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Developer files concept with state for workforce housing at OJ Juice site; council gave conceptual support
Summary
City staff said the OJ Juice site was sold and the new owner submitted a state grant application for a three-story, 50-unit workforce housing building with two commercial pads; the council passed a resolution of conceptual support July 2 but entitlement review and letters of intent for commercial tenants remain pending.
Staff told the EDA that the OJ Juice site has a new owner who submitted a concept and is pursuing state grant funding for a workforce housing project. "They have since come forward with the concept plan for the site," Dan said. He reported the developer's current submission to the state shows a three-story, 50-unit apartment building with two commercial pad sites amounting to roughly 6,000 square feet reserved for commercial use on the street-facing side.
Dan said the city council met July 2 and passed a resolution of conceptual support for the workforce housing element on the southern half of the site. He stressed the submission is a concept and not an entitlement: "This is not a done deal ... it still has to go through a full entitlement process," Dan said. He also noted state grant awards typically include a look-back and clawback period (five years in this case), meaning the developer must execute the project within the program's required time frame or be subject to recoupment provisions.
Members and residents pressed for more detail about the commercial component and its potential effect on existing local businesses. One EDA member said the earlier presentation left unclear how much of the overall project would be commercial; Dan acknowledged the developer's concept had changed from an earlier 64-unit, four-story plan and that the commercial layout remains a placeholder pending letters of intent from end users.
A resident told the board neighbors felt overlooked when the council offered conceptual support at the July 2 meeting: "They felt ignored because nobody asked a neighbor anything about it," the resident said. Dan responded that council action was conceptual and that public comment opportunities tied to the entitlement process and planning hearings would provide a more appropriate forum for detailed neighbor input.
Dan said the developer's Deed application is due August 1; the developer estimates roughly a 25% chance of receiving funding. If awarded, the project would then proceed through local permitting and entitlement steps including any required traffic study, environmental site work and neighborhood notice. Dan recommended the developer or owner attend an upcoming council meeting to answer questions about commercial tenants and site details.
Next steps: staff will ask the developer to appear at a council meeting if the developer requests a resolution of support and the EDA will await letters of intent from prospective commercial tenants and any state funding decision.
