The Carlsbad City Council approved new policies and projects Tuesday to better align the Village and Barrio Master Plan with the community’s vision for the historical heart of their city. The Village and Barrio Plan was originally approved in 2019, following several years of community input. Since that time, the city has continued to receive feedback, which prompted Tuesday’s actions.
The changes range from accelerating the timing of projects already in the plan to adding new policies that will help retain the areas’ unique community character. They include:
Historic district
Seek an official designation of parts of the Village and Barrio area as a historic district.
This would establish standards and guidelines to protect the city’s historic features and places.
Grand Promenade
Accelerate the Grand Avenue Promenade project, which is already included as a priority in the Village and Barrio Master plan.
The project includes the creation of a signature space for walking and gathering along Grand Avenue.
The next step is to study the feasibility, including traffic, cost and economic impacts.
Encourage “vital uses” like small grocery stores, post offices, hardware stores, pharmacies and farmers markets.
Update policies to encourage the kinds of small businesses that serve daily needs of residents. These uses are allowed in some areas already, but the new policies would encourage these uses to continue and make it easier to add more.
Better parking
Update the city’s program for collecting fees from developers to be used for parking facilities, including incentivizing reuse of buildings, and evaluating fees required for underground and above ground parking options.
Implement the existing parking management plan items included in the Village and Barrio Master Plan
Outdoor dining and shopping
Get input from businesses and residents on whether to allow businesses to continue to utilize outdoor spaces after the COCVID-19 special rules expire. Then return to the City Council with summary of input and options.
Farmers’ and cultural arts markets
Expand the locations where street markets for local food, arts and culture can operate.
Improve traffic flow
Evaluate making Tyler Street one-way with room for dedicated bike lanes.
Projects already underway
Several projects requested by community and City Council are already underway, and therefore did not require any additional action Tuesday. These include:
Objective design standards and a design review committee
The city received approval of a professional services agreement and is forming a citizens committee to help translate existing design standards and guidelines for multifamily and mixed use developments into objective standards, which will allow the City Council to better protect the community character in these areas.
Better ways to get around
The city recently completed a plan that will make it easier and safer to walk and bike throughout the city, including in the Village and Barrio.
Projects included in the plan are being implemented, such as traffic circles, better lighting, new bike lanes and sidewalks that are easier for people using wheelchairs.
Historic properties designation
The city is creating a new program that will give owners of historic properties the option of taking a tax break on money used to maintain them.
Arts & Culture District
In a separate action several weeks ago, the City Council approved the development of a special district in the Village and Barrio focused on arts, culture and creative businesses.
The City Council decided not to move forward with some items:
Building heights: A proposal to reduce building heights from four stories to two to three stories in commercial areas was rejected because new state housing laws require cities to increase densities, especially close to transit. Even prior to the Village and Barrio Master Plan, the height limit in much of the area was already 45 feet.
Street tree program: The city recently updated the Community Forest Management Plan, which can be used to add new trees to streets in this area.
Revising a master plan policy that provides requirements for any development project located on multiple districts to only pertain to the Blazer Trailer Park. This policy is needed to address all projects that span on multiple districts.
Limit the types of businesses and services allowed to operate in the Village General area to only residential and offices and no commercial uses. The Village General District already has limited commercial uses. Unlike the other commercial districts, the Village General District does not permit breweries, distilleries, wineries or timeshare projects.
Next Steps
Staff will develop detailed cost estimates and timelines for the approved changes and bring these back to the City Council for consideration. Changes to the master plan will need to be reviewed by the Planning Commission and approved by the City Council and, for some parts of the Village and Barrio, it must be certified by the Coastal Commission.
In the meantime, the Village and Barrio Master Plan, which was recently amended in February 2021 and certified by the Coastal Commission in August 2021, remains in effect.
