Chapter 17.58 — DESIGN REVIEW

Inappropriate or poor-quality design in the appearance of buildings, structures, and signs adversely affect the visual quality of the surrounding areas and neighborhoods. The purpose of Design Review is to encourage the highest quality of design, both visually and functionally, and to reduce or prevent the negative effects of development while also promoting the health, safety, and general welfare of the City’s public. The City will conduct Design Review for proposed projects, except those exempt pursuant to Section 17.58.020 , and make decisions to approve, approve with amendments, or deny the overall design of projects pursuant to this Title. (Ord. 20-03 § 6)

• A. The following developments are exempt from Design Review in all instances:

  1. All interior alterations and Tenant Improvements (TI);

  2. Solar energy systems;

  3. Alterations, additions, and repairs that do not substantially change the exterior appearance of a structure, including replacement in kind of existing features. To be considered “replacement in kind,” the features must reasonably match the design, profile, material, and general appearance of the existing or original features;

  4. Required regulatory signage (e.g., ADA, City, County, etc.);

  5. Signage on private property of two square feet or less conveying a message about the property (e.g., No Trespassing, For Sale, Garage Sale, etc.);

  6. Housing development projects pursuant to Section 17.07.040(B) ;

  7. Projects requiring only ministerial review under State law;

  8. Development projects that qualify for review under Chapter 17.44 , Multiple-Unit and MixedUse Objective Design Standards.

• B. The following development is exempt from Design Review, except when part of a larger development project under review by the City, which is subject to this chapter:

  1. Unroofed decks, patios, and porches less than 30 inches above grade;

  2. Fences or walls six feet or less in height and gateposts of eight feet or less in height, that are not considered integral to the design of a structure (e.g., perimeter fences);

  3. Hedges that are 10 feet or less in height; and

4. Minor additions that do not significantly change the streetscape of the existing dwelling:

   • a. Ground floor additions of 750 square feet or less (based on an exterior footprint measurement) to a single-unit dwelling or duplex unit,

   • b. Second story additions of less than 100 square feet to a single-unit dwelling or duplex unit and provided the addition is to the rear of the structure.

5. Electric vehicle charging stations, as they are defined in Goleta Municipal Code Section 15.20.030 .

(Ord. 20-03 § 6; Ord. 20-09 § 5; Ord. 21-07 § 4; Ord. 22-02 § 8; Ord. 22-06 § 4; Ord. 22-14 § 4; Ord. 23-05 § 4)

• A. The City must review proposed development for conformity with the following:

  1. The purpose of this chapter;

  2. Applicable General Plan policies and guidelines;

  3. The Goleta Old Town Heritage District Architecture and Design Guidelines;

  4. The Highway 101 Corridor Design Guidelines;

  5. The Goleta Architecture and Design Standards for Commercial Projects; and

  6. Applicable City sign and zoning regulations.

• B. The scope of Design Review includes, but is not limited to, the following:

  1. Size, bulk and scale of new structures;

  2. Colors and types of building materials and application;

  3. Relation to existing and proposed structures on the same site;

  4. Pedestrian and bicycle access and circulation;

  5. Site layout, orientation, and location of structures, and relationship to open areas and topography;

  6. Materials, colors, and variations in boundary walls, fences, or screen planting;

  7. Location and type of landscaping;

  8. Sign design and associated exterior lighting;

  9. Consideration of neighboring development;

  10. Consideration of energy efficient or environmentally-friendly design and materials; and

  11. Exterior lighting, including review for dark sky compliance.

(Ord. 20-03 § 6; Ord. 21-07 § 4)

• A. Administrative Review. The Director shall make decisions to approve, approve with conditions, or deny, the following development:

  1. Decks that are 30 inches or more above grade;

  2. Swimming pools, hot tubs, and spas that are subject to Section 17.24.190 , General Site Regulations—Swimming Pools and Spas, and are otherwise exempt from Zoning Permits; and

  3. Other accessory structures not subject to review by the Design Review Board.

• B. Design Review Board.

  1. The Design Review Board shall conduct Design Review and make decisions to approve, approve with conditions, or deny the following:

     • a. All projects for which a building and/or grading permit is required that involve new construction or development, the erection, replacement, or alteration of signage, or changes in landscaping that are not listed as exempt in Section 17.58.020 , Design Review— Exemptions;

     • b. New construction or development that would otherwise be exempt, but is associated with a project previously subject to Design Review;

     • c. Any project where Design Review Board review is specified by action of the City Council, or Planning Commission, or the Director;

     • d. Projects referred by the Director to the Design Review Board for review;

     • e. Exterior changes to the main structure that result from an additional residential unit in a single-unit home or in a multiple-unit residential building;

     • f. Applications for permits which, if combined with other permits applied for on the same property within the previous four years, meets the criteria established above to avoid the “piecemeal” review of development;

     • g. All signage using electronic changeable copy, including both new signs and existing signage structures replacing manual copy with electronic.

