Lake County planning commissioners spent the latter portion of the Oct. 1 meeting discussing Goal 4 of the draft housing strategy: protecting long-term affordability and preserving the rental stock. Commissioners and staff reviewed potential tools including acquisition/covenant programs, protections for manufactured-home parks, incentives for ADUs and multifamily, and code changes to speed review of affordable projects.

Why it matters: Commissioners said preserving existing rentals and creating pathways for new, rental-oriented housing is essential to maintain a year-round workforce and to prevent displacement. Several commissioners described statewide landlord-tenant law changes and longer eviction timelines as factors pushing small owner-operators out of the rental market.

Key discussion points:
- Preserve existing rentals and manufactured-home parks: Multiple commissioners urged tools to keep current rental units from being converted to condominiums or sold out of long-term rental use. One commissioner said the sale of an existing multifamily complex earlier in the county removed an important stock of long-term rentals.

- Covenants or acquisition programs: Commissioners supported exploring covenant-based protections and public-acquisition options (including land banking and public-private partnerships) so land can be conserved for long-term rental or workforce housing.

- Incentives rather than strict mandates: Commissioners stressed incentives (tax or fee relief, expedited permitting) are preferable to rigid mandates that could backfire. Commissioner Jason suggested market-linked incentives tied to recognized standards, noting that if a builder meets performance standards a longer-term property tax incentive could be considered.

- ADUs, tiny homes and targeted tiny-home communities: Commissioners said ADUs are a low-hanging fruit; code adjustments to allow ADU pathways (and to clarify when ADUs can be combined with other units) could help. Multiple speakers recommended allowing tiny-home communities or site-specific RV/tiny-home parks as targeted options rather than blanket countywide allowances.

- Expedited review and grants: Staff said the county is pursuing an expedited code amendment and a public hearing is scheduled Nov. 10 for an expedited-review path for projects that meet affordability benchmarks; the county recently obtained grant funding linked to housing commitments and staff suggested public-private partnerships and land-banking grants as tools to support multifamily.

Quotes and concerns: Heather (commissioner) described the effect of tenant-protection rules on small landlords and said, "we've had people give up their rentals for that," explaining how lengthened eviction timelines and lease-renewal rules can discourage owner-operators from continuing to provide long-term rental housing. Commissioners emphasized that protecting long-term rental stock and encouraging multifamily construction are complementary goals.

Where this leads: Commissioners asked staff to prioritize preserving existing rental stock, explore covenant/acquisition mechanisms, pursue incentives (including benchmarking successful, transferable models), and continue work on the Nov. 10 code amendment to streamline reviews for qualifying affordable projects.