City Council approves 291-room Destino Resort on Airport Road

Posted: 4:26 am, January 25, 2017 by Reporter Jackie Iddings

Architectural rendering of the main hotel from the parking lot

Approval includes traffic mitigation fees for alternative route to reduce congestion

–The Paso Robles City Council last week approved new plans for the Destino Paso Resort, a 291-room hotel at 3350 Airport Road. A plan was approved in 2009 that included a main hotel, individual casita units, and improvements for up to 291 hotel rooms. Since the initial approval, the property has come under new ownership and the project developer, Karen Stier, proposed to re-subdivide and redesign the project. The new project includes a restaurant, bar/lounge, ballroom and outdoor patio areas. Traffic mitigation for the project includes payment of traffic impact fees that will help finance future construction of a planned parallel route of access between Airport Road and Union/Golden Hill Roads to reduce the congestion at the Airport Road/HWY 46E intersection.

The new plan eliminates the previous casitas and spa and allows for more open space, subdividing the property, constructing four hotels with a maximum of 291 hotel rooms, demolish an existing single-family home and maintain an existing farmhouse. The project also allows more distance between the hotels and Airport Road. The changes to the initial plan required planning commission and city council approval. The new project ran into delays with the planning commission last year due to the traffic congestion issues.

A view from the pool deck

The city council approved the new plan in a 4-1 vote at the Jan. 17 council meeting. Councilmember John Hamon was the dissenting vote. Hamon said he thinks the city should address the traffic issues before new hotels add to the congestion.

Several members of the community expressed their concerns about the traffic congestion on Airport and Highway 46. Stuart de Haaff of San Miguel said the plan “is a traffic congestion plan.” De Haaff said he travels on Airport Road on his frequent drives into Paso Robles and described Airport as a traffic nightmare. The Ravine Water Park and Wine Country RV Resort line opposite sides of Airport Road and access to those businesses is predominately from Highway 46.

During an October 2016 meeting the planning commission postponed a vote and asked city staff for more information about traffic impact at the intersection of Airport Road and Highway 46 East. City planners concluded that “the project may result in potentially significant operational traffic impacts.” In December, city staff provided the commission with a report suggesting directing traffic towards Dry Creek and Jardine Roads to reduce the congestion at Airport Road and Highway 46E.

Four hotels approved for Airport Road