Jan and Wayne Asp bought a property off of Santa Lucia Ave. in Los Osos back in 1973, hoping to build their forever home overlooking the bay, but that hasn’t gone as planned.
“We bought it because it’s beautiful and it’s still a lot,” Jan said.
The Asps have had to jump through many hoops over the past 50 years, prompting Jan to artistically display that process on their property.
“I put the hoops up. They just seem to keep putting up more hoops and it’s very frustrating, so anything that can be done to speed this along, we would appreciate it,” Jan said.
Archaeological finds like shells first halted the project, then seawater intrusion of the groundwater basin led to a building moratorium in 1988.
That ban was lifted by the California Coastal Commission in 2024, allowing a yearly 1% max growth rate for the community. The Los Osos Basin Management Committee recommended a 0% growth rate, but the San Luis County Board of Supervisors approved a different number back in December.
“We want to ease into it and we want to make sure we take a conservative, thoughtful, balanced approach towards it and not just go from zero to one, so we’re easing into it with a 0.4% growth rate,” said Cory Hanh, Long-Range Planning Division Manager for the County of San Luis Obispo.
Currently, there are 256 people on the single-family dwelling wait list to build, and the Asps hold the top spot.
They’ve gone through three sets of building plans due to rules and regulations changing over the years, having to shift from a two-story design to a single-story design because of the lot characteristics and height limits, but also for other reasons.
“Buying the lot in the 70s and doing it in 2026, they’ve gotten a lot older and they need a space that fits them and suits their needs, which is single story, some ADA compliance, make sure they can navigate their home,” said Sam Crizer, owner of Crizer Construction.
Then there are Title 19 retrofits.
“They will physically have to interact with existing homes, existing homeowners, be given access to their home and physically retrofit, so change out water-using fixtures and appliances with more efficient ones, and that’s how you slowly creep your way to a water certificate that allows you to actually build,” said Matt Davis, Crizer Construction team lead.
There's also the Los Osos Habitat Conservation Plan (LOHCP), a 25-year plan that works toward balancing new developments with protecting endangered species.
“It’s been a challenge to know exactly what that enrollment looks like, how long it’s going to take, and I know that the county is doing the best they can to try and get that enacted and get that up to speed,” Crizer said.
Crizer and Davis both told KSBY News that each case is different based on the lot, but the permitting process starts with a land use permit which takes environmental and exterior design into consideration, and the next is construction permitting which considers the water. The Asps are currently in the first phase.
“Right now we’re fleshing out the arc reports in preparation to submit a land use permit to the county,” Davis said.
Hanh said that the 0.4% growth rate comes out to about 25 new units per year, and that property owners will be notified about their allocations to build in batches, starting with 1-12 on the single-family list and 1-7 on the multi-family list.
“As we move into later in the year, we move out of the batch kind of process and allow for anyone on the wait list to apply for an allocation,” Hanh said.
Jan and Wayne are in the process of having an archaeological assessment done, so they won’t be able to receive any allocations right away until that is taken care of.
“All the changes and stuff, it’s just everything costs money,” Wayne said.
“We just want to sit here and enjoy the bay. That was our goal,” Jan said.
Batch 1 properties will be notified about their allocations starting May 1.
