Staff hearing officer approves Shoreline Drive addition, citing disability accommodation despite staff recommending denial
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Summary
The staff hearing officer approved a 206 sq ft first-floor addition at 1222 Shoreline Drive that reduces the required open yard from 1,250 sq ft to about 750 sq ft, overturning staff's recommendation to deny on open-yard grounds and citing a medical accommodation and pending code adjustments for aging-in-place.
Tess Harris, the City of Santa Barbara staff hearing officer, approved a 206-square-foot first-floor addition at 1222 Shoreline Drive despite staff’s recommendation to deny the requested open-yard modification. Harris said the record and applicable modification criteria supported an accommodation for the homeowner’s medical needs.
Assistant planner Jillian Fennessy told the hearing the lot (5,662 sq ft) currently met the 1,250-square-foot open-yard requirement and that the proposed addition would reduce usable open yard to roughly 750 square feet and cause existing trellis/arbor encroachments to exceed the 20% limit (staff estimated encroachment at about 33%). Based on lot shape, slope and presence of an existing first-floor bedroom, staff concluded there were no unique site constraints to justify the reduction and recommended denial.
The applicant’s record (Kevin Capone listed as applicant) and the representative, identified in remarks as Mr. Henderson, urged a different outcome on grounds of medical necessity and broader policy context. Henderson said the homeowner has early-onset Alzheimer’s and that the first-floor addition would enlarge a bathroom to accommodate grab rails and a transfer shower and otherwise allow the household to age in place. He also referenced recent Historic Landmarks Commission (HLC) and Planning Commission discussions about lowering open-yard thresholds for small first-floor additions (an 800-square-foot standard under consideration) and argued the proposed changes were largely invisible to the public and would not change front-yard character.
Harris acknowledged staff's analysis but said modification criteria include an accommodation for disabilities (Title 28, item 7). She noted the property’s location on Shoreline Drive, where front yards function similarly to back yards and where ocean-front orientation affects perceived openness, and concluded the reduction would prevent an unreasonable hardship given the homeowner’s medical needs. "I do believe that this project provides reasonable accommodation to the property owner," Harris said before approving the project and citing the standard 10-day appeal period during which a planning commissioner can suspend the decision.
The hearing record therefore shows a split between staff’s zoning analysis and the hearing officer’s discretion to grant a modification based on accommodation provisions and local context. The decision allows the applicant to pursue building permits unless an appeal is filed within 10 days.
