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2. Adopt the modifications to Objective Design Standards for Housing Sites as enclosed with Attachment 1 to this agenda report with modifications as outlined in this agenda report; and 3. Provide the Director of Community Development the authority to make minor changes to the ODS after adoption, for reasons such as formatting, grammar, references, adding additional diagrams, etc. FISCAL IMPACT City Council previously authorized professional services contracts for the Objective Design Standards. No changes are proposed to the Professional Services contract at this time. No fiscal impacts would occur as a result of adoption of the Objective Design Standards. BACKGROUND 2012 Housing Site Development Standards and Design Guidelines The 2007-2014 (4th Cycle) Housing Element was adopted in February 2012. It included a program requiring the preparation of development standards and design guidelines to facilitate the development of multifamily housing on nine sites rezoned as part of the 4th Cycle update. Accordingly, staff worked with architecture and design firm Van Meter Williams Pollack (VMWP) to develop these guidelines and standards. After recommendation from Planning Commission, City Council adopted the Housing Site Development Standards and Design Guidelines in August 2012. The 2012 standards and guidelines are based on site-specific considerations discussed during the 4th Cycle update and also drew upon concepts from the Hacienda Transit Oriented Development (TOD) Standards and Design Guidelines, which were adopted in 2011 to apply specifically to three multifamily housing sites in Hacienda. State Law regarding�Objective Design Standards As the City Council is aware, recent legislation passed by the State has placed particular emphasis on the objectivity of the development review process, citing the housing crisis and the need to produce additional housing units across the state in a streamlined manner. Through these recent State laws, much of the discretion previously granted to local jurisdictions, including the ability to rely on subjective findings as a basis for project approval or denial, has been curtailed. These recent changes have dictated a broader range of housing projects that must be processed ministerially (i.e., without any discretionary review); and for other types of projects, to the extent the City may have discretion to approve or deny an application, such approval or denial may only be based on conformance to objective, uniformly verifiable standards. ODS Update Process In 2020, the City engaged VMWP to assist with a process to update the 2012 Housing Site Development Standards and Guidelines, and to create additional ODS applicable to a broader range of housing developments, including those within the City's multifamily zones. The project was initiated primarily in response to changes in State law that establish much greater limitations on the City's scope of review for residential development projects generally, and which created additional opportunities for ministerial, non-discretionary and streamlined review of certain types of housing Page 2 of 11