SAN DIEGO — What was once a single-family home in the Talmadge area, now houses six units on one property. It's the first project to take advantage of San Diego’s density bonus program that was passed by the city council in 2020.
Mayor Todd Gloria believes this is a piece of the puzzle to help solve San Diego's housing crisis, but not everyone agrees.
“We, particularly, are not against ADU or even a junior ADU plus an ADU, but that goes above and beyond what anyone can actually consider as coherent,” said Carlos Arteaga, who lives right next door to the project.
Carlos says the new structure strips them of any privacy, will make parking in the area more difficult, and while the current residents haven't caused any problems, he worries turnover will change that.
“These people are not there forever. They'll move out eventually. You may get 2, 3, 4 friends from San Diego State. Sophomores - and you know the story,” said Arteaga.
The property on 49th street is a mix of units, including one studio, four one-bedroom apartments, and the main house, which has three bedrooms.
“Our city has a housing crisis,” said Daniel Shkolnik, the project’s developer. “We have an affordability crisis. We need to bring online units.”
Shkolnik says these types of projects will keep San Diegans in San Diego by creating nice housing that's more affordable for middle income earners, including teachers and nurses.
“It's the people who make our society function and people who are the fabric of San Diego,” said Shkolnik.
But neighbors on both sides of this new complex have signs in their yard fighting against what they call “backyard granny towers.”
Arteaga other concern is that this is just the start. He fears that eventually several of these projects will go up on his block.
And yours too. But Shkolnik doubts that will happen.
“It's not easy to find the right piece of land that's going to work,” he said. “It's not easy to build these projects. It's a very expensive, cumbersome project. It takes a long time.”
Rents in the new complex start at $2,250 and all the units leased out quickly.
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