Approves narrow Universal Design exemption for townhomes, row houses
On February 24, the Planning Board approved the annual RESHAP (Rebuilding Existing Supportive Housing at Alameda Point) report, which found that the developers are complying with the terms and conditions of their Development Agreement and adequately progressing on this project to create affordable housing with supportive services for people who have experienced homelessness or trauma.
The Board also voted to update the City’s Universal Design Ordinance, which supports housing needs for individuals with mobility difficulties or other functional limitations. The update will exempt townhomes and row houses with limited ground floor living space and projects on small sites of three acres or less from universal design and visitability requirements.
RESHAP annual review
RESHAP is a plan by MidPen Housing Corporation, in conjunction with Alameda Point Collaborative (APC), Operation Dignity, and Building Futures, to build and manage 309 supportive housing units for extremely low-, very low-, and low-income households on a nearly eight-acre site at Alameda Point. APC serves the formerly unhoused, Operation Dignity serves veterans, and Building Futures serves women and children escaping family violence.
The campus aims to help break the cycle of homelessness and establish stability and opportunity for residents in a pedestrian-friendly community with on-site managers and services, commercial and community spaces, and public outdoor gathering areas. Two hundred and one of the homes will replace distressed, former military housing that was repurposed as permanent supportive housing more than two decades ago.
Since executing an amended Development Agreement in December 2023, the developer reports (link downloads document) that they have:
- Finalized plans for demolition and backbone infrastructure.
- Demolished on-site buildings and Navy infrastructure.
- Initiated site preparation.
- Completed site layout, building design, and programming plans.
- Submitted design review plans for Stardust Gardens (Phase 1A) at 451 Stardust Place and Harbor Village (Phase 1B) at 2450 Pan Am Way.
- Selected Branagh, Inc. as the general contractor.
- Received over $3.9 Million in funds from Alameda County Measure A1 and the City of Alameda’s Affordable Housing Program and Permanent Loan Housing Allocation.
Phase 1 will provide around half of the homes expected from RESHAP, with Stardust Gardens yielding 80 apartments, including two for on-site managers. Unit types will include 27 one-bedrooms, 32 two-bedrooms, and 21 three-bedrooms. Harbor Village will yield 86 apartments with 76 one-bedrooms and 10 two-bedrooms. David Baker Architects is the designer.
The Planning Board unanimously approved a resolution finding that the developer has demonstrated good faith compliance with the terms and conditions of the Development Agreement from January 1 to December 31, 2024.
Universal Design Ordinance update
Planning staff also presented proposed amendments to the Universal Design Ordinance, which would streamline requirements, reducing burdens on developers. Universal design aims to make environments accessible to people of all abilities, ages, and sizes. Within the ordinance, “visitability” refers to enhancing a dwelling unit’s usability for a wide range of guests, enabling them to enter and readily use critical portions of the space.
The ordinance mandates that 30% of units in developments of five or more units must comply with universal design, while 100% must meet visitability requirements. However, staff raised concerns about how these requirements impact certain building types, particularly townhomes and row houses, which often use the ground floor solely for parking, noting that, “Some developments face challenges with having sufficient floor area to comply with these standards.” Consequently, developers are discouraged from building these types of homes.
To address this, staff proposed new exemptions. One would apply to buildings with a ground floor area of less than 150 square feet, as such layouts often cannot accommodate accessibility features. Another would be for developments on sites smaller than three acres, where meeting the 30% universal design rule would be impractical. The reasoning was that “the only way such projects can meet the requirement is by incorporating higher-density buildings like stacked flats,” which is not always feasible.
Two case studies illustrated these challenges: Alameda Marina, which overcame the requirements by including a high-density apartment block, and a Santa Clara project that could not meet universal design standards without drastic changes.
Staff also proposed shifting the waiver approval process from the Planning Board to the Building Official to create a “singular authority” and avoid inconsistencies. Additionally, they suggested updating terminology in the ordinance to align with current department names.
With some technical clarifications, the Planning Board unanimously approved the proposed amendments.
Contributing writer Karin K. Jensen covers boards and commissions for the Alameda Post. Contact her via [email protected]. Her writing is collected at https://linktr.ee/karinkjensen and https://alamedapost.com/Karin-K-Jensen.
