7,000 housing units in 20 years?

The Gilroy City Council recommended a scenario Nov. 18 that could add more than 7,000 housing units over the next 20 years.
The preferred land use alternative, as it is called, will be studied in the 2040 General Plan environmental impact report. The general plan is expected to be considered for adoption in late 2020.
Gilroy’s General Plan outlines a broad overview of the city’s growth goals and sets zoning and other policies that help reach those goals. The 2040 update has been in the works since 2013.
Faced with five alternatives, the council voted unanimously to move forward with the scenario recommended by the General Plan Advisory Committee, which consists of 30 Gilroy residents representing various organizations and industries.
That scenario attempts to strike a balance between commercial and residential growth, according to senior planner Stan Ketchum.
According to the city’s consultant Applied Development Economics, Gilroy’s population is estimated to reach 72,000 to 84,000 by 2040.The city’s population is currently estimated at 58,756, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Among the areas identified for growth is the First Street corridor, which extends from Santa Teresa Boulevard to Monterey Street. The new plan proposes converting its current use from General Services Commercial to a new mixed use designation, which would allow for a combination of commercial uses and multi-family residential, Ketchum said.
But the planning commission’s October recommendation of up to 40 housing units per acre on First Street went against the advisory committee and alarmed a citizens’ group known as Gilroy Growing Smarter, which advocates for the 2016 voter-approved Measure H that set an urban growth limit, among other things.
Some members of the planning commission argued that the First Street corridor, as one of the city’s major arterials, would be the best place for additional high-density housing, and such a move would help Gilroy prepare to meet upcoming state legislation requiring more multi-family residential development.
Carolyn Tognetti of the General Plan Advisory Committee said 40 units per acre roughly corresponds to six stories, which could be increased to seven stories with “density bonuses.”
“There are not a lot of places on First Street where we can actually do that,” she said. “There would be a few of them standing out like sore thumbs.”
Connie Rogers of Gilroy Growing Smarter said the group supports the advisory committee’s recommendation of 20 to 30 units per acre over the planning commission’s, mainly due to potential building heights on First Street.
“We don’t want to take a chance to see six- or seven-story buildings on First Street,” she said.
An environmental impact report for the General Plan update will be prepared early next year, with the council expected to adopt the plan by December 2020.