To help spur more residential development, Santa Clara will allow developers to pay park fees later than it previously allowed.

At its Nov. 4 meeting, the Santa Clara City Council voted unanimously to allow developers to pay money toward park development — typically called park in-lieu fees — later in the permitting process. Typically, the city collects the fees when it issues a building permit. However, the change shifts that to when it issues a certificate of occupancy or final inspection.

Reena Brilliot, business development and sustainability director, told the council that the city had “an exceptionally strong year” for bringing new housing developments online. The city saw 2,361 new residential units built so far this year.

But, Brilliot said, those housing units were approved several years ago. The city typically issues around 1,000 residential building permits a year. So far this year, the city has issued only 511; in 2024, it issued a measly 114. 

Deferring park in-lieu fees could help provide developers incentives, Brilliot said. Rising labor and material costs, some of which are due to federal tariffs, as well as inflation, have made financing development projects more difficult.

“Our future isn’t looking as bright as today,” Brilliot said. “If we can exclude impact fees from being in that time in which those interest loans are the highest, we can also save these projects a sizable amount of money.”

Park in-lieu fees are the largest impact fees the city collects.

Brilliot said the fees were also attractive because they are the most “straightforward.” While she said the change will not solve the problem, it is a step in the right direction.

The change piggybacks on a new state law that goes into effect at the start of next year.

“The main problem we are trying to solve here is that it is challenging to develop,” said Vice Mayor Kelly Cox.

Council Member Suds Jain, as well as others, said locking in fees early in the development process only to collect the money later, when that money is less valuable because of inflation, left a bad taste in his mouth.

Steve Edwards, with Ensemble Investments, called the change a “pro-housing move.”

“Every dollar counts right now, and this will be a big help,” he said.

Stadium Relations Committee To Address Concerns Ahead of Marquee Events

The council also quibbled over the establishment of a Stadium Neighborhood Relations Committee.

The committee is designed to address neighborhood issues surrounding the large-scale stadium events — FIFA World Cup games and the Super Bowl — to be held next year. Issues such as traffic, noise, parking, curfew, creek trail impacts and rideshare drop-off zones will get addressed.

Paulina Morales, assistant city manager, said the goal is to engage stakeholders and to evaluate and enhance outreach.

Council Member Suds Jain, who had thrice suggested such a committee be formed, called the proposal a “long time coming.”

But the council was at loggerheads as to the committee’s structure. Some argued it should be a standing committee — one that meets on an ongoing basis — as opposed to an ad hoc committee, which is established for a narrow time with a specific goal.

The contention revolved around having a business owner and a resident sit on the committee.

Council Member Raj Chahal called forming the committee without such input a “Band-Aid solution,” adding that the council knows the issues regarding the stadium because it commissioned a study on it a few years back.

However, City Manager Jovan Grogan informed the council that if such people sat on the committee, it would need to be a standing committee. As a result, it would be subject to state law that governs public meetings. That would mean issues brought to the committee could not be addressed unless they were on the agenda.

Council Members Kevin Park, Jain and Chahal supported having a standing committee, but were outvoted by their colleagues.

Many supported Council Member Albert Gonzalez, whose district the stadium is in, but it took a bit of back and forth before the council established the other two committee members.

The council decided to appoint Council Member Karen Hardy, Jain and Gonzalez, with Chahal as an alternate.

Michele Ryan, longtime Santa Claran, said Hardy and Jain deserved the appointment. Both have been talking about stadium issues for 15 years.

“They have proven themselves to be advocates for this committee on this specific issue,” she said. “They knew what was coming, and they have been fighting for this for a very long time.”

Grogan told the council that after the committee sunsets, the city will evaluate whether to re-establish it on an ongoing basis as a standing committee. He added that, because it is ad hoc, the committee can opt to meet more frequently than city employees have proposed.

The committee is scheduled to meet four times at Northside Branch Library, 695 Moreland Way in Santa Clara: in December, in February or March, in May and in August next year. Specific dates have not been set.

The next regularly scheduled meeting is 7 p.m. Tuesday, Nov. 18 in the Council Chambers at City Hall, 1500 Warburton Ave. in Santa Clara.

Members of the public can participate in the City Council meetings on Zoom at https://santaclaraca.zoom.us/j/99706759306; Meeting ID: 997-0675-9306 or call 1 (669) 900-6833, via the City’s eComment (available during the meeting) or by email to PublicComment@santaclaraca.gov.

Contact David Alexander at d.todd.alexander@gmail.com

Previous City Council Posts:
Community Events For FIFA And Super Bowl Get Santa Clara City Council Thumbs-up
Santa Clara Council Approves Amendment To BART Extension
Council Approves Super Bowl Agreements