AWG Responds to San Diego Housing Policy Changes: ‘We’re Just Getting Started’
‘We’re doubling down on what we’ve always done — delivering smart, urban infill housing — but now we’re building for both renters and buyers.
SAN DIEGO (July 23, 2025) - In the wake of recent changes to the City of San Diego’s ADU (Accessory Dwelling Unit) Density Bonus Program, Atlas West Group, the region’s leading infill and ADU developer, announced today that it is expanding its business strategy to meet the evolving needs of California’s housing market.
“We saw signs of turbulence at City Hall over a year ago,” said Daniel Shkolnik, CEO and founder of AWG. “That’s why we’ve spent the past 12 months preparing for a new landscape – so we can continue to lead, not follow.”
AWG’s approach was recently highlighted in the San Diego Union-Tribune, where Shkolnik emphasized the importance of the ADU bonus program in driving workforce housing development across San Diego.
“We recognized the power of the program to move the needle,” Shkolnik said in the story, which spotlighted AWG’s leadership in the region’s infill housing boom.
Despite the city’s rollback of the ADU bonus program, AWG will continue to use the remaining program incentives where effective. But more importantly, the company is aggressively expanding its strategy to include new for-sale housing, including townhomes, rowhomes, and condominiums — products that are in short supply across the region and critical for first-time homebuyers.
“This is an evolution,” Shkolnik said. “We’re doubling down on what we’ve always done — delivering smart, urban infill housing — but now we’re building for both renters and buyers. We’re especially focused on delivering starter homes and attainable housing options for young families, first-time buyers, and seniors, the people who have been pushed out of San Diego’s housing market.”
AWG will remain a dominant force in the ADU space — leveraging its expertise to continue delivering for-rent infill housing through existing density tools. Simultaneously, the firm is actively embracing new policy opportunities like AB 1033, which unlocks pathways for the development of more for-sale housing in urban neighborhoods.
“Our success has always come from staying ahead of the curve. These changes don’t slow us down — they expand our opportunity to lead,” Shkolnik said. “We’ve built a reputation as a maverick in the housing space. That doesn’t change. What’s changing is that we’re growing.”
With a robust pipeline of both rental and for-sale housing, AWG is now positioned to play an even bigger role in solving California’s housing crisis — one project, one neighborhood, and one family at a time.
MEDIA CONTACT: Tony Manolatos, tony@manolatospa.com
ABOUT: Atlas West Group is a privately held full-service development and investment firm operating throughout San Diego County. The company is a premiere provider of urban-infill housing and specializes in transforming underutilized properties into vibrant multifamily communities. Atlas West utilizes innovative permitting programs and creative construction strategies to bring out-of-the-box solutions to the region’s housing shortage and affordability crisis. The Atlas West team brings decades of experience to real estate development projects, giving the firm the network, reach, and insights needed to navigate complex situations and deliver results.