More homes could soon be coming to Los Osos. A building moratorium implemented back in the 1980s is close to being lifted.
The 35-year moratorium was put into place because of a water shortage caused by seawater and pollutants seeping into the Los Osos underground basin. But the situation has changed because of conservation and less seawater pumping, said Ron Munds, general manager of the Los Osos Community Services District,
“The seawater intrusion front has stabilized. It was coming in at a tremendous rate, sometimes 500 feet a year and so it was kind of this easterly push by the seawater intrusion front. That is stabilized,” Munds said.
Now, after a 10-year process, the California Coastal Commission has finally approved Los Osos Community plan, which allows limited home construction. The county signed off on the plan four years ago.
There is still one more step. Before the moratorium is lifted, the U.S Fish and Wildlife Service must complete a habitat conservation plan that protects endangered plant species and the Morro Shoulderband snail.
The end of the moratorium impacts hundreds of landowners in Los Osos, but Munds said officials plan to proceed slowly with new construction. He said the moratorium could end by next spring or summer.
