City Council upholds Planning Commission approval of Eden mixed‑use project over neighborhood appeal

The Chino City Council voted 4–1 on July 8 to deny an appeal of the Eden Mixed Use Development and uphold the Planning Commission’s May 21 approval of a mixed‑use project that combines residential units, retail and a self‑storage building.

The decision came after more than two hours of public comment and legal briefing. The project as modified includes 264 apartment units across the full site, 18,600 square feet of multi‑tenant retail, and a 132,438‑square‑foot self‑storage facility; the Planning Commission approved the project 6–0 in May after the applicant reduced unit counts and scaled down building massing.

Council members and staff framed the legal limits on local discretion under California housing law as central to the decision. Senior planner Kim Lee and the city attorney told the council that because the project qualifies as a “housing development project” — more than two‑thirds of the project’s floor area is residential — the Housing Accountability Act…