Solvang planning panel finds 26'27 capital improvement plan consistent with general plan despite missing draft resolution

The Solvang Planning Commission voted to find the City of Solvang's proposed Capital Improvement Program (CIP) for fiscal year 2026'27 consistent with the city's general plan after a staff presentation and commissioner questions, and agreed that a formal resolution will be prepared and sent to city council.

"The capital improvement program is a planning guide and a planning tool," Administrative Services Director Wendy Berry told commissioners, describing the CIP as the place to list transportation, parks, stormwater, water and wastewater projects and noting that the five-year portion is the most predictable. "So it's a planning guide and a planning tool. And the reason why we just do the 5 years is because, logically, it's hard to predict the revenue and the trends for, like, 5 plus years out." (Wendy Berry, Administrative Services Director.)

Commissioners pressed staff on several operational and financial points tied to the CIP. Members asked why many CIP entries lack specific years in the 10-year list and noted large increases in parks funding in later years tied to an incomplete Parks and Recreation master plan. Berry said those larger amounts reflect master-plan work needed to unlock a second phase of a Prop 68 grant and the design work for major parks including Solvang Park and Hans Christian Andersen Park.

A commissioner raised a specific concern about the city's approach to parking projects and fees, pointing to entries for Parking Lot 3 and Lot 72 and asking why those projects were listed under "alternative transportation" rather than facilities and parks. Staff explained that some parking work is connected to EV charging and shuttle access and that project categorization can be adjusted in the commission's recommendation to council.

Commissioners also discussed the adequacy of the parking-in-lieu fee and the cost of acquiring new lots. "The parking in lieu fee is $12,000," one commissioner said. "700,000 divided by 20 is $35,000 per space is what it's actually costing us." That exchange framed a broader discussion about whether fees should be updated by the city council after a formal study; staff said a consultant contract for the fee study is expected to be awarded at the August 10 meeting. (Community Development Director comments.)

Several commissioners noted missing materials in their packet. Members said Attachment A (the CIP) and Attachment B (the general-plan/CIP consistency matrix) were not included in the posted agenda packet, and the draft resolution was linked incorrectly on the agenda site. After being prompted by staff, a city attorney identified herself and told the commission that it can make a consistency finding tonight even if the draft resolution is absent; the attorney said a resolution can be prepared afterward for the record. "You are still able to make the consistency findings absent of draft resolution," the attorney said, advising that the motion should be to find the CIP consistent with the general plan and that a resolution will follow. (Taylor, City attorney.)

Member Peterson moved to find the CIP consistent with the City of Solvang general plan; Vice Chair Adler seconded the motion. The motion passed by voice vote and the commission directed staff to transmit the recommendation and the later-prepared resolution to city council. The commission did not adopt any ordinance or funding action; council retains authority over project dates and funding.

Commissioners used the discussion to flag other agenda items for future review, including a request to revisit how building height is measured in zoning rules after concerns that a 35-foot maximum has been used to justify taller, three-story forms. Staff noted that measurement rules were changed in 2024 to use average natural grade and that UBEC (the Urban Growth Boundary Committee) recommendations on height and density will go to council in August.

In other business, the Community Development Director reported upcoming DRC items (a pre-application for a glamping resort at the old lumber mill site, facade and sign work at 433 Allisal Road), a forthcoming sign-ordinance recommendation, that the Alisal Ranch event barns are now moving toward environmental review, and that inquiries about the "Alsau Glen" project have yielded no formal application to date and will require the standard application and environmental review process.

The commission closed public comment (no in-person or remote public speakers identified) and adjourned at 6:34 p.m. The commission's recommendation will accompany a draft resolution to council for final action on consistency and next steps.