The applicant behind the Calle Real housing project that the Goleta Design Board slammed as “boring” a couple of months ago brought forward revised plans Tuesday but still failed to secure the board’s support. 

The board recommended 6-0 that the Planning Commission deny the project and gave feedback on specific elements, including open space and neighborhood compatibility.

City Ventures, the project applicant, proposes a three-story development with 46 total units at 5955 Calle Real, next to Bowlero. The plans include 44 residential and two live-work units, all with three bedrooms and attached two-car garages.

The unit floor plans would range from 1,333 to 1,672 square feet, according to the city staff report.

Currently, a vacant Santa Barbara Motorsports sits on the site, and City Ventures proposes demolishing the existing commercial building and pole sign. 

City Ventures revised the project’s design, site plans and architectural elements after a Goleta Design Board meeting in July at which board members voiced concerns about the project’s overall design, open space and neighborhood compatibility. 

“I can’t support this project as proposed, as none of the major issues that we addressed were really, I think, addressed,” board member Dennis Whelan said.

No matter what the Goleta Design Review Board recommended Tuesday, the project was still going to move forward to the Planning Commission. 

Board member Jonathan Eymann was absent.

Additionally, the city has limited review of the project because it is subject to the Housing Accountability Act and the State Density Bonus Law because of the two affordable housing units.

“Overall, the revised design is intended to feel more contemporary, more cohesive and more responsive to the character of Calle Real,” Anthony Corbin, project architect with KTGY Architecture and Planning, said at Tuesday’s meeting.

The live-work units were also revised to add parking spaces and enhance frontage with larger storefront-style glazing, signage, and awning and trellis elements, according to Nick Patterson, representative for City Ventures.

Additionally, under state law, the project requests to exceed the height limit by 2.5 feet, adjust the number of affordable housing units and not include common bicycle charging outlets, according to Christina McGuire, associate planner with Goleta. 

However, even with the revision from modern farmhouse to contemporary design, the board members were unsatisfied.

Board member James van Order labeled the project’s design as “urban” and the buildings looking “like a run-on sentence when it comes to facing Calle Real.”

“There’s nothing about Goleta that is urban,” he added.

However, board member Scott Branch supported the architectural style. 

“Somehow it’s interesting to me,” he said. “I see it as a ski lodge or something, but it’s cool.”

Still, board members took issue with many of the other project elements.

Whelan took issue with the revised project’s continued lack of open space coupled with the project’s density.

“There’s a token strip on the side next to the car wash, and I just don’t think that’s an appropriate open space for such dense housing,” he added.

Other board members agreed but acknowledged that under state law, their “hands are kind of tied with that,” board member Martha Degasis said. 

She added that she appreciated the changes in the proposed colors for the project. However, she was concerned about the amount of shade in the parking lot, recommending that trees be added to create more shade.

Additionally, board members voiced continued concern regarding neighborhood compatibility and the project’s proximity to Calle Real.

“I shudder to think about what it is going to look like when it’s built the way it is presented right now, so I would encourage to step it back if you can,” van Order said.

While board member Cecilia Brown said the new site plan was “better” than the original proposal, she still did not support it.

“It just doesn’t work for me in Goleta. Maybe we are different here,” she said.

The next stop for the project is Goleta’s Planning Commission.