Redding planning commission approves Peaks subdivision tentative map despite evacuation, habitat concerns

The City of Redding Planning Commission voted to approve a tentative subdivision map for the Peaks project, a proposed 122‑lot subdivision on a 114‑acre city‑owned parcel at 850 Quartz Hill Road, after a lengthy staff presentation, technical briefings and more than two hours of public comment. City staff and the project’s consultants told commissioners the map and mitigation conditions would allow construction of about 120 new single‑family home sites while limiting development on steep slopes and environmentally sensitive areas.

Senior planner David Schlegel, who presented the project, said the map sets aside roughly 65 acres for residential development but counts just 45 developable acres once slopes over 20 percent are excluded, which yields the proposed 120 home sites at the RS‑2.5 zoning density. “At 2 and a half units per acre, it gets you to around 120 units, which is what the project proposes,” Schlegel said. He told the commission the city acquired the property through a tax‑delinquency sale, secured disaster‑recovery grant funding after the 2018 Carr Fire, and is using the grant money for design, environmental clearance and infrastructure so homes can be sold to qualifying buyers.

Why it matters: The Peaks map is part of the city’s post‑fire housing recovery and includes an affordable‑housing component: grant conditions require that at least 51 percent of the residences be sold to income‑eligible buyers with assistance from a city “silent second” loan to reduce monthly payments. The project also sits in a very high fire hazard severity zone and in proximity to existing neighborhoods that experienced evacuation problems during the Carr Fire, so commissioners and residents pressed staff on evacuation modeling, road access and long‑term maintenance of fuel reduction zones.

Key project features and constraints

- Size and density: The site is 114 acres; about 65 acres are proposed for development and roughly 45 acres are used to calculate density after excluding slopes above 20 percent. The project proposes about 120 single‑family home lots (staff noted a minor report discrepancy that counted two…