Welcome to Escondido Neighbors United

We are happy you are here. Most recent news:

Escondido Neighbors United is an alliance of engaged residents working for the benefit of rural, urban, and natural communities in the Escondido Area.

We live in a vibrant city in a challenging time. It has never been more important for residents to become involved in our neighborhood and government activities. The stakes could not be higher. Our health, our neighborhoods, our environment, and our future are at risk.

We are local residents who came together to respond to issues and to try to improve our community. We are a diverse group of residents with different backgrounds and life experiences, but we have a lot in common about what kind of neighborhood, community, and world we wanted to live in. 

Escondido Neighbors United works to help residents learn about issues, engage with decision-makers, and act in concert to bring about the changes we need. 

Our Blog: Escondido Neighbors United produces periodic updates on our efforts and information that might be helpful to you.

Taking Action: Many people have concerns about what is happening in Escondido and want to take action. Public engagement is an important part of our core mission. We always look for collaborative solutions to problems and  try to provide constructive options where possible. We want to take action to improve and protect the things we love—like Felicita Park and Creek, our wildlife, and our quality of life.  

Building Community: There are lots of great people and organizations doing wonderful work in our area. Our Helpful Links page will provide contact info on other groups that you may want to support. It also includes contact information for the main governmental entities with whom we advocate for change.  

Learn about our Key Issues. Our priorities for action include:

CHATHAM BARREL YARD

  • One of the worst hazardous waste sites in San Diego County is located in Southwest Escondido. Listed as a state ‘Superfund’ site, the Chatham Barrel Yard was the site of a failed industrial waste recycling plant which left a terrible toxic legacy in our community. After over 30 years of remedial actions and over $30 million spent, pollution from the site is still contaminating local groundwater and Felicita Creek. More must be done.

PROTECTION OF FELICITA PARK AND CREEK

  • Felicita Park is a 53-acre County Park that is heavily used by local families and groups. Felicita Creek runs through the Park and is heavily eroded, suffers from the presence of invasive plants,  and is contaminated from Chatham industrial wastes.  We want to see more attention given to cleanup, restoration, and protection of the Creek.

DESTRUCTIVE DEVELOPMENT

  • Safari Highlands Ranch, recently renamed ‘Harvest Hills’ is a sprawl development we strongly oppose. This project would put people in a high-fire risk zone, worsens already terrible traffic and compromise evacuation for local residents, devastate rare and sensitive habitats, and worsens climate impacts. ENU will work hard to oppose this project. Learn more about how to help stop this project. We are working with other local organizations to Stop Harvest Hills.
  • Oak Creek Development: We oppose the current eminent domain action against Felicita Park by the city of Escondido for the benefit of developers. 

Understanding Issues: Many of the issues ENU works on are complicated and technical. Our Document Archive page strives to be an easy place to find and review documents critical to our issues.

We are all volunteers so please be patient as our website is under development.

If you would like to reach us please contact us at EscondidoNeighbors@gmail.com

Our deepest thanks to the San Diego Environmental Center for its support