Staff recommends approval for Boomen Ranch equestrian project at 3465 Boomen Road; neighbors raise fire and drainage concerns

City staff recommended approval at Tuesday’s zoning administrative hearing of permits for a private equestrian facility on a 4.98-acre lot at 3465 Boomen Road in the Olivenhain community, while acknowledging neighbor concerns about fire evacuation, road access and drainage.

Takuma, a Development Services staff member presenting the proposal, described the project as including a 583-square-foot addition to the existing single-family residence, a detached 1,184-square-foot accessory dwelling unit (ADU), a 4,946-square-foot 10-stall horse barn with a 669-square-foot attached office, a 4,062-square-foot horse walker, and a 1,169-square-foot garage with an attached 908-square-foot hay barn. Takuma said the project also proposes a private stable use and an increase in the allowed number of horses from nine (the by-right total calculated for the lot size) to 10, which requires a minor use permit.

Staff said an administrative design review is required for grading that exceeds 4 feet of fill and that multiple accessory structures exceed typical area and height limits for the RR zone; staff cited Encinitas Municipal Code provisions (EMC §30.48.040(B)(3) and (H)(2); EMC §30.55.020(d); EMC §30.55.070) that allow these exceptions with issuance of a minor use permit. Staff advised the council the project is exempt from CEQA per CEQA Guidelines sections 15303(a), 15303(e) and 15332 (as presented by staff).

Keith Wybrecht, the project architect, said the property owner is an avid horse owner who does not plan to live on the property but will employ on-site staff during construction and operation; Wybrecht emphasized the owner’s experience with horse evacuation and said the owner has previously evacuated large numbers of horses. Wybrecht also noted the lot is 4.98 acres — 0.02 acres short of the threshold that would allow 10 horses by right — and said the 10-horse request is modest given that a 10-stall barn existed on the property several years ago.

Neighbor Camille Perkins spoke during public comment identifying herself as an adjacent property owner and relayed written comments she had submitted earlier. Perkins emphasized that Olivenhain is in a high fire severity zone, described Fire Department projections she had heard about lengthy community evacuations and non-survivable roadways during large fires, and said she opposed increasing the on-site horse count because of evacuation and access concerns. Perkins also raised concerns about surface drainage on the western side of the property affecting the shared access road and asked that any proposed changes to Boomen Road include coordination with neighbors regarding private infrastructure beneath the road.

In response, Wybrecht and the applicant’s team said they are addressing fire-safety measures in building design and that a civil engineer has reviewed wastewater and drainage; Wybrecht said project drainage should improve existing conditions and noted the owner has experience evacuating horses. City staff said they received one written comment expressing concern about building heights and potential runoff and that four residents attended the applicant’s Citizens Participation Program meeting on April 9, 2024, where concerns about dwelling units, access for service vehicles and horse counts were raised. Staff told the hearing that it can make the required findings for approval of the minor use permit and administrative design review and recommended approval.

Hearing chair Anna Colomusi said staff will take the public comments — specifically fire, drainage and road-access issues — into account and directed staff to review those specific questions with Fire and Engineering before finalizing the notice of decision. No final decision or vote was taken at the Feb. 11 hearing; staff will include responses to the raised concerns in the notice of decision before it is finalized.

Next steps: staff will review fire and drainage concerns with the Fire Department and Engineering, incorporate their responses into the notice of decision, and then issue a final determination.