If developers want to build small urban infill projects to patch housing gaps, great. But there's no guarantee it will fly. And it may take longer than the "expedite" program for such housing suggests. On …

To some, tiny houses are impractical. But when it comes to a quick way to put roofs over heads in a pandemic, small is beautiful. As zoning codes catch up with reality, tiny houses are …

National City – a Mayor Daley-type political machine To the south of San Diego, within range of the shadows cast by the Coronado Bridge, lies National City. Frequently described as the “backlot" of San Diego, …

The updated community plan for Kearny Mesa includes more than 40 miles of bikeways and numerous paths for pedestrians – but rezoning for the sake of selling cars? Not this time around. As a 30-year …

An appeal of the environmental determination for the Olive Street park in the uptown area was defeated by a unanimous vote of the San Diego City Council last Tuesday. City staff had determined that the …

A 48-lot housing project perched over an impaired lagoon has survived an appeal to the Coastal Commission. The "La Costa 48," to be built just west of I-5 along La Costa Ave in Encinitas, would …

It's sea lion pupping season at La Jolla Cove, right alongside beach re-openings and the human haul out – and social distancing isn't working too well. At least not between humans and pinnipeds. Ellen Shively, …

To keep Del Mar's essential services going amid the pandemic, the city proposed a pause on tree and view complaints through June 30, 2021. It didn't go well. To many residents, defending a scenic view …

In Descanso, 40 miles east of San Diego in the foothills of the Cuyamaca Mountains, internet service is iffy, patchy - and pricey. Residents don't see that changing any time soon. The 5G battles being …

Complete public sleeping ban Imperial Beach has banned camping or sleeping in public with an ordinance that reaches into every last corner, from pavement to median, "including but not limited to dirt or landscaped areas." …

Tomorrow, July 1, a new state law aimed at curbing vehicle emissions takes effect, and the county must change the way it reviews development impacts. Nowhere does it matter more than in the rural areas. …

Almost 66 percent of San Diego transit riders are low income. And living on the edge can mean a $75 ticket for a missed fare will go unpaid, sending a simple violation to a criminal …

A new ordinance regulating the use of drones in Del Mar will take effect on June 17. The rules will "add to guidelines set by the FAA," a city report says. While the Federal Aviation …

As developers see it, Adara is a transitional village, filling empty space between urban Chula Vista and rural Jamul with badly needed housing. The county board of supervisors approved the project a year ago, but …

All along the coast, cliffs are eroding more rapidly due to sea rise. Last August, a sunny day and crowded beach made for the worst outcome when a 30-foot-wide slab of sandstone bluff collapsed onto …

It wasn't on the county planning commission's May 15 agenda, but Lilac Hills Ranch, a proposed subdivision near rural Valley Center, came up - just like it keeps coming back. The county had given the …

Instead of widening I-5, widen the options for transit. That was the idea behind a lawsuit in 2013 that claimed the proposed freeway expansion between La Jolla and Oceanside would lead to “an enormous surge …

Coronavirus has taken a huge bite out of Coronado's tourism income. Hotel stays have plummeted. Restaurants and spas sit empty. Employees are out of work. Now, the town that hasn't always welcomed leisure visitors needs …

In late March when Mesa college shut down under the statewide stay-at-home order, there was only one way to close. "We all left campus like the place was on fire," said president Pamela Luster in …

As restaurants shift from dining in to takeout and delivery, coastal cities face a more insidious sea change: plastic. Encinitas is moving ahead with the last phase of its plastics initiative, this one banning the …

As roads have emptied under the coronavirus shutdown, new turf has opened up for bicyclists. More people are turning to bikes to get outdoors – or just to get around. "We have increased in business …

Every day, San Diego's bus and trolley drivers shuffle thousands of passengers around the county. As essential workers providing service to other essential workers, including those in healthcare, uncertainty clouds their daily routine. Last week …

In many places, temporary bans and restrictions are being placed on short-term rentals to help stop the spread of coronavirus. San Diego, reeling from the travel slowdown, hasn't joined them. On April 4, Newport Beach, …

The local toll of COVID-19 keeps rising. Over six hundred confirmed cases as of Monday, March 30. An unknown number of infected people out and about. Ten million dollars per month and climbing in costs …

