Escondido Neighbors United

ENU filed a letter today with the city of Escondido seeking additional information, restrictions, and investigations related to a proposed Tentative Parcel Map change on a property adjacent and to the west of the former Chatham Barrel Yard site. We will keep you posted on the city’s actions.

ENU likes to highlight the wonderful parts of our community. Here are two to enjoy this month.

Himalaya Chulo is an amazing restaurant of Indian and Nepalese food with a new Escondido location. Located at 3410 Del Lago Blvd, Ste 103 Escondido. Great for vegetarians and vegans too! Check it out.

Holiday Market on the Plaza

A wonderful way to get your holiday shopping done AND support local small businesses and artists and artisans. Roller skating too! Don’t miss it!

Weekends, December 5–21, 2025

Fridays: 4–8 p.m Saturdays: 12–8 p.m Sundays: 12–4 p.m.
Location: Maple Street Plaza

Celebrate the season with markets, music, skating, and more
right in the heart of downtown.

The Market on the Plaza brings together local makers and artists for three festive weekends of holiday shopping and celebration. Explore handmade goods, homemade treats, and original art in a lively pedestrian plaza that connects City Hall, the California Center for the Arts, and Historic Downtown Escondido.

Enjoy the season surrounded by music, lights, and community cheer and make Downtown Escondido part of your holiday tradition!

Another monitoring event, more findings of contamination in the ground, surface, and now soil vapors related to the contamination from the Chatham Barrel Yard. We were very concerned to learn about the presence of the Chatham Barrel Yard Chemicals of Concern (COC) in soil vapor samples collected in the three most downstream soil vapor monitoring locations along Felicita Road.

Please find the comment letter sent to DTSC on February 21, 2025.

ENU members are asking for characterization of the extent of the soil vapor plume which (minimally) runs along Felicita Road next to the Park, posting of Felicita Creek in the public part where contamination is ‘daylighting’ into the surface water, and other matters.

ENU is also raising concerns about the approval of the drainage ‘improvements’ that will increase and concentrate water flows into the Creek from the Oak Creek development.

The County and the city of Escondido came to an agreement on an easement after the city filed for imminent domain over areas of our County Park to accommodate the Oak Creek drainage increases. Copy is here.

Section G of the Easement admits “the improvements will allow a greater volume of water to flow under Felicita Road…” but, goes on to make assumptions that increasing and concentrating flows will “not adversely impact Felicita Park.”.  We do not agree, but either way, the document does not state that the contamination plume or the creek will not be impacted. We expect that the Oak Creek development will continue to add significant loads to the creek and may impact the behavior of the plume.

Bottom-line, the heavy rains have started and the flows are huge, as is the sediment transport. Significant continuing and visible sediment loading into Felicita Creek south of Via Rancho continues to occur. We are concerned that this may alter the movement of the contaminant plume and/or contamination. We request that DTSC conduct an independent analysis of whether this increased sedimentation is affecting contaminant transport or exposure risks from contamination in and under the creek. 

One of the most important actions to protect wildlife and the habitats upon which they depend is moving forward. After years of delay, there is now progress on the North County Multiple Species Conservation Plan. (NC-MSCP)

The NC-MSCP is a voluntary agreement and plan between the County of San Diego and the State and Federal Natural Resource Agencies. Its purpose is to provide assurances and streamline development projects in certain areas while ensuring that wildlife and habitat are effectively protected, monitored, and managed in reserves that will allow them to thrive into the future. There are already several MSCPs (some are Multiple Habitats Conservation Plans or MHCP) underway or adopted in the County.

The creation, adoption, and implementation of an effective and robust NC-MSCP is a high priority for Escondido Neighbors United and most conservation organizations in the region.

Here is where you can learn more about the plan. San Diego County North County MSCP

If you are interested in this project, you can sign up on the County website for Conservation Updates. Here are two comment letters filed recently from various organizations.

Endnagered Habitats League comment letter

Wildlife and Habitat Conservation Coalition comment letter

We love to celebrate and share new ‘finds’ in Escondido. A wonderful local business to be sure to try out is Salty Lemonade at 306 W. El Norte Pkwy, Suite K in Escondido. Their website is here https://www.saltylemonade.com/.

Salty Lemonade is so refreshing and full of healthy enzymes as it is a fermented drink. Don’t miss it! Salty Lemonade will also deliver pre-made drinks to your home. There is the Classic, Hibiscus, and other amazing drinks. They also have refillable growlers! Don’t miss this jewel of Escondido.

760-696-1090 (Storefront. Texts are OK)
619-780-6943 (Texts are OK)

Email: bestsaltylemonade@gmail.com

Closed Sunday and Monday.

ENU filed a letter on May 8, 2024 with the Regional Water Board to request increase oversight from the Board. Letter below.

We have bad news. 

We just found out that Superior Court Judge Maas, III made a prejudgment possession ruling which allowed Oak Creek developers/Escondido to construct the second, and much larger, culvert under Felicita Road. This also means he is likely to agree to the eminent domain action sought by the city of Escondido to usurp part of our public asset to meet the needs of developers.

This in spite of the fact that a report by Rick Engineering found that impacts to Felicita Creek and park from highly increased and concentrated flows of stormwater could be expected, were unanalyzed, and unmitigated.

The County opposed this action and continues to advocate for protection of the park.

If you want to help, please email Supervisor Joel Anderson’s office Joel.Anderson@sdcounty.ca.gov and encourage the County to stay strong. The users of the Park and us downstream residents are relying on them.

Please stay tuned. More soon.

 Dear Friends who care about Felitica Park. 

 Our Park is under threat again.  Now, the city of Escondido is pursuing a condemnation action of parkland in order to install drainage pipes that will greatly increase (60%) drainage from road and Oak Creek in the northeast corner of the park.

Escondido Neighbors United, Environmental Center of San Diego, and the Sierra Club North County Group has long-standing opposition to this project. Many other groups have joined in opposition.

The County has made reasonable requests of the Oak Creek Developer (KB Home) which they have obstinately refused.  KB Home may be familiar to readers as the company building the project and seriously violated storm water regulations in 2019-2020.

The County has asked that three studies be done to evaluate scouring and Impacts to cultural and biological resources AND for a mitigation plan to avoid any impacts be done prior to putting our Park at risk. These actions are essential to protecting the Park!

ENU members are further concerns that the amount of new drainage and scouring could dig deeper into the plum of contamination from Chatham Barrel Yard which continue to underlay the Park where contamination daylights (goes into the air) in the creek in the park.

Massive concentration of drainage going into a small section of the creek and into the main channel could threaten the water quality, cultural, recreational, and biological resources of the Park.

This is an Environmental Justice issue!  Local indigenous people still use this area for gatherings. A large number of park users are Latino families and use Felicita Park often. This Park is a precious asset to our local region and deserves our respect and protection.  We must stand against this action!

WE MUST OPPOSE THIS PROJECT UNTIL IT HAS BEEN ADEQUATELY ASSESSED AND IMPACTS FULLY MITIGATED. 

Please join our action alert list.  Please email conservation@sierraclubncg.org to receive future updates. 

Here is a link to background letters.  

ENU and Allies to the Regional Water Board and Dept of Fish and Wildlife Jan. 5.2022

ENU’s letter  

Sierra Club NCG

As we all know, but KB Home appears not to know, Felicita Park is not just any park! 

Below is from this park brochure: