As a longtime plan to revitalize downtown Santa Maria starts to solidify into project proposals, city decision-makers asked the developer to make sure the overall design captures traditional mission-style architecture with a contemporary twist.
That was the main crux of a joint meeting between members of the Downtown Revitalization Committee, Planning Commission, and City Council on Dec. 15, Mayor Alice Patino told the Sun.
“We have to preserve what Santa Maria looks like. We have a beautiful City Hall building. We have a beautiful church across the street,” Patino said. “I think they figured out pretty much what we want.”
The Vernon Property Group has the keys to a handful of surplus city properties downtown (mostly parking lots), as well as the old Mervyn’s building in Town Center West, with projects on seven lots inching toward the planning process. RRM Design Group is working with Vernon to design mixed-use buildings—commercial storefronts with residential units above them—that are consistent with the updated Downtown Specific Plan and Santa Maria’s longtime vision to breathe life back into its downtown.
“We’ve been talking about the downtown, even before I got on the City Council, and we’ve been in the process of doing something about it for the last 15 years,” said Patino, who was first elected to the council in 2002. “It’s doable. It’s just that we need to figure out how to do it in Santa Maria.”
Patino said it’s going to take more than just above-ground construction to realize the city’s vision. The city is applying for a grant that would help redo older infrastructure such as sewer pipes along the corners of Main Street and Broadway—a necessity for the city to handle the projected increase of residential units in the area.
“It can’t move fast enough for me,” Patino said. “Once one thing gets done, I sort of think everything will fall into place.”
Community Development Director Chuen Ng told the Sun that tentative plans for the parcels pencil in 575 apartment units with ground-floor commercial retail, open spaces, plazas, and other gathering spaces, as well as landscaping that creates a more inviting, pedestrian-friendly place. A quarter of the residential units will be affordable housing.
“The goal is to revitalize the downtown area to bring new visitors, and so we are applying really careful attention to all of these other details of what happens on the ground. It’s placemaking,” he said. “There’s going to be a densification of downtown with these residential developments. We do want to bring back elements of that downtown, with walkability and storefronts.”
At least two of the Vernon Group’s projects have come before decision-making bodies.
In July, the Downtown Revitalization Committee heard about the proposal for the old Mervyn’s/Fallas building, which would turn a big empty box store into three stories with 104 apartments, a rooftop deck, and downstairs shopping. In August, the City Council adopted a development agreement for the parking lot on the southeast corner of Main and Broadway, which could hold a five-story building with 88 residential units, a rooftop deck, outdoor seating area, and street-side storefronts in the future.
Both projects are in the preliminary stages of planning. But not everyone is gung-ho about the concept. Councilmember Mike Cordero questioned the wisdom of the five-story project
“I just think that it just doesn’t fit,” he said during the Aug. 16 meeting. “Why are you putting homes in a parking lot?”
Brad Vernon addressed Cordero’s question during the Vernon Group’s presentation.
“I had the exact same concern a couple of years ago. I have since built infill projects on parking lots,” he said.
As people graduate from universities, he added, they want amenities and services around them. Vernon said that it’s a different concept for areas that are used to single-family housing developments, so it does take a leap of faith, but he’s had success building similar projects in places like Orcutt and Walnut Creek.
“It’s one that as developers, we’ve seen that shift happen over the last 10 or 15 years, and there’s very huge demand,” Vernon said. “We’re all-in on this type of housing. It’s been hugely successful.”
This article appears in Dec 22-29, 2022.
