Sausalito taps liaisons to guide housing plan as deadline looms

Two Sausalito council members will act as liaisons with development strategists to keep the city on track with its housing plan.

The city is facing a deadline to approve and submit a housing plan compliant with a state mandate by January. Sausalito is required to show it can develop 724 new residences over the next eight years.

Officials announced at the council meeting on May 10 that the city might miss its target by a month, potentially incurring penalties to the city. The council assigned Mayor Janelle Kellman and Councilmember Susan Cleveland-Knowles to work with the city’s Housing Element Advisory Committee, city staff and a housing consultancy to keep the city on pace.

The council stopped short of approving a recommendation by the housing consultant to convene a group of City Council members and planning commissioners to work parallel to the committee.

The consultant, Beth Thompson of De Novo Planning Group, said the proposed group could give “more input on a regular basis” and provide more immediate guidance than the committee. She said progress on the development of the housing report was hampered because the committee meets monthly and has a large number of participants.

Over the last months, the city has selected various sites for potential housing development. It is facing tighter deadlines however, as the months pass to complete and approve the various elements of the housing plan.

The housing plan must be adopted by the council and submitted to the California Department of Housing and Community Development by Jan. 31.

If the city’s plan is not approved on time, it will have only a year to codify the rezoning identified in the report. If it is submitted on time, the city will have up to three years to do so.

The city held an online forum on May 10 to update the community on a list of potential sites being reviewed by the city’s housing advisory committee. Community Development Director Heidi Scoble said there were 111 participants at the meeting.

The city has identified space for 199 more residences without any changes to zoning ordinances. Many of those sites were identified as a result of a public survey gauging property owner interest in developing housing on their properties.

The city is hoping to develop a buffer of new housing stock rather than just meet the minimum. Officials are planning to show they can develop 650 residences in addition to the 199 already identified. However, the 650 homes will require the rezoning of 26 to 37 acres to multifamily or mixed-use housing to accommodate requirements for the various income categories.

The city hopes to have a finalized list of potential housing sites for review by the advisory committee in May. The list would then be presented to the council for review.

The next Housing Element Advisory Committee meeting is scheduled for May 23. The next online forum will be held in July or August.