The Nevada County Board of supervisors has approved high density rezoning on several parcels in the county to allow for 699 affordable housing units to be built, should the property owners decide to do that.
Facing a state mandate to put the zoning in place, supervisors first allowed for public comment from the standing room only crowd that turned out for the hearing yesterday afternoon. Residents of Penn Valley wearing white shirts in solidarity encouraged the board to approve the planning commission’s recommendation for the Penn Valley area. Cary Sanders, who lives in Supervisor District 2, says it might help his children who are having a hard time finding affordable housing in the area they grew up in.
click to listen to Cary Sanders
In Grass Valley, Mayor Jason Foyer says their concern is the heavy traffic that could result if 340 units were added in the Brunswick area.
click to listen to Jason Foyer
The board made the distinction that the rezoning is not for Section 8 housing but for affordable housing.
Nevada County Planning Commissioner Brian Foss says the county is still working with the city of Grass Valley to remove some properties from Brunswick for other parcels on East Bennett so as to mitigate traffic congestion on Brunswick if the properties are developed. The Board of Supervisors will finalize the Grass Valley portion of the re-zoning plan at a meeting scheduled for November 10th at 1:30pm.
Foss says the state requires the zoning be in place, but it does not require the parcels to actually be developed.
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