Council approves mixed-use project despite parking concerns and community pushback
PASO ROBLES — Due to City Manager Ty Lewis taking a leave of absence for reported health reasons, Assistant City Manager Chris Huot has been performing the duties of city manager since Aug. 12. During the Tuesday, Oct. 1 City Council meeting, Huot was officially appointed to serve as the interim city manager.
Council approved Huot as the interim city manager with a 4-1 vote, with Councilman Chris Bausch abstaining. Huot will serve as interim city manager until Lewis has either returned to his position or council decides to take another course of action.
A public hearing was held during the City Council meeting for plans for a hotel proposed for the open lot located at 1745 Spring St. The project requires some rezoning approvals. The project’s applicant, Tobin James, represented by George Garcia, is looking to construct a mixed-use building with 3,346 square feet of commercial space, including a wine-tasting room, 16 hotel rooms, and eight residential units.
Just like during the Planning Commission meeting discussing the project, parking was again a concern for some council members. The project is required to provide 26 parking spaces.
Roden said that while she does like the proposed building, she is still concerned about the available parking.
“We all know that’s not going to be enough [parking spaces] because it doesn’t even take into account whatever the businesses are downstairs and what the requirements are for that,” she said. “We went through this. I wasn’t sitting here at the time, but we went through this with the Market Walk, and I’m right. I was right then.”
Roden added that employees and customers have been parking on bordering streets and taking spaces from residences. She worries that the Tobin James project will add to the issue and create more problems for the neighboring residences.
However, the project applicant representative Garcia argued, “Dedicating or reserving spaces simply doesn’t work in a mix-use project … it’s first come, first serve. No one gets a reserved spot.”
Wendy Lopez, who lives in close proximity to the project and Paso Market Walk, had several concerns regarding the proposed project.
“We were told that that corner was going to be made into a playground for children, and we were promised this, and so we didn’t fight against the market,” said Lopez. “We have no parking on our street at all during the day and at night on the weekends. I am handicapped, and I have to park blocks away from my house. When I walk home, there are drunks all around coming from the market, coming from the center of town too … it’s not safe to walk around anymore.”
She also argued that the proposed building does not look like the historic landscape of Paso Robles and that children are not being considered.
Another resident came forward to reject the project, concerned that the project feels like a “money grab” from the applicant.
Councilman Steve Gregory was in favor of the project, considering it includes affordable housing units.
The council unanimously approved the project.
The next Paso Robles City Council meeting is scheduled for Tuesday, Nov. 5, at 6:30 p.m.
