Monterey Planning Commission Meeting – February 10, 2026
Monterey Planning Commission Meeting – February 10, 2026
The Monterey Planning Commission held a regular meeting on February 10, 2026, to consider consent items, one public hearing for an architectural review and tree removal permit at 2298 Prescott Avenue, and commissioner comments. All seven commissioners were present. The meeting began with a roll call and staff introductions.
Consent Calendar
- The consent agenda (Items 1–4, including approval of minutes) was approved unanimously on a motion by Commissioner Stoker, seconded by Commissioner Freeman. The vote was 7–0. The approval of Items 1, 3, and 4 is appealable to the City Council within 10 days.
Public Comments & Testimony
- General Public Comments: No members of the public spoke on items not on the agenda.
- Item – 2298 Prescott Avenue: Arlene Hardenstein, a neighbor living directly across the street at 2281 Prescott Avenue, stated that the proposed project would eliminate her ocean view 100%. She expressed support for thoughtful reinvestment but requested that the commission consider requiring design adjustments to reduce the view impact. She noted that the loss would be total and permanent, and urged a balance between the homeowner's goals and neighborhood compatibility.
Discussion Items
- 2298 Prescott Avenue – Architectural Review Permit (ARP 25-0028) and Tree Removal Permit (ART 250250) – Senior Associate Planner Chris Schmidt presented the staff recommendation for approval. The project involves demolition of an existing ~1,400 sq ft single-family dwelling, construction of a new 3,092 sq ft two-story single-family dwelling, and removal of one declining Monterey Pine tree. The site is a corner lot (75' x 100', 7,500 sq ft) zoned R-1.5. Staff found that despite a view impact confirmed from the neighbor's kitchen, the project meets all four required findings for architectural review and the finding for tree removal. The view impact would be similar for any conforming development on the site. Applicant Christo Stadler (Eric Miller Architects) presented renderings and argued that the design steps down the mass to blend with the neighborhood, and that any reasonable development would block the view. Commissioners sympathized with the neighbor's loss but agreed that the project complies with zoning, is well-designed, and that the view is not legally protected. All seven commissioners expressed support for approval, citing the constraints of the corner lot and the quality of the design.
Key Outcomes
- Motion and Vote: Commissioner Stoker moved to approve the architectural review and tree removal permits with the standard conditions of approval as attached in the staff report. Commissioner Palmer seconded. The motion passed unanimously (7–0). The decision is appealable to the City Council within 10 days.
- Commissioner Comments: Commissioners discussed a downtown building that had been converted into a retail use (permitted under the Downtown Specific Plan) and raised concerns about its appearance and a stop-work order. Staff noted that a separate architectural review for upper-story residences may come before the commission. The meeting also included updates: a new city manager, Dante G. Hall, expected in April, and a future agenda item for the NCIP consistency analysis.
Meeting Transcript
How do we give us a hug Uh Erica, can you please do a roll call and uh announce staff who are present and provide instructions for online listeners to participate, please? Sure. Chair Silva. Vice Chair Latasa. Commissioner Bluth. Commissioner Freeman. Commissioner Palmer. Here. Commissioner Polly. And Commissioner Stoker. And our staff members present today are our planning manager, Levi Hill, Principal Planner Fernanda Riveri, Senior Associate Planner Chris Schmidt, and myself, recording secretary Eric Cabrera. Information on participating in this meeting and providing public comment, including remotely by Zoom or telephone, is on this meeting's agenda, which is online at Monterey.gov forward slash agendas. Remote commenters will be muted until it's their turn to speak, and a timer will be shown on the screen. If you're connected on Zoom, the timer is accurate with no delay. In the chamber, we recommend keeping phones and devices muted to prevent audio interference with the meeting. Thank you for participating in your city government. Thank you, Erica. We'll start by uh um opening up the consent agenda, and we have uh one to four items, and I will start by um item number two approval of minutes. If there's anybody in chambers or online that may have comments regarding the minutes for the last hearing, you may speak. So, Chair may recommend just going ahead and taking all the consent items as one item or one action and then opening up to the public to see if anyone would like to remove an item. That's why I wanted to split it because Terry wasn't here and it might have a different vote than on the other three items. So Terry, Terry's still able to participate in the vote on the minutes if you'd like to. Um, and so but okay, so then we can take it. Okay, very good. So um let's just do this holistically. So if there's any member of the public in the chambers or online that uh wishes to speak towards the four items on the consent agenda, you may do so. Anybody online? There are no attendees online. Thank you. We'll uh bring this back to the uh commission. Um, do we have any comments? I'd like to move approval of the consent agenda, all four items. Do I hear a second? Yes, second. So we have a motion to approve by Commissioner Stoker, second by Commissioner Freeman to approve the four items on the consent agenda. Okay, Chair Silva. Yes. Vice Chair Latasa. Yes. Commissioner Bluth? Yes. Commissioner Freeman, Commissioner Palmer, yes. Commissioner Polly. Yes. Commissioner Stoker. Yes. Okay, the consent agenda has been approved. Did those items other than the minutes, those items are uh appealable to the uh city council with forms available in the planning office and online uh that is 10 days appeal period from today. Thank you. Uh now we'll open up uh general public comments.
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