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Soledad council adopts updated housing element and CEQA addendum to meet state RHNA obligations
Summary
Council approved two resolutions adopting the 2023/2031 housing element and an addendum to the 2005 general-plan EIR. The element commits the city to programs and sites to plan for 724 units over the next eight years, and staff will submit the adopted element to HCD for certification.
The Soledad City Council voted to adopt the city's updated housing element and a related CEQA addendum after a detailed staff presentation and council questioning about data sources and program implementation.
Housing Analyst Beatriz Tortillo told the council the housing element is "our guiding document for the housing production," explaining it is a state-required General Plan element that must be reviewed by the Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD). City staff said the element updates Soledad's plan to meet the Regional Housing Needs Allocation for the forthcoming planning cycle: a total of 724 units divided into 100 very-low, 65 low, 183 moderate and 376 above-moderate units.
Associate Planner Ariana and consultant Nicole of PlaceWorks walked council through outreach, pipeline projects, and a program list that includes 49 actions (13 new) focused on site identification, incentives for affordable development, pre-approved ADU plans and fair-housing implementation aligned with Assembly Bill 686 and the federal AFFH requirements.
Council members raised technical questions about market-data timing, the sample sizes used for median-rent calculations, the interplay between inclusionary units (e.g., Las Viviendas) and market prices, and the role of ADUs in meeting RHNA numbers. PlaceWorks noted some market-data tables are snapshots and are supplemented by American Community Survey figures; staff acknowledged requested minor text and citation cleanups.
The council first adopted Resolution No. 6,136 (findings supporting the CEQA addendum) and then Resolution No. 6,137 (adoption of the housing element with minor non-policy revisions); both measures passed on 4-0-1 recorded votes. Staff will submit the adopted housing element to HCD for final certification (staff estimated certification could occur in early October if no further changes are required).
