The possibility of any proposal that would build residential units on property that the city has long intended for industrial uses got a cold reception Tuesday night from the Santa Maria City Council.

Council members were even wary of the potential to put commercial office space on the property for fear that it could have a chilling effect on future industrial development.

As a result of the discussion, the council clearly told staff and the various property owners of nearly 1,000 acres on the western edge of the city that industrial development is the favored use there.

City Staff brought the issue before the City Council to get direction on how staff should proceed with talks with the land owners and their plans to develop what has been dubbed “Area 9.”

In addition to discussing the types of land uses the council would likely favor, members also weighed in on how they felt about breaking the large area into two planning parts - one which would move forward now with an industrial focus and the other that would move forward at a future time.

The property commonly called Area 9 consists of 884 acres between Betteravia Road to the south and the Santa Maria Valley Railroad tracks to the north (just south of Stowell Road). The property is also bordered by Black Road to the west and A Street to the east.

In September 2003 the City Council prezoned the property, which is required for annexation, for industrial uses and the property was eventually brought into the city in November 2004.

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The initial zoning, which is still in effect, is 59 acres of planned-development commercial manufacturing, 421 acres of planned-development commercial manufacturing with an agriculture overlay, 152 acres of planned-development general manufacturing, and 252 acres of open space.

An agricultural overlay means development must be agriculture-related, said city Community Development Director Kirk Lindsey.

The council was asked to comment on the land uses for the site after some of the property owners expressed interest in applying for zone changes that would allow residential development.

Four representatives of various property owners spoke at the meeting. Two agreed with the idea to split the planning and two offered suggestions that more than just industrial uses should be explored for the planning area.

Council members have frequently looked to this property as a sort of “bank” of industrial land for the city's future growth. The development of Area 9 and the pending development of the Santa Maria Airport Business Park have often been cited by city officials as the areas that will supply higher-paying jobs for valley residents.

To further complicate the planning of this site, there are at least 15 land owners involved in development.

Some of the land owners know what they want on their property and some do not, said Laurie Tamura with Urban Planning Concepts, the land-use consulting firm working with the owners to develop a specific plan for the area.

To try to make the planning more manageable, Tamura said, the land owners are proposing to break the property into two sections, one that is industrial and would begin planning now, and another that would be planned at a future time.

“I think in this case it is the logical thing to do because it's a thousand acres and will take a long time to build out,” she said before Tuesday's meeting.

A specific plan is in the works, she noted, to look at ways to build the infrastructure that will be needed eventually on the entire property.

The council appeared to favor the idea of creating two planning areas.

Jim Diani, one of the property owners and the managing partner for Black Road Investments, said he and his group are looking at building strictly industrial development on their 100 acres.

Black Road Investments is a general partnership, he said, and consists of six different land owners.

“We had general industrial within the county zoning (before annexation) and have held the property since the early '80s,” he said before the meeting. “We are just trying to get through the specific-plan process and either develop or divest of it.”

There are no plans to sell the property at this time, he added.

Malia Spencer can be reached

at 739-2219 or mspencer@santa

mariatimes.com.

June 6, 2007