Poway City Manager Chris Hazeltine told residents the city cannot block housing projects that comply with state law, even when neighbors object.
Hazeltine laid out the case in an open letter first posted on the city's website on Tuesday, Sept. 22, then republished in the San Diego Union-Tribune on Monday, Oct. 5. The letter responds to complaints voiced at recent Poway City Council meetings about development along the Poway Road corridor.
Three state laws have stripped cities of most local control over housing since 2017, Hazeltine wrote. The Density Bonus Law lets developers add units, bypass height limits and skip city parking rules if a project includes even a small share of low-income housing. Senate Bill 330, the Housing Crisis Act of 2019, bars housing moratoriums, prohibits downzoning and forces cities to approve plans on strict timelines. The Housing Accountability Act prevents the city from denying or reducing the density of a project that meets zoning requirements.
The consequences are real. Hazeltine pointed to Del Mar as a warning. When that city refused a housing project, both the California Attorney General and the developer sued. Voice of San Diego reported that Attorney General Rob Bonta's office sent Del Mar a warning letter in December 2025 over the proposed 259-unit Seaside Ridge project, and the developer had filed its own lawsuit in 2024.
Hazeltine also cited Carlsbad and La Mesa, which he said approved multiple density-bonus projects with no or limited parking because the law gave them no choice. Both cities are now studying solutions, he wrote.
The letter traces Poway's development approach to 1980, when the newly incorporated city chose to concentrate multi-family housing along commercial corridors and keep the rest of town rural. The 2017 Poway Road Corridor Specific Plan, shaped through 18 committee meetings, four council workshops and two public open houses, cut the number of housing units envisioned along the corridor from 2,000 to 1,148.
Private property owners hold the Poway Road parcels, Hazeltine wrote, and they have a right to develop in accordance with the law. He said the city works with applicants to push projects toward better design and more parking.
The letter also highlighted new commercial activity along the corridor, naming Aldi, Harbor Freight, Trader Joe's, Boot Barn and Better Buzz as businesses that have arrived, with Tractor Supply, Dutch Bros and others on the way. The city is installing a new automated traffic management system to handle increased traffic as neighboring Ramona grows, Hazeltine wrote.
Over half of Poway's land remains protected, undeveloped open space, the letter stated.
The open letter drew attention at a Monday, Sept. 28, candidates forum hosted by the Poway Chamber of Commerce at Templars Hall in Old Poway Park, as the San Diego Union-Tribune reported. Mayor Steve Vaus said at the forum that if a project has the legal right to be built, it can be built, or the city risks a costly lawsuit. Councilmember and mayoral candidate Jenny Maeda said the Poway Road Specific Plan needs to be strengthened. "We need to work on the Poway Road Specific Plan to make it bulletproof," Maeda said at the Sept. 28 forum, referring to its setback and building-height requirements.
Poway voters will choose a mayor and council members on Tuesday, Nov. 3. Residents with questions about specific projects can email Hazeltine at [email protected].
