The
appeal was to be reviewed at the regular Buellton City Council meeting Dec. 13.
Petitions
have been signed, flyers have been circulated and long-time Buellton residents
have come forward to protest the Nov. 1 decision by the Buellton Planning
Commission to grant an amendment to a minor use permit to allow for the sale of
the trailers.
Among
those protesting the decision were Robert Perry, former Buellton planning
commissioner, and Victoria Pointer, Buellton City Council member.
Perry
filed for the appeal to the amendment, which cost more than $600, stating that
the permit goes against the city’s general plan. “I have lived in Buellton for
almost 25 years and helped draft the plan in 1992,” Perry explained.
“I’ve
watched as the city grew, and I feel denying the permit would encourage the
property owner to find a better use for the property in keeping with the
general plan,” he said.
In
a flyer distributed door-to-door to Buellton citizens, Perry claims that the
original permit to sell automobiles on the site was only meant to be temporary.
“The
original minor use permit was temporary. Issued in 1999, the allowed use was
only for auto sales,” the flyer explains.
However,
property owner Steve Arellano, now working at an automobile dealership in
Camarillo, said the permit is not temporary and he has every intention of
returning to Santa Ynez Valley in the next few years and reopening Tri County
Auto at the same location.
“I
don’t understand what the controversy is about. You would think in a valley
where horses are big business, Buellton would welcome a dealership that would
bring these citizens into the city,” Arellano said.
The
horse trailer dealership, All American Trailers North, is owned by Aaron Schwarzwalter and Gene Kleft.
Currently closed pending the appeal, the dealership is expected to display a
mix of new and used trailers Mondays through Saturdays between 9 a.m. and 5
p.m.
Steve
Bollinger, representing the new dealership, said citizens are receiving
“misinformation” about the store and the minor use permit.
“The
property is licensed with the Department of Motor Vehicles for the sale of used
cars and trailers and has been since 1999. The use is consistent with the
current General Plan and Urban Design Guidelines issued in 2003, which the
Planning Commission found during its meeting,” Bollinger insisted. “This
operation is expected to serve the community, not to mention provide significant
tax revenue.”
Schwarzwalter operated Santa Ynez
Valley Trailers between 1985 and 2000 in Santa Ynez and helped the most recent
owner of that operation open for business in 2005. He currently is affiliated
with one of the largest horse and trailer businesses in the West, which will
give the local horse community access to a wide range of products, he pointed
out. Kleft has been affiliated, as a partner, with
Broken Livestock Supply, which he sold a year ago.
Perry,
retired from the auto sales business, currently is a dealer representative for
light sport airplanes and is a flight instructor in Santa Ynez Valley. He said
his appeal of the permit is based on several factors, including the safety of
the high-speed off-ramp from southbound Highway 101, the view of horse trailers
at the “gateway” to the city, and disregard for the city plan completed 15
years ago.
Bollinger
said the off ramp speed is 30 miles per hour while the Avenue of Flags posted
speed limit is 35 miles per hour, so he does not see a problem with traffic
from the freeway, especially because horse and utility trailers do not have
motors. Another city entrance on Highway 246 from Solvang has a nursery and
auto dealerships, he said, so the Avenue of Flags’ entrance is consistent with
that use.
Also,
he added, the current Urban Design Guidelines, issued in 2003, show an updated
view of the general plan and that the planning commission agreed with his
opinion.
Perry
said, while this may seem like a minor issue, the larger question is how the
city conducts business and allows for uses inconsistent with zoning
regulations, the general plan and design guidelines.
“If
the City Council does not reverse the poor decision of the Planning Commission
now, then ultimately a continuation of poor decisions will be the norm,” Perry
insisted.
“All
American Trailers’ use of the property is consistent with the current General
Plan,” Bollinger stated.
“Moreover,
the conditions mutually agreed upon provide a mechanism and transition for
future development as dictated by market demand, setting the stage for the
long-term vision and redevelopment of Avenue of Flags,” he said.
“We
have no contention with any of the citizens of Buellton and wish only to
provide a much needed service,” Schwarzwalter added.
Before the appeal, the original decision was approved 3-1
with a three-year permit and a review at the end of the first year.