From housing and hotels to an In-N-Out Burger and a miles-long riverbed trail, perhaps no other place in the Santa Ynez Valley anticipates as much change as Buellton.
One of the most significant developments on the horizon is a $35 to $45 million Cottage Health medical building planned for the site of the old Parks Plaza Theatre.
The shuttered movie house screened its last film in 2020, forced from business by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The outpatient facility expected to replace it will be the largest health hub of its kind in the valley. It’s intended to fill local and regional gaps in medical services while making primary and specialty care more convenient, Cottage executives say.
“We really want to be a trusted partner for many, many years to come,” said Kevin Davidson, president of Cottage Medical Group and vice president of ambulatory services.
Jobs, services and parking
In a 3-0 vote, the Buellton Planning Commission in February approved the Cottage project for 515 McMurray Rd.
The rectangular and sloped 1.5-acre property sits between McDonald’s and the Santa Ynez Valley Marriott adjacent to Highway 101.
Construction of the 31,431-square-foot-facility will likely start in mid 2027, and the building will likely open in early 2029, Davidson said, noting much of the parking will be underneath.
About 60 people will work there, a number expected to fluctuate regularly as some care teams split time at other locations.
That means many valley residents—including some accustomed to traveling to Santa Barbara or other places for treatment—will find themselves accessing imaging, lab work, infusion and oncology, cardiac, chronic illness and other routine care closer to home.
“We’re continually assessing community needs,” Davidson said, adding Cottage is exploring a women’s health component. “It will get clearer as we get a little closer.”
Regional changes
The Mid County project represents a significant expansion of the nonprofit Cottage north of its flagship hospital in Santa Barbara, which opened in 1891.
The move comes three years after the Sacramento-based nonprofit Sutter Health, a chain of two dozen hospitals and 200 clinics, expanded to the south to Santa Barbara County by acquiring Sansum Medical Clinic, an institution dating to 1921.
And it comes two years after UCLA Health opened a South Coast flagship facility on Victoria Street in Santa Barbara, growing its primary and specialty care footprint while incorporating a cancer care clinic.
Shuffling services?
While the new Cottage facility will in some ways shift and consolidate healthcare in the valley, its arrival won’t completely reshape the medical landscape.
Santa Ynez Cottage Hospital opened in 1964, and its 24-hour emergency room will remain the valley’s primary destination for critical care.
Similarly, the Cottage Urgent Care at 328 McMurray, just down the road from the planned medical building, is expected to stay open as a complement to the new facility.
Time will tell whether the Cottage Primary Care clinic on Mission Drive in Solvang stays or goes.
City Hall enthusiasm
As the Cottage proposal wound its way through the public hearing review and approval process, it met relatively little City Hall resistance.
By that point, officials were largely focused on understanding traffic impacts and ensuring design details fit with the surrounding neighborhood and its mandated Agrarian architectural style.
“It’s a very well designed project,” Planning Commissioner Marcilo Sarquillla said shortly before voting in favor. “When you go to a dentist or even the doctor’s office you kind of feel down, but it’s uplifting to go to a site looking like that.”
It all adds up to a civic, economic—and health—boon, Mayor David Silva said last week, describing the medical center as a foundation for a more resilient community.
“Im overjoyed,” Silva said, adding he’s particularly hopeful the women’s health component will become a reality, and that Buellton residents who work for Cottage will enjoy well-paying jobs closer to home.
“It’s only looking up,” Silva said. “A movie theater is like candy, but a medical center is like fruits and vegetables.”
