Housing might become a little more available and parking a little sparser on Walnut Street in Newhall, if a new plan is approved as proposed.
A San Fernando Valley-based developer is looking to put 18 apartment units, all of them considered “low-income housing,” at the site of a 960-square-foot single-family home with a pool at 24828 Walnut St. in Newhall, according to an August application obtained by The Signal.
Ben Tabibian of Tabibian Development noted several recent housing laws in his application filed with the Santa Clarita Planning Division for his 14,130-square-foot lot.
It cites Assembly Bill 2011, which calls for a streamlined ministerial review process with no California Environmental Quality Act review if a project meets low-income standards; Senate Bill 6, which adds a government code permitting housing development projects, including both 100% residential and mixed-use projects with a minimum of 50% dedicated to residential use, without the need for rezoning; and SB 35.
Under SB 35, a developer can submit an application for a multifamily housing development, which satisfies specified planning objective standards, that is subject to a streamlined, ministerial approval process, as provided, and not subject to a conditional use permit, according to the state law.
SB 35 requires a local government to notify the development proponent in writing if the local government determines that the plans conflict with any of those objective standards by a specified time; otherwise, the project is deemed to comply with those standards, per the law.
Tabibian said he’s offering “close to 14” parking spaces in the plans he submitted to City Hall, which he said is more than what’s required, because he wants the complex more attractive to its prospective tenants.
“There’s a lot of competition in the building,” Tabibian said of the low-income housing market, “and we want to have parking (for tenants) to have a better choice, to find the better tenants.”
The state defines “affordable housing cost” for lower-income households in state law as “not more than 30% of gross household income with variations,” which varies by county and household size.
According to Apartments.com, the current average monthly rent price in Santa Clarita for a 685-square-foot apartment is about $2,200.
Tabibian said he is still waiting to hear back from the city on the status of the plans.
The application, which calls for three stories of new construction and the demolition of a one-bedroom home with a swimming pool, states that no parking is required to be provided, due to “incentives and waiver density bonus” available under state law.
A city Planning Division official indicated the project would be reviewed for whether the number of units exceeds the state law’s allowable density bonuses, which let a developer, under certain circumstances, exceed local zoning requirements in the interest of meeting the state’s identified housing need. The project would also be reviewed for whether it’s within the half-mile radius of the nearby Transit Center in Newhall, which is the requirement under state law for a project to avoid a requirement that it provides parking.
The neighborhood being proposed for the affordable-housing project is part of one that’s seen its share of strife in recent months. There have been more than a dozen shootings in the past year, particularly on Walnut Street, with the lion’s share being attributed to gang violence.
