Developer Patrice Pastor gets approval for one of his Carmel projects – for the moment.

After about six years and multiple delays in attempting to get a 13,000-square-feet multi-use project built near 7th Avenue and Dolores Street in Carmel, Monaco-based developer Patrice Pastor finally cleared a major hurdle on April 9: a 4-0 approval of the project by the Carmel Planning Commission. For some projects that might be all that’s needed to move forward. For a project as controversial as Pastor’s, it’s likely it will face an appeal, delaying the project even further.

While there was support from residents and business owners for the project during the meeting, others objected to its size, asking commissioners to scale it back and increase the setback from a neighboring building, among other changes.

“Simply put, as proposed it’s too big for our little village, especially in the service commercial zone,” said Ian Martin, a former planning commissioner, who argued the project should be reduced in size by at least 3,000 square feet.

Parking was also at issue during the meeting, since the project will eliminate a parking lot used by the 7th & Dolores restaurant and an annex building next door that now serves as a wine bar. The JB Pastor project, with 5,100 square feet of retail downstairs and eight apartments upstairs, proposed 12 spaces, 10 with a shared parking lift system. Under the code such a project would require at least 17.6 spaces.

The city’s in-lieu parking program allows for paying a fee if a developer has “diligently” attempted to add parking but cannot – Esperanza Carmel, Pastor’s company, is making that claim and is willing to pay over $54,000 per space to cover 5.6 spaces.

At least two of the commissioners expressed concerns that Esperanza had not fully explored underground parking

The four planning commissioners present were, as Chair Michael LePage put it, “all over the map” in their opinions. (Commissioner Erin Allen was absent.) It appeared the project could be headed for defeat, until LePage made the case that the developer had complied with all the commission’s previous direction and suggested a few minor changes to improve privacy for a neighbor.

“I am genuinely pleased with the outcome, despite the somewhat subjective and not entirely rational interventions throughout the process,” Pastor says in a written statement. He says that process “is the system we must work with, accept and continue moving forward.”

Opponents have until April 23 to file an appeal.

Meanwhile, Esperanza’s other project, Ulrika Plaza at Dolores and 5th Avenue – colloquially referred to as “The Pit,” because the previous structures were demolished by the last owner and have sat empty since Pastor bought the property several years ago – is progressing through the permitting process, according to Anna Ginette, the City’s community planning and building director.

She says Esperanza has submitted applications for a building permit, demolition permit and construction and have been in the plan check phase since February. Once plan check is complete, the next step would be to apply for a temporary encroachment permit, since there’s not enough room for construction equipment on site. That permit would have to be approved by the City Council.