The Buellton City Council unanimously approved demolishing segments of the former Pea Soup Andersen’s property and proposed safety and infrastructure improvements for Highway 246 at its Thursday meeting.
Resolution 2622 removes the historic landmark status and establishes the conditions for the demolition of the former Pea Soup Andersen’s property, which closed in January 2024. The council chose to remove the historic landmark designation, besides the original Bueltmore Hotel section, because of safety hazards and vandalism.
“The building became a very attractive location for folks who didn’t really belong there. We had groups of people who would break into the building and shoot videos that you later find on Facebook or TikTok,” City Manager Scott Wolfe said. “We could very easily have a serious injury or a death in the building.”
In order to preserve the historic significance of the location, the original two-story Bueltmore Hotel section of the property at 376 Avenue of Flags will be preserved, and the property owner will salvage significant parts such as the painted signs and stained glass windows “to the best of [their] ability,” according to Mayor David Silva.
In order to start the demolition, Wolfe said the property owner must sign a formal agreement with the city, and the city must plan for how it will secure the remaining portions of the former Bueltmore Hotel.
While a timeline wasn’t specified, Wolfe said the goal is to begin the destruction “as quickly as possible” to prevent further vandalism.
Developer Ed St. George acquired the property with big plans to create a mixed-use project with businesses and residences.
St. George didn’t comment Thursday on the item beyond noting that the proper pronunciations of the restaurant’s iconic characters’ names are “Hap-Pea” and “Pea-Wee.”
Highway 246 Infrastructure Improvements
Next, the council discussed establishing consolidated shared driveways to reduce hazardous traffic for the southern section of Highway 246, between the Avenue of Flags and Highway 101 on- and off-ramps, which Buellton Planning Director Andrea Keefer described as the city’s “welcoming front door.”
As it stands, there are five driveways in that portion of the roads, which staff claim cause slow traffic and safety concerns because of their proximity to major intersections.
The council discussed two options for improving the Highway 246 corridor. First, it discussed following separate proposals submitted by two different development projects that would redevelop the site while maintaining the locations of the driveways. However, Keefer said that option raises concern of creating additional “traffic movement turning conflicts.”
The second option, titled the “long-range alternative,” would reduce the number of driveways from five to three by creating a consolidated, shared driveway between the two parcels. According to Keefer, that option would resolve traffic conflicts and has the best chance of gaining approval from Caltrans.
“This option would reduce that number down to three, so taking away two, but it would necessitate basically a shared driveway. So, we call it a consolidated shared driveway there,” Keefer said.
The council unanimously voted in favor of the long-range alternative.
Next, the council discussed whether the city should establish policies requiring buildings to be set farther from the street to accommodate future protected bike lanes. Keefer said redeveloping Highway 246 serves as a “unique opportunity” to guide future development and improvements to the area.
“A protected bike lane could contribute significantly to meeting many of our circulation and connectivity goals that we are currently working on in our general plan,” Keefer said.
District 2 Councilwoman Elysia Lewis raised concerns about creating further impediments to development, claiming that the bike lane improvements seem “reactive rather than proactive.”
“When we know we have people already developing things, regardless of whether they actually come to be or not, money is being spent on plans and those types of things,” Lewis said. “It seems like we’re causing impediments to the process by coming up with additional or changes.”
While Keefer acknowledged that several plans are “colliding at the same time,” she emphasized the importance of ensuring that new projects don’t create future problems or amplify existing traffic issues. Wolfe interjected by saying those policies have the potential to reduce costs for long-term developments, ensuring that the plans are “buildable.”
The council members then held a “straw poll” vote to give city staff direction, in which they voted in favor of the bike lane improvements in a 4-1 vote. District 3 Councilman John Sanchez was the only one who voted against the improvements, stating that he didn’t want to set back buildings to accommodate bike lanes.
