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Sacramento, CA 95811
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M E M O R A N D U M
TO: Troy Fujimoto, City Planner | City of Pleasant Hill FROM: Brent Gibbons, AICP, Principal Planner | Mintier Harnish CC: Jim Harnish, Principal/Owner | Mintier Harnish
Ryan Lester, Project Manager| Mintier Harnish
DATE: Thursday, October 15, 2026
RE: Update on Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram and Zoning Map
This memorandum provides a summary of feedback received from the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) on potential changes to the 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram and Zoning Map, as well as the potential implications for implementation of the State-certified 2023-2031 Housing Element (Housing Element).
Contents:
• Context
o Contra Costa Boulevard Focus Area
o Gregory Lane Focus Area
o Housing Element Program F
o Vacant Beatrice/Cleaveland Housing Element Sites
o Housing Element Summary of Capacity to Meet the RHNA
• HCD Comments on Potential Land Use Changes
• Consultant Recommendation
Context
The City is exploring potential land use changes to the 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram and underlying zoning designations. These potential changes could alter land uses within the identified General Plan Focus Areas and sites identified to meet the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA) in the Housing Element. Incorporating land use redesignations in these areas has the potential to limit the City’s ability to implement Program F in the Housing Element and to maintain sufficient capacity to meet the RHNA. The following sections outline the Focus Areas identified in the 2040 General Plan and the adopted land use direction for each, the vacant sites under redesignation consideration, and an overview of Program F in the Housing Element.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 2 Contra Costa Boulevard Focus Area
The 2040 General Plan re-designated single-family parcels within the Contra Costa Boulevard Focus Area with a density of 4.6-6.9 dwelling units an acre (du/ac) to a new Mixed Use designation with a density of 12-40 du/ac.
This land use change was recommended by the General Plan Advisory Committee (GPAC) in 2020, confirmed by the GPAC in 2021 and 2022, and adopted by City Council as part of the 2040 General Plan Update in May 2023.
The intent of this change was to promote further mixed-use development by connecting to existing mixed use land use designations to the south (Downtown Pleasant Hill) and to stimulate transit-oriented development along Contra Costa Boulevard. The single-family neighborhoods in this Focus Area are generally built out, but the updated 2040 General Plan provides the opportunity for mixed-use development on any sites that are redeveloped. The image below compares the previous General Plan (2003) land use designations for this Focus Area to the GPAC recommended changes, which were adopted as part of the 2040 General Plan.
Source: City of Pleasant Hill 2040 General Plan Alternatives Memorandum, May 2022.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 3 Gregory Lane Focus Area
The 2040 General Plan re-designated single-family parcels within the Gregory Lane Focus Area with a density of
4.6-6.9 du/ac to a new Neighborhood Mixed Use designation with a density of 1.3-20.0 du/ac. This land use change was recommended by the GPAC in 2020, confirmed by the GPAC in 2021 and 2022, and adopted by City Council as part of the 2040 General Plan Update in 2023. The intent of this change was to promote further mixed-use development, stimulate transit-oriented development along Gregory Lane, and create a mixed-use corridor with a cohesive land use mix. The preferred land use for the focus area was also informed by public feedback expressing a desire for better bicycle and pedestrian connectivity and more commercial options beyond those downtown in closer proximity to residential neighborhoods along the corridor. The image below compares the previous General Plan (2003) land use designations, for this Focus Area which were adopted as part of the 2040 General Plan.
Source: City of Pleasant Hill 2040 General Plan Alternatives Memorandum, May 2022.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 4 2023-2031 Housing Element Program F
The 2023-2031 Housing Element focused on promoting access to housing within Pleasant Hill, with an emphasis on increasing housing choices and affordability in low-density Racially Concentrated Areas of Affluence (RCAAs).
Specifically, Housing Element Program F committed the City to re-designating/rezoning land in RCAAs to provide potential opportunities for increased density. The commitments included in this program included the land use changes to the Contra Costa Boulevard and Gregory Lane Focus Areas adopted as part of the 2040 General Plan.
Below is a snapshot of Program F within the Housing Element.
Changes to the Contra Costa Boulevard Focus
Area are included in this commitment.
Changes to the Gregory Lane Focus Area
are included in this commitment.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 5 Vacant Beatrice/Cleaveland Housing Element Sites
Beyond General Plan changes in identified Focus Areas above, there were additional zoning changes made to parcels in and around Beatrice Road and Cleaveland Road. These changes were required to better align the zoning with the existing, overarching General Plan land use designation. No land use intensity or development standards were modified as part of the rezoning, only the zoning “label” was modified, as parcels within this area were rezoned from Planned Unit Development (PUD) to Multi-Family Medium Density with a density range of 20-30 du/ac. Parcels covered under this redesignation include 270 Cleaveland; 576, 590, 654, and 570 Beatrice Road; as well as the northeast corner of the intersection of Cleaveland Road and Beatrice Road west of 240 Cleaveland Road. The parcels noted above were included in the Housing Element vacant sites inventory and accounted for a total RHNA capacity of 149 above-moderate units.
