Council approves 232‑unit Del Norte housing project with 1.45‑acre park dedication after heavy neighborhood pushback

The West Covina City Council voted on June 16 to approve a 232‑unit housing development on the former Del Norte school site at 1501 West Del Norte Street, adopting the project’s general plan amendment, zone change, precise plan, tentative tract map and a mitigated negative declaration under the California Environmental Quality Act.

The developer, Meritage Homes, presented a revised plan that reduced density from an earlier 282‑unit proposal, eliminated four‑story stack flats and agreed to dedicate 1.45 acres of land for park use. Louisa, Meritage’s representative, told the council that the redesign "reduced the total unit count by 50 homes, bringing the density below 20 units to the acre," and that the company had added design changes after three rounds of community outreach.

Neighbors, parents and Little League volunteers pressed the council for a larger, regulation‑size field suitable for older youth. West Covina National Little League leaders said the league serves players up to age 14 and that the proposed dedication would not meet needs for older divisions. "Our concern is that the field of that size would not meet the needs of our entire league," said Andrea Hernandez, a Little League board member and speaker during public comment.

Council members negotiated several conditions before final approval. Those conditions included increasing Meritage’s commitment to the city’s first‑time homebuyer assistance program (the council asked Meritage to raise the contribution to $25,000 per eligible unit for up to 10% of the project), requiring enhanced elevations and design treatments at the park edge, and accepting a capped $250,000 developer contribution to cover grading, irrigation and sod to improve the dedicated ballfield area prior to dedication. City staff estimated the cost to bring the field to a playable condition at roughly $250,000–$350,000; Meritage representatives said they would work with the city to apply park fees and developer funds to needed improvements.

Planning staff and the applicant also described transportation mitigations. The project will extend Del Norte Street through the site to Sunset Avenue, creating roughly 11 new parallel spaces on the new segment and a dedicated left‑turn pocket off Sunset expected to divert a share of project traffic. Staff said the project provides 526 parking spaces on site—about 2.27 spaces per unit—plus driveway parking on the single‑family lots. Meritage noted the total provided meets or exceeds the municipal code when driveway spaces are included.

The council adopted the entitlements in a series of roll‑call votes. Final motions passed with 4–1 tallies on the key approvals; Councilmember Gutierrez voted no on multiple motions citing ongoing resident concerns about parking and field size. The council directed staff to return with documentation of conditions and to monitor implementation of the outdoor amenities and traffic measures.

The project is now entitled to proceed to the permitting and final map stages; the developer said it intends to work with the city to refine design details and schedule park improvements prior to dedication. The council’s approval included a requirement that any street signs or circulation changes be addressed before enforcement actions tied to the project timeframe are implemented.