Salinas council approves 88‑unit affordable housing project with on‑site childcare

The Salinas City Council voted unanimously June 16 to approve a planned development (PUD) amendment and related permits for a final phase that will add 88 residential units — 87 of them designated as affordable — and an on‑site childcare facility at the site identified as 200 Costantini (also referenced as 200 Pasadena). The council confirmed the Planning Commission’s May 20 recommendation and made the findings required under the staff report before moving to a final vote.

The project applicant, Milestone Housing Group, represented by Aaron Barger, told the council the project would deliver a mix of income levels (extremely low to low), with unit counts and bedroom mixes described to the council. Barger said the development provides 152 parking spaces (64 tandem) plus 16 spaces intended for daycare use and that federal housing vouchers and other financing tools underpin the pro forma. The prospective daycare operator said it expects to serve roughly 40–48 children with staggered drop‑off times to reduce peak congestion.

During more than an hour of council questions and public comment, councilmembers and residents repeatedly pressed the applicant and staff about parking supply, traffic and safety along nearby Costantini and adjacent streets, floodplain constraints and how the affordable units would be allocated. Staff and the applicant cited state density‑bonus rules and SB 2097 when explaining why the project is not required to provide the full parking count otherwise demanded by local code; staff and the city attorney also explained that state law limits the council’s authority to impose minimum parking in sites served by frequent transit.

Neighbors raised concerns about quality‑of‑life impacts including on‑street parking, traffic generation and a section of open space shorter than typical code requirements (staff described about 27,000 square feet provided versus a 44,000‑square‑foot standard); staff confirmed that the project seeks discretionary exemptions tied to state density‑bonus provisions. A carpenters union representative, Daniel Álvarez, told the council the developer’s contractors have a history of unpaid wages in other jurisdictions and asked the city to seek assurances that wages and contractor compliance would be enforced; the applicant agreed to meet with the union and the city said it would follow up. Several supporters — tenant organizers and housing advocates — urged the council to approve, saying Salinas needs more deeply affordable family housing and on‑site childcare.

Councilmember De La Rosa moved to approve the project (confirming the environmental finding cited by staff, approving the PUD/site plan review and a conditional‑use permit for the daycare); the motion was seconded by Councilmember Barrera and carried on a unanimous roll call vote. Staff said it will return to process ministerial permits and finalize required administrative site‑level review steps.

Next steps: staff will finalize administrative site plan review and the conditional‑use permit process and complete any ministerial approvals needed for building permits; councilmembers requested follow‑up on traffic mitigation, the pending contractor litigation document that had been circulated and ongoing monitoring of compliance with wage and hiring expectations.