Zoning administrator approves Rancho Kenyatta Village pattern book for 93 market-rate lots

The Monterey County zoning administrator approved a design-approval pattern book for Rancho Kenyatta Village (PLN260089), a 93-lot market-rate component of the larger Rancho Canada/Rancho Kenyatta subdivision.

Mary Israel, project planner, said the pattern book documents lot sizes, three house models, accessory dwelling unit options, and site-specific design controls. She told the hearing the project falls within the scope of a previously certified SFEIR and that required mitigation measures — including an acoustic requirement to meet interior noise limits and a subdivision-wide water budget capped at 60 acre-feet per year — remain in place. "The development is part of that 145 unit alternative 6 b that the SFEIR, approved, and it was approved by the Board of Supervisors in 2021," Israel said.

Cody Phillips, speaking for the developer, described the application as the culmination of a decades-long process and asked the zoning administrator to follow staff's recommendation. Public testimony included support from longtime participants in the project and questions about landscaping palettes and how landscape plans would be administered at the construction-permit stage. The zoning administrator confirmed that the pattern book addresses market-rate lots only and that master construction permits will guide site-specific landscaping and exterior lighting.

Staff clarified a LUAC (local advisory committee) minutes discrepancy; the zoning administrator made minor edits to the resolution, found no substantial changes requiring additional CEQA review, and approved the pattern book design approval subject to the conditions and required mitigations carried from the certified SFEIR.