By Colleen Cochran
Evlyn Andrade-Heymsfield is vying for Santee’s District 1 City Council seat. Rumor has it, she is giving eight-year incumbent Rob McNelis a run for his money.
People in District 1 can’t turn their heads without seeing signs that read, “Evlyn.” She’s running on her first name, not only because her last name is unwieldy for some tongues, but because she truly is on a first-name basis with so many of the voters.
Santee, which always had an at-large, citywide voting system, was divided into four election districts in April of 2018. The smaller voting pool of the district system has enabled newcomer candidates, like Evlyn, to hit every resident’s door.
“I’ve spent each day of my campaign conversing with voters,” said Evlyn. “I learned their wants, needs, and concerns, and I plan to be the voice for them.”
Based on those conversations, she concluded that the majority of Santee residents are angry about over-development and, in particular, its effect on traffic.
Evlyn, therefore, opposes the Fanita Ranch project, a nearly 3,000-unit, 1,600 acre development slated to be built in the city’s northern hills. Because only three streets will lead up to the houses, she says most Santee residents cringe thinking about the commuter gridlock they will face on already overladen Mast Boulevard and Highway 52.
In response to citizen concerns about traffic, HomeFed Corporation, the developer of Fanita Ranch, has offered to add lanes to the 52 in order to alleviate bottlenecks. Evlyn is skeptical.
“While the developers have said they will contribute to the cost of improving the 52, it’s just that, a contribution. The entire project will cost about $1 billion. The city has hired a lobbyist to raise funds to meet the total project cost, but it has not yet raised a significant amount. We don’t know how long that will take. Infrastructure tends to become overburdened before improvements ever get constructed.”
She rejects any claims that the city will benefit from the impact fees received from the project.
“The impact fees that we are going to receive from the Fanita Ranch project are going to be one-time fees; they are not going to pay for the actual impact these developments will have over the long-term.”
Evlyn also stated that, because the area slated for development is particularly fire-prone, she thinks building homes there is unwise.
Evlyn Andrade-Heymsfield made it very clear that she is not against development in Santee so long as it represents “responsible, efficient, and economically valuable growth.”
“The people overwhelmingly reject the Fanita Ranch project,” she said. “They want policies that benefit the people of Santee and not just developers.”
Keen on finding new ways to bring revenue to the city, Evlyn said, “The people want more grocery stores and restaurants, so let’s start welcoming new businesses.”
Past history indicates the Fanita Ranch plan, should it pass through environmental review, will likely be approved if the present City Council members retain their seats. Only City Council Member Stephen Houlahan, whose District 4 seat is not open for election until 2020, has opposed the project.
Colleen Cochran
Latest posts by Colleen Cochran (see all)
- Ode to California and The San Diego Free Press - December 10, 2018
- Fanita Ranch Development Opposed by Santee City Council District 1 Candidate - October 17, 2018
- Rewriting Reality: My Edits to Pruitt’s Resignation Letter - July 12, 2018
Fix the 52 anyway because it sucks now. Whomever thought bottle-necking at the bottom of that hill was an OK idea, never drove in real traffic with 18 wheelers. That alone would improve flow all the way back to the 15.
Mast, Mission Gorge, and the 52 going out (west) need 1 more lane now. That would alleviate traffic in Santee too. Santee suffers from the * West 8 traffic because the 52 is a huge shortcut. The entire county is cramping us. We must expand now and they should help.
Besides, it’s going to take 10 years to build 3000 homes. The infrastructure has to be addressed now, not later. You always start with the foundation. People need somewhere to live, and at an affordable price. If people are so upset about it, then just give back the equity they made over the past few years due to the crazy real estate market. New homes will make them even more money because it will also increase their home value. People spending money in Santee would be great as well. There are plenty of small local businesses that would benefit from more people in town. Otherwise, why did you built those miles of strip malls to begin with?
Sure, there may be some details that I’m not familiar with and that’s ok. The city has needed traffic relief for years. I also disagree with the mis-representation by protesters saying to vote on this bill to stop more traffic, when it was the bill that would stop Fanita Ranch. A HUGE stretch of the truth there.
Some details you may not be familiar with Neil, that are not OK, are that Santee residents (living here and commuting to work on a daily basis), have already experienced other serious encroachment threats by “Goliath” developers/plunderers (e.g., Goldman Sachs/Cogentrix/SDGE Power Plant that Santee grassroots efforts succeeded in shutting out and which ultimately was found by the CPUC to be un-needed, and other battles because City Council has been weak). It has become apparent that such outside interests find an easier path to their goals by funding some City Councilmembers’ and new candidates’ campaigns and thus the outside interests drown out residents’ interests and harm the community.
Fortunately, this election cycle we have 3 council seats open and candidates that are well-qualified, earnest about public service vs. self-service, and they’re running grassroots campaigns (sans developer donations).
In them we trust! They are Zack Gianino, Evlyn Andrade-Heymsfield, and Rudy Reyes.
Their victories will be a victory for the city. They would join our most-excellent Santee councilman, Stephen Houlahan, who was instrumental in the successful David vs. Goliath power plant fight.
Onward with thoughtful, forward-thinking, city growth and down with corruption and its detrimental impacts. If a community does not defend itself, it becomes an easy opportunity for outsiders.
Santee finally has an opportunity to move on and up as a choice hometown with quality leadership and an engaged citizenry that is active in its civics and city development that honors quality of life for residents.