CBLG Files Petition Challenging the City’s Broad Practice of Processing All ADU Density Bonus Program Projects as Ministerial, in Violation of CEQA, Including a 136-Unit ADU Project in Pacific Beach

On August 4, 2025, Chatten-Brown Law Group filed a petition on behalf of Neighbors for a Better Pacific Beach, challenging the City of San Diego’s broad pattern and practice of processing all projects as ministerial (i.e., without discretionary approvals and adequate review) under the ADU Density Bonus Program. In particular, CBLG alleges that the City is improperly processing a 136-unit project in Pacific Beach as ministerial, despite the fact that the site sits atop a significant historical Kumeyaay coastal village site, within a Very High Fire Hazard Severity Zone, and along a steep hillside necessitating the application of the City’s Environmentally Sensitive Lands Regulations.

​The California Environmental Quality Act prohibits an agency from treating all projects under a program as ministerial where even some of those projects may require the application of discretion. The City’s ADU Density Bonus Program does not supersede the City’s Land Development Code, which requires discretionary processing in instances where important resources are located on a project site. Yet, the City has established a pattern and practice of treating all such projects ministerially and failing to exercise its discretion and apply its Municipal Code when required.
The 136-unit “Chalcifica” project is proposed by SDRE Homebuyers, a development firm behind several highly controversial ADU projects that rely on the ADU Density Bonus Program and are functionally apartment complexes located on single-family residential parcels. The project is currently undergoing a ministerial approval process, despite the fact that there are well-documented, significant tribal cultural resources onsite, as well as steep hillsides and high fire risk. CBLG alleges that the processing of this project as ministerial is in violation of CEQA and seeks to compel the City to exercise its lawful discretion in determining whether to approve or deny the project. 

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