Fortuna Planning Commission recommends City Council adopt zoning changes to align Title 17 with housing element and Mill District plan

The Fortuna City Planning Commission unanimously recommended that the Fortuna City Council adopt text and map amendments to Title 17 of the Fortuna Municipal Code to align zoning with the Mill District specific plan and the city housing element.

Planning staff told the commission the changes would bring the city’s zoning into compliance with state law and local planning documents. “The text amendments… will allow supportive housing, transitional housing, and community care facilities for individuals, 6 or fewer individuals by right,” said Michelle, planning staff, explaining the changes are intended to reflect state requirements and the housing element programs.

Why it matters: staff said the amendments are intended both to implement the housing element and to avoid creating large numbers of legal nonconforming single‑family homes in neighborhoods adjacent to the Mill District. For one area staff identified, roughly 57 of 79 parcels currently developed with single‑family dwellings would become nonconforming if the city simply rezoned them to the RM (multifamily) designation; that outcome could require conditional use permits to rebuild after casualty events and make financing and repairs more difficult.

What the amendments do: staff described two types of changes. First, text amendments update definitions and confirm that supportive housing, transitional housing and community care facilities for six or fewer people are residential uses treated like other dwellings where state law requires. Staff said qualifying supportive housing developments must set aside units for lower‑income households, typically under a 55‑year affordability covenant, include minimum numbers of permanent supportive units for the target population (including people who experienced homelessness) and provide on‑site supportive services.

Second, the zoning map amendments would replace several legacy Qualified Combining (Q) zones with a single Q zone applied to three geographic areas (Areas A, B and C). Staff said single‑family residences will remain principally permitted in the new Q zone while multifamily development that sets aside at least 20% of units as affordable to lower‑income households would be permitted by right in applicable locations to meet housing element site requirements. “If a single family residence burned down, they would be able to rebuild,” Michelle said, clarifying that rebuilding would require a building permit rather than a conditional use permit under the proposed Q zone.

CEQA and procedural steps: staff reported the supplemental environmental impact report certified earlier this year already covers Area A (Mill District) and recommended a general rule exemption for the text changes and the B/C map amendments because the general plan residential density would not change. Staff recommended the Planning Commission make findings of CEQA compliance and consistency with the general plan and Fortuna Municipal Code, then forward a recommendation to the City Council.

Public comment and questions: resident Myrna Ferrer said she came to learn whether the new zoning would allow multifamily or single‑family dwellings in her neighborhood; she expressed appreciation for staff outreach. Commissioners asked about design review and permitting in commercial thoroughfare zones and about school impacts; staff said market‑rate multifamily in commercial thoroughfare would generally require design review and a conditional use permit unless it met objective design standards and that developers pay fees that support school facilities.

Vote and next steps: Commissioner motioned to adopt Resolution PD-2025-3137 recommending the City Council adopt the Title 17 amendments; the commission took a roll call and approved the resolution unanimously. The Planning Commission’s recommendation advances the amendments to the City Council for further hearings and final action with additional public noticing and CEQA steps where required.