Seniors living in Costa Mesa – many of whom live on fixed incomes – could soon have access to more affordable housing.
It comes as Costa Mesa City Council members took initial steps on building up to 60 affordable housing units for seniors alongside the city’s existing senior center.
“I think this project has been a long time in development. And as much as there is a possibility to do an improved plan, as long as it doesn’t derail schedule and budget, then let’s stick to that,” Councilman Jeffrey Harlan said at last Tuesday’s meeting.
“I hope everyone has an appreciation for the urgency in getting housing built. There’s so many variables and factors.”
In a meeting that went past midnight last Tuesday, city council members voted unanimously to begin the procedural work and send the proposal to the city’s planning commission.
Cities throughout Orange County are grappling with building more affordable housing – especially under state housing mandates.
Brea, La Habra, Huntington Beach and other cities have adopted ordinances similar to Costa Mesa, which mandate a certain percentage of affordable housing at new home construction sites.
[Read: Costa Mesa to Require Affordable Homes in Residential Developments]
During public comment at the Feb. 20 council meeting, several residents raised concerns that the 60 new housing units will worsen parking issues people already face during events at the senior center.
The Jamboree Housing Corporation – a nonprofit affordable housing developer – does not have plans of expanding parking spaces or reducing the existing 145 spaces.
While the city’s urban plan allows a reduction in parking for mixed-use projects, according to an agenda report, officials plan to maintain parking by keeping some of the existing spaces along with podium parking.
Despite parking concerns, Harlan said the city’s in desperate need of new housing.
“Let’s not make the perfect the enemy of the good,” he said.
An agenda report outlines the specifications for parking based on square footage. However, state law exempts some parking requirements because the proposal is affordable housing.
Mayor John Stephens suggested alternative transportation like shuttles and trolleys from the parking lot at Smart and Final. Similar measures were proposed in a parking analysis done on the senior center in 2022.
The parking analysis also concluded that even at peak hours of the senior center combined with the housing units there would be a surplus of 43 parking spaces.
Stephens said he understood the concern over parking but housing needed to be prioritized.
Councilwoman Arlis Reynolds asked Jamboree to explore options like adding another floor or making the units smaller to fit more units.
But Jamboree officials said the larger units are slated to accommodate seniors with mobility issues.
The one-bedroom units are slated to include a living room, bathroom and private deck in a Spanish style architecture. Jamboree officials also outlined several shared amenities like a dog walk, a multi-use lawn, a community room and more.
“We should be ecstatic that we’re building housing, but we should be looking at how to build more housing,” Councilman Manuel Chavez said. “This city’s evolving, we have a lot of people doubling up their apartments, trying to make ends meet.”
