Grover Beach Residents Launch Petition Drive to Limit Building Heights

GROVER BEACH, Calif. (KEYT) - A group of Grover Beach residents are beginning an effort to try and limit future building heights in the coastal city that is currently experiencing a wave of growth in its downtown area.

This week, the group delivered to the Grover Beach City Council an Notice of Intent to start a petition that could eventually lead to the creation of an initiative measure on this year's November ballot.

According to the documents provided by the residents, the goal is adopt an ordinance that limits building heights and establishes a minimum 33% commercial component in a mixed-use development.

"The purpose of this is to preserve Grover Beach's mystique of being a beach town," said Kelvin Coveduck, a Grover Beach resident who is part of the petition group. "Not that we want to live in the past, but we want to preserve the future for future generations."

The group is aiming limit buildings and structures in Commercial Zoning Districts to three stories and 40 feet in height, as well as limit buildings and structures in Industrial Zoning Districts to 33 feet in height.

"We need to get 1,000 signatures if this is approved," said Coveduck, referring to approval from the City Council. "The Grover Beach City Council has to study it. They have 15 days to do that. They have 10 days to give it to legal counsel and if they let us, as the Grover Beach citizens do our our American right of having initiatives which California is famous for, then the people will decide. The caveat is that they won't be able to change the height limits that we have in our petition unless the voters decide in the future, so it takes it out of the hands of the city council and into the hands of the people."

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