Commission sends Belvedere’s new housing plan for council approval

The third draft of Belvedere’s long-overdue housing plan is now headed to the City Council for review and approval, and its consultant may have found the magic bullet to win state certification by borrowing heavily from a single-family lot-split strategy it successfully deployed 18 months ago in Ross.

Local officials reviewed the 188-unit draft 2023-2031 housing element at a special Oct. 30 hearing of the Planning Commission’s “housing subcommittee,” which suggested only minor revisions be forwarded to the City Council for its review and approval, scheduled for Nov. 12. If approved, the city will send the draft to the state Nov. 14 for 60-day review, meaning Belvedere should have an answer by Jan. 13.

Belvedere’s SB 9 program is the most significant addition, making up 20%, or 36, of the potential new units. The law, which took effect statewide Jan. 1, 2022, intends to chip away at single-family zoning by allowing many homeowners to build two primary homes or a duplex on a property by right — checklist, staff-level approval with no public notice or hearings. If a lot’s greater than 2,400 square feet, it may qualify to be split into two parcels with two primary homes or a duplex on each, for four total units by right.

Oakland-based consultant Dyett & Bhatia says Belvedere has 368 more eligible SB 9 lots and that 32 of those are candidate sites based on lot size, access to the public right of way and specific underutilization characteristics — and rezoning to allow larger, taller SB 9 units, plus incentives for fifth and sixth-units if they’re restricted for moderate and lower incomes, could help spur their development.

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