On Shoshoni Avenue in Clairemont, 13 accessory dwelling units went up behind a single-family lot and were finished this spring. In June, NBC 7 reported that the units were still empty and that homemade "No ADU parking" signs had appeared on the block. The signs were not official City restrictions.
That project came out of a backyard program, and it shows what has actually been building density in Clairemont. The neighborhood's new community plan is the official growth document. Over the last few years, though, the biggest changes on residential streets have come from ADU rules written for single-family lots. If you are comparing Clairemont with other San Diego neighborhoods, you need to know the rules for the street a home sits on.
The backyards grew faster than the plan
The City of San Diego's 2025 Annual Report on Homes ranked Clairemont Mesa first among all community plan areas for ADU homes permitted in 2024. It had 251, including 43 affordable ADUs. North Park came second with 204, followed by Southeastern San Diego at 181 and Linda Vista at 165.
The official plan points the other way. When the City Council adopted the Clairemont Community Plan Update on December 16, 2025, the San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Clairemont got the smallest percentage increase in potential new homes of the last seven growth plans San Diego approved. The vote was 7 to 1, and Council President Joe LaCava voted no. He called the plan "a missed opportunity" and argued it should have allowed more.
The Union-Tribune put the plan's capacity at 52,800 homes, up from 33,300. KPBS used a higher starting figure of 38,800. The Mayor's office describes the plan as adding capacity for up to 14,000 new homes. Whichever baseline you use, the plan is meant to play out slowly. City officials told the Union-Tribune they expect the changes over roughly 30 years.
ADU projects moved much faster. Each one went onto a single lot on a residential street, and none of them needed a plan update.
Four rules, four different maps
Clairemont now has four separate rules deciding where new homes can go. Each covers a different part of the neighborhood and is at a different stage.
| Rule | Where it reaches | Scale | Status as of late October 2026 |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADU Home Density Bonus, as amended | Single-family lots outside the Coastal Overlay Zone | 4 to 6 total ADUs and JADUs per lot, by lot size | In effect since August 22, 2025 |
| Clairemont Community Plan Update | Village areas and existing commercial plazas | Up to 65 feet at hubs such as Clairemont Town Square | Adopted December 16, 2025; coastal portion still under Coastal Commission review |
| SB 79 | Areas around qualifying trolley and bus stops | 55 to 85 feet, depending on distance from the stop | State law in effect July 1, 2026; City's local alternative plan due in early 2027 |
| Neighborhood Homes for All of Us | Single-family areas still to be chosen | Duplexes, townhomes and small multi-home buildings | Proposal only; no rules or locations adopted |
Why big backyard projects are still being finished
The City Council tightened the ADU program on July 22, 2025. According to the City's Land Development Code amendments page, the changes took effect outside the Coastal Zone on August 22, 2025. The City's current ADU Information Bulletin 400 caps the total number of ADUs and JADUs on a single-family lot by lot area, not counting environmentally sensitive land:
- 8,000 square feet or less: 4
- 8,001 to 10,000 square feet: 5
- 10,001 square feet or more: 6
The same bulletin requires one off-street parking space for each affordable and bonus ADU outside a Transit Priority Area. Bonus units must also have fire sprinklers.
The new rules did not stop projects that were already underway. On the day of the vote, Fox 5 reported that the City would process fully completed applications under the old rules until the new ones took effect. Fox 5 also reported that 17 units were under construction behind one single-family home on Almayo Avenue. The Union-Tribune noted that the Almayo lot originally held a 1,018-square-foot house.
That is why Shoshoni Avenue could finish 13 units in spring 2026 even though the cap was already in place. When Fox 5 covered the project in December 2024, it was planned as 10 units in five two-story buildings, plus the existing house and a garage converted to an ADU. Fox 5 also reported that neighbors had sued the City and the developers.
For a buyer, the timing is what matters. The cap governs projects applied for after August 22, 2025. Older applications can still turn into finished buildings well after that date. A quiet backyard today does not guarantee the rules that would apply if the neighboring lot's permit was filed earlier.
The coastal edge works differently
Bulletin 400 says the 2025 ADU amendments, including the bonus-program changes, are not in effect inside the Coastal Overlay Zone until the California Coastal Commission certifies them. The City's amendments page says it expected that approval sometime in 2026. Clairemont's community plan has a coastal piece too. The City filed the Clairemont Local Coastal Program amendment on May 7, 2026, and Coastal Commission staff recommended a one-year extension of the deadline to review it. At its July 9, 2026 meeting, the Commission approved San Diego LCP time extensions on its consent calendar. An extension of the review deadline is not a certification.
