Judge Lets Plaintiff Beef Up Vacation Rental Lawsuit

Ventura Judge Mark Borrell has given Theo Kracke ​— ​owner of Paradise Retreats vacation rental management ​— ​20 days to beef up his argument that Santa Barbara’s 180-degree change of heart concerning short-term vacation rentals “has changed the intensity and use of land” within city limits and therefore constitutes a “development” requiring permission from the California Coastal Commission. Kracke’s lawyer, Travis Logue, said the amended lawsuit will likely include a recent commission letter encouraging cities to regulate vacation rentals. Borrell also ruled against the city’s anti-SLAPP allegations that Kracke’s lawsuit constituted what City Attorney Ariel Calonne called “a direct attack on the First Amendment rights of 70 [public speakers and] the City Council.”