Big Things Are Happening in Downtown Carpinteria

The sleepy beach town of Carpinteria is entering a new era, with three large-scale projects in the downtown area on the way to give the seaside surf haven an updated look and feel heading into the future.

Last week, story poles went up for the Surfliner Inn, a 36-room hotel and café proposed to be built in a city parking lot adjacent to the Carpinteria train station. The story poles are intended to give the community an idea of the size, bulk, and scale of the updated project plans ahead of its preliminary review with the city’s Architectural Review Board this Thursday, December 12.

The Surfliner Inn has been years in the making, with the city pursuing plans for the public lot for nearly a decade. The current development was selected, and the City Council even approved the early plans back in December 2021, when the proposed hotel had already been the subject of intense debate and a petition with more than 1,000 signatures asking for a citywide vote.

In November 2022, city voters denied Measure T — which would have stopped the project by rezoning the land for other uses — and the Surfliner was given a second opportunity with a brand-new application. 

The 30,000-square-foot hotel will include a café, visitor center, solar panels, and a rooftop deck — a feature that is included in all three downtown Carpinteria projects.

The Palms restaurant, just a few blocks up from the location of the Surfliner, isn’t exactly new, but the proposed renovation of the Carpinteria staple will restore the historic exterior of the restaurant while introducing a few new features, such as the skylight atrium through the center of the building and a rooftop lounge bar.

Originally built in 1912 as a hotel and restaurant, The Palms has been the community’s favorite dining hall dating back to the ’60s, known for its dance floor and make-your-own-steak grill. But the restaurant has been shuttered since 2020 after the property was sold by the family of owners.

The new owners, represented by Laurel Perez of Suzanne Elledge Planning and Permitting Services, had originally intended to restore The Palms as a hotel and café, though those plans were abandoned and developers returned this year with a simpler plan to restore the exterior while revamping the inside of the restaurant and adding the rooftop terrace.

The Palms earned the approval of the city’s Planning Commission last week, where commissioners debated whether amplified music should be allowed on the rooftop bar. The arguments centered on live music, which has caused a few problems in other Carpinteria venues, and whether live performances should be allowed at The Palms. 

Eventually, planning commissioners agreed that the restaurant’s rooftop lounge would only allow low-volume background music. Live bands will be prohibited from playing outside, though the restaurant owners could still apply for a permit for events indoors.

Across the street from The Palms, another brand-new project called Linden Square is just about finished with construction, and will look to bring a collection of Central Coast–based restaurants and retailers in the same space. The location will have 30,000 square feet of space, including a rooftop bar area.

Linden Square — which will include businesses such as Third Window Brewing Company, Channel Islands Surfboards, Corazón Cocina, Dart Coffee, and Lantern Tree Books — has been under construction for the past several months at the former home of Austin’s Hardware in downtown Carpinteria. Project developer Matt LaBrie originally intended to open by the end of this year, though the Linden Square website was recently updated to say the location would be “opening in 2025.”