Board sends Signal Hill replacement-house plans back for a narrower rebuild, directs staff to return with resolution

The Monterey County Board of Supervisors on July 8 reviewed three appeals of an April planning commission approval for a proposed 8,290-square-foot two-story replacement dwelling at 111170 Signal Hill Road (a parcel in Pebble Beach's Santa Lucia Preserve area). The planning commission's April 30 decision had approved the design as consistent with the board's earlier 2023 direction to adopt the EIR's Reduced Project (Alternative 6). Appeals argued the new design exceeded the board's intent to replace the historic Connell House on the original footprint, altered viewshed protections and mishandled required scenic/conservation easement language.

History and contention: The original Connell House was found historic during prior proceedings and later suffered vandalism and structural damage; the board in 2023 decided to allow demolition but directed that any replacement should follow Alternative 6 from the certified EIR and remain within the Connell House's previously developed footprint. The planning commission approved a design that staff and the applicant said fits within the earlier conceptual direction but included differences in how the bird's-eye footprint, hardscape and upper-level decks were counted.

Appellants and arguments: Neighbor Samuel Reeves and preservation group AMAP (Alliance of Monterey Area Preservationists) argued the plan exceeds the footprint and height measures the board intended; they sought denial or tightening so the replacement would not expand beyond the Connell House footprint, would be no taller than the historic dwelling and would restore required screening trees. The applicant and her supporters said the proposal is materially smaller than the large project analyzed in the EIR, that the design reduces massing in places and that the planning commission's added scenic-easement boundary was an appropriate local decision.

Board action: After public testimony and argument by appellants and the applicant, the board voted unanimously to have staff prepare a date-certain resolution for the board's August meeting implementing the board's prior direction. Supervisors said the original July 2023 direction required a replacement that is not larger than the previous Connell House, that does not extend beyond the formerly developed footprint and that maintains the scenic-easement protections the board intended when it approved partial demolition.

Motion and vote: The board's action required staff to redraft a resolution that reflects the earlier direction (maximum size/higher-level design and scenic-easement boundary consistent with the board's June 2023 intent). Supervisor Alejo moved and supervisors seconded; the vote was unanimous.

Why it matters: The case combines questions about historic-property protections, permit conditions, shoreline and sand-dune resource policies in the Del Monte Forest Land Use Plan, and how to treat replaced structures when a historic building is demolished for safety reasons. The board emphasized that its earlier decisions must be honored and that prospective designs must not circumvent the footprint, size and screening direction the board previously set.

Next steps: Staff will return with a date-certain resolution to implement the board's direction and to clarify the required conservation/scenic-easement language and any permit modifications necessary to ensure the replacement house cannot expand beyond the board's stated limits. The board said staff should bring the revised document back at the first August meeting to allow the matter to proceed with explicit board findings.