Rancho Santa Fe

Leaders of a movement favoring the incorporation of Rancho Santa Fe have decided that boundaries for the proposed city should not extend beyond the limits of the community’s protective covenant.

Drawing relatively narrow boundaries reflects cityhood supporters’ desire to “keep our community small, just like it is today,” said Ed Foss, chairman of the citizens’ group favoring incorporation of the posh area of about 4,200 residents.

Foss and his coalition announced the proposed boundaries at a public meeting attended by about 150 people Monday night. They also launched a petition drive to gather the 1,000 signatures necessary to qualify the incorporation measure for the June, 1987, ballot.

The area proposed for inclusion in the new city represents about 10 square miles of property covered by the Rancho Santa Fe covenant, a collection of strict rules adopted in 1927 that regulate everything from landscaping to a homeowner’s right to hang laundry in public view.

The group also defined a proposed sphere of influence, which delineates neighboring areas that ultimately may be annexed by a city. The sphere of influence mirrors the Rancho Santa Fe Community Services District and stretches west to the border of the proposed city of Solana Beach.