UPDATE: Approved! 3-2 March 3, 2020.
Defending Senior Housing in Clayton
On December 10th, 2019, The Clayton Planning Commission denied a State Density Bonus application for the “The Olivia,” an 81-unit senior community with 7 units designated for very low income units. State law, however, is clear: cities cannot impose subjective reject density bonus concessions that would make an otherwise zoning-compliant project financially unfeasible.
Why it matters:
The Housing Accountability Act prohibits cities from denying projects based on subjective criteria when they otherwise comply with zoning rules at the time of application. Without it, anti-housing jurisdictions can drag out decisions and stall projects with little to no evidence for their concerns. State Density Bonus law also bars cities from applying design standards to projects that would make it impossible for the developers to break even.
The Olivia submitted its first applications more than two years before the December 10th decision and, at the time, the city found no evidence that the project was inconsistent with the “objective standards” in its zoning codes. We wrote two letters to the City of Clayton informing them of their obligations under state law.
Yet when the project finally came before the Planning Commission, the commissioners had a laundry list of subjective complaints—and no evidence to back them. Among them, the project would supposedly impact available parking in the area. The project only planned to include 86 parking spots, but the Commission wanted 90. So they denied the Density Bonus Application. You read that right: the Clayton Planning Commission wanted to violate state law and deny housing to 81 seniors over four parking spots.
This Project Has Been Approved!
On March 3rd, 2020, the Clayton City Council denied the Planning Commission’s appeals of the project.
