DATE:
October 21, 2025
11
TO:
Board of Supervisors
SUBJECT
Title
AUTHORIZATION TO NEGOTIATE PURCHASE OF PROPERTY FOR THE TROY STREET SLEEPING CABINS PROJECT AND ADOPTION OF A RESOLUTION DECLARING THE LAND WILL BE USED FOR A PUBLIC PURPOSE (DISTRICT: 4)
Body
OVERVIEW
On October 19, 2021 (15) and February 8, 2022 (14), the San Diego County Board of Supervisors (Board) approved recommendations to advance Compassionate Emergency Solutions and Pathways to Housing (CESPH) efforts for people experiencing homelessness in the unincorporated areas of San Diego County. Subsequently and as part of these efforts, on July 16, 2024 (21), the Board directed staff to enter a lease with State of California Department of Transportation (Caltrans) and develop the Caltrans owned site located at 2800 Sweetwater Road in Lemon Grove (Property) into a non-congregate, emergency housing facility for people experiencing homelessness.
The planning, assessment, design and pre-construction activities have been completed, and the County of San Diego (County) is ready to break ground as soon as the rights to the Property can be secured. Staff have been engaging with Caltrans in efforts to execute a lease. The Property was initially purchased by Caltrans using federal grant funds, which requires the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) to approve the use of this site. Caltrans recently informed the County that the required lease approval by the FHWA was denied, and the only viable path forward would be for the County to purchase the Property directly from Caltrans, under certain conditions, at an estimated price of approximately $2 million.
Today's item requests the Board to authorize the Director, Department of General Services, to negotiate the purchase of the Property from Caltrans and adopt a Resolution declaring that the Property will be used for public purposes. Staff will return to the Board to request approval to post the required notices and authority to complete the p...
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