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Planning commission recommends zoning code updates to implement SB 9 and other state housing laws
Summary
The commission voted 9–0 to recommend a broad zoning code amendment to align Title 19 and Title 20 with recent state housing legislation (SB 9, AB 1061, SB 1211 among others), update objective SB 9 design standards, and add ministerial processes for certain housing maps and ADU allowances.
The Planning Commission recommended that City Council adopt extensive updates to San Jose’s zoning code to conform Title 19 and Title 20 to multiple recent state housing laws and to refine objective design standards for ministerial housing approvals.
Project manager Rena Horia and colleagues outlined changes intended to facilitate objective, ministerial SB 9 lot splits and two-unit developments, including clarifications on access corridors (pedestrian access widths), adjustments to floor-area-ratio and lot-coverage calculations to improve feasibility of new units, removal of a garage-frontage requirement, and special provisions for historic resources in the city’s 12 historic districts. Staff said an increased FAR cap (analysis example cited 65% for some SB 9-type projects) combined with a lot-coverage standard would enable units to be built to four-foot setbacks without eliminating yard space.
Staff also explained conformity with additional state mandates: AB 1061 (extending SB 9 to certain historic properties), SB 1211 (ADU allowances), SB 684 (streamlined housing on vacant single-family lots), and other updates. Officials noted ministerial approval chapters would be added to Title 20 and that some previously discretionary processes (for example, use permits for larger group homes) must be adjusted to match state law.
Public commenters from the Climate Advisory Commission and private developers supported measures such as setback relief for heat-pump installations and allowances for attached ADUs; developers praised staff outreach and follow-up on parcelization and ministerial map processes.
After commissioner questions on the interplay of state mandates and local code text, the commission voted 9–0 to recommend the zoning code amendments and associated technical updates to City Council.
