Harmony Grove Village South development approved by Board of Supervisors despite controversy

By Paul Levikow

Photo, left:  Brenda Wright

October 2, 2025 (San Diego) -- The San Diego County Board of Supervisors Wednesday unanimously approved a housing development in the North County community of Harmony Grove, despite objections by several residents who expressed concerns about the lack of a second evacuation route during wildfires.  

The Harmony Grove Village South development will be located west of Interstate 15, south of State Route 78, and south of the Harmony Grove Village community. The site is about one-third of a mile west of Escondido, just south and east of San Marcos, and north of the Del Dios Highlands Preserve.

The new community will encompass 111 acres in the Harmony Grove-Elfin Forest Subarea of the San Dieguito Community Plan Area and include 453 single family and multi-family units, 5,000 square feet of commercial and civic uses, four acres of private and public parks, approximately two miles of public multi-use trails and pathways, and about 35 acres of biological open space. The project will also have an affordable housing component that will include 10% of the homes as affordable housing, consisting of 5% reserved as affordable for low-income households and 5% reserved as affordable for moderate income households

Photo, right:  Rick Bannister

The vote came after more than three-and-a-half hours of public comment were made in person and on the phone by more than 100 speakers, mostly in opposition of the development. Many of the speakers were bused in from North County wearing red T-shirts that said “Don’t Burn US” across the front. More than 180 written comments were submitted by residents in opposition. The 5-0 vote followed the county Planning Commission’s unanimous approval in August and recommendation by the county’s Land Use and Development.

Rick Bannister is on the board of the Harmony Grove Village Homeowners Association.

“The problem is, this subdivision is the worst possible place in San Diego County that you could put it,” Bannister said. “We have a fire trap there.”

David Kovach, managing partner of Harmony Grove Village South, was part of a presentation to the Board of Supervisors.

“The opinion of a handful of private individuals who’ve opposed this project from the beginning, is not remotely equivalent to the 11 government reviews that have occurred from 2018 to today.”

Photo, left:  David Kovach

Ruben Grijalva is a former Director of the California Department of Forestry and fire Protection (CAL FIRE) and California State Fire Marshal. He said more than 50 years working in public safety gives him a unique perspective.

“Wildfires in California are inevitable. With the right planning, construction and community design, we can safely live in fire-prone areas. We aren’t saying don’t build. We’re saying build smarter,” Grijalva said. “The HGVS project not only meets code, it exceeds requirements in several key areas. This is a community that is better, safer and more resilient because of its design. The path forward is not to stop building in wildfire-prone areas, it is to continue building smarter, stronger and safer.”

The HGVS project was originally approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2018. After challenges based on environmental concerns, other legal actions, and revisions to the project plans, it finally made it back before the Board Wednesday.

“This project doesn’t reflect the reality that we live in today, it’s based on outdated assumptions and ignores the hard truth,” Brenda Wright, of Eden Valley, said. “When the next wildfire hits us, and it will, we will likely have to shelter in place when the extra thousand-plus cars are trying to evacuate. That’s not safety. That’s surrender.”

For the most part, opponents based their objections on fire safety and environmental concerns, while proponents touted the affordable housing, the county’s housing shortage and the jobs the project will produce.

Photo, right:  Chief Dave McQuead 

Board Chairwoman Tara Lawson-Remer, who represents the district where the community will be built, said she has received thousands and thousands of comments over the past year or more, hundreds of letters and a petition with 1,300 signatures against the project.

“It is without a doubt, one of the most beautiful parts of San Diego County,” she said. “It is gorgeous, it is special.”

Much of the discussion centered around having a second evacuation route.

Photo, left:  Tara Lawson-Remer

“Based on the current and expected fire behavior, if we were to have an incident in the location and what those impacts are going to be, we would utilize what we call Genasys evac, which is our new system that allows us to systematically evacuate residents from any area that this fire would be impacting,” Rancho Santa Fe Fire Protection District Chief Dave McQuead said. “Eight individual options that could have been used for secondary egress were infeasible.”

Photo, right: Ruben Grijalva