336 Pacific Avenue Shafter, CA 93263
Meeting Held In-Person and Via Zoom and Livestream on YouTube.
AGENDA
SPECIAL JOINT MEETING
SHAFTER CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION
TUESDAY, OCTOBER 6, 2026
NOTICE TO THE PUBLIC:
Any documents produced by the City and distributed to a majority of the City Council regarding any item on this agenda will be made available in the City Clerk’s Office during normal business hours at City Hall located at 336 Pacific Avenue, Shafter CA. In addition, such documents will be posted on the City’s website at www.shafter.com.
CALL TO ORDER: 5:00 P.M.
1. City Council
2. Planning Commission
ROLL CALL: Mayor Givens Chairman Joshan
Mayor Pro Tem Olvera Vice Chairman Piuser
Council Member Alvarado Commissioner Camacho
Council Member Espinoza Commissioner Sanchez
Council Member Prout Commissioner Simmons
APPROVAL OF AGENDA:
1. City Council
2. Planning Commission
PUBLIC COMMENT:
This portion of the meeting is reserved for persons wanting to address the Council only on matters listed on this agenda. Speakers are limited to five minutes unless additional time is needed for translation. Please state your name and address for the record before making your presentation.
MANAGEMENT REPORT:
1. PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS: a request to receive and file this informational report regarding the City’s upcoming revisions to the Sixth Cycle Housing Element and related amendments to the General Plan Land Use Element, Zoning Map, and Zoning Ordinance. No legislative action or project approval is requested at this time.
ADJOURNMENT:
1. City Council
2. Planning Commission
Pursuant to the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in a City Council Meeting, please contact the City Clerk at (661) 746-5000 at least three (3) days prior to the meeting or time the special services are needed to allow City staff in making reasonable arrangements to provide you with access to the meeting. Any public record, relating to an open session agenda item, that is distributed within 72 hours prior to the meeting is available for public inspection in the City Clerk’s Office at Shafter City Hall, 336 Pacific Ave., Shafter, CA 93263. This is to certify that this Agenda notice was posted at City Hall and Police Dept. by 5:00 p.m., October 1, 2026. Yazmina Pallares, S/S, City Clerk
REMOTE PUBLIC PARTICIPATION IS ALLOWED IN THE FOLLOWING WAYS, SEE BELOW FOR INSTRUCTIONS.
1. You are strongly encouraged to observe the City Council meetings live via YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/CityofShafter/
2. If you wish to make a comment on a specific agenda item or public comment, please submit your comment via email by 5:00 PM on October 6, 2026 to the City Clerk at [email protected]
3. If you wish to make a written comment to the City Clerk, 336 Pacific Avenue, Shafter, CA 93263.
4. If you wish to make a comment during the live meeting, callers must first register with the City Clerk at 661-746-5012 before the meeting begins to receive instructions and the call- in number and code. Please call by 5:00pm on the Monday prior to the City Council meeting to allow ample time for sign up. You will need to provide your name, phone number and the item number you wish to address.
5. All public comments are provided to the City Council and applicable Staff, for review and consideration by the Board prior to taking action on any matters listed on the agenda and are incorporated into the official record of the City Council meeting.
336 Pacific Avenue • Shafter, CA 93263
NOTICE OF
SPECIAL MEETING OF THE
SHAFTER CITY COUNCIL AND PLANNING COMMISSION
NOTICE IS HEREBY GIVEN that a special meeting of the City Council and Planning Commission of the City of Shafter will be held on Tuesday, October 6, 2026.
The meeting will convene at 5:00 p.m., in the Council Chambers at the Shafter City Hall, 336 Pacific Avenue, Shafter, California. Said special meeting shall be for the following purpose:
MANAGEMENT REPORT:
1. PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS: a request to receive and file this informational report regarding the City’s upcoming revisions to the Sixth Cycle Housing Element and related amendments to the General Plan Land Use Element, Zoning Map, and Zoning Ordinance. No legislative action or project approval is requested at this time.
Yazmina Pallares, City Clerk
Affidavit of Posting Special Meeting Notice
This is to certify that this Special Meeting Notice was posted at City Hall and the Police Department by 5:00 p.m., October 6, 2026. Further information regarding this Agenda Notice is available at City Hall, 336 Pacific Ave., Shafter, CA.
Yazmina Pallares, S/S, City Clerk
Dated: October 1, 2026
MANAGEMENT REPORT
CITY OF SHAFTER
CITY COUNCIL REPORT
MEETING DATE: October 6, 2026
DEPARTMENT: Steve Esselman, Planning Director
SUBJECT: PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS
RECOMMENDATION
Council receive and file this informational report regarding the City’s upcoming revisions to the Sixth Cycle Housing Element and related amendments to the General Plan Land Use Element, Zoning Map, and Zoning Ordinance. No legislative action or project approval is requested at this time.
BACKGROUND
The City is preparing a focused update to its certified 2023–2031 Housing Element and related land use and zoning amendments. The work is necessary to complete the rezoning program required by Housing Element Program 1.1.1 and to maintain adequate sites for the City’s lower-income share of the Regional Housing Needs Allocation (RHNA). The required rezoning must be completed by March 2027.
The proposed changes would affect approximately 345 gross acres across 12 parcels within the existing city limits. The parcels are located in three areas of Shafter and are currently vacant or used for agriculture, but all are already designated for urban development in the General Plan. The amendments would increase residential capacity, align General Plan and zoning designations, and establish compatible residential, commercial, and public-use patterns around the higher-density housing sites.
The City adopted its 2023–2031 Housing Element in 2024 and subsequently received certification from the California Department of Housing and Community Development.
