831 Water Street Proposal at Santa Cruz City Council

On Tuesday, December 14, the Santa Cruz City Council will re-consider the 831 Water Street development project application.

* PLEASE NOTE: Public comment will be limited to no more than a total of 30 minutes. Each speaker will have 1 minute. Interested parties should also email the city council to make sure their voices are heard: citycouncil [at] cityofsantacruz.com

BACKGROUND:

On October 12, 2021, the City Council conducted an oversight meeting to review the objective standards for the subject SB 35 project at 831 Water Street. Following public input and Council discussion, a motion passed to deny the project based on project’s violation, or potential violation, of the following objective standards:

* The anti-segregation standard in the inclusionary ordinance and Density Bonus Ordinance that requires the dispersal of affordable units throughout a project, which also violates the City’s Health in All Policies ordinance by creating segregated housing;
* The slope regulation that projects be located no closer than 20 feet from a 30% slope without a variance;
* The lack of a completed Stormwater Management Plan and a completed Drainage Plan that ensure the City’s standards to prevent flooding on the property and in the neighborhood;
* The lack of a traffic study demonstrating that the City’s traffic standards protecting the public health and safety from the proposed driveway crossing a bike lane;
* The lack of a completed noise study documenting that the City’s objective noise standards will be met;
* Deem the density bonus application incomplete for not complying with the State Housing and Community Development's regulation that affordable units are distributed throughout the development, and for not showing the breakdown of Area Median Income (AMI) levels and density bonus unit locations.

On November 23, 2021 the City Council voted to rescind the October 12, 2021 motion to deny the project and directed staff to complete the SB 35 objective standards consistency review in light of the new information, and schedule a follow-up public oversight hearing for the December 14, 2021 City Council meeting.

On November 22, the group 831 Responsible Development wrote council, stating:

"We thank you for standing for equity in building practices by saying no to segregated housing. Our City can say yes both to affordable housing and to upholding local ordinances that require that housing is dispersed and not segregated." (See the full letter attached below)

More information:

831 Responsible Development
https://831responsibledevelopment.org/

City of Santa Cruz project page for 831 Water Street
http://www.cityofsantacruz.com/831Water