Source: Mintier Harnish, 2026.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 6 Housing Element Summary of Capacity to Meet the RHNA
Each Housing Element cycle, jurisdictions are required to provide housing capacity to meet the RHNA numbers allocated by regional agencies and HCD. Meeting required RHNA is achieved through a variety of sources, including a combination of a city’s pending projects, ADU development trends, and a site inventory analysis, which ultimately will conclude whether a jurisdiction has adequate sites to meet the RHNA allocation and buffer requirements. The City adopted this methodology for meeting the capacity requirements for the RHNA concluded through the sites inventory process that the City could accommodate a total of 2,124 housing units, including 1,157 lower-income, 308 moderate-income, and 659 above moderate-income units. Housing Element Table 4-45, shown below, provides a summary of the number of housing units accommodated by pending projects, vacant sites, mixed-use redevelopment, and ADU trends. As shown, the Housing Element identified a surplus of 22 units in the above moderate-income category, which includes capacity on the vacant Cleaveland/Beatrice sites discussed in the previous section.
Source: City of Pleasant Hill, 2023-2031 Housing Element Update.
HCD Comments on Potential Land Use Changes
In 2026, the City contracted with Mintier Harnish to facilitate a discussion with HCD on potential land use changes and their implications to the General Plan Focus Areas and Housing Element sites identified in the above section.
Mintier Harnish posed several questions to HCD’s Housing Policy Manager to receive feedback on the potential implications of the following potential changes:
o Downzoning a portion of the parcels designated as Mixed Use in the Contra Costa Boulevard Focus Area.
These parcels include a built-out neighborhood located east of Contra Costa Boulevard and South of Elda Drive. This neighborhood represents approximately 40 percent of the acreage Program F committed to rezone from R-7 to Mixed Use.
o Downzoning a portion of the parcels designated as Neighborhood Mixed Use in the Gregory Lane Focus area because the sites are positioned along interior streets and back to Gregory Lane. These parcels represent a majority of the acreage Program F committed to rezone from R7 to Mixed Use Neighborhood. o Downzoning a portion of the Cleaveland/Beatrice sites.
Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 7 HCD Response
In response to Mintier Harnish’s inquiry, HCD provided the following information, which is paraphrased from the conversation for brevity:
o Following the certification of Housing Elements, HCD will continue to monitor and review the agreed upon program implementation and/or lack of implementation, which can potentially lead to non-compliance.
Non-compliance with Housing Element programs would trigger decertification of the Housing Element. If this occurs, the City must revise the Housing Element and re-submit it to HCD for review and recertification. o Reverting back to a lower density where programs were intending to increase housing choices/intensities without any kind of alternative action will draw HCD’s attention and can lead to enforcement actions and penalties.
o When evaluating potential changes to a certified Housing Element, it is important to note that Fair Housing Programs have more flexibility for modification than the sites inventory. In addition, it is important to note that small changes do not immediately trigger HCD enforcement actions. However, even for Fair Housing Programs, such as Program F, the City should make up for any significant loss of capacity and housing choices in another way.
o Downzoning areas of the City will trigger compliance with No Net Loss Law and the Housing Crisis Act (SB 330, 2019). The City will need to navigate and consider the ramifications of not meeting existing laws. o The City is required to maintain capacity to meet the RHNA throughout the planning period of this Housing Element (2023-2031). Changes are allowed to the sites included in the sites inventory, but an alternative action must be completed to ensure no net loss of RHNA capacity occurs. Significant changes to the sites inventory will require updating the Housing Element, sites inventory form, and the analysis of RHNA sites required as part of the Affirmatively Furthering Fair Housing Analysis. Minor changes to the sites inventory are unlikely to require an amendment to the Housing Element if the City can maintain capacity to meet the RHNA in all income categories.
Consultant Recommendation
Based on the discussion with HCD in response to the request by City staff on potential land use changes to the Housing Element, Mintier Harnish has prepared a formal Consultant recommendation to the City Council on how to proceed, as follows.
• Contra Costa Boulevard Focus Area. Redesignating/rezoning the neighborhood surrounding East Vivian Drive to a lower density designation and zone would significantly reduce the City’s ability to implement Program F and increase the possibility of de-certification of the Housing Element. Due to the significant acreage and capacity, such a change is not recommended without an alternative action that increases housing choices and capacity elsewhere in the City. However, the City may re-designate and rezone the parcels to allow multifamily residential uses, rather than mixed use, but the designation and corresponding zone must allow for 40 du/ac or an alternative action will be needed to ensure compliance with SB 330.
• Gregory Lane Boulevard Focus Area. Due to the minimal acreage, redesignating/rezoning the parcels backing to Gregory Lane is unlikely to significantly impact the City’s ability to implement Program F.
However, the City must ensure compliance with requirements of the Housing Crisis Act (SB 330, 2019). • Cleaveland/Beatrice Parcels. As stated above, the City is considering downzoning some of the Cleaveland/Beatrice sites. Redesignating/rezoning a portion of these parcels to allow lower density Memorandum to the City of Pleasant Hill
Potential Revisions to 2040 General Plan Land Use Diagram – HCD Coordination Thursday, October 15, 2026 8 development must include an alternative action that ensures that above moderate-income RHNA capacity is maintained or the City will be in violation of No Net Loss law. The City should increase density parcels at this site (or elsewhere) to counteract the capacity lost by decreasing density on the downzoned parcels within 180 days, unless sufficient surplus capacity already exists in the inventory. If the City maintains sufficient capacity to meet the above moderate RHNA, the Consultants believe that the changes can be communicated to HCD through an update to the required sites inventory form, without requiring the City to revise and re-adopt the Housing Element. However, if there is not sufficient capacity, the City will have to propose an alternative action (e.g., adding a new site to the sites inventory), which would likely require revision of the Housing Element and review and re-certification by HCD.