Article 5 — Streamlined Affordable Housing Approvals

The purpose of this article is to provide for the implementation of various portions of the California Government Code by providing a streamlined review and approval process for qualifying housing projects.

Notwithstanding the requirements of Lathrop Municipal Code (LMC) Chapters 17.81 , 17.100 , 17.101 , 17.104 , and 17.112 to the extent that any development project qualifies for one or more of the streamlined review and approval processes provided by this chapter, where that same project concurrently applies for a density bonus or other developer incentives as provided by LMC Chapter 17.81 , the designated approving authority for the density bonus, concession, or other developer incentive shall be the same as the approval authority for the streamlined review and approval process.

(Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

The purpose of this part is to implement the provisions of Section 65913.4 of the California Government Code. This part shall only apply to qualifying housing developments. As used in this Article 5, the term "qualifying housing developments" shall mean those housing developments which meet the qualifications listed in Section 65913.4(a) of the California Government Code. (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

Qualifying housing developments shall be subject to streamlined ministerial review hereunder and shall be exempt from all City discretionary review, including, but not limited to, Site Plan Review and discretionary design review; provided, that the project conforms with all applicable ministerial provisions of State law, this municipal code (inclusive of this article), and the General Plan. Qualifying housing developments shall only be required to obtain the approvals required by this Article 5 from the Community Development Director prior to issuance of the required building permit, grading permit, improvement plans, or other City-required construction authorization. This limitation does not apply to any required tentative and final subdivision map, tentative and final parcel map, lot line adjustment(s), or other changes in lot configuration governed by LMC Title 16 (Subdivisions), except that any required tentative map proposed concurrently with the qualifying housing development shall be processed concurrently with that project. (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

• A. Qualifying housing developments shall comply with all ministerial land use regulations, Citywide regulations, and development standards in effect at the time that the application is submitted as those standards are applicable to a residential multi-unit or mixed-use project within the zoning district in which the project is proposed, including, but not limited to, residential density, setbacks, height, open yard, and screening requirements as described in this title.

• B. No streamlined housing project shall include a request for an exception to these standards by applying for a variance, modification, exception, waiver, or other discretionary approval for height, density, setbacks, open yard, land use, development plan approval, or similar development standard, other than modifications for which the development is eligible and granted as part of a density bonus, concession, or incentive pursuant to State Density Bonuses and Other Incentives Law (Section 65915 et seq., of the California Government Code) and LMC Chapter 17.81 .

• C. Any lot developed with a qualifying streamlined development project hereunder shall comply with all adopted objective guidelines, design review standards, and development standards, including, but not limited to, the objective design standards for streamlined housing projects.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

All proposed qualifying housing developments shall be reviewed and processed in compliance with California Government Code Section 65913.4 .

(Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

• A. The purpose of this part is to implement the provisions of Sections 65912.100 through 65912.114 of the California Government Code.

• B. The provisions of this part shall only apply to a qualifying housing development. As used in this Article 5, the term "qualifying housing development" means a multifamily residential (multiple residential unit) development that meets the requirements set forth in this Article 5 and Sections 65912.111 through 65912.114 of the California Government Code. Qualifying housing developments shall meet or exceed the minimum density requirements outlined herein and meet all of the following:

  1. 100% of the units within the development project, excluding manager's units, shall be dedicated to lower income households at an affordable cost, as defined in Section 50052.5 of the California Health and Safety Code, or an affordable rent set in an amount consistent with the rent limits established by the California Tax Credit Allocation Committee.

  2. The units shall be subject to a record deed restriction for a period of 55 years for rental units and 45 years for owner-occupied units.

  3. The project complies with all of the labor standards provided in Section 65912.130 and, as applicable, Section 65912.131 of the California Government Code, as may be amended from time to time.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

• A. Qualifying housing developments shall be allowed by right. No conditional use permit or other local discretionary review shall be required.

• B. A qualifying housing development shall be subject to ministerial review of a Site Plan Review, Chapter 17.100 by the Community Development Director, subject to the objective design and development regulations applicable by this article.

• C. A development proposed pursuant to this article shall be eligible for a density bonus, incentives, or concessions, waivers, or reductions of development standards, and parking ratios pursuant to LMC Chapter 17.81 and Section 65915 of the California Government Code, as may be amended from time to time.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

A qualifying housing development shall only be subject to the streamlined review process provided by this article if the subject site complies with all of the following criteria:

• A. The site is located in any zoning district where office, retail, or parking are a principally permitted use.

• B. The site is a legal lot.

• C. At least 75% of the perimeter of the site adjoins lots that are developed with urban uses. As used in this section, the term "urban uses" shall mean current or former residential, commercial, public institutional, transit or transportation passenger facility, or retail use, or any combination thereof. Parcels that are only separated by a street, pedestrian path, or bicycle path shall be considered to be adjoined.

• D. The site is not, nor is it adjoined to any site, where more than 1/3 of the square footage of the site is dedicated to industrial use (as defined in Section 65912.111(d)(3) of the California Government Code). Parcels that are only separated by a street shall be considered to be adjoined.

• E. The site satisfies the requirements specified in Section 65913.4(a)(6) of the California Government Code, exclusive of Section 65913.4(a)(6)(A)(iv) of the California Government Code.

• F. The site is not an existing lot of land or site that is governed under the Mobilehome Residency Law, the Recreational Vehicle Park Occupancy Law, the Mobilehome Parks Act, or the Special Occupancy Parks Act.

