Commercial Uses at The Farm

At the June 6, 2023 City Council meeting, GVCA addressed council to explicitly express our position regarding the LifeTime fitness center which may (or may not) be proposed for the Council’s consideration for The Farm in Poway development, or any other significant change to the approved specific plan.  During the public comments portion of the meeting, GVCA President, John DeSantis, presented the following statement:

"The GVCA has been monitoring the pre-development proposal by Life Time Group Holdings for a fitness center in The Farm in Poway. Over the last several months, we have conducted an in-depth review of the approved specific plan, the proposed fitness center, and feedback from our members. GVCA is adamant that any plan amendment that is beyond the scope of the original specific plan MUST be approved by the voters through a ballot measure."

. . . . . . .

The Farm in Poway development, as approved by voters in 2020, incorporates several commercial venues and amenities, in addition to the 160 residential properties. We would like to provide you with an update on the most recent plans for development of these commercial amenities. As you may know, overall development of the entire project has been delayed by the discovery of an unexpected amount of difficult stone terrain and by the wet weather this winter. While the residential construction has been proceeding, we understand that most of the commercial properties will not be able to begin construction until sometime in 2024.

A number of modifications have been made to the original plans for commercial aspects of the development since 2020. The “Summary of Commercial Space” chart shown at the end of this page illustrates square footage envisioned for the various commercial elements in the original Specific Plan, and the most recent proposed plans as amended.  

FITNESS CENTER

By far, the most significant change in plans from the original map relates to the proposed fitness club. Originally slated for less than 4,000sf (including covered patio areas), the latest proposal is for a 30,500sf facility to be managed by Life Time Group Holdings, a publicly traded corporation which operates athletic country club facilities around the country (ticker symbol LTH). We understand that memberships will be available for purchase by the public and as a private facility will offer members a host of amenities and programs which are further described below. Membership pricing will vary based on family size, and special pricing might be available for seniors and/or other select groups. Life Time has not finalized anticipated membership and pricing.

We offer the following observations for your consideration:

Approval process: It is our understanding that the decision to approve, deny or require modifications to the Life Time proposal rests with the mayor and the city council. The Life Time proposal was discussed at a pre-development conference held during the city council’s regular meeting on March 7th. We understand that there will be another council meeting held in May to discuss updates to the proposal and possibly a specific plan amendment.

Design: The appearance of a one-story 30,500sf commercial building in the middle of a residential community may be a legitimate cause for concern for existing neighbors. We know that city council and city staff have been working with Life Time to ensure the structure conforms to a “Farm” aesthetic, and we understand that Life Time has been cooperative in modifying their design. A current architectural rendering of the proposed facility is shown below. 

Traffic and Parking: We understand from the city of Poway that an updated traffic study for the entire Farm project is being finalized. While we are not experts in evaluating such reports and have not reviewed it, we are told the traffic generated will not be significantly greater than that approved for The Farm’s specific plan. Life Time estimates that 60% of its members will be within a 13 minute drive and expect a large percentage to be from Poway. Onsite parking of 249 stalls will be provided and exceeds that required by the City of Poway to avoid parking impact in the nearby residential area.

Size: While the building site of 6.87 acres has remained the same, the increased size of the proposed fitness club of 30,500 sf is multiples larger than the 3,869 sf club approved in the specific plan. For sake of comparison, the old StoneRidge clubhouse and ancillary buildings comprised approximately 31,000 sf.

Below is an aerial overlay showing the approximate footprint of the StoneRidge Country Club compared to the proposed Life Time Fitness club. StoneRidge was more sprawling with parking and tennis courts while Life Time’s building is rectangular and parking more consolidated.

The Club as approved in The Farm Specific Plan

Life Time Fitness Proposed Site Plan

StoneRidge Country Club

Comparison Site Footprint – Life Time vs StoneRidge

Fitness club amenities: Life Time is proposing to include fitness floors with workout equipment, locker rooms, group fitness, a lap pool and leisure pool, 6 pickleball courts, food and beverage service, senior and children’s programs, and other amenities. The sport courts have changed been changed from tennis courts to pickleball due to popularity. As described to us, the Life Time facility will be much more comprehensive than a health club such as 24-Hour Fitness. This is not a promotion of the facility, but simply an observation. You can read about features of Life Time’s La Jolla facilities at www.lifetime.life/life-time-locations/ca-la-jolla.html. We note that the StoneRidge club was used by Poway residents for swimming, tennis, dining and socializing, and for residents who choose become members the Life Time facility may offer similar benefits.

OTHER COMMERCIAL Uses

In addition to the fitness club, a variety of shops and restaurants are planned for The Farm, although few final decisions have been made at this point. These would be located in the areas referred to as “The Barn” and “The Social,” in the chart below. The structures will be located near the southeast corner of the development, just north of Espola Road. According to the proposed changes, total square footage allocated to these amenities is now expected to be over 16,000sf, including over 5,000sf of patio space. We understand that numerous configurations are under consideration, including a coffee shop, one or more restaurants, micro-brewery, cheese shop, chocolate shop, bottle shop, and others.  

Just north of the Barn and Social areas will be the Butterfly Vivarium and Greenhouse. We understand that the Vivarium will essentially be an area of about 6,000sf enclosed by netting to house a garden and butterflies, and the Greenhouse will be a latticed area of about 2,000sf where plants can be stored away from too much sunlight. 

A small office/maintenance building and restrooms are to be located adjacent to the Vivarium, and a proposed 3,500sf Classroom has been removed from the plan.

Modifications from the original plan have been made to these facilities to accommodate the proposed larger fitness club plan.

OUTDOOR PUBLIC AMENITES

Finally, we understand that space allocated to outdoor amenities such as the walking/biking trails, parks, flower field, etc. are essentially unchanged from the original Specific Plan.

Summary of Commercial SPACE at The Farm

STAY INFORMED

We hope you will find this information useful. Please know that GVCA and its volunteer board members are not affiliated with The Farm in Poway development. We will continue to share information with our members.

Questions and comments can be addressed to:

The Farm, Kevin McNamara, email: McNamarainvestments@gmail.com
City of Poway District Council Member, Barry Leonard, email: bleonard@poway.org
GVCA, John DeSantis, President, email: president@gvca.info

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