Hollister
– A recent loss of apartment units to condominium conversions
has put strains on Hollister’s already tight rental housing market
and has the City Council considering a moratorium that would
temporarily halt such conversions.
Hollister – A recent loss of apartment units to condominium conversions has put strains on Hollister’s already tight rental housing market and has the City Council considering a moratorium that would temporarily halt such conversions.
A staff report by City Planner Mary Paxton notes that four projects totaling 44 apartment units have been approved for conversion since Nov. 16. According to the report, Hollister’s rental vacancy rate is 2.1 percent, much lower than the 5 to 6 percent that signifies a healthy housing market.
Single-family homes account for 80 percent of Hollister’s housing stock, while apartments make up only 17.3 percent, the report said.
City Manager Clint Quilter said the moratorium should give the city time to come up with a long-term solution to the apartment squeeze.
Dennis Lalor, executive director of local affordable housing group South County Housing, said the moratorium sounds like a smart move.
“If the rental housing is in, it would be very imprudent to let it go,” Lalor said. “Once it’s gone, we’d be very, very hard-pressed to replace it.”
Architect David Huboi, who sits on the city planning commission, said renters are dealing with the housing shortage by packing more people into each apartment.
But Huboi believes the condo conversions also serve an important function. He noted that the owners of the last conversion approved by the planning commission – the Village Green apartment complex on Tres Pinos Road – will be offering a 10 percent discount to current renters.
“I think it’s a creative way of coming up with resources for first-time home buyers,” Huboi said.
If it’s approved by four of the five councilmembers, the moratorium would be in effect from Feb. 20 to March 28. The council will be required to issue a written report detailing more long-term solutions by March 19.
Quilter said it’s too early to talk about what those solutions might be.
“That’s what that time is for,” he said. “If we already had options, we’d present them to the council right now.”
Councilmembers Doug Emerson and Pauline Valdivia both said they will support the moratorium.
“What we need to do right now is get good data … so we can make the right decision,” Emerson said.
Valdivia said she would like to see criteria established for converting rental units to condominiums. Those guidelines, she said, could include a limit on how many units get converted or a requirement that the developers pay a fee to fund affordable rentals elsewhere.
“My major concern is, ‘What’s going to happen to the people?'” Valdivia said.
Anthony Ha covers local government for the Free Lance. Reach him at 831-637-5566 ext. 330 or ah*@fr***********.com.
