SUBJECT
Title
GENERAL SERVICES - ADOPT A RESOLUTION TO SUMMARILY VACATE A PORTION OF VINE STREET IN THE LAKESIDE COMMUNITY PLAN AREA AND CEQA FINDING (VAC 2025-0002) (DISTRICT: 2)
Body
OVERVIEW
The Real Estate Division of the Department of General Services is processing a request from Neighborhood Healthcare (applicant), owner of Assessor’s Parcel Number 394-064-19 to summarily vacate a portion of the Vine Street public highway easement that encumbers a portion of their property located on the southeast corner of Vine Street and Laurel Avenue in the unincorporated area of Lakeside. The vacated area will be used by the applicant for their construction of a healthcare facility. The property is within the Lakeside Community Plan Area. A summary vacation is a streamlined process by which an excess public road right-of-way (ROW), or a public service easement is abandoned. It may be requested by the County of San Diego (County) or the public if the easement interests are found to be excess to County needs and are not required for the purposes for which they were obtained.
The County Department of Public Works has determined that the portion of Vine Street proposed for vacation is excess and no longer needed for present or future public use because the remaining ROW will meet the minimum required half width for this classification of road. A road vacation often benefits the public by enabling improved use of the land it formerly occupied. The vacation was requested by the property owner and will reduce encumbrances that will allow for better use of the subject property.
Today’s request is for the Board of Supervisors to adopt a resolution to summarily vacate this excess portion of Vine Street and associated recommendations.
RECOMMENDATION(S)
CHIEF ADMINISTRATIVE OFFICER
1. Find the proposed vacation is exempt from review under the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines sections 15301 and 15302 because the action would result in the summary vacation of a public highway easement that is not needed for public road purposes and is a condition of a project to replace an existing medical building with a new building without any significant expansion of facilities or use.
2. Adopt a Resolution entitled: RESOLUTION TO SUMMARILY VACATE A PORTION OF VINE STREET IN THE LAKESIDE COMMUNITY PLAN AREA (VAC 2025-0002) (Attachment C).
3. Direct the Clerk of the Board to record the Resolution for Vacation No. 2025-0002 pursuant to State of California Streets and Highways Code Section 8336.
EQUITY IMPACT STATEMENT
The resolution to partially remove an encumbrance from private land that is no longer needed for public purposes will provide an overall public benefit and improve the use of the land made available by the vacation. The existing surrounding road system will continue to provide adequate access for the property and will not preclude future development.
SUSTAINABILITY IMPACT STATEMENT
The proposed action to summarily vacate a portion of Vine Street contributes to the County of San Diego Sustainability Goal No. 1 to engage the community to partner and participate in decisions that impact their lives and communities, and Goal No. 2 to provide just and equitable access to develop their land. This action will impact the property owner directly by providing improved use of the property by unencumbering a portion of their property.
FISCAL IMPACT
Funds for this request are included in the Fiscal Year 2025-26 Operational Plan in the Department of General Services. If approved, this request will result in estimated costs and revenue of $6,500 to process the proposed vacation. The funding source is a deposit from the applicant. There will be no change in net General Fund costs and no additional staff years.
BUSINESS IMPACT STATEMENT
N/A
Details
ADVISORY BOARD STATEMENT
The Lakeside Community Planning Group convened on September 3, 2025 and recommended approval of the partial vacation of Vine Street (yes-11, no-0, abstain-0, vacant/absent-4) without conditions.
BACKGROUND
The owner of Assessor’s Parcel Number 394-064-19, Neighborhood Healthcare, has requested to summarily vacate a portion of the Vine Street public highway right-of-way (ROW) easement that encumbers a portion of their property. The portion to be vacated was dedicated to the County of San Diego (County) as a 20-foot-wide Easement for County Highway, Road Survey No. 914, recorded December 7, 1962, as File/Page No. 62-209295. The subject property is in the unincorporated area of the Lakeside Community Plan Area (Attachment A) and consists of approximately 0.55 acres. The portion of the property that would be vacated consists of approximately 0.03 acres in total (Attachment B). This action would summarily vacate a portion of Vine Street as described and depicted in Exhibit “A” of Attachment C, and no parcels would be land-locked by the proposed vacation. The County Department of Public Works has determined that the portion of Vine Street public ROW is excess and no longer needed for present or future public use because the remaining ROW width meets the roadway segment’s minimum required half-width ROW for the General Plan Mobility Element roadway classification. This segment of Vine Street is classified as a 2.2E Light Collector with Class IV Bike Lanes, which has a requirement of 37-feet half width. A summary vacation of an existing public highway may be requested by the public if it is found to be excess ROW not required for street or highway purposes. In many cases a road vacation can be a public benefit through improved use of the land made available by the vacation.
