The Taft Planning Commission on Dec. 3 voted unanimously to recommend the City Council adopt zoning ordinance amendment 2025-16 and downtown specific plan amendment 2025-17, actions staff said are necessary to implement programs in the city’s 6th-cycle housing element (2023–2031).

Planner Jenna Chilingarian, appearing online, told commissioners the amendments implement 23 housing-element programs across areas such as removal of constraints, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and housing production/streamlining and incentives. She said the California Department of Housing and Community Development found the city’s updated housing element in substantial compliance and that the amendments are intended to carry out programs already adopted by the city.

Chilingarian said the project consists of policy and programmatic updates and is exempt from CEQA under section 15061(b)(3) because the amendments would not, on their own, cause a direct physical change in the environment; any future development would still require site-specific environmental review. When a commissioner asked about existing ADUs located on property lines, Chilingarian said built ADUs would be treated as legal nonconforming units under the updated ordinance.

A motion to adopt a resolution recommending the City Council approve the zoning and specific plan amendments and find the project exempt from CEQA was moved and seconded; the roll call vote was 5-0 in favor.

The planning commission’s recommendation advances the amendments to the City Council for final action and directs staff to carry forward the item for council consideration.