Nov. 7--A proposed motel-condominium project off Highway 1 in Cayucos will face the scrutiny of the California Coastal Commission next year.

Commissioners voted 12-0 Wednesday to overrule their staff and consider the project on its merits.

Commissioner Katcho Achadjian, who also sits on the San Luis Obispo Board of Supervisors, voted for the coastal board's review.

The decision means that a lawsuit filed by developers Franco and Sonia DeCicco through the Pacific Legal Foundation will go forward, according to the foundation's Paul Beard.

The foundation, a group of attorneys who fight for private property rights, has said the Coastal Commission has no jurisdiction over the DeCiccos' proposal.

The DeCiccos are seeking to build a 17-unit motel with four residential condominiums, underground parking and two commercial lease spaces at the corner of Ocean Boulevard and Old Creek Road.

The county Board of Supervisors approved the project 3-2 in November last year, in one of the final votes for then-supervisors Jerry Lenthall and Harry Ovitt, who joined Achadjian in voting yes. Ovitt and Lenthall lost their re-election bids.

The commission's staff recommended in vain that it adopt the county board's decision.

Opponents have said they think the project is too big for their residential neighborhood on the southern end of Cayucos.

"Residents behind it would be looking at a virtual wall," said Bruce Paine, of the group Concerned Citizens of Cayucos.

Reach staff writer Bob Cuddy at 781-7909.

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