July 27, 2023, City staff hosted an affordable housing roundtable discussion with representatives of local school districts and religious institutions. The roundtable resulted from the recommendations of the May 2023 Grand Jury Report (Recommendations 23-02 & 23-02). The meeting PowerPoint and minutes can be found below:

• View Roundtable PowerPoint
• View Roundtable Meeting Minutes

Staff responded to all recommendations highlighted in the Grand Jury Report with the appropriate findings, including cooperating with school districts and religious institutions. The findings of the affordable housing roundtable were highlighted in the response.

The City’s response to the San Diego County Grand Jury was approved by the City Council on August 9, 2023. The Agenda Report can be found  here.