The Capitola Planning Commission voted to approve a coastal development permit for upgrades to New Brighton Middle School that include replacing the natural field with artificial turf, installing a track, adding bleachers and a digital scoreboard, and adding security fencing and ADA improvements.

Planning staff told the commission the application is a retroactive CDP for work largely completed on the school grounds. The proposal also calls for tennis courts and a scoreboard that was reduced in height from a proposed 14 feet to about 9.5 feet after neighborhood concerns, and security fencing with six-foot panels along areas abutting public property. Staff said Chief Sarah Ryan and police staff reviewed the application and provided supportive findings; staff recommended approval.

The hearing drew multiple comments from nearby residents who said a pedestrian connection shown in project materials does not reflect the historic use of the area. Tiffany Hsu, a homeowner on Orchid Avenue who said she and her family have owned the home for more than two decades, told commissioners, “The proposed walkway… does not restore or improve a prior condition, nor does it provide a new or necessary access.” Her husband, Lynn Shu, said the slope behind their fence made it unreasonable to call the area an existing path: “The pathway that you're trying to approve… is actually a new project because there never was a pathway in that area.”

Planning staff and the planning director clarified that the pedestrian path referenced in project materials is city-owned and is not part of the CDP application before the commission. The director said the school district agreed to improve and realign the path as part of a land-swap arrangement; when district work is complete the city will issue an encroachment permit and take over maintenance. Staff also told residents that, outside of the procedures that produced this CDP, aggrieved parties could contact the city council, the public works director or the school district to raise concerns.

Commissioners asked questions about the history of the path and the fence that now redirects pedestrian movements toward Monterey Avenue Park. After deliberation a motion to approve the CDP was made and seconded; the commission recorded aye votes and approved the permit.

Next steps outlined at the meeting included the school district proceeding with the improvements, the district obtaining any required grading or encroachment permits, and the city taking ownership of the repaired path once the district completes the work.

Clarifying details recorded at the hearing include the scoreboard height reduction (from 14 feet to about 9.5 feet), the planned six-foot security fence along public-facing edges, and staff confirmation that the pathway work is a separate, city-owned project that will require an encroachment permit and district coordination. The director also said the district is soliciting bids and plans to move forward as soon as possible.