Letter To The Editor: Evidence Shows Lack Of Fairness On Some Single-Family Development Projects

I believe the developer has made a good faith and sincere effort to make sure the new neighborhood does not adversely affect the Castle Forest neighborhood.

By, Griffin Spell

To the Editor:

Two weeks ago the City Council considered a project called Mystic Canyon, a 57-acre single-family development located west of Craddock Ave. and south of Old Ranch Road 12.

After the public hearing and discussion on the item Council split 3-3 (with one member being absent) on a proposed change to single-family zoning. Currently, this project is expected to return for Council consideration in the near future.

Since I first became involved in city politics over a decade ago, I and many in our community, on and off the dais, have pushed for more single-family housing options in San Marcos. I do know there are some existing concerns with drainage and flooding in the nearby neighborhood.

One of the citizens who spoke about concerns with flooding on Ramona Circle is a personal friend, and I trust in his sincerity. I am hopeful that, as the city will be making substantial investments in drainage and flood medication over the next few years, these issues can be addressed.

I support the Mystic Canyon development, and I believe the developer has made a good faith and sincere effort to make sure the new neighborhood does not adversely affect the Castle Forest neighborhood.

They have worked to make sure their development is complainant with our new Code SMTX, and we as a city need to make sure we are trusted to follow and enforce our Land Development Code and Comprehensive Plan.

At the council meeting yesterday, changes to the process for Preferred Scenario Map Amendments (PSAs) were discussed. These are changes to the Comprehensive Plan, Vision San Marcos, which the council first adopted in 2013.

The evidence has shown that the current process is not even-handed, and is unintentionally biased against small and medium-sized development projects such as Mystic Canyon.

While this has not directly affected Mystic Canyon, I believe fixing these rules is an important step the council will need to take in the next few months to support reasonable and compatible development in San Marcos.

Griffin Spell

San Marcos