The Goleta Planning Commission voted unanimously Monday evening to recommend the City Council approve a development agreement that would make 35 parking spaces available for public use in Old Town Goleta.
Fairview Business Associates, owner of the property at 420 S. Fairview Avenue, and Torridon, owner of the properties at 430 and 490 S. Fairview Avenue, are proposing a development agreement that would dedicate 35 of their parking spaces — which are currently private — for public use along Carson Street between Fairview and Orange Avenue.
In exchange, the property owners are requesting to set the term for the final Design Review Board approval of 25 new parking spaces for the property to 20 years, instead of the Design Review Board’s typical approval of three years with an extension request for up to two years.
According to the staff report for the item, the development plan for the property, approved by the county in October 2001, permits 25 future parking spaces to be built. The property owners can build these spaces anytime within the 20-year term if the proposed development agreement is approved.
This development agreement is also part of a settlement between the city and the property owners, in which the city is obtaining property from the property owners in order to construct the future Ekwill Street in the city’s Ekwill Fowler Project. This would eliminate 10 of the property’s exiting parking spaces.
The Design Review Board has already granted conceptual and preliminary approval for the 25 future parking spaces improvements during its Feb. 8 meeting, which includes hardscaping, landscaping, and exterior lighting with the additional spaces.
Currently, most public parking in Old Town Goleta is street parking along both sides of Hollister Avenue.
While the Planning Commission approved the resolution to recommend approval, the development agreement will next go in front of the Goleta City Council for final approval.
— Noozhawk staff writer Serena Guentz can be reached at sguentz@noozhawk.com. Follow Noozhawk on Twitter: @noozhawk, @NoozhawkNews and @NoozhawkBiz. Connect with Noozhawk on Facebook.
