COUNCIL AGENDA REPORT
TO: Mayor and City Council
FROM: Chenin Dow, Community Development Director
DATE: June 3, 2025
SUBJECT: Adoption of a Resolution Adopting Objective Residential Design Standards
Description:
The City Council will consider adopting Objective Residential Design Standards (SP2023- 0003), applicable to future single -family developments of two or more units, multi -family projects, and residential mixed-use development projects throughout the City, and which are establis hed to provide more certainty to developers and members of the public regarding the expectations for the design of housing development projects within Santa Maria.
Environmental Notice: The project qualifies for an Exemption pursuant to Section 15061(b)(3) (common sense exemption) of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) State Guidelines. Additionally, or alternatively, the project is exempt from CEQA under CEQA Guidelines Section 15060(c)(2).
RECOMMENDATION:
Adopt a Resolution adopting the Objective Residential Design Standards.
BACKGROUND:
The California legislature has enacted numerous laws over the last few years to accelerate housing production , including Senate Bill (SB) 35 and the Housing Accountability Act (SB 330). These laws prohibit the City from conducting discretionary Use Permit or Planned Development Permit review or hearing s for certain types of residential projects which the State deems as “qualified for streamlining” or otherwise subject only to ministeri al review. Many of these same laws establish that the City may only apply objective design standards when conducting the ministerial review.
California Government Code Section 66300(a)(7) defines an “objective design standard” as “a design standard that involves no personal or subjective judgment by a public official and is uniformly verifiable by reference to an external and uniform benchmark or criterion available and knowable by both the development applicant or proponent and the public official before submittal of an application.”
2 Although initially established with legislation for State streamlined projects, objective residential design standards are also to be applied to permitted ‘by right’ residential development (a single duplex in the Medium Density Residential zone, for example), as well as those residential projects which require discretionary Conditional Use Permit or Planned Development Permit approval.
DISCUSSION:
The City’s 6th Cycle Housing Element Update Program 3-B identifies the need for the City to create its own set of Objective Residential Design Standards in response to State law. The Planning Division secured a Local Early Action Planning (LEAP) grant from the State Department of Housing and Community Developm ent that has been used to fund the consultants’ work on this effort, which began in 2023. Raimi and Associates, Inc. have served as the City’s consultants on the project.
Objective Residential Design Standards
The intent of the standards is to allow flexibility and creativity in design while providing a clear set of standards and expectations that align with the following City objectives:
• Enable streamlined review and approval of housing, in accordance with State law • Ensure that buildings are appropriate to their surroundings and environment • Encourage a pedestrian-oriented environment
• Emphasize high-quality, human-scale building design and architectural elements • Promote thoughtful, context-sensitive site design
• Maintain the livability of r esidential developments and enhance the character of the community
Applicants are allowed and encouraged to incorporate higher-quality design elements in their residential projects, to go beyond simply meeting the baseline objective design standards.
Document Organization
The document provides required standards for three categories of residential development projects based on building type: Single-Family and Multi-plex, Garden Style Walk-ups and Rowhouses, and Apartments and Residential Mixed -Use Buildings. Each Residential development type section includes all the applicable objective design standards for that building type, organized into the following subsections:
• Site Design : Sets the standards for connectivity, building orientation, parking location and design, landscaping, and lighting.
• Building Exterior Design : Provides specific standards for massing and façade design, entries, and open spaces.
• Design Details: Provides standards for the quality of materials and design details for doors, windows, and ground floor facades.
3 Community Engagement
City staff have extensively involved the residents and development community in the development of these standards so that they reflect the residential design preferences of the community. The outreach for this effort has included:
• Maintaining and updating a City Objective Residential Design Standards Webpage • Creating and posting an “Objective Design Standards” fact sheet • A Community Visual Preference Survey conducted in May 2023 for a better understanding of community priorities and concerns regarding residential design • City Hosted Office Hours sessions for public questions and comments in May 2024 • Multiple meetings and working sessions with local housing developers and development community members
Throughout the development of the Objective Residential Design Standards, three drafts were developed (First Draft – April 2024, Second Draft – November 2024, and a Third Draft – January 2025). These drafts were posted on-line for public review and comment, and presented and discussed in the Planning Commission study sessions.
Planning Commission Review
The Objective Residential Design Standards were reviewed by the Planning Commission during three study sessions (December 5, 2024, January 16, 2025, and March 19, 2025).
At the study sessions, staff and the consultant presented the current draft of the Objective Residential Design Standards document and reviewed any proposed edits from the previous draft. At each session, the Planning Commission received comme nts and questions from the public and development community representatives and provided comments and direction to staff.
The Planning Commission received the final version of the standards (dated April 2025 and provided as Attachment B of this report) at their April 2, 2025 public hearing, and unanimously recommended City Council approval.
Relationship to Other City Standards
The Objective Residential Design Standards have been developed to coordinate with the City’s other existing planning and development regulations. The Zoning Code (Title 12) and many other City Codes and documents contain standards specific enough to be recognized as objective, including standards for residential building height, setbacks, minimum lot dimensions, parking requirements, etc. These standards will continue to be applicable to residential development applications.
The City may develop unique o bjective design standards when creating new specific plans, or may choose to have future specific plans incorporate these standards. The Objective Residential Design Standards will not apply ‘retroactively’ to already approved and built-out specific plan areas or subdivisions.
4 Implementation
If adopted, the Objective Residential Design Standards will be posted to the City website and otherwise made available to the public, development community, City decision makers, and City staff. The Community Development Department will use these Objective Residential Design Standards, along with other objective standards already in the Zoning Ordinance, specific plans, etc., to provide consistent reviews of proposed residential and mixed-use development projects , whether those projects are ‘streamlined’ by -right, or apply for discretionary approval. Requests to vary f rom one or more of the objective standards will continue to be available as an option for applicants through the discretionary Planned Development Permit process.
Changes in planning and design practices may arise in the future and result in the need to modify the design principles. The Community Development Director will re -evaluate the Objective Residential Design Standards periodically, with input from members of the community, and may recommend modifications for consideration by the Planning Commission and City Council.
Alternative(s)
The Council may choose not to adopt the proposed Objective Residential Design Standards and instead rely on those objective standards already established in Title 12 such as setbacks, building height, etc. for the revie w of discretionary and ministerial residential projects.
Fiscal Considerations
The Planning Division secured a Local Early Action Planning (LEAP) grant from the State Department of Housing and Community Development, which has been used to fund the consultant’s work on this project, which began in 2023. There are no future cost s to the City.
Impact to the Community
The Objective Residential Design Standards will help ensure that all future discretionary and ministerial residential projects reflect the community’s desires and priorities for high- quality residential design that integrates with the surrounding community and enhances community character.
Attachment(s)
A: Resolution – Objective Residential Design Standards
B: Objective Residential Design Standards document