Morgan Hill's City Council unanimously approved a plan for 105 single-family homes near the U.S. Highway 101 Cochrane Road exit, San José Spotlight reported.
Why it matters: The project moved forward under builder's remedy, a state law that lets developments skip local height and density limits when a city lacks a state-approved housing plan. Council members said their hands were tied.
The project
The Cochrane-DePaul Residences sit on about 15.8 acres at the southwest corner of Cochrane Road and DePaul Drive, according to the City of Morgan Hill. The plan includes a map for 114 lots and 105 detached homes. The Planning Commission recommended approval unanimously.
The homes will be market-rate, two-story houses with two-car garages, ranging from 2,147 to 2,615 square feet, San José Spotlight reported. Developer High Street Residential, a subsidiary of Trammell Crow Company, applied in October 2023. The city's housing plan was certified a month later.
The settlement
To avoid costly litigation, the city split the roughly 28.5-acre property into three pieces: the 15.8-acre home site, a 7.8-acre parcel on Cochrane Road for a shopping center anchored by Sprouts, and a 4.7-acre parcel to be transferred to the city for affordable housing. The developer agreed to pay $500,000 to the city's housing fund and more than $5.8 million in lieu of providing affordable housing.
"I think in these cases we have to make the best of a bad situation," Mayor Mark Turner told San José Spotlight.
Trade-offs
The environmental impact report found significant, unavoidable impacts, including the loss of nearly 11 acres of farmland. Morgan Hill must plan for 1,037 homes by 2031 and is 39 homes short, a city official said.