California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a settlement agreement regarding the Otay Ranch Village 13 project, addressing concerns about wildfire and greenhouse gas impacts. The agreement modifies the proposed housing development to include the same number of units within a more compact area, reducing wildfire ignition risk and protecting approximately 300 additional acres of open space. The settlement allows the developer to apply to build up to 2,750 housing units within this compact area, increasing housing opportunities while minimizing environmental impacts.
The agreement also involves a payment of nearly $2 million in attorneys’ fees to the California Department of Justice and environmental groups that challenged the County’s approval of the project for violating the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). Joining Attorney General Bonta in this settlement are Sierra Club, Center for Biological Diversity, Endangered Habitats League, California Native Plant Society, Preserve Wild Santee, and California Chaparral Institute.
“From Los Angeles to San Diego, we are seeing devastating wildfires ravaging our communities right before our eyes. We can no longer ignore the realities of climate change,” said Attorney General Bonta. “Today’s settlement recognizes that environmental protection and housing go hand in hand, aiming to create more resilient, sustainable homes while reducing wildfire risk and protecting our environment.”
The settlement includes measures such as providing continuous surveillance for wildfire ignitions, an educational program on wildfire prevention for residents, installing sprinkler systems meeting National Fire Protection Association Standard 13 on multi-family buildings, achieving net-zero energy design for all single-family residential and commercial buildings, requiring all buildings to be fully electric without natural gas infrastructure installation, and creating a Greenhouse Gas Mitigation Fund of at least $15 million for emissions reduction projects in San Diego County.
The Otay Ranch Village 13 project site is located in southwestern San Diego County in an area historically affected by wildfires. The County approved a Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) on November 18, 2020. The Attorney General’s lawsuit contested the FEIR's failure to address adequately wildfire risks despite acknowledging high potential hazards around the site and its insufficient analysis or mitigation of increased vehicle trips and greenhouse gas emissions from the project. Under the settlement terms, litigation will be stayed until a revised project complying with these terms is approved by the County.
A copy of the settlement is available online.