Constellation and Apollo

What’s at Stake for Vandenberg Village

18th of August 2025

Overview

Santa Barbara County has mandated aggressive low-income housing quotas, and developers are racing to meet them—often at the expense of long-standing communities. In Vandenberg Village, the proposed Constellation Road development is a striking example:

A 60-unit apartment complex rezoned from commercial to residential (DR-30)
An 87-room extended stay hotel, with no confirmed brand partner
While billed as “infill” close to schools, parks, and shopping, this project pulls from the value of existing homes to raise the developer’s investment value.
- Over time, however, history shows such projects depress surrounding property values, leaving homeowners footing the bill for someone else’s gain.

Who Really Benefits?

The project summary highlights benefits to:

Contractors and military personnel at Vandenberg Space Force Base
County tax coffers through hotel bed taxes
The developer’s enrichment, in this case the Patel family, who retain ownership and long-term control of both the apartments and mitigation parcels

What’s missing? Any assurance of long-term benefit to Vandenberg Village homeowners.

Rendering of the proposed Constellation Road development

Questionable Additions

Several elements raise serious questions about planning priorities:

A proposed roundabout at Highway 1 and Constellation Road—an expensive traffic project not asked for by the community.

An additional hotel when the existing one has not reached full occupancy or business sustainability.

A hotel project with no established brand, casting doubt on its ability to attract the business travelers it claims to serve.

A mitigation parcel purchase in a residential neighborhood, which the developer will keep in perpetuity, restricting community use

Screenshot showing an aggressive timeline considering it is a school

Long-Term Risks to Homeowners

In our formal request for information, LUSD confirmed:

Ownership: The District owns both proposed project sites.
Status: Still in the feasibility stage—no contracts awarded.
Funding: Intended to be financed through public–private partnerships.
Timeline: Anticipated four-year process; no firm start or completion dates.
Plans: No architectural blueprints beyond a “Conceptual Yield Study” from May 2024.

You can view the District’s official page here: LUSD Employee Housing Project .

Our Next Steps

Leave93436.org is committed to opposing this project through public awareness, signage, community engagement, and legal avenues if necessary. We believe LUSD should focus on strengthening existing schools, paying off debt, and supporting current students—not demolishing vital community resources for speculative housing ventures.

In July of 2025 we made a California Public Records Act (CPRA) to the Lompoc Unified School District requesting further details

In August of 2025 LUSD sent this response

The Constellation and Apollo development's