Residents populating Goleta's council chambers on Tuesday night heard the planning director, the councilmembers, and the mayor emphasize that the Housing Element cake ain't baked until it's pulled out of the oven, or in this case, that rezoned parcels do not turn into building projects until the developer submits an application for permits — which will occur at a later date with opportunities for the public to make their case. Nonetheless, many stayed through the five-hour meeting to make it clear that rezoned parcels at Kenwood Village, Colusa Avenue, and Dara Road would not become high-density apartments without a fight.
Traffic congestion, safety, neighborhood compatibility, and parking were all raised as significant issues at each location. To the question of the density of apartments being zoned amid single-family homes, Planning Director Peter Imhof explained that the state used density as a proxy for lower-income units; the city must hold 1,837 more homes by 2031, approximately 1,000 of which must be very-low- or low-income. Imhof then described what the city anticipated would actually occur over the eight-year lifetime of this cycle's Housing Element.
"The city doesn't build the housing, but we do have to show the state that we are on pace at all levels of affordability," Imhof said. "The state doesn't care where the units are delivered," he said, in an attempt to reassure the audience. "The Yardi project will provide a whole bunch of other housing at affordable levels. We can report that; we can count that."