Half Moon Bay Planning Commission Meeting: April 24, 2024 – 555 Kelly Ave Affordable Senior Farmworker Housing Project Hearing
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Half Moon Bay Planning Commission Meeting: April 24, 2024 – 555 Kelly Ave Affordable Senior Farmworker Housing Project Hearing
The Half Moon Bay Planning Commission met on April 24, 2024 (the meeting was convened on April 23, 2024 and continued past midnight) to conduct a public hearing on a Coastal Development Permit and Architectural Review for a 40-unit affordable senior farmworker housing project at 555 Kelly Avenue. The proposed five-story building includes a 2,658-square-foot Farmworker Resource Center operated by ALAS, an 18-space parking garage, and reconfigured parking for the adjacent Ted Adcock Community Center. After extensive public testimony and commissioner deliberation, the commission voted to continue the hearing to April 30, 2024.
Consent Calendar
- Approval of Minutes: The commission approved the draft minutes from March 26, 2024 and April 9, 2024 by unanimous vote.
Public Comments & Testimony
- Supporting Testimony: Over 40 speakers, including farm workers, ALAS staff, Mercy Housing representatives, Faith in Action members, and community residents, expressed strong support for the project. Key points: farm workers are essential and deserve dignified housing; the project is a lifeline, not just a resource center; the site is walkable and near services; the building height is appropriate given setbacks; and the parking analysis shows minimal off-site impact. Several farm workers testified in Spanish about their need for stable, affordable housing.
- Opposing Testimony: Approximately 10 speakers opposed the project on grounds of excessive height (five stories, 59.9 feet), insufficient parking, and incompatibility with the historic downtown. Concerns included traffic congestion, safety for children at the nearby Boys & Girls Club, and precedent for future development. Some suggested alternative sites, such as the old Bay City Nursery property.
- Neutral/Concerned Comments: The Boys & Girls Club executive director requested coordination between the city and school district to ensure safe drop-off/pickup for youth. A few speakers asked for more time to study the project’s details.
Discussion Items
- Project Presentation: City Manager Matthew Tidister provided background on the housing need, citing 2016 and 2019 county studies on farm worker housing and health. Project Planner Kristi Bascom explained the entitlement applications, zoning, state density bonus law (allowing waivers for height, parking, density, setback, and open space), and the staff recommendation for approval with an infill CEQA exemption (Class 32). Mercy Housing and ALAS presented the project design, community outreach, and financial commitments, emphasizing that the resource center would primarily serve on-site residents.
- Traffic and Parking Analysis: Erin Vaca from DKS Transportation Consultants presented the parking study, concluding that the 18 on-site garage spaces plus reconfigured public parking (25 spaces) would meet projected demand from residents, staff, and visitors. The analysis used ITE land use code 252 for senior housing and also referenced local project ratios. Commissioners questioned the scope of the study, whether it accounted for special events, peak periods, and cumulative impacts from future developments. The applicant noted that most residents would not drive, and ALAS staff would coordinate events to avoid conflicts.
- Legal and Policy Framework: City Attorney Jessica King clarified that under state density bonus law, the commission cannot require additional parking, height, or density beyond what the project proposes. The main test is consistency with the Local Coastal Plan (LCP) and Coastal Act. Commissioners expressed concern about the relationship between the LCP, the Downtown Specific Plan, and the workforce housing overlay. Commissioner Hernandez raised the risk of unlocking unlimited development in the historic downtown.
- Commission Deliberation: Commissioners discussed the need for clear evidence to make findings, particularly regarding vehicle miles traveled (VMT) under CEQA, consistency with LCP policies, and the scope of the traffic study. Given the lateness (past 11:30 PM), the commission agreed to continue the hearing to April 30, 2024 to allow staff to provide additional analysis and respond to commissioner questions.
Key Outcomes
- Motion to Continue: Commissioner Ruddock moved to continue the public hearing to April 30, 2024; Vice Chair Joanes seconded. The motion passed unanimously (5-0).
- Next Steps: Staff will provide additional information on the parking study data sheets, VMT analysis, LCP consistency (including the Downtown Specific Plan and workforce overlay), and possible design alternatives. The commission will reconvene on April 30, 2024 at 7:00 PM to continue deliberations and potentially vote on the project.
Meeting Transcript
Welcome to the City of Half Moon Bay Planning Commission meeting of Tuesday, April 23rd, 2024. Now we're on. Okay, good evening and welcome to tonight's meeting of the Happen Bay Planning Commission of March 23rd, 2024. We um just to let you know that on a side note from my spiel here that we are waiting for more trends uh interpretation uh devices, so just hang tight and we will have more for you shortly. Our meeting tonight is being broadcast live on Pacific Coast TV's website and on the local Channel 27 station. We also have Spanish interpretation and for this meeting. A brief, a few brief public uh comment etiquette uh um items to review for those of us that are in person and for those that are on the Zoom platform this evening. The Planning Commission chair will open up the the meeting to the general public comment section of the agenda at that time. Community members are welcome to speak on any items that are not listed on this evening's agenda for those items that are listed on this evening's agenda during that time the item being discussed. The chair will designate a specific time for public comment for those and those that want to speak have that opportunity. Three minutes usually are given at the time of public comment or another time may be determined, but it is at the discretion of the chair. We will begin with in-person comments first, then move to those attendees that are on Zoom. Those wanting to speak in person, I will recognize you with a green car speaker card. I will not recognize, but the chair will recognize you. There's also the option on Zoom with a virtual uh icon of raising your hand. Please make sure to start when you start to speak, speak clearly and state your name for the record. If you are dialing by a telephone, which I do see this evening, please push star six to raise and unraise your hand and star nine to mute and unmute. Um for this uh obviously this is a large group tonight this evening, so um to be respectful to everyone. We want to make sure that everyone does have the opportunity that wants to speak, speak. But if you've if your voice has been heard by others or the comments have been heard and they're redundant, please be respectful of the time that we have this evening. And for those of us that you can say I agree with and um just add new stuff. We appreciate that. Um for correspondence. Um there has been a couple of um or lots of public comment that have come in. We released and posted public comment onto our website, it's at the very bottom of the agenda online, and we also all comments that did come into the city were sent to the planning commission. So all of you have received it via email. Um at this time I would just like to remind all of us to make sure that we speak directly into the mics so that not only each other here up here can hear, but the public can hear and those those of us that are those that are on TV. I thank you everyone for your patience for this evening. It will be a long meeting. And excuse me, and I would like to now hand the meeting over officially to Chair Gossett to begin. Okay, at this point, we'll stand for the Pledge of Allegiance States of America. One mission number individual with liberty and justice for all. Okay, so will you take roll call, please? Yes. Uh Commissioner Ruddick. Commissioner Gorn. I'm here. Commissioner Hernandez. I am present. Vice Chair Johannes. And Chair Gossett here. All planning commissioners are present this evening. So I just would like to inform everybody. We're moving the agenda around slightly to allow those that are celebrating a religious dinner to show up at 7.30. So the presentation for the um five five five Kelly will start promptly at uh 7.30. So prior to that, we're gonna conduct planning commission business that normally occurs in between or at the beginning and at the end. So with that, I would like to um move that we look at our draft minutes for March 26, 2024. Can I use this? Do I have a motion? I move we approve those minutes.
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