By Pam Marino, Monterey County Weekly, June 9, 2022
“Over the past decade, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, [dwelling units in Pacific Grove] increased from 8,263 to 8,559. [HCD] is now tasking the city with planning for … adding 1,125 more units … 2023 through 2031.
“Several [planning] commissioners said that the original number suggested by the Association of Monterey Bay Area Governments for P.G., approximately 650, was already too high. The commission voted 5-2 to request that the P.G. City Council appeal the new RHNA number, [but] the Council … declined to appeal.
“City staff now have a big task ahead: updating the city’s [general] plan that hasn’t been touched since 1994 [when the city had 85 vacant residential sites] … and making zoning changes that in some cases could mean asking voters to overturn earlier zoning restrictions. The deadline is December 2023.
“[P.G. Housing Manager Anastacia] Wyatt says the city [is] looking at sites owned by the city, school district, and California American Water. Wyatt has also been in discussions with churches that are open to building on unused portions of their properties.”