Upland council adopts rezoning changes to pursue state housing certification, narrows density for one contentious site

The Upland City Council on Monday approved a suite of rezoning and Municipal Code changes intended to secure final state certification of the city’s sixth‑cycle housing element and add zoning capacity for nearly 5,700 state-assigned units. Council members voted unanimously to adopt the zone change and specific-plan amendments after making a targeted change to lower the maximum density on one parcel that prompted extensive public opposition.

The package before the council implements zoning actions the city had previously included in its 2024 housing element and that the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) required to obtain full certification. “Tonight’s action does not result in any construction or any project approvals. It’s only for the underlying zones,” Joshua Winter, the city’s senior planner and project planner, told the council during the presentation.

City staff and consultants said the rezoning program combines several strategies: creation of a new RM-40 multifamily zoning district (40 dwelling units per acre), a transit overlay zone near the Montclair Transit Station that allows higher densities on assembled parcels, raising allowed densities in the Business‑Residential Mixed Use (BRMU) zone from 20 to 30 dwelling units per acre in selected areas, targeted upzones from RM‑20 to RM‑30 at specific sites, and an ADU bonus program that lets lots larger than 15,000 square feet add a second detached accessory…