The Staff Hearing Officer meeting held on September 17, 2025, in Santa Barbara focused on a proposed project involving the conversion of an existing church building into a single-unit residence, along with the construction of a detached garage and workshop featuring an accessory dwelling unit (ADU) above.

The project includes several site improvements, such as landscaping, hardscaping, and the removal of one street tree, which has already received approval from the street tree advisory committee. The existing church parking lot is set to be demolished and replaced with hydromulch. Notably, the original plan included a lot split, but this has been revised to exclude that component from the current application.

A key aspect of the proposal is the request for a zoning modification to allow the combined square footage of the garage, workshop, and ADU to exceed the allowable limit for a single detached accessory building. The garage is proposed at 609 square feet, the workshop at 194 square feet, and the ADU at 800 square feet, totaling 1,603 square feet. This exceeds the maximum allowance of 1,250 square feet for a single detached accessory structure.

Typically, an ADU constructed over a new or existing covered parking structure does not count towards the maximum floor area of an accessory building. However, since the proposed ADU is not solely above a standard garage, it is included in the calculation, necessitating the zoning modification.

The proposed design includes a new curb cut for the two-car garage, with exterior stairs leading to the two-bedroom ADU. Staff expressed support for the modification, stating that the improvements are appropriate for the lot and adequately sized to accommodate the ADU. The Single Family Design Board also agreed with this rationale, favoring the single detached accessory building approach over multiple structures or attachments to the main residence.

The meeting concluded with a consensus on the project's merits, paving the way for further development in the area.