Proposed changes to growth control measure would encourage
projects that help finance wish-list items
Gilroy – Affordable housing, eco-friendly buildings and developments that help foot the bill for public projects will become big winners under proposed changes to the city’s growth control measure.
The 200-point building permit competition governed by the Residential Development Ordinance, commonly known as the RDO competition, forms the heart of Gilroy’s growth control efforts.
Most of the housing construction now taking place across Gilroy was approved during the last competition in 2001, when city officials gave out more than 2,000 permits for market rate homes. Instead of waiting for the next major competition in 2011, city leaders are now overhauling the RDO grading system to encourage new types of development. They plan to have the changes in place for a mini-competition next year, when they will dole out 191 building permits left over from various projects.
The proposed changes, discussed by councilmen for the first time Monday night, place heavy emphasis on projects that offer “value-added” items. Specifically, developments that help finance public projects such as sidewalk repairs, public art in the downtown, and other wish-list items identified in city planning documents could earn up to 50 points under the “community benefit” category of a revised RDO.
Affordable housing projects do not have an explicit category under the current grading system, which provides up to four points for “housing cost and price reduction techniques.” A revised RDO would grant up to 20 points for affordable housing projects, as well as an additional 20 points for rental apartments.
In the environmental arena, the new grading system will grant developers up to 25 points for using solar power and other energy-efficient designs, as well as 25 points for projects located near public transit. The revised RDO still grants up to 50 points for development near existing businesses and housing, as part of efforts to prevent sprawl on Gilroy’s outer edges.
Under the proposed grading system, developers will no longer get points for traffic improvements and other practices required under the routine approval process.
The point system is not final and council members will submit suggestions Friday on how heavily each category should be weighed.
“I think it was a good first cut,” Mayor Al Pinheiro said. “We shouldn’t be rewarding developers for doing things they should be doing in the first place. We should be rewarding them for doing things our community can’t do because we don’t have the funds.”
Planning commissioners are expected to review the proposal Thursday and city planners will contact local developers in coming weeks to ask for feedback on the changes.
Developer James Suner, who is responsible for a dozen small scale projects in the area, said that his next development incorporates solar panels and other energy-efficient designs. He said the changes to the RDO “sound like a good idea in general,” but he predicted it would make the biggest difference on large-scale developments headed for the city’s edges.
Dave Sheedy, part of a development group behind a new downtown building at the corner of Monterey and Lewis streets, worried about the effect of the new system on home prices. But he expressed strong support for any policy that promotes inward growth.
“I think in-fill is a huge issue,” he said. “They need to do whatever they can to encourage more of that.”
While stakeholders and city leaders may differ on the areas of greatest importance, council members seem determined to encourage development with environmental and social benefits.
“If we don’t ask for these things, they’re not going to be given to us,” Pinheiro said. “That’s the nature of development. They’re in the business of getting the most profit. We’re in the business of providing the best quality of living for our residents.”
Point Criteria
– Proposed changes to the city’s growth control measure would reward affordable housing, eco-friendly buildings and other projects with environmental and social benefits. The new grading system for housing projects would award points in the following way:
Points – Project – Criteria
– 0-50 Proximity to existing development, utilities and city services
– 0-10 variety in housing types or density
– 0-20 Affordable housing
– 0-20 Apartments providing new rental housing
– 0-25 Pedestrian and/or Transit-oriented design
– 0-25 Energy-efficient building design
– 0-50 Projects that preserve farmland, help finance sidewalk repairs, or provide other “community benefits”
Meeting
– What: Planning Commission Meeting
– When: Thursday at 6pm
– Where: Council chambers, 7351 Rosanna St.
