Keeping Tabs: City Must Rezone to Meet Low Income Housing Need

Gilroy is short 1,050 very-low-to-low-income housing units, which the state requires must be provided to residents.

The revelation came as the council was addressing the Housing Element, which is one of seven required aspects of the city's General Plan. The current Housing Element was developed in 2008-2009 and city staff regularly recommend certain updates to address Gilroy-specific needs, according to a staff report.

Gilroy, city staff reported, is one of the fastest growing cities in Santa Clara County. The city is reportedly facing overcrowding problems because of its growth rate, and because it has a lower average household income than the rest of the county.

Additionally, staff reported that the average household size is larger than the county average and the cost of home ownership is particularly difficult for large families and seniors.

The key change staff proposed was an amendment to provide land for higher-density housing.

David Bischoff, director of planning and environmental services for the city’s planning division, said that Gilroy has committed to being able to build 241 very-low-income housing units and 671 low-income units. However, these numbers fall short of the total overall housing the city must provide.

“What we find from the remaining need from the 1999-2006 period plus the remaining need from 2007-2014 is that there is an additional need for 828 very-low-income units and 222 low-income units,” he said.

The state requires rezoning to accommodate these housing units. To meet the remaining need, the city must rezone a minimum of 53 acres to permit by-right residential use. At least half of the acreage must go exclusively to residential development.

The council carried the resolution 7-0 during it's Feb. 6 meeting, and will hear reports on specific rezoning sites next month.

Additional updates from the council's Feb. 6 meeting include:

• The council decided to wait to formally adopt new, election-focused regulatory ordinances because of a clerical error in the language of the resolution.
• The council unanimously approved a bid of roughly $1.14 million to O’Grady Paving for a resurfacing project on Wren Ave. and Church St.
• By a 5-2 vote, the council approved limiting the number of small animals under 24 inches tall that residents can own. The ordinance limits the number of small animals like rabbits, chickens, pigeons, turkeys, peacocks and other legal birds to six per resident.