Program 1.1.1 requires the City to rezone enough land to accommodate its remaining lower-income housing allocation within three years of Housing Element adoption, establishing a March 2027 completion deadline.
After adoption, staff coordinated with owners of properties included in the Housing Element Sites Inventory to evaluate whether the originally identified rezonings could be implemented within the required timeframe. Based on that coordination, the City identified an alternative rezoning strategy intended to satisfy State requirements while better accounting for property-owner input, site planning considerations, and compatibility with surrounding uses.
PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS
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Housing Capacity Requirement
Shafter’s total RHNA for the 2023–2031 planning period is 3,294 units. Of the 1,109 units assigned to the lower-income categories, the adopted Housing Element identified capacity for 174 units on vacant sites that already had appropriate zoning, leaving a rezoning obligation of 935 units. A subsequently entitled affordable housing project provides 174 lower-income units, reducing the remaining capacity that must be addressed through rezoning to 761 units.
Under State housing law, a site rezoned after the beginning of the planning period must allow residential development at a minimum density of 20 dwelling units per acre to be counted toward the lower-income RHNA. The proposed revisions would document the updated rezoning strategy in the Housing Element Sites Inventory and Program 1.1.1.
Other Housing Element changes would be limited to related dates, references, and other non-substantive updates.
Proposed Land Use and Zone Changes
The current concept includes changes to the General Plan Land Use Element, Zoning Map, and Zoning Ordinance for approximately 345 gross acres across 12 parcels. The sites are distributed among three areas, which disperses the additional housing capacity rather than concentrating it in one location. The following table provides a general overview of the three proposed areas and Exhibit 1 provides a map of the current and proposed general plan land use changes and Exhibit 2 the current and proposed zoning changes that would occur if the Housing Element revisions are approved in the future.
Area Net Change in
Dwelling Units
Net Change in
Nonresidential
Area
Planning Emphasis
Fresno Avenue and
SR-43
+348 No change City-owned sites;
higher-density
residential capacity
South of Los
Angeles Street
+537 +114,345 sq. ft. Residential changes
and commercial
frontage oriented
towards SR-43
Lerdo Highway and
Golds Avenue
+951 -338,026 sq. ft. Residential,
commercial, and
public-use changes
Total +1,836 -223,681 sq. ft. 2,636-unit total
capacity on
affected parcels
PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS
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The proposed amendments would increase capacity on the affected parcels from approximately 800 units to 2,636 units. They would also reduce potential nonresidential development by approximately 224,000 square feet overall. Rezoning establishes permitted land uses and development standards; it does not approve a specific development project or authorize construction.
Proposed Zone Change
The proposed Zoning Ordinance amendment would add a note to the R-3 development standards implementing California Government Code section 65583.2 for Housing Element sites rezoned to accommodate very-low- and low-income households. These sites would be required to develop at a minimum density of 20 dwelling units per acre.
A qualifying housing project that reserves at least 20 percent of its units for lowerincome households would be eligible for ministerial, by-right review as required by State law.
Site Characteristics and Compatibility
All 12 parcels are within the existing city boundary and are either vacant or in agricultural use. None are subject to Williamson Act contracts. Based on the California Department of Conservation’s Important Farmland Finder, all but one are identified as Prime Farmland, which is characteristic of much of Shafter’s undeveloped area. The sites are outside the Shafter Minter Field Airport compatibility zones and identified flood and wildfire hazard areas, and they adjoin existing urbanized development with access to water and wastewater services.
The proposed mix of higher-density residential, lower-density residential, commercial, and public uses is intended to create transitions between housing sites and surrounding development, improve access to goods and services, and support future subdivision or lot-line adjustments. Future development proposals would remain subject to applicable development standards, infrastructure requirements, and project-level review.
Consistency with State Housing Requirements
The amendments are intended to provide sufficient capacity for the City’s remaining lower-income RHNA obligation and maintain adequate housing capacity throughout the planning period. The additional capacity would also support compliance with State noPage 6 of 9
PROPOSED HOUSING ELEMENT REVISIONS
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net-loss requirements, including Senate Bill 330 and Government Code Section 65863, by providing a margin above the City’s remaining rezoning need.
Environmental Review
The City is evaluating the proposed amendments under the California Environmental Quality Act. The current approach anticipates using the certified Program Environmental Impact Report for the 2005 General Plan Update, together with an addendum addressing the proposed Housing Element, General Plan, and zoning changes. Environmental documentation will be completed and presented with the proposed amendments before the City Council is asked to take legislative action.
Next Steps
The City is hosting an Open House on October 8th at 6:00 PM at the Shafter Police Department to inform the community and discuss any questions about the proposed revisions. After evaluating input from this study session, the Open House, and any other public comments received, City staff will submit a draft of the revised Housing Element to California Department of Housing and Community Development for formal review.
Staff and the City’s consultants will continue refining the parcel-level amendments, preparing the environmental documentation, coordinating with affected property owners, and completing the required public review process. The Planning Commission and City Council will consider the proposed amendments at future public hearings.
Staff’s schedule is organized around completing the required rezoning before the March 2027 deadline.
FISCAL IMPACT
There is no fiscal impact associated with receiving this informational report. Any fiscal implications associated with future implementation or individual development proposals will be evaluated as those actions are brought forward for consideration.
CEQA ANALYSIS
This item does not require discretionary action as it is for informational purposes only.
Therefore, it does not trigger CEQA review.
APPROVED BY THE CITY ATTORNEY
No
ATTACHMENTS
1. Exhibit 1 - Current and Proposed General Plan Land Use
2. Exhibit 2 - Current and Proposed Zoning
EXHIBIT 1 Current and Proposed General Plan Land Use
EXHIBIT 2 Current and Proposed Zoning