Locals are pushing back against an eight-story apartment building proposed to sit just behind the Santa Barbara Mission.
A petition created by local nonprofit SAGE (Smart Action Growth and Equity) demands stronger public safety review.
As of June 18, the petition has amassed around 5,400 signatures. Members of SAGE said the project, in the heart of Mission Canyon, requires a strong review of wildfire risk and environmental impacts, and that the community’s voice should be heard.
“In this project there are big developers and government,” said Marc Chytilo, a local lawyer representing SAGE. “The community needs to stand on equal footing with all of these other entities.”
The housing project at 505 E. Los Olivos St., just adjacent to the historic Mission would include 270 apartments reaching 8 stories and rivaling the height of Santa Barbara’s tallest building, the Granada Theatre.
About 54 of the units are proposed as low-income housing. The estimated height of the buildings would be about 112 feet. Local architects who oppose the project say that it would be even higher.
‘Builder’s Remedy’ trumps local regulations
The zoning standards at the property allow for 30 feet. However, the Mission housing proposal is a “Builder’s Remedy project” — since the city failed to have its housing element certified by a state deadline, projects that are composed of at least 20% of affordable units are allowed to bypass most local zoning and environmental regulations.
The developers, a company called Mission LLC, have leveraged other legislation to limit public engagement with the proposal. Under SB 1213, the Architectural Works Copyright Act, Mission LLC has also been allowed to avoid disclosure of the renderings to the public.
Neither the developers nor their attorney responded to calls from the Santa Barbara News-Press.
“Santa Barbara is accustomed to having a very robust review process for development projects like this,” Chytilo said. “But it’s troubling when the public’s review is shortcut, and documents are not available. These are irregularities in the public review process.”
Locals add their expertise
Frustrated by the lack of transparency, Fred Sweeney, local architect emeritus and vice-president of SAGE Santa Barbara, developed his own rendering and interpretation of the Mission housing project. The rendering was based on notes taken from viewing existing submissions under the monitoring of land use planners, which he then crosschecked with other local architects and measurements from the site.
Using his experience from working on other local projects, Sweeney projected a total height of 127 feet.
“It’s the best we can do to try to share with the community how big this thing might look. We’re obligated as architects to show things as accurately as we can,” he said. “It’s not perfect, but it’s fairly close.”
The developers have not publicly released the actual rendering of the project.
Environmental impact & fire risk
Architect Cass Ensberg said that architects and planners support housing, but Mission Canyon simply isn’t the right place. She said it would be better to support these projects in areas that are already equipped for this kind of density. Mission Canyon road, located in a high wildfire hazard area, does not, she said.
Chytilo said one of SAGE’s main public safety concerns with the project is that its single exit onto Los Olivos Street will make it challenging for residents to evacuate in the case of a fire. With approximately 500 residents, safety could be compromised, he said.
He added that the addition of these residents into the flow of traffic during an evacuation could be catastrophic.
“Concern that we won’t have the adequate capacity to evacuate our existing communities is real,” Chytilo said. “But this project amplifies those risks.”
Legal history & future
Mission LLC has entangled itself in a legal limbo with the city of Santa Barbara, and even state-level legislature. Last year, California Senator Monique Limón proposed a bill which requires projects in areas within a certain population range to adhere to California environmental review law. The range carves out only one city — Santa Barbara. Since Limón represents Santa Barbara, many allege the bill aimed to regulate the Mission housing project specifically.
Most recently, Mission LLC lost in court against the city of Santa Barbara, alleging that the city is intentionally attempting to delay development and increase costs.
Local architects are also beginning to organize to change Builder’s Remedy Law. The SAGE petition included an additional statement on these projects, asking the city to require the same public health and safety review to all Builder’s Remedy projects proposed.
“SAGE is trying to monitor the city’s process, and communicate it to the community for engagement and make sure that their needs are met,” Chytilo said.
