TOWN COUNCIL STAFF REPORT 10.1
TO: Major and Town Council July 21, 2026
SUBJECT: Resolution No. 66-2026 denying an appeal and upholding the Planning Commission approval of Development Plan DEV25-0013, Major Subdivision SUB25-0011, and Tree Removal request TR26-0020 to allow the development of a mixed-use housing development at 222 West El Pintado Road and encompasses much of the area to the west along Ilo Lane and Charles Lane. The applicant is the Community Presbyterian Church of Danville and People Meeting Christ Foundation.
DESCRIPTION
The application is for a mixed-use residential housing development consisting of multifamily townhouse units, accessory dwelling units (ADUs), and religious/educational facilities and uses. The total project area is approximately 12 acres.
The project would result in the demolition of a total of 21 existing residential units.
The proposed multifamily residential development includes 49 townhouse units and 19 attached ADUs. The church facility improvements include construction of a new 26,866- square-foot youth/ministry building in the southwest parking lot area, a new 1,035- square-foot outdoor pavilion near the existing building’s main entry, a 2,507-square-foot expansion of the existing sanctuary and lobby, a soccer field, and basketball courts. The interior of the existing church would also be modified to increase the main sanctuary occupancy by 225 seats.
The applicant is requesting a density bonus and concessions pursuant to the State Density Bonus Law, Government Code Section 65915. As part of the density bonus, if the ADUs are rented, four of the proposed ADUs would be restricted for occupancy by qualifying very low-income households.
The proposed development qualifies as a housing development under California law because at least 75 percent of the proposed new floor area would be residential. The project has also been determined to be Statutorily Exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to California State Law AB 130.
BACKGROUND
The State of California has declared a housing crisis and has enacted numerous laws intended to reduce barriers to the construction of new housing. Many of these laws limit 053)Multi M
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the review authority of local agencies over qualifying housing development applications.
For the subject application, the Town may not apply non-objective standards, such as subjective architectural design criteria, and must allow waivers from objective development standards when necessary to accommodate the project. Such waivers may include, but are not limited to, standards related to the number of stories, building height, and floor area ratio (FAR). The Town must also consider requested incentives or concessions that would reduce the actual cost of providing housing.
Housing Element
The Housing Element is an integral component of the General Plan, which guides land use and policy decisions in Danville. It is the only element of the General Plan that requires review and certification by the State of California. The California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) is responsible for reviewing local housing elements for compliance with State law and certifying those housing elements.
For the current eight-year planning cycle, covering 2023 through 2031, HCD determined that the nine-county Association of Bay Area Governments (ABAG) region must plan for at least 441,176 housing units. This regional housing need is divided into four income categories to ensure planning for housing affordable to households at all income levels.
ABAG subsequently assigned the Town of Danville a total of 2,241 housing units to plan for during this cycle. This assignment is known as the Regional Housing Needs Allocation, or RHNA.
At the time the Housing Element was prepared, the Town did not have sufficient land zoned for residential development at densities necessary to accommodate its RHNA assignment. As a result, the Town was required to identify additional sites throughout Danville for multifamily housing and to designate those sites at densities of 30 to 35 units per acre.
In addition, State law requires housing elements to include opportunities for “missing middle” housing, which provides moderate-density housing in existing residential neighborhoods. To address this requirement, many of the existing single-family residential areas around Ilo Lane and Charles Lane were redesignated for multifamily housing at densities of 20 to 25 units per acre.
State Laws
Other State laws applicable to this application include the following:
State Density Bonus Law (DBL): The State Density Bonus Law was adopted in 1979 and has been amended numerous times, including most recently in 2023. The DBL allows a developer to increase the density of a residential development above the maximum Community Presbyterian Church 3 July 21, 2026
density otherwise allowed under the site’s General Plan land use designation in exchange for providing affordable housing units or qualifying age-restricted senior housing. In addition, projects that qualify under the DBL are entitled to receive applicable incentives, concessions, and waivers that reduce or modify otherwise applicable development standards.
AB 130: Effective July 1, 2025, AB 130 exempts qualifying infill housing developments from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA). As a result, potential environmental impacts that may be identified in technical studies prepared for the project, such as a traffic study, may not be used as a basis to deny the application.
AB 130 also requires Tribal Consultation in a manner similar to the requirements of AB
52. As part of this process, the Town received requests for consultation from the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe and the Confederated Villages of the Lisjan Nation. Both tribes requested that the Town include several conditions of approval, including a requirement for Native American monitoring during excavation activities and standard protocols to be followed in the event that tribal cultural resources are encountered.
Design Review Board
The project architectural and landscape plans were reviewed by the Town’s Design Review Board (DRB) on March 12 and April 16, 2026. At the April meeting, the DRB recommended the Planning Commission approve the project’s architecture, landscaping, and color and material board.
