An apartment building in Mission Viejo is slated to expand by hundreds of new units, including  a six-story addition to the complex, after officials gave the greenlight to the building’s current owner.

It comes after community backlash and concern over issues like parking, traffic and general congestion in the area.

Mission Viejo City Council members approved the addition to the Vista Del Lago apartment complex off Marguerite Parkway in a 3-2 vote Tuesday night. Councilmembers Bob Ruesch and Cynthia Vasquez voted no.

Plans include demolishing 68 units and replacing them with 418 units and a new parking structure for a total of 350 new apartment units.

That creates a grand total of 958 units at the 33-acre property.

[Read: Six-Story Apartment Proposal Sparks Community Uproar in Mission Viejo]

The project is also expected to include 53 affordable housing units, with 27 reserved for low-income households and 26 for very-low-income families.

In Orange County, a family of four would be considered low income if it makes less than $135,500 annually, according to state income limits.

A family of four would be considered very low income if it makes less than $84,600 per year.

Council members spent most of the discussion talking about what could happen if they denied the project. 

Councilmember Trish Kelley explained that denying this project could get their long-term housing planning document, known as the housing element, de-certified by the state.

De-certification of a city’s housing element opens the door to builder’s remedy projects. 

That means developers could propose housing projects that circumvent certain local zoning rules as long as the project provides a certain number of affordable housing units.

Cities can’t deny builder’s remedy projects just because they don’t think it’s a good fit for the community, or if they have issues with things like density or parking.

That’s exactly what happened in Laguna Hills last year; city council members in that city reluctantly approved an 180-unit senior housing project that was submitted at a time when the city didn’t have a certified housing element, leaving councilmembers to either OK the project or leave the city vulnerable to lawsuits.

[Read: Laguna Hills Approves Building 180 Apartments for Seniors]

Kelley said that could happen in Mission Viejo if they denied the Vista Del Lago expansion project and the housing element was de-certified as a result.

“If we get de-certified and have the consequences of that with the builder’s remedy — guess what? We cannot stop it,” she said.

Mission Viejo’s mandated Regional Housing Needs Assessment allocation is 2,217 units, according to the city’s housing element for 2021-2029. That means the city needs to plan to build 2,217 housing units across various income levels by 2029 in order to comply with the state.

“The state has us by the throat,” Kelley said. “They’ve taken away our local control. They’ve given us housing mandates — 2,217 units that we have to build. Where are we supposed to put them?”

Vasquez said she voted no because the property owner and applicant didn’t seem like they made enough of an effort to meet residents’ concerns halfway and “involve the community in which they’re supposed to be a part of.”

Mayor Wendy Bucknum said the council did what they “lawfully needed to do.”

“Again, blame it on the state,” she said after the council narrowly voted to approve the project.

Mission Viejo leaders also pointed to Huntington Beach, a city that’s spent millions of dollars unsuccessfully fighting the state against housing requirements.

[Read: Huntington Beach Blocks State Housing Law, Sets Up Confrontation with CA Attorney General]

Ruesch encouraged residents to advocate for change at the state level.

“We can’t fix yesterday,” he said. “But we have two elections coming up, and if you’re really unhappy, here’s your chance.”

About 30 residents spoke to the council Tuesday night, with most speakers urging them to deny the project or find a compromise to add more parking or reduce the project height.

“It’s not because we don’t believe in growth and housing and affordable housing,” Mission Viejo resident Debbie Lewandowski said. “It’s because we’re looking for something that is done right, and this doesn’t fit our community.”

Some residents supported the project.

“We need more housing in Mission Viejo,” resident Cathy Palmer said. 

“I would love to have more children come to Mission Viejo. Our schools are closing because they’re losing enrollment. Bringing younger families in gives us an opportunity to rebuild the youth of our community and hopefully eventually those people become homeowners.”

Angelina Hicks is the Voice of OC Collegiate News Service Editor. Contact her at ahicks@voiceofoc.org or on Twitter @angelinahicks13.