CARLSBAD: La Costa project to be revamped

Owners' proposal to go before Planning Commission Wednesday

By BARBARA HENRY - Staff Writer | Tuesday, September 30, 2008 1:09 PM PDT ∞

CARLSBAD ---- A proposal to build a complex of quasi time-share units at La Costa Resort & Spa is going back to the city's Planning Commission for a second look Wednesday because its developers want to scale back part of the project.

Several years ago, the resort was proposing to build 197 unusual vacation rental facilities on part of its nearly 400-acre property along El Camino Real. Part of the year, the units would be traditional hotel rooms, while the remainder of the time they would be owner-occupied time-shares.

Part of the complex was built, and the developers now are asking to reduce the number of units in three as-yet-unbuilt structures, city senior planner Van Lynch said.

Instead of 75 units, they're asking for 53 units, he said. And, a plan to build below-ground parking for these vacation rooms has been eliminated, Lynch added. The new proposal calls for a 143-space lot at ground level and a 42-space valet parking area, he said.

Despite the proposed changes, the overall vacation complex could end up being only one unit less than 197 units originally proposed. That's because the developers constructed more, but smaller units inside one of the first buildings they built, Lynch said.

Keeping a given building the same size, but putting more, smaller time-share units inside allows a developer to sell the individual units for less money than originally planned. That could be a benefit in a time when the nation's housing market is struggling and developers are having trouble financing projects.

A publicist for the resort couldn't be reached for comment Tuesday morning.

People who live near the famed resort initially fought the development plans several years ago, but by the time the proposal went to the City Council for a vote in September 2004 they said they had changed their minds.

A representative for the local homeowners association praised the company's "marvelous work" since it took over ownership of the resort in late 2001 and declared that the place was returning to its status as a world class facility.

The lone voice of opposition came from members of a union that represents hotel workers and has been in a labor dispute with the resort. They argued the developers should be required to include more parking spots.

Wednesday's meeting begins at 6 p.m. at City Hall, 1200 Carlsbad Village Drive. For a staff report on the project, visit the city's Web site at: http://www.carlsbadca.gov/planning/4planningmtg.html

Because the proposed revisions to the construction plans require changing a city master planning document, both the Planning Commission and the City Council will need to vote on the proposal.

Contact staff writer Barbara Henry at (760) 901-4072 or bhenry@nctimes.com.