Developer pauses lawsuit against Del Mar over Seaside Ridge project

DEL MAR, Calif. (FOX 5/KUSI) — A lawsuit against the city of Del Mar over a contested affordable housing project has been put on hold by the developer who brought it, as they wait for a near identical suit in Los Angeles to make its way through the court system.

The suit over the proposed 259-unit mixed-income Seaside Ridge development, which was first filed back in February after multiple rejections by city leaders, argued the city ran afoul of a California housing law called the "builder's remedy" by shutting down the project.

The provision allows certain housing projects, like ones with low- or middle-income units, to proceed with virtually no local interference if the city does not yet have a compliant housing element, which is a state-mandated blueprint outlining plans to meet residents' housing needs.

Courts have affirmed the use of builder's remedy, which was designed to be an accountability mechanism state housing officials could wield against cities to ensure they comply with housing element regulations, on other projects in California.

This includes in the case of a project in the city of La Cañada Flintridge, a small metro along the foothills of the Verdugo Mountains in Los Angeles County, that sought to convert an aged Christian Science church with a five-story building that includes 80 mixed-income units.

Back in March, a state judge ruled that the city violated the builder's remedy provision when it shot down the project without having a state-certified housing element plan. Now, the city is appealing that decision.

The argument posed by the backers of the development project in La Cañada Flintridge mirrors that of Seaside Ridge supporters' claims in its suit against the city of Del Mar.

The developers behind Seaside Ridge contend city officials' three rejections of the project since it was first submitted in 2022 over missing application documents and a "lack of compliance" with local zoning regulation infringed on the builder's remedy law.

At the time, the city of Del Mar did not have a compliant housing element and had no solid affordable housing projects in the pipeline. The plan, which covers the six-year period from 2021 to 2027, did not get approval from state regulators until last year.

“We requested this continuance to give time for the La Cañada Flintridge case to play out and to give the city of Del Mar another chance to reconsider its position before the courts decide for them," said Darren Pudgil, a spokesperson for the Seaside Ridge project.

"The final determination of the suit against La Cañada Flintridge could have far-reaching impacts. Not only could it have a substantial bearing on our project, but also many others throughout California," he continued.

Del Mar officials did not comment on the litigation earlier this year, but they affirmed their rejection of the Seaside Ridge project in a statement pointing to a proposal to place dozens of affordable housing units on about two acres of unused land at the fairgrounds.

The fairgrounds alternative, city officials continued, would have also enabled the city to avoid building on a bluff that some residents argued was too unstable for housing.

Since then however, the fairgrounds project, which was one of the central components of the city's plan to build its state-required 113 low-income housing units, has stalled. Without it, Del Mar does not have a single low-income unit in its housing portfolio.

Late last month, the fairground's operator, the 22nd District Agricultural Association, announced it had suspended negotiations with Del Mar officials over a potential lease to use the land for the affordable housing development.

The board had been skeptical of the proposal from the onset of negotiations, even though county leaders also threw their support behind it.

“While we are supportive of housing at the fairgrounds, that proposal now appears to be in jeopardy,” said Pudgil.  “Seaside Ridge, on the other hand, is ready-to-go and would be completed far sooner than the fairgrounds proposal – several years sooner, in fact.”