Sentinel staff report–
Citrus Heights planning commissioners on Wednesday will hold a public hearing and take up consideration of a 47-unit low-income housing project proposed on Sunrise Blvd., which has drawn a mixed response from residents.
The project, called Sunrise Pointe, is proposed at the old Abel’s Christmas Tree lot at 7424 Sunrise Blvd. and seeks to provide permanent housing and on-site supportive services for those who are homeless or at risk of becoming homeless, those with psychiatric disabilities, and those with very low-income levels of no more than 45 percent of the median income of the area.
See full Dec. 12, 2018 agenda packet: click here.
According to documents included in the Planning Commission’s Dec. 12 agenda packet, plans call for two and three story buildings with a variety of one, two and three-bedroom units on a 2.35-acre lot. Eighteen of the units would be “set aside for eligible households in which at least one adult household member is living with a psychiatric disability,” according to a letter included in the packet from TLCS, the Sacramento-based nonprofit that has proposed the project along with developer Jamboree Housing Corporation.
As a supportive housing project, TLCS says the site would have a full-time manager who would live in one of the units, as well as a part-time staff member to help provide supportive services like after-school programs for tenants with children, connecting residents with employment services and working together with outside service providers who may be helping with substance abuse counseling or providing senior services like Meals on Wheels.
The proposal calls for 11 one-bedroom units, 24 tw0-bedroom units, and 12 three-bedroom units, ranging from 622-square-feet to 1,050-square-feet in size. The layout features two main apartment buildings, a total of 99 parking spaces primarily along the exterior perimeter, a small dog park, an outdoor barbecue and play structure in the middle, and a half-court for basketball. A six-foot masonry wall would be constructed along boundaries shared with commercial properties and an eight-foot wall along boundaries with adjacent homes.
The proposed site is bordered by several businesses and homes on three sides, drawing concern from several residents — including one neighbor who objected to the project and told planning division staff she had made the decision to sell her home.
“I just can’t imagine sitting in our beautiful backyard and listening to construction for probably a year or so, nor do I want to live with this type of development behind my home,” she wrote in a letter dated Dec. 5, which was included in the Planning Commission agenda packet. She also previously submitted a letter to the city on Oct. 31, stating concerns about her home potentially losing value, increased noise, and the proposal only calling for one on-site manager.
As previously reported on The Sentinel, another neighbor, Stan Munoz, spoke up in support of the proposal at a recent neighborhood meeting with the project’s developer and said the existing vacant lot “looks like hell” and isn’t improving anyone’s property values. He also said he had visited two other TLCS locations and described them as “well-managed” facilities that appeared to be improving surrounding property values.
The project is billed by TLCS as a “permanent affordable housing project” where residents will be required to contribute 30 percent of their income to rent, according to the company’s executive director, Erin Johansen. Her organization currently manages six supportive housing facilities in the region.
The proposed buildings are set back at least 60 feet from adjacent properties, with the three-story building situated furthest from nearby homes in order to “reduce the view angle to preserve the privacy of neighboring properties.” To further buffer between adjacent properties, the proposal calls for a 10-foot landscape buffer around the interior property line and also features drive aisles and parking around the perimeter so that buildings are situated in the middle and front portion of the property.
See prior story for image of proposed housing, along with additional information: Low-income supportive housing for homeless proposed in Citrus Heights
In a letter dated Dec. 4, the developer requested a “concession” to reduce parking setback requirements to 10 feet in order to allow for parking within the current 20 to 25-foot setback zones on the rear and sides of the property in order to allow for sufficient parking. The letter states that without the concession, the project would be “financially infeasible to build or operate,” due to subsequent loss of funding from the project needing to be reduced to 40 units to meet existing parking requirements.
Planning division staff said in a report that “granting of one concession to allow parking within a required setback is allowed by the Zoning Code.”
The Planning Commission hearing will be held on Dec. 12, 2018 at 7 p.m. at city hall and will be followed by another public hearing before the full City Council, tentatively slated for January. If approved, the developer estimates breaking ground in 2020 at the earliest, with 12-14 months to complete construction.
Want to share your thoughts on the proposed housing? Submit a letter to the editor or opinion column for publication: Click here
