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DRB approves 332 Locust Street design review and revocable encroachment permit with privacy condition
Summary
Laguna Beach’s Design Review Board unanimously approved design review 2026‑0702 and revocable encroachment permit 2026‑0703 for 332 Locust Street, adding an upper level and modest lower‑level changes while requiring the upper window facing 334 Locust be translucent (opaque) and awning‑type for privacy.
The Laguna Beach Design Review Board voted unanimously (5–0) on May 14 to approve design review 2026‑0702 and revocable encroachment permit 2026‑0703 for 332 Locust Street, contingent on a privacy condition for an upper‑level window facing the neighboring property at 334 Locust.
Staff presented the project as an addition to an existing single‑family home and a modest deck expansion for a secondary unit, noting the upper‑level addition reaches about 23 feet and complies with the 25‑foot height limit and the city’s view‑equity standard. The staff report recommended adoption of the resolutions and found the project categorically exempt from CEQA.
The architect and applicant, Matt of Alder James, described the goals as improving a dated home while keeping massing low and providing usable exterior open space. "The primary goal of this project is to improve a home that on the street that that needs it and to do it in a way that is compatible with the character, of the street," he said, describing steps taken to keep plate heights and roof slopes low.
Neighbors objected during public comment, including Greg Homer, who said the project materially obstructed views for multiple adjacent residences and estimated the obstruction at "70 to 75%" from some units. The applicant responded that changes to the lower level and upper‑level massing complied with open‑space rules and that the layout minimized impacts.
Board members discussed view equity and privacy, including a focused condition that the upper‑level window adjacent to 334 Locust be translucent and a restricted awning/tilt configuration so it would not provide direct views into a neighbor’s primary rooms. The board adopted the motion and the accompanying CEQA exemption by roll call (5–0).
The approved project includes approximately 31 square feet of lower‑level addition and 637 square feet of upper‑level addition (totaling about 1,900 square feet after construction), landscape changes (including olive trees capped at 15 feet) and a modest hardscape barbecue area; the revocable encroachment permit covers low walls, gates and pilasters in the public right‑of‑way consistent with public works review.