Planning Commission
The Planning Commission held a public hearing to review this application on May 26, 2026. At that meeting, the Planning Commission voted to approve the application on a unanimous 5-0 vote.
APPEAL
An appeal of the Planning Commission’s approval of the project from 10 neighbors was received on June 4, 2026 (see Attachment C).
Appeal Summary
The appellants argue that the traffic study and staff analysis were incomplete or unreliable because they relied on broad Level of Service assumptions, did not adequately address localized congestion on Ilo Lane, Charles Lane, West El Pintado, Diablo Road, and El Cerro Boulevard, and did not sufficiently analyze Sunday/event traffic, school and youth ministry pick-up/drop-off operations, or queuing impacts.
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They also raise concerns that the project may worsen already difficult emergency access conditions, especially during peak congestion or wildfire evacuation scenarios. The letter states that existing conditions on West El Pintado are already substandard and that the project should not proceed without stronger analysis and enforceable improvements.
DEVELOPMENT EVALUATION
Density Bonus
This application has been submitted pursuant to the State Density Bonus Law (DBL) (Attachment D). To qualify under the DBL, the applicant would provide five percent of the units as very low-income units. As proposed, four of the accessory dwelling units would be deed restricted so that, if rented, they would be required to be rented to qualifying households at qualifying rental rates.
Although the project qualifies under the DBL, the applicant is not requesting any additional density units.
Waivers, Concessions, and Incentives
The applicant is not requesting any waivers from development standards as allowed under the DBL.
Based on the proposed affordable units, the project is eligible for one incentive or concession. Concessions and incentives may include the modification or elimination of otherwise applicable development requirements when doing so would result in identifiable and actual cost reductions to the project.
The applicant is requesting an incentive/concession to eliminate the requirement to underground existing overhead utility lines along Ilo Lane. The Town may deny this request only if it can make the findings required under the DBL, including that the requested incentive or concession would have a specific adverse impact on public health or safety.
General Plan and Zoning
The project site is subject to two different General Plan land use designations:
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Residential
The portion of the site proposed for residential development consists of approximately
2.93 acres and is designated Residential – Multifamily – High/Medium Density, which allows a density range of 20 to 25 units per acre. The proposed townhouse development would have a residential density of 23.2 units per acre, which is within the allowable density range.
This portion of the site is zoned M-25; Multifamily Residential District. The proposed residential development is consistent with the applicable requirements of the M-25 District.
Church/Academy Facilities
The existing and proposed church facilities would occupy approximately 9.08 acres of the site. This portion of the site is designated Residential – Single Family – Low Density.
A portion of the proposed church facilities is located within the M-25; Multifamily Medium Density zoning district, and another portion is located within a Town P-1; Planned Unit Development District. Because the project qualifies as a mixed-use housing development under State law, the proposed church facility improvements are allowed within these zoning districts.
Affordable Units
Based on the requirements of the State Density Bonus Law, the applicant must restrict five percent of the units, or four units, for occupancy by very low-income households.
Income limits are established annually by the State and vary based on household size.
The current maximum income for a qualifying two-person very low-income household is $67,900 in Contra Costa County. The restricted units must remain affordable for a period of 55 years.
Traffic Impact Analysis
As previously noted, the application is exempt from the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) pursuant to AB 130. Because the Town’s review of the application was already well underway when the law took effect, the applicant completed the Traffic Impact Analysis that had previously been initiated.
Due to the CEQA exemption, the Town cannot require a full Traffic Impact Analysis for this project or for similar qualifying housing developments. Although the completed analysis did not identify any significant traffic impacts, its findings could not be used as Community Presbyterian Church 6 July 21, 2026
a basis to deny the project or impose traffic-related mitigation measures, even if significant impacts had been identified.
The project’s Transportation Impact Study (TIS), prepared by W-Trans (Attachment E), found no potentially significant impacts related to vehicle miles traveled, level of service, pedestrian and bicycle facilities, transit, on-site circulation, emergency vehicle access, or traffic safety. Nevertheless, several recommended conditions of approval have been incorporated into the resolution. These conditions require construction staging, traffic control, and travel demand management plans; restrictions on construction access and parking; management of school drop-off and pick-up activities; completion of recommended transportation improvements; maintenance of adequate driveway sight distance; and installation of accessible sidewalks, parking controls, signage, bicycle parking, and code-compliant parking spaces.
Parking
The TIS also included an evaluation of parking for both the church facility expansion and the proposed townhome development.
Church and Academy
The main church services generate the highest parking demand of all church-related activities and therefore serve as the basis for determining the required parking supply.
