Also serving the communities of De Luz, Rainbow, Camp Pendleton, Pala and Pauma

FCPG prefers homes to complete Peppertree Park

The Fallbrook Community Planning Group was asked to choose whether a 6.7-acre undeveloped segment of the Peppertree Park planned development should have homes or commercial development, and the planning group expressed its preference for additional housing.

A 12-0 planning group vote May 17 expressed a preference for the residential option although the planning group also called the commercial option acceptable if the residential development cannot be built. Steve Brown, Lee DeMeo, and Jeniene Domercq could not participate in the meeting when that item was heard.

Peppertree Park has been in the processing stage since 1985. In August 1991, the San Diego County Board of Supervisors approved a specific plan, rezone, tentative parcel map, and Major Use Permit for the 162.9-acre site. The development as originally approved would have built 267 dwelling units, which equates to a density of 1.65 dwelling units per acre. Peppertree Village VI, LLC, has constructed Peppertree Park in phases.

"We put together a master plan with different lot sizes," said Peppertree Village VI, LLC, Principal and Manager Duane Urquhart.

Eight phases have been completed. The remaining two phases total 19.7 acres. "Those areas were an anomaly," Urquhart said.

Due to their proximity to South Mission Road those 19.7 acres currently have commercial zoning. "Our first thought was to go ahead and apply for commercial use," Urquhart said.

The Grand Tradition is immediately north of the Peppertree Park land. Urquhart and Grand Tradition President and CEO Don McDougal worked together to realign Pepper Tree Lane so that traffic would be separated from the event venue. The county's Planning Commission has the authority to modify a tentative map or a Major Use Permit in the absence of a rezone or a plan amendment and, in November 2007, the Planning Commission approved a realignment of Pepper Tree Lane. The economic downturn shortly afterward halted the plan's progress.

Unit 9 under both options would have 65 detached single-family residences on those 13 acres. One option for Unit 10 would be to build 67 condominium units on those 6.7 acres; 11 residential buildings would be complemented by a clubhouse.

"They're within easy walking distance of commercial facilities," Urquhart said.

What specifically would be built on the 6.7 acres if the commercial option is chosen is to be determined. Possibilities include a hotel and a winery.

Under either option, the entire 19.7-acre site would include ponds, which in addition to aesthetic value would provide a source of water for firefighting helicopters.

In March, the county's Department of Planning and Development Services issued a scoping letter. "There are a lot of issues that need to be resolved," said PDS Project Manager Nick Gustafson. "The applicant and the county disagree on some of those points."

One of the items involves the proposed continuation of Pepper Tree Lane to connect with McDonald Road. The other issue involves the flight pattern of Fallbrook Community Airpark.

All Peppertree Park home buyers must sign a disclosure statement that flights out of and to Fallbrook Community Airpark will involve aircraft flying above Peppertree Park lots and generating noise which can be heard by Peppertree Park residents. "It's a recorded document that is put on those properties," said planning group member Kim Murphy, who is a Realtor.

"The whole Peppertree project has a navigation easement over it," Urquhart said.

The Airport Land Use Commission has expressed concern about the project's proximity to the airport. "The flight path is completely outside the boundaries of the project," Urquhart said. "This is an arbitrary safety zone the Airport Land Use Commission added on."

Urquhart noted that in 2005 the annual operations count at Fallbrook Community Airpark was 35,000. The operations (which include touch-and-go landings as well as actual flights into and from the airport) was expected to increase to 50,000 annually by 2025, but the 2020 annual operations figure was 20,000.

"These safety zones in my view are arbitrary," Urquhart said.

Murphy noted that the median price of homes in the Fallbrook area is approximately $700,000. "We really need residential property," she said.

Planning group member Michele McCaffery expressed concern about residents and guests parking on local streets. "There is never enough parking," she said. "I'd like to see in the plan a lot of parking."

Urquhart noted that the Peppertree Park units will be designed to avoid on-street parking. "That will be part of the specific plan," he said.

Planning group member Roy Moosa noted that Urquhart would not build a project on which Peppertree Village VI, LLC, would lose money. "There is no way Duane would build commercial unless it was economically feasible," Moosa said.

After Urquhart and the county concur on a design, the specific plan will return to the planning group for a recommendation.

Author Bio

Joe Naiman, Writer

Joe Naiman has been writing for the Village News since 2001

 

Reader Comments(0)