About

The City of Vista, as with all north county San Diego cities, is experiencing transformational growth and development which will redefine the community. Recent investments and the City’s numerous planning efforts have spurred important changes and developed forward momentum.

This General Plan Update for the City of Vista represents an opportunity to capitalize on this period of growth and transition. The General Plan Update will establish a targeted and innovative framework for the future to allow the City to focus growth towards established transportation corridors and repurpose underutilized land uses to shift from a traditional distributed pattern of development to a concentrated growth plan that preserves the defining characteristics of Vista. Targeted and focused, the General Plan Update project is a pivotal opportunity to refine the City’s policy framework to identify the most efficient and integrated solutions, defining the new growth trajectory, and effectively positioning the City for long-term success.

The RICK Project Consultant Team will work closely with the City of Vista staff and the community to prepare the General Plan Update in a manner that responds to and ensures that the values, goals, and vision of the City of Vista are achieved. RICK’s Planning + Design Division will be the lead consultant (Planning, Outreach, and Design) and will be supported by the following sub-consultants:

• Dudek (Environmental Analysis)
• Chen Ryan Associates (Transportation Planning and Analysis)
• London Moeder Advisors (Market Analysis)
• Citythinkers (Design and Outreach)

A General Plan is a broad, long-range policy document that guides future development and is a comprehensive collection of goals and policies related to a multitude of aspects of community life.

California law requires that each county and city in the state develop and adopt a General Plan. The General Plan consists of a statement of development policies and includes a diagram or diagrams and text setting forth objectives, principles standards, and plan proposals. It is a comprehensive long-term plan for the physical development of the county or city. In this sense, it is a "blueprint" for development.

What elements make up the General Plan?

The General Plan must contain seven (7) state-mandated elements. It may also contain any other elements that the legislative body of the county or city wishes to adopt. The seven (7) mandated elements are:

• Land Use
• Open Space
• Conservation
• Housing
• Circulation
• Noise
• Safety

The General Plan may be adopted in any form deemed appropriate or convenient by the legislative body of the city, including the combining of elements. The existing Vista General Plan 2030 includes all of the state-mandated elements; however, Open Space is included in the Conservation Element and is not a standalone element. Additionally, an element titled “Healthy Vista” is included in the General Plan. This is a non-mandated element that discusses the City’s healthcare and access to food among other topics.

The City of Vista’s General Plan 2030 was last comprehensively updated in 2012 and the sixth cycle Housing Element (2021-2029) was recently updated and adopted in 2021. Since then, there have been a number of legislative, market, and physical changes that have occurred at the state level and in the City that warrant a targeted (versus wholesale comprehensive) update to the 2030 General Plan in order to prepare Vista for the future.

This General Plan Update provides an opportunity to evaluate what is working well and what needs to be re-evaluated from the current 2030 General Plan. The goal will be to prepare Vista for the future while holding on to its history and defining character. It is the intention to create a functional and ‘living’ document that can be updated as required throughout its life cycle. The City of Vista is committed to preparing a General Plan Update that is inspired and informed by the citizens, property owners, business owners, employees, community associations, and other stakeholders within the community, who will be consistently engaged throughout the Project process. The City believes the General Plan must reflect the diversity of Vista – creating access and equal opportunity for all.