The applicant is concurrently processing public improvement plans (PDS2024-LDPIIP-60158), a grading permit (PDS2024-LDGRMJ-30510 and a building permit (PDS2024-COMPRI-000027) with the Department of Planning & Development Services for the construction of a healthcare facility. The proposed healthcare facility requires both a dedication and vacation along the project frontage of Vine Street to conform with the County Centerline Ordinance and the required half-width ROW for the General Plan Mobility Element classification. This includes a 13-feet vacation along APN 394-064-19 and a 37-feet dedication along APN 394-064-01. This segment of Vine Street is classified as a 2.2E Light Collector with Class IV Bike Lanes, which requires 37-feet half width ROW.
This request is to take the necessary actions to summarily vacate a portion of Vine Street pursuant to Public Streets, Highways and Service Easements Vacation Law, California Streets and Highways Code Section 8300 et seq. (Act). Under the Act, the following findings must be made by the Board to approve the proposed summary vacation:
1. The portion of Vine Street is considered excess right-of-way of a street or highway not required for street or highway purposes because this portion of road exceeds the minimum half width ROW needed for this classification of roadway. Therefore, the Board may find that the aforementioned ROW may be summarily vacated pursuant to California Streets and Highways Code section 8334.
2. Pursuant to California Streets and Highways Code section 8334.5, the Board is required to ensure that the vacation will not affect in-place public utility facilities. At the request of Pacific Bell Telephone Company, doing business as AT&T California, an easement, consistent with AT&T’s franchise rights under California Public Utilities Code section 7901, will be reserved for their in-place public utility facilities (Attachment C). Therefore, in place public utility facilities will not be affected by the proposed vacation.
3. Pursuant to California Streets and Highways Code sections 892 and 8314, consideration of the vacated portion of Vine Street for non-motorized transportation use must be reviewed before the vacations can be approved. The County’s Department of Parks and Recreation has determined that the portion of Vine Street to be summarily vacated is not needed for trail purposes.
4. Pursuant to California Streets and Highways Code section 8313 and California Government Code section 65402, the Board shall consider the General Plan prior to vacating a right-of-way. Staff from the County’s Department of Planning & Development Services has reviewed the proposed summary vacation and determined that it is in conformance with the County of San Diego General Plan because it does not conflict with the General Plan’s Mobility Element.
The proposed summary vacation is in the public interest because there is public convenience associated with the removal of an encumbrance from private land that is no longer needed for public road purposes. In this instance there would be a public benefit through improved use of the land made available by the vacation and would not preclude future development.
ENVIRONMENTAL STATEMENT
The proposed vacation of a portion of Vine Street is categorically exempt from environmental review pursuant to Section 15301 of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines, which applies to the minor alteration of existing facilities involving negligible or no expansion of use beyond that which previously existed, and Section 15302 of the CEQA Guidelines, which applies to replacement of existing structures and facilities where the new structure will be located on the same site as the structure to be replaced and will have substantially the same purpose and capacity as the replaced structure. The proposed vacation of excess right-of-way was required as a condition of a project to replace an existing medical building with a new building of substantially the same size and scale on an existing lot. Staff review as detailed in the Notice of Exemption in Attachment D to be recorded for this action shows that none of the unusual conditions identified in Section 15300.2 of the State CEQA Guidelines apply. Since the proposed action would merely remove an encumbrance from title to allow for the replacement of an existing medical facility with no expansion of use, the proposed vacation when considered with the whole of the action to replace the medical facilities, is exempt from CEQA review by Sections 15301 and 15302 of the State CEQA Guidelines.
LINKAGE TO THE COUNTY OF SAN DIEGO STRATEGIC PLAN
The proposed action supports the Community Engagement Strategic Initiative in the County of San Diego’s 2026-2031 Strategic Plan by promoting opportunities for property owners to exercise their right to be civically engaged and find solutions to current and future challenges. The proposed action will summarily vacate a portion of a public highway that is excess to the County’s needs and is unnecessary for public road purposes.
Respectfully submitted,
DAHVIA LYNCH
Deputy Chief Administrative Officer
ATTACHMENT(S)
ATTACHMENT A - Location Map
ATTACHMENT B - Vacation Exhibit
ATTACHMENT C - RESOLUTION TO SUMMARILY VACATE A PORTION OF VINE STREET IN THE LAKESIDE COMMUNITY PLAN AREA (VAC 2025-0002) (DISTRICT: 2), including EXHIBITS “A” and “B”.
ATTACHMENT D - Notice of Exemption