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The San Ramon City Council is set to consider signing off this week on a development agreement that would pave the way for next steps in the proposed Eden Housing project in Bishop Ranch.
The latest step in the process follows two public hearings on the proposed 200-unit housing project that would be deed-restricted to lower income households by the city’s Planning Commission, which ultimately voted to recommend it for approval by the City Council.
Despite extensive discussion and feedback, the project has been largely a welcome one for the Planning Commission as the only 100% affordable housing development proposed so far in the ongoing redevelopment of Bishop Ranch, despite cries from city officials, residents, and housing advocates for more affordable housing – as well as requirements by state and local officials.
The 198 affordable units provided by the project would count towards the 3,126 affordable units that the city is required to make way for under its RHNA allocation in the current housing element cycle.
However, under the development agreement up for consideration by the City Council, the Eden Housing project would see affordable units that had previously been planned for in other Bishop Ranch developments shifted to the site, effectively consolidating a majority of new affordable housing in the neighborhood into one site at 2453 Camino Ramon.
“In exchange for the dedication of land, development of the Camino Ramon Residential Development by Eden Housing will become a receiver site for the previously approved affordable units,” Division Manager Lauren Barr wrote in a staff report.
The development agreement was borne out of a partnership between developers, city staff, and the city attorney, Barr said, with the goal of providing “higher affordability and an increased number of affordable units,” as well as the payment of fees to the city’s affordable housing fund.
“While there are efficiencies with the consolidation of units, there are also improved services associated with an established affordable housing provider for rental housing,” Barr wrote.
The agreement also seeks to provide safeguards for the city’s interests, Barr wrote, including terms that would allow the city to take ownership of the site for the development of affordable housing should the current plan fall through.
“As currently proposed, the draft Agreement results in additional rental affordable housing units, with services provided by Eden Housing, higher affordability levels, and contributes funds to the City’s Housing program,” Barr wrote.
If a revised agreement providing for the transfer of affordable units from other projects to the Eden Housing site fails to move forward, Barr noted that those projects would be required to meet the affordable housing requirements in their previous agreements.
The San Ramon City Council is set to meet at 7 p.m. Tuesday (Aug. 12). The agenda is available here.
