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County moves forward with RFP to build workforce housing on county land at former Probation building
Summary
The Board authorized staff to issue an RFP to shortlisted developers to build workforce housing on county land at 117 E. Carrillo St. in Downtown Santa Barbara, asking staff to return with details on parking, local preference and impact fees; staff estimates roughly 60 units and anticipates ground‑breaking by 2028.
The Board authorized County staff to issue a request for proposals to shortlisted developers to build workforce housing on county‑owned land at the former Probation building, 117 East Carrillo Street in Downtown Santa Barbara.
Community Services Director Jesus Armas and housing staff described a two‑step procurement: an RFQ released in October produced 15 responses; county staff and consultant Brailsford & Dunlavy will shortlist and issue an RFP to qualified teams. Lucille Boss (Housing Program Manager) said the county will contribute the land under a long‑term ground lease rather than selling it, and that staff expect roughly 60 units in a 4‑story structure, with a planned ground‑breaking target of 2028.
Staff asked the Board for direction on three policy choices: (1) whether the project should voluntarily adhere to the county’s net‑zero policy for public buildings (effectively encouraging an all‑electric building), (2) tenant income targets — focus on low and moderate income households (up to 120% AMI) vs. allowing some 'missing middle' units (50–200% AMI), and (3) local preference structure and whether county employees should receive preference. Supervisors expressed a clear preference for prioritizing low and moderate income households while allowing RFP flexibility for mixed income approaches; staff were directed to return with concrete proposals for local preference, parking impacts for county employees and questions about impact fees and land valuation.
Public commenters included labor representatives urging local preference for county employees and advocates asking for deed‑restricted units and net‑zero design. The Board motioned to approve staff recommendation (issue the RFP to shortlisted respondents) and to direct staff to come back with analyses on parking, local preference legal structures and the land valuation that will be used in financial scoring.
What’s next: staff will finalize the RFP, return to the Board with recommended local preference structures, parking/employee‑parking analysis, impact fee treatment and a recommended lease/valuation approach prior to bringing candidate developer agreements back for approval.
