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Cerritos rezones multiple sites to meet housing-element requirements; council limits scope at South/Bloomfield site
Summary
The council approved planning commission recommendations to rezone three housing-element sites to permit housing with site-specific Area Development Plans; a separate rezoning for the South/Bloomfield shopping center (ADP 20) passed first reading after staff added design standards to protect adjacent uses.
The Cerritos City Council moved to keep the city in compliance with state housing law by approving development and map amendments to allow housing as a permitted use at three sites identified in the 2021'2029 housing element.
Advanced Planning Manager Sabrina Chan told the council the changes (DCA 2025-1; GPA 2025-1; DMA 2025-1) would establish Area Development Plans (ADP 18, 19 and 21) and site-specific standards so existing commercial and industrial uses can remain while allowing housing in the future. Chan said the planning commission recommended approval by a 5-0 vote and staff emphasized that "tonight's action focuses on administrative procedure and no actual development is being proposed."
The council voted to approve the planning commission recommendation on Item 8A by a 5-0 vote.
Separately, staff presented a rezoning for a shopping-center property at the southwest corner of Bloomfield Avenue and South Street (Item 8B) after analyzing Assembly Bill 2011 (AB 2011), which can require ministerial approval for certain affordable housing projects on commercially zoned parcels. To pre-empt the potential outcomes under AB 2011 and to protect adjacent neighborhoods, staff proposed ADP 20 with site-specific standards addressing height, privacy, parking and landscaping and circulated a mitigated negative declaration under CEQA.
Planning staff estimated ADP 20 would allow about 107 units at the Bloomfield/South site under the proposed intensity standards (maximum density cited in the study). Staff said the ADP includes limits such as no balconies facing single-family yards and maximum heights to reduce privacy impacts.
Public input on Item 8B included a submitted petition in opposition (the city clerk noted an envelope stated 1,023 signatures) and written comments both supporting and opposing the rezoning. Planning staff said they held community meetings, revised draft regulations to incorporate feedback (for example restricting balconies that face adjacent single-family yards), and included those adjustments in the environmental analysis.
Council action: The council approved first reading for the Bloomfield/South rezoning and the accompanying CEQA mitigated negative declaration and related code and map amendments; the item will return for a second reading and adoption on January 12, 2026 with implementation beginning February 11, 2026.
Why it matters: The administrative rezoning is intended to keep the city compliant with state housing-law obligations while giving the council and staff local control over design and scale for sites that otherwise might be built under ministerial rules. The Bloomfield site drew the most neighborhood attention because of location and potential scale; staff and the council said ADP rules were tailored to reduce impacts.
What's next: 8A: Implementation/admin edits as required to meet HCD requirements; 8B: second reading/adoption scheduled January 12, 2026, implementation February 11, 2026. Staff will continue outreach with potential developers and the ABC Unified School District to coordinate anticipated enrollment impacts.
