The Santa Barbara Planning Commission has approved the expansion of a “little red schoolhouse”-inspired child care center for the children of Cottage Hospital employees.
Under project plans discussed earlier this month, an existing 19-space parking lot and a 188-square-foot storage structure will be demolished, and a new, two-story building will go up at the corner of Castillo and Los Olivos streets.
Commission members enthusiastically approved the expansion and said they were excited about the increased child care access, but shared concerns about parking and the pick-up/drop-off zone. They also asked whether more children could be accommodated.
Commissioner Devon Wardlow said she wished it could be “a little bigger so that all the kids could get in,” but added that she is otherwise excited about the project.
“I only hear very positive things, and I think this is a really vital service for our community,” Wardlow said.
Right now, the Orfalea Children’s Center can accommodate only 80 children; the expansion should allow them to accommodate 160 children, starting from 4 months old to 3 years old, according to Ron Lafrican, Cottage’s administrative director of human resources.
“There’s a problem with child care in this community,” Lafrican said.
He said there are 300 Cottage Hospital employees on a waitlist for the Children’s Center.
He also highlighted that while there are 90 preschool programs in the community, there are only 14 infant and toddler programs.
“What I think is so special about the center is that this isn’t just a place to drop your kid off and go to work. This is a learning environment,” Lafrican said. “We nurture them, we teach them skills, and it starts right from the beginning when they walk through the door.”
The center currently has 28 staff members. That would increase to 50 as more children are enrolled.
The new 6,847-square-foot building would include a lobby, offices on the second floor, an outdoor play area in a courtyard, a covered walkway from the existing child care facility and multiple classrooms, each with its own outdoor space.
The development was designated as a community benefit project by the Santa Barbara City Council last year, which allows for more non-residential square footage than would typically be permitted.
“It’s a true community benefit project,” commission chair Lucille Boss said. “I think we see some projects that call themselves community benefits and are not so much, so I just really want to appreciate that this is a true community benefit project, and Cottage is a community benefit in itself and an anchor institution.”
The commission had some concerns about the loss of parking. However, Scott Schell, who conducted the project’s parking study, said that, depending on the time of day, there were between 115 and 260 available spots across all Cottage Hospital parking facilities.
Schell said staff believe there is enough current parking to accommodate the 19 lost spaces and the increased parking by new child care center employees.
When the project was reviewed by the Santa Barbara Architectural Board of Review last May, board members weren’t sold on the red “barn-like” color. Planning Commissioner John Baucke encouraged the design team to keep the color.
Bauke also praised project architect Brian Cearnal on the design.
“It really does feel like a ‘little red schoolhouse,’ and I’d like to see it stay that way,” Baucke said.
The project is set to return to the Architectural Board of Review for final design feedback, but if all goes as planned, construction could start in early 2027.