  2. The Design Review Board must conduct Design Review and make a recommendation to approve, approve with conditions, or deny the following:

     • a. Development requiring Discretionary Review by the Zoning Administrator, Planning Commission, or City Council.

  3. The Design Review Board shall be responsible for Final Design Review for all projects subject to this chapter.

• C. Higher Review Authorities. In compliance with Chapter 17.50 , Review Authorities, the Zoning Administrator, Planning Commission, or City Council shall conduct Design Review and make decisions to approve, approve with conditions, or deny the following projects:

  1. Appeals of the Preliminary Approval of the Design Review Board.

  2. Projects requiring both Design Review and Discretionary Review.

(Ord. 20-03 § 6; Ord. 21-07 § 4; Ord. 22-06 § 4; Ord. 22-09 § 4; Ord. 23-05 § 4)

The goal of the Design Review Board to work in partnership with property owners and developers to help implement the City’s adopted plans and design guidelines as well as to identify and help resolve any design issues that may be of concern to the broader community. To assist project proponents, the Design Review Board offers three levels of collaborative review prior to taking action on Ministerial Permits or providing a recommendation on Discretionary Actions that will go to a higher Review Authority.

(Ord. 20-03 § 6)

The Design Review Board holds public hearings as part of the standard three-step process described below:

• A. Conceptual Review. All development subject to review by the Design Review Board will be reviewed at the conceptual level.

  1. Conceptual Review provides an opportunity for the City to review and comment on a project’s concept or theme when it is still in the early stages of development before the applicant has committed to and significantly invested in a particular design.

  2. At Conceptual Review, the applicant and the Design Review Board discuss and consider only broad issues such as site planning, general architectural style, and the project’s relationship to its site and the surrounding neighborhood.

  3. Applicants may bring sketches and/or conceptual drawings, including schematic sections and three-dimensional renderings, and should have completed site studies that address various aspects of site design (e.g., general massing of buildings, grading, access, landscaping concepts, etc.).

  4. No formal action is taken by the Design Review Board at a conceptual level; however, comments may be offered that give the applicant general direction for future review. Additionally, the Design Review Board, the Director, or Planning staff may determine during the Conceptual Review that a site visit and/or story-poles will be required, and/or that the preparation of other plans will be needed in order to determine project compatibility with the neighborhood or compliance with applicable development standards (e.g., landscape, lighting, grading and drainage, etc.).

• B. Preliminary Review. Preliminary Review is a formal review of an application in order to confirm that the proposed development complies with all applicable design standards. Fundamental

design issues such as precise size of all built elements, site plan, floor plan, elevations, landscaping, and hardscaping are resolved at this stage of review. The Review Authority’s decision at Preliminary Review is the formal action for Design Review, which may be appealed.

1. Design Review Accompanying Zoning Permits.

  - a. A project may receive preliminary approval only if the accompanying Zoning Permit, pursuant to Section **17.51.030** , Actions and Permits—Zoning Permits, for a project has been reviewed by Planning staff and the Design Review Board has been authorized to take formal action to approve, approve with conditions, or deny the design of a project. 

  - b. To be approved at the preliminary level, all significant elements of the project’s appearance, landscaping and site and/or building orientation must be found to be consistent with the applicable design standards within the scope of Design Review. 

  - c. If a project is granted preliminary approval, the Design Review Board is indicating that all fundamental design issues have been resolved and that it can make the required findings for approval. 

2. Design Review Accompanying Discretionary Actions.

• a. The Design Review Board will review proposed development at the Conceptual level as many times as deemed necessary prior to authorizing the project to proceed to the higher Review Authority with jurisdiction over the entire proposed project. The higher Review Authority will conduct Preliminary Design Review and consider the requested Discretionary Action, pursuant to Section 17.51.020 , Actions and Permits— Discretionary Actions.

  - b. For development subject to a higher Review Authority, pursuant to Chapter **17.52** , Common Procedures, the Design Review Board may request additional specific plans or special studies to provide the required information and evidence needed to make draft Preliminary Review findings for the project and transmit a recommended action to the subsequent Review Authority. 
  
  - c. The Design Review Board action to provide draft findings is not subject to appeal. 
  
  - d. The higher Review Authority’s Discretionary Action on both Design Review and the accompanying permits is subject to Section **17.52.120** , Common Procedures— Appeals. 
  

• C. Final Review. Final Review is the last level of Design Review of the completed working drawings for a project, excluding electrical, plumbing, mechanical and structural drawings, unless components of these plans would affect the exterior of the building or are requested earlier in the process by a Review Authority.

