Zoning administrator approves STAR permit for fourplex on West Escalonus with 2‑guest limit; operations deferred until May 17, 2026

The San Clemente zoning administrator on Aug. 1, 2025, approved a short‑term apartment rental permit for a fourplex on West Escalonus, finding the project categorically exempt from the California Environmental Quality Act and attaching conditions that limit occupancy and delay the permit’s effective date.

Staff said the project (public hearing project 25‑166) is a fourplex on a 4,778‑square‑foot lot in the residential‑medium zone and outside the STLU overlay. Three of the four units currently operate as short‑term lodging units (STLUs); each unit is one bedroom, one bathroom, and the applicant proposed a two‑guest maximum per unit. Staff recommended approval subject to the city’s standard STAR conditions and a requirement that the applicant advertise the two‑guest maximum and one parking space per unit on rental listings.

The zoning administrator noted the property’s long history of timely Transient Occupancy Tax payments and a lack of code‑enforcement complaints in the records staff reviewed. Because other STLU operating licenses existed within 300 feet, the zoning administrator revised the resolution to state that Units 1, 2 and 3 “shall not commence operations under the short‑term apartment rental permit until after the amortization period ends on 05/17/2026.” The administrator also corrected the resolution language to set the maximum occupancy at two guests per unit and added a condition formally limiting each unit to two guests.

Staff indicated the condition about deferring STAR operations was written to ensure the STAR permit does not conflict with the ongoing amortized STLU licenses near the site; the applicants may continue operating under their current STLU operating licenses until the amortization period ends. The zoning administrator said staff will work with the applicants on the permit paperwork before the STAR becomes effective.

The resolution adopted for the file is ZA25‑016 (as discussed at the hearing) and includes the revised findings and conditions described above. The decision was made by the zoning administrator at the conclusion of the public hearing; no separate motion maker or second was recorded.

Applicants and neighbors who spoke at the hearing told the zoning administrator they live in San Clemente and have managed the property for years, said they screen guests and enforce quiet‑use rules, and described on‑site parking garage spaces. The zoning administrator visited the site and referenced its maintenance and proximity to pedestrian and beach trails.

The zoning administrator’s written modifications and the resolution will be provided to the applicants; there is a 10‑day appeal period for discretionary items.