The future of the Westside Neighborhood Clinic is in the hands of the Santa Barbara City Council on Tuesday.
The clinic at 621 W. Micheltorena St. wants to increase the number of medical and dental patients served from 4,502 to 11,200 annually.
It’s part of the plan to demolish the existing two-story, 10,454-square-foot clinic and build a three-story, 11,149-square-foot medical, behavioral health and dental clinic, a building designed by the Cearnal Collective.
But there’s a problem.
The owners of the nearby Auto Fuels Gas Station and El Ranchero Market have appealed the project, raising concerns about inadequate parking at the new facility.
The project has 11 parking spaces on-site and another off-site parking lot with 22 parking spaces at 21 E. Constance Ave. A shuttle service would bring employees to and from the project site.
The city Planning Commission voted 5-1 in December to allow the parking modifications; only Commissioner Roxana Bonderson opposed the project over parking concerns.
The Santa Barbara City Council will vote on the gas station’s appeal on Tuesday afternoon.
“The Westside Clinic’s current patients, employees, and business invitees turn into Auto Fuels between eight and 15 times per day, at least five days each week, to park and/or drop someone or something off at the clinic,” a letter from the law firm of Reicker, Pfau, Pyle & McCroy states.
An attorney from the firm, Andrew W. Hazlett, attended a site visit at the clinic with the Santa Barbara City Council, city staff members and other members of the project team on Monday afternoon.
The appeal letter also states that “trespassers regularly block access by Auto Fuels’ customers to and from the fuel, water, and air dispensers, block or occupy customer parking for El Ranchero Market, prevent or delay refuse collection by MarBorg, and cause unsettling exchanges with Auto Fuels’ employees and customers.”
The Westside Clinic is one of several Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics locations that provides medical services for families regardless of their ability to pay “and were created on the philosophy that obtaining quality medical care is a fundamental right for all people,” according to its website.
Trish Allen, senior planner for Suzanne Elledge Planning & Permitting Services, is representing the clinic through the planning process.
“The need for the level of health care that Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics provides has not diminished,” Allen said.
“The clinic provides a unique patient experience that integrates medical, dental and behavioral health services. The new Westside Clinic will serve our community by providing accessible health care in the neighborhood in which it is located and will also serve to alleviate the burden on urgent and emergency care facilities.”
The gas station’s appeal letter from its attorneys contends that the Westside Clinic’s lack of parking and drop-off zones “causes unrelenting financial and operational impacts on Auto Fuels and its neighboring businesses.” The strain that the clinic puts on the neighborhood parking supply also impacts the quality of life of Westside residents, the letter states.
The appellant also states that the clinic conducted “a flawed survey,” because it counted parking demand during the COVID-19 pandemic.
“Therefore, Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics conducted its patient demand survey during the height of the pandemic, nearly three months into ‘lockdown’ and ‘stay-at-home’ mandates,” the letter states.
The law firm also states on behalf of Auto Fuels that the shuttle lot is too far away from the clinic because the municipal code states that a lot cannot be more than 1,250 feet away from the primary building.
Allen in her letter responds to the concerns about people parking in the gas station lot.
“Santa Barbara Neighborhood Clinics has made a commitment to continue their efforts to inform staff and patients to prevent this practice, including the installation of signage to this effect,” Allen says.
“Further, when the new Westside Clinic is completed, patient parking demands will be met on-site, including a dedicated drop-off zone for the employee shuttle, patient drop-off/pick-up, and deliveries. In fact, the completed project will serve to alleviate the operational constraints that have been raised by the appellant.”
The Santa Barbara City Council meeting is virtual and begins at 2 p.m. Tuesday.