• G. For a site within a neighborhood plan area (as defined in Section 65912.101(p) of the California Government Code), the neighborhood plan applicable to the site permitted multi-family housing (multiple residential unit development) on the site.

• H. For a vacant site, the site satisfies both of the following:

  1. It does not contain tribal cultural resources, as defined by Section 21074 of the California Public Resources Code, that could be affected by the development that were found pursuant to a consultation as described by Section 21080.3.1 of the California Public Resources Code and the effects of which cannot be mitigated pursuant to the process described in Section 21080.3.2 of the California Public Resources Code.

  2. It is not within a very high fire hazard severity zone, as indicated on maps adopted by the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection pursuant to Section 4202 of the California Public Resources Code or as designated pursuant to Sections 51179(a) and (b) of the California Government Code.

• I. The development is not located on a site where the development would require the demolition of a historic structure that is placed on a national, State, or local historic register.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

A qualifying housing development shall comply with all of the following objective development requirements as determined by the Community Development Director through ministerial review of a Site Plan Review:

• A. The development is a multi-family (multiple residential unit) development.

• B. The residential density for the development will meet or exceed 30 units per acre.

• C. For any housing on the site located within 500 feet, zero inches of a freeway, as defined in Section 332 of the California Vehicle Code, all of the following shall apply:

  1. The building shall have a centralized heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system.

  2. The outdoor air intakes for the heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning system shall face away from the freeway.

  3. The building shall provide air filtration media for outside and return air that provide a minimum efficiency reporting value of 16.

  4. The air filtration media shall be replaced at the manufacturer's designated interval.

  5. The building shall not have any balconies facing the freeway.

• D. None of the housing/residential use on the site is located within 3,200 feet, zero inches of a facility that actively extracts or refines oil or natural gas.

• E. Objective Development Standards Applicable.

  1. The development shall meet applicable objective zoning standards, objective subdivision standards, and objective design review standards, including, but not limited to, setbacks, height, landscaping, parking, building articulation and fenestration, and other applicable objective development standards as provided by this code and any applicable design guidelines.

  2. If the underlying zoning district(s) of the site allow for multi-family/multiple residential units, those standards of the zoning district shall apply.

  3. If the underlying zoning district(s) of the site does not allow for multi-family/multiple residential units, the zoning designation of the closest lot that allows residential use at a density that meets or exceeds the requirements of subsection B of this section shall apply.

  4. The applicable objective standards shall be those in effect at the time that the development application is submitted to the City pursuant to this article.

• F. For any project that is the conversion of the use of an existing nonresidential use building to residential use, the City will not require the provision of common open space beyond what is already existing on the project site.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)

• A. If the City determines that a proposed development project submitted pursuant to this article is consistent with requirements of LMC Sections 17.30.540.A through I and 17.30.545.A through F, it shall approve the project.

• B. If the City determines a proposed development project submitted pursuant to this article is in conflict with any of the requirements of LMC Sections 17.30.540.A through I and 17.30.545.A through F, it shall provide the applicant with written documentation of which standard(s) the project conflicts with, along with an explanation for the reason(s) the project conflicts with the standard(s), within the following timeframes, or as otherwise provided under Section 65589.5 of the California Government Code:

  1. Within 60 days of the initial submittal of the project to the City for projects containing 150 or fewer units.

  2. Within 90 days of the initial submittal of the project to the City for projects containing more than 150 units.

  3. Within 30 days of submittal of any development project that was resubmitted to address written feedback provided by the City pursuant to subsection B.1 or B.2 of this section.

• C. In any subsequent review of the application determined to be in conflict with any of the requirements of LMC Sections 17.30.540.A through I and 17.30.545.A through F, the City will not request the applicant to provide any new information that was not stated in the initial list of items that were determined to be in conflict.

• D. Once the City determines that a project submitted pursuant to this article is consistent with the objective planning standards specified in this article, the Site Plan Review required for the project pursuant to LMC Section 17.30.535 , along with any density bonus, incentives, or concessions, waivers, or reductions of development standards, and parking ratios pursuant to LMC Chapter 17.81 and Section 65915 of the California Government Code, shall be completed within the following timeframes:

  1. Within 60 days of the date that the project is determined consistent with the objective planning standards specified in this article for development projects that contain 150 or fewer units.

  2. Within 90 days of the date that the project is determined consistent with the objective planning standards specified in this article for development projects that contain more than 150 units.

• E. The City will, as a condition of approval of the development, require the development proponent to complete a phase I environmental assessment, as defined in Section 78090 of the California Health and Safety Code. If a recognized environmental condition is found, the applicant shall undertake a preliminary endangerment assessment, as defined in Section 78095 of the California Health and Safety Code, prepared by an environmental assessor to determine the existence of any release of a hazardous substance on the site and to determine the potential for exposure of future occupants to significant health hazards from any nearby property or activity.

found, the applicant shall undertake a preliminary endangerment assessment, as defined in Section 78095 of the California Health and Safety Code, prepared by an environmental assessor to determine the existence of any release of a hazardous substance on the site and to determine the potential for exposure of future occupants to significant health hazards from any nearby property or activity.

1. If a release of a hazardous substance is found to exist on the site, before the City issues a certificate of occupancy, the release shall be removed, or any significant effects of the release shall be mitigated to a level of insignificance in compliance with current State and Federal requirements.

2. If a potential for exposure to significant hazards from surrounding properties or activities is found to exist, before the City issues a certificate of occupancy, the effects of the potential exposure shall be mitigated to a level of insignificance in compliance with current State and Federal requirements.

• (Ord. 26-479, 3/9/2026)