REGION — Erring on the side of caution, the owners of a 6.2-acre oceanfront parcel sought — and at the April 3 meeting were granted — a permit extension to subdivide the parcel, even though the property is currently being purchased for use as a luxury villa resort with walking trails and a public park.
In May 2015 council members approved the subdivision of 929 Border Ave. into five single-family residential lots.
The property is owned by the Lazier family and located on the southwest corner of the Via de la Valle and Camino del Mar intersection.
No grading, developing or entitlements were sought at the time and several conditions were placed on the approval.
They included traffic-calming improvements, requirements to address possible bluff erosion, utility and drainage upgrades and enhanced public coastal access that would link trails to the north and south of the property.
Shoreline protection devices were to be prohibited.
Brad Termini, cofounder of Encinitas-based developer Zephyr Partners, said he was approached by a broker a little more than a year ago to buy and develop the Lazier parcel.
“When I saw it I thought it would be an absolute shame if somebody built five houses here and essentially closed this land off (to the public) for the next century,” he said.
He teamed up with luxury hotel developer Robert Green and the two are in the process of buying the five lots as well as property to the north and south, for a total of 16 acres.
The process to rezone the land and secure community and California Coastal Commission support will likely take years. Meanwhile, subdivision allowance was set to expire May 4.
According to the staff report, the current owners sought to preserve their right to subdivide the 6.2-acre lot if plans to develop the bluff-top property as a resort do not come to fruition.
None of the conditional improvements have been made and are on hold while the new development proposal is being processed through the city, according to the staff report.
Council members unanimously approved a three-year extension for the subdivision. The extension of two other permits will require separate approvals from the city before they expire in May 2018.
In the meantime, Termini and Green are currently putting together a schedule of public outreach to garner community input on how best to develop the property.
