Hyatt Place Hotel moves forward in Half Moon Bay

Since then, plans for the hotel have been scaled back to a three-story and two-story building — located at 1191 Main St. — with 108 parking spaces, 2 acres of open space and a four-unit subdivision on Seymour Street.

Jamison has worked diligently with the community, city and California Coastal Commission to find a compromise that benefits downtown and minimizes visual obstructions, residents said at public comment.

One Half Moon Bay resident, Virginia Turezyn, said she had long been opposed to large development on the coastside but, after following the project and seeing the accommodations made by the developer, she was in full support.

“I am sympathetic for all the owner has gone through over many years,” she said. “I now support this undertaking fully.”

The Planning Commission had denied the project in a 3-2 vote on grounds the proposed development would create visual obstructions and wasn’t in compliance with local land use policy.

Councilmembers disagreed with this assessment, also citing benefits to the local community — including tax revenue and increased patronage for local businesses — that overrode those concerns.

“I do not believe that the [Local Coastal Land Use Plan] policy related to protected views applies here,” Councilmember Deborah Penrose said. “There is no significant impact on the view of coastal hills, as has been suggested by two members of the Planning Commission.”

While a majority of residents who spoke at public comment were in support of the project, some cited low occupancy rates at existing hotels as a potential reason why the development shouldn’t move forward.

But those statistics don’t reflect the complicated nature of coastside tourism, Krystlyn Giedt, the Half Moon Bay Chamber of Commerce CEO, said. A larger-scale new hotel could also bring in new types of customers, like corporate groups, according to Giedt.

Councilmember Debbie Ruddock said she believed the Hyatt Place Hotel would be an overall win for the city and that she trusted Jamison to be a good-faith actor.

“He’s lived here 40 years, invested in this community, had a business here, lived in these neighborhoods, has other family members who lived here, they’re hired locally,” she said.

“He’s worked in good faith to make what I think is a good project, and I think it hits the sweet spot.”