San Rafael — The City Council on Aug. 18 continued an item that would clarify the city’s affordable-housing requirements for residential development projects after developers asked for more time to review the proposed language.

What staff proposed: Alexis Kaptanian, the city’s housing manager, presented amendments to Resolution 14,890 that staff said would clarify existing city practice — including requirements that affordable units be dispersed throughout projects, be comparable in square footage and bedroom mix to market-rate units, and match the project’s market-rate tenure mix (rental vs. ownership). Staff characterized the proposed changes as language clarifications rather than policy changes.

Developer concerns and public comment: Tom Monahan, representing several developers, told the council that he and others learned of the proposed clarifications only recently and asked the council to postpone action so developers could meet with staff and review the language. “We would ask the council to, you know, pause this action tonight,” Monahan said. Staff replied that, because the amendments were intended to restate existing practice, staff believed postponement was not required; staff committed to stakeholder outreach as part of the city’s scheduled evaluation of housing policy later this fiscal year.

Council action: After public comment and staff responses, the council voted 3-1 to continue the item to the Sept. 2 council meeting so developers and staff could confer; Council Member Yedens Galati voted no. Council members and staff reiterated that the intended change was clarification of long-standing policy, not an expansion of new obligations.

Next steps: Staff said it will schedule stakeholder outreach and intends to bring a structured evaluation of housing-policy impacts as part of the city’s broader policy work later in the fiscal year.

Ending: The continuance preserves current practice while giving developers additional time to seek clarification from staff ahead of a final council decision.