Grand Jury Criticizes Approval of Project

The city failed to follow its own building codes and growth plan when it approved a 116-home subdivision on land formerly owned by Councilman Dean Maulhardt’s family, the county grand jury reported Tuesday.

As a result, developer Griffin Industries was allowed to build the Seabreeze housing project on lots far smaller than the city minimum, with frontyards and sideyards too small to meet city codes, the grand jury reported.

Although declaring the approval of the project improper, the grand jury report did not say it was illegal. Nonetheless, city officials acknowledge the mistakes and say they will not be repeated.

“We are a nation and city of laws, and we have to follow them,” said Mayor Manuel Lopez. “We can’t do whatever we want to expedite things.”

Grand jurors did not criticize Maulhardt, who said in an interview that he abstained during every vote on the project. But they did chastise the city Planning Commission and City Council.

According to the report, 65 of 84 lots examined by the grand jury were smaller than the 2,625-square-foot minimum for single-family homes, and the smallest lot was only 1,107 square feet.

“As appointed and elected officials, respectively, they are responsible to the voters to ensure that approved development is consistent with both the general plan and the city code,” the grand jury said in its report.