Planning commission approves 17‑lot subdivision at 2400 Grant Street after redesign and neighborhood talks

The Calistoga Planning Commission voted May 28 to approve a tentative map for a 17‑lot subdivision and associated site improvements at 2400 Grant Street (APN 011-010-0057), following a redesign the applicant prepared after neighborhood meetings.

Staff told the commission the application before it was for the subdivision (tentative map TM2023-2) and associated infrastructure; no house plans are part of this approval. "When the house plans come in, they'll go through a design review process. Design review for single family homes are, reviewed by the planning and building director. It won't come back to planning commission," staff said, adding that individual lot development will carry 300‑foot notice and an opportunity for public comment.

The revised subdivision preserves the 17‑lot count but enlarges several lots, removes a loop road and replaces it with a single two‑way street, and eliminates the previously proposed clubhouse and vineyard. Staff said the number of trees proposed for removal was reduced in the redesign from 60 to 16; the plan set contained a typographical reference to 60 and staff recommended a condition to correct that to 16 in final plans. Planning staff also presented an addendum to a 2008 Mitigated Negative Declaration (MND) under CEQA; staff described that addendum as a site‑specific supplement that incorporates recent technical studies and updates mitigation monitoring to current standards.

Applicants and consultants described a negotiation process with neighbors. Brian Griggs, a developer, said the team "missed the mark" in the earlier design and worked with neighbors and consultant Rick Tooker to revise the project. Architect/developer Jeff Stone told the commission, "this is your community. We're a developer," and said the revised plan seeks to preserve oak woodland character and place larger lots where trees can be retained.

Rick Tooker, the planning consultant who advised neighbors, told the commission the redesign was produced quickly and said the applicant and neighbors had reached agreements on lot layout, massing and landscape priorities. Several nearby residents — including Joanne Hoffman, Tom Johnson, Craig Manchuk and Frances Tedeschi — spoke in support of the revised plan while also asking about tree retention, drainage, construction timing, and water/fire flow capacity. Tedeschi said current static water pressure near her home measures about 30 psi and asked whether fire flows would meet fire‑code requirements; the commission asked Public Works to respond.

Hamid Heider, a civil engineer in Public Works, said the project would "loop the dead end water main" on Mora through the subdivision to Grant Street, improving water quality on Mora and likely increasing pressure; he added the project may require a private booster pump for the subdivision or individual lots to meet fire‑flow requirements and that sizing would be determined during the design phase. On drainage he said the project will intercept off‑site sheet flow entering Mora, route it into piping and install a 48‑inch pipe along Grant to reduce neighborhood flooding, and that because downstream improvements would be sized to convey the 100‑year event the project is not required to provide a detention basin (the on‑site basin is described as a bioretention facility for water‑quality control).

Commissioners asked about how future house plans would be reviewed and were told that administrative design review will apply under the municipal code; there will be public notice for each individual lot, and any neighbor concerns would be limited to code standards and design-review criteria. Staff emphasized that accessory dwelling units (ADUs) are governed by state law and may be allowed under those rules.

After public comment and deliberation, a commissioner moved to approve the tentative map (TM2023-2) for a residential subdivision and associated improvements at 2400 Grant Street "with the conditions as noted." The motion was seconded and passed on a roll‑call vote in which Chair Wilkes, Vice Chair Pinsky, and Commissioners Buickeneri, Keiser and Towey voted "aye." The commission adopted the CEQA addendum and the staff‑recommended conditions.

Planning staff and applicants said next steps include final map submittal, design‑review applications for individual houses reviewed administratively, engineering design for water and drainage improvements, and condition compliance through mitigation monitoring. The applicant said the construction manager would provide project schedules and monthly updates to nearby residents once the permit phase begins.