The League of Women Voters of North County San Diego urges the Coastal Commission to DENY Carlsbad's request to amend the Land Use Plan for Poinsettia Shores, Planning Area F.
North Carlsbad has 10 coastal parks west of I-5, while South Carlsbad, where most residents live, has none. Planning Area F, 11 acres at Ponto Beach, sits in the middle of a six-mile stretch of coastline with no coastal park, and the owner proposes 120 rental townhomes instead. With sea-level rise threatening to erode up to 75% of California's beaches by 2100, this is one of the last undeveloped coastal properties big enough to offset that loss. Please deny the amendment and give residents and our visitors the park they've been asking for.
Statement to the California Coastal Commission. Thurs Oct 8, 2026
Good day, Commissioners.
On behalf of the League, we urge you to deny the City of Carlsbad’s request to amend the Land Use Plan for the Poinsettia Shores Master Plan, specifically for Planning Area F.
The League supports housing development in North County, including lower income housing. We also support increasing the quality and quantity of parks that preserve open space and the area’s natural assets, such as lagoons, watersheds, flood plains, beaches, and open space. We support neighborhood parks with recreational facilities and year-round programs for all ages and interests.
Consider the imbalance. North Carlsbad has 10 coastal parks west of Interstate 5, totaling roughly 37 acres. South Carlsbad — home to most of the city’s residents — has none, despite decades of residential growth.
Planning Area F, 11 acres at Ponto beach, sits in the middle of a six-mile stretch of coastline with no coastal park. The owner proposes 120 rental townhomes, 6,300 sq feet of commercial businesses, and 340 parking spaces.
Residents organized as “People for Ponto” have offered an alternative: a 6-acre grassy park with room for picnics, playgrounds and concerts. It reflects a standard of three acres of parkland per 1,000 residents in the city’s southwest quadrant, where parkland has failed to keep pace with population growth since 2012.
Sea-level rise makes this more urgent. A 2023 U.S. Geological Survey found that between 24 and 75% of California’s beaches could be completely eroded by 2100. Planning Area F is one of the few remaining undeveloped coastal properties large enough to help offset that loss of recreation space due to sea-level rise.
Please deny this request for an amendment to the Land Use Plan for the Poinsettia Shores Master Plan, specifically for Planning Area F.
