What should housing look like in Modesto? The city wants community input, feedback
Modesto residents will be able to provide feedback on potential development sites at the city’s next housing plan workshop.
The Dec. 15 meeting, which will be held in council chambers as well as live-streamed, is the second in a series of workshops where the public can provide feedback on the city’s housing plan.
The plan focuses on how and where the city will develop housing and will inform the city’s long-term planning documents: the general plan and its housing element. Using the plan, the city will analyze existing housing to determine where new homes can be constructed and what types would benefit each area. The plan is funded by a California SB2 planning grant, which assists cities in developing housing and alleviating the effects of the statewide housing shortage.
The plan’s framework is being developed by Opticos Design Inc. in conjunction with city staff. The firm previously worked on Modesto’s downtown master plan.
Opticos and the city held their first housing plan workshop in October, at which they presented the broad strokes of the plan’s framework. Mitali Ganguly, a project manager at Opticos, said in October that the firm’s 11-month process will ensure they produce “a comprehensive report” to inform the city’s general plan and housing element.
In addition to the Dec. 15 workshop, the city will hold two more workshops to present stages of the plan. Zoning and policy recommendations are slated to be completed in January, followed by a draft housing plan in March or April.
Opportunity zones to set examples
City planning manager Steve Mitchell told The Bee the upcoming meeting will focus on the presentation of so-called opportunity zones. Opticos, in conjunction with city staff, has drawn up potential development plans for different types of lots across the city — from residential to mixed use to empty retail corridors.
By showing what kind of housing could be built where, the firm hopes to introduce a variety of different housing options and show alternatives to traditional single-family and apartment-style housing. This kind of “low-intensity multifamily housing” includes duplexes and triplexes, Mitchell said.
Opticos has worked with developers on these kinds of projects in the past, he added, and it brings in development expertise that Modesto doesn’t have locally.
In addition to the plans, Mitchell said Opticos staff is also working on a “feasibility analysis” to show what it would take to develop on each type of lot and lay out potential challenges.
The plan also will include recommendations for how the city can remove barriers to housing development in Modesto, by streamlining processes or changing fees, among other steps. Mitchell said the hope is that the housing plan “is going to make it easier for (developers) to do this kind of housing, and at the same time, hopefully, through this plan, inspire them to do this kind of housing.”
“They bring that perspective of what it takes, both in terms of maybe some changes that we need to make to our regulations, and also what it takes on the private side to actually develop (this kind of housing),” he added.
As the plan moves into its draft stages, Mitchell said it will help inform the city’s general plan update.
The policy and development updates that emerge from the housing plan will influence how the city approaches its retail areas and downtown core, opening up possibilities for mixed-use development, rezoning and new, creative ways of increasing housing stock.
“This housing plan will help inform our general plan and even rethinking some of our neighborhoods, perhaps ways in which we can get more housing in some of our neighborhoods,” he said.
The Dec. 15 housing plan workshop will be held from 5:30 to 7:30 p.m. in the City Council chambers, 1010 10th St., and via Zoom.
This story was produced with financial support from the Stanislaus Community Foundation, along with the GroundTruth Project’s Report for America initiative. The Modesto Bee maintains full editorial control of this work.
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