Staff warns SB 79 could reshape zoning near transit; Campbell council to consider transit‑oriented plan

Daniel, acting community development director, briefed the planning commission on SB 79 and its implications for Campbell, saying the law raises allowable densities around light‑rail and street‑rail stations and will take effect July 1 unless altered. Staff estimated the theoretical zoning capacity under SB 79 could be on the order of tens of thousands of units (staff used a ballpark figure of roughly 45,000 as a maximum capacity across affected parcels) because the statute's mapping rules can capture entire parcels if a half‑mile radius touches them.

Daniel told commissioners that about half the city could fall within the law's scope because of the way the half‑mile mapping is applied and that the city must decide whether to prepare a Transit‑Oriented Development (TOD) alternative plan to reallocate or shift density to areas more suitable for growth, or to pursue interim exclusions for properties the city wants to protect (for example, locally designated historic sites). Preparing a TOD alternative plan would require substantial staff time and funding and would also require HCD review and sign‑off, he said.

Commissioners asked about the practical effects and whether the city could 'push back' on state mapping; staff said the law allows limited mechanisms (exclusions, alternative plan) but that many details remain ambiguous and that the city is already performing internal mapping ahead of HCD guidance. Staff scheduled a March 3 study session with the city council to seek direction on whether to proceed with an alternative plan and what properties to exclude.

What happens next: the council study session on March 3 will guide whether the city pursues a TOD alternative plan or other measures; staff emphasized this will be a fast and complicated process with potential consequences for the city's land‑use map.