Half Moon Bay Planning Commission urges City Council to adopt housing element, asks council to consider Measure D revision before final adoption

The Half Moon Bay Planning Commission on Oct. 28 recommended that the City Council adopt a Mitigated Negative Declaration and submit the city's draft 2023-2031 housing element to the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) for review, while asking Council to consider whether to revise Program 6-8 (the Measure D language) prior to adoption.

Director Lehi summarized changes HCD asked for that are captured in Attachment 5 of the staff packet and highlighted two main items: a near-term code amendment to allow different allocation treatment for accessory dwelling units (ADUs and JADUs) including rollovers of unused allocations, and a ballot measure (earliest possible: 2028) to revise Measure D to designate a single downtown town-center area and to exempt ADUs from residential dwelling unit allocation limits. "We have a mitigated neg dec. The mitigation is about biological resources," Lehi said. "HCD staff told us they are ready to certify the housing element with these changes."

Commissioners spent the bulk of deliberations on whether a planning commission recommendation should instruct City Council to place a ballot measure before voters. "It is in fact your job as the planning commission to make recommendations to city council," Lehi told commissioners during clarifying questions, while multiple commissioners said they were uncomfortable taking an overtly political stance. Vice Chair Gorn said the commission was reluctant to endorse a ballot initiative language but that the commission could ask Council to "consider" the question; Gorn added that he felt pressure from the state and described the situation bluntly: "I feel like the state is kind of like being a little bit of a bully here."

After discussing three staff-drafted options for resolution language (ranging from asking Council to consider revising Program 6-8 to removing Program 6-8 from the element for HCD review), Commissioner Del ***** moved the recommended resolution that the commission "recommend the City Council adopt the MND and the housing element, but that prior to adoption the City Council consider whether to revise Program 6-8 to omit the HCD requirement that a measure be placed on the ballot in 2028 to revise Measure D." The motion was seconded and carried on roll call; the transcript records the motion as "carried" with no recorded opposing votes.

Commissioners also requested that staff prepare a cover letter noting changes in local economic and demographic conditions since earlier drafts (for example, recent shifts in population growth and housing costs) so the Council and HCD would receive context about more recent data. Staff said it could add clarifying language in a cover letter and, where possible, attach public correspondence (such as letters referenced at prior Council hearings) to provide balance on opportunity-site descriptions.

What happens next: the Planning Commission's recommendation will go to City Council for decision. If Council pursues a ballot measure, staff said the earliest schedule for placing a Measure D revision before voters would be 2028 and would include a public communications process. Lehi cautioned commissioners that without an approved housing element the city risks losing eligibility for some state and federal grants: "By not having a housing element, we are not eligible for quite a few grant opportunities," she said.

The commission's action was procedural: it approved the MND and recommended the housing element for Council review, while expressly asking Council to consider Program 6-8 language prior to final adoption.