City Council

8A. DE NOVO APPEAL HEARING OF PUBLIC HEARING PROJECT (PHP) 25-323, DEVELOPMENT PERMIT (DP) 25-324, AND CONDITIONAL USE PERMIT (CUP) 25-329, HANSON HOTEL (ATTACHMENT 3)(ATTACHMENT 4) De novo public hearing to consider a development request for the Hanson Hotel project at 1801 North El Camino Real. Public Hearing Project (PHP) 25-323, Conditional Use Permit (CUP) 25-329, and Development Permit (DP) 25-324 were approved with conditions by the Planning Commission on August 20, 2025, an appeal was filed to the City Council by a member of the public, the City Council opened the public hearing on October 21, 2025, and the City Council continued the hearing. The project includes the development of a three-story, 61 room hotel, with a third-floor rooftop restaurant and bar, two cafes, pool with a bar and restaurant, and a two-level subterranean parking structure with site improvements including walls, hardscape, landscaping, pedestrian improvements, improvements in the City right-of-way, outdoor seating for the restaurants and cafes, amplified music, and full range alcohol service (Type 47 License). The project is located on a vacant lot within the North Beach/North El Camino Real Focus Area and Gateway in the Mixed Use 1 (MU1) zoning designation. The site is also within the Central Business (CB) District, Architectural (A) Overlay, and Coastal Overlay (MU1-A-CB-CZ). Staff recommends the City Council determine the project is Categorically Exempt from CEQA pursuant to State CEQA Guidelines Section 15183. Potential Action Conduct a de novo public hearing, hear and consider all public testimony and comments, close the public hearing, and adopt Resolution No. 26-56, which will: 1. Find the project consistent with the development density and use characteristics established by the Centennial General Plan (General Plan) for which the City certified a Program Environmental Impact Report (Final Environmental Impact Report for Centennial General Plan; State Clearinghouse [SCH] No. 2013041021) (General Plan EIR) on February 4, 2014, pursuant to Public Resources Code Section 21083.3 and the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) Guidelines Section 15183 (Projects Consistent with a Community Plan or Zoning) and direct staff to file a Notice of Determination. 2. Approve Public Hearing Project 25-323, consisting of Development Permit 25-324 and Conditional Use Permit 25-329, Hanson Hotel, for construction of a three-story, 61-room boutique hotel with Spanish Colonial Revival architecture, a rooftop restaurant and bar, two cafés, a guest pool with food and beverage service, publicly accessible landscaped terraces, a two-level subterranean parking garage with 104 spaces, outdoor dining areas, full-service alcohol sales, and amplified music subject to conditions of approval, located on a vacant 0.8-acre lot at 1801 North El Camino Real within the MU1-CB-A-CZ zoning district.