Ojai Planning Commission debates objective design standards for affordable multifamily housing; parking and local control emerge as flashpoints

Ojai Planning Commission members spent an extended portion of their June 18 meeting reviewing a draft of objective design standards intended to create a ministerial (by‑right) approval pathway for qualifying affordable multifamily and mixed‑use developments.

The standards were developed to comply with state requirements tied to the city’s housing element (program 15) and to give developers clear, numerically measurable design rules so projects that meet those rules can be approved without discretionary subjective review. Planning staff presented the draft as a “toolkit” of objective measures — for example, minimum driveway widths, tree‑size requirements, long‑term bicycle parking and building massing rules — and asked commissioners for feedback on several topics where the staff proposed thresholds or options.

Why it matters: state housing law and HCD (California Department of Housing and Community Development) guidance require objective design standards for projects seeking ministerial review to accelerate housing that meets specific affordability or programmatic criteria. If adopted, the standards would channel qualifying projects into a faster approval track, reducing discretionary review and public…