Almost a week after the county banned large gatherings and life-as-usual came to a halt, the air has changed. From Otay Mesa to Oceanside, the color-coded maps that show where air pollutants concentrate are green, …

In recent years, National City has made it a little harder to open a regular bar while making it a lot easier to open a craft brewery. The changes began long before. When the city …

Solana Beach seeks electricity options Last month, Solana Beach announced the hunt for a service provider to help launch the county’s first local power program, which aims to curb greenhouse gases. This month, a war …

On a scrubby sweep of land in Otay Ranch, home to the tiny Quino checkerspot butterfly, developers want to build a village. The small colony of endangered butterflies is among the last in the county …

It's everywhere, taking over like the weeds it's meant to kill. Now glyphosate, the bestselling weedbuster of all time, has become a pest. "Everybody in this room has glyphosate and other components in Roundup in …

At a glance, Ocean Breeze Ranch looks like sprawl. The sort of rural project that inspired an initiative on the March ballot to let voters decide if it belongs there. Measure A would apply to …

Jack's island: jewel of Barrio Logan Sometime this year, the city council is expected to decide whether to accept a low-ball $30,000 offer for the nearest thing Barrio Logan has to a flat iron building, …

San Diego may have reduced greenhouse gases by 24 percent over the past decade, but bad air and high disease rates plague certain zip codes, as a new report makes clear. For the first time, …

Every city in the county needs more trees. San Diego alone must triple its canopy to meet climate plan goals, which rely on trees as if they were banks, soaking up carbon in the air …

Urban farms have dotted the county for years, just not in the numbers that can fill every plate. Finding out how many there are, in which cities, and what they are turning out, isn't easy. …

Access to local food is among La Mesa's health, wellness, and climate goals. But for some residents, fresh eggs were just out of reach. While they live in single-family homes, and chickens are allowed in …

Del Mar officials want the trains off the bluffs. Transit officials want the people off the tracks. Neither side is succeeding, and with the number of trains increasing from 50 to 79 this year, the …

Valley Center farmers aren't alone when it comes to the high cost of water. But it could get lonelier and costlier if two neighboring water districts unyoke from the Water Authority to get a fresh …

Last year, San Diego opened the door wide for backyard granny flats, and not the tiny kind on wheels, but units as large as 1,200 square feet. This year brings an even bigger change. Triplexes. …

Lincoln Acres doesn't want to be National City. But sitting on the edge of a growing urban area means sooner or later, Starbucks is coming. To the county, it's a good time to "measurably reduce" …

San Diego beat its 2020 goal for slashing greenhouse gases by two years. But tucked in its climate action plan is one key strategy that barely budged. Boosting the tree canopy by 15 percent. Not …

An expected vote on a ban on natural gas in new buildings took a surprise turn last week, when the Encinitas Environmental Commission announced a change of plans. They would devote the meeting to public …

While other cities in San Diego have stopped using red light cameras, a photo enforcement tool meant to reduce accidents, Del Mar, Solana Beach and Encinitas, which installed the cameras in 2004, are keeping theirs. …

After many delays, the final environmental impact report for Harvest Hills, a hard-fought, high-end housing proposal in rural Escondido, is expected as early as this month. In November, 23 environmental, climate and community groups sent …

National City voters will decide in March if a new ordinance banning the retail sale of dogs, cats and rabbits should be overturned. Like a state law that took effect this year, the city's ban …

Where is a good location for a dog park in Coronado? After years of discussion between city officials and the public, of workshops, a survey, 1,285 written comments and 230 markers placed on a map …

San Diego isn't waiting around for proof that granny flats can fly. The state requires the county to add 171,688 housing units over the next decade, and small cottages can quickly tap infill in idle …

Where are the high paying jobs cropping up in San Diego? North County. And where are many of the big sprawl housing projects proposed? North County. The "two simple numbers" that really count in that …

It's La Mesa's turn to tackle 5G, which might as well be the I-5 coming down their street, as some residents see it. To build the network, AT&T, Verizon and Crown Castle want quick and …

As Del Mar sees it, they've worked tirelessly to amend their local coastal plan to account for sea rise. Flooding, beach loss, and coastal bluff erosion were all considered, and the adaptation plan put into …

San Onofre Nuclear Generating Station may be retired, but to many area residents, it's a sleeping giant. In July, it stirred. That's when its operator, Southern California Edison, was allowed to resume loading spent nuclear …