Quick Take
Watsonville resident Catalina Torres filed a new appeal asking the city council to rescind zoning approval of a 34-unit “tiny village” project that would provide shelter for the unhoused on land at Westview Presbyterian Church.
A Watsonville resident has filed a new appeal asking the city council to rescind zoning approval for the 34-unit “tiny village” project that would provide shelter for the unhoused on land at Westview Presbyterian Church.
The appeal, filed by resident Catalina Torres on Tuesday, claims that city staff’s presentation at the Dec. 3 planning commission meeting — where Torres’ initial appeal was rejected— had inconsistencies in their responses to Torres’ arguments, such as her request that the church to get a special use permit. Torres felt that the planning commission improperly rejected some of the arguments presented in her initial appeal.
Torres initially appealed the zoning approval to the planning commission in October. In that appeal, she claimed city staff’s approval of the project’s zoning application was “defective and improper” for several reasons, including that staff had improperly accepted the application without determining the size, location, capacity and character of the project.
The latest appeal also continues to take issue with the shelter’s service provider — Community Action Board of Santa Cruz County — and its qualifications. Torres’ initial appeal claimed the application did not specify the organizations responsible for managing the shelter and provide their qualifications.
Watsonville’s principal planner, Matt Orbach, provided commissioners with an overview of the tiny village project and why city zoning staff approved its application in September. He said the project met all requirements of a state law that supersedes local control to increase the stock of affordable housing.
The seven-member planning commission voted unanimously, with two members absent, to deny Torres’ appeal. Commissioners said city staff had complied with state laws and did not make any errors when approving the zoning application.
The Watsonville City Council can either rescind the zoning approval or reject Torres’ second appeal. If the city council rejects the appeal, Torres can file a lawsuit. Appeal hearings are typically scheduled for the next regularly scheduled city council meeting, according to the city’s municipal code. The first city council meeting of 2025 is scheduled for Jan. 14.
Some of Torres’ neighbors encouraged her to file a second appeal, she said. Her only hesitation to file an appeal was that she didn’t want to waste her neighbors’ resources and time for the same outcome to occur.
“Mentally, we know what can happen,” said Torres. “It’s costly to go through this process.” But, she added, this is what her neighbors want to do, and she’s ready to go through it again.
If the city council denies the appeal, Torres said she most likely will not continue with a lawsuit or additional appeals.
The 34-unit tiny village project was first proposed by Monterey and Santa Cruz counties in 2023. It will be made up of 26 individual single-bed shelters, two double units and four Americans With Disabilities Act-compliant units. It will also include two laundry rooms, four shared bathrooms, a kitchen and storage area — all of which will reside on the property of Westview Presbyterian Church.
The project is funded by an $8 million Encampment Resolution Funding Program grant from the State of California. Half of the funding will go to the construction of the tiny village and the other half will go toward supportive services.
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