Goleta City Council Public Hearing Regarding Lot Splits and Residential Projects in the Single-Family Residential Zone District

On Tuesday, December 21, 2021, at 5:30 P.M., the Goleta City Council will conduct a virtual public hearing to consider adoption of Urgency and Non-Urgency Ordinances related to implementation of Senate Bill 9 of 2021 (SB 9). The Planning Commission will consider the below-described ordinances on December 13, 2021. Any recommendations from the Planning Commission will be provided to City Council.

SB 9 requires cities to both (a) allow a single-family lot to be split, roughly into halves and (b) allow up to two single-family dwellings to be developed on each single-family residential lot.

The proposed ordinances would amend Title 5 (Business Licenses and Regulations), Title 16 (Subdivisions), and Title 17 (Zoning) of the Goleta Municipal Code (GMC) to ensure the City’s regulations comply with SB 9 and to maintain City authority to regulate SB 9 projects where possible. Proposed amendments to the GMC include the following:

• An amendment to Title 5 to include a cross-reference prohibition of Short-Term Vacation Rental licenses for any site where an SB 9 project was approved under Title 16 or Title 17.
• New standards and procedures in Title 16 for urban lot splits in the Single-Family Residential (RS) zone district to subdivide existing residential lots in two. Consistent with SB 9, urban lot splits will be processed ministerially if certain objective standards are met.
• New standards and procedures in Title 17 to process applications for up to two principal dwelling units on lots in the RS zone district. This could be an additional unit on an existing lot that already has a principal dwelling or up to two new dwelling units on a newly created lot through an urban lot split described above. Consistent with SB 9, these new residential dwelling units will be processed ministerially if certain objective standards are met.

View the Notice here. The agenda and staff report for the hearing will also be posted on the City website at www.CityofGoleta.org/GoletaMeetings prior to the meeting date.

Information on how to participate in the public hearing will be included on the City Council agenda.

For further information on the project, contact Anne Wells, Advance Planning Manager, at (805) 961-7557 or awells@cityofgoleta.org. For inquiries in Spanish, please contact Marcos Martinez at (805) 562-5500 or mmartinez@cityofgoleta.org.