The city of Poway is a haven for single-family homes, known for its exclusivity. Picture tree-lined streets, sprawling manicured lawns and long driveways. It is a dream within the American Dream.

Much of Poway’s land is made up of larger lots, each zoned for a single home instead of multi-family homes like apartment complexes or townhomes.

And outside those single-family-home neighborhoods, the land is also protected from development. Roughly 53 percent of Poway is protected open space, according to city officials.

Those factors at least help to explain why Poway is among cities building the least amount of housing per capita, an analysis by Voice of San Diego found. Between 2018 and the end of 2024, Poway permitted 14.1 new homes for every 1,000 residents, including apartments, single-

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