CARLSBAD — The city’s planning commissioners once again agreed to continue a public hearing about plans to demolish and replace Carlsbad Village Plaza after a group of residents requested more time to gather evidence opposing the project.
Tooley Asset Services Company, owner of the 4-acre retail center home to Smart and Final, Texas Wine and Spirits, Golden Tee Cocktail Lounge, 7 Eleven and others, plans to supplant the plaza with a mixed-use development consisting of two one-story buildings.
All existing shops, except 7-Eleven, will vacate the plaza, and the buildings will be torn down, City Planner Eric Lardy previously told The Coast News.
The development, billed as sustainable and “transit-oriented,” will consist of 218 apartments, including 27 deed-restricted apartments for very low-income households and a parking structure with 350 parking spaces and electric vehicle parking. The commercial portion will feature restaurants and shops with outdoor seating.
Residents opposed to the proposal are working with Clyde Wickham, a retired engineer for the city of Carlsbad, to develop additional evidence related to the project’s negative traffic impacts and the owner’s lack of public outreach. The group requested two more weeks to compile the information before presenting it to the Carlsbad Planning Commission.
Earlier this month, the Planning Commission voted to continue a public hearing after Tooley requested a continuance due to a lack of commissioners. Only five of the seven members of the commission were present at the June 5 meeting due to Commissioner Peter Merz’s absence and former Vice Chair Kevin Sabellico’s sudden departure to run for a San Dieguito school board seat.
The hearing will continue at the Planning Commission’s July 17 meeting.
“I’ve received a number of letters and emails from my fellow residents and I’ve given this a great deal of thought,” Chairman William Kamenjarin said during the meeting. “Out of reciprocity and considering the size of the project I would suggest tonight that we continue this, give the residents an opportunity to present what they have available. I think it’s too important not to.”
The commission’s 5-1 decision to continue the hearing follows a movement spearheaded by residents of the plaza’s surrounding neighborhood called “Save Carlsbad Village Plaza.”
Martin Danner, a Carlsbad resident who started a petition that has amassed more than 1,600 signatures since April, said the proposed project would demolish Smart and Final, the only grocery store and pharmacy in or near the Village.
According to Danner, 67, and others, the move would create a “food desert,” imposing a disproportionate burden on seniors who would no longer be able to easily access groceries and medications.
The petition also states that the project will destroy local jobs and the city’s only remaining neighborhood hardware store and reduce retail space by 77%, making the cost of new retail spaces “prohibitively high.”
“I depend on the shopping center a lot because it’s really the only one I can get to on my bicycle,” Danner said. “And to lose it would mean that I would have to get a car and go drive to similar services elsewhere. The grocery store, the hardware store, the pharmacy, the cleaners. It’s a disaster for a lot of people.”
During the meeting, Danner said Whickham is working on “innovative ideas” to create a “win-win” compromise for all stakeholders and is reviewing the staff report with a “fine-tooth comb” to look for any flaws.
“He’s making an initial scan, and he’s found some significant issues, but we’re really not prepared at this point to report on it,” Danner said.
Danner said his family moved to a neighborhood within a mile of the plaza about 65 years ago, and he feels connected to the businesses there.
“It’ll be a big loss to the community if these things disappear,” Danner said.
Kris Wright, a Carlsbad resident, said Tooley did not adequately publicize the development proposal, which was one of the reasons she supported a continuation. The Carlsbad Village Plaza Mixed Use website has a feedback form where community members can comment on the development.
“In my own efforts to find any outreach, the applicant’s Facebook page was blank and their website was hard to find,” Wright said at the meeting.
Some residents at the meeting said Tooley’s studies related to traffic and vehicle miles traveled, or VMT, were flawed.
“Think about it intuitively. What you’re doing is you’re eliminating the shopping centers. You’re making residents drive farther for the same services,” Danner said. “And then, in addition to that, you’re adding 200 plus new residents to the neighborhood. How could that possibly reduce the vehicle miles traveled?”
Assistant City Attorney Allegra Frost said the public’s request to present more evidence related to the VMT study falls under the California Environmental Quality Act from which the project is exempt. Frost said the Planning Commission does not have jurisdiction to weigh in on the city planner’s determination related to the CEQA exemption since the 10-day window to appeal the finding has passed.
Jonathan Frankel, a Tooley representative, said the company was ready to proceed and requested the commission not continue the hearing. Frankel said resident concerns about traffic, infrastructure and fire hazards were studied “comprehensively.”
“We see no basis based on infrastructure, traffic, fire, etc. to continue the meeting,” Frankel said.
