Solvang Planning Commission votes 5-0 to forward annual general plan and housing element progress report to City Council

The Solvang Planning Commission on March 3 unanimously recommended that the City Council receive and forward the city’s 2024 annual general plan and housing element progress report to the council and to state reviewers.

Rafael, planning manager for the City of Solvang, opened the discussion by saying the report is the city’s annual submission required by the state’s Office of Planning and Research and the Department of Housing and Community Development and must be filed by April 1, 2025. “This report basically is an outline of what activities have been completed by the planning department,” he said, noting the packet also includes building and code compliance statistics.

The commission’s recommendation (motion passed 5-0) directs staff to place the progress report on the City Council agenda; staff said the council review is scheduled for March 24. Chair Williams presided over the meeting.

Why it matters: The annual report is the city’s primary way to show the state that Solvang is implementing the policies, rezones and programs in its adopted general plan and housing element. State reviewers, including HCD, are now auditing local implementation more closely and can impose corrective requirements if prescribed rezones, objective standards or other programs are not completed in the required time frames.

Key staff updates and findings - General plan and zoning changes: Rafael told commissioners the city adopted a comprehensive general plan on July 8, 2024, and completed major zoning ordinance amendments in 2024 to implement the plan. Staff said the general plan effort cost more than $700,000 and included public outreach beginning in 2021.

- Objective design standards and the village: Rafael said the newly adopted zoning ordinance created objective design standards for the Village Admission Design District and that staff continues to refine those standards (for example, clarifying paint rules). Commissioners asked whether a 50/50 mixed-use threshold of commercial versus residential in the village should be adjusted; Rafael said the matter will be examined at an upcoming workshop and then taken to the City Council. The commission and staff discussed the tension between locally preferred design control and state requirements that objective, not purely subjective, standards be applied where housing is involved.

- Building permits and process changes: Rafael reported the city received 214 building permit applications in 2024 and issued 214 permits. He said the city moved to an all-electronic submittal system, adopted checklists to speed review, hired a development services technician to accept permits five days per week, and fixed a permitting system purchased in 2020 so staff can now track review time and due dates. Staff also said the city is now performing concurrent reviews (fire, utilities, building, public works) to reduce sequential delays.

- Code compliance changes: Rafael said the city converted its code compliance function from two part‑time positions to a single full‑time code compliance officer and implemented standard operating procedures aligned with the California Government Code. Staff reported the officer logged 108 complaints in the year and closed 17; the approach emphasizes voluntary compliance (warnings and follow-ups) before fines.

Housing targets, rezones and pipeline projects - RHNA targets: Rafael outlined Solvang’s Regional Housing Needs Assessment (RHNA) obligation for the 2023–2031 cycle and said the city must demonstrate capacity to accommodate 191 housing units across income categories: 28 extremely low, 27 very low, 39 low, 22 moderate and 75 above‑moderate. Rafael said the city has credited units from finalized permits and projects and that, at present, staff counts 27 units toward the RHNA target.

- Rezones completed: Rafael said the city completed the three rezones required to meet RHNA timing deadlines (labeled in the report as Site B, Site C and Site D) and indicated those actions were completed before the end of last year’s deadlines.

- Projects in the pipeline: Staff described two larger projects and several infill conversions: a 32‑unit project at 670 Alamo Pintado that is post‑entitlement but may be redesigned; the “Wildwood” / Alamo Pintado Apartments project (described by staff as approximately 100 units) that is currently under entitlement and has begun environmental review; a 30‑unit Denmark at Market Square mixed‑use project; plus smaller conversions and proposals (examples cited by staff: an 11‑unit conversion at Frederick Square, three units at Rasmus, and a 24‑unit project off Copenhagen). Rafael cautioned that pipeline projects may change as applicants redesign to respond to market conditions or to take advantage of new local rules.

Wildwood project and CEQA: Rafael said the Wildwood application is “deemed complete” and that the city has started the environmental review process, with Rincon contracted to prepare the environmental documentation. He emphasized that ‘‘deemed complete’’ starts environmental review and is not the same as final approval. On CEQA he said: “CEQA very much…is a disclosure document. It discloses environmental impacts of the project to you, the decision makers, and every single resident.” Staff expects an environmental impact report (EIR) is likely and estimated completion of that analysis with public review and subsequent hearings could extend into winter 2026.

Other regulatory and program items - Parking and change of use: Rafael explained the revised zoning ordinance changes how the city treats parking for change‑of‑use in existing commercial buildings; under the new rules some conversions that do not expand footprint or change status as an allowed use will not require recalculating parking. He said that change removed the need for one applicant to seek an extension and made a lease transition easier for a prospective tenant.

- State mapping and safety updates: Staff warned that Cal Fire is issuing new high‑fire‑severity zone maps that will be posted for a 30‑day public review once released; city staff will need to adopt the maps into the building code and expects to present related general plan and safety element amendments this year. Rafael flagged the potential insurance implications of high‑fire designations.

- Short‑term vacation rentals: Staff announced a March 24 City Council item to update the city’s short‑term rental ordinance originally adopted in 2014 and modified in 2016.

Commission and public comment Commissioners asked for clarification on objective standards, the DRC’s role in village design review, timelines for completing objective standards and a universal design ordinance, and for details on how staff brings “red” items in the appendix to the City Council’s attention. Dennis Bibi Salve asked how the city will be judged successful by the state; Rafael replied that state counts typically “clock in” when permits are issued and that the next housing element cycle will evaluate which programs succeeded and which did not.

Action taken The Planning Commission voted 5‑0 to recommend the Planning Commission’s February annual general plan and housing element progress report be sent to the City Council for review and transmittal to state agencies. The motion passed without recorded no votes.

Next steps Rafael and staff said a joint Planning Commission/DRC workshop on objective standards and signage is scheduled for March 13, and the City Council will consider the progress report and related ordinance items on March 24. Staff will post the Cal Fire maps for public review after the state releases them.