  1. All details, color samples, material samples, door hardware, fenestration and exterior light fixtures, final site grading and drainage, and final landscaping must be included in the plans submitted for Final Review.

  2. Plans submitted for Final Review must conform to those plans that received Preliminary Approval. If changes to the plans are proposed at this stage by the applicant, a new Preliminary Approval may be required.

  3. The Design Review Board may grant Final Approval to a project as proposed or may add a condition that the Director confirm or verify that minor items (e.g., notations, verification of a color code or plant type, etc.) are added to the plan sheets.

  4. An action of the Design Review Board to grant final approval is not subject to appeal, pursuant to this Title.

(Ord. 20-03 § 6)

• A. Multiple Levels of Review at a Single Meeting. The Director may accept and process applications for Conceptual/Preliminary/Final Design Review and approval at a single meeting when appropriate for the project, all required information is submitted, and the project is properly noticed and agendized for such multiple levels of approval.

• B. CEQA Review. Decisions by the Design Review Board or any higher Review Authority at Preliminary Review are discretionary actions and are therefore subject to environmental review under the provisions of CEQA.

• C. Project Changes Requiring Additional Review.

  1. Revised Preliminary Review. Revised Preliminary Review is used when a project has already received Preliminary approval and the applicant wishes to make substantial changes that would require further Design Review and approval prior to final approval.

     • a. Plans submitted should include all information on drawings that reflect and call out the proposed revisions.

     • b. If the revisions are not clearly delineated and identified, they shall not be construed as being a part of the revised approval.

     • c. Substantial changes after a project has received approval at preliminary approval require a new Preliminary Design Review by the original Review Authority in order to review those changes against the required findings for approval.

  2. Revised Final Review. Revised Final Review is used when a project has already received final approval and the applicant wishes to make minor changes that require further Design Review by either the Design Review Board or the Director, but do not change any of the development entitlements previously granted by the City that would require additional review and analysis.

     • a. Plans submitted must include all information on drawings that reflect and call out the proposed revisions.

     • b. If the revisions are not clearly delineated, they shall not be construed as approved.

     • c. Substantial changes after a project has received final approval will require Revised Preliminary Review.

• d. Revised Final Review is not subject to appeal, pursuant to this Title.

• (Ord. 20-03 § 6)

The Review Authority may only grant Preliminary Design Review Approval if it is determined that the proposed project is consistent with the standards of this chapter and all of the following findings can be made:

• A. The development, except as it relates to the minimum allowed dwelling unit density for the site, will be compatible with the neighborhood, and its size, bulk and scale will be appropriate to the site and the neighborhood.

• B. Site layout, orientation, and location of structures, including any signage and circulation, are in an appropriate and harmonious relationship to one another and the property.

• C. The development, except as it relates to the minimum allowed dwelling unit density for the site, demonstrates a harmonious relationship with existing adjoining development, avoiding both excessive variety as well as monotonous repetition, but allowing similarity of style, if warranted.

• D. There is harmony of material, color, and composition on all sides of structures.

• E. Any outdoor mechanical or electrical equipment is well integrated in the total design and is screened from public view to the maximum extent practicable.

• F. The site grading is minimized and the finished topography will be appropriate for the site.

• G. Adequate landscaping is provided in proportion to the project and the site with due regard to preservation of specimen and protected trees, and existing native vegetation.

• H. The selection of plant materials is appropriate to the project and its environment, and adequate provisions have been made for long-term maintenance of the plant materials.

• I. All exterior lighting, including for signage, is well designed, appropriate in size and location, and darksky compliant.

• J. The project architecture will respect the privacy of neighbors, is considerate of private views, and is protective of solar access off site.

• K. The proposed development is consistent with any additional design standards as expressly adopted by the City Council.

• (Ord. 20-03 § 6; Ord. No. 24-05, 12/3/2024)

The Review Authority may impose reasonable conditions on a Design Review approval that is related and proportionate to what is being requested by the application, as deemed necessary or appropriate in order to ensure that the standards and requirements of this Title are met, including, without limitation:

• A. Modification of materials and/or design elements;

• B. Additional landscaping;

• C. Walls, fences, and screening devices;

• D. Noise-attenuation construction and/or devices; or

• E. Any other conditions that are found to be necessary to ensure that the provisions of the General Plan and this Title are met.

• (Ord. 20-03 § 6)

• A. Design Review approval shall expire two one years from the date of preliminary approval, unless the project receives final approval.

  1. Notwithstanding subsection 17.52.090D , prior to expiration of such two-year period, the Director may grant one extension of up to one year.

• B. The Design Review approval shall expire three years from the date of final approval, unless the associated Zoning Permit has been approved.

1. Notwithstanding subsection 17.52.090D , prior to the expiration of such three-year period, the Director may grant one extension of up to two years.

(Ord. 20-03 § 6; Ord. 25-10, 12/2/2025)