Loma Linda council approves 66‑unit Zaha Heritage Village with condition for second access

The Loma Linda City Council voted to approve the Zaha Heritage Village, a 66‑unit multifamily development along Barton Road, after a staff presentation and public comment about traffic impacts near a nearby elementary school.

Associate Planner Gabriel Rivera told the council the project consists of four three‑story buildings on a roughly 5.15‑acre infill site with unit sizes ranging from about 730 to 1,097 square feet and 155 on‑site parking spaces (the municipal code requires 145). Rivera said the design follows the Mission Historical Overlay District guidance, includes drought‑tolerant landscaping and open‑space courtyards, and that the historical commission and the planning commission recommended approval with a condition to convert a fire access gate on the west side into a resident ingress/egress point.

“Staff recommends that the city council find the project consistent with the general plan and adopt the certificate of appropriateness and precise plan of design for the proposed 66‑unit Zaha Heritage Village, subject to the attached conditions of approval,” Rivera said.

At the public hearing, resident Brianna Juden Pytel raised traffic and school‑drop‑off concerns, asking “what did the traffic report say?” City staff said a traffic study by the Gandini Group determined the project would meet Measure V requirements and maintain at least a level‑of‑service C at analyzed intersections, including Barton Road and California Street. Council members acknowledged the problem and noted that some traffic improvements would be longer‑term and contingent on property easements or other projects.

Council discussion focused on parking, guest spaces and the recommended second access. A council member asked whether guest parking and assigned garage/carport spaces would be sufficient; staff said every unit would have an assigned on‑site space and that the project provides ten more spaces than the minimum required. The council also confirmed that the recommended west access, originally fire‑only, would be converted to allow resident entry and egress as a condition of approval.

The council adopted the staff findings and approved the certificate of appropriateness and precise plan of design. The motion carried unanimously.

The project was approved with the conditions recorded in the staff report, including the west access modification recommended by the planning commission. The council set the matter for any required follow‑up under the standard conditions of approval.