The application proposes interior modifications to the existing church building to expand the main sanctuary by 225 seats. In addition, construction of the proposed youth/ministry building would displace approximately 122 existing parking spaces.
To offset the loss of existing parking and accommodate the additional parking demand generated by the sanctuary expansion, the parking lot would be expanded to provide 206 additional parking spaces. This expansion would be accomplished primarily through the demolition of existing residences along Ilo Lane. The additional parking would replace more than the 122 displaced spaces and would accommodate the added parking demand associated with the sanctuary expansion.
Traffic impacts related to drop-off and pick-up activity for academy students have been identified as a concern because vehicle queues can extend onto West El Pintado Road.
With the proposed parking lot expansion, a new drop-off and pick-up circulation pattern would be established. The revised circulation plan would substantially increase on-site queuing capacity and reduce the potential for vehicle queues to back up onto West El Pintado Road.
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Townhomes
The proposed project includes 49 townhomes, 19 of which would incorporate ADUs. All of the townhomes would contain at least two bedrooms. Under the Town Ordinance, each townhouse unit would be required to provide two parking spaces, plus one-quarter guest parking space per unit, for a total requirement of 110 parking spaces. Under State law, no additional parking is required for the ADUs.
The proposed project would provide a two-car garage for each townhouse unit, along with 19 guest parking spaces. In total, 117 parking spaces are proposed, which exceeds the Town’s parking requirement. Under the State Density Bonus Law, the project could provide as few as 74 parking spaces.
Trees
A Preliminary Arborist Report for the project was prepared by Woodreeve Consulting (Attachment F). The report inventoried a total of 303 trees on the project site. Of these, 65 trees are protected under the Town’s Tree Preservation Ordinance, consisting primarily of Valley Oak and London Plane trees.
Due to the significant grading associated with the proposed development, 269 trees are proposed for removal during various phases of construction based on the current preliminary design. Of the trees proposed for removal, 47 are protected under the Town’s Tree Preservation Ordinance. These include 29 Valley Oaks, 15 London Planes, and three heritage trees, defined as trees with a trunk diameter of 36 inches or greater. The three heritage trees consist of a Coast Redwood, a Nichol’s Gum, and a Compact Blue Gum.
The protected trees proposed for removal are located primarily in the eastern portion of the site, where the Valley Oaks are concentrated.
The Town and the applicant have worked to maximize tree preservation where feasible.
However, based on the current preliminary design, only trees with higher retention viability and those located along the perimeter of the project site are proposed to remain.
A total of 18 Town-protected trees, including London Planes and Coast Live Oaks along West El Pintado Road and the eastern site boundary, are proposed for retention to help provide screening.
Because the arborist report is based on the current preliminary design for the four development phases, additional trees may be identified for retention or removal as project plans are further refined. At this stage, the applicant proposes to plant 273 24-inch box trees, representing approximately 1,092 inches of cumulative trunk diameter, to mitigate the removal of Town-protected trees totaling 833 inches in trunk diameter.
Under the Town’s Tree Preservation Ordinance, 208 24-inch box trees of approved species would be required.
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As recommended, the applicant would be required to submit a detailed Tree Mitigation Plan for Town review prior to issuance of building permits. The plan shall specify the number, species, and locations of all required replacement trees.
Other Studies
Additional studies including hydrology, biological resources, and geotechnical were prepared for the project. These reports did not identify any potential significant impacts.
Again, as this project is exempt from CEQA under State law, neither their adequacy nor findings of these reports can be used as a basis to deny the application. These reports are available on the Danville Town Talks website Danville Town Talks.
CALIFORNIA ENVIRONEMNTAL QUALITY ACT (CEQA) S TATUS
The project is Statutorily Exempt From the requirements of the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA), Section 21080.66 (AB 130).
PUBLIC CONTACT
Public notice of the July 21, 2026, hearing was mailed to property owners within 750 feet and posted online. A total of 270 notices were mailed to surrounding property owners (see Attachment B).
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RECOMMENDATION
Adopt Resolution No. 66-2026 denying an appeal and upholding the Planning Commission’s approval of Development Plan DEV25-0013, Major Subdivision SUB25- 0011, and Tree Removal request TR26-0020 to allow the development of a mixed-use housing development 222 West El Pintado Road and encompasses much of the area to the west along Ilo Lane and Charles Lane. The applicant is the Community Presbyterian Church of Danville and People Meeting Christ Foundation.
Prepared by:
David Crompton
Chief of Planning
Reviewed by:
Diane J. Friedmann
Development Services Director
Attachments: A – Resolution No. 66-2026
B – Public Notification and Map & Notification List
C – Appeal letter of June 4, 2026
D – Applicant’s Density Bonus Request Letter
E – Transportation Impact Study
F –Arborists Report
G – Architectural Plan, Civil, and Landscape Plans