Murrieta Council Adopts Hillside Development Ordinance
The council voted 5-0 on October 6 to adopt revised standards for hillside development in the city.
Updated on Oct. 31, 2026 in City Hall
The Murrieta City Council voted 5-0 on October 6, 2025, to approve the second reading and adoption of an ordinance revising hillside development standards. The ordinance follows a 3-1 vote on September 15 to approve its first reading and introduction, with Lori Stone opposing and Lisa DeForest absent.
Why it matters
The ordinance establishes clearer and more objective standards for determining where hillside regulations apply in Murrieta. It also includes specified exemptions from hillside development requirements and a December 31, 2028, sunset clause for further evaluation of parcel exemption criteria.
The council adopted the ordinance 5-0 after a 3-1 first-reading vote, with Lori Stone opposing and Lisa DeForest absent. Which parcels will qualify for exemptions remains to be determined through the evaluation process tied to the December 31, 2028 sunset clause.
The players
Murrieta City Council
The five-member governing body of the City of Murrieta, California, which adopted the hillside development ordinance.
Lori Stone
A Murrieta City Council member who opposed the first reading of the hillside development ordinance.
Lisa DeForest
A Murrieta City Council member who was absent from the September 15 first-reading vote on the hillside development ordinance.
The details
The ordinance includes specified exemptions from hillside development requirements and a sunset clause allowing further evaluation of criteria for exempting certain parcels. Its stated aim is to replace subjective determinations with clearer, more objective standards for where hillside regulations apply.
Timeline
September 15, 2025: First reading and introduction of the hillside ordinance approved 3-1.
October 6, 2025: Council approved second reading and adoption of the ordinance 5-0.
December 31, 2028: Sunset clause date for evaluating parcel exemption criteria.
Political Context
The ordinance revises Murrieta's existing hillside development regulations by replacing discretionary determinations with objective criteria for where those rules apply. The December 31, 2028 sunset clause leaves the exemption criteria open for further evaluation rather than settling them permanently.
Property owners and developers in Murrieta's hillside areas will be subject to the revised standards that determine where hillside regulations apply. Parcels that qualify for the specified exemptions may face fewer hillside development requirements under the ordinance.
The takeaway
Residents with hillside property in Murrieta should review the revised standards to understand whether their parcels fall under the regulations or the exemptions. Tracking the 2028 evaluation process will show how the exemption criteria are ultimately defined.
What happens next
The ordinance's exemption criteria are scheduled for further evaluation before the December 31, 2028 sunset clause takes effect.
Further reading
For more local government coverage, see City Hall in Murrieta.
Source note: This article includes information reported by Valley News.
