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KSL owns the La Costa Resort and the Hotel Del Coronado. They want to build a "hotel" at the north end of Leucadia and make it one of those scammy timeshare deals like they have in Cabo. The Coastal Commission is recommending denying this request.
Mayor Christy Guerin plans to fly to Monterey next week to testify on behalf of KSL(who pays for that plane ticket?).
KSL officials have said rates at the Encinitas hotel would probably range from $400 to $600 a night.
I think KSL is going about this all wrong. Carlsbad is going to build some hotels on the north side on the estuary. We are going to have 5 high end hotels competing for business around a stinky lagoon with west Nile virus infected mosquitoes. Previous blog post.
KSL should build a small but groovy hotel on the bluff with $200-300 a night rooms, cater to a younger crowd with disposable incomes and put in a swanky bar/lounge that would serve the whole community.
The timeshare deal reeks of that pit Cabo San Lucas.
Since Mayor Guerin is going to Monterey she should check out the famous aquarium. Now that would be a cool thing to build at the north Leucadia bluff site.
Guerin may be the perfect person to send.
ReplyDeleteShe struck out in Sacramento for a new job. She went down swinging on Prop A, the short term rental ban, the illegal clean water tax, and many more...
Send her quick while she is on a roll.
Agreed, send in the clown
ReplyDeleteThings may have changed, but a year ago they had a neighborhood meeting and said that it was NOT a timeshare, but they were going to sell units individually, but the owners were restricted to 90 days in residence. The rest of the time they would be hotel rooms with 50% of the rate going to the owner. According to them, its simply creative financing
ReplyDeleteKSL has fortified the La Costa Resort. It's walls and an entry station. The grassy areas were paved for parking. Condos are the big selling items. La Costa won't have the PGA tournament. The resort doesn't have that open, welcome feeling anymore. Look for the same attitude in the Leucadia hotel/condo project.
ReplyDeleteWhy is Mayor Guerin becoming the spokeswoman for KSL? If the hotel rooms rent for $400 a night, conference room rentals would be out of sight.
Should we be concerned that our paid city official is going to represent a private developer? What's in it for her? Perhaps she has hung around with Duke Cunninham to long.
ReplyDeleteIt appears that the city, aka taxpayers, are paying Mayor Guerin's travel expenses for her to support a private developer at the Coastal Commission meeting.
ReplyDeleteWill Mayor Guerin confirm that she is using taxpayers' money for the trip's expenses?
When did the council vote to send Mayor Guerin?
City credit card charges: Feb. 2006-
ReplyDelete$22,809.93
Let's see a breakdown of the charges.
L-VSC zoning designations are intended to provide for hotel/motel uses as the primary use....In addition the zoning matrix for N-L-VSC specifically prohibits all dwelling residential uses. The site in question is the ONLY N-L-VSC property within the North Highway 101 specific plan and the only site in all of Encinitas west of 101 and would be the only hotel located immediately adjacent to the beach in Encinitas.
ReplyDeleteThis attempted conversion to a condo/hotel where each owner can use their unit as a vacation home for up to 90 days per year has all the characteristics of residential use as a second home. If it walks like a duck, quacks like a duck, and looks like a duck, in all probability it is a duck. The re-designation of this development into some sort of mixed-use hotel/condominium vacation home is not a permited use.
When the Coastal Commission approved the hotel in 1992 it recognized the importance of protecting the visitor-serving commercial function of the hotel and it's unique location. The approval included a number of special conditions to encourage and enhance visitor-serving use, public access, and recreational opportunities. These included public access paths, public stairway to the beach, public parking, and dedicated public access to and along the shoreline and appropriate public access signage The Commission specifically prohibited conversion of the hotel or any of the associated facilities to exclusive use including the resturant, retail shop, public parking or beach access stairs.
The applicant, KSL Encinitas Resort Co.,LLC would have the Commission believe that regulating the use through CC&R's or the City of Encinitas code compliance procedures will assure that the use functions as a hotel.
The applicant is prohibited by the Securities and Exchange Commission from selling to buyers with the understanding that the buyer can earn money or derive tax benefits from it. Therefore the applicant will be selling these units as luxury condominium vacation units and it follows that buyers will be purchasing these units for vacation use for up to 90 days per year. The applicant further indicates that each owner could use his unit for 90 days per year and then "write-off" the mortgage interest, etc. based on the unit being a "second residence". This would seem to support the contention that the hotel condominium form of ownership is a quasi-residential use and not consistent with the public hotel use required on this Limited Visitor Serving Use property.
Quack, Quack, Quack!
The applicant's suggestion that regulation of operation could be guaranteed through a series of special conditions to control use, rental, and marketing of the units with provisions to to protect against the conversion to timeshare or residential use would be an enforcement nightmare and after being granted conversion rights to hotel/condominium form of ownership it would be impossible for the Commission to require the hotel to convert back to a conventional form of ownership.
The applicants position that units in violation would be subject to legal action could create an enforcement nightmare. Enforcing violations of conditions is difficult enough when a single applicant is involved, with 130 owners plus the operator enforcement could be impractical and lead to sacrificing the visitor and public serving amenities reserved for this parcel.
There is no evidence that conversion to hotel/condominium form of ownership will be consistent with the Limited Visitor serving zone designation of the certified LCP, will enhance public access to the coastal zone and not further reduce the number of units available to the public for overnight accommodations in the City of Encinitas.
The meeting is Tuesday March 7th.
If you have the time and financial ability to object please send a telegram to:
California Coastal Commissioners
c/o Hyatt Regency Monterey
1 Old Golf Course Road
Monterey, Ca 93940
Subject: Tue 22a-PART 2.
I support staff recommendation of denial of conversion of Hotel to Hotel Condominium.
Signed_____________________
Address____________________
Can't we send a letter, Gil? By Saturday?
ReplyDeleteGive it a shot. It might make it. I'll be going up Monday about 10:30am, if anyone leaves a letter at The Encinitas Cafe over the weekend I will deliver them although they might doubt their authenticity without a postmark. I'm a known malcontent and I'm sure Ms. Guerin will point that out.
ReplyDeletejp's heading and guerin picture are a perfect match. jp says timeshares are lame. Guerin says timeshares are lame and is wearing her gold lame jacket to prove it.
ReplyDeleteWe just wrote our letter and will be taking it to Encinitas Cafe, probably Sunday morning.
ReplyDeleteThanks Gil. You are great! Enjoy your trip up to Monterey. We are sure with you, in spirit!