The plan puts its height on the plazas
The community plan sends most new housing to Clairemont's shopping plazas and village areas. The City's environmental addendum names them: Clairemont Town Square, Clairemont Drive, Rose Canyon Gateway, the Balboa Avenue Transit Station, and a Community Core near Balboa and Genesee avenues. According to CBS 8, buildings can now reach 65 feet at places such as Clairemont Town Square and along the Balboa Avenue Transit Center.
Some of that change is already visible. Mayor Todd Gloria signed the plan at Clairemont Town Square in January. As CBS 8 reported, the former Reading Cinemas there is being redeveloped as a mixed-use project with housing, and construction is underway on the former Burlington Coat Factory site. A 38-unit apartment building was going up at Clairemont Drive and Clairemont Mesa Boulevard when the Union-Tribune photographed it on the day of the Council vote.
Plaza projects go through a public plan, and their locations are mapped in advance. Backyard projects were what surprised neighbors on Almayo and Shoshoni.
The trolley half-mile is the newest layer
State law SB 79 took effect in San Diego on July 1, 2026. It requires cities to allow more homes near qualifying transit stops. KPBS reported that the City Planning Department expected the first effects mostly in North Park and City Heights, around UC San Diego and UTC, and along the Mid-Coast Trolley extension in Bay Park and Clairemont. That line serves the Clairemont Drive, Tecolote Road and Balboa Avenue stations.
San Diego's trolley stops fall into the law's second tier. Under it, buildings can reach 85 feet within 200 feet of a stop, 65 feet within a quarter mile, and 55 feet from a quarter mile to a half mile. KPBS pointed out that the City's Coastal Zone height limit is 30 feet. A City phasing ordinance, finalized May 21, 2026, delays or exempts some areas, including sites more than a one-mile walk from an eligible stop and certain fire-zone, historic and sea-level-rise sites. The City plans to bring a local Transit Village Plan to the Council in early 2027. That plan could move some of the required capacity to other places.
For homes near the Clairemont Drive, Tecolote Road and Balboa Avenue stations, SB 79 now applies on top of the ADU rules and the community plan.
How to check a specific address
- Look up the parcel's base zone in the City's Zoning and Parcel Information Portal.
- Note the lot area, because the ADU cap is tied to it.
- Check whether the parcel is inside the Coastal Overlay Zone, where the 2025 ADU amendments are still waiting on Coastal Commission certification.
- Look up the parcel on the City's SB 79 page, which links a parcel-level interactive map.
- Look for active permits on the lots next door. The rules that apply to a neighboring project depend on when its application was filed.
This post is general information, not legal or financial advice. Zoning and ADU rules change, so confirm how they apply to a specific property with the City or a qualified land-use professional.
FAQ
Can an ADU in Clairemont be sold separately from the main house? In June 2025, the City announced ADU reforms that implement AB 1033, which lets ADUs be turned into condominiums and sold on their own. The Council adopted the amendments on July 22, 2025, and they took effect outside the Coastal Zone on August 22, 2025. Bulletin 400 lists the conditions. ADUs that are deed-restricted or received San Diego Housing Commission assistance cannot be sold separately during their restriction term. The ADU must pass all final inspections before the condominium plan is recorded. For at least 30 days after it is first listed, the ADU has to be offered on at least two public real estate websites with a disclosure that it is being offered to buyers who plan to live in it as their primary residence.
Will duplexes and townhomes be allowed on Clairemont's single-family streets? Not yet. Mayor Gloria's Neighborhood Homes for All of Us initiative is still a proposal. The City's project page says the eligible locations and development rules will be set in a later phase.
Is the community plan in effect everywhere in Clairemont? The City adopted it on December 16, 2025. Its coastal portion is still waiting on Coastal Commission review. Commission staff recommended a one-year extension of the review deadline, and in July 2026 the Commission approved San Diego LCP time extensions on consent.
If you are looking at a Clairemont home and want to know which of these rules applies to that block and what has been filed next door, Tami Fuller & Associates can go through the parcel with you before you write an offer. Request a complimentary neighborhood market consultation, and we will pull the City's zoning, permit and trolley-area maps for the addresses you are considering so you can bring the right questions to the City or your land-use professional.
