The San Benito County Board of Supervisors is expected to
approve a measure that would make it easier for families to stay
together.
The San Benito County Board of Supervisors is expected to approve a measure that would make it easier for families to stay together.
During its 9:30 a.m. meeting Tuesday, the Board will review and vote on a measure to lower the traffic impact fees charged for the construction of second housing units for seniors on lots by more than $5,000.
The measure would reduce the traffic impact fee for the structures, commonly known as “granny units,” from the current $15,464 per unit to $10,206.
The savings would make it less expensive for homeowners to build a granny unit on their property and move up to two seniors into the living space.
The only restriction on the granny units is that they could not be used to house a second family.
“The most a senior second unit could house is two people,” county Planning Director Rob Mendiola said.
The Board discussed possibly reducing the traffic impact fee on granny units about a month ago, agreeing in principle that the reduction of fees would not only make it easier for families to stay together but would be fair because seniors generally do not have as great an overall effect on traffic as their younger adult counterparts.
Younger adults are more likely than seniors to have two or more cars. That, combined with children who also drive, increases the frequency of car usage more than seniors who drive.
Under the measure, for a project to be viewed a senior second unit it must be occupied by at least one person age 62 years or older.
The two-person-per-unit limit is less than the average of 3.034 people per household in the unincorporated sections of the county, according to statistics from the state’s Department of Finance.
If the measure is approved by the Board it will become an amendment to the housing element of the county’s General Plan.
The senior second units are also viewed as a way of providing a source of affordable housing for seniors.
