HomeMy WebLinkAboutBates 20256-20257 Riener C]ear Mayor Harmon and members of the Ci#y Council,
Please see my le#ter in support for#he Froom Ranch Specific Plan and Villaggi❑ 5an Luis�bispo,#hat I
sen##o#he Rlanning Commission in August.
5uhject: Fraam Ranch—the best qla�e in 5L�far a Life Plan Community (CCRCJ
At an early Planning Commission hearing, ❑ne member�f the Commission when referring t❑
the C�RC expressed the ❑pinion that this is a good proje�t, but this is not the best site for the
proje�t. While there might he "6etter" lo�ations for a praje�t like this, as pointed aut in the
Froom Ran�h EIR there are no other sites in the �ity of SL�that �an a�commodate the proje�t–
particularly the Villaggi❑ porti�n ❑f the project. There are s❑ many canstraints on any gi�en site
that we are convinced that Froom Ran�h is the best site we are likely to ever be able t❑ build on
in the City of SL�.
Any praperty awner interested in a CCRC must be willing t� a�cept a years-lang pro�ess�f
getting their property entitled.The Froom Ranch site has been in the entitlement pro�ess sin�e
June 2016. This has imposed a huge finan�ial risk and burden ❑n John Madonna &Villaggio.
5ame examples from ❑ur experien�e since 2003 trying t�find a site f�r a CCRC like Villaggio:
The first requirement is that the owner be willing t❑ sell the property at a reasonable price. In
2��5,when a maj�r CCRC aperator made a full-price�ffer on the Holland ❑airy property, the
❑wner did not even respond.They let the listing lapse, and several months later brought it ba�k
❑n the market at almost double the�riginal asking pri�e.
Ken and I have talked with �al Poly several times about building a CCRC on their property. A
major�onstraint for Cal Poly is that the property must be "surplus"to their instructional
mission.
In 2D12, the owner of a par�el in Pismo Beach tried to in�lude a CCR�but was unsuc�essful. In
Z��3 we als❑ e�aluated the County General Hospital property but the idea �f a CCRC was met
with strong neighborhood ❑pposition. .
In 2D11,when the Righetti property was identified for future annexation, we �onta�ted the
trustee f�r the property.They said they were already working with a 5outhern California
developer, resulting in a much more traditional and low-risk development plan.
We met similar reactions from property owners in the Margarita area in 2flD3. the Avila Bay
Tank Farm site Z012, and A�ila Ran�h in 2017.
20256
Just as we see the Fraam Raneh as the best site far a CCRC from the residents'view,we also
see it as�ne ❑f the best uses of this property from the City's standpoint.The City has a seri�us
shortage ❑f senior housing this proje�t is a key�omponent of fulfilling that need.
A�CRC will generate about 1�3 as much traffi�as a similar number of non-senior housing units,
and about 1�7t''the traffic of retail de�elapment on this site. E�en s�, based upan the
re�ommended �onditions ❑f Approval it will be contributing a large ❑f amount ❑f money to
fund impr��ements t❑ streets, bike lanes, and sidewalks. For all these reas�ns,we feel that
the proposed Froom Ranch Spe�ific Plan including the Villaggio CCRC is the hest use of this �ity
expansion area , 6oth from the residents' perspecti�e, and the�ity's perspecti�e.
We urge yau t❑ rec�mmend appr��al �f the Froom Ran�h 5pecifi� Plan and Villaggi�.
Ken and Judy Riener
6fl78 Pebhle Bea�h Way
5an Luis Obisp�, 934a1
20257