Housing overlay on Gobbi considered

Would benefit proposed housing project at Village Circle

At its meeting tonight, the Ukiah Planning Commission will consider a “Housing Overlay Zone” proposed for three parcels on East Gobbi Street, a change that city planners said will help a proposed housing project move forward.

Community Development Director Craig Schlatter described the Housing Overlay Zone as “an innovative program to streamline future development of affordable housing/possible mixed use at that site.

If the Housing Overlay Zone is adopted by (the Ukiah City Council), it allows multi-family housing construction by right (requiring only a building permit), pro

vided the project has at least 20-percent lower income housing, and meets the Objective Development and Design Standards (modeled off the City’s design guidelines, with input from the Design Review Board, Planning Commission, and City Council Housing Element Implementation ad hoc committee.”

According to the agenda prepared for the Feb. 24 meeting, “the location of the proposed East Gobbi Housing Overlay Zone is three parcels at the intersection of East Gobbi Street and Village Circle. Two of the parcels, closest to East Gobbi Street, are vacant. The third parcel contains the remnants of a former Community Garden.”

Recently, city staff have been working with a developer who hopes to add a mix of new housing and commercial space to the site, and Schlatter said the proposed Housing Overlay Zone is “directly related to the planned housing project in that area. City staff have been discussing with a developer over the last year on a possible project at that location: a multi-family/ mixed use project, with commercial businesses on the ground-floor frontage and affordable apartments in the rear (south) and second stories. This is all preliminary at this point, but the HOZ will make it much easier for the developer to proceed with the project.

“We have also been working with the developer to have units available at a mix of incomes,” Schlatter added.

“Generally, and due primarily to funding competitiveness, affordable housing projects restrict units to residents with 60-percent area median income or 50-percent area median income and below. The developer is considering making a mix of units also available to 80-percent AMI and below, which is closer to middle-income housing.”

The Housing Overlay Zone will be considered at the next meeting of the Planning Commission, which will begin at 6 p.m. Feb. 24. Anyone can join the meeting here: https://global.gotomeeting.com/join/473756525.

Or you can also dial in using your phone: +1 (571) 317-3122; Access Code: 473-756-525.