Sierra Club, citing fire risks and ‘textbook sprawl’ of Harmony Grove project, sues to stop it
Dante Ulanday - News Moderator 
The Sierra Club has filed a lawsuit challenging the recent approval of the Harmony Grove Village South development based on its potential fire risks.
The environmental organization argues in the suit, filed last Friday, that the planned community in North County will be located in a high fire-risk area with only one evacuation route in the event of a wildfire.
The case is the latest challenge to the 111-acre project, approved Oct. 1 by the San Diego County Board of Supervisors over the objections of many residents who already live in the area.
The location is a little less than one mile west of the city of Escondido, south and east of San Marcos and north of the Del Dios Highlands Preserve.
Plans include 453 residential units, 5,000 square feet of commercial/civic space, four acres of private and public parks, two miles of multi-use trails and pathways and approximately 35 acres of open space.
The project’s opponents, which include some residents of the Elfin Forest and Harmony Grove communities, say the development, should a wildfire spark, could force as many as 1,000 extra vehicles on a single two-lane road leading out of the area.
The Sierra Club further alleges that the additional vehicles will contribute to excessive greenhouse gas emissions.
“The Harmony Grove project is textbook sprawl development within a high fire-risk area,” Sierra Club Legal Chair Dave Hogan said.
He went on to say that Harmony Grove Village South “conflicts with the Board of Supervisors’ own policy for sustainable growth” as covered in the 2024 County Climate Action Plan, and further that the project “exposes surrounding communities to dangerous fire conditions.”
According to the Sierra Club, the development also is hampered by an outdated environmental study.
“The county’s recent approval of Harmony Grove relies on an Environmental Impact Report that fails to account for new state and county regulations, including updated standards for vehicle miles traveled, greenhouse gas emissions and wildfire safety,” said Isabella Coye, an attorney for the Sierra Club.
The law, she continued, “requires a comprehensive and updated environmental review that fully addresses these significant impacts and ensures transparency for the public and decision makers.”
