An ongoing lawsuit prompted a two-month grace period for long-term tenants of Buellton’s Farmhouse Motel, before new housing restrictions kick in. While a recent city ordinance to help ramp up redevelopment efforts in town requires motel properties along Avenue of Flags—including Farmhouse—to convert units that house long-term renters to traditional motel rooms by October, a […]
development
Developer pitches 26 apartments for Buellton’s Avenue of Flags
Ahead of submitting an official project proposal, the owner of a vacant 0.7-acre lot in Buellton gave city leaders a glimpse into his hopes for the property. Located north of Hotel Hygge and south of Farmhouse Motel, 560 Avenue of Flags was at the center of a conceptual review hearing, which took place during the […]
Judge rejects Solvang’s request to dismiss a developer’s lawsuit
Solvang’s legal advisors have until Aug. 3 to respond to a civil lawsuit after a judge rejected the city’s argument to throw out the case. In mid-July, Santa Barbara County Superior Court Judge James F. Rigali overruled Solvang’s petition to dismiss local developer Ed St. George’s suit against the city for issuing a stop work […]
Lompoc changes zoning designations to make way for more housing
Three Lompoc properties along Ocean Avenue could be the sites for future housing developments thanks to the City Council’s decision on June 16. Council members approved zoning changes that turned commercial designations into high-density residential uses. In May, the city Planning Commission approved zone changes for around 3.88 acres of vacant land at 1308, 1316, […]
Guadalupe approves new family housing with carport caveat
Porch swings. Picket fences. Homeowners associations. Among the tropes often associated with quiet, suburban neighborhoods, the concept of an enclosed garage seemed like a given for some attendees of the Guadalupe City Council’s May 12 meeting. Against the wishes of a local developer, however, the council decided that evening to approve his new 15-unit single-family […]
County approves Los Alamos’ Cottonwoods housing development
Yellowtail Lane. Pargo Drive. Gopher Gulch. Naming a few newly proposed private roads in Los Alamos after fish and rodents fell into the Santa Barbara County Planning Commission’s purview at its final hearing of April. County Planner Tina Mitchell assured the commission on April 29 that the road names before them were cleared by the […]
Santa Barbara County upholds a Ballard homeowner’s permit to build new bathrooms, delayed by a neighbor’s appeal
Fire hazards. Height violations. Improper noticing. Claims tied to a Santa Ynez Valley resident’s appeal of a neighboring family’s permit to add two new ground-floor bathrooms—together totaling 150 square feet—to their home didn’t hold water during a Santa Barbara County Planning Commission review. “When I first got this, I thought, why is this even before […]

