Etna City Zoning Code

An applicant for a "housing development" as defined in State Density Bonus Law shall be eligible for a density bonus and other regulatory benefits that are provided by State Density Bonus Law when the applicant seeks and agrees to provide housing as specified in Government Code Sections 65915(b), (c), (f), (g), (h) and (v), or in Government Code Section 65195.5, or successor provisions. The density bonus calculations shall be made in accordance with State Density Bonus Law.

The granting of a density bonus, incentive, or concession, pursuant to this chapter, shall not be interpreted, in and of itself, to require a general plan amendment, development code amendment, zone change, other discretionary approval, or the waiver of a city ordinance or provisions of a city ordinance unrelated to development standards.

All requests for density bonuses, incentives, parking reductions, and waivers for a housing development shall be filed with and on a form provided by the city clerk, or their designee, concurrently with the filing of the planning application for the first discretionary or ministerial permit required for the housing development, whichever permit is earliest. The applicant shall be informed whether the application is complete consistent with Government Code Section 65943.

The application shall include the required fee and the following minimum information:

All requests under State Density Bonus Law shall be part of the planning application and shall be applied for, reviewed, and acted upon concurrently with the planning application by the city council, within the timelines prescribed by California Government Code Section 65950 et seq. or other statute.

To ensure that an application for a housing development conforms with the provisions of State Density Bonus Law, the staff report presented to the city council shall state whether the application conforms to the following requirements of State Density Bonus Law, as applicable:

The city council shall grant an incentive requested by the applicant unless it makes a written finding, based upon substantial evidence, of any of the following:

The city council shall grant the waiver of development standards requested by the applicant unless it makes a written finding, based upon substantial evidence, of any of the following:

If a childcare center complies with the requirements of Government Code Section 65915(h), the city council may deny a density bonus or incentive that is based on the provision of childcare facilities only if it makes a written finding, based on substantial evidence, that the city already has adequate childcare facilities.

A request for minor modification of an approved density bonus housing plan may be granted by the city clerk, or their designee, if the modification substantially complies with the original density bonus housing plan and conditions of approval. Other modifications to the density bonus housing plan shall be processed in the same manner as the original plan.

If a density bonus, incentive, parking reduction, or waiver is approved pursuant to this chapter, the applicant shall enter into a binding affordable housing agreement or restrictive covenant, as described below, with the city, which sets forth the conditions and guidelines to be met in the implementation of State Density Bonus Law and that ensures compliance with all of the provisions of this chapter. The agreement will also establish specific compliance standards and remedies available to the city upon failure by the applicant to comply with State Density Bonus Law, this chapter, or the affordable housing agreement.

For rental projects, the applicant shall enter into an affordable housing agreement with the city, running with the land, in a form approved by the city attorney, to be executed by the city clerk, or their designee. The agreement shall require the continued affordability of all rental units that qualified the applicant for the receipt of the density bonus, incentive, waiver, or parking reduction for a minimum of 55 years or a longer period of time if required by the construction or mortgage financing assistance program, mortgage insurance program, or rental subsidy program; shall identify the type, size and location of each affordable unit; shall specify the eligible occupants; shall specify phasing of the affordable units in relation to the market-rate units; and shall contain other relevant provisions approved by the city attorney. Rents for the lower income density bonus units shall be set at an affordable rent as defined in State Density Bonus Law.

For for-sale projects, the applicant shall enter into an affordable housing agreement with the city, running with the land, in a form approved by the city attorney, to be executed by the city clerk, or their designee. The affordable housing agreement shall require that the initial purchasers of those for-sale units that qualified the applicant for the receipt of the density bonus, incentive, waiver, or parking reduction are persons and families of lower or moderate income, as applicable, or if any for-sale unit is not purchased by an income-qualified household within 180 days after the issuance of the certificate of occupancy, then the unit(s) must be sold pursuant to a contract that satisfies the requirements of Revenue and Taxation Code Section 402.1(a)(10) to a qualified non-profit housing corporation as defined in State Density Bonus Law and that the units are offered at an affordable housing cost, as that cost is defined in Health and Safety Code Section 50052.5; and shall contain other relevant provisions approved by the city attorney. The city shall enforce an equity sharing agreement consistent with State Density Bonus Law unless it is in conflict with the requirements of another public funding source or law.

Where a density bonus, waiver or parking reduction is provided for a market-rate senior housing development, the applicant shall enter into a restrictive covenant with the city, running with the land, in a form approved by the city attorney, to be executed by the city clerk, or their designee, to require the housing development to be operated as "housing for older persons" consistent with state and federal fair housing laws.

The executed affordable housing agreement shall be recorded against the housing development prior to final or parcel map approval, or, where a map is not being processed, prior to issuance of building permits for the housing development, whichever is earliest. The affordable housing agreement shall be binding on all future owners and successors in interest.

In determining the total number of units to be granted, each component of any density calculation, including base density and bonus density, resulting in fractional units shall be separately rounded up to the next whole number.

When calculating the number of affordable units needed to qualify for a given density bonus, any fractions of affordable dwelling units shall be rounded up to the next whole number.

Except where a housing development is eligible for an additional bonus pursuant to Government Code Section 65915(v), each housing development is entitled to only one density bonus. If a housing development qualifies for a density bonus under more than one category, the applicant shall identify the category under which the density bonus is requested to be granted.

In determining the number of affordable units required to qualify a housing development for a density bonus pursuant to State Density Bonus Law, units added by a density bonus are not included in the calculations. Any on-site units that satisfy inclusionary housing requirements adopted by the city and which are required to be constructed concurrently with the housing development may qualify the housing development for a density bonus if those units meet the requirements of State Density Bonus Law. Payment of fees in lieu of providing affordable units does not qualify a housing development for a density bonus.

The applicant may elect to accept a lesser percentage of density bonus than the housing development is entitled to, or no density bonus, but no reduction will be permitted in the percentages of affordable units required by State Density Bonus Law. Regardless of the number of affordable units, no housing development shall be entitled to a density bonus greater than what is authorized under State Density Bonus Law.

Nothing in this chapter requires the provision of direct financial incentives from the city for the housing development, including, but not limited to, the provision of financial subsidies, publicly owned land, fee waivers, or waiver of dedication requirements. The city, at its sole discretion, may choose to provide such direct financial incentives.

Building permits and final inspections or certificates of occupancy shall be issued concurrently for the market rate units and for any affordable units that qualified the project for a density bonus, incentive, waiver, or parking reduction, so that the affordable units comprise the required percentage of total units.

Affordable units shall be comparable in exterior appearance and overall quality of construction to market rate units in the same housing development. Interior finishes and amenities may differ from those provided in the market rate units, but neither the workmanship nor the products may be of substandard or inferior quality as determined by the city.

To comply with fair housing laws, the affordable units shall contain the same proportional mix of bedroom sizes as the market-rate units. In mixed-income buildings, the occupants of the affordable units shall have the same access to the common entrances and to the common areas, parking, and amenities of the project as the occupants of the market-rate housing units, and the affordable units shall be located throughout the building and not isolated on one floor or to an area on a specific floor.

The following definitions shall apply to this section:

When an applicant proposes to construct a commercial development and has entered into a partnered housing agreement approved by the city, the city shall grant a commercial development bonus mutually agreed upon by the developer and the city. The commercial development bonus shall not include a reduction or waiver in fees imposed on the commercial development to provide for affordable housing.

The partnered housing agreement shall include all of the following provisions:

An approved partnered housing agreement shall be described in the Housing Element annual report as required by Government Code Section 65915.7(k).