Ragged Point project raises questions from advisory council

North Coast advisers say they still want more information before deciding whether to recommend to the county a major, 15-year expansion of Ragged Point Inn. North Coast Advisory Council (NCAC) members said they were especially concerned about potential impacts to the environment and the spectacular ocean views there from Highway 1.

Some specifics about the project still seemed to be indefinite when discussed at length at the Nov. 16 meeting, such as how many parking spaces the new project will provide. Some council members said they felt that, if the project develops as expected, views of the resort from the highway would include many more vehicles parking in those spaces.

However, the council made quick work of unanimously recommending that Ragged Point be allowed to remove soon some old mobile homes which have provided employee housing for decades.

The 1-acre smaller project would temporarily replace that housing with three mobile homes which, for 24 months after the permit is approved, would provide 10 bedrooms for employee use.

The San Luis Obispo County Planning Department hearing Friday, Dec. 2, will include reviewing the permit for the employee-housing project.

Finalizing the overall plan

Architect Richard LeGros told NCAC that he and Ragged Point’s owners are working with county planners to finalize the plan for the 8.8-acre parcel. They have worked for years on the resort’s revamping.

At the council meeting, he said that, for instance, parking options could increase from the plans’ estimated 168 parking stalls to 180 or 190, and that there could be an additional 50 spaces if the owners decide to put special-event parking on some flat property they own north of Young Creek. The resort currently has 101 parking spaces.

The resort is about 21 miles north of Cambria, on a curve of the narrow, two-lane road that’s recognized nationally as an All-American Highway and scenic byway, and the spectacular views can distract drivers.

How those drivers get into and out of the resort safely is a big concern for NCAC’s Traffic Committee, according to a report presented by committee Chairman Bruce Fosdike.

The project’s entrance and exit placement and width also haven’t been finalized.

That and other undecided elements of the plan, plus various environmental concerns, left some council members saying the project design isn’t final enough for them to recommend or not.

NCAC member Susan McDonald said she thinks the applicants should prepare a full environmental impact report before the council makes its decision.

McDonald read excerpts from an updated visual assessment prepared for the applicants by SWCA Environmental Consultants of San Luis Obispo.

The report, which described the project’s effect on the existing character and quality of the site and its surroundings, listed “potentially significant” impacts to ocean views as seen from an officially designated scenic highway.

“The project proposes an extensive alteration of the existing” resort, the report said, “including numerous new structures, the reconstruction of several other existing buildings, new and expanded uses and activities, new outdoor gathering plazas and a number of reconfigured infrastructure elements. A fundamental result of these alterations would be an inherent increase in the built character of the site. In general the proposed development would appear larger in scale, larger in overall footprint and denser than the existing resort.”

Not all the council members felt that strongly about waiting to decide whether to recommend the 15-year, five-phase project that’s been estimated to cost about $25 million.

Member Shana McCormick said she has some environmental concerns about the plan, but “I really think it will be an asset to the community … and has a lot of amazing, ingenious technologies … I think it would look awesome.”

The council’s ultimate vote was 6-3 in favor of approving recommendations made by the Land Use and Traffic committees, which listed concerns and requested more information.

NCAC Chairman Ted Siegler said he thought that, once the Ragged Point plan is truly finalized, and the county decides if a full environmental impact report is required, the council should be given the chance to review the project again.

“It seems the reports provided have not kept pace with the actual design of the project …,” he said. “Addressing environmental issues is a strong concern with the council,” which recommends that an environmental impact report be done.

“It’s a very large bite to try to digest,” Siegler said, “with many phases and many variables. If we have better information, maybe we can get there.”

Former Cambria Air Force Base

The council had no problem, however, quickly voting 8-0 (with member Aaron Linn abstaining) to not recommend a project being proposed for the former Cambria Air Force Base property. As proposed, the project at 202 Monte Cristo Place would include an invitation-only, special-event 25-space camping facility, vocational/educational facilities, restaurant, military history museum and caretaker’s residence.

The council focused on land-use concerns that included two open county code-enforcement cases, the incomplete nature of the application and other issues.

This story was originally published November 22, 2016 at 8:36 AM with the headline "Ragged Point project raises questions from advisory council."