Housing Unlocked: What the County Is Planning for Bonita-Sunnyside Housing and Density

Susan Heavilin
4 days ago
5 min read

At the April 7, 2026 Sweetwater Community Planning Group (SCPG) meeting last Tuesday, there was a non-action (no vote) item titled "Housing Unlocked: Options to Reduce Zoning Constraints on Housing Development".

It was presented by San Diego County Planning and Development Services Senior Planner Geoffrey Plagemann, Planning Manager Joshua Menvielle and Associate Planner Alexa Kerr.

Below is a copy of the presentation.

Pay close attention as to what is planned for the Bonita-Sunnyside community.

This slide shows you exactly how it will be implemented. First they will "update" the Zoning Ordinance or change the zoning in Bonita-Sunnyside as it currently exists. Once that is achieved, the housing will be "unlocked" and they can build, build, build.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word amendment as "a minor change or addition designed to improve a text, piece of legislation, etc." First they explain how they plan to unlock housing amounts by using alternative zoning options than what is currently in use. Then they state that they are not amending the General Plan but there is no reason to change the zoning if they are not planning to change the General Plan. The General Plan defines future home construction in Bonita-Sunnyside.

If you're not familiar with the term EIR, it stands for Environmental Impact Report and is used in land-use planning. It does not require a separate EIR because building houses does not usually have an impact on the environment.

The essence of this slide in a nut shell? They want to build out Bonita-Sunnyside and are looking for ways to do so without alarming the population who currently live there. By showing us this presentation, they can say that we have been informed.

The key aspects of this slide that you want to pay attention to are the first three: 3.1.3.A, 3.1.1.C and 3.1.1.D.

The second one is the biggie. Their goal is to change zoning as to achieve MAX DENSITY in Bonita-Sunnyside.

You had to listen carefully to hear the word "developers" casually sprinkled into the presentation. What I heard indicated that they are already in conversation with developers who are eyeing our little rural, unincorporated area as a future big build.

Associate Planner Alexa Kerr presented 3.1.3.A and most of the presentation was spent here. It went on and on . . . I believe to lose the interest of the SCPG Board and lull them to sleep.

This slide was the one that caused me to really start to pay attention. The lecture droned on about how you could build an extra story on new construction as long as it kept within the range of existing height regulations. The San Diego County Zoning Ordinance states "Typically, residential areas are limited to 35 feet, though this can vary based on specific zone designators."

So basically you could drop the height of your ceilings to get another story on top and probably change from a standard 2/12 pitch roof to a flat roof.

My opinion is that flat roof dwellings look more like apartment buildings than homes. Is this a look we want in Bonita-Sunnyside? And why is this even being addressed? Has the County ever stopped anyone from building however many stories they want on their home if it stays below the 35-foot limit?

PAY ATTENTION! They kept repeating that it would not affect DENSITY or the number of people and cars at each residence. Then what was the purpose of putting it in the presentation? I believe that it is currently allowed. Many times when people tell you something will not happen, something will happen.

This slide outlined building different types of homes on a property. I do not understand how changing from a single-family home to a duplex (two family) or triplex (three family) home does not affect DENSITY. The density would only remain the same if you're a multi-generational family currently living in a single-family home and you wanted to move part of your family next door to a duplex or triplex.

This was another eye-opening slide. You decide to build triplexes (all next to each other) instead of three single-family homes on different sections of your acre property. Is this trying to set us up for the next zoning change that allows for filling in empty land? Just wondering.

If it doesn't make sense or achieve a goal, you've got to ask what the scheme for the future is. We should all be alert to these "considerations" before it's too late to turn back.

This one discusses reducing or removing setbacks BETWEEN houses . . . . so basically you would be able to hear everything going on in your neighbor's house. Many of us have lived in that type of situation in the past and chose to leave it.

Boardmember Mark Kukuchek spoke about a previous neighborhood that he had lived in where the side wall of the neighbor's house was the wall for his yard.

I guess if the kiddo next door wanted to bounce his ball against the wall of your home, there would be nothing you could do about it because that would be his wall also.

I would say that many people move to Bonita-Sunnyside for the extra space and privacy it provides.

FAR is the ratio calculation of home area-to-property area. It's discussed a lot in built-up communities, trying to squeeze in more houses. This slide discusses removing garages and accessory structures from that calculation. Just another way to get more housing on less land.

Open space on roof-tops . . . we could eavesdrop on what the whole neighborhood is up to! This idea is being discussed (roof-top space on top of an office building) in the Nestor project located on Bonita Road. Many people don't think it's such a good idea.

Here's that DENSITY word again.

From Wikipedia, "The Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) is the California state-mandated process within the housing element of its General Plan, to determine how much housing must be planned for each jurisdiction (city or unincorporated county) according to Housing Element Law to meet 'projected and existing' housing needs at a variety of affordability levels. Based on demographic data, the state calculates housing need in coordination with each region's planning body, known as a Council of Governments (COG). Once the state and the COG agree, the COG is responsible for the allocation among all jurisdictions within that region through a RNHA Plan . . . The cycle repeats every eight years. Jurisdictions which fail to adequately accommodate projected growth as determined by HCD are subject to fines from $10,000 per month to $600,000 per month."

CONSIDERATION: Require to build at least 70% of the density provided by the General Plan.

Prefabricated and 3D printed construction in Bonita-Sunnyside?

Tiny Homes on Wheels as primary use?

Expanded exemptions? Oxford defines this as "state of being free from an obligation or liability imposed on others." So this could become the norm rather than a special situation?

The Planners said it could be take place by year-end or early 2027. The last stops are the Planning Commission and Board of Supervisors. Neither of these two groups were our friend when the huge Storage Facility on Quarry Road was appealed by the community.

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These last two slides summarize the presentation.

"What we are considering" can be interpreted as "What we are planning to do to your community." As early as the end of this current year.

Boardmember Michael Garrod stood up and stated "This will not cause more density." The statement continued into a higher fervor as some of the Boardmembers disagreed with him.

"California has experienced a significant, sustained, and industry-leading exodus, with net domestic migration losses of roughly 216,000 to over 250,000 people annually, ranking it highest in the nation for out-migration for six consecutive years through 2025."—AI overview

So why the constant push to build more homes that many cannot even afford to purchase?

In case you'd like to see how our community is currently zoned, you can take a look at this map.