Laserfiche WebLink
Planning Commission Regular Meeting Minutes <br />December 18, 2014 <br />Page 3 of 6 <br />Commission can look at business development issues and different ways of marketing the City <br />and stimulating development. Much of this is beyond the scope of the Housing Element. <br />Secretary Liao commented that the State requires cities to complete an annual report on their <br />Housing Element that provides one way of evaluating how the city is doing. He noted that the <br />market is improving. The State does not necessarily "grade" cities and recognizes there are <br />factors beyond each city's control that determine whether housing gets built. <br />Commissioner Hernandez commented about the different projects that have been approved and <br />whether it is realistic to think they will all be built in the future. Mr. Miller noted that the prior <br />RHNA was not achieved because ABAG and the State did not foresee the downturn in the real <br />estate market and economy. At this point, we don't know if we can build 2,287 units in the next <br />eight years or not, but we are at least planning to reach that target. Tom Liao noted that the City <br />had exceeded its RHNA in the 1999-2006 period. <br />Commissioner Hernandez asked what the Staff levels were from 1999-2006. He asked if the <br />City planned to increase staff levels in the future to reflect the higher development expectations. <br />Secretary Liao responded that this may be a question for City Council as a part of the annual 2 - <br />year budget process. <br />Commissioner Hernandez commented that page 9 of the Initial Study [under the California <br />Environmental Quality Act or CEQA) defines high density as 30 units per acre or more. He <br />asked if the City should include another category of 60 units or more, since 30 units is <br />considered somewhat low now. Commissioner Hernandez also questioned the likelihood that <br />these sites would actually be developed with very high densities. Mr. Miller stated that the 30 <br />unit/acre threshold is set by the State and the City is following the required standards for <br />Housing Element reporting. Mr. Miller noted that we would come back to the issue of the market <br />for higher densities at future study sessions. <br />Commissioner Hernandez commented that about 85% of the sites are slated for transit -oriented <br />development (TOD) and noted that most of the projects are a part of the East 14th corridor, with <br />a few sites in the industrial area on the west side. Mr. Miller replied that most of the sites on the <br />west side are underdeveloped or vacant lots in the Mulford Gardens area and are not intended for <br />higher densities. Commissioner Hernandez asked if there is a history of that area being anti - <br />development. Mr. Miller indicated that there were very few opportunities for multi -family in that <br />part of the city, and that most future development would consists of small 1-4 unit projects. <br />Commission Hernandez asked if the probability of developing on these sites is low due to <br />constraints, should the City's goal be more towards 4,000 units instead of about 2,300? Miller <br />replied that the Housing Element lists the City's best opportunities, but there are other <br />opportunity sites that exist. The City is capable of accommodating more than 2,300 units, and <br />we have tried to identify the most realistic sites but not necessarily all of the sites. <br />Commissioner Hernandez stated that not many opportunity sites were in the industrial area, even <br />though the Next Generation Study inferred that some housing would be developed there. Mr. <br />Miller indicated that the issue of housing in industrial areas would be discussed during the Land <br />Use Element. <br />