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Council grants six‑month extension for The Villages at Main Street, asks for concrete benchmarks
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Summary
After months of repeated extensions and questions about developer progress, council approved a six‑month extension (to Oct. 21, 2026) for The Villages at Main Street conditional use permit, while requiring stronger benchmarks and urging permits and fees be pulled promptly.
The Livingston City Council voted to grant a six‑month extension for the conditional use permit and site plan approvals for The Villages at Main Street, a proposed 480‑unit market‑rate apartment project, while pressing the developer to show concrete steps or face no further extensions.
Planner Miguel Galvez reviewed the project history and staff’s recommendation to extend the permit to allow the developer to complete work with the Merced Irrigation District (MID). Galvez said the applicant had documented progress, including ordering pipe and entering into MID easements, and staff had received supporting receipts and agreements.
Council members pressed for benchmarks after a pattern of repeated extensions. One councilmember said the record showed multiple extensions and asked why the project hadn’t advanced earlier; staff and the applicant’s representative described coordination challenges with MID and noted the applicant had ordered roughly $500,000–$560,000 in pipe and paid deposits to a contractor.
The contractor’s representative said the critical remaining items were city approvals and permits; staff confirmed grading and encroachment permit applications were in process and explained those permits typically add life to a development application if issued. Council debated whether to grant 12 months or a shorter extension aligned with permit lifespans; the council ultimately voted to approve a six‑month extension to 10/21/2026 and requested a follow‑up showing permits pulled and evidence of construction activity.
"They've ordered pipes. They've paid for them…about $560,000," Miguel Galvez said when describing the applicant's documented expenditures. Councilmembers said the extension would be a final opportunity unless clear benchmarks—fees paid, permits issued, grading started—were met.
