A South Orange County City Grapples With State Housing Mandates

San Juan Capistrano is the latest Orange County metropolis to grapple with authorities lodging mandates and gathering capable homes to assistance curb California’s lodging crisis. 

Last week, metropolis officials approved a five-story flat gathering adjacent metropolis hallway and the city’s historic downtown region.

Echoing concerns by officials successful different Orange County cities, immoderate San Juan Capistrano City Council members expressed worries implicit the size of the building, but the projected gathering does not transcend the city’s tallness bounds and authorities instrumentality prevents officials from adjusting it.

“Don’t get maine wrong, I enactment housing, but I don’t enactment five-story buildings,” Councilmember Howard Hart said astatine the Jan. 21 meeting. 

Officials besides expressed concerns that their hands were efficaciously tied by authorities lodging law, limiting conscionable however overmuch they could power the last plan of the project.  

State Law vs. Local Concerns

Despite San Juan Capistrano City Council members saying they hoped the task would beryllium smaller, their hands are mostly tied. 

Under authorities regulations, the spot proprietor — Winebright Capistrano — could person accrued the gathering standard and removed each parking without accidental from the city. 

Since the improvement is wrong a half-mile of the San Juan Capistrano bid station, authorities instrumentality says the developer isn’t required to adhd immoderate parking astatine all.

“They could’ve gone up to 8 stories and 446 units by authorities mandate and zero parking spaces,” Councilmember Hart said. “I’m gladsome they didn’t. I privation they had gone for fewer, but rather honestly, don’t hatred the player, hatred the game.”

Councilmember John Taylor said helium hoped the gathering would lone beryllium 4 stories, but the metropolis inactive needs much housing.

“I cognize it’s taller, it’s alteration — radical don’t similar alteration successful San Juan,” helium said. “I cognize that aft being present for 40 years, but I deliberation it’s going to service a large request successful this community.”

The task was initially approved by readying commissioners who spent hours during their November gathering moving with the developer to marque immoderate plan changes to thing commissioners said amended fits the community.

The developer besides worked with the city’s plan reappraisal committee connected immoderate ocular changes to the gathering — adjacent though the developer could person denied these requests nether authorities law. 

“This is simply a task that doesn’t scream, ‘I don’t attraction astir the community,’” Planning Commissioner Tami Wilhem said during the Nov. 13 meeting. “This is simply a task that says, ‘I do. I americium trying to bash thing that’s beauteous and nice.’”

However, Wilhelm said she “hated” the thought of putting a five-story gathering connected Camino Capistrano and encouraged frustrated residents to dependable their concerns to their authorities representatives.

“When you amusement up astatine these meetings, I conscionable privation you to know, portion we perceive you and empathize with you, we bash person rules that we person to follow,” she said. “So the radical that you privation to beryllium yelling at, the radical that ought to get this elephantine bundle of your letters, astir of them are successful Sacramento.” 

The Downtown Development & Resident Concerns 

The improvement is expected to diagnostic 278 units, a five-story parking store and a retail crushed level featuring stores and restaurants.

Of the units, 32 are expected to beryllium affordable and reserved for low-income tenants.

Affordable lodging limits are based connected the state’s Department of Housing and Community Development income bounds numbers. For Orange County, the median income for a household of 4 is $129,000. To beryllium considered low-income, a household of 4 indispensable person a combined yearly income nether $126,250.

The gathering tract is located successful the San Juan Plaza betwixt the existing Trader Joe’s and Vons and down the thoroughfare from Mission San Juan Capistrano. It’s besides expected to diagnostic astir 400 parking spaces successful a cardinal parking garage, exterior courtyards and a rooftop deck.

According to state lodging mandates, San Juan Capistrano indispensable program for 1,054 caller lodging units by 2029. This fig is passed down by the authorities and includes lodging units for antithetic income levels.

Although metropolis assembly members and readying commissioners said they didn’t privation to enactment a 60-foot gathering successful the halfway of town, they pointed retired that the determination was mostly retired of their power owed to mandates from the authorities to physique much housing.

During the gathering past Tuesday, metropolis assembly members emphasized that this project’s size is simply a effect of the authorities and can’t beryllium easy changed by metropolis officials.

They pointed to the Housing Crisis Act of 2019, which empowers developers to mostly disregard section zoning codes successful bid to physique their projects, arsenic agelong arsenic they incorporate capable affordable housing.

[Read: Will Builder’s Remedy Create Housing Without Local Approval successful Orange County?]

The instrumentality besides outlines reappraisal standards, explaining that cities can’t enforce changes solely based connected design. Local officials tin lone trim a project’s size — oregon contradict it outright — if determination is grounds that the improvement volition make a important wellness oregon information risk.

That means officials can’t trim a development’s size conscionable due to the fact that they deliberation it won’t lucifer the surrounding community.

Meanwhile, residents raised concerns implicit traffic, parking and height. 

They said the gathering doesn’t acceptable the city’s small-town consciousness and volition lone worsen the congestion issues connected Camino Capistrano and adjacent market store parking lots.

Dozens of residents showed up to readying committee and metropolis assembly meetings to dependable their concerns — they besides sent letters to officials highlighting their worries. 

“San Juan was a quaint, bully municipality mode backmost when,” 1 talker said during the Jan. 21 assembly meeting. “But you’re tearing it isolated for immoderate reason.”

Planning Commissioner Stan Braden, an architect, said the task is prime and keeps improving arsenic the developer continues to enactment successful tandem with the city.

“I emotion San Juan,” Braden said. “I’m an advocator for preserving the downtown, but we’re going to person to turn up due to the fact that of authorities rules and different things that we don’t control.”

Angelina Hicks is simply a Voice of OC Tracy Wood Reporting Fellow. Contact her astatine ahicks@voiceofoc.org oregon connected Twitter @angelinahicks13.

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