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Staff hearing officer approves ADU at 526 Cranch Drive
Summary
Staff Hearing Officer Tess Harris approved a coastal development permit for a 1,200 sq ft accessory dwelling unit at 526 Cranch Drive, finding the project exempt from CEQA under section 15303 and consistent with the local coastal plan; the approval was announced as final and not subject to appeal.
Tess Harris, the City of Santa Barbara staff hearing officer, approved a coastal development permit on June 10 for a 1,200-square-foot accessory dwelling unit at 526 Cranch Drive, saying the project complies with local coastal policies and is exempt from environmental review.
“The ADU is consistent with all applicable policies of the city’s Local Coastal Plan,” Harris said. “I am going to approve the 526 Cranch Drive project. My approval is not subject to any appeal.”
Harris noted that the project’s changes are limited to the ADU’s square footage; there is no alteration to the primary living area or the garage. The additional dwelling increases the site’s floor-area ratio to about 101%, a level Harris said is allowable for the proposal under the city’s ADU rules. She also noted the site is not within a high geologic or flood hazard area and that a landscape plan will be required at the building permit stage to address any planting or screening concerns.
Staff cited the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) categorical exemption for small new construction or conversions (CEQA Guideline section 15303) in the staff report. Harris found the project consistent with the Coastal Act’s minimization-of-adverse-impacts policy and with applicable municipal code provisions for setbacks, parking and height.
Harris’s announcement concluded the item; she wished the applicant well as they move into the building permit process. No public comment or appeals were recorded during the hearing for this item.
