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Scotts Valley council approves 19‑unit Ridgewood West townhomes after debate over parking, oak grove and design
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Summary
After a public hearing and hours of comment, the City Council approved the Ridgewood West project on Herba Lane — 19 townhome units with three deed‑restricted affordable units — while attaching conditions addressing parking, garage use and tree/landscaping protections.
The Scotts Valley City Council voted to approve a 19‑unit townhome project known as Ridgewood West on Herba Lane after a public hearing that featured neighborhood concerns about parking, safety and protection of a coastal live oak riparian woodland.
The development, proposed by City Ventures, will subdivide a 1.04‑acre parcel and construct four three‑story buildings with a total of 19 for‑sale condominium units; the applicant is using state density‑bonus provisions to add three additional units, two restricted to low‑income buyers and one to moderate‑income buyers. City planning staff said the project will preserve about 40 ordinance‑sized oak trees and locate buildings outside the trees’ drip line.
The project drew sustained public comment from nearby residents and homeowners’ associations who said the site is already well used by families and park visitors and warned the development would increase traffic, create overflow parking and reduce views of the oak canopy. Several speakers also said narrow garage depths and short driveways would create unsafe backing movements into a busy local street near the fire station.
City Ventures representatives said the design intentionally preserves the oak canopy, increases the Erba Lane setback compared with an earlier plan, added a landscape strip and gained one additional guest parking space after coordinating with staff. Darian Denler of City Ventures said the builder focuses on infill projects and that "all of our homes are solar, all electric and prewired for EV charging." Samantha Hauser, also with City Ventures, said the team added architectural details and landscaping to soften the Erba Lane elevation in response to Planning Commission feedback.
Council members, staff and the fire district discussed technical safety details including emergency‑vehicle access, driveway sightlines and the width of the proposed private drive aisles. Fire staff told council that department access and hydrant locations have been reviewed and that the department's concerns were addressed as part of conditions of approval.
Council approved three related actions on the item. First, the council adopted the environmental finding (a mitigated negative declaration) for the project. Second, the council approved the tentative land division to allow the condominium map and related actions. Third, the council approved the design‑review permit and associated conditions. The design‑review vote passed 3–1–1 (yes/no/abstain) after council added multiple conditions requiring detailed implementation measures, including: (a) CC&Rs language and enforcement mechanisms that require garages be used for vehicle parking and allow city assistance in enforcement; (b) additional on‑site bicycle parking and exploration of bike lockers; (c) verification that required trash containers and installed bike storage do not intrude into the required garage clearances; (d) added architectural and landscape details for the Erba Lane frontage; and (e) arboricultural protections and monitoring measures for the riparian tree canopy during construction.
Votes at a glance - Mitigated negative declaration (Resolution 2068): approved unanimously. - Tentative land division (Resolution 2068.1): approved (4 yes, 0 no, 1 abstain). - Design review and related permits (Resolution 2068.2): approved (3 yes, 1 no, 1 abstain). The council instructed staff to incorporate the additional conditions described above into final documents and agreements.
Why it matters: The project is sited next to McDoorsa Park and a fire station and uses state density‑bonus rules that limit local discretion on design standards. Council members and neighbors framed the debate around competing goals: increasing local homeownership opportunities while avoiding parking spillover, maintaining public safety near an emergency access corridor, and protecting a mature oak riparian area.
What’s next: City staff will finalize conditions, record required affordable‑housing agreements and return with executed documents; the developer will proceed to building permit and construction steps once final conditions and maps are complete.
