Moraga council denies appeal, approves 66‑unit School Street apartment after hour‑long safety debate

Moraga Town Council voted 5–0 on Wednesday to deny an appeal of a 66‑unit apartment project at 1600 School Street and to approve design review, a grading permit and a state density‑bonus application that allows two waivers — including a fourth story and a parapet height of 49 feet. The proposal includes 5 very low income units and 61 market‑rate units.

The decision followed a staff presentation, public safety briefings from the interim Moraga‑Orinda Fire District (MOFD) chief and Moraga police chief, and more than three hours of public comment — much of it from residents of the School Street neighborhood and Sackland School, which borders the site.

Supporters of the appeal argued the town’s environmental review and evacuation planning are incomplete for large infill projects near constrained roads; the appellant also said the five very low income units did not meet the town’s 20% size‑parity standard and raised air‑quality concerns for the adjacent school. Town staff and outside consultants responded that the project is within the scope of the town’s 2023 program EIR for the Moraga Center planning area, that a project‑level consistency analysis was completed and that additional wildfire and construction‑air mitigation measures were added for the council’s consideration.

What the council decided

The council adopted the staff recommendation to deny the November appeal and approve the project as reviewed by the Planning Commission. The formal motion — read into the record as a resolution — authorized the design review, grading permit and the density bonus with two requested waivers (additional height to 49 feet and a fourth story). The council’s roll call was recorded as: Graham — yes; Lisa — yes; Brian (mayor) — yes; Harry — yes; Steve — yes.

Why the council and staff said it meets standards

Town staff and the town attorney explained that the proposal complies with the objective development standards in the Moraga Center Specific Plan and that, under state law (including the Housing Accountability Act and density‑bonus rules), housing projects that meet the written objective standards are…