Council approves Palm Terrace Phase 3 subdivision for 10 affordable single-family homes

The Lindsay City Council approved a tentative subdivision map for Palm Terrace Phase 3, a 1.63-acre development that will create 10 single-family lots intended for low- and very-low-income homebuyers.

Planning staff presented the proposal and said the project will provide on-site infrastructure improvements — streets, lighting, landscaping and utility connections — and that homes are planned to range from about 1,200 to 1,400 square feet. Staff determined the project is categorically exempt from CEQA and consistent with the city’s general plan and zoning.

Self Help Enterprises requested density-bonus concessions to make the project financially feasible. Staff and the council approved concessions that reduce minimum lot width to 44 feet, allow side-yard setbacks as small as 3.5 feet, and reduce required garage front setbacks to enable the developer’s proposed home layouts.

Planning staff described typical lot sizes as ranging from about 4,862 square feet to 7,033 square feet. Staff said the project will be targeted to local first-time homebuyers who qualify under Self Help’s mutual self-help homeownership program; Self Help representatives and staff described the model in which a cohort of families build each other’s homes and qualify by living or working in the community.

Council discussion included a request for balanced housing types and an acknowledgement that Lindsay already hosts subsidized housing; members who spoke supported the project’s owner-occupied model and said the homes typically foster long-term neighborhood stability.

Council adopted Resolution 25-12 to approve the tentative subdivision map and the requested concessions; the vote was recorded as 5-0. Staff said the project will proceed to final engineering and permitting under the city’s subdivision and building rules.