Supervisor’s bid to allow 50% public rental at Tropical Treehouse fails; planning commission denial stands

Supervisor Ingram proposed allowing the owner of the Tropical Treehouse duplex to rent up to 50% of the unit to the general public while keeping the other half for H‑2A visa farmworkers, but the motion failed for lack of a second and the planning commission’s denial stands.

Greg Zoda, planning staff, told the board the planning commission had recommended denial (7–0–1) after the applicant, Mr. McAuliffe, asked to remove a condition that limited rentals to farmworkers on Green Hill Road. Zoda said he had advertised the amendment and sent notices to adjacent owners and that he received no contacts opposing the change. An applicant representative said adjacent owners he had contacted were “all happy” with how the development turned out and that one side remains occupied by guest workers while the other side may be available for rental in future years.

Supervisor Ingram said he sympathized with the owner’s investment—“he’s spent a couple $100,000 and it’s a neat looking place”—but framed his motion to allow 50% public rental as a temporary accommodation, subject to future application if the owner wanted to expand rentals. Vice Chair Norton and other supervisors raised enforcement and precedent concerns and cited the planning commission’s recommendation. Norton said: “We’re setting a precedent… we have a planning commission that twice has denied it.” With no second, the motion died and the board left the planning commission’s denial in place.

The board discussed possible alternative controls—leasing lengths, revisit timelines and the difficulty of monitoring H‑2A occupancy—but took no further action on the special-exception amendment at this meeting. The planning commission’s recommendation remains the operative advisory record; any future change would come back as a new application or amendment.