City of Poway v. City of San Diego (155 Cal. App. 3d 1037, 1984)

Opinion

BUTLER, J.

The trial court denied the petition of the City of Poway to set aside the City of San Diego’s approval of Pardee Construction Company’s project called Sabre Springs. The plan contemplates 5,290 dwelling units, a population of 12,000 people with provisions for industrial and commercial facilities, schools and a mobilehome park, all to be phased in over a period of years.

I

The Sabre Springs planning area is located about 17 miles north of the central business district of San Diego and 12 miles south of Escondido. It lies athwart Poway Road and abuts Interstate 15 on the west and Poway to the east. Poway Road is the principal access from 1-15 to and beyond Po-way. Nearby existing communities include Penasquitos East to the west and Mira Mesa to the southwest. Two adjacent communities are planned for development in the 1980’s: Miramar Ranch North to the south and Rancho Carmel to the north. All of these communities including Sabre Springs are situated in the “1-15 corridor.”

In the latter 1970’s, San Diego formulated a growth management policy culminating in the 1979 progress guide and general plan. Sabre Springs is within the “planned urbanizing area” in which development is required to occur under a development or a community plan. The 1979 general plan designates Sabre Springs for residential development with community, commercial and recreation areas north of Poway Road.

Pardee hired Project Design Consultants to prepare a community plan for the Sabre Springs project. The consultants worked with San Diego’s Planning Department. A draft of the plan was circulated. Pardee retained Regional Environmental Consultants, a private firm, to prepare an environmental impact report (EIR) which issued March 30, 1982, addressing the environmental impact of the project. Following public hearings and revisions, the planning commission on July 1, 1982, approved and recommended adoption by the city council of the EIR, the Sabre Springs Community Plan, and amendment of San Diego’s general plan to incorporate the Sabre Springs Community Plan.

San Diego noticed a hearing for August 3, 1982, to consider these matters and proposed rezonings to accommodate the proposed development. The hearing was continued to August 10, 1982, and the city council approved the EIR, adopted the community plan, amended the general plan and rezoned the property.

Poway’s petition for a writ of mandate is styled “administrative mandate” and sought