Monterey County Land Use & Development Digest

After two years of legal back-and-forth, the Monterey County Superior Court has ruled that Monterey Peninsula Unified’s environmental review of its high school stadium project is complete and legally compliant.
But opponents have filed an appeal.

Massive ocean wind farms off Morro Bay and Santa Barbara County—which could transform these quiet coastal towns and affect marine life—face a turbulent path.

A design-build-development company based in Santa Cruz, which has an established track record providing accessory dwelling unit plans for Central Coast cities, is doing it again, this time for Monterey County.

Work on a new annex, visitors center and underground parking garage can legally begin after the state issued a final, court-ordered review of the project. Plans have been on hold since early 2021.

The irrigation bill, which aims to force businesses and institutions to remove their lawns, now goes to the governor.

A June budget deal required community colleges to raise their own money to build affordable student housing. Some campuses said that plan prevented them from building the dorms, even with help from the state to pay the debt.

Assemblymember Buffy Wicks proposed legislation to help get around a court's rejection of a UC Berkeley housing plan. But even if the law is approved, its fate is in the hands of the state Supreme Court.

Some 7,000 square miles of ocean on California’s Central Coast could soon become the largest national marine sanctuary in the continental U.S. It could also make history as one of the first federal sanctuaries to be spearheaded by a Native American tribe.

Environmentalists and project proponents agree: Infrastructure bills crafted by legislators and Newsom are a good compromise to streamline development. The package aims to speed up lawsuits for solar farms, reservoirs and other infrastructure, and relax protection of some species.

California Gov. Gavin Newsom has signed Assembly Bill 341 into law, reinstating a moratorium on the expansion of cardrooms in the state.

The city said its decision to deny the Welcome Center's request to expand the use of the freight depot building for additional exhibits is based upon a current tenant's wish to continue to use the space.

In September, California State University, Monterey Bay’s Campus Planning and Development team proposed the 2nd Avenue project, which aimed to provide needed housing and services for the campus and community. This proposal called for multifamily rental housing with campus-serving amenities.

As seismic engineers study the earthquakes that killed more than 20,000, it's becoming clear that a significant cause involved a building design common in California.

The Grand Hyatt of Seaside at Monterey Bay project will be a seven-level building with 330 guest rooms, conference center with meeting rooms, restaurant, and lobby bar.

The Grand Hyatt project will be a seven-level, 337,668-square-foot single hotel building with 330 guest rooms. Amenities include a conference center, restaurant, lobby bar, service kitchen, administrative offices, and a spa.

One of California’s top elected officials announced steps to limit how developments can be built in areas that are at highest risk of wildfire. Attorney General Rob Bonta released guidelines for local governments to follow when they are deciding whether to approve subdivisions in the “wildland urban interface.”

In a couple of weeks, a state appeals court will hear oral arguments in a case brought by a conservative Arizona think tank against the city of Pacific Grove for what plaintiffs argue is an illegal way in which the city controls short-term rentals.

As soon as the presence of red-legged frogs in an irrigation pond near a construction site at Palo Corona Regional Park’s front entrance was confirmed, Monterey Peninsula Regional Park District halted the building project and called in agencies to protect the federally listed species.

The South of Tioga project has taken a “huge step forward” with the Sand City Council accepting the conservation and access easements from the developer for a sand dune habitat area within the development site’s footprint.

A lawsuit between the Alisal Union School District and Stone Bridge Homes has put a hold on a potential housing development. The district projects roughly 1,500 new students and says the developers inadequately address how construction of schools will be funded.

KDG Capital is bringing a Grand Hyatt hotel to the Seaside Resort Project at Bayonet and Black Horse Golf Course, submitting a design review application and prompting the city of Seaside to hire EMC Planning Group to perform a California Environmental Quality Act compliance review.

The Bureau of Land Management is seeking nominations for positions on its California Desert District Advisory Council, Central California Resource Advisory Council, and Northern California District RAC.

Plans for the 2.8 million-square-foot Amazon fulfillment center at the corner of Abbot Street and Harrison Road in Salinas have fallen through. ‘Growing cost of construction” was cited as a reason for the change in plans.

Online mega-retailer Amazon is reportedly breaking ground in Salinas; however, the city and Amazon have yet to officially confirm the project. The secrecy surrounding the warehouse has some Salinas residents demanding answers.

The American Tin Cannery hotel project, near the Monterey Bay Aquarium, has been halted by the California Coastal Commission after two of commissioners appealed Pacific Grove’s approval.

Too large and too big an impact on the local environment. That was the message from the Pacific Grove Architectural Review Board in December to the developers of a project on the American Tin Cannery site. Saying they’ve scaled back, developers will go before the Planning Commission on Oct. 28.

Even in the best of circumstances, building on the former Fort Ord comes with a gauntlet of hurdles. But the city of Del Rey Oaks is willing to try, despite water supply issues. In December, environmental consulting firm Denise Duffy & Associates will present an assessment of constraints and opportunities to the Del Rey Oaks City Council.

At its Oct. 28 meeting, the Pacific Grove Planning Commission will consider certifying the ATC Hotel and Commercial Project Environmental Impact Report and approve four permits sought—as recommended by staff.

Shea Homes, developer of The Dunes, has submitted design plans to the city of Marina for the Promenade—a mixed-used street with both restaurants, retail and apartments and condos—and plans to break ground early next year.

Plans are in motion for the Campus Town project, which would transform 122 acres of blighted land on the northern edge of Seaside into housing, retail and a hotel.

Multiple proposals for a new hotel at the Monterey Bay Dunes Complex were heard by the Marina City Council on Aug. 17. City Manager Layne Long said, “This can define our city not only in aesthetics but also financially in the revenue it will bring.”

On Aug. 19, outgoing Seaside City Manager Craig Malin took a dozen city employees and consultants to an overlook on the former Fort Ord. “I just wanted us to see the space,” Malin says. “It’s